DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
This Office Action is in response to preliminary amendment filing on 02/08/2024.
Claims 7-8 and 14-15 have been cancelled.
Claim 1- 6 and 9-13 are currently pending and have been considered below.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of papers submitted under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d), which
papers have been placed of record in the file.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 02/08/2024. These drawings are reviewed and accepted by the Examiner.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 02/08/2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1-6 and 9-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over by applicant’s submission of prior art 3GPP TR 33.857 V0.6.0.
Regarding claim 1, 3GPP TR 33.857 discloses a method performed by an authentication server function (AUSF) entity in a wireless communication system, the method comprising:
receiving an authentication request message of a terminal for a standalone non-public network (SNPN) registration via an access and mobility management function (AMF) entity (page 16, Figure 6.1.2-1, step 2: AUSF receives, from AMF, Nausf_UEAuthentication_AuthenticateRequest for UE registration in SNPN);
receiving, from a unified data management (UDM) entity , a message comprising information indicating that primary authentication of the terminal for the SNPN registration needs to be performed by an authentication server (page 16, Figure 6.1.2-1, step 5: NudroUEAuthenticationGetResponse which includes SUPI, AAAindicator AAA address and CdP UEID indicating that primary authentication is to be performed with AAA that is an external entity is received from UDM) external to the SNPN;
transmitting the authentication request message for the terminal to the selected authentication server (page 16, step 6: EAP-request is transmitted to AAA on the basis of information received from UDM);
receiving an authentication response message from the selected authentication server (and page 16, step 8: EAP-response is received as a response to the EAP-Request); and
transmitting the authentication response message to the terminal (pages 16-17, steps10 and 11: and if Nausf_UEAuthentication_AuthenticateResponse is transmitted to AMF, the AMF sends the MSK indicator to the UE in a NAS message).
3GPP TR 33.857 does not expressly disclose selecting an authentication server in which the primary authentication of the terminal is to be performed.
However, 3GPP TR 33.857 discloses, in different embodiment, this feature can be derived from wherein the AUSF uses SUPI received from the UDM so as to interact with AAA (e.g., server) to perform primary authentication, see section 6.1.2.1, steps 2, 3, 5 and 6.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective date of the claimed invention to combine embodiments of 3GPP TR 33.857 in order to support onboarding and enable secure access using third-party credentials.
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective date of the claimed invention to combine the embodiments of 3GPP TR 33.857 in order to arrive at the invention specified in claim 1.
Regarding claim 2, 3GPP TR 33.857 discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the information indicating that the primary authentication of the terminal for the SNPN registration needs to be performed by the authentication server external to the SNPN is included in the message in case that the UDM entity determines that the primary authentication of the terminal for the SNPN registration needs to be performed by the authentication server external to the SNPN (the AUSF uses SUPI received from the UDM so as to interact with AAA (e.g., server) to perform primary authentication, see section 6.1.2.1,steps 2, 3, 5 and 6), based on at least one of subscriber information of the terminal and a subscription permanent identifier (SUPI) of the terminal (the AUSF uses SUPI received from the UDM so as to interact with AAA, section 6.1.2.1, steps 5 and 6).
Regarding claim 3, 3GPP TR 33.857 discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the selecting of the authentication server comprises selecting the authentication server, based on a subscription permanent identifier (SUPI) of the terminal (The AUSF uses SUPI received from the UDM so as to interact with AAA (i.e., the server) to perform primary authentication, section 6.1.2.1, steps 5 and 6).
Regarding claim 4, 3GPP TR 33.857 discloses a method performed by a terminal (for UE registration, page 16, Figure 6.1.2-1) in a wireless communication system, the method comprising: transmitting a first authentication request message to an authentication server function (AUSF) entity (Figure 6.1.2-1, upon the UE registration Request (SUCI) with the AMF, at step 1. At step 2: the AMF transmits Nausf_UE Authentication Authenticate Request for UE registration in SNPN to the AUSF); and receiving, from the AUSF entity, a first authentication response message that is a response message to the first authentication request message (Nausf_UE Authentication_ Authenticate Response is transmitted to AMF, page 16, Figure 6.1.2-1 step 10), wherein the first authentication response message is received from the AUSF entity (Nausf_UE Authentication_ Authenticate Response is transmitted to AMF, page 16, Figure 6.1.2-1 step 10), and the authentication server being selected based on that the AUSF (Figure 6.1.2-1, step 2) entity receives, via an access and mobility management function (AMF) entity, the first authentication request message of the terminal for a standalone non-public network (SNPN) registration (page 16, Figure 6.1.2-1, step 2: AUSF receives, from AMF, Nausf_UEAuthentication_AuthenticateRequest for UE registration in SNPN), and receives, from a unified data management (UDM) entity, a message comprising information indicating that the primary authentication of the terminal for the SNPN registration needs to be performed by an authentication server external to the SNPN (page 16, Figure 6.1.2-1, step 5: NudroUEAuthenticationGetResponse which includes SUPI, AAAindicator AAA address and CdP UEID indicating that primary authentication is to be performed with AAA that is an external entity is received from UDM).
3GPP TR 33.857 does not expressly disclose in case that the AUSF entity receives a second authentication response message for the terminal from an authentication server in which primary authentication of the terminal is to be performed, wherein the second authentication response message is received in response to a second authentication request message for the terminal, which is transmitted to the authentication server in which the primary authentication of the terminal is to be performed.
However, 3GPP TR 33.857 discloses, in different embodiment, this feature can be derived from wherein the AUSF uses SUPI received from the UDM so as to interact with AAA (e.g., server) to perform primary authentication, see section 6.1.2.1, steps 2, 3, 5 and 6, and NudroUEAuthenticationGetResponse which includes SUPI, AAAindicator AAA address and CdP UEID indicating that primary authentication is to be performed with AAA that is an external entity is received from UDM, page 16, Figure 6.1.2-1, step 5.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective date of the claimed invention to combine embodiments of 3GPP TR 33.857 in order to support onboarding and enable secure access using third-party credentials.
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective date of the claimed invention to combine the embodiments of 3GPP TR 33.857 in order to arrive at the invention specified in claim 1.
Regarding claim 5, 3GPP TR 33.857 discloses the method of claim 4, wherein the information indicating that the primary authentication of the terminal for the SNPN registration needs to be performed by the authentication server external to the SNPN is included in the message in case that the UDM entity determines that the primary authentication of the terminal for the SNPN registration needs to be performed by the authentication server external to the SNPN (the AUSF uses SUPI received from the UDM so as to interact with AAA (e.g., server) to perform primary authentication, see section 6.1.2.1,steps 2, 3, 5 and 6), based on at least one of subscriber information of the terminal and a subscription permanent identifier (SUPI) of the terminal (the AUSF uses SUPI received from the UDM so as to interact with AAA, section 6.1.2.1, steps 5 and 6).
Regarding claim 6, 3GPP TR 33.857 discloses the method of claim 4, wherein the selecting of the authentication server comprises selecting the authentication server, based on a subscription permanent identifier (SUPI) of the terminal (The AUSF uses SUPI received from the UDM so as to interact with AAA (i.e., the server) to perform primary authentication, section 6.1.2.1, steps 5 and 6).
Claims 7-8 (Cancelled)
Claim 9 contains subject matter similar to claim 1, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale. (3GPP TR 33.857, Figure 6.1.2-1: AUSF entity).
Claim 10 contains subject matter similar to claim 2, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 11 contains subject matter similar to claim 3, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claim 12 contains subject matter similar to claim 4, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale (3GPP TR 33.857, Figure 6.1.2-1: UE, page 16, step 1, the UE selects the SNPN).
Claim 13 contains subject matter similar to claim 5, and thus, is rejected under similar rationale.
Claims 14-15 (Cancelled)
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US 12015917 to Gundavelli et al: Delivering standalone non-public network (SNPN) credentials from an enterprise authentication server to a user equipment (UE) using an Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP) process.
US 20220038898 to Stojanovski et al: An apparatus of user equipment (UE) comprises one or more baseband processors to process at least one non-public network (NPN) identifier (NPN-ID) broadcast by an NPN and zero or more Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) identifier (PLMN-ID) broadcast by a PLMN.
US 20230075285 to Jung et al: UE may be configured with a list of stand-alone non-public networks (SNPN) identifiers, a list of group identifiers of network and a list of bitmaps, which have a relationship.
US 20230284119 to Kim et al: Access to a stand-alone non-public network (SNPN) by using credential owned by an entity separated from the SNPN; and support for an F1 interface therefor.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JULIO R PEREZ whose telephone number is (571)272-7846. The examiner can normally be reached 10Am - 6PM EST M-F.
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/JULIO R PEREZ/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2644