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 .
Response to Amendment
This communication is in response to the amendment of 6/11/2026. All changes made to the claims have been entered. Accordingly, Claims 13, 14, 17-20, 23-26 are currently pending in the application.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the subject matter of
“based on receiving, from an upper layer, a first service data unit (SDU), starting, by a user equipment (UE), a discard timer for the first SDU; and based on the discard timer for the first SDU expiring, discarding, by the UE, the first SDU along with a first protocol data unit (PDU) including the first SDU, wherein, based on the discard timer for the first SDU expiring, all of the second SDUs belonging to a PDU set to which the first SDU belongs along with second PDUs including the second SDUs are discarded” must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim 13, 19, 25, 26 (dependent claims also being rejected since they are dependent upon rejected claims set forth) is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Independent claim 13 recites the subject matter “based on receiving, from an upper layer, a first service data unit (SDU), starting, by a user equipment (UE), a discard timer for the first SDU; and based on the discard timer for the first SDU expiring, discarding, by the UE, the first SDU along with a first protocol data unit (PDU) including the first SDU, wherein, based on the discard timer for the first SDU expiring, all of the second SDUs belonging to a PDU set to which the first SDU belongs along with second PDUs including the second SDUs are discarded” However such subject matter do not seem to be disclosed in the Specification and/or drawings. Examiner suggests amending such subject matter or specifically pointing out such subject matter. Similar rationale is applied to independent claims 19, 25, 26 reciting similar subject matter.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 13, 19, 25, 26 (dependent claims also being rejected since they are dependent upon rejected claims set forth) is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 13 recites the limitation "the second SDUs" in line 8. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 19 recites the limitation "the second SDUs" in line 13. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 25 recites the limitation "the second SDUs" in line 12. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 26 recites the limitation "the second SDUs" in line 10. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Independent claim 13 recites the subject matter “based on the discard timer for the first SDU expiring, discarding, by the UE, the first SDU along with a first protocol data unit (PDU) including the first SDU, wherein, based on the discard timer for the first SDU expiring, all of the second SDUs belonging to a PDU set to which the first SDU belongs along with second PDUs including the second SDUs are discarded”. It is however unclear on exactly what is meant by such subject matter. Examiner suggests clarifying such subject matter. Similar rationale is applied to independent claims 19, 25, 26 reciting similar subject matter.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 13, 14, 17-20, 23-26 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Chun et al. (US 2016/0286426) disclosing the PDCP entity start a timer for a PDCP SDU when the PDCP SDU is received from an upper layer ([0066]-[0068]).
Sammour et al. (US 2009/0103478) disclosing more than one SDU/PDU are associated with the same timer ([0068] and [0061]).
Sharma et al. (US 11930391) disclosing starting a first discard timer associated with the first service data unit (col 25 lines 5-15).
Yi (US 12556966) disclosing based on receiving a first service data unit (SDU) and a second SDU from an upper layer, starting a first timer for the first SDU and a second timer for the second SDU, wherein, based on the first timer being expired, the first SDU is discarded (col 34 lines 50-60).
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NGUYEN HOANG NGO whose telephone number is (571)272-8398. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9am-5pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kwang Yao can be reached at 571-272-3182. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/NGUYEN H NGO/Examiner, Art Unit 2473
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