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 Remarks
This Office action is considered fully responsive to the amendments filed 06/24/2026.
Claims 1-16 and 19-22 are pending in the application. Claims 17-18 were previously cancelled. Claims 1-16 and 19-22 are currently amended.
The Specification objection is withdrawn in light of Applicant’s amendments.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed on 06/24/2026 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of (US 20160057801 A1).
Regarding the independent claims, see the U.S.C. 103 rejection below.
Regarding all dependent claims, see the U.S.C. 103 rejection below.
The Claim Rejections section below details the rejections of the instant claims.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
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 1-12, 19-22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ling et al. WO 2019228856 A1 (for purposes of examination, Examiner cites to English language equivalent U.S. Pub. (US 20210195381 A1), hereinafter referred to as “Ling”), in view of Xia et al. (US 20160057801 A1) here in referred to as Xia1.
Regarding claim 1 (Currently Amended), Ling teaches a method in a Broadcast Multicast Service Center BM-SC ([0005] describes that the BM-SC provides group communication delivery by receiving UDP/IP packets and forwarding them over the MBMS path provided by the MBMS Bearer Service. [0012]-[0013] explain how the BM-SC selects an IP address, UDP port, and uses the MBMS Bearer Status Indication Procedure to notify the GCS AS of conditions affecting the delivery of services), comprising:
transmitting a notification of a Multimedia Broadcast/Multicast Service MBMS bearer status to a Group Communication Service Application Server GCS AS ([0013] states “The BM-SC may use the MBMS Bearer Status Indication Procedure to notify the GCS AS of conditions affecting the delivery of services that use MBMS Delivery, for instance the expiry of a TMGI, activation of an MBMS bearer, and termination of an MBMS bearer.” That implies the method can transmit a notification of MBMS bearer status or session state to a Group Communication Service Application Server GCS AS through the server center, includes the data transfer start time in the event notification message for MBMS bearer activated, as stated in [0020]. This notification can help the GCS AS to manage the timing of data ((i.e., the accurate time to stop MBMS data delivery), as stated in [0017]), wherein the notification indicates a bearer event and an affected bearer (Tables 3-4, Fig. 3 (Steps 310 and 322), and [0050] states “the first message may be a bearer event notification message 310 (see FIG. 3) further comprising information indicating that the bearer was activated. The bearer event notification message 310 may consist of or comprise an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP. For example, bearer event notification message 310 may be a GCS-Notification-Request (GNR) command, an example of which is defined in section 6.6.4 of TS 29.468, that contains an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP. This disclosure proposes to modify the definition of the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP in TS 29.486. Currently, section 6.4.5. of TS 29.486 defines the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP as shown in table 3.” And both tables illustrate bearer event and an affected bearer via the fields as examples of the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification <AVP Header: 3503> , {TMGI} {MBMS-Flow-Identifier}, {MBMS-Bearer-Event} , [MBMS-Data-Transfer-Start], [MBMS-Data-Transfer-Stop], [AVP]. [0052] also clearly provides that the first message comprising information specifying the determined data transfer start time is a GNR command 310 that includes an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP that includes a MBMS-Data-Transfer-Start AVP that contains the information specifying the determined data transfer start time, where the TMGI and MBMS-Flow-Identifier can be considered as affected MBMS bearer. [0013], [0061] states “As shown in Table 6 above, message 1006 in one embodiment is an MBMS Session Start Response message defined in 3GPP TS 36.444 v 15.0.0 (“TS 36.444”) but extended to include the “Time of MBMS Data Transfer” IE.” That implies the table 6 includes information “critical diagnostics”. Table 7 and [0064] describes this IE labeled “Cause” which provide a reason that associated with MBMS bearer status or session state as stated in [0013]), and
Ling fails to teach contains a diagnostics reason of the bearer event.
However, Xia1 teaches contains a diagnostics reason of the bearer event (Figs. 3 and 6, [0009]-[0021] describe the restoration procedure to trigger different kinds of failures. [0029]-[0033], [0050], and [0110] depict that when the failure such as TMGI expiry or MBMSGW error is detected, the network node use cause codes in the session start response/failure message to indicate a specific diagnostic reason, for example [0029] “TMGI in Use and overlapping MBMS Service Area”, as also confirms in [0050] “In case of a failure in the communication network, such as e.g. a failure related to the SGSN, MME or MBMS-GW or related to a Sn/Sm path failure, the restoration procedure is enhanced by using at least one of a restoration flag, a cause code parameter, an adjusted session duration parameter and an adjusted time to data transfer parameter.” That means the cause code indicating the reason for the rejection/termination, see also [0082] and [0086]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding containing a diagnostics reason of the bearer event. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 2 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 1.
Ling further teaches wherein the bearer event comprises one or more of Bearer Terminated or Bearer Activated Failure ([0013] and [0016] state “In short, according to TS 29.468 15.2.0, the GCS AS does not know the accurate time to start or stop the MBMS data delivery (i.e., the user plane ready time), even after receiving a “Bearer Activated” event notification and “Bearer Terminated” event notification.” That confirms the MBMS bearer status includes Bearer Terminated or Bearer Activated Failure, see also [0024]).
Regarding claim 3 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 2.
Ling fails to teach wherein the diagnostics reason associated with Bearer Terminated.
However, Xia1 teaches wherein the diagnostics reason associated with Bearer Terminated ([0029]-[0032] provide the RNC return an MBMS SESSION START FAILURE message with the cause value “TMGI in Use and overlapping MBMS Service Area” where this PDP mentioned is short for Packet Data Protocol and TMGI is a parameter comprises in the MBMS Session Start request message and is short for Temporary Mobile Group Identity. The TMGI uniquely identifies the MBMS Bearer Service. then, some enhancements are required. That confirms the including of diagnostic reason associated with the bearer/session termination, see also [0052], [0087], and [0110] that describe how the cause code passed pack to the initiating node through the network) comprises one or more of: Temporary Mobile Group Identity TMGI expiry ([0029]-[0032] provide the RNC return an MBMS SESSION START FAILURE message with the cause value “TMGI in Use and overlapping MBMS Service Area” where this PDP mentioned is short for Packet Data Protocol and TMGI is a parameter comprises in the MBMS Session Start request message and is short for Temporary Mobile Group Identity. The TMGI uniquely identifies the MBMS Bearer Service. then, some enhancements are required.” That confirms the including of diagnostic reason associated with the bearer/session termination, see also [0041], [0087], and [0110] that describe how the cause code passed pack to the initiating node through the network),
MBMS-GW Permanent Error response,
non-transient SGmb path failure, or
user plane failure detected by MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW. (We don't give these limitations patentable weight due to the use of "or" which means the limitations are written in the alternative.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding containing a diagnostics reason of the bearer event. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 4 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 2.
Ling does not explicitly teach wherein the diagnostics reason associated with Bearer Activated Failure, comprises one or more of: MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW not established, transient SGmb path failure, non-transient SGmb path failure, MBMS-GW Permanent Error response, or MBMS-GW Transient Error response.
However, Xia1 teaches wherein the diagnostics reason (Fig. 5, [0012]-[0018] describes different node failures. [0051] lines 3-6 illustrates the session is being restored after failure. [0055] states “it possible to restore the MBMS Session over an alternative control plane which minimizes the impact to the MBMS service, when a failure is detected over the old control plane path“. [0082] sates “The purpose of restoration flag is to indicate restoration of the session established before the failure and allow the RAN node 201 to accept the Session Start request message for the session for very same service established as before the failure. “ [0131], lines 7-10 describes issues within the MBMS-GW, MMS, or RAN node. [0115] describes the path failures where the issues with the SGmb, SN, or Sm interface. Claim 2 depict the restoration procedure after failure. All these sections confirm that the cause or diagnostic information associated with Bearer Activated Failure or Session Inactive) comprises one or more of: MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW not established ([0103]-[0104] states “When the BM-SC 413 restarts (re-establish) a session towards a new MBMS-GW 407 (e.g., due to old MBMS-GW 407 restart or SGmb interface failure) while the session has been ongoing. [0104] When MBMS-GW 407 restarts a session towards a new MME/SGSN 405, 410 (due to old MME/SGSN 405, 410 restart or Sm/Sn path failure) while the session has been ongoing.” That implies including of the scenario where the MBMS gateway (NBMS-GW) is not established before), transient SGmb path failure, non-transient SGmb path failure ([0007] defines the SGmb as the reference point for the control plane between BM-SC and the MBMS-GW. [0011] describes that 3GPP addressed different kinds of failure scenarios, SGmb path failure is one of them. Fig. 4 and [0033] describes that the SGmb connection is temporary and exists only for the duration of a specific MPMS session or a particular operation, which means transient SGmb session), MBMS-GW Permanent Error response, or MBMS-GW Transient Error response. (We don't give these limitations patentable weight due to the use of "or" which means the limitations are written in the alternative.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW not established and transient SGmb path failure, non-transient SGmb path failure. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 5 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 2.
Ling fails to teach wherein the notification of Bearer Activated Failure is transmitted in response to expiry of MBMS Start Time.
However, Xia1 teaches wherein the notification of Bearer Activated Failure ([0025] and [0079] describe if the time expires without the session being successfully established , a notifications or failure messages can be trigger. [0082] states “The restoration flag may indicate to the second CN node 205 that it needs to retry with the session start request message after a timer in the old first CN node 203a expires.” Another example is described in [0098]. [0029] describes how the notification transmission send to inform the network node about the failure. That implies a notification of Bearer Activated Failure or Session Inactive is transmitted in response to expiry of MBMS Start Time).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW not established and transient SGmb path failure, non-transient SGmb path failure. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 6 (Currently Amended), Ling teaches a method in a Group Communication Service Application Server GCS AS ([0005] describes that the BM-SC provides group communication delivery by receiving UDP/IP packets and forwarding them over the MBMS path provided by the MBMS Bearer Service. [0012]-[0013] explain how the BM-SC selects an IP address, UDP port, and uses the MBMS Bearer Status Indication Procedure to notify the GCS AS of conditions affecting the delivery of services, which implies that the method includes SGS AS) comprising: receiving a notification of a Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service MBMS bearer status from a Broadcast Multicast Service Center BM-SC ([0013] states “The BM-SC may use the MBMS Bearer Status Indication Procedure to notify the GCS AS of conditions affecting the delivery of services that use MBMS Delivery, for instance the expiry of a TMGI, activation of an MBMS bearer, and termination of an MBMS bearer.” That implies the method can transmit a notification of MBMS bearer status or session state to a Group Communication Service Application Server GCS AS through the server center, includes the data transfer start time in the event notification message for MBMS bearer activated, as stated in [0020]. This notification can help the GCS AS to manage the timing of data ((i.e., the accurate time to stop MBMS data delivery), as stated in [0017]), wherein the notification indicates a bearer event and an affected bearer (Tables 3-4, Fig. 3 (Steps 310 and 322), and [0050] states “the first message may be a bearer event notification message 310 (see FIG. 3) further comprising information indicating that the bearer was activated. The bearer event notification message 310 may consist of or comprise an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP. For example, bearer event notification message 310 may be a GCS-Notification-Request (GNR) command, an example of which is defined in section 6.6.4 of TS 29.468, that contains an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP. This disclosure proposes to modify the definition of the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP in TS 29.486. Currently, section 6.4.5. of TS 29.486 defines the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP as shown in table 3.” And both tables illustrate bearer event and an affected bearer via the fields as examples of the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification <AVP Header: 3503> , {TMGI} {MBMS-Flow-Identifier}, {MBMS-Bearer-Event} , [MBMS-Data-Transfer-Start], [MBMS-Data-Transfer-Stop], [AVP]. [0052] also clearly provides that the first message comprising information specifying the determined data transfer start time is a GNR command 310 that includes an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP that includes a MBMS-Data-Transfer-Start AVP that contains the information specifying the determined data transfer start time, where the TMGI and MBMS-Flow-Identifier can be considered as affected MBMS bearer. [0013], [0061] states “As shown in Table 6 above, message 1006 in one embodiment is an MBMS Session Start Response message defined in 3GPP TS 36.444 v 15.0.0 (“TS 36.444”) but extended to include the “Time of MBMS Data Transfer” IE.” That implies the table 6 includes information “critical diagnostics”. Table 7 and [0064] describes this IE labeled “Cause” which provide a reason that associated with MBMS bearer status or session state as stated in [0013]), and
Ling fails to teach contains diagnostics reason of the bearer event .
However, Xia1 teaches contains a diagnostics reason of the bearer event (The method uses cause code/diagnostics reason to guide the subsequent actions after failure [0052]. Figs. 3 and 6, [0009]-[0021] describe the restoration procedure to trigger different kinds of failures. [0029]-[0033], [0050], and [0110] depict that when the failure such as TMGI expiry or MBMSGW error is detected, the network node use cause codes in the session start response/failure message to indicate a specific diagnostic reason, for example [0029] “TMGI in Use and overlapping MBMS Service Area”, as also confirms in [0050] “In case of a failure in the communication network, such as e.g. a failure related to the SGSN, MME or MBMS-GW or related to a Sn/Sm path failure, the restoration procedure is enhanced by using at least one of a restoration flag, a cause code parameter, an adjusted session duration parameter and an adjusted time to data transfer parameter.” That means the cause code indicating the reason for the rejection/ termination, see also [0082] and [0086]); and acting in response to the notification based on the diagnostics reason ([0009] states “The loss or corruption of these data will seriously degrade the service offered to wireless device subscribers. It is therefore necessary to define procedures to limit the effects of failure of a location register, and to restore the location register data automatically. Such restoration procedures are related to failure and/or restart of several types of network nodes and network paths/interfaces, such as e.g. MBMS-GW, MME, SGSN etc. “That describe the scenario when the failure is detected, the restoration procedure is indicated , see also [0052] states “the cause code is transmitted over the Sn interface. The cause code parameter is relevant for the case when the RAN node does not support the restoration flag and rejects session start message, so a new selected first CN node can pass the rejection cause (over Iu, i.e. “TMGI in Use and overlapping MBMS Service Area”) to …. second CN node has failed” which describe the action in response to the diagnostics reason/cause code, see also another example in [0110]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding containing a diagnostics reason of the bearer event. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 7 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 6.
Ling further teaches wherein the bearer event comprises one or more of Bearer Terminated or Bearer Activated Failure ([0013] and [0016] state “In short, according to TS 29.468 15.2.0, the GCS AS does not know the accurate time to start or stop the MBMS data delivery (i.e., the user plane ready time), even after receiving a “Bearer Activated” event notification and “Bearer Terminated” event notification.” That confirms the MBMS bearer status includes Bearer Terminated or Bearer Activated Failure, see also [0024]).
Regarding claim 8 (Currently Amended), Ling teaches the method of claim 7.
Ling fails to teach wherein the diagnostics reason associated with Bearer Terminated.
However, Xia1 teaches wherein the diagnostics reason associated with Bearer Terminated ([0029]-[0032] provide the RNC return an MBMS SESSION START FAILURE message with the cause value “TMGI in Use and overlapping MBMS Service Area” where this PDP mentioned is short for Packet Data Protocol and TMGI is a parameter comprises in the MBMS Session Start request message and is short for Temporary Mobile Group Identity. The TMGI uniquely identifies the MBMS Bearer Service. then, some enhancements are required. That confirms the including of diagnostic reason associated with the bearer/session termination, see also [0052], [0087], and [0110] that describe how the cause code passed pack to the initiating node through the network) comprises one or more of: Temporary Mobile Group Identity TMGI expiry ([0029]-[0032] provide the RNC return an MBMS SESSION START FAILURE message with the cause value “TMGI in Use and overlapping MBMS Service Area” where this PDP mentioned is short for Packet Data Protocol and TMGI is a parameter comprises in the MBMS Session Start request message and is short for Temporary Mobile Group Identity. The TMGI uniquely identifies the MBMS Bearer Service. then, some enhancements are required.” That confirms the including of diagnostic reason associated with the bearer/session termination, see also [0041], [0087], and [0110] that describe how the cause code passed pack to the initiating node through the network),
MBMS-GW Permanent Error response,
non-transient SGmb path failure, or
user plane failure detected by MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW. (We don't give these limitations patentable weight due to the use of "or" which means the limitations are written in the alternative.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding containing a diagnostics reason of the bearer event. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 9 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 7.
Ling does not explicitly teach wherein the diagnostics reason associated with Bearer Activated Failure comprises one or more of: MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW not established, transient SGmb path failure, non-transient SGmb path failure, MBMS-GW Permanent Error response, or MBMS-GW Transient Error response.
However, Xia1 teaches wherein the diagnostics reason associated with Bearer Activated Failure (Fig. 5, [0012]-[0018] describes different node failures. [0051] lines 3-6 illustrates the session is being restored after failure. [0055] states “it possible to restore the MBMS Session over an alternative control plane which minimizes the impact to the MBMS service, when a failure is detected over the old control plane path“. [0082] sates “The purpose of restoration flag is to indicate restoration of the session established before the failure and allow the RAN node 201 to accept the Session Start request message for the session for very same service established as before the failure. “ [0131], lines 7-10 describes issues within the MBMS-GW, MMS, or RAN node. [0115] describes the path failures where the issues with the SGmb, SN, or Sm interface. Claim 2 depict the restoration procedure after failure. All these sections confirm that the cause or diagnostic information associated with Bearer Activated Failure or Session Inactive) comprises one or more of: MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW not established ([0103]-[0104] states “When the BM-SC 413 restarts (re-establish) a session towards a new MBMS-GW 407 (e.g., due to old MBMS-GW 407 restart or SGmb interface failure) while the session has been ongoing. [0104] When MBMS-GW 407 restarts a session towards a new MME/SGSN 405, 410 (due to old MME/SGSN 405, 410 restart or Sm/Sn path failure) while the session has been ongoing.” That implies including of the scenario where the MBMS gateway (NBMS-GW) is not established before), transient SGmb path failure, non-transient SGmb path failure ([0007] defines the SGmb as the reference point for the control plane between BM-SC and the MBMS-GW. [0011] describes that 3GPP addressed different kinds of failure scenarios, SGmb path failure is one of them. Fig. 4 and [0033] describes that the SGmb connection is temporary and exists only for the duration of a specific MPMS session or a particular operation, which means transient SGmb session),
MBMS-GW Permanent Error response,
or MBMS-GW Transient Error response. (We don't give these limitations patentable weight due to the use of "or" which means the limitations are written in the alternative.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW not established and transient SGmb path failure, non-transient SGmb path failure. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 10 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 8.
Ling fails to teach where said acting comprises, when the diagnostics reason is TMGI expiry: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer with the BM-SC.
However, Xia1 teaches where said acting comprises, when the diagnostics reason is TMGI expiry: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer with the BM-SC ([0031] and [0052] lines 5-12 describe the max path failure timer is used to manage the restoring of the MBMS sessions when the failure occurs, which is directly associated with the TMGI of the MBMS bearer service, [0083] states “the restoration flag may indicate a re-establishment of a session for the same service, requiring the receiving node, e.g. RAN 201, 403a, 403b to accept the session start request message. In other embodiments, the restoration flag allows the RAN node 201, 403 to identify this is the restoration procedure for an existing MBMS session and accepts it. When a timer expires, e.g. called Max path failure timer, the second CN node 205, 407 may consider that the first node is down, and takes decision to send session start request to another first CN node.” That implies reestablishment of an MBMS bearer with the BM-SC upon TMGI expiry. See also Steps 304 and 307 in Fig.3, and [0110], lines 10-13).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW not established and transient SGmb path failure, non-transient SGmb path failure. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 11 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 8, where said acting comprises,
Ling fails to teach when the diagnostics reason is MBMS-GW not established: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with a geographical redundant BM-SC .
However, Xia1 teaches when the diagnostics reason is MBMS-GW not established: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with a geographical
redundant BM-SC ([0033] line 1-3 states “if a MBMS-GW failure or a SGmb path failure happens, the BM-SC may select a new MBMS-GW to re-establish the session. Thus, the new MBMS-GW should setup the session with old MME for the ongoing session by sending a MBMS Start Session Request comprising the same TMGI.” Which implies that he BM-SC 413 restarts (re-establish) a session towards a new MBMS-GW 407 (e.g., due to old MBMS-GW 407 restart or SGmb interface failure) while the session has been ongoing. [0104] When MBMS-GW 407 restarts a session towards a new MME/SGSN 405, 410 (due to old MME/SGSN 405, 410 restart or Sm/Sn path failure), as stated in [0103] and shown in Figs. 2 and 3), or
re-scheduling an MBMS bearer activation or session start procedure. (We don't give this limitation patentable weight due to the use of "or" which means the limitation is written in the alternative.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW not established and transient SGmb path failure, non-transient SGmb path failure. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 12 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 8, where said acting comprises,
Ling fails to teach when the diagnostics reason is transient SGmb path failure: waiting to receive an MBMS bearer activated notification or session start notification from the BM-SC for a predetermined period.
However, Xia1 teaches when the diagnostics reason is transient SGmb path failure: waiting to receive an MBMS bearer activated notification or session start notification from the BM-SC for a predetermined period ([0033] lines 1-3 states “If a MBMS-GW failure or a SGmb path failure happens, the BM-SC may select a new MBMS-GW to re-establish the session. Thus, the new MBMS-GW should setup the session with old MME for the ongoing session by sending a MBMS Start Session Request comprising the same TMGI” that describes how to handle the SGmb path failure, where the notification signals the MBMS-GW to initiate the MBMS session for MBMS bearer. [0084] illustrates the predetermined waiting period, as described as a timer (e.g., Max path failure timer [0083]) is set to define the waiting period for handling the transient SGmb path failure. [0037]-[0038] describes that the MBMS-GW proceeds with MBMS session start process, where the session includes some parameters ( such as session duration and time to data transfer) that may be adjust to count the delay caused by the transient failure. [0078] depicts after the notification is received, the NBMS session start process resume. If not, the network initiate restoring procedure to ensure service continuity).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding MBMS Gateway MBMS-GW not established and transient SGmb path failure, non-transient SGmb path failure. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 19 (Currently Amended), Ling teaches a network node implementing a Broadcast Multicast Service Center (BMSC) ([0017] states ” the BM-SC informs a communication service (CS) node (e.g., GCS AS) of the data transfer start time for the bearer (i.e., the user plane ready time). “ which describes the method that acts by the MB-SC), comprising: a communication interface ([0041] describes the communication service node CS in Fig. 1); a processor; and a memory comprising instructions that, when executed by the processor (Fig. 7 and [0090] depicts that the network node 701 may comprise: processing circuitry (PC) 702, which may include one or more processors (P) 755 (e.g., one or more general purpose microprocessors and/or one or more other processors, and memory devices (e.g., random access memory, flash memory), and the like. In some embodiments, the CRI 744 of computer program 743 is configured such that when executed by PC 702, the CRI causes network node 701 to perform steps of the method), configure the network node to transmit a notification of a Multimedia Broadcast/Multicast Service (MBMS) bearer status to a Group Communication Service Application Server (GCS AS) ([0013] states “The BM-SC may use the MBMS Bearer Status Indication Procedure to notify the GCS AS of conditions affecting the delivery of services that use MBMS Delivery, for instance the expiry of a TMGI, activation of an MBMS bearer, and termination of an MBMS bearer.” That implies the method can transmit a notification of MBMS bearer status or session state to a Group Communication Service Application Server GCS AS through the server center, includes the data transfer start time in the event notification message for MBMS bearer activated, as stated in [0020]. This notification can help the GCS AS to manage the timing of data ((i.e., the accurate time to stop MBMS data delivery), as stated in [0017]); wherein the notification indicates a bearer event and an affected bearer (Tables 3-4, Fig. 3 (Steps 310 and 322), and [0050] states “the first message may be a bearer event notification message 310 (see FIG. 3) further comprising information indicating that the bearer was activated. The bearer event notification message 310 may consist of or comprise an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP. For example, bearer event notification message 310 may be a GCS-Notification-Request (GNR) command, an example of which is defined in section 6.6.4 of TS 29.468, that contains an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP. This disclosure proposes to modify the definition of the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP in TS 29.486. Currently, section 6.4.5. of TS 29.486 defines the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP as shown in table 3.” And both tables illustrate bearer event and an affected bearer via the fields as examples of the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification <AVP Header: 3503> , {TMGI} {MBMS-Flow-Identifier}, {MBMS-Bearer-Event} , [MBMS-Data-Transfer-Start], [MBMS-Data-Transfer-Stop], [AVP]. [0052] also clearly provides that the first message comprising information specifying the determined data transfer start time is a GNR command 310 that includes an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP that includes a MBMS-Data-Transfer-Start AVP that contains the information specifying the determined data transfer start time, where the TMGI and MBMS-Flow-Identifier can be considered as affected MBMS bearer. [0013], [0061] states “As shown in Table 6 above, message 1006 in one embodiment is an MBMS Session Start Response message defined in 3GPP TS 36.444 v 15.0.0 (“TS 36.444”) but extended to include the “Time of MBMS Data Transfer” IE.” That implies the table 6 includes information “critical diagnostics”. Table 7 and [0064] describes this IE labeled “Cause” which provide a reason that associated with MBMS bearer status or session state as stated in [0013]), and
Ling fails to teach contains a diagnostics reason of the bearer event.
However, Xia1 teaches contains a diagnostics reason of the bearer event (Figs. 3 and 6, [0009]-[0021] describe the restoration procedure to trigger different kinds of failures. [0029]-[0033], [0050], and [0110] depict that when the failure such as TMGI expiry or MBMSGW error is detected, the network node use cause codes in the session start response/failure message to indicate a specific diagnostic reason, for example [0029] “TMGI in Use and overlapping MBMS Service Area”, as also confirms in [0050] “In case of a failure in the communication network, such as e.g. a failure related to the SGSN, MME or MBMS-GW or related to a Sn/Sm path failure, the restoration procedure is enhanced by using at least one of a restoration flag, a cause code parameter, an adjusted session duration parameter and an adjusted time to data transfer parameter.” That means the cause code indicating the reason for the rejection/termination, see also [0082] and [0086]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding containing a diagnostics reason of the bearer event. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 20 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the network node of claim 19.
Ling further teaches wherein the bearer event comprises one or more of Bearer Terminated or Bearer Activated Failure ([0013] and [0016] state “In short, according to TS 29.468 15.2.0, the GCS AS does not know the accurate time to start or stop the MBMS data delivery (i.e., the user plane ready time), even after receiving a “Bearer Activated” event notification and “Bearer Terminated” event notification.” That confirms the MBMS bearer status includes Bearer Terminated or Bearer Activated Failure, see also [0024]).
Regarding claim 21 (Currently Amended), Ling teaches a network node implementing a Group Communication Service Application Server (GCS AS) (Abstract describes a SC informs a communication service (CS) node (e.g., GCS AS) of a data transfer start time for the bearer (i.e., the user plane ready time for the bearer). Additionally, in some embodiments, the SC informs the communication service node (e.g., GCS AS) as to a data transfer stop time for the bearer, which implies the involving of GCS AS in the method implementation), comprising: a communication interface; a processor; and a memory comprising instructions that, when executed by the processor ([0041] describes the communication interface the enables the GCS AS to interact with other network nodes such as MB-SC. [0090] depicts that the network node 701, (which can be MB-SC or GCS AS), may comprise: processing circuitry (PC) 702, which may include one or more processors (P) 755 (e.g., one or more general purpose microprocessors and/or one or more other processors, and memory devices (e.g., random access memory, flash memory), and the like. In some embodiments, the CRI 744 of computer program 743 is configured such that when executed by PC 702, the CRI causes network node 701 to perform steps of the method), configure the network node to: receive a notification of a Multimedia Broadcast/Multicast Service (MBMS) bearer status from a Broadcast Multicast Service Center (BM-SC) ([0013] states “The BM-SC may use the MBMS Bearer Status Indication Procedure to notify the GCS AS of conditions affecting the delivery of services that use MBMS Delivery, for instance the expiry of a TMGI, activation of an MBMS bearer, and termination of an MBMS bearer.” That implies the method can transmit a notification of MBMS bearer status or session state to a Group Communication Service Application Server GCS AS through the server center, includes the data transfer start time in the event notification message for MBMS bearer activated, as stated in [0020]. This notification can help the GCS AS to manage the timing of data ((i.e., the accurate time to stop MBMS data delivery), as stated in [0017]), wherein the notification indicates a bearer event and an affected bearer (Tables 3-4, Fig. 3 (Steps 310 and 322), and [0050] states “the first message may be a bearer event notification message 310 (see FIG. 3) further comprising information indicating that the bearer was activated. The bearer event notification message 310 may consist of or comprise an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP. For example, bearer event notification message 310 may be a GCS-Notification-Request (GNR) command, an example of which is defined in section 6.6.4 of TS 29.468, that contains an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP. This disclosure proposes to modify the definition of the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP in TS 29.486. Currently, section 6.4.5. of TS 29.486 defines the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP as shown in table 3.” And both tables illustrate bearer event and an affected bearer via the fields as examples of the MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification <AVP Header: 3503> , {TMGI} {MBMS-Flow-Identifier}, {MBMS-Bearer-Event} , [MBMS-Data-Transfer-Start], [MBMS-Data-Transfer-Stop], [AVP]. [0052] also clearly provides that the first message comprising information specifying the determined data transfer start time is a GNR command 310 that includes an MBMS-Bearer-Event-Notification AVP that includes a MBMS-Data-Transfer-Start AVP that contains the information specifying the determined data transfer start time, where the TMGI and MBMS-Flow-Identifier can be considered as affected MBMS bearer. [0013], [0061] states “As shown in Table 6 above, message 1006 in one embodiment is an MBMS Session Start Response message defined in 3GPP TS 36.444 v 15.0.0 (“TS 36.444”) but extended to include the “Time of MBMS Data Transfer” IE.” That implies the table 6 includes information “critical diagnostics”. Table 7 and [0064] describes this IE labeled “Cause” which provide a reason that associated with MBMS bearer status or session state as stated in [0013]), and
Ling fails to teach contains a diagnostics reason of the bearer event.
However, Xia1 teaches contains a diagnostics reason of the bearer event (Figs. 3 and 6, [0009]-[0021] describe the restoration procedure to trigger different kinds of failures. [0029]-[0033], [0050], and [0110] depict that when the failure such as TMGI expiry or MBMSGW error is detected, the network node use cause codes in the session start response/failure message to indicate a specific diagnostic reason, for example [0029] “TMGI in Use and overlapping MBMS Service Area”, as also confirms in [0050] “In case of a failure in the communication network, such as e.g. a failure related to the SGSN, MME or MBMS-GW or related to a Sn/Sm path failure, the restoration procedure is enhanced by using at least one of a restoration flag, a cause code parameter, an adjusted session duration parameter and an adjusted time to data transfer parameter.” That means the cause code indicating the reason for the rejection/ termination, see also [0082] and [0086]), and act in response to the notification based on the diagnostics reason ([0009] states “The loss or corruption of these data will seriously degrade the service offered to wireless device subscribers. It is therefore necessary to define procedures to limit the effects of failure of a location register, and to restore the location register data automatically. Such restoration procedures are related to failure and/or restart of several types of network nodes and network paths/interfaces, such as e.g. MBMS-GW, MME, SGSN etc. “That describe the scenario when the failure is detected, the restoration procedure is indicated , see also [0052] states “the cause code is transmitted over the Sn interface. The cause code parameter is relevant for the case when the RAN node does not support the restoration flag and rejects session start message, so a new selected first CN node can pass the rejection cause (over Iu, i.e. “TMGI in Use and overlapping MBMS Service Area”) to …. second CN node has failed” which describe the action in response to the diagnostics reason/cause code, see also another example in [0110]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling to incorporate the teachings of Xia1 (in analogous art) by adding containing a diagnostics reason of the bearer event. That’s would help to optimize network resources by using MBMS and reducing the bandwidth consumption (Xia1, [0005]).
Regarding claim 22 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the network node of claim 21.
Ling further teaches wherein the bearer event comprises one or more of Bearer Terminated or Bearer Activated Failure ([0013] and [0016] state “In short, according to TS 29.468 15.2.0, the GCS AS does not know the accurate time to start or stop the MBMS data delivery (i.e., the user plane ready time), even after receiving a “Bearer Activated” event notification and “Bearer Terminated” event notification.” That confirms the MBMS bearer status includes Bearer Terminated or Bearer Activated Failure, see also [0024]).
Claims 13-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ling et al. WO 2019228856 A1 (for purposes of examination, Examiner cites to English language equivalent U.S. Pub. (US 20210195381 A1), hereinafter referred to as “Ling”), in view of Xia et al. (US 20160057801 A1) here in referred to as Xia1, further in view of Xia et al. (US 20160072665 A1) here in referred to as Xia2.
Regarding claim 13 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 8, where said acting comprises,
Ling and Xia1 fail to teach when the diagnostics reason is non-transient SGmb path failure: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with a geographical redundant BM-SC.
However, Xia2 teaches when the diagnostics reason is non-transient SGmb path failure: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with a geographical redundant BM-SC (Fig. 5 illustrates the SGmb path failure scenario and [0155] states “ when the BM-SC has detected a SGmb path failure and it receives a MBMS Session update or stop request from the content provider 115 during a transient path failure, it selects an alternative MBMS-GW to reestablish MBMS sessions prior to performing the MBMS update or stop request.” That Implies the MB-SC select an alternative MBMS-GW to reestablish the MBMS session for insuring the session is updated/stopped along the new control path, [0328]. [0285] describes how to recognize the non-transient SGmb path failure using the Max non-transparent failure timer. If the failure persists beyond the timer’s expiration, it is considered as non-transient , as stated in [0130]), or using a unicast delivery. (we don't give this limitation patentable weight due to the use of "or" which means the limitation is written in the alternative.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling in view of Xia1 to incorporate the teachings of Xia2 (in analogous art) by adding when the cause or diagnostic information is non-transient SGmb path failure: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with a geographical redundant BM-SC to provide an enhanced restoration procedure in a communications network (Xia2, [0021]).
Regarding claim 14 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 8, where said acting comprises,
Ling and Xia1 fail to teach when the diagnostics reason is user plane failure detected by MBMS-GW: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with the BM-SC or a geographical redundant BM-SC.
However, Xia2 teaches when the diagnostics reason is user plane failure detected by MBMS-GW: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with the BM-SC or a geographical redundant BM-SC (Figs. 6a-6b, [0062] states that “a user plane node carries the network's user traffic” and [0038] states “the M1 interface is a pure user plane interface”. Fig. 1 illustrates the path of the user plane, where the failure can occur in any point along the path. [0009] states “Such restoration procedures are related to failure and/or restart of several types of network nodes and network paths/interfaces, such as e.g. MBMS-GW, MME, SGSN etc. The terms restoration and re-establishment are equivalent.” [0009] also states “It is therefore necessary to define procedures to limit the effects of such failure, and to restore the MBMS service with minimized impact to the mobile subscribers That implies the cause/diagnostic information can be user plane failure detected by MBMS-GW, where the restoration process can minimize the impact of the failure on the end users (mobile subscribers). Claim 15 and [0061] describe reestablishing the MBMS session along the new path by selecting an alternative path or node (e.g., a geographically redundant BM-SC or MBMS-GW, [0274]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling in view of Xia1 to incorporate the teachings of Xia2 (in analogous art) by adding when the cause or diagnostic information is non-transient SGmb path failure: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with a geographical redundant BM-SC to provide an enhanced restoration procedure in a communications network (Xia2, [0021]).
Regarding claim 15 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 8, where said acting comprises,
Ling and Xia1 fail to teach when the diagnostics reason is MBMS-GW Permanent Error response: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with a geographical redundant BM-SC.
However, Xia2 teaches when the s reason (Claim 4 describes that the failure considered transient if the path failure timer has not expire, otherwise should be considered as non-transient (permanent), where the failure timer is configured by MBMS-GW or other nodes to differentiate between the temporary and permanent failures, as stated in [0299], [0128]. [0012] states the MBMS-GW failure/restart as an example of the detection error. [0146] describes the scenario when recognize permanent failure, So the MBMS session in the old MBMS-GW may be deleted as soon as the MBMS session has been taken over by another MBMS-GW. That implies reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with a geographical redundant BM-SC, as also illustrated in the example provided in [0287]),
re-scheduling an MBMS bearer activation or session start procedure, or
using a unicast delivery. (we don't give these limitations patentable weight due to the use of "or" which means the limitations are written in the alternative.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling in view of Xia1 to incorporate the teachings of Xia2 (in analogous art) by adding when the cause or diagnostic information is non-transient SGmb path failure: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with a geographical redundant BM-SC to provide an enhanced restoration procedure in a communications network (Xia2, [0021]).
Regarding claim 16 (Currently Amended), Ling and Xia1 teach the method of claim 8, where said acting comprises,
Ling and Xia1 fail to teach when the diagnostics reason is MBMS-GW Transient Error response: waiting to receive an MBMS bearer activated notification or session start notification from the BM-SC for a predetermined period .
However, Xia2 teaches when the diagnostics reason is MBMS-GW Transient Error response: waiting to receive an MBMS bearer activated notification or session start notification from the BM-SC for a predetermined period ([0322]-[0324] states “the path failure (error) may be regarded as transient when the selection takes place before the path failure timer has expired.” Which describes the transient error response. [0228] states “the BM-SC sends a RAR to the MBMS-GW1. The RAR may be a MBMS session start request comprising a restoration flag for MBMS session 1.”. [0126] lines 12-15 describes that the MBMS-GW waits for a predetermined period (e.g., 115-120 sec) to receive an MBMS bearer activated notification, where [0008] describes that the MBMS Session Start procedure is to request the radio access network to notify wireless devices about an upcoming MBMS Session of a given MBMS Bearer Service and to establish a MBMS Radio Access Bearer (RAB) and MBMS signaling connection for this MBMS Session).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ling in view of Xia1 to incorporate the teachings of Xia2 (in analogous art) by adding when the cause or diagnostic information is non-transient SGmb path failure: initiating reestablishment of an MBMS bearer or session with a geographical redundant BM-SC to provide an enhanced restoration procedure in a communications network (Xia2, [0021]).
Relevant Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's
disclosure.
Xu et al. (US-20170251397-A1), Buckley et al. (US-20180359612-A1), Xu et al. (US-20200304958-A1), Guo et al. (CN-101166114-A), and Xu et al. (US-20200314800-A1) teach methods involved restoration procedures in a Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (MBMS) network after failure.
Conclusion
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.
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/SANAA AL SAMAHI/Examiner, Art Unit 2463
/ASAD M NAWAZ/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2463
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