Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Objection to the Specification
2. The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
3. Applicant is reminded of the proper language and format for an abstract of the disclosure. The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph on a separate sheet within the range of 50 to 150 words. The abstract should describe the disclosure sufficiently to assist readers in deciding whether there is a need for consulting the full patent text for details. The language should be clear and concise and should not repeat information given in the title.
The current abstract of the disclosure is objected to because it contains more than 150 words. Correction is required. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
Art Rejection
4. The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
5. Claims 1 and 4-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being clearly anticipated by Garrett, U.S. pat. Appl. Pub. No. 2002/0038419.
Per claim 1, Garrett discloses a communication device (e.g., network access device and service network router) comprising a memory and a processor that accommodates a computer (e.g., user/subscriber) connecting to a LAN in a core network, the communication device is configured to:
a) determine an area (i.e., type of service or service provider), to which a transmission source of a first packet belongs on the basis of a destination of a second packet once the second packet is received (by the user/subscriber), the first packet being designated to the computer from any one of a plurality of areas, e.g., networks 151, 152 (see par 0014), wherein the second packet being obtained by encapsulating the first packet with a destination of any one of a plurality of IP addresses allocated to the communication device for the respective areas (see par 0018, Fig. 7, steps 705-707 and Fig. 6, steps 601, 605);
b) transmit the second packet to the computer on the basis of the destination of the second packet (see par 0018, Fig. 6, step 606); and
c) to encapsulate a request/response from the computer in a third packet with a destination of an IP address of a representative router of the area and transmit the third packet (see par 0017, steps 602-604).
Claims 4-5 are similar in scope as that of claim 1.
6. 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 of this title, 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.
7. 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.
8. Claims 2-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Garrett, in view of Detrick, U.S. pat. Appl. Pub. No. 2011/0029676.
Garrett teaches configuring the communication device with a plurality of IP addresses including tunnel IP addresses and its service related IP address which is correspondence between an area (service network) for the first packet and a transmission source and a destination of the first packet, wherein the device transmits the third packet with a destination of the IP address of the representative router of the area corresponding to the transmission source and the destination of the response in the correspondence (see par 0017). Garret does not explicitly teach providing the communication device a storage or a routing table for mapping/storing the IP addresses. Such use of storage and/or routing table in a termination device is well-known in the art as disclosed by Detrick (see Detrick, par 0031).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize a storage and/or routing table in Garrett because it would have enabled the communication device to performing packet encapsulating/decapsulating and packet routing.
Conclusion
9. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Viet Vu whose telephone number is 571-272-3977. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday through Thursday from 8:00am to 6:00pm. The Group general information number is 571-272-2400. The Group fax number is 571-273-8300.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor, Emmanuel Moise, can be reached at 571-272-3865.
Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free).
/Viet D Vu/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2455
1/8/26
Prosecution Insights