DETAILED ACTION
This Office action is in response to Amendment filed on 03/26/2026. Claims 1, 6, 17, and 22 are amended with claims 9-16 and 26 previously canceled. Claims 1-8, 17-25, and 27-29 remain pending in the application.
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 Arguments
Applicant’s arguments (pg. 7-11: C), filed on 03/26/2026, with respect to the 102 rejections of claims 1, 6, 8, 12, 22, 24, 25, and 27 have been fully considered and are persuasive. The 102 rejections of claims 1, 6, 8, 12, 22, 24, 25, and 27 have been withdrawn.
Applicant’s arguments (pg. 7: B), filed on 03/26/2026, with respect to the 112(b) rejection of claims 1-8, 17-25, and 27-29 have been fully considered but are not persuasive. Without further details or context, it is unclear as to exactly what constitutes a packet as “detection packet”, indication of which appears to be a core requirement in the claim, making the metes and bounds of the claim indefinite. Examiner suggests Applicant to consider reciting exactly how the detection packet is used for detecting a state of the forwarding path in order to clearly overcome the rejection.
Response to Amendment
The Amendment filed on 03/26/2026 has been entered.
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 1-8, 17-25, and 27-29 are rejected 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.
Regarding claim 1 (and similarly claims 6, 17, and 22), the claim recites “the first packet is a detection packet” which renders the claim indefinite. Without further details or context, it is unclear as to exactly what constitutes a packet as “detection packet”, indication of which appears to be a core requirement in the claim, making the metes and bounds of the claim indefinite. Examiner suggests Applicant to consider reciting exactly how the detection packet is used for detecting a state of the forwarding path in order to clearly overcome the rejection.
Regarding claims 2-5, 7, 8, 18-21, 23-25, and 27-29, which claim dependency from claims 1, 6, 17, and 22, they are rejected for the same reasons as set forth in the rejection of claims 1, 6, 17, and 22 above.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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 extension fee 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.
In the case of amendments, applicant is respectfully requested to indicate the portion(s) of the specification which dictate(s) the structure relied on for proper interpretation and support, for ascertaining the metes and bounds of the claimed invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GIL H. LEE whose telephone number is 571-272-3408. The examiner can normally be reached on Mon-Fri: 9am-6pm EST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Brian J. Gillis can be reached on 571-272-7952. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/GIL H. LEE/
Primary Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2446
Prosecution Insights