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 .
Applicant amended claims 5-7, 10-15, and 17-19 and canceled claims 20-49 in the preliminary amendment filed on 05/07/2024.
The claims 1-19 are pending.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claims 1-5, 12-13, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Parichehrehteroujeni et al (US Patent No. 11,968,588 B2).
With respect to claim 1, Parichehrehteroujeni teaches communication system, comprising a first base station, a second base station, and a core network (Fig. 9 disclose a network comprising core network, source node, and target node), wherein the first base station (source node or target node) is configured to send a first request message to the core network, wherein the first request message is for requesting to send a data packet in a bi-casting mode, and the bi-casting mode is a transmission mode in which the core network sends a same data packet to each of the first base station and the second base station (col. 21, line 63-col. 22, line 22; Fig. 9 disclose either the source node or the target node can request core network 930 (e.g., EPC, 5GC) to initiate bicasting during the handover (e.g., with a “Bi-cast req.” message as shown in the figure). The target node can make the request directly after determining that S1 or NG bicasting should be activated); and the core network is configured to: after receiving the first request message, send one or more data packets to the first base station and the second base station in the bi- casting mode (Fig. 9 disclose the core network sending data to the source node and the target node in the bi-casting mode) .
With respect to claim 2, Parichehrehteroujeni teaches wherein before the first base station sends the first request message to the core network, the first base station is further configured to send a second request message to the second base station (Fig. 13; col. 26, lines 35-49 disclose the source node can transmit, to a target node, a request to prepare a mobility procedure for the UE in relation to a candidate target cell associated with the target node. The request can include one or more characteristics associated with a data connection of the UE. For example, the one or more characteristics can include any of the following: status of a UE buffer at the source node; UE required data rate; UE connection active time; UE QoS class indicator, QCI; and Transmission Control Protocol, TCP, socket for the data connection), wherein the second request message is for requesting transport network layer information for bi-casting (col. 26, lines 51-65 disclose where the source node can receive, from the target node, a response to the request, the response including a bicasting configuration associated with the UE. In some embodiments, the bicasting configuration can include an indication of a bicasting mode selected by the target node. The selected bicasting mode can be a first mode associated with with a first interface (e.g., X2, Xn) to the target node, or a second mode associated with a second interface (e.g., S1, NG) between the target node and a core network); and in response to the second request message, the second base station is configured to send the transport network layer information for bi-casting to the first base station (col. 26, line 65-col. 27, line 11 disclose where the source node can, based on the bicasting configuration indicating the first mode, initiating bicasting of the data connection to the target node via the first interface. In some embodiments, the exemplary method can also include the operations of block 1340, where the source node can, based on the bicasting configuration indicating the second mode, send a request, to the core network, to initiate bicasting of the data connection to the target node).
With respect to claim 3, Parichehrehteroujeni teaches wherein the second request message comprises first indication information, and the first indication information indicates the core network to send a data packet in the bi-casting mode (col. 26, line 50-65 disclose the bicasting configuration can include an indication of a bicasting mode selected by the target node. The selected bicasting mode can be a first mode associated with with a first interface (e.g., X2, Xn) to the target node, or a second mode associated with a second interface (e.g., S1, NG) between the target node and a core network).
With respect to claim 4, Parichehrehteroujeni teaches wherein the first request message comprises second indication information, an identifier of the second base station, and the transport network layer information for bi-casting, and the second indication information indicates the core network to send a data packet in the bi-casting mode (Fig. 13; col. 26, lines 35-49 disclose the source node can transmit, to a target node, a request to prepare a mobility procedure for the UE in relation to a candidate target cell associated with the target node. The request can include one or more characteristics associated with a data connection of the UE. For example, the one or more characteristics can include any of the following: status of a UE buffer at the source node; UE required data rate; UE connection active time; UE QoS class indicator, QCI; and Transmission Control Protocol, TCP, socket for the data connection).
With respect to claim 5, Parichehrehteroujeni teaches wherein at least one of the first indication information and the second indication information is associated with one or more service bearers of user equipment (Fig. 13; col. 26, lines 35-49 disclose the source node can transmit, to a target node, a request to prepare a mobility procedure for the UE in relation to a candidate target cell associated with the target node. The request can include one or more characteristics associated with a data connection of the UE. For example, the one or more characteristics can include any of the following: status of a UE buffer at the source node; UE required data rate; UE connection active time; UE QoS class indicator, QCI; and Transmission Control Protocol, TCP, socket for the data connection).
With respect to claim 12, Parichehrehteroujeni teaches wherein after the second base station receives, from the core network, a data packet sent by the core network in the bi-casting mode, the second base station processes the data packet received from the core network to obtain a processed data packet, and sends the processed data packet to the user equipment (col. 27, lines 12-24 disclose where the source node can transmit, to the target node, an acknowledgement that the UE has successfully received a first portion of the bicast data via the source node).
With respect to claim 13, Parichehrehteroujeni teaches wherein the second request message is a handover request message (FIG. 9 disclose handover request).
With respect to claim 18, Parichehrehteroujeni teaches wherein the first base station and the second base station are two base stations in an active-standby network, or two base stations in a concurrent network (Fig. 9 disclose source node and target in concurrent network).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claims 6 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Parichehrehteroujeni et al (US Patent No. 11,968,588 B2) in view of Zhu et al (US Patent No. 11,122,477 B2).
With respect to claim 6, Parichehrehteroujeni discloses the claimed subject matter as discussed above except wherein the transport network layer information is general packet radio service tunnel protocol GTP tunnel endpoint information, and the GTP tunnel endpoint information comprises a transport network layer address of a tunnel and an identifier of the tunnel.
However, Zhu teaches wherein the transport network layer information is general packet radio service tunnel protocol GTP tunnel endpoint information, and the GTP tunnel endpoint information comprises a transport network layer address of a tunnel and an identifier of the tunnel (col. 19, lines 16-col. 20, line 10 disclose the UE 450 may start the bi-casting after the RRC Reconfiguration Complete message is sent to the target base station 402B in step 11 of FIG. 5. The UPF may perform the duplication detection process and perform the re-ordering based on the PDCP SN in GTP-U extension header, GTP-U SN or the flow specific SN in the GTP-U extension header. For the GTP-U SN or flow specific SN detection, the SN in the GTP-U may be assigned based on the PDCP SN. For flow specific SN detections, if the UPF side TEID, UDP port and IP Address are the same for the two tunnels (e.g., the tunnel between the UPF 420 and the source base station 402A and the tunnel between the UPF 420 and target base station 402B), up to implementation, the UPF 420 may treat the two uplink GTP-U tunnels as one GTP tunnel) in order to provide a tunnel protocol for security (Abstract). Therefore, based on Parichehrehteroujeni in view of Zhu, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Zhu to the system of Parichehrehteroujeni in order to provide a tunnel protocol for security.
With respect to claim 19, Parichehrehteroujeni discloses the claimed subject matter as discussed above except wherein the core network comprises an access management function AMF entity and a user plane function UPF entity; that the first base station sends the first request message to the core network comprises: the first base station sends the first request message to the AMF entity; and the AMF entity sends a first message to the UPF entity, wherein the first message is for requesting to send a data packet in the bi-casting mode; that the core network sends one or more data packets to the first base station and the second base station in the bi-casting mode comprises: the UPF entity sends the one or more data packets to the first base station and the second base station in the bi-casting mode; that the second base station sends the third request message to the core network comprises: the second base station sends the third request message to the AMF entity; that the first base station sends the fourth request message to the core network comprises: the first base station sends the fourth request message to the AMF entity; and that the first base station or the second base station sends a fifth request message to the core network comprises: the first base station or the second base station sends the fifth request message to the AMF entity.
However, Zhu teaches wherein the core network comprises an access management function AMF entity and a user plane function UPF entity; that the first base station sends the first request message to the core network comprises: the first base station sends the first request message to the AMF entity (Fig. 6; Fig. 9); and the AMF entity sends a first message to the UPF entity, wherein the first message is for requesting to send a data packet in the bi-casting mode; that the core network sends one or more data packets to the first base station and the second base station in the bi-casting mode (Fig. 9; 10A) comprises: the UPF entity sends the one or more data packets to the first base station and the second base station in the bi-casting mode; that the second base station sends the third request message to the core network comprises: the second base station sends the third request message to the AMF entity; that the first base station sends the fourth request message to the core network comprises: the first base station sends the fourth request message to the AMF entity; and that the first base station or the second base station sends a fifth request message to the core network comprises: the first base station or the second base station sends the fifth request message to the AMF entity (Fig. 6 disclose the AMF/SMF ENTITY 162 sends a message to the UPF 164 (e.g., UPF 420 in FIG. 4) to trigger the UPF 164 to start bi-casting PDUs to both the source base station 402A and the target base station 402B) in order to provide a tunnel protocol (Abstract). Therefore, based on Parichehrehteroujeni in view of Zhu, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Zhu to the system of Parichehrehteroujeni in order to provide a tunnel protocol.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7-11 and 14-17 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHEIKH T NDIAYE whose telephone number is (571)270-3914. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00am-5:30pm.
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/CHEIKH T NDIAYE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2447
5/4/2026
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