DETAILED ACTION
This Office Action is with regard to the most recent papers filed 7/17/2024.
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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
The instant application claims priority to two different foreign applications. The earlier of the two (KR10-2023-0092647) provides support for some of the claims, including claims 1, 7, 9, and 12. Details regarding other claims appear to be missing from this priority document, as it does not refer to certain elements including, for example, forwarding of information including an IP address and link information (Claims 2-6), disconnections (claim 8), and a default access and mobility management function (DAMF) (Claims 10-11) in conjunction with functions performed by the UPMF (the claimed network function). Accordingly, only claims 1, 7, 9, and 12 benefits from the 7/17/2023 priority date.
Meanwhile, the second of the two priority documents (KR10-2024-0036118) is not in English, and thus the full scope of the disclosure will not be evaluated now. However, it appears that all figures of the instant application are reflected in this foreign application, and the disclosure appears to be of similar length. Accordingly, it appears that the effective filing date of claims 2-6, 8, 10-11, and 13-15 would be 3/15/2024. If the only applicable remaining rejection of the instant claims relies on prior art with a filing date between 3/15/2024 and 7/17/2024, Applicant will need to file a translation at that point in time to fully benefit from this effective filing date (See 37 CFR 1.55 (g) and MPEP §§ 215 and 216).
Drawings
Figures 1-6 should be designated by a legend such as --Prior Art-- because only that which is old is illustrated. Specifically, such figures are described in the instant specification on pages 7-19, where the figures are described in detail, though the specification is careful to omit specific details about the origin of the subject matter of such figures. However, foreign application KR10-2023-0092647 (which is the earliest priority document in the instant application) is an English copy of “User Plane Management Function: A Solution for Automated Deployment of UPF on cloud-native 5G Core Network Technology,” which clearly sets forth on the first four pages a discussion that appears to provide all of the details of Figures 1-6, Figures 1-2 of the priority document being 5B and 6, respectively, with the caption of Figure 2 specifically stating that the subject matter is adapted from 3GPP TS 23.502. The disclosure of the actual invention does not begin in the provisional application until section III, where the invention is the modification of the prior architecture with the inclusion of a UPMF (Such as in Figures 3-4 of the priority document, which are duplicated as figures 7A-7B in the instant application). As such, it is clear that the subject matter of Figures 1-6 refer to the already existing technology, such as in 3GPP TS 23.502 (as well as 3GPP TS 23.501, as is provided as reference [3] in KR10-2023-0092647). See MPEP § 608.02(g). Corrected drawings in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. The replacement sheet(s) should be labeled “Replacement Sheet” in the page header (as per 37 CFR 1.84(c)) so as not to obstruct any portion of the drawing figures. 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. Note that if the above is in error, Applicant should provide a clear statement of how each figure of figures 1-6 that is not to have a label of --Prior Art-- is not actually prior art, such as in light of the priority documents as well as 3GPP TS 23.501 and 3GPP TS 23.501.
The drawings are objected to as failing to comply with 37 CFR 1.84(p)(5) because they include the following reference character(s) not mentioned in the description: Figure 3 includes numerous reference characters, where a table is provided in the instant specification on pages 11-12 to describe many of these. However, N22 is the highest number that is presented in the table, with N58, N59, N80, and N81 not being included in the table. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d), or amendment to the specification to add the reference character(s) in the description in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(b) 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. 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 Interpretation
Claims 10-11 each provide wherein clauses to describe functionalities that are not performed by the network function, where the claims are directed towards the network function, itself. The wherein clauses do not appear to be directly related to any functionality performed by the network function, nor do the wherein clauses appear to “give any meaning and purpose to the manipulative steps” (Note that claim 9 includes a wherein clause directed towards functionality of the terminal, where such wherein clause uses information that is provided by the network function, and thus meaning and purpose is provided to functions performed by the network function. As such, these claims have a questionable limiting effect (See, for example, MPEP 2103 C). For the application of prior art, the prior art only needs to be capable of enabling the recitations of the wherein clauses to be performed for these instant claims. If Applicant intends for such wherein clauses to have a limiting effect, the claims need to be amended to either give meaning and purpose to the functions of the network function (such as by using the results of such functions or providing some other substantial connection to the functions of the network function) or by being recited as being part of a system with the network function (e.g. a system comprising…the network function and the terminal).
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 3, 7, and 14 are 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.
With regard to claims 3, 7, and 14, each of the instant claims presents listings of alternatives using the form “includes at least one selected from a group of an…” It is unclear if this group is open-ended (e.g. the group comprises the listed elements) or closed (e.g. the group consists of the listed elements). In a case that the group is open ended, it is unclear what the instant claims actually require. For instance, claim 3 provides three elements in the group (UPF identifier, a network slice including the UPF, and interface information), where an open-ended group could include a fourth element, where if that element is the only selected element for the “at least one selected from” the group, none of the listed elements would be required. Applicant should amend the instant claims to clearly be closed, such as by reciting “at least one selected from a group consisting of an…” For purposes of prosecution, it is assumed that the claims require this language, such that each of the groups consist of the listed elements, thus requiring that the “at least one” selected option is one of the listed elements.
With regard to claim 8, the instant claim recites “when the network function determines that the registered UPF is disconnected…” The network function, as claimed, is not recited as explicitly including a function to perform such determination, nor is there any explicit or implicit requirement that such determination is a capability of the network function. As such, it is unclear if the condition is ever true, or if the prior art would even need to teach such a condition. Further, it is unclear if “the SMF updates a session on the basis of the information on the disconnect UPF is intended to be part of the functions performed when the determination is made, or if this functionality is separate. Applicant should amend the instant claim to clearly provide for the functionalities included in the network function, such as by reciting
wherein the processor is further configured to determine if the registered UPF is disconnected, and when it is determined that the registered UPF is disconnected:
information on the disconnected UPF is forwarded to the SMF, and
the SMF updates a session on the basis of the information on the disconnected UPF.
In this language, the indentation and colon would clearly provide that both functionalities are contingent on the determination and the wherein clause, itself, specifically provides for the functionality of performing the determination.
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.
Claim(s) 1-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over ETSI TS 123 502 V16.7.0 (2021-01), “5G; Procedures for the 5G System (5GS) (3GPP TS 23.502 version 16.7.0 Release 16), Published January 2021 (TS23.502) in view of “5G signaling: C or D?”, posted at <https://gooram.medium.com/5g-signaling-c-or-d-265a15b55006> on March 6, 2023 (GooRAM).
With regard to claim 1, TS23.502 discloses a network function for user plane function (UPF) management in a mobile communication system, the network function comprising:
a memory configured to store at least one program therein; a transceiver configured to transmit and receive at least one signal; and a processor configured to execute the at least one program stored in the memory (Note that the term “system” is used here in the rejection to represent that the functions are not performed by a singular processor.) (TS23.502: Page 12 Section 1, pages 14-15, Section 4, and page 230-318. Based on the disclosure of TS23.502, and references to networks, APIs, code, etc., one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing would have recognized the use of at least one computer that includes a transceiver to interface with such network and the use of a processor and memory of some sort to implement the code (program) and API.), wherein the system is configured to
register at least one UPF on the basis of a network slice (TS23.502: Page 519, Table 5.2.7.1-1 and Page 523, Section 5.2.7.3.2. Network functions, such as UPF (listed under consumers in table 5.2.7.1-1) perform a registration function, and are then able to be requested with S-NSSAI as an input, where S-NSSAI serves to denote a network slice that the function supports (see, for example, Page 477 where S-NSSAI identifies network slices).),
receive a UPF selection-related query message from a session management function (SMF) (TS23.502: Page 523, Section 5.2.7.3.2),
compute a UPF path on the basis of the query message (TS23.502: Page 507, Section 5.2.6.7.6. Path information is forwarded to the SMF for a UP, which is based on the UPF.), and
forward, to the SMF, a response including the computed UPF path (TS23.502: Page 507, Section 5.2.6.7.6. Path information is forwarded to the SMF for a UP, which is based on the UPF. As noted above, Figures 1-6 of the instant specification and the corresponding disclosure all appear to be prior art, where page 7 of KR10-2023-0092647 (Priority document with a filing date of 7/17/2023) includes the subject matter of Figures 1-6, and describes such as being adapted from TS23.502.).
TS23.502 fails to disclose, but GooRAM teaches that the system is a processor (GooRAM: Pages 4-5, Model D. GooRAM proposes the offloading of discovery and selection functions, where a SCP is used to interact with the NRF and act as an intermediary between a consumer and a producer, where no direct communication is performed by network functions or SMF (See, for example, page 6 “Call Flow” and page 8, Figure 6). Further, as noted above, Figures 1-6 of the instant specification appear to refer to prior art, where Figure 7B, and the corresponding description, presents the adaptation made to the interfaces, with the N4 interface being modified to include N41, N42, and N43, with the addition of UPMF 710, with certain functions being offloaded to the UPMF (which would be the claimed “network function,” with a singular processor performing the different functions).).
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to have a singular entity other than the SMF performing the claimed functions, where the SCP (service communication proxy) of GooRAM acting as this entity.) to realize advantages to optimizing, discovery, selection, and routing of traffic (GooRAM: Pages 5-6, “Models C and D comparison,” Paragraph 1), where NF consumers can be relieved from handling routine complex tasks to allow them to focus on the application and to provide harmonization of load balancing and reselection mechanisms (GooRAM; Page 9, Load-balancing and re-selection, Paragraphs 1 and 3).
With regard to claim 2, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM teaches wherein when the at least one UPF is registered in the network function, the at least one UPF forwards a registration request message to the network function, the registration request message including an Internet protocol (IP) address of the UPF and link information between the UPFs, and the network function stores the IP addresses of the respective registered UPFs, and the link information between the UPFs (TS23.502: Pages 519-520, Section 5.2.7.2.2, Inputs).
With regard to claim 3, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM teaches that the registration request message further includes at least one selected from a group of an UPF identifier, a network slice including the UPF, and interface information (TS23.502: Page 52, Inputs Optional. Different inputs are contemplated, including network slice information (S-NSSAI(s) and the associated NSI ID(s)).
With regard to claim 4, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM teaches that the network function creates and stores UPF topology information corresponding to the network slice, on the basis of the information included in the registration request message (TS23.502: Page 507, Section 5.2.6.7.6 and GooRAM: Pages 4-6. In the combination, the topology information would be provided as part of the offloaded functions.).
With regard to claim 5, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM teaches fails to teach, but knowledge possessed by one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing teaches when the at least one UPF is registered in the network function, the network function transmits a registration confirmation request message to the at least one UPF on the basis of a preset period, and when a registration confirmation response message is received from each of the at least one UPF, registration for each of the at least one UPF is maintained (More specifically, Official Notice is taken that the use of mechanisms that ping other devices to check connectivity and keep registrations alive were well-known in the art at the time of filing. As a note, TS23.502 performs a similar mechanism with regard to checking the status of a UE (TS23.502: Pages 327-328, Section 4.15.7), demonstrating the well-known nature of such mechanisms.). Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to provide a heartbeat ping mechanism, where the entity performing the registration (network function) sends a request (e.g. ping) to registered entities (e.g. UPF) to check the status of the UPF to allow for the clearing of unreachable UPFs from the registry, thus ensuring that when a UPF is required, an unreachable UPF is not selected.
With regard to claim 6, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM, as addressed in claim 5, above, teaches wherein when the network function does not receive the registration confirmation response message from the UPF to which the registration confirmation request message has been transmitted, the UPF is deregistered from UPF topology (TS23.502: Pages 327-328 and page 356, Deregistration. As recited above, the reason to perform such mechanism would be to ultimately purge unreachable UPFs from the registered UPFs.).
With regard to claim 7, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM teaches wherein the query message received from the SMF includes at least one selected from a group of network slice selection assistance information (NSSAI), a source network interface as connected base station information, and anchoring UPF information (TS23.502: Page 52, Inputs Optional. Different inputs are contemplated, including network slice information (S-NSSAI(s) and the associated NSI ID(s)).
With regard to claim 8, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM, as applied to claim 1, above, fails to teach expressly, but TS23.502 does teach wherein when the network function determines that the registered UPF is disconnected, information on the disconnected UPF is forwarded to the SMF, and the SMF updates a session on the basis of the information on the disconnected UPF (TS23.502: Page 359, Section 4.17.6.2 and Page 362-363. Status updates are provided to the SMF with regard to UPFs. TS23.502 further teaches the updating of NF service consumer with new provider information as changes are made.). Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to, responsive to determining that a registered UPF is disconnected, send information to the SMF to update a session based on the disconnect to ensure that when a UPF becomes unreachable for any reason (whether planned or unplanned), ongoing sessions would either be able to proceed with a new UPF selection or be terminated as quickly as possible to allow a new session to be created if desired, thus ensuring efficient operation of the system.
With regard to claim 9, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM teaches wherein the network function operates in a network based on a service-based interface (SBI), and a terminal registered in the network based on the SBI forwards a packet to a data network through the UPF path determined by the network function (TS23.502: Pages 72 and 22. TS23.502 allowed for the implementation and use of SBI (service based interfaces).).
With regard to claim 10, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM teaches when the terminal is registered in the network, the terminal is subjected to initial authentication on the basis of a default access and mobility management function (a default AMF, DAMF) through a proxy radio access network (proxy RAN, PRAN), and when the initial authentication is completed, a connection to a new version AMF (NAMF) is made through the PRAN and a session and mobility are managed (TS23.502: Page 27. The system as in the combination is fully capable of working in conjunction with a terminal that is subjected to the initial authentication, as claimed, where the instant claim fails to present any detail of functionality actually performed by the network function.).
11. The network function of claim 10, wherein the PRAN is connected through N2 interface to a base station to which the terminal is connected, and is connected to the NAMF through the SBI (TS23.502: Page 27 and 72).
With regard to claim 12, TS23.502 discloses a user plane function (UPF) management method in a mobile communication system, the method comprising:
registering at least one UPF on the basis of a network slice (TS23.502: Page 519, Table 5.2.7.1-1 and Page 523, Section 5.2.7.3.2. Network functions, such as UPF (listed under consumers in table 5.2.7.1-1) perform a registration function, and are then able to be requested with S-NSSAI as an input, where S-NSSAI serves to denote a network slice that the function supports (see, for example, Page 477 where S-NSSAI identifies network slices).);
receiving a UPF selection-related query message from a session management function (SMF) (TS23.502: Page 523, Section 5.2.7.3.2);
computing a UPF path on the basis of the query message (TS23.502: Page 507, Section 5.2.6.7.6. Path information is forwarded to the SMF for a UP, which is based on the UPF.); and
forwarding, to the SMF, a response including the computed UPF path (TS23.502: Page 507, Section 5.2.6.7.6. Path information is forwarded to the SMF for a UP, which is based on the UPF. As noted above, Figures 1-6 of the instant specification and the corresponding disclosure all appear to be prior art, where page 7 of KR10-2023-0092647 (Priority document with a filing date of 7/17/2023) includes the subject matter of Figures 1-6, and describes such as being adapted from TS23.502.).
TS23.502 fails to disclose, but GooRAM teaches that the method is a performed by a [singular] network function (GooRAM: Pages 4-5, Model D. GooRAM proposes the offloading of discovery and selection functions, where a SCP is used to interact with the NRF and act as an intermediary between a consumer and a producer, where no direct communication is performed by network functions or SMF (See, for example, page 6 “Call Flow” and page 8, Figure 6). Further, as noted above, Figures 1-6 of the instant specification appear to refer to prior art, where Figure 7B, and the corresponding description, presents the adaptation made to the interfaces, with the N4 interface being modified to include N41, N42, and N43, with the addition of UPMF 710, with certain functions being offloaded to the UPMF (which would be the claimed “network function,” with a singular processor performing the different functions).).
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to have a singular entity other than the SMF performing the claimed functions, where the SCP (service communication proxy) of GooRAM acting as this entity.) to realize advantages to optimizing, discovery, selection, and routing of traffic (GooRAM: Pages 5-6, “Models C and D comparison,” Paragraph 1), where NF consumers can be relieved from handling routine complex tasks to allow them to focus on the application and to provide harmonization of load balancing and reselection mechanisms (GooRAM; Page 9, Load-balancing and re-selection, Paragraphs 1 and 3).
With regard to claim 13, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM teaches wherein when the at least one UPF is registered in the network function, the at least one UPF forwards a registration request message to the network function, the registration request message including an Internet protocol (IP) address of the UPF and link information between the UPFs, and the network function stores the IP addresses of the respective registered UPFs, and the link information between the UPFs (TS23.502: Pages 519-520, Section 5.2.7.2.2, Inputs).
With regard to claim 14, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM teaches that the registration request message further includes at least one selected from a group of an UPF identifier, a network slice including the UPF, and interface information (TS23.502: Page 52, Inputs Optional. Different inputs are contemplated, including network slice information (S-NSSAI(s) and the associated NSI ID(s)).
With regard to claim 15, TS23.502 in view of GooRAM teaches that the network function creates and stores UPF topology information corresponding to the network slice, on the basis of the information included in the registration request message (TS23.502: Page 507, Section 5.2.6.7.6 and GooRAM: Pages 4-6. In the combination, the topology information would be provided as part of the offloaded functions.).
Citation of Pertinent Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
3GPP TSG-WG SA2 Meeting #143E e-meeting, Published 2021, provides a shortened document that shows that many of the details included in Figures 1-6 of the instant specification were part of 3GPP prior to the effective filing date.
Stefan Spettel in “Edge Computing in OAI 5G Core Network” (7/13/2022) discusses potential solutions for managing UPFs, with already existing functions performing the managing (see, for example, pages 23-24 with configuration changes made to the AF/PCF and SMF, with the SMF performing the path finding functions).
US 2021/0051437 presents the registration and instantiation of a UPF using the SMF (Paragraphs [0027] and [0041]).
US 2023/0010519 presents the selection of a UPF by the SMF based on session load and other path information (Paragraphs [0050] to [0051]).
US 2023/0058366 presents the registration of a UPF with a SMF with different parameters supported by its SFs (Paragraph [0048]).
US 2023/0262791 provides an orchestrator node to determine and calculate functions of different 5G NFs (Paragraph [0054]).
US 2024/0137290 provides another discussion of the selection and implementation of UPFs (Paragraphs [0089] to [0108]).
US 2024/0195708 provides for the querying of a NRF for available UPFs to offload some functions of the SMF (Paragraph [0060]).
US 2024/0349035 presents the selection of UPFs by a SMF based on location and capabilities (Paragraph [0070]).
Conclusion
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SCOTT B. CHRISTENSEN
Examiner
Art Unit 2444
/SCOTT B CHRISTENSEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2444