DETAILED ACTION
1. Claims 1-20 are pending in this examination.
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
2.1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
2.2. 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 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.
Response to Arguments
3. Applicant's arguments have been considered but are moot in view of the new ground(s) of rejection.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
4.1. The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
4.2. Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US Patent Application No. 20210368341 to Liao et al (“Liao”) in view of US Patent Application No. 20200323030 to Mehta et al (“Mehta”), and in view of US Patent No. 11496474 issue to Xia et al (“Xia”).
As per claim 1, Liao discloses a personal internet of things network (PIN) creation method ([0089] ... High Level Service flows includes the following: Step 1, Users configuration and corresponding User Profiles; Step 2, Registration of PIN device and Update of User Profiles for services; Step 3, Accessing services provided by PIN devices; Step 4, UE policies in the home settings), comprising:
sending, by a user equipment, networking request information to a PIN server , wherein the user equipment is a personal internet of things network element with management capability (PEMC) ([0163] ... A PIN Element can have both PIN management capability and Gateway Capability"),
Liao does not explicitly disclose however in the same field of endeavor, Mehta discloses wherein the networking request information is used to request to create a PIN [0113] In one embodiment, the owner of the gateway node 106-N may send a request for joining the new mesh network 102 via the client application 323
communicatively coupled or paired with the gateway node 106-N. The owner of the gateway node 106-N logs in into the client application 323 and requests for addition of gateway node 106-N to the new mesh network 102. The request may comprise for example, name of the new mesh network 102 and the user access token 241 associated with the client application 323. In one embodiment, the client application 323 requests the gateway node 106-N for network creation at step 331. The gateway management module 246 of the gateway node 106-N receives the network creation request and generates a second request for network creation that includes the gateway access token 236 in addition to network name and the user access token 241. The gateway management module 246 forwards the second request to the management server 114 at step 332); and
receiving, by the user equipment, networking response information from the PIN server, wherein the networking response information comprises creation success information or creation failure information, the creation success information indicates that the PIN is successfully created ([0115]…the gateway management module 246 also transmits a SUCCESS message at step 338-2 to the management server 114 for creation of the mesh network 102 and addition of the gateway node 106-N to the mesh network 102. The network management module 293
creates the mesh network 102 and adds gateway node 106-N to the mesh network 102 at step 338-3. On successful addition of the gateway node 106-N to the mesh network 102, the network management module 293 of the management server 114 transmits a SUCCESS message to the gateway node 106-N at step 338-4. The gateway management module 246 of the gateway node 106-N further transmits a SUCCESS message to the client application 323 at step 338-5 confirming addition of the gateway node 106-N to the mesh network 102).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Liao with the teaching of Mehta by including the feature of creation information, in order for Liao’s system to receiving confirmation of ownership rights of the at least one gateway node and adding to one of a new and existing mesh overlay network to create the mesh overlay network based on successful verification of the ownership rights of the at least one gateway node. [0010] In yet another embodiment, the present disclosure relates to a method of creating and managing a decentralized IP-based mesh overlay network of one or more nodes. The method comprising transmitting a provisioning request to a mesh network management server and receiving a gateway access token and firmware provisioned in response to authentication of the mesh network management server and the at least one gateway node. The method further comprising transmitting a request for ownership from a client application of the user of the at least one gateway node to the mesh network management server, wherein the request for ownership includes a gateway access token received from the mesh network management server, and a user access token associated with the client application. Upon verification of the gateway access token and the user access token, the method comprising receiving confirmation of ownership rights of the at least one gateway node and adding to one of a new and existing mesh overlay network to create the mesh overlay network based on successful verification of the ownership rights of the at least one gateway node (Mehta, [0010]).
Liao and Mehta do not explicitly disclose however in the same field of endeavor, Xia discloses the creation failure information indicates that the PIN fails to be created (col.7, lines 20-50… the mesh configuration is pushed to the mesh point 200, the cloud system 204 may send a reload command to the mesh point 200 to cause the mesh point 200 to reload and the newly pushed mesh configuration to take effect. In contrast, if the mesh point 200 is not successfully authenticated at the cloud system 204, the authentication response 220 may indicate that the mesh point 200 has been rejected
from the mesh deployment. The mesh portal 202 may convey this rejection to the mesh point 200 and the process may halt)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Liao with the teaching of Mehta/Xia by including the feature of failure information, in order for Liao’s system to authenticate the mesh point, and upon authentication, the correct mesh configuration may be delivered to the mesh point. In some embodiments, the mesh point receives the mesh configuration from the cloud system via the mesh portal. In particular, the mesh portal may have an uplink to the cloud system and downlinks to mesh points in the mesh network such that the cloud system can communicate the mesh configuration to the mesh point via the mesh portal. In other example embodiments, the mesh point may receive the mesh configuration from a virtual controller or the like, which may be another mesh point (e.g., a member access point of the mesh network) designated by the mesh portal for providing mesh configuration information (Xia, col. 3).
As per claim 2, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein the networking request information comprises at least one of the following: life cycle information of the PIN, wherein the life cycle information is used to indicate a time when the PIN takes effect or exists; identifier information related to the user equipment; an Internet protocol (IP) address or a port number of the user equipment; information of a PIN element that the user equipment expects to add to the PIN; information of a personal internet of things network element with gateway capability (PEGC) in the PIN; or a security credential (Liao, [0105]).
As per claim 3, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses the method according to claim 2, wherein the identifier information related to the user equipment comprises at least one of the following: an identity (ID) of the PEMC in the PIN, an enabler ID of the user equipment, a subscription permanent identifier (SUPI) of the user equipment, a generic public subscription identifier (GPSI) of the user equipment, an application ID on the PEMC in the PIN, or an enabled client ID of the PEMC in the PIN; or the information of the PIN element comprises at least one of the following: an ID of the PIN element, an enabler ID of the PIN element, a user equipment ID of the PIN element, an application ID on a PEMC in the PIN, an IP address of the PIN element, or an enabler IP address of the PIN element; or the information of the PEGC comprises at least one of the following: an ID of the PEGC, an enabler ID of the PEGC, a user equipment ID of the PEGC, an application ID on the PEGC, or an IP address of the PEGC (Mehta, [0015]). The motivation regarding the obviousness of claim 1 is also applied to claim 3.
As per claim 4, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 1, wherein the creation success information comprises at least one of the following: an identifier of the PIN; information of a personal internet of things network element with gateway capability (PEGC) in the PIN; access control information configured to the PEGC in the PIN, wherein the access control information is used to control whether a PIN element in the PIN can visit or access a target network; or routing information configured to the PEGC in the PIN, wherein the routing information is used for the PEGC or the PIN element in the PIN to visit the target network (Liao, [0131]-[0132], also see fig. 7 and associated texts).
As per claim 5, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 4, wherein the access control information comprises at least one of the following: a user name, an account number, a password, a service set identifier (SSID), or a basic service set identifier (BSSID); and/or the routing information comprises at least one of the following: an Internet protocol (IP) address of a user plane function (UPF), a port number of the UPF, a fully qualified domain name (FQDN) of the UPF, or a data network (DN) connected by using the UPF, wherein the PEGC visits the target network by accessing the UPF (Liao, [0123]-[0124]).
As per claim 6, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 1, wherein the user equipment determines a personal internet of things network element with gateway capability (PEGC) in the PIN by using at least one of the following methods: the PEGC subscribes to or registers with the user equipment; the creation success information comprises information of the PEGC; or a PIN element in the PIN managed by the user equipment visits a target network by using the determined PEGC in the PIN (Liao, [0163]).
As per claim 7, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 6, wherein in a case that the PEGC subscribes to or registers with the user equipment, the method further comprises: the user equipment establishes a communication connection to the PEGC through non-3GPP access; the user equipment receives first registration request information from the PEGC; and the user equipment verifies the first registration request information and sends first registration response information, wherein the first registration response information comprises registration success information or registration failure information, the registration success information indicates that the first registration request information has been verified, and the registration failure information indicates that the first registration request information fails to be verified (Liao, [0068], [0124], [0131]-[0132]).
As per claim 8, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 7, wherein the first registration request information comprises at least one of the following: an identity (ID) of the PEGC, an enabler ID of the PEGC, an ID of the user equipment, an application ID on the PEGC, an Internet protocol (IP) address of the PEGC, a security credential, access control information, or routing information; and/or the first registration response information comprises at least one of the following: a registration ID, registration termination time information, or a context ID of the PEGC (Liao, [0096] ). The motivation regarding the obviousness of claim 1 is also applied to claim 8.
As per claim 9, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises: adding, by the user equipment, a PIN element to the PIN (Liao, [0095]-[0098]).
As per claim 10, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 9, wherein the adding, by the user equipment, a PIN element to the PIN comprises: establishing, by the user equipment, a communication connection to the PIN element through a non-3GPP access; receiving, by the user equipment, second registration request information from the PIN element; in a case that the second registration request has been verified, adding, by the user equipment, the PIN element to the PIN; and sending, by the user equipment, second registration response information (Liao, [0095]-[0098], [0067], also see fig. 3 and associated text).
As per claim 11, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 9, wherein the second registration request information comprises at least one of the following: an identity (ID) of the PIN element, an enabler ID of the PIN element, an application ID on the PIN element, an Internet protocol (IP) address of the PIN element, or a security credential; and/or the second registration response information comprises at least one of the following: a registration ID, registration termination time information, a context ID of the PIN element, or an ID of the PIN (Liao, [0105]).
As per claim 12, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 11, wherein the method further comprises: determining, by the user equipment, permission of the PIN element, wherein the second registration response information further comprises at least one of the following: an IP address of a personal internet of things network element with gateway capability (PEGC) in the PIN; a port number of the PEGC in the PIN; or access permission of the PIN element, wherein the access permission comprises whether the PIN element supports access to the target network by using the PEGC in the PIN (Liao, [0127], [0138], abstract). The motivation regarding the obviousness of claim 1 is also applied to claim 12.
As per claim 13, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 12, wherein the access permission of the PIN element is obtained by the user equipment from the PIN server, or is determined by the user equipment based on PEGC registration information (Liao, [0127], [0138], abstract). The motivation regarding the obviousness of claim 1 is also applied to claim 13.
As per claim 14, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 1, wherein before the sending, by a user equipment, a networking request information to a PIN server, the method further comprises: sending, by the user equipment, subscription request information to the PIN server, wherein the subscription request information is used to request at least one of the following: becoming a personal internet of things network element with management capability (PEMC); or registering with or subscribing to an operator network; and receiving, by the user equipment, subscription success information from the PIN server, wherein the subscription success information indicates the user equipment to become the PEMC (Liao, [0127], [0138], abstract). The motivation regarding the obviousness of claim 1 is also applied to claim 14.
As per claim 15, the combination of Liao, Mehta and Xia discloses method according to claim 14, wherein the subscription request information comprises at least one of the following: an application identity (ID) on the PEMC, a subscription permanent identifier (SUPI) of the user equipment, a generic public subscription identifier (GPSI) of the user equipment, an Internet protocol (IP) address of the user equipment, an IP address of a PEMC client, or a security credential (Liao, [0105]).
Claims 16, 19, and 20, are rejected for similar reasons as stated above, and claim 1.
Claim 17, is rejected for similar reasons as stated above, and claim 2.
Claim 18, is rejected for similar reasons as stated above, and claim 3.
5.1. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure as the prior art discloses many of the claim features (See PTO-form 892).
5.2. a). US Patent Application No. 20200045546 to Zhou et al., discloses an internet of things device including an interworking gateway. The interworking gateway serves as an agent of an internet of things server in an operator network, replaces the internet of things server to register and authenticate an internet of things terminal, and forwards a message between the internet of things server and the internet of things terminal. The interworking gateway is located in a same IP subnet or private network as a packet data network gateway or a user plane device in a telecommunications network. Based on an Internet Protocol (IP) address of the internet of things terminal, the interworking gateway may determine validity of the internet of things terminal and directly address the internet of things terminal.
Conclusion
6. 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.Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HARUNUR RASHID whose telephone number is (571)270-7195. The examiner can normally be reached 9 AM to 5PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Eleni A. Shiferaw can be reached at (571) 272-3867. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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HARUNUR . RASHID
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2497
/HARUNUR RASHID/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2497
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