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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 7/31/2024 and 8/15/2025 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C.119 (a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed in parent Application No. CN202210734112.4, filed on 6/27/2022.
Drawings
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:
1404 in FIG. 14
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 Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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.
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) 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sheeba et al. WO 2021069057 (hereinafter “Sheeba”) in view of Chong et al. US 20250024244 (hereinafter “Chong”)
As to claim 1, 11, and 20 (claim 1 is the method claim for the device and non-transitory computer-readable storage medium in claim 11 and 20 respectively):
Sheeba discloses:
A network capability exposure method, performed by an application object, comprising: transmitting a first request to a first exposure object of a first network; (“In step 1 in Fig. 15, the NWDAF service consumer can perform discovery if the target NWDAF address or routing information is not locally configured at its side. The NWDAF service consumer interacts with an NRF by sending Nnrf_NWDAFDiscovery request message (i.e. discovery request message) containing request analytics set, S-PLMN ID and T-PLMN ID”, Sheeba [page 25, line 11])
and receiving a first response returned by the first exposure object, (“The home/target NRF responds to the serving/source NRF with one or more NWDAF instance profile(s) based on the home PLMN’s privacy, inter PLMN analytics access restriction and network data analytics provision related service level agreement.”, Sheeba [page 30, line 12 ])
wherein the first response includes sharing agreement information indicating whether the first exposure object agrees to share the first request with a second network, and wherein the first network and the second network are each public land mobile networks.
(“The home/target NRF responds to the serving/source NRF with one or more NWDAF instance profile(s) based on the home PLMN’s privacy, inter PLMN analytics access restriction and network data analytics provision related service level agreement.”, Sheeba [page 30, line 12 ]) (FIG. 16 shows two PLMNs, Sheeba)
Sheeba as described above does not explicitly teach:
wherein the first request is a capability exposure request including an application object identifier, a notification address, first parameter information, and sharing permission information,
However, Chong further teaches request message that includes additional information which includes:
wherein the first request is a capability exposure request including an application object identifier, a notification address, first parameter information, and sharing permission information, (“the first request includes at least one of the following information: [0088] a first roaming indication, used to indicate that the first request is specific to the roaming user terminal, or indicate that the first request is specific to the user terminal that roams from the first PLMN to the second PLMN or the user terminal that roams from the second PLMN to the first PLMN; [0089] an identifier of the second PLMN, used to indicate a data provider network, where the data provider network is a network for providing data generated by the roaming user terminal in the network and/or a data analytics result for the roaming user terminal; [0090] an identifier of a second area in the second PLMN, used to indicate that data and/or a data analytics result corresponding to the roaming user terminal in the second area need to be acquired; [0091] an identifier of the first PLMN, used to indicate a data requester network, where the data requester network is a network for requesting data generated by the roaming user terminal in another network and/or a data analytics result for the roaming user terminal; and [0092] an identifier of a first area in the first PLMN, used to indicate that the roaming user terminal is located in the first area or comes from the first area through roaming, where the identifier of the first area in the first PLMN is used to indicate a target roaming user terminal object corresponding to data and/or a data analytics result that need to be acquired”, Chong [0087]) (“the first request further includes at least one of the following information: [0095] information about a target data type, used to indicate a type of data that needs to be acquired and/or a type of a data analytics result that needs to be acquired; [0096] information about a target time period, used to indicate that data that needs to be acquired is data and/or a data analytics result within the target time period; and [0097] user list information, used to indicate the roaming user terminal.”, Chong [0094]) (“the information about the target data type may include an event identifier (event ID), used to indicate the type of the data that needs to be acquired; or the information about the target data type may include an analytics identifier (analytics ID), used to indicate the type of the data analytics result that needs to be acquired.”, Chong [0099]) (“The second interface network element determines authorization information of the first network element based on the first request, where the authorization information is used to indicate that the first network element is authorized to acquire the data generated by the roaming user terminal in the second PLMN and/or the data analytics result generated by the second PLMN for the roaming user terminal.”, Chong [0216]) (Examiner’s Note: the network element determines authorization information based on the request which maps to “sharing permission information”)
Sheeba and Chong are analogous because they pertain to sharing data between PLMNs.
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include request message that includes additional information as described in Chong into Sheeba. By modifying the method to include request message that includes additional information as taught by Chong, the benefits of reduced complexity (Sheeba [page 3, line 34]) and improved user experience (Chong [0004]) are achieved.
As to claim 2 and 12 (claim 2 is the method claim for the device in claim 12):
Sheeba as described above does not explicitly teach:
The method according to claim 1, wherein based on the sharing permission information indicating the application object allows the first request to be shared, the first request further includes a second network identifier corresponding to the second network.
However, Chong further teaches request message that includes additional information which includes:
The method according to claim 1, wherein based on the sharing permission information indicating the application object allows the first request to be shared, the first request further includes a second network identifier corresponding to the second network. (“Optionally, the first request includes at least one of the following information: [0531] a first roaming indication, used to indicate that the first request is specific to the roaming user terminal, or indicate that the first request is specific to the user terminal that roams from the first PLMN to the second PLMN or the user terminal that roams from the second PLMN to the first PLMN; [0532] an identifier of the second PLMN, used to indicate a data provider network;”, Chong [0530])
Sheeba and Chong are analogous because they pertain to sharing data between PLMNs.
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include request message that includes additional information as described in Chong into Sheeba. By modifying the method to include request message that includes additional information as taught by Chong, the benefits of reduced complexity (Sheeba [page 3, line 34]) and improved user experience (Chong [0004]) are achieved.
As to claim 3 and 13 (claim 3 is the method claim for the device in claim 13):
Sheeba discloses:
The method according to claim 1, further comprising: receiving a second response based on the sharing agreement information indicating the first exposure object agrees to share the first request with the second network, wherein the second response includes first exposure agreement information indicating whether a second exposure object of the second network agrees to expose a network capability to the application object. (“the target (I) NWDAF sends the Ninwdaf_Nnf/Naf_EventExposure_Notify message (i.e. data collection response message) containing the allowed/accepted event IDs along with the corresponding event report to the source NWDAF.”, Sheeba [page 33, line 16]) (“When the first domain is the first region in the PLMN and the second domain is the second region in the PLMN, the second network entity 300 is configured to transmit the data collection response message, or the data analytics response message to the first network entity 100 upon verifying at least one of the source region ID, a PLMN and region-specific subscription
correlation ID, an inter-Region geo-political data sharing restrictions, and an inter-region data analytics and/or exposure restriction information”, Sheeba [page 22, line 11])
As to claim 4 and 14 (claim 4 is the method claim for the device in claim 14):
Sheeba discloses:
The method according to claim 3, further comprising: receiving an exposure notification of the second network based on the first exposure agreement information indicating the second exposure object agrees to expose the network capability to the application object, wherein the exposure notification includes exposure information content. (FIG. 15 through 23 show “exposure notification” messages being transmitted, Sheeba)
As to claim 5 and 15 (claim 5 is the method claim for the device in claim 15):
Sheeba discloses:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the first response includes a first event identifier indicating the first exposure object agrees to the first request. (“The first network entity 100 is configured to receive a data collection response message from the second network entity 300, wherein the data collection response message indicates an allowed event ID(s) and an event report(s).”, Sheeba [page 21, line 25])
As to claim 6 and 16 (claim 6 is the method claim for the device in claim 16):
Sheeba discloses:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the first response is generated by the first exposure object based on an authentication and verification result of the first request. (“The home/target NRF responds to the serving/source NRF with one or more NWDAF instance profile(s) based on the home PLMN’s privacy, inter PLMN analytics access restriction and network data analytics provision related service level agreement.”, Sheeba [page 30, line 12 ])
As to claim 7 and 17 (claim 7 is the method claim for the device in claim 17):
Sheeba discloses:
The method according to claim 3, wherein the first exposure object transmits a second request to the second exposure object based on the sharing agreement information indicating the first exposure object agrees to share the first request with the second network, (FIG. 15 through 23 show second request being transmitted after exposure restriction is verified, Sheeba)
wherein the second request includes the application object identifier, the notification address, and second parameter information, (“In step 5 in Fig. 18, the source NRFs sends the Nnrf_NF discovery response message (i.e. discovery response message) along with the received allowed event ID(s) and the target NF/AF profile information to the source (I) NWDAF.”, Sheeba [page 36, line 8]) (“It is noted that allowed target NF analytics profile contains the NF IDs and NF set ID/NF service set ID which a NWDAF analytics consumer is allowed to request for the analytics from the target PLMN. It is also noted that PLMN specific subscription correlation ID has to be provisioned to make the subscription unique across different PLMN analytics provided to the consumer. This avoids subscription correlation ID duplication issues at the analytics consumer.”, Sheeba [page 31, line 6])
wherein the first exposure object receives the second response from the second exposure object, and wherein the receiving the second response further comprises receiving the second response as forwarded from the first exposure object. (FIG. 15 through 23 show second response being transmitted after exposure restriction is verified, Sheeba)
As to claim 8 and 18 (claim 8 is the method claim for the device in claim 18):
Sheeba discloses:
The method according to claim 4, wherein the first exposure object receives the exposure notification from the second exposure object, and wherein the receiving the exposure notification further comprises receiving the exposure notification as forwarded from the first exposure object. (“Implementation aspect: inter PLMN and intra PLMN inter region scenarios. A dedicated NWDAF (instances) called intermediate NWDAF takes role of master NWDAF in the target PLMN/region to provide inter PLMN/region analytics information. Further the NWDAF (instances) in the source PLMN/region takes the role of secondary NWDAF which forwards/requests the subscription/analytics info on behalf of an analytics consumer in the source PLMN/region.”, Sheeba [page 20, line 10]) (“It is to be noted that the main embodiment involving NEF/I-NEF in the procedure, the NEF/I- NEF is not shown in the following analytics data collection procedures for simplicity. But the data collect request message from the source NWDAF can go to a NEF/I-NEF to collect the data from a target NF service producer either directly or through a target NWDAF residing in the target PLMN, where the NEF/I-NEF in the target network performs the validation and filtration of the event exposure information specified in the data collection request/response based on the inter PLMN data collection and sharing restriction information. The NEF/I-NEF controls the data collection exposure mapping among the source PLMN ID with allowed event ID, and associated inbound restrictions (i.e. applied to subscription of the event ID for any analytics consumer from the source PLMN) and/or outbound restrictions (i.e., applied to notification of event ID to any event exposure consumer from the source PLMN). The source event exposure consumer or the source NWDAF is configured with the appropriated NEF/I-NEF to subscribe to data exposure information, the allowed event ID(s), and with allowed inbound restrictions (i.e., parameters and/or parameter values) for subscription to each event ID in the target PLMN. Embodiment: data collection in inter PLMN roaming scenario with new direct interface between S-INWDAF and T-INWDAF.”, Sheeba [page 31, line 23]) (FIG. 15 through 23 show “exposure notification” messages being transmitted, Sheeba)
As to claim 9 and 19 (claim 9 is the method claim for the device in claim 19):
Sheeba discloses:
The method according to claim 7, wherein the second response further includes a second event identifier indicating the second exposure object agrees to the second request.(“It is to be noted that the main embodiment involving NEF/I-NEF in the procedure, the NEF/I- NEF is not shown in the following analytics data collection procedures for simplicity. But the data collect request message from the source NWDAF can go to a NEF/I-NEF to collect the data from a target NF service producer either directly or through a target NWDAF residing in the target PLMN, where the NEF/I-NEF in the target network performs the validation and filtration of the event exposure information specified in the data collection request/response based on the inter PLMN data collection and sharing restriction information. The NEF/I-NEF controls the data collection exposure mapping among the source PLMN ID with allowed event ID, and associated inbound restrictions (i.e. applied to subscription of the event ID for any analytics consumer from the source PLMN) and/or outbound restrictions (i.e., applied to notification of event ID to any event exposure consumer from the source PLMN). The source event exposure consumer or the source NWDAF is configured with the appropriated NEF/I-NEF to subscribe to data exposure information, the allowed event ID(s), and with allowed inbound restrictions (i.e., parameters and/or parameter values) for subscription to each event ID in the target PLMN. Embodiment: data collection in inter PLMN roaming scenario with new direct interface between S-INWDAF and T-INWDAF.”, Sheeba [page 31, line 23]) (FIG. 15 through 23 show “exposure notification” messages being transmitted, Sheeba)
As to claim 10:
Sheeba discloses:
The method according to claim 7, wherein the second request further includes a second network identifier corresponding to the second network and a first network identifier corresponding to the first network, (“In step 5 in Fig. 16, the source/serving (l)NWDAF sends the Ninwdaf_AnalyticsSubscription_Subscribe/Ninwdaf_AnalyticsSubscription_Unsubscribe service operation message (i.e. analytics subscription request message) as received from the NWDAF service consumer, which contains the input such as the requested analytics set with one or more analytics ID(s), target of analytics reporting, notification target address, a PLMN specific notification correlation ID, analytics reporting information, source PLMN identification information (S-PLMN ID) and target PLMN identification information (T-PLMN ID).”, Sheeba [page 30, line 21])
Sheeba as described above does not explicitly teach:
wherein the first exposure object transmits the second request to the second exposure object via a first interworking gateway of the first network and a second interworking gateway of the second network, wherein the first interworking gateway receives the second request from the first exposure object and transmits the second request to the second interworking gateway of the second network based on the second network identifier, and wherein the second interworking gateway receives the second request from the first interworking gateway from the first interworking gateway and transmits the second request to the second exposure object.
However, Chong further teaches interworking gateway usage which includes:
wherein the first exposure object transmits the second request to the second exposure object via a first interworking gateway of the first network and a second interworking gateway of the second network, wherein the first interworking gateway receives the second request from the first exposure object and transmits the second request to the second interworking gateway of the second network based on the second network identifier, and wherein the second interworking gateway receives the second request from the first interworking gateway from the first interworking gateway and transmits the second request to the second exposure object. (“In this embodiment of this application, optionally, the first interface network element may be a data collection coordination function (DCCF), an analytics data repository function (ADRF), a security edge protection proxy (SEPP), or an interface NWDAF, or certainly, may be another network element. This is not limited in this application.”, Chong [0125]) (“In this embodiment of this application, optionally, the second interface network element may be a data collection coordination function (DCCF), an analytics data repository function (ADRF), a security edge protection proxy (SEPP), or an interface NWDAF, or certainly, may be another network element. This is not limited in this application.”, Chong [0200]) (Examiner’s Note: first and second network element can be SEPPs which are interworking gateways)
Sheeba and Chong are analogous because they pertain to sharing data between PLMNs.
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include interworking gateway usage as described in Chong into Sheeba. By modifying the method to include interworking gateway usage as taught by Chong, the benefits of reduced complexity (Sheeba [page 3, line 34]) and improved user experience (Chong [0004]) are achieved.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANDREW C KIM whose telephone number is (703)756-5607. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9AM - 5PM (PST).
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, Sujoy K Kundu can be reached at (571) 272-8586. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/A.C.K./
Examiner
Art Unit 2471
/MOHAMMAD S ADHAMI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2471
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