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 .
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. PCT/CN 2022/081793, filed on 03/18/2022.
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 09/17/2024. These drawings are acceptable.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claim 1, 2, 3, 10, 11, 12, 19, 20, 21 and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by An et al. (Hereinafter “An”, US 20140036728).
Regarding to Claim 1, 10, 19, 20, 21, and 22: An discloses:
A communication device, comprising:
a memory, and an executable program stored on the memory;
and one or more processors that execute the executable program, wherein the executable program when collectively executed by the one or more processors, cause the communication device to: The present invention further provides a computer-readable recording medium to which the method for controlling each component in the apparatus for controlling a backbone network for a sensor network is written so that the method may be read and executed by a computer. That is, the embodiments of the present invention may be implemented as code that can be written on a computer-readable recording medium and thus read by a computer. The computer-readable recording medium may be any type of recording device in which data is stored in a computer-readable manner. As described in paragraph [0163]).
Perform a method for information transmission, performed by a base station, the method comprising:
receiving a first sensing service request from a user equipment (UE), wherein the first sensing service request is at least configured to request a network to provide a sensing service to the UE. (i.e., In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, an apparatus for controlling a backbone network for a sensor network includes a context interpreter for interpreting a service request requesting a service to a sensor node, received from a user according to the type of the service request and generating a session including routing information about the interpreted service request, a sensor node register for storing sensor node information and routing information about sensor nodes registered to the backbone network and, upon receipt of the service request, providing routing information corresponding to the service request to the context interpreter, a gateway for transmitting the service request to the sensor node registered to the backbone network and receiving a response message to the service request from the registered sensor node, and a message processor for transmitting the service request received from the context interpreter to the gateway through the generated session and providing the response message received from the gateway to the user. As described in paragraph [0029] and fig. 5.)
Regard to claim 2, and 11, An discloses all limitations recited within claims as described above. An further discloses:
a sensing service indication configured to indicate the sensing service; or
service parameter information of the sensing service.
(i.e., In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, an apparatus for controlling a backbone network for a sensor network includes a context interpreter for interpreting a service request requesting a service to a sensor node, received from a user according to the type of the service request and generating a session including routing information about the interpreted service request, a sensor node register for storing sensor node information and routing information about sensor nodes registered to the backbone network and, upon receipt of the service request, providing routing information corresponding to the service request to the context interpreter, a gateway for transmitting the service request to the sensor node registered to the backbone network and receiving a response message to the service request from the registered sensor node, and a message processor for transmitting the service request received from the context interpreter to the gateway through the generated session and providing the response message received from the gateway to the user. As described in paragraph [0029].)
Regard to claim 3, and 12, An disclose all limitations recited within claims as described above. An further discloses wherein the service parameter information comprises at least one of:
sensing capability information;
sensing type information;
sensing quality of service (QoS);
or sensing object information. (i.e., Before the sensor node performs the request of the infrastructure backbone network 20 (more exactly, the service request of the user 10), the sensor node should perform initial subscription through an I-GW of the backbone network 20. The subscription is a process of registering the sensor node initially to the backbone network before the backbone network recognizes the sensor node of the sensor network. General information (e.g. a service type or a service capability) about the sensor node is registered to the infrastructure backbone network 20 and the sensor node receives the backbone network ID of the backbone network 20 and information about the backbone network 20 and the I-GW, during the initial subscription. As described in paragraph [0043].)
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 4, 5, 6, 13, 14, and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over An et al. (Hereinafter “An”, US 20140036728), in view of Li et al. (Hereinafter “Li”, US 20220015058.)
Regard to claim 4, and 13, An disclose all limitations recited within claims as described above. But does not expressly disclose features of these claims: further comprising one of:
when it is determined that the base station does not support the sensing service, sending sensing service rejection information; or
when it is determined that the base station supports the sensing service, sending a second sensing service request to a core network, wherein the second sensing service request comprises at least the service parameter information.
In similarly endeavor, Li discloses: comprising one of:
when it is determined that the base station does not support the sensing service, sending sensing service rejection information; or
when it is determined that the base station supports the sensing service, sending a second sensing service request to a core network, wherein the second sensing service request comprises at least the service parameter information. (i.e. ,In one case, if the second entity does not support the location management capability, the second entity refuses the redirection of the location management function and notifies the UE. The handover request acknowledgement message will include the content and reason of rejection. As described in paragraph [0302].)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skilled in the art before the effective filing date of applicant’s claimed invention to have incorporated the teachings of Li into the invention of An in order to provide a more reliable communication and support negotiation of sensing capabilities between a UE and the network.
Regard to claim 5, and 14, An and Li all limitations recited within claims as described above. Li further disclose: wherein sending the sensing service rejection information comprises at least one of:
sending first sensing service rejection information to the UE, wherein the first sensing service rejection information is configured to indicate that the network does not support the sensing service; or
sending second sensing service rejection information to the core network, wherein the second sensing service rejection information is configured to indicate that the network does not support the sensing service. (i.e. ,In one case, if the second entity does not support the location management capability, the second entity refuses the redirection of the location management function and notifies the UE. The handover request acknowledgement message will include the content and reason of rejection. As described in paragraph [0302].)
Regard to claim 6, and 15, An and Li all limitations recited within claims as described above. And Li further disclose: wherein the sensing service rejection information comprises indication information indicating a rejection reason. (i.e. ,In one case, if the second entity does not support the location management capability, the second entity refuses the redirection of the location management function and notifies the UE. The handover request acknowledgement message will include the content and reason of rejection. As described in paragraph [0302].)
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
Claim 7, 8, 9, and 16 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.
Regard to Claim 7, 8, 9, and 16, rely on “acceptance” feature, which recite “when it is determined that the base station supports the sensing service, sending a second sensing service request to a core network, wherein the second sensing service request comprises at least the service parameter information", which is the second limitation in claim 4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claims. Because claim 4 is rejected on the first limitation, “rejection” feature, which recite “when it is determined that the base station does not support the sensing service, sending sensing service rejection information”.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ERIC M. VO whose telephone number is (571)272-9854. The examiner can normally be reached T-F; 7:30 - 5:30.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kathy Wang-Hurst can be reached at 571-270-5371. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Eric M. Vo/Examiner, Art Unit 2644
/KATHY W WANG-HURST/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2644
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