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 .
Claims 1-19, 21, 25-29 are presented for examination.
This action is in response to amendment filed on May 5, 2026.
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)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-2, 5, 7-8, 10-12, 21, 28 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Bonn et al. U.S. Patent Number 9,877,332 B1 (hereinafter Bonn).
As per claims 1, 21, Bonn discloses a method of operating a communication device in a communications network that includes a network node (see wireless communication device, or communication device as claimed, transferring medical data through communication network 130 to a wireless access node 110, or network node as claimed, on column 3 line 5-10 and Figure 1), the method comprising:
determining information associated with a medical state (see information such as medical sensor information such as heart rate and blood pressure associated with a medical state on column 2 line 60-65) of a patient associated with the communication device (see receiving medical data of a patient associated with wireless communication device 101, or communication device as claimed on column 3 line 5-10);
determining a priority of data (see determining signaling priority based on medical data on column 3 line 12-17) associated with the patient based on the information (see determining priority and QoS of data based on medical data threshold on column 3 line 33-45); and
communicating data associated with the patient using the priority (see sending medial data based on priority such as establish high-priority quality of service on column 3 line 20-25).
As per claims 2, 10, Bonn discloses the method of claim 1, wherein determining the priority of the data associated with the patient based on the information comprises: transmitting the information to the network node (see wireless communication device, or communication device as claimed, transferring medical data to a wireless access node 110, or network node as claimed, on column 3 line 5-10 and Figure 1); and responsive to transmitting the information, receiving an indication of a priority of the data (see determining priority and QoS of data based on medical data threshold on column 3 line 35-45).
As per claims 5, 12, Bonn discloses the method of claim 1, wherein determining the priority of the data associated with the patient based on the information comprises determining at least one of: whether the medical state of the patient exceeds a first threshold level; whether the medical state of the patient is below a second threshold level; whether the medical state of the patient is outside of a threshold range; and whether a rate of change in the medical state of the patient exceeds a threshold rate (see determining priority and QoS of data based on exceeding medical data threshold on column 3 line 35-45).
As per claims 7, 11, Bonn discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the information comprises at least one of: a respiration rate of the patient; an oxygen saturation of the patient; a systolic blood pressure of the patient; a pulse rate of the patient; a level of consciousness of the patient; a temperature of the patient; an aggregate numerical value indicating a medical state of the patient; and a term indicating a severity of the medical state of the patient (see medical sensor information such as EKG, heart activity, heart rate, blood pressure on column 2 line 57-67).
As per claim 8, Bonn discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the network node comprises at least one of: a radio access network, RAN, node (see radio access network RAN on column 1 line 5-10); and a core network, CN, node, and wherein the communication device comprises at least one of: a healthcare user equipment, HUE; a wearable device; and a medical sensor (see medical sensor as communication device 101 on column 3 line 60-65).
As per claim 28, Bonn discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the priority of the data is determined responsive to an automated medical system determining, based on the information, that the medical state of the patient has crossed a threshold (see comparing medical threshold to determining increase in quality of service to user on column 3 line 44-47).
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 9, 13-15, 18-19, 25-27, 29 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bonn et al. U.S. Patent Number 9,877,332 B1 (hereinafter Bonn), and further in view of Xu U.S. Patent Application Publication Number 2024/0365156 A1 (hereinafter Xu).
As per claim 9, Bonn discloses a method of operating a network node in a communications network that includes a communication device (see wireless communication device, or communication device as claimed, transferring medical data through communication network 130 to a wireless access node 110, or network node as claimed, on column 3 line 5-10 and Figure 1), the method comprising:
receiving information associated with a medical state (see information such as medical sensor information such as heart rate and blood pressure associated with a medical state on column 2 line 60-65) of a patient, the patient being associated with the communication device (see receiving medical data of a patient associated with wireless communication device 101, or communication device as claimed on column 3 line 5-10);
determining a priority of data (see determining signaling priority based on medical data on column 3 line 12-17) associated with the patient based on the information (see determining priority and QoS of data based on medical data threshold on column 3 line 35-45); and
prioritizing data associated with the patient based on the priority of the data (see sending medial data based on priority such as establish high-priority quality of service on column 3 line 20-25).
Bonn do not disclose expressly: use of at a network exposure function, NEF, of a core network from a healthcare quality of service, QoS, interface.
Bonn do not disclose expressly: use of invoking a session management function, SMF, of the core network to modify a QoS profile associated with the data.
Xu teaches: use of at a network exposure function, NEF, of a core network from a healthcare quality of service, QoS, interface (see application function using a Network Exposure Function to access other network functions NFs on page 6 section [0154]).
Xu teaches: use of invoking a session management function, SMF, of the core network to modify a QoS profile associated with the data (see session management function SMF for control network element on page 3 section [0085]).
Bonn and Xu are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor, network data priority management systems. Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to use network exposure function, NEF and session management function, SMF to manage and control network elements. The motivation for doing so would have been to manage and control network functions (see page 6 section [0154] in Xu). Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Bonn and Xu for the benefit of using network exposure function, NEF and session management function, SMF to obtain the invention as specified in claim 9.
As per claim 13, Bonn and Xu disclose the method of claim 9, wherein the information comprises current information indicating a current medical state of the patient (see real-time medical data monitoring on column 7 line 22-28 in Bonn), wherein determining the priority of the data associated with the patient comprises determining the priority of the data based on a change between the current information and previous information indicating a previous medical state of the patient (see medical data change exceed threshold value and determined to be higher priority on column 7 line 25-33 in Bonn). The motivation to combine is same as above.
As per claim 14, Bonn and Xu disclose the method of claim 13, wherein determining the priority of the data associated with patient further comprises determining the priority of the data associated with the patient based on an amount of time between receiving the current information and receiving the previous information (see real-time medical data change exceed threshold value and determined to be higher priority such as time received on column 7 line 25-33 in Bonn). The motivation to combine is same as above.
As per claim 15, Bonn and Xu disclose the method of claim 9, wherein determining the priority of the data comprises creating or modifying a Quality of Service, QoS, profile associated with the data (see modifying QoS associated with medical data using quality of class identifier on column 4 line 15-22 in Bonn). The motivation to combine is same as above.
As per claim 18, Bonn and Xu disclose the method of Claim 9, wherein prioritizing the data associated with the patient comprises: receiving a plurality of data including data associated with the patient; and communicating the data associated with the patient before other data of the plurality of data based on the priority of the data associated with the patient (see prioritizing data of specific person or patient as claimed such as older users, law enforcement officers, and fire fighters on column 4 line 28-41 in Bonn). The motivation to combine is same as above.
As per claim 19, Bonn and Xu disclose the method of claim 9, wherein prioritizing the data associated with the patient comprises: allocating more network resources for the data associated with the patient than for other data being communicated on the communications network (see allocating more network resources by increasing service priority on column 4 line 15-25 and see allocating more network resources by increasing power to communication channel such as using beamforming on column 7 line 30-35 in Bonn). The motivation to combine is same as above.
As per claim 25, Bonn and Xu disclose the method of Claim 1, wherein the priority of the data is determined by a session management function, SMF (see session management function SMF for control network element on page 3 section [0085] in Xu), of a core network responsive to a healthcare quality of service, QoS, interface invoking the SMF via a network exposure function, NEF, of the core network (see application function using a Network Exposure Function to access other network functions NFs on page 6 section [0154] in Xu). The motivation to combine is same as above.
As per claims 26, 27, Bonn and Xu disclose the method of Claim 1, wherein determining the priority of the data based on the information further comprises determining the priority based on at least one patient attribute selected from a group consisting of: an age of the patient, a medical history of the patient, a pre- existing condition of the patient, and a type of illness of the patient (see looking at user attributes information such as age, gender, and health state on page 10 section [0224] in Xu). The motivation to combine is same as above.
As per claim 29, Bonn and Xu disclose the method of Claim 9, wherein receiving the information comprises receiving the information from an automated medical system, the automated medical system being communicatively coupled to the healthcare QoS interface and configured to determine that the medical state of the patient has crossed a threshold. (see comparing medical threshold to determining increase in quality of service to user on column 3 line 44-47 in Bonn). The motivation to combine is same as above.
Claims 3-4, 16-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bonn et al. U.S. Patent Number 9,877,332 B1 (hereinafter Bonn), and further in view of Mladin et al. U.S. Patent Application Publication Number 2024/0334504 A1 (hereinafter Mladin).
As per claims 3, 17, Bonn do not disclose expressly: wherein receiving the indication of the priority of the data comprises receiving a Quality of Service Flow Identifier, QFI, associated with a Quality of Service, QoS, profile associated with the data, and wherein communicating the data associated with the patient comprises transmitting a message comprising the data and the QFI in the header.
Mladin teaches: wherein receiving the indication of the priority of the data comprises receiving a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (see QFI value for enforcing QoS rules on page 3 section [0057]), QFI, associated with a Quality of Service, QoS, profile associated with the data (see QoS Flow based on priority level on page 3 section [0057]), and wherein communicating the data associated with the patient comprises transmitting a message comprising the data and the QFI in the header (see passing UL packets with QFI value in the encapsulation header on page 3 section [0057]).
Bonn and Mladin are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor, network data priority management systems. Before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to use Quality of Service Flow Identifier QFI to manage QoS priority level. The motivation for doing so would have been to ensure QoS with high priority data (see page 3 section [0057] in Mladin). Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Bonn and Mladin for the benefit of using QFI in the header to obtain the invention as specified in claims 3, 17.
As per claims 4, 16, Bonn and Mladin discloses the method of claim 3, wherein the QoS profile comprises an indication of at least one of: an allocation and retention priority, ARP (see ARP on page 2-3 section [0045] in Mladin); a guaranteed flow bit rate, GFBR (see GFBR on page 3 section [0048] in Mladin); a maximum flow bit rate, MFBR (see MFBR on page 3 section [0048] in Mladin); a maximum packet loss rate (see max loss rate on page 3 section [0056] in Mladin); a delay critical resource type (see delay requirements on page 6 section [0091] in Mladin); and a notification control (see notification control on page 3 section [0047] in Mladin). The motivation to combine is same as above.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed May 5, 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. As per claims 1, 21 applicant asserts that cited reference Bonn do not disclose expressly: “determining a priority of data associated with the patient based on the information” because Bonn is operating the step on a wireless access node and not on “a communication device” as claimed (see Remarks on page 8). The examiner respectfully disagrees. As per the step two the claim states: “determining a priority of data associated with the patient based on the information”. The claim language do not disclose what is doing the determining step. The preamble describe “a method of operating a communication device in a communication network that includes a network node”. Using the broadest reasonable interpretation, the method is being performed to operate a communication device in communication network that includes a network node. The communication device is operating in conjunction with other network nodes in the communication network to perform the recited methods.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 6 is 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
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 ALAN S CHOU whose telephone number is (571)272-5779. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9:00-5:00 EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Chris L Parry can be reached at (571)272-8328. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ALAN S CHOU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2451
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