Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 02, 2026
Application No. 18/863,800

QUALITY OF EXPERIENCE CONFIGURATION FOR A MULTICAST OR BROADCAST SERVICE

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
Nov 07, 2024
Priority
Aug 05, 2022 — nonprovisional of PCTCN2022110441
Examiner
FOLAYAN, TEMITOPE OLUWASEUN
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Qualcomm Incorporated
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds

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resolved cases with interview
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7 currently pending
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7
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across all art units
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Office Action

§102 §103
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 . Status of Claims Claims 1-30 are pending in the instant application. Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 11/07/2024 and 03/31/2026 were filed before the mailing of a First Office Action on the Merits. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner. 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. Claims 1-2, 9, 18, 20, 22-30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(2) as being anticipated by Bae et al. US 20240049258 A1 (hereinafter referred to as Bae). Regarding claim 1, Bae discloses an apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE) (Bae: FIG. 23, ¶ 0233, the UE includes a transceiver 2310, a memory 2330, and a controller (or a processor) 2320.), comprising: a memory; and one or more processors, coupled to the memory (Bae: ¶¶ 0236-0237, he memory 2330 may store programs and data necessary for the operation of the UE… The controller 2320 may control a series of processes [Examiner’s note: Memory and processor elements are explicitly disclosed with coupling]), configured to: receive a quality of experience (QoE) configuration (Bae: ¶ 0012, receiving, from a BS, while the terminal is in a radio resource control (RRC) idle state, information on an application layer measurement configuration associated with an MBS broadcast session, wherein the application layer measurement configuration includes a QoE measurement configuration and a QoE report configuration. ¶ 0079, The MBS UE 2-10 or 2-12… may receive measConfigAppLayer information including the QoE measurement and report configuration information through the SIB message), wherein the QoE configuration is associated with a multicast or broadcast service (MBS) (Bae: ¶ 0079, The MBS UE 2-10 or 2-12… may receive measConfigAppLayer information including the QoE measurement and report configuration information through the SIB message [Examiner’s note: Reference teaches reception of nQoE measurement and report configuration information through the SIB message]); and collect at least one QoE measurement associated with the MBS based at least in part on the QoE configuration (Bae: ¶ 0095, the MBS UE performs QoE measurement and reporting for the MBS service… transfers the collected QoE measurement information to an RAN node or a gNB-CU according to a QoE measurement report condition based on the configuration information.). Regarding claim 2, Bae discloses the apparatus of claim 1, wherein the QoE configuration is a common QoE configuration received via a broadcast message (Bae: ¶ 0079 The MBS UE…may receive measConfigAppLayer information including the QoE measurement and report configuration information through the SIB message in step 2-310. ¶ 0078, through a system information block (SIB) (e.g., SIB20) or on an MBS control channel (MCCH)). Regarding claim 9, Bae discloses The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the QoE configuration is a dedicated QoE configuration received via a radio resource control (RRC) message (Bae: ¶ 0158, the gNB-CU 12-24 transfers the QoE measurement and report configuration information in the corresponding MBS broadcast session service application to the MBS UE 12-10 by using the RRC connection reconfiguration (e.g., RRCReconfiguration) message transmitted via the gNB-DU 12-22 in step 12-450 [Examiner’s note: Reference teaches a dedicated (pre-UE, unicast RRC) QoE configuration delivered via an RRC message]). Regarding claim 18, Bae discloses the apparatus of claim 9, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to apply the dedicated QoE configuration in an area indicated by a broadcast message associated with the MBS (Bae: ¶ 0078 After transmitting the BROADCAST CONTEXT SETUP RESPONSE message in step 2-130, the gNB-DU 2-22 generates and transmits information to the MBS UE 2-10 and/or 12 through a system information block (SIB) (e.g., SIB20) or on an MBS control channel (MCCH), based on the MBS broadcast session information The MBS UE 2-10 or 2-12 may receive measConfigAppLayer information including the QoE measurement and report configuration information on the MCCH. ¶ 0098, The BROADCAST SESSION SETUP REQUEST message or the BROADCAST SESSION MODIFICATION REQUEST message may include information related to the MBS broadcast session configuration, for example, at least one piece of an MBS session identifier (ID), an MBS service area, and MBS session information… [Examiner’s note: Reference discloses broadcast message, such as via a system information block or control channel, provides QoE measurement and configuration information for an MBS session in a designated area.]). Regarding claim 20, Jung discloses the apparatus of claim 9, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to release the dedicated QoE configuration based at least in part on a message received from a network node (Bae: ¶ 0119, The gNB-CU 7-24 indicates the MBS UE 7-12 to release the QoE measurement and report in the corresponding MBS broadcast session service application by using an RRC connection reconfiguration (e.g., RRCReconfiguration) message in step 7-675. ¶ 0138, the RAN node or the gNB-CU transfers a message for the MBS UE to release the QoE measurement and report configuration in the corresponding MBS broadcast session service application to the MBS UE 10 by using an RRC connection reconfiguration (e.g., RRCReconfiguration) message. [Examiner’s note: Reference discloses release of the QoE measurement/report configuration responsive to a network message)]). Regarding claim 22, Bae discloses the apparatus of claim 9 wherein the one or more processors are further configured to transmit an indication of the dedicated QoE configuration based at least in part on the UE entering an RRC connected mode (Bae: ¶ 0189, By using the RRC connection reconfiguration complete message (e.g., the RRCReconfigurationComplete message or the RRCResumeComplete message) during conversion to the RRC connected state… the MBS UE 16-10 adds an indicator (e.g., a UE-AppLayerMeasurementsAvailable IE) indicating that the MBS UE 16-10 has stored QoE measurement result information… When determining that reception of the QoE measurement information from the MBS UE 16-10 is required in step 16-640, the gNB-CU 16-24 includes the measConfigAppLayer configuration information… The configuration information may include measConfigAppLayerId to be used as an identifier for identifying the QoE measurement result.). Regarding claim 23, Bae discloses an apparatus for wireless communication at a network node (Bae: ¶ 0238, FIG. 24 illustrates a BS (or, a RAN node) according to an embodiment.), comprising: a memory; and one or more processors, coupled to the memory (Bae: FIG. 24., ¶ 0239, the RAN node of the disclosure may include a transceiver 2410, a memory 2430, and a controller (or a processor) 2420), configured to: transmit, to a user equipment (UE), a quality of experience (QoE) configuration, wherein the QoE configuration is associated with a multicast or broadcast service (MBS) (Bae: ¶ 0014, a method performed by a BS is provided. The method includes transmitting, to a terminal in an RRC idle state, information on an application layer measurement configuration associated with an MBS broadcast session, wherein the application layer measurement configuration includes a QoE measurement configuration and a QoE report configuration); and receive, from the UE, at least one QoE measurement report based at least in part on the QoE configuration (Bae: ¶ 0014, and receiving, from the terminal, a result of a QoE measurement for the MBS broadcast session based on the QoE report configuration, wherein the QoE measurement is based on the QoE measurement configuration.). Regarding claim 24, claim 2 is substantially similar to claim 24. Therefore, claim 24 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 2 (Bae: ¶ 0079 The MBS UE…may receive measConfigAppLayer information including the QoE measurement and report configuration information through the SIB message in step 2-310. ¶ 0078, through a system information block (SIB) (e.g., SIB20) or on an MBS control channel (MCCH)). Regarding claim 25, claim 9 is substantially similar to claim 25. Therefore, claim 25 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 9 (Bae: ¶ 0158, the gNB-CU 12-24 transfers the QoE measurement and report configuration information in the corresponding MBS broadcast session service application to the MBS UE 12-10 by using the RRC connection reconfiguration (e.g., RRCReconfiguration) message transmitted via the gNB-DU 12-22 in step 12-450). Regarding claim 26, Bae discloses the apparatus of claim 25, wherein the RRC message is one of an RRC reconfiguration message or an RRC release message (Bae: ¶ 0158, he gNB-CU 12-24 transfers the QoE measurement and report configuration information in the corresponding MBS broadcast session service application to the MBS UE 12-10 by using the RRC connection reconfiguration (e.g., RRCReconfiguration) message). Regarding claim 27, claim 1 is substantially similar to claim 27. Therefore, claim 27 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 1 (Bae: ¶ 0012, receiving, from a BS, while the terminal is in a radio resource control (RRC) idle state, information on an application layer measurement configuration associated with an MBS broadcast session, wherein the application layer measurement configuration includes a QoE measurement configuration and a QoE report configuration. ¶ 0079, The MBS UE 2-10 or 2-12… may receive measConfigAppLayer information including the QoE measurement and report configuration information through the SIB message), wherein the QoE configuration is associated with a multicast or broadcast service (MBS) (Bae: ¶ 0079, The MBS UE 2-10 or 2-12… may receive measConfigAppLayer information including the QoE measurement and report configuration information through the SIB message [Examiner’s note: Reference teaches reception of nQoE measurement and report configuration information through the SIB message]); and collect at least one QoE measurement associated with the MBS based at least in part on the QoE configuration (Bae: ¶ 0095, the MBS UE performs QoE measurement and reporting for the MBS service… transfers the collected QoE measurement information to an RAN node or a gNB-CU according to a QoE measurement report condition based on the configuration information.) Regarding claim 28, claim 2 is substantially similar to claim 28. Therefore, claim 28 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 2 (Bae: ¶ 0079 The MBS UE…may receive measConfigAppLayer information including the QoE measurement and report configuration information through the SIB message in step 2-310. ¶ 0078, through a system information block (SIB) (e.g., SIB20) or on an MBS control channel (MCCH). Regarding claim 29, claim 23 is substantially similar to claim 29. Therefore, claim 29 is rejected for the same reasons as claim (Bae: ¶ 0014, a method performed by a BS is provided. The method includes transmitting, to a terminal in an RRC idle state, information on an application layer measurement configuration associated with an MBS broadcast session, wherein the application layer measurement configuration includes a QoE measurement configuration and a QoE report configuration); and receive, from the UE, at least one QoE measurement report based at least in part on the QoE configuration (Bae: ¶ 0014, and receiving, from the terminal, a result of a QoE measurement for the MBS broadcast session based on the QoE report configuration, wherein the QoE measurement is based on the QoE measurement configuration.). Regarding claim 30, claim 9 is substantially similar to claim 30. Therefore, claim 30 is rejected for the same reasons as claim 9 (Bae: ¶ 0158, the gNB-CU 12-24 transfers the QoE measurement and report configuration information in the corresponding MBS broadcast session service application to the MBS UE 12-10 by using the RRC connection reconfiguration (e.g., RRCReconfiguration) message transmitted via the gNB-DU 12-22 in step 12-450). 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. 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 3, 5-8, 10-15, 19 and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bae et al. US 20240049258 A1 (hereinafter referred to as Bae), in view of Jeong et al. US 20240196248 A1 (hereinafter referred to as Jeong), in further view of Dai et al. US 20250254111 A1 (hereinafter referred to as Dai). Regarding claim 3, Bae discloses the apparatus of claim 2. Jeong further teaches wherein the one or more processors are further configured to transmit the common QoE configuration from an access stratum layer to an application layer (Jeong: ¶ 0104, the UE AS 1f-05 may transmit the configuration information to a UE application layer (UE APP) 1f-45 via an AT command [Examiner’s note: Reference discloses inter-layer delivery framework applicable to common broadcast configurations]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use these above mentioned features taught by Jeong with the system disclosed by Bae, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result of enabling broadcast-configured QoE measurement at the application layer. Regarding claim 5, Bae in view of Jeong disclose the apparatus of claim 3. Bae further teaches wherein transmitting the common QoE configuration from the access stratum layer to the application layer is based at least in part on the UE receiving the MBS associated with the common QoE configuration ( Bae: ¶ 0080, the MBS UE 2-10 or 2-12 identifies whether the QoE measurement and report configuration information corresponds to an MBS broadcast session that is being received or to be received [Examiner’s note: Reference’s session-correlation check conditions the UE’s QoE activity on receiving the corresponding MBS; combined with Jeong’s AS-APP delivery, sequencing is disclosed]). Regarding claim 6, Bae discloses the apparatus of claim 2. Jeong further teaches wherein the one or more processors are further configured to start a validity timer associated with the common QoE configuration (Jeong: ¶ 0143, Logged data validity time: This indicates a validity time of logged data received from the application layer. The UE starts a timer when receiving QoE data information from the application layer and logging the QoE data information. The timer may also be started for each QoE data. While the timer is running, the UE may log QoE data). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the above mentioned features taught by Jeong with the system disclosed by Bae, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result of managing configuration validity without requiring extra signaling for each user equipment (UE). Regarding claim 7, Bae in view of Jeong disclose the apparatus of claim 6. Jeong further teaches wherein the one or more processors are further configured to determine that the common QoE configuration is invalid based at least in part on an expiration of the validity timer (Jeong: ¶ 0143, When the validity time elapses or when the timer is expired by the base station, the UE may not additionally log QoE data from the application layer). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the above mentioned features taught by Jeong with the system disclosed by Bae, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result of managing configuration validity without requiring extra signaling for each user equipment (UE). Regarding claim 8, Bae discloses the apparatus of claim 2. Jeong further teaches wherein the one or more processors are further configured to determine that the common QoE configuration is invalid based at least in part on the UE moving outside of a validity area associated with the common QoE configuration (Jeong: ¶ 0141, Area configuration: This is information about an area where measurement information can be collected and stored through a Logged QoE measurement operation, and the area is indicated in a cell unit. ¶ 0249, the UE may decide to perform logging or reporting based on the logged QoE measurement configuration information previously received or logged QoE measurement configuration information (e.g., the area configuration, the plmn-IdentityList, the direct QoE measurement/logging/reporting indicator) transmitted by the new base station… the UE may report the Availability information to a new base station, wait for a response (e.g., retrieval or new logged QoE configuration) from the base station, and respond accordingly (determine whether to report) [Examiner’s note: Reference discloses UE mobility/location and the continued validity of a stored QoE measurement configuration, satisfying mobility-based invalidity determination limitation]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the above mentioned features taught by Jeong with the system disclosed by Bae, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result preventing stale, area-inapplicable configurations from consuming UE resources). Regarding claim 10, Bae discloses the apparatus of claim 9. Jeong further teaches wherein the dedicated QoE configuration is associated with a validity area (Jeong: ¶ 0141, Area configuration: This is information about an area where measurement information can be collected and stored through a Logged QoE measurement operation, and the area is indicated in a cell unit. ¶ 0154, The base station 1h-05 may transmit the QoE measurement configuration information to the UE by including it in a dedicated message [Examiner’s note: Reference supplies area association in the context of dedicated RRC-delivered QoE measurement configuration]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the above mentioned features taught by Jeong with the system disclosed by Bae, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result of maintaining uniform validity semantics regardless of delivery channel. Regarding claim 11, Bae in view of Jeong disclose the apparatus of claim 10. Jeong further teaches wherein the validity area is associated with one of a cell list, a tracking area list, or a frequency list (Jeong: ¶ 0141, Area configuration: This is information about an area where measurement information can be collected and stored through a Logged QoE measurement operation, and the area is indicated in a cell unit.[Examiner’s note: Reference satisfies disjunctive enumerated alternative with cell unit area configuration.]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the above mentioned features taught by Jeong with the system disclosed by Bae, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result of obtaining interoperable area scoping, consistent with standard mobility identifiers Regarding claim 12, Bae in view of Jeong disclose the apparatus of claim 10. Jeong further teaches wherein the one or more processors are further configured to determine that the dedicated QoE configuration is invalid based at least in part on the UE moving outside of the validity area (Jeong: ¶ 0249, the UE may decide to perform logging or reporting based on the logged QoE measurement configuration information previously received or logged QoE measurement configuration information (e.g., the area configuration, the plmn-IdentityList, the direct QoE measurement/logging/reporting indicator) transmitted by the new base station… the UE may report the Availability information to a new base station, wait for a response (e.g., retrieval or new logged QoE configuration) from the base station, and respond accordingly (determine whether to report). ¶ 0141, Area configuration: This is information about an area where measurement information can be collected and stored through a Logged QoE measurement operation, and the area is indicated in a cell unit.). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the above mentioned features taught by Jeong with the system disclosed by Bae, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result of preventing QoE measurement outside the operator’s intended collection area. Regarding claim 13, Bae in view of Jeong disclose the apparatus of claim 12. Jeong further teaches wherein the one or more processors are further configured to clear the dedicated QoE configuration based at least in part on determining that the dedicated QoE configuration is invalid (Jeong: ¶ 0104, if the RRC message is for releasing the configuration, the UE AS 1f-05 may transmit, to the UE APP 1f-45, an AT command to clear the stored configuration information. Specific operations of the UE AS 1f-05 receiving the RRC message may be as follows… TABLE-US-00004 1> if the received otherConfig includes the measConfigAppLayer:…3> inform upper layers to clear the stored application layer measurement configuration). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the above mentioned features taught by Jeong with the system disclosed by Bae, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result of maintaining resource efficiency and prevention of invalid measurements. Regarding claim 14, Bae in view of Jeong disclose the apparatus of claim 12. Bae further teaches wherein the one or more processors are further configured to deactivate the dedicated QoE configuration based at least in part on determining that the dedicated QoE configuration is invalid (Jeong: ¶ 0228, The BROADCAST SESSION QMC ACTIVATION DEACTIVATION INDICATION message may include an MBS session ID list of MBS broadcast services of which QMC is required to be activated and an MBS session ID list of MBS broadcast services of which QMC is required to be deactivated, and may include either activation or deactivation information or both information. ¶ 0231, The configuration information may be generated for each MBS broadcast session and included in the MCCH message or the SIB message and may include an IE (e.g., an MBSmeasConfigAppLayerActivated IE) indicating whether the QMC is activated or deactivated [Examiner’s note: Reference discloses activation/deactivation of the QoE measurement configuration per MBS session]). Regarding claim 15, Bae in view of Jeong disclose the apparatus of claim 14. Bae further teaches wherein the one or more processors are further configured to reactivate the dedicated QoE configuration based at least in part on the UE moving inside of the validity area (Jeong: ¶ 0228, The BROADCAST SESSION QMC ACTIVATION DEACTIVATION INDICATION message may include an MBS session ID list of MBS broadcast services of which QMC is required to be activated and an MBS session ID list of MBS broadcast services of which QMC is required to be deactivated, and may include either activation or deactivation information or both information. ¶ 0231, The configuration information may be generated for each MBS broadcast session and included in the MCCH message or the SIB message and may include an IE (e.g., an MBSmeasConfigAppLayerActivated IE) indicating whether the QMC is activated or deactivated [Examiner’s note: Reference discloses activation/deactivation of the QoE measurement configuration per MBS session]). Regarding claim 19, Bae discloses the apparatus of claim 18. Jeong further teaches wherein the area indicated by the broadcast message associated with the MBS is associated with one or more frequencies associated with the MBS indicated by a system information block message (Jeong: ¶¶ 0160-0161, The base station 1h-05 may transmit the QoE measurement configuration information to the UE in a broadcast message as shown below…System Information Block (SIB)… Multicast control channel (MCCH): MCCH is a channel used for transmitting control messages related to an MBMS service, and may be reused [Examiner’s note: MCCHs are transmitted over specific radio frequencies allocated within communication networks). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the above mentioned features taught by Jeong with the system disclosed by Bae, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result reducing signal overhead. Regarding claim 21, Bae in view of Jeong discloses the apparatus of claim 20. Jeong further teaches wherein the message received from the network node includes another QoE configuration. (Jeong: ¶ 0250, When the base station transmits new configuration information to the UE (regardless of a change in RRC mode), transmitting only some changed configuration information (delta signaling) is more efficient in using limited radio resources than transmitting all new configuration information [Examiner’s note: Reference discloses RRC message can that releases a prior configuration while carrying replacement configuration.) It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the above mentioned features taught by Jeong with the system disclosed by Bae, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result of reduced signaling and uninterrupted QoE collection. Claims 4, 16-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bae et al. US 20240049258 A1 (hereinafter referred to as Bae), in view of Jeong et al. US 20240196248 A1 (hereinafter referred to as Jeong), in further view of Dai et al. US 20250254111 A1 (hereinafter referred to as Dai). Regarding claim 4, Bae in view of Jeong disclose the apparatus of claim 3. Dai further teaches wherein transmitting the common QoE configuration from the access stratum layer to the application layer is based at least in part on the UE having no valid configuration associated with the common QoE configuration (Dai: ¶ 0091, According to some other embodiments of the present application, CN/OAM QoE measurement identification information rather than RRC QoE measurement identification information is used to identify at least the report of the QoE measurement performed by the UE in the RRC idle state, which will be respectively transmitted to the UE side and CN side by the gNB before the gNB sends the UE into the RRC idle state [Examiner’s note: Reference implicitly teaches UE having no valid configuration in context-switching logic]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use these above mentioned features taught by Dai with the system disclosed by Bae and Jeong, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result of preventing redundant configuration processing and conserving UE computational resources. Regarding claim 16, Bae in view of Jeong discloses the apparatus of claim 12. Jeong further teaches wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: determine, by an access stratum layer , that the UE has moved outside of the validity area (Jeong: 0104, In operation 1f-50, if the RRC message is for setting up a configuration, the UE AS 1f-05 may transmit the configuration information to a UE application layer (UE APP) 1f-45 via an AT command. In another embodiment of the present disclosure, if the RRC message is for releasing the configuration, the UE AS 1f-05 may transmit, to the UE APP 1f-45, an AT command to clear the stored configuration information [Examiner’s note: Reference establishes AS -> APP layer communication for QoE state indication, supporting the predictable extension to validity area status notification.]). Jeong does not explicitly disclose and indicate, to an application layer, to stop collecting the at least one QoE measurement based at least in part determining that the UE has moved outside of the validity area. However, in the same field of endeavor as the claimed invention, Dai teaches indicate, to an application layer, to stop collecting the at least one QoE measurement based at least in part determining that the UE has moved outside of the validity area (Dai: ¶ 0087, the RRC layer of the UE will indicate the upper layer (upper than the RRC layer, e.g. the application layer) of the UE that the UE is in RRC_IDLE state and the QoE measurement in RRC_IDLE is configured [Examiner’s note: Reference teaches that the AS layer sends the RRC state to the application layer for QoE. Replacing the RRC state with location status applies same existing AS-to-application signaling to a new variable to achieve the same result]). It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the access stratum to application layer QoE communication of Dai with the validity area monitoring system disclosed by Jeong to reach the desirable result of providing centralized validity determination while allowing application layer awareness for seamless measurement cessation. Regarding claim 17, Bae in view of Jeong discloses the apparatus of claim 12. Jeong further teaches wherein the one or more processors are further configured to: indicate, by an access stratum layer to an application layer (Jeong: 0091, the UE AS 1f-05 may transmit the configuration information to a UE application layer (UE APP) [Examiner’s note: Reference teaches inter-layer and inter-node QoE identification passing]) , one of a current cell associated with the UE, a current tracking area associated with the UE, or a current frequency associated with the UE (Jeong: ¶ 0140, This is information about an area where measurement information can be collected and stored through a Logged QoE measurement operation, and the area is indicated in a cell unit. ¶ 0151, the UE may perform QoE measurement, logging, or reporting in a corresponding cell) . Jeong does not explicitly disclose and determine, by the application layer, that the UE has moved outside of the validity area based at least in part on the one of the current cell associated with the UE, the current tracking area associated with the UE, or the current frequency associated with the UE. However, in the same field of endeavor as the claimed invention, Dai teaches and determine, by the application layer, that the UE has moved outside of the validity area based at least in part on the one of the current cell associated with the UE, the current tracking area associated with the UE, or the current frequency associated with the UE (Dai: ¶ 0087, the RRC layer of the UE will indicate the upper layer (upper than the RRC layer, e.g. the application layer) of the UE that the UE is in RRC_IDLE state and the QoE measurement in RRC_IDLE is configured. The RRC layer may also provide the RRC QoE measurement identification information…to the upper layer [Examiner’s note: Reference teaches that the AS layer sends the RRC state to the application layer for QoE. Replacing the RRC state with location status applies same existing AS-to-application signaling, just to a new variable to achieve the same result]). It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the access stratum to application layer QoE communication of Bae and Jeong with the features disclosed by Dai to reach the desirable result of providing application specific responsiveness to coverage changes without new AS-layer measurement logic. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TEMITOPE O. FOLAYAN whose telephone number is (571)270-0630. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8 a.m - 5 p.m. ET.. 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, Edan Orgad can be reached at (571) 272-7884. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /T.O.F./Examiner, Art Unit 2414 /EDAN ORGAD/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2414
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Prosecution Timeline

Nov 07, 2024
Application Filed
Sep 11, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102, §103 (current)

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
Grant Probability
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 0 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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