Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 02, 2026
Application No. 18/865,606

Dependent Scheduling of Redundantly Connecting Wireless Devices

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
Nov 13, 2024
Priority
May 17, 2022 — nonprovisional of PCTEP2022063295
Examiner
CHOUDHURY, FAISAL
Art Unit
2469
Tech Center
2400 — Computer Networks
Assignee
Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
85%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
9m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 85% — above average
85%
Career Allowance Rate
696 granted / 818 resolved
+27.1% vs TC avg
Strong +15% interview lift
Without
With
+15.4%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 7m
Avg Prosecution
24 currently pending
Career history
837
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
4.9%
-35.1% vs TC avg
§103
55.0%
+15.0% vs TC avg
§102
18.6%
-21.4% vs TC avg
§112
12.8%
-27.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 818 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §103
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 . 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)(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 23-24, 26-28, 30-34, 37-39 and 41-42 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Applicant submitted prior art WO 2021/029862 to Nokia et al. (hereinafter Nokia) As to claims 23, 39, 41 and 42, Nokia discloses a method of controlling wireless communication, the method comprising: a node of a wireless communication network determining whether multiple wireless devices redundantly connect a same remote device to the wireless communication network (Nokia; [040] discloses two UEs may be associated with the same endpoint 169, in accordance with some example embodiments. When two UEs and two corresponding DS-TTs) are used at the end point (e.g., the interface between the 3GPP bridge 105D and the TSN system 188A to provide redundancy for TSN and/or URLLC, each of the UEs may independently setup PDU sessions, eliminating even the UE as a single point of failure); and in response to determining that the wireless devices redundantly connect the same remote device to the wireless communication network, the node scheduling one or more first wireless transmissions of at least one of the wireless devices depending on scheduling of one or more second wireless transmissions of at least one other of the wireless devices (Nokia; [046] discloses the 3 GPP network may need to be able to identify that the UEs form a redundant pair, and a mechanism may be needed to coordinate actions such as a handover between the two UEs once they have been identified as forming a pair. [049] discloses there is provided coordinated actions, such as a handover, by UEs that have setup independent PDU sessions through different base stations (e.g., 5G gNBs, eNBs, as well as other types of base stations) for the purpose of providing end- to-end redundant paths 1900A-B for one or more TSN flows. These UEs may form a redundant UE pair, such as UEs 185A-B or may form a larger redundant set involving three or more UE. The coordination may ensure that at any given time, only one UE 185 A will be engaged in an action such as a handover while the other redundant UE 185B pair maintains its current radio connection to enable the flow of traffic to continue. As such, an action, such a handover, will be prevented from occurring simultaneously (e.g., at or about the same time so as to cause an interruption on both paths) on both paths. [075] discloses while handover is discussed as the primary task executed by a UE that is part of a redundant pair, other actions may be implemented and controlled using the RCoF and the token-based processes disclosed herein (see, e.g., FIGs. 3 and 4). For example, the token scheme described herein may also manage the coordination of other radio resource management functions between redundant pairs of UE 185A-B. Thus since the handover involves resource management functions, it necessarily requires scheduling of at least one UE of the redundant UEs depending on the scheduling of the at least one other of the redundant UEs) As to claims 24, the rejection of claim 23 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Nokia discloses wherein the node performs said scheduling in response to a message from each of the wireless devices (Nokia; 049]) As to claims 26, the rejection of claim 24 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Nokia discloses wherein the messages from the wireless devices comprise at least one scheduling request (Nokia; [075]) As to claims 27, the rejection of claim 24 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Nokia discloses wherein the messages from the wireless devices comprise at least one buffer status report (Nokia; [075]). As to claims 28, the rejection of claim 24 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Nokia discloses wherein the messages from the wireless devices comprise at least one Radio Resource Control (RRC) message (Nokia; [080 ]) As to claims 30, the rejection of claim 23 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Nokia discloses wherein said scheduling comprises assigning wireless resources for the one or more first wireless transmissions depending on wireless resources assigned for the one or more second wireless transmissions (Nokia; [075]) As to claims 31, the rejection of claim 30 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Nokia discloses wherein the wireless resources for the one or more first wireless transmissions are assigned in such a way that a frequency domain separation from the wireless resources assigned for the one or more second wireless transmissions equal to or greater than a threshold (Nokia; [047]). As to claims 32, the rejection of claim 30 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Nokia discloses wherein the wireless resources for the one or more first wireless transmissions comprise Physical Resource Blocks (PRBs) that are distinct from PRBs assigned for the one or more second wireless transmissions (Nokia; [047]) As to claims 33, the rejection of claim 30 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Nokia discloses wherein the wireless resources for the one or more first wireless transmissions comprise one or more carriers that are distinct from one or more carriers assigned for the one or more second wireless transmissions (Nokia; [047]) As to claims 34, the rejection of claim 30 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Nokia discloses wherein the wireless resources for the one or more first wireless transmissions comprise a frequency layer that is distinct from a frequency layer assigned for the one or more second wireless transmissions (Nokia; [047]) As to claims 37, the rejection of claim 23 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Nokia discloses wherein the one or more first wireless transmissions convey data which is at least in part redundant with respect to data conveyed by the one or more second wireless transmissions (Nokia; [040]) As to claims 38, the rejection of claim 23 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Nokia discloses wherein the remote device is a Time Sensitive Networking (TSN) device (Nokia; [040]). Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 1. 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. 2. 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 of this title, 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 29 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Applicant submitted prior art WO 2021/029862 to Nokia et al. (hereinafter Nokia) in view of U.S. Publication No US 2023/0284293 to Hong et al. (hereinafter Hong) As to claims 29, Nokia discloses a plurality of wireless devices, but fails to disclose wherein the node assigns the wireless devices to a group for redundantly connecting the remote device to the wireless communication network. However, Hong discloses wherein the node assigns the wireless devices to a group for redundantly connecting the remote device to the wireless communication network (Hong; [0153]-[0166]) It is obvious for a person of ordinary skilled in the art to combine the teachings before the effective filing date of the invention. One would be motivated to combine the teachings in order to use the limited resources in an effective way. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 25, 35-36 and 40 are objected, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FAISAL CHOUDHURY whose telephone number is (571)270-3001. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8AM-6P.M. 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, Joseph Avellino can be reached at 5712723905. 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. /FAISAL CHOUDHURY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2478
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Nov 13, 2024
Application Filed
Sep 01, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102, §103 (current)

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
85%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+15.4%)
2y 7m (~9m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 818 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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