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 § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claim 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. The claims fail to place the invention squarely within one statutory class of invention. Based on the broadest reasonable interpretation of the term "computer readable storage medium", the term is not limited to non-transitory computer readable storage media, and can include transitory media (See http://www.uspto.gov/patents/law/comments/2009-08-25_interim_101_instructions.pdf). The transitory media generally stores data/information in form of signals. Signals are form of energy. As such, the claim is drawn to a form of energy and/or signal per se. Energy is not one of the four categories of invention and therefore this claim(s) is/are not statutory. Energy is not a series of steps or acts and thus is not a process. Energy is not a physical article or object and as such is not a machine or manufacture. Energy is not a combination of substances and therefor not a composition of matter. Signal per se does not appear to be a process, machine, manufacture or composition of matter.
[Claims that recite nothing but the physical characteristics of a form of energy, such as frequency, voltage or the strength of a magnetic field, define energy or magnetism, per se, and as such are nonstatutory natural phenomena. O'Reilly, 56 U. S. (15 How.) at 112-14. See also In re Nuijten. Docket no. 2006-1371 (Fed. Cir. Sept. 20, 2007)(slip. Op. at 18): "A propagating signal is not a process, machine, manufacture or composition of matter"]
Thus, such a signal cannot be patentable subject matter.
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)(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(s) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422).
Regarding claims 1, 19, 20, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches an information control method, applied to a first communication device and comprising:
executing, by the first communication device (fig. 4, “Event notifier”, and par. 43, The event notifier introduced in the embodiments described herein can be implemented in several locations within the operator domain, including existing network functions (some of them might be NWDAF, SMF, AMF, PCF),…), a first operation (par. 33, The event notifier might consider several event features when executing the notification task…), wherein the first operation comprises at least one of the following operations:
measuring a data transmission rate (par. 25, 35, 36, 51, 57, 88, the Guaranteed Flow Bit Rate (GFBR)… Event features may include notification-specific information…One example is information about specific KPIs (fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, etc.)… the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate)… A measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency and other factors on which the one or more embodiments improve); or
sending first information (fig. 4, EventNotificationMessage; par. 38, the event notifier (e.g., mobile network domain node) generates some event information, information which might be including a number of features);
wherein the first information comprises at least one of the following:
information used for indicating a data transmission rate (par. 42, the event description might include information about which of the QoS parameters included in the notification-specific information is expected to be unfulfilled due to the event);
a first event, comprising at least one of the following: a terminal transfer event (par. 38, On such feature is the event type, indicating which particular event is expected (e.g., handover)), a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event (par. 42, unfulfillment of certain QoS parameters), an event in which an IP address of a terminal changes, an event in which connection between a terminal and a network is cut off (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure…the notification-specific information associated with a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity), a terminal transfer event in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate), a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate), a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event caused by terminal transfer (par. 42, a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity, the event description might include information that the network event is expected to impact the availability of user plane connectivity. This may include information such as a time interval in which the user plane connectivity is expected to not be available), or a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event, caused by terminal transfer, in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 57);
first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used for indicating beginning or occurrence of the first event (par. 41, Another feature is an event duration, indicating the expected duration of the event, for instance in the form of start/end time (also including future times));
second indication information, wherein the second indication information is used for indicating completion of the first event (par. 41, Another feature is an event duration, indicating the expected duration of the event, for instance in the form of start/end time (also including future times));
third indication information, wherein the third indication information is used for indicating a failure of the first event (par. 40, event accuracy, indicating the accuracy associated with the expected event (i.e., how likely is the expected event going to happen). The accuracy can be represented in different ways, including statistical ways of measuring accuracy (e.g., the expected event happened in 80% of the cases in the past in the same time/location)); and
a first event duration (par. 41, Another feature is an event duration); or
a second event, comprising at least one of the following: a data transmission recovery event, an event in which the data transmission rate is no longer zero, or an event in which connection between a terminal and a network is recovered (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate.).
Regarding claim 2, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 1, wherein the terminal transfer comprises at least one of the following items:
terminal handover, terminal redirection, session recreation, or terminal re-registration (par. 33, 57, An event may be of a certain event type that indicates which particular event is the object of the task (e.g., handover));
and/or
the terminal transfer event comprises at least one of the following: a terminal transfer event in which IP continuity is maintained, or a terminal transfer event in which IP continuity is not maintained (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate);
and/or
the event in which connection between a terminal and a network is cut off comprises at least one of the following events: the terminal actively asking to release the connection with the network, or a radio link failure between the terminal and the network (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure…the notification-specific information associated with a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity).
Regarding claim 3, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 2, wherein the terminal transfer event in which IP continuity is maintained comprises at least one of the following:
terminal handover in which the IP continuity of a terminal is maintained, terminal redirection in which the IP continuity of a terminal is maintained, session recreation in which the IP continuity of a terminal is maintained, or terminal re-registration in which the IP continuity of a terminal is maintained (par. 57, if necessary, to take adequate steps (reactions) to better accommodate the realization of the expected event. For instance, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity. In another example, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate);
and/or
the terminal transfer event in which IP continuity is not maintained comprises at least one of the following: terminal handover in which the IP continuity is not maintained, terminal redirection in which the IP continuity is not maintained, session recreation in which the IP continuity is not maintained, or terminal re-registration in which the IP continuity is not maintained (par. 57, if necessary, to take adequate steps (reactions) to better accommodate the realization of the expected event. For instance, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity. In another example, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate).
Regarding claim 4, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 1, wherein
the data transmission interruption or rate decrease event comprises at least one of the following: a first transmission interruption or rate decrease event or a second transmission interruption or rate decrease event (par. 41, 42, 57, unfulfillment of certain QoS parameters… if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate.);
wherein the first transmission interruption or rate decrease event comprises at least one of the following: data transmission interruption caused by a third event, temporary data transmission interruption, or a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event expected to be recovered (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate.);
the third event comprises at least one of the following: a terminal transfer event in which IP continuity is maintained, or a terminal transfer event (par. 33, 41, 42, 57, certain event type that indicates which particular event is the object of the task (e.g., handover));
the second transmission interruption or rate decrease event comprises at least one of the following: data transmission interruption or rate decrease caused by a fourth event, a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event with an unknown recovery possibility, a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event in which IP continuity is not maintained, or an abnormal data transmission interruption or rate decrease event (par. 41, 42, 57,); and
the fourth event comprises at least one of the following: an event in which an IP address of a terminal changes, a terminal transfer event in which an IP address of a terminal changes, an event in which connection between a terminal and a network is cut off, or an event of a radio link failure between a terminal and a network (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure…the notification-specific information associated with a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity).
Regarding claim 5, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 4, wherein for an IP-based terminal service, the third event comprises at least one of the following:
a terminal transfer event, or a terminal transfer event in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate);
and/or
for an ethernet-based terminal service, the third event comprises at least one of the following: a terminal transfer event (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate).
Regarding claim 6, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 1, wherein the executing, by the first communication device, a first operation comprises:
obtaining, by the first communication device, first monitoring requirement information (par. 50, the request might indicate some specific KPIs to be monitored (e.g., fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, event duration, etc.) and in this case, for instance, the notification from the event notifier should be driven by determining whether the expected event impacts one or more of the listed KPIs); and
executing, by the first communication device, the first operation according to the first monitoring requirement information (fig. 4, par. 50, specific KPIs to be monitored (e.g., fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, event duration, etc.));
the first monitoring requirement information comprises at least one of the following:
fourth indication information, used for indicating at least one of the following: in a case that the first event occurs, reporting the first event, the first indication information, and/or the first event duration (fig. 4, par. 38, 50, the request might indicate some specific KPIs to be monitored (e.g., fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, event duration, etc.) and in this case, for instance, the notification from the event notifier should be driven by determining whether the expected event impacts one or more of the listed KPIs); in a case that the first event ends, reporting the second indication information and/or the first event duration (par. 3, 33, 41, 50, 57); in a case that the first event fails, reporting the third indication information (par. 40, event accuracy, indicating the accuracy associated with the expected event (i.e., how likely is the expected event going to happen). The accuracy can be represented in different ways, including statistical ways of measuring accuracy (e.g., the expected event happened in 80% of the cases in the past in the same time/location)); or in a case that the second event occurs, reporting the second event (par. 33, 41, 50, 57);
fifth indication information, used for indicating at least one of the following: reporting the first information through a control plane, or reporting the first information through a user plane (fig. 4, EventNotificationMessage; par. 38, the event notifier (e.g., mobile network domain node) generates some event information, information which might be including a number of features);
sixth indication information, used for indicating: asking to measure a data transmission rate (par. 25, 35, 36, 50, 51, 57, 88, the Guaranteed Flow Bit Rate (GFBR)… Event features may include notification-specific information…One example is information about specific KPIs (fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, etc.)… the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate)… A measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency and other factors on which the one or more embodiments improve);
one or more rate value ranges (par. 2, 27, 50, 57, bitrates);
one or more reporting conditions for triggering reporting of a data transmission rate (par. 25, 35, 36, 50, 51, 57, 88);
a reporting event of a data transmission rate, wherein the reporting event comprises at least one of the following: the occurrence of the first event, the completion of the first event, the failure of the first event (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure), or the occurrence of the second event; or a reporting cycle of a data transmission rate (par. 25, 35, 36, 50, 51, 57, 88, failure).
Regarding claim 7, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 6, wherein the reporting conditions comprise at least one of the following: the rate is zero, the rate reaches any value range among N rate value ranges, or the rate is greater than or equal to M (par. 27, 28, 44, 57, a target KPI (e.g., achievable bitrate)… a permanent loss of connectivity …the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate) ); and
wherein
N is a natural number greater than or equal to 1; and
M is a value of the rate (par. 27, 28, 44, 57, a target KPI (e.g., achievable bitrate)… a permanent loss of connectivity …the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate) ).
Regarding claim 8, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 4, wherein sending, by the first communication device, the first transmission interruption or rate decrease event, a first indication corresponding to the first transmission interruption event, and/or, a duration corresponding to the first transmission interruption event (par. 41, 42, 57, unfulfillment of certain QoS parameters… if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate.) comprises: in a case that a first condition is satisfied, sending, by the first communication device, the first indication information corresponding to the first transmission interruption event, and/or, the duration corresponding to the first transmission interruption event (par. 42, a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity, the event description might include information that the network event is expected to impact the availability of user plane connectivity. This may include information such as a time interval in which the user plane connectivity is expected to not be available); and
wherein the first condition comprises at least one of the following: the third event occurs, or the data transmission interruption or rate decrease caused by the third event occurs (par. 33, 41, 42, 57, certain event type that indicates which particular event is the object of the task (e.g., handover)…a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity, the event description might include information that the network event is expected to impact the availability of user plane connectivity. This may include information such as a time interval in which the user plane connectivity is expected to not be available).
Regarding claim 9, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 4, wherein sending, by the first communication device, the second transmission interruption or rate decrease event, a first indication corresponding to the second transmission interruption event (par. 41, 42, 57, unfulfillment of certain QoS parameters… if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate.), and/or, a duration corresponding to the second transmission interruption event comprises: in a case that a second condition is satisfied, sending, by the first communication device, the second transmission interruption or rate decrease event, the first indication corresponding to the second transmission interruption event, and/or, the duration corresponding to the second transmission interruption event (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure…the notification-specific information associated with a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity… This may include information such as a time interval in which the user plane connectivity is expected to not be available); and
wherein the second condition comprises at least one of the following: the fourth event occurs, or the data transmission interruption or rate decrease caused by the fourth event occurs (par. 41, 42, 57, unfulfillment of certain QoS parameters… if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate.).
Regarding claim 10, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 1, wherein the information used for indicating a data transmission rate comprises at least one of the following:
in a case that a third condition is satisfied, the first communication device sends the information used for indicating a data transmission rate (par. 27, 28, 31, 42, 44, 57, a target KPI (e.g., achievable bitrate)… a permanent loss of connectivity …the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate) );
the third condition comprises at least one of the following:
the measured data transmission rate is determined to satisfy a reporting condition (par. 27, 28, 44, 57, a target KPI (e.g., achievable bitrate)… a permanent loss of connectivity …the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate) );
the first event occurs;
the first event is completed;
the first event fails; or
the second event occurs (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure).
Regarding claim 13, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches an information control method, applied to a second communication device and comprising:
executing, by the second communication device, a second operation, wherein the second operation comprises at least one of the following operations:
obtaining first information (par. 49, 50, the request might indicate some specific KPIs to be monitored (e.g., fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, event duration, etc.) and in this case, for instance, the notification from the event notifier should be driven by determining whether the expected event impacts one or more of the listed KPIs);
determining second information (par. 25, 35, 36, 51, 57, 88, the Guaranteed Flow Bit Rate (GFBR)… Event features may include notification-specific information…One example is information about specific KPIs (fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, etc.)… the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate)… A measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency and other factors on which the one or more embodiments improve); or
sending the second information (fig. 4, EventNotificationMessage; par. 38, the event notifier (e.g., mobile network domain node) generates some event information, information which might be including a number of features);
wherein
the first information comprises at least one of the following:
information used for indicating a data transmission rate (par. 42, the event description might include information about which of the QoS parameters included in the notification-specific information is expected to be unfulfilled due to the event);
a first event, comprising at least one of the following: a terminal transfer event (par. 38, On such feature is the event type, indicating which particular event is expected (e.g., handover)), a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event (par. 42, unfulfillment of certain QoS parameters), an event in which an IP address of a terminal changes, an event in which connection between a terminal and a network is cut off (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure…the notification-specific information associated with a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity), a terminal transfer event in which IP continuity is maintained, a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate), a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event caused by terminal transfer (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate), or a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event, caused by terminal transfer, in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 57);
first indication information, wherein the first indication information is used for indicating beginning or occurrence of the first event (par. 41, Another feature is an event duration, indicating the expected duration of the event, for instance in the form of start/end time (also including future times));
second indication information, wherein the second indication information is used for indicating completion of the first event (par. 41, Another feature is an event duration, indicating the expected duration of the event, for instance in the form of start/end time (also including future times));
third indication information, wherein the third indication information is used for indicating a failure of the first event (par. 40, event accuracy, indicating the accuracy associated with the expected event (i.e., how likely is the expected event going to happen). The accuracy can be represented in different ways, including statistical ways of measuring accuracy (e.g., the expected event happened in 80% of the cases in the past in the same time/location));
a first event duration (par. 41, Another feature is an event duration); or
a second event, comprising at least one of the following: a data transmission recovery event, an event in which the data transmission rate is no longer zero, or an event in which connection between a terminal and a network is recovered (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate.);
wherein the data transmission rate in the first information is a data transmission rate measured by a first communication device (par. 25, 35, 36, 51, 57, 88, the Guaranteed Flow Bit Rate (GFBR)… Event features may include notification-specific information…One example is information about specific KPIs (fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, etc.)… the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate)… A measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency and other factors on which the one or more embodiments improve);
the second information comprises at least one of the following:
information used for indicating a data transmission rate (par. 42, the event description might include information about which of the QoS parameters included in the notification-specific information is expected to be unfulfilled due to the event);
a fifth event, comprising at least one of the following: a terminal transfer event (par. 38, On such feature is the event type, indicating which particular event is expected (e.g., handover)), a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event (par. 42, unfulfillment of certain QoS parameters), an event in which an IP address of a terminal changes, an event in which connection between a terminal and a network is cut off (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure…the notification-specific information associated with a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity), a terminal transfer event in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate), a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event in which IP continuity is maintained, a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event caused by terminal transfer (par. 42, a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity, the event description might include information that the network event is expected to impact the availability of user plane connectivity. This may include information such as a time interval in which the user plane connectivity is expected to not be available), or a data transmission interruption or rate decrease event, caused by terminal transfer, in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 57);
seventh indication information, wherein the seventh indication information is used for indicating beginning or occurrence of the fifth event (par. 41, Another feature is an event duration, indicating the expected duration of the event, for instance in the form of start/end time (also including future times));
eighth indication information, wherein the eighth indication information is used for indicating completion of the fifth event (par. 41, Another feature is an event duration, indicating the expected duration of the event, for instance in the form of start/end time (also including future times));
ninth indication information, wherein the ninth indication information is used for indicating a failure of the fifth event (par. 40, event accuracy, indicating the accuracy associated with the expected event (i.e., how likely is the expected event going to happen). The accuracy can be represented in different ways, including statistical ways of measuring accuracy (e.g., the expected event happened in 80% of the cases in the past in the same time/location));
a fifth event duration (par. 41, Another feature is an event duration); or
a sixth event, comprising at least one of the following: a data transmission recovery event, an event in which the data transmission rate is no longer zero, or an event in which connection between a terminal and a network is recovered (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate.).
Regarding claim 14, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 13, wherein content of the second information comprises at least one of the following:
information self-determined by the second communication device (par. 42, the event description might include information about which of the QoS parameters included in the notification-specific information is expected to be unfulfilled due to the event));
information in the first information (par. 42, the event description might include information about which of the QoS parameters included in the notification-specific information is expected to be unfulfilled due to the event); and
information determined by the second communication device according to the first information (par. 42, the event description might include information about which of the QoS parameters included in the notification-specific information is expected to be unfulfilled due to the event);
the data transmission rate in the second information is a data transmission rate measured by the second communication device or the data transmission rate contained in the first information (par. 25, 35, 36, 51, 57, 88, the Guaranteed Flow Bit Rate (GFBR)… Event features may include notification-specific information…One example is information about specific KPIs (fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, etc.)… the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate)… A measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency and other factors on which the one or more embodiments improve);
the events in the fifth event comprise at least one of the following: a first event, a fifth event determined according to the first event, or a self-determined fifth event (par. 41, Another feature is an event duration);
the events in the sixth event comprise at least one of the following: a second event, a sixth event determined according to the second event, or a self-determined sixth event (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate.); or
the fifth event duration is a fifth event duration determined by the second communication device or the first event duration contained in the first information (par. 41, 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate).
Regarding claim 15, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 14, wherein the second information determined by the second communication device according to the first information comprises at least one of the following: an operation for determining the fifth event according to the first event (par. 41, 57), comprising at least one of the following:
in a case that the first information comprises the terminal transfer event, and the second communication device determines that the IP address is maintained unchanged, the fifth event determined by the second communication device comprises: the terminal transfer event in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure (no handover)…the notification-specific information associated with a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate);
in a case that the first information comprises the terminal transfer event, and the second communication device determines that the IP address is maintained unchanged and the data transmission rate is zero or decreases (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure (no handover, the UE still maintain connection and no address change)…the notification-specific information associated with a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate), the fifth event determined by the second communication device comprises: the data transmission interruption or rate decrease event in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate);
in a case that the first information comprises the data transmission interruption or rate decrease event, and the second communication device determines that the IP address is maintained unchanged, the fifth event determined by the second communication device comprises: the data transmission interruption or rate decrease event in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure (no handover)…the notification-specific information associated with a certain network event is the availability of user plane connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate); or
in a case that the first information comprises the data transmission interruption or rate decrease event caused by terminal transfer, and the second communication device determines that the IP address is maintained unchanged, the fifth event determined by the second communication device comprises: the data transmission interruption or rate decrease event, caused by terminal transfer, in which IP continuity is maintained (par. 57).
Regarding claim 16, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 13, wherein the executing, by the second communication device, a second operation comprises:
obtaining, by the second communication device, second monitoring requirement information (par. 50, the request might indicate some specific KPIs to be monitored (e.g., fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, event duration, etc.) and in this case, for instance, the notification from the event notifier should be driven by determining whether the expected event impacts one or more of the listed KPIs); and
executing, by the second communication device, the second operation according to the second monitoring requirement information (fig. 4, par. 50, specific KPIs to be monitored (e.g., fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, event duration, etc.));
wherein
the second monitoring requirement information comprises at least one of the following: tenth indication information, used for indicating: asking to measure a data transmission rate (par. 25, 35, 36, 50, 51, 57, 88, the Guaranteed Flow Bit Rate (GFBR)… Event features may include notification-specific information…One example is information about specific KPIs (fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, etc.)… the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate)… A measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency and other factors on which the one or more embodiments improve);
one or more rate value ranges (par. 2, 27, 50, 57, bitrates);
one or more reporting conditions for triggering reporting of a data transmission rate (par. 25, 35, 36, 50, 51, 57, 88);
a reporting event of a data transmission rate, wherein the reporting event comprises at least one of the following: the occurrence of the first event, the completion of the first event, the failure of the first event (par. 31, 42, 57, a handover, an inter-frequency handover, an inter-RAT handover, or a temporary radio link failure), or the occurrence of the second event (par. 25, 35, 36, 50, 51, 57, 88, failure);
a reporting cycle of a data transmission rate (par. 25, 35, 36, 50, 51, 57, 88, failure);
eleventh indication information, used for indicating: asking to execute at least one of the following third operations: obtaining the first information, or monitoring the first information sent by a first target terminal (par. 50, 62, the request might indicate some specific KPIs to be monitored (e.g., fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, event duration, etc.) and in this case, for instance, the notification from the event notifier should be driven by determining whether the expected event impacts one or more of the listed KPIs); or
a time period of executing the third operation (par. 57, if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that there might be an unavailability of user plane for 50 ms, for instance, the application can take into consideration such information then avoid interpreting the temporary loss of user plane availability when the handover will happen as a permanent loss of connectivity…if a handover event is expected in a certain time window and the event description indicates that the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate), then the application might react by changing its configuration (e.g., inter-packet generation interval) to generate a lower bitrate).
Regarding claim 17, CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) teaches the information control method according to claim 16, wherein the reporting conditions comprise at least one of the following: the rate is zero, the rate reaches any value range among N rate value ranges, or the rate is greater than or equal to M (par. 27, 28, 44, 57, a target KPI (e.g., achievable bitrate)… a permanent loss of connectivity …the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate) ); and
wherein
N is a natural number greater than or equal to 1; and
M is a value of the rate (par. 27, 28, 44, 57, a target KPI (e.g., achievable bitrate)… a permanent loss of connectivity …the event is expected to cause the unfulfillment of a certain QoS parameter (e.g., minimum bitrate) ).
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.
Claim(s) 11, 12, 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CONDOLUCI et al. (US 20220256422) in view of LI et al. (US 20220174546 with foreign app. CN 201910774976.7 filed on 08/21/2019).
Regarding claim 11, CONDOLUCI does not explicitly teach the information control method according to claim 1, wherein the sending first information comprises at least one of the following:
sending, by the first communication device, an uplink data packet, wherein a packet header of the uplink data packet contains the first information; or
sending, by the first communication device, a control plane message, wherein the control plane message contains the first information.
But, LI et al. (US 20220174546) in a similar or same field of endeavor teaches sending, by the first communication device, an uplink data packet, wherein a packet header of the uplink data packet contains the first information (par. 136, a general packet radio service tunneling protocol-user plane header (GTP-U header) may be extended, that is, congestion information is carried in the GTP-U header, to report the congestion information.); or
sending, by the first communication device, a control plane message, wherein the control plane message contains the first information (par. 136).
Thus, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effectively filing date of the claimed invention to implement the system or method as taught by LI in the system of CONDOLUCI to send the information.
The motivation would have been to optimize packet transmission and reduce packet loss occurs, affecting user service experience.
Regarding claim 12, CONDOLUCI does not explicitly teach the information control method according to claim 11, wherein the packet header of the uplink data packet comprises at least one of the following: a GTP packet header or a service application layer packet header.
But, LI et al. (US 20220174546) in a similar or same field of endeavor teaches wherein the packet header of the uplink data packet comprises at least one of the following: a GTP packet header or a service application layer packet header (par. 136, a general packet radio service tunneling protocol-user plane header (GTP-U header) may be extended, that is, congestion information is carried in the GTP-U header, to report the congestion information.);
Thus, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effectively filing date of the claimed invention to implement the system or method as taught by LI in the system of CONDOLUCI to send the information.
The motivation would have been to optimize packet transmission and reduce packet loss occurs, affecting user service experience.
Regarding claim 18, CONDOLUCI teaches the information control method according to claim 13, wherein the obtaining, by the second communication device, first information (par. 49, 50, the request might indicate some specific KPIs to be monitored (e.g., fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, event duration, etc.) ) comprises at least one of the following: receiving, by the second communication device, an uplink data packet (par. 49, 50, the request might indicate some specific KPIs to be monitored (e.g., fulfillment of certain QoS parameters, availability of user plane connectivity, event duration, etc.).
However, CONDOLUCI does not explicitly teach wherein a packet header of the uplink data packet contains the first information; or receiving, by the second communication device, a control plane message, wherein the control plane message contains the first information.
But, LI et al. (US 20220174546) in a similar or same field of endeavor teaches wherein a packet header of the uplink data packet contains the first information; or receiving, by the second communication device, a control plane message, wherein the control plane message contains the first information (par. 136, a general packet radio service tunneling protocol-user plane header (GTP-U header) may be extended, that is, congestion information is carried in the GTP-U header, to report the congestion information.).
Thus, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effectively filing date of the claimed invention to implement the system or method as taught by LI in the system of CONDOLUCI to send the information.
The motivation would have been to optimize packet transmission and reduce packet loss occurs, affecting user service experience.
Conclusion
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/THINH D TRAN/for /Thinh Tran/, Patent Examiner of Art Unit 2466 09/19/2026
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