DETAILED ACTION
This communication is in responsive to Application No. 18/921,186 filed on 25 October 2024. Claims 1-20 are subject to examination.
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 .
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
In paragraph [0019], line.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Claim 13 objected to because of the following informalities:
Regarding Claim 13.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 7-8 and 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Regarding Claim 7, claim 7 recites the limitation "wherein the cellular base station hardware platform" (Emphasis Added). This limitation renders the claim indefinite because it is unclear whether the “the cellular base station hardware platform” recited in this limitation corresponds to the “a second cellular base station hardware platform” previously recited in line 2 of claim 7.
Regarding Claim 18, claim 18 recites the limitations "… the small cell …" and "… the network access request …" (Emphasis Added). The limitations render the claim indefinite because it is unclear whether the “small cell” and “network access request” are referring to the first or second instance of the respective limitations. For the purpose of examination, the Examiner has interpreted the limitations to read, “… the second small cell …” and “… the second network access request …” (Emphases added).
Regarding Claim 8 and 19, claims 8 and 19 each depend on dependent claims 7 or 18 and, therefore, inherit the 35 U.S.C. 112 issues of the dependent claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 7, 10-11, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Grayson et al. (US 10448352 B1, hereinafter "Grayson").
Regarding Claim 1, Grayson teaches A cellular network base station system, comprising:
a cellular base station hardware platform (Grayson: it is understood that enterprise fabric 102 may support both the (cellular) small cells and WiFi clients at the same time, see Fig. 1 and Col. 3 Lines 42-44. [Examiner contends that small cells are a type of base station]) configured to execute:
gNodeB functions (Grayson: it is understood that enterprise fabric 102 may support both the (cellular) small cells and WiFi clients at the same time, see Fig. 1 and Col. 3 Lines 42-44. [Examiner contends that small cells are a type of base station]); and
a user plane function (UPF) (Grayson: MME 104 signals to a user plane function of the cellular network, e.g., to a user plane function of small cell 108, see Col. 5 Lines 8-10), wherein the cellular base station hardware platform is configured to:
execute the UPF in isolation from the gNodeB functions (Grayson: e. Add enterprise identity to user plane function in small cell 108—transaction 3[16], 3[18]. f. User plane function in small cell 108 performs IP address allocation for UE—transaction 3[17], see Fig. 3A, Fig. 3D, Fig. 3E, and Col. 8 Lines 7-10. [Examiner contends that the base station does not simultaneously perform UPF and gNodeB functions]); and
route Internet communications for pieces of user equipment (UEs) in wireless communication with the cellular base station hardware platform via the UPF to the Internet without passing through a cellular network core (Grayson: send to the mobile device via the cellular network an attach accept message that includes the acquired IP address for use by the mobile device, the attach accept message indicating that the attach procedure is complete, and that the enterprise fabric is configured to support a communication session with the mobile device through the cellular network; switch SW1 becomes a point of policy enforcement for the traffic in enterprise fabric 102, see Col. 10 Lines 13-19 and Col. 7 Lines 4-5. [Examiner contends that cellular IP communication must pass through the User Plane Function (UPF) of the small cell as UPFs act as a mandatory routing anchor point]).
Regarding Claim 7, Grayson teaches The cellular network base station system of claim 1, further comprising:
a second cellular base station hardware platform (Grayson: FIG. 1 shows only one fabric edge switch SW1 and one small cell 108 for the sake of simplicity; however, it is understood that many fabric edge switches and their associated small cells may be connected to each other in network environment 100, see Col. 2 Lines 56-60) configured to execute:
gNodeB functions (Grayson: it is understood that enterprise fabric 102 may support both the (cellular) small cells and WiFi clients at the same time, see Fig. 1 and Col. 3 Lines 42-44. [Examiner contends that small cells are a type of base station]); and
a second UPF (Grayson: MME 104 signals to a user plane function of the cellular network, e.g., to a user plane function of small cell 108, see Col. 5 Lines 8-10), wherein the cellular base station hardware platform is configured to:
execute the second UPF in isolation from the gNodeB functions (Grayson: e. Add enterprise identity to user plane function in small cell 108—transaction 3[16], 3[18]. f. User plane function in small cell 108 performs IP address allocation for UE—transaction 3[17], see Fig. 3A, Fig. 3D, Fig. 3E, and Col. 8 Lines 7-10. [Examiner contends that the base station does not simultaneously perform UPF and gNodeB functions])); and
route Internet communications for UEs in wireless communication with the second cellular base station hardware platform via the second UPF to the Internet without passing through the cellular network core (Grayson: send to the mobile device via the cellular network an attach accept message that includes the acquired IP address for use by the mobile device, the attach accept message indicating that the attach procedure is complete, and that the enterprise fabric is configured to support a communication session with the mobile device through the cellular network; switch SW1 becomes a point of policy enforcement for the traffic in enterprise fabric 102, see Col. 10 Lines 13-19 and Col. 7 Lines 4-5. [Examiner contends that cellular IP communication must pass through the User Plane Function (UPF) of the small cell as UPFs act as a mandatory routing anchor point]).
Regarding Claim 10, Grayson teaches The cellular network base station system of claim 1, wherein the gNodeB functions of the cellular base station hardware platform are part of a small cell (Grayson: it is understood that enterprise fabric 102 may support both the (cellular) small cells and WiFi clients at the same time, see Fig. 1 and Col. 3 Lines 42-44. [Examiner contends that small cells are a type of base station]).
Regarding Claim 11, Grayson teaches A method for using a cellular base station hardware platform, the method comprising:
receiving, by a small cell that is hosted by the cellular base station hardware platform, a network access request (Grayson: At 3[1], mobile device 110 sends the above-mentioned attach request to small cell 108, see Fig. 3A and Col. 5 Lines 62-64), wherein the small cell performs gNodeB functions (Grayson: it is understood that enterprise fabric 102 may support both the (cellular) small cells and WiFi clients at the same time, see Fig. 1 and Col. 3 Lines 42-44. [Examiner contends that small cells are a type of base station]);
routing, by the small cell, the network access request to a cellular network core hosted remotely from the cellular base station hardware platform (Grayson: mobile device 110 sends to a cellular network an attach request to initiate an attach procedure, and the cellular network forwards the attach request to MME 104. In the example, of FIG. 1, mobile device 110 sends the attach request to small cell 108 (e.g., a 3GPP small cell), and the small cell forwards the attach request to enterprise fabric 102, see Fig. 1, Fig. 3A, and Col. 4 Lines 21-27);
receiving, by a user plane function (UPF) hosted by the cellular base station hardware platform, data corresponding to the network access request from the cellular network core (Grayson: MME 104 signals to a user plane function of the cellular network, e.g., to a user plane function of small cell 108, that the mobile device has been registered in enterprise fabric 102, see Col. 5 Lines 8-11); and
in response to the data corresponding to the network access request, accessing, by the UPF, remote services via an Internet connection without the UPF communicating through the cellular network core (Grayson: send to the mobile device via the cellular network an attach accept message that includes the acquired IP address for use by the mobile device, the attach accept message indicating that the attach procedure is complete, and that the enterprise fabric is configured to support a communication session with the mobile device through the cellular network; switch SW1 becomes a point of policy enforcement for the traffic in enterprise fabric 102, see Col. 10 Lines 13-19 and Col. 7 Lines 4-5. [Examiner contends that cellular IP communication must pass through the User Plane Function (UPF) of the small cell as UPFs act as a mandatory routing anchor point]).
Regarding Claim 18, Grayson teaches The method of claim 11, further comprising:
receiving, by a second small cell that is hosted by a second cellular base station hardware platform (Grayson: FIG. 1 shows only one fabric edge switch SW1 and one small cell 108 for the sake of simplicity; however, it is understood that many fabric edge switches and their associated small cells may be connected to each other in network environment 100, see Col. 2 Lines 56-60), a second network access request (Grayson: At 3[1], mobile device 110 sends the above-mentioned attach request to small cell 108, see Fig. 3A and Col. 5 Lines 62-64), wherein the small cell performs gNodeB functions (Grayson: it is understood that enterprise fabric 102 may support both the (cellular) small cells and WiFi clients at the same time, see Fig. 1 and Col. 3 Lines 42-44. [Examiner contends that small cells are a type of base station]);
routing, by the second small cell, the network access request to the cellular network core hosted remotely from the cellular base station hardware platform (Grayson: mobile device 110 sends to a cellular network an attach request to initiate an attach procedure, and the cellular network forwards the attach request to MME 104. In the example, of FIG. 1, mobile device 110 sends the attach request to small cell 108 (e.g., a 3GPP small cell), and the small cell forwards the attach request to enterprise fabric 102, see Fig. 1, Fig. 3A, and Col. 4 Lines 21-27);
receiving, by a second UPF hosted by the second cellular base station hardware platform, second data corresponding to the second network access request from the cellular network core (Grayson: MME 104 signals to a user plane function of the cellular network, e.g., to a user plane function of small cell 108, that the mobile device has been registered in enterprise fabric 102, see Col. 5 Lines 8-11); and
in response to the second data corresponding to the second network access request, accessing, by the second UPF, remote services via the Internet connection without the second UPF communicating through the cellular network core (Grayson: send to the mobile device via the cellular network an attach accept message that includes the acquired IP address for use by the mobile device, the attach accept message indicating that the attach procedure is complete, and that the enterprise fabric is configured to support a communication session with the mobile device through the cellular network; switch SW1 becomes a point of policy enforcement for the traffic in enterprise fabric 102, see Col. 10 Lines 13-19 and Col. 7 Lines 4-5. [Examiner contends that cellular IP communication must pass through the User Plane Function (UPF) of the small cell as UPFs act as a mandatory routing anchor point]).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 2, 12-13, and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grayson in view of Chaki (US 20240305601 A1, hereinafter "Chaki").
Regarding Claim 2, Grayson teaches The cellular network base station system of claim 1, further comprising the cellular network core hosted remotely from the cellular base station hardware platform (Grayson: Network environment 100 includes an enterprise network fabric 102 (referred to simply as an “enterprise fabric”), a fabric-enabled mobility management entity (MME) 104 to provided overall control of enterprise fabric, a map server 106 accessible to the MME and the enterprise fabric, a portion 108 of a cellular/mobile phone network, see Fig. 1 and Col. 2 Lines 6-15),
Grayson fails to explicitly teach, wherein the cellular network core hosts an access and mobility management function (AMF).
However, in the same field of endeavor, Chaki teaches,
wherein the cellular network core hosts an access and mobility management function (AMF) (Chaki: An Access & Mobility Management Function (AMF) located in a network device in the core of a mobile network, see Paragraph [0002]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Chaki as above, in order to support reducing complexity from services and operations (Chaki: Paragraph [0042]).
Regarding Claim 12, Grayson teaches The method of claim 11, but fails to explicitly teach, wherein the cellular network core comprises an access and mobility management function (AMF).
However, in the same field of endeavor, Chaki teaches,
wherein the cellular network core comprises an access and mobility management function (AMF) (Chaki: An Access & Mobility Management Function (AMF) located in a network device in the core of a mobile network, see Paragraph [0002]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Chaki as above, in order to support reducing complexity from services and operations (Chaki: Paragraph [0042]).
Regarding Claim 13, Grayson teaches The method of claim 12, wherein routing, by the small cell, the network access request to the cellular network core (Grayson: mobile device 110 sends to a cellular network an attach request to initiate an attach procedure, and the cellular network forwards the attach request to MME 104. In the example, of FIG. 1, mobile device 110 sends the attach request to small cell 108; At 3[2], small cell 108 forwards the attach request, combined with a packet data network (PDN) request, to MME 104 over an S1 cellular interface, see Fig. 3A, Col. 4 Lines 21-25, and Col. 5 Lines 65-67) and receiving the data corresponding to the network access request is received (Grayson: At 3[16], MME 104 sends to the user plane function of small cell 108 an add-mobile message, see Fig. 3D and Col. 7 Lines 11-13).
Grayson fails to explicitly teach, comprises routing the network access request to the AMF, from the AMF of the cellular network core
However, in the same field of endeavor, Chaki teaches,
comprises routing the network access request to the AMF (Chaki: An Access & Mobility Management Function (AMF) located in a network device in the core of a mobile network, see Paragraph [0002]), from the AMF of the cellular network core (Chaki: An Access & Mobility Management Function (AMF) located in a network device in the core of a mobile network, see Paragraph [0002])
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Chaki as above, in order to support reducing complexity from services and operations (Chaki: Paragraph [0042]).
Regarding Claim 15, Grayson teaches The method of claim 11, but fails to explicitly teach, wherein the cellular network core is hosted on a public cloud computing platform.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Chaki teaches,
wherein the cellular network core is hosted on a public cloud computing platform (Chaki: The AMF may be located in the core that has been installed in a public cloud network; an AMF located in a public cloud network; In particular, a cloud networking architecture is shown that leverages cloud technologies and supports rapid innovation and scalability via ... one or more cloud computing environments 375, see Paragraphs [0002], [0041], and [0042]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Chaki as above, in order to support reducing complexity from services and operations (Chaki: Paragraph [0042]).
Claims 3-6, 14, and 16-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grayson-Chaki as applied to claims 2, 13, and 15 above, and further in view of Wang et al. (US 20210377997 A1, hereinafter "Wang").
Regarding Claim 3, Grayson teaches The cellular network base station system of claim 2, wherein the gNodeB functions communicate via an N2 interface (Grayson: mobile device 110 sends to a cellular network an attach request to initiate an attach procedure, and the cellular network forwards the attach request to MME 104. In the example, of FIG. 1, mobile device 110 sends the attach request to small cell 108; At 3[2], small cell 108 forwards the attach request, combined with a packet data network (PDN) request, to MME 104 over an S1 cellular interface, see Fig. 3A, Col. 4 Lines 21-25, and Col. 5 Lines 65-67)
Grayson fails to explicitly teach, with the AMF in the cellular network core.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Chaki teaches,
with the AMF in the cellular network core (Chaki: An Access & Mobility Management Function (AMF) located in a network device in the core of a mobile network, see Paragraph [0002])
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Chaki as above, in order to support reducing complexity from services and operations (Chaki: Paragraph [0042]).
Grayson-Chaki fails to explicitly teach, and an N3 interface with the UPF hosted by the cellular base station hardware platform.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Wang teaches,
and an N3 interface with the UPF hosted by the cellular base station hardware platform (Wang: the N3 reference point between the (R)AN 210 and the UPF 102 for the user plane, see Fig. 1 and Paragraph [0015]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Wang as above, in order to support the improvement of the peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) performance (Wang: Paragraph [0004]).
Regarding Claim 4, Grayson-Chaki-Wang teaches The cellular network base station system of claim 3, wherein the cellular network core is hosted on a public cloud computing platform (Chaki: The AMF may be located in the core that has been installed in a public cloud network; an AMF located in a public cloud network; In particular, a cloud networking architecture is shown that leverages cloud technologies and supports rapid innovation and scalability via ... one or more cloud computing environments 375, see Paragraphs [0002], [0041], and [0042]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Chaki as above, in order to support reducing complexity from services and operations (Chaki: Paragraph [0042]).
Regarding Claim 5, Grayson-Chaki-Wang teaches The cellular network base station system of claim 3, wherein a first processor is used for the UPF that is distinct from a second processor used to execute the gNodeB functions (Wang: Referring to FIG. 2, illustrated is a block diagram of a system 200 employable at a UE (User Equipment), a next generation Node B (gNodeB or gNB) or other BS (base station)/TRP (Transmit/Receive Point), or a component of a 3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) network (e.g., a 5GC (Fifth Generation Core Network)) component such as a UPF (User Plane Function)) ... System 200 can include processor(s) 210 comprising processing circuitry and associated interface(s) (e.g., a communication interface for communicating with communication circuitry 220, a memory interface for communicating with memory 230, etc.), see Fig. 2 and Paragraph [0024]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson-Chaki to include the teachings of Wang as above, in order to support the improvement of the peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) performance (Wang: Paragraph [0004]).
Regarding Claim 6, Grayson-Chaki-Wang teaches The cellular network base station system of claim 3, wherein a first memory block of the cellular base station hardware platform is defined for the UPF and a second memory block of the cellular base station hardware platform is defined for the gNodeB functions (Wang: Referring to FIG. 2, illustrated is a block diagram of a system 200 employable at a UE (User Equipment), a next generation Node B (gNodeB or gNB) or other BS (base station)/TRP (Transmit/Receive Point), or a component of a 3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) network (e.g., a 5GC (Fifth Generation Core Network)) component such as a UPF (User Plane Function)) ... System 200 can include processor(s) 210 comprising processing circuitry and associated interface(s) (e.g., a communication interface for communicating with communication circuitry 220, a memory interface for communicating with memory 230, etc.), see Fig. 2 and Paragraph [0024]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson-Chaki to include the teachings of Wang as above, in order to support the improvement of the peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) performance (Wang: Paragraph [0004]).
Regarding Claim 14, Grayson teaches The method of claim 13, wherein gNodeB functions of the small cell communicate via an N2 interface (Grayson: mobile device 110 sends to a cellular network an attach request to initiate an attach procedure, and the cellular network forwards the attach request to MME 104. In the example, of FIG. 1, mobile device 110 sends the attach request to small cell 108; At 3[2], small cell 108 forwards the attach request, combined with a packet data network (PDN) request, to MME 104 over an S1 cellular interface, see Fig. 3A, Col. 4 Lines 21-25, and Col. 5 Lines 65-67)
Grayson fails to explicitly teach, with the AMF in the cellular network core
However, in the same field of endeavor, Chaki teaches,
with the AMF in the cellular network core (Chaki: An Access & Mobility Management Function (AMF) located in a network device in the core of a mobile network, see Paragraph [0002])
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Chaki as above, in order to support reducing complexity from services and operations (Chaki: Paragraph [0042]).
Grayson-Chaki fails to explicitly teach, and an N3 interface with the UPF hosted by the cellular base station hardware platform.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Wang teaches,
and an N3 interface with the UPF hosted by the cellular base station hardware platform (Wang: the N3 reference point between the (R)AN 210 and the UPF 102 for the user plane, see Paragraph [0015]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Wang as above, in order to support the improvement of the peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) performance (Wang: Paragraph [0004]).
Regarding Claim 16, Grayson-Chaki-Wang teaches The method of claim 15 wherein a first processor is used for the UPF that is distinct from a second processor used to execute the gNodeB functions (Wang: Referring to FIG. 2, illustrated is a block diagram of a system 200 employable at a UE (User Equipment), a next generation Node B (gNodeB or gNB) or other BS (base station)/TRP (Transmit/Receive Point), or a component of a 3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) network (e.g., a 5GC (Fifth Generation Core Network)) component such as a UPF (User Plane Function)) ... System 200 can include processor(s) 210 comprising processing circuitry and associated interface(s) (e.g., a communication interface for communicating with communication circuitry 220, a memory interface for communicating with memory 230, etc.), see Fig. 2 and Paragraph [0024]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson-Chaki to include the teachings of Wang as above, in order to support the improvement of the peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) performance (Wang: Paragraph [0004]).
Regarding Claim 17, Grayson-Chaki-Wang teaches The method of claim 16 wherein a first memory block of the cellular base station hardware platform is defined for the UPF and a second memory block of the cellular base station hardware platform is defined for the gNodeB functions (Wang: Referring to FIG. 2, illustrated is a block diagram of a system 200 employable at a UE (User Equipment), a next generation Node B (gNodeB or gNB) or other BS (base station)/TRP (Transmit/Receive Point), or a component of a 3GPP (Third Generation Partnership Project) network (e.g., a 5GC (Fifth Generation Core Network)) component such as a UPF (User Plane Function)) ... System 200 can include processor(s) 210 comprising processing circuitry and associated interface(s) (e.g., a communication interface for communicating with communication circuitry 220, a memory interface for communicating with memory 230, etc.), see Fig. 2 and Paragraph [0024]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson-Chaki to include the teachings of Wang as above, in order to support the improvement of the peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) performance (Wang: Paragraph [0004]).
Claims 8 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grayson in view of Laraqui et al. (US 20150086209 A1, hereinafter "Laraqui").
Regarding Claim 8, Grayson teaches The cellular network base station system of claim 7, but fails to explicitly teach, wherein the cellular base station hardware platform and the second cellular base station hardware platform communicate with a network via a switch.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Laraqui teaches,
wherein the cellular base station hardware platform and the second cellular base station hardware platform communicate with a network via a switch (Laraqui: a plurality of base stations 120 are connected to the central switch unit 155, see Paragraph [0047]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Laraqui as above, in order to support simpler configuration, operation and maintenance of an access network (Laraqui: Paragraph [0009]).
Regarding Claim 19, Grayson teaches The cellular network base station system of claim 7, but fails to explicitly teach, wherein the cellular base station hardware platform and the second cellular base station hardware platform communicate with the Internet connection via a switch.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Laraqui teaches,
wherein the cellular base station hardware platform and the second cellular base station hardware platform communicate with the Internet connection via a switch (Laraqui: a plurality of base stations 120 are connected to the central switch unit 155, see Paragraph [0047]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Laraqui as above, in order to support simpler configuration, operation and maintenance of an access network (Laraqui: Paragraph [0009]).
Claims 9 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Grayson in view of Ashrafi (US 20180199218 A1, hereinafter "Ashrafi").
Regarding Claim 9, Grayson teaches The cellular network base station system of claim 1, further comprising: a secondary access point (Grayson: Enterprise fabric 102 may also connect with wireless access points (APs), which serve WiFi-enabled clients. Such WiFi interoperability is not shown in FIG. 1 to reduce illustration complexity; however, it is understood that enterprise fabric 102 may support both the (cellular) small cells and WiFi clients at the same time, see Col. 3 Lines 39-44), and accesses the UPF to route Internet communications for one or more UEs in wireless communication with the secondary access point (Grayson: send to the mobile device via the cellular network an attach accept message that includes the acquired IP address for use by the mobile device, the attach accept message indicating that the attach procedure is complete, and that the enterprise fabric is configured to support a communication session with the mobile device through the cellular network; switch SW1 becomes a point of policy enforcement for the traffic in enterprise fabric 102, see Col. 10 Lines 13-19 and Col. 7 Lines 4-5. [Examiner contends that cellular IP communication must pass through the User Plane Function (UPF) of the small cell as UPFs act as a mandatory routing anchor point]).
Grayson fails to explicitly teach, wherein the secondary access point is in wireless communication with the cellular base station hardware platform.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Ashrafi teaches,
wherein the secondary access point is in wireless communication with the cellular base station hardware platform (Ashrafi: At least one V-band transmitter at each of the plurality of small cell network mesh nodes establishes communication links with other small cell network mesh nodes within the small cell mesh network, see Paragraph [0004]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Ashrafi as above, in order to support routing and steering transmitted signals around interference (Ashrafi: Paragraph [0160]).
Regarding Claim 20, Grayson teaches The method of claim 11, further comprising:
communicating, by a secondary access point, with the UPF (Grayson: Enterprise fabric 102 may also connect with wireless access points (APs), which serve WiFi-enabled clients. Such WiFi interoperability is not shown in FIG. 1 to reduce illustration complexity; however, it is understood that enterprise fabric 102 may support both the (cellular) small cells and WiFi clients at the same time, see Col. 3 Lines 39-44), and accesses the UPF to route Internet communications for one or more UEs in wireless communication with the secondary access point (Grayson: send to the mobile device via the cellular network an attach accept message that includes the acquired IP address for use by the mobile device, the attach accept message indicating that the attach procedure is complete, and that the enterprise fabric is configured to support a communication session with the mobile device through the cellular network; switch SW1 becomes a point of policy enforcement for the traffic in enterprise fabric 102, see Col. 10 Lines 13-19 and Col. 7 Lines 4-5. [Examiner contends that cellular IP communication must pass through the User Plane Function (UPF) of the small cell as UPFs act as a mandatory routing anchor point]).
Grayson fails to explicitly teach, wherein the secondary access point is in wireless communication with the cellular base station hardware platform.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Ashrafi teaches,
wherein the secondary access point is in wireless communication with the cellular base station hardware platform (Ashrafi: At least one V-band transmitter at each of the plurality of small cell network mesh nodes establishes communication links with other small cell network mesh nodes within the small cell mesh network, see Paragraph [0004]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to modify the method of Grayson to include the teachings of Ashrafi as above, in order to support routing and steering transmitted signals around interference (Ashrafi: Paragraph [0160]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALEX YEOH whose telephone number is (571)270-0890. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. ET.
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/A.Y./Examiner, Art Unit 2416
/NOEL R BEHARRY/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2416
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