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 .
This action is in response to the application filed on October 30, 2024
Claims 21-35 are under examination.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement(s) (IDS) submitted on 10/30/2024 is/are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement(s) is/are being considered if signed and initialed by the Examiner.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP §§ 706.02(l)(1) - 706.02(l)(3) for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/process/file/efs/guidance/eTD-info-I.jsp.
Claims 21-35 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-13 of U.S. Patent No. 12,143,864.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 26-are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by MOON et al (USP: 2021/0099341 A1).
1-20. (canceled)
As per Claim 21 Moon teaches a method of configuring time sensitive communications (TSC), comprising (Paragraph 0002 a method for supporting time sensitive communication (TSC) a method for providing time synchronization between terminals by interconnecting a time sensitive network (TSN) ):
determining, by an application function (AF) (Paragraph 0010, 0116 AF determines final Port Configuration information that is to be actually reflected, based on synthesized Port information), a port pair comprising a first device side TSN translator (DS-TT) port of a first user equipment (UE) configured with a first protocol data unit (PDU) session and a second DS-TT port of a second UE configured with a second PDU session, when the first PDU session and the second PDU session are served by a same user plane function (UPF) (Paragraph 0012-0015, 0021 port of the first UE and a port of the second UE may be determined by a TSN application function (TSN AF). The first UE, a sync frame by using the first PDU session; performing local switching on the sync frame; and transmitting, to the second UE, the sync frame by using the second PDU session, wherein a sum of a uplink (UL) UE-device-side-TSN-translator (DS-TT) residence time, a first packet delay budget (PDB) of the first PDU session and a downlink (DL) UE-DS-TT residence time, and a second PDB of the second PDU session is less than 10 milliseconds (ms). TSC assistance information (TSCAI) may be determined, by a session management function (SMF), based on a first burst arrival time (BAT) for the first PDU session and a second BAT of the second PDU session. A port of the first UE and a port of the second UE may be determined by a TSN application function (TSN AF). Second schedule information for the second PDU session may correspond to a result of (first schedule information for the first PDU session)+(device-side TSN translator (DS-TT-UE) residence time for uplink (UL))+(UL PDB)+(UE-to-UE UPF Residence Time)−(downlink (DL) residence time). ); and
determining, by the AF, bridge delay information for the first PDU session and the second PDU session, wherein the bridge delay information is based on at least a first residence time between the first DS-TT and the first UE and a second residence time between the second DS-TT and the second UE (Paragraph 0019, 0072, 0076, 0082 The UE may generate Sync Frame by updating a Correction field by using the Residence Time and the Link Delay, and an Establishment/Modification process with respect to a single PDU Session including a NW-TT/UPF and a DS-TT/UE is used. may transmit the generated Sync Frame to the TSN node connected to the UE. Connection between a UPF and external TSN may be performed by a logical function block called a Network-side TSN Translator (NW-TT), and connection between a UE and external TSN may be performed by a logical function block called a Device-Side TSN Translator (DS-TT). They may transmit information as Port within a single logical TSN Bridge as the 5G network to a TSN AF, and the TSN AF may perform Management interoperation with external TSN. The first UE, a sync frame by using the first PDU session; perform local switching on the sync frame; and transmit, to the second UE, the sync frame by using the second PDU session, wherein a sum of a uplink (UL) UE-device-side-TSN-translator (DS-TT) residence time, a first packet delay budget (PDB) of the first PDU session and a downlink (DL) UE-DS-TT residence time, and a second PDB of the second PDU session is less than 10 ms. When the external TSN is managed via a CNC server, the TSN AF may also interoperate with the CNC server..).
As per Claim 22 Moon teaches the method of claim 21, further comprising: setting a first flow direction for the first PDU session as an uplink (UL) link; and setting a second flow direction for the second PDU session as a downlink (DL) link (Paragraph 0099, 0127 a QoS requirement for Uplink Flow that a sum of UE-DS-TT ResiTime1 as UL UE-DS-TT Residence Time and PDB1 as a UL PDB is less than 10 ms may be applied. Uplink PDB of PDU Session1, Local Switching Delay in a UPF, and Downlink CN-PDB of PDU Session2 to BAT1. The SMF delivers BAT2 to the gNB via a process of updating only a RAN Parameter during a PDU Session Modification procedure with respect to PDU Session2. ).
As per Claim 23 Moon teaches the method of claim 22, further comprising: determining, by the AF, a quality of service (QOS) for the UL link and the DL link of the UE-UE communication based on at least the bridge delay information (Paragraph 0101, 0102 a QoS for PDU Session1 and PDB2 is actually applied to a QoS for PDU Session2, a QoS that simultaneously takes into account the two PDU sessions is applied to deliver Sync Frame between UEs. For example, a QoS requirement that a sum of PDB1 as a UL PDB and PDB2 as a DL PDB is less than 10 ms may be converted into two QoS requirements that PDB1 needs to be less than 5 ms and PDB2 needs to be less than 5 ms, and the two QoS requirements may be applied to PDU Session1 and PDU Session2, respectively).
As per Claim 24 Moon teaches the method of claim 23, further comprising: reporting, by the AF to a policy control function (PCF), the QoS for the UL and DL links of the UE-UE communication (Paragraph 0084, 0108, 0112The determined final Port Configuration information is also reflected in a PCF and a TSN AF via a Notification procedure The determined final Port Configuration information is also reflected in a Policy Control Function (PCF) and a TSN AF via a Notification procedure. To this end, the collected PDU session information is delivered along a path such as UE-SMF-PCF-AF or UPF-SMF-PCF-AF. Because schedule information received by the CNC server is based on the TSN GM, a writing basis of Burst Arrival Time of TSCAI reflected in gNB1 on the side of Ingress UE1 needs to change from the TSN GM to the 5G GM.).
As per Claim 25 Moon teaches the method of claim 24, further comprising: reporting, by the AF to the PCF, TSC information (Paragraph 0074, 0126 the TSN nodes may send, to the CNC server, information of time sensitive communication (TSC) Stream 1 that is transmitted/received. For example, each Bridge Node may report, to the CNC server, that the delay time at each of Bridges 1, 2, 3, and 4 is 1 ms or less and the link delay is 1 ms or less. In this case, when an arrival expected time period at Bridge 1 is 1 ms, an arrival expected time period at Bridge 2 is 3 ms, and an arrival expected time period at Bridge 3 is 5 ms, and an arrival expected time period at Bridge 4 is 7 ms, Bridges 1 through 4 may report their pieces of delay time information to the CNC server.).
Claims 26-35 are an application function and non-transitory computer readable medium claims corresponding to a methods claims 21-25 that have been rejected above. Applicant attention is directed to the rejection of claims 21-25. Claims 26-35 are rejected under the same rational as claims 21-25.
Examiner’s Note
Examiner is open for discussion if the applicant’s representative need further clarifications.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. (See form 892).
Conclusion
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/SYED ALI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2463
