DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
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.
Claim(s) 1,3,4,7,8,10,11,13,15,17,18,19, and 21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shang et al. (2025/0254519) hereinafter “Shang” and Salkintzis et al. (12532168) hereinafter “Salkintzis”.
As to claim 1, (Original) Shang discloses An authentication method, comprising:
determining, by a first function network element in a home network, whether a terminal needs to be authenticated (S201), (see [0057]: “… At step S201, an authentication procedure trigger information is sent to a UDM network element…”, [0060]: “…thus achieving a mechanism to enable the network to trigger the authentication procedure…”);
obtaining, by the first function network element, an authentication material based on determining that the terminal needs to be authenticated ([0059]: “…an identifier of the UE may be a GPSI or an SUPI)” – examiner notes that the SUPI includes the MCC and MNC).
Shang is silent to yet in an analogous art Salkintzis discloses
obtaining, by the first function network element, a first authentication vector based on the authentication material (step 251, col 11, lines 4-10); and
sending, by the first function network element, a first authentication request message to an access and mobility management network element to trigger authentication on the terminal, wherein the first authentication request message comprises the first authentication vector (step 253, col 11, lines 11-16). Also see col 10 lines 53-67. Before the effective filing date of the instant invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Shang by “obtaining” and “sending” as taught by Salkintzis for the purpose of sticking with the known registration procedure from “normal” AMF determining method.
As to claim 3, (Original) The combination of Shang and Salkintzis provides for the authentication method according to claim 1, Shang discloses wherein the first function network element is an authentication server function network element [0056], and the obtaining, by the first function network element, the authentication material comprises: obtaining, by the first function network element, the authentication material from a stored context; or obtaining, by the first function network element, the authentication material from a fourth function network element, wherein the fourth function network element is a network element that stores the authentication material. Shang is silent on how it is obtained but it is considered as inherent that it is obtained from a stored content regardless of how the AUSF obtained it.
As to claim 4, (Original) The combination of Shang and Salkintzis provides for the authentication method according to claim 3, wherein Salkintzis discloses the obtaining, by the first function network element, the first authentication vector based on the authentication material comprises:
sending, by the authentication server function network element, an authentication vector request message (step 247) to a unified data management network element, wherein the authentication vector request message comprises the authentication material; and receiving, by the authentication server function network element, an authentication vector response message (step 251) from the unified data management network element, wherein the authentication vector response message comprises the first authentication vector. See Fig 2B.
As to claim 7, (Original) The combination of Shang and Salkintzis provides for the authentication method according to claim 1, Shang discloses wherein the authentication material comprises one or more of the following: a serving network name, a serving network identifier, a network identifier, a mobile country code, or a mobile network code. See ([0059]: “…an identifier of the UE may be a GPSI or an SUPI)” – examiner notes that the SUPI includes the MCC and MNC).
As to claims 8, 10, 11, and 13 (Original) Shang (and Salkintzis) discloses A communication apparatus, comprising: a processor, (Fig 16: 1602) configured to: Operate as applied above to claims 1, 3, 4, and 7 respectively.
As to claims 15, 17, 18, 19, and 21 (Original) Shang (and Salkintzis) discloses A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium ([0311]), comprising computer-executable instructions, which upon being run on a computer of a first function network element, the computer is enabled to perform an authentication method as applied above to claims 1, 3, 4, 5, and 7 respectively.
Claim(s) 2, 9, and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shang and Salkintzis as applied to claims 1/8/15 above, and further in view of Zamora et al. (12634688) hereinafter “Zamora”.
As to claim 2, (Original) The combination of Shang and Salkintzis provides for the authentication method according to claim 1, wherein the determining, by the first function network element, whether the terminal needs to be authenticated comprises:
receiving, by the first function network element, a service request from a third function network element, wherein the service request is used to request a specified service from the first function network element; and
determining, by the first function network element in response to the service request of the third function network element, whether the terminal needs to be authenticated. See col 8 lines 44-56: “AUSF 600 detects a trigger to initiate primary re-authentication of the communication device 400. The trigger may be a message from the UDM such as a change in authentication status …”. Before the effective filing date of the instant invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Shang by “receiving” and “determining” as taught by Salkintzis for the purpose of providing AKMA.
Claims 9 and 16 read on apparatus / CRM as applied above.
Claim(s) 5 and 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shang and Salkintzis as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Samsung et al. (“Network initiated Primary Authentication”) hereinafter “Samsung”.
As to claim 5, (Original) Shang and Salkintzis provides for The authentication method according to claim 1, fails to explicitly recite however in an analogous art Samsung discloses wherein the first function network element is a unified data management network element, and the obtaining, by the first function network element, the authentication material comprises: obtaining, by the first function network element, the authentication material from a stored context; or obtaining, by the first function network element, the authentication material from a fourth function network element, wherein the fourth function network element is a network element that stores the authentication material. See 6.1.x “Initiation or re-authentication” paragraphs 1 and 2: “UDM shall request the AMF currently serving the UE to initiate primary authentication”. Before the effective filing date of the instant invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Shang by implementing the first function network element as a UDM in order to enable the UDM to initiate authentication as taught by Samsung. Also, “obtaining” as claimed is considered inherent.
Claim 19 reads on the CRM as applied above.
Claim(s) 6, 12, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shang, Salkintzis, and Samsung as applied to claim 5 above, and further in view of Kunz et al. (2023/0262463) hereinafter “Kunz”.
As to claim 6, (Original) The combination of Shang, Salkintzis, and Samsung provides for the authentication method according to claim 5, is silent to yet in an analogous art, Kunz discloses wherein the obtaining, by the first function network element, the first authentication vector based on the authentication material comprises: generating, by the first function network element, the first authentication vector based on the authentication material. See [0075]. Before the effective filing date of the instant invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Shang by “generating” as taught by Kunz for the purpose of enabling a reply.
Claims 12 and 20 read on apparatus / CRM as applied above.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Baskaran et al. (2025/0184729) provide for AUSF initiated authentication and corresponds to WO2023187610 (from IDS). See at least Fig.4.
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LESTER G. KINCAID
Primary Patent Examiner
Art Unit 2649
/LESTER G KINCAID/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2649
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