Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 02, 2026
Application No. 18/951,519

IMPLEMENTING NETWORK SECURITY RULES IN HOME ROUTERS

Final Rejection §DP
Filed
Nov 18, 2024
Priority
Sep 27, 2022 — continuation of 12/149,552
Examiner
SALL, EL HADJI MALICK
Art Unit
2457
Tech Center
2400 — Computer Networks
Assignee
AT&T Intellectual Property I L.P.
OA Round
2 (Final)
91%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
8m
Est. Remaining
83%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 91% — above average
91%
Career Allowance Rate
843 granted / 925 resolved
+33.1% vs TC avg
Minimal -8% lift
Without
With
+-8.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 7m
Avg Prosecution
17 currently pending
Career history
935
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
10.7%
-29.3% vs TC avg
§103
42.8%
+2.8% vs TC avg
§102
19.4%
-20.6% vs TC avg
§112
8.0%
-32.0% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 925 resolved cases

Office Action

§DP
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 . 1. This action is in response to the amendment filed on May 26, 2026. Claims 1-20 are pending. Claims 1-20 represent IMPLEMENTING NETWORK SECURITY RULES IN HOME ROUTERS. Double Patenting A rejection based on double patenting of the “same invention” type finds its support in the language of 35 U.S.C. 101 which states that “whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process... may obtain a patent therefor...” (Emphasis added). Thus, the term “same invention,” in this context, means an invention drawn to identical subject matter. See Miller v. Eagle Mfg. Co., 151 U.S. 186 (1894); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Ockert, 245 F.2d 467, 114 USPQ 330 (CCPA 1957). 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 claims at issue 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); and 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 a nonstatutory double patenting ground provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with this 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/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 http://www.uspto.gov/patents/process/file/efs/guidance/eTD-info-I.jsp. 18/951,519 12,149,552 1. (Currently Amended) A method comprising: monitoring, by a processing system including at least one processor, network traffic, wherein the network traffic is one of either: network traffic flowing into or network traffic flowing out of the home network; constructing, by the processing system, a model of the network traffic 1. A method comprising: monitoring, by a processing system including at least one processor, network traffic flowing into and out of a home network that is connected to a core network of a telecommunications network via a gateway device; constructing, by the processing system, a model of the network traffic flowing into and out of the home network, based on the monitoring; detecting, by the processing system, an anomaly in the model of the network traffic; generating, by the processing system, a rule based on the anomaly, where the rule specifies an action to be taken when a match condition related to the anomaly is detected; and deploying, by the processing system, the rule on the gateway device. 2. Claims 1-20 of the instant application are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory obviousness-type double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-20 of U.S. Patent No(s). 12,149,552, issued to Kanza. Although the conflicting set of claims are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because a comparison between the two set of claims shows that the instant claims 1-20 are anticipated by claims 1-20 of patent(s) ‘552. Conclusion 3. Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a). A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to EL HADJI SALL whose telephone number is (571)272-4010. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 8:00-8:30 (flexible). Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ario Etienne can be reached on 5712724001. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see https://ppair-my.uspto.gov/pair/PrivatePair. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /EL HADJI M SALL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2457
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Nov 18, 2024
Application Filed
Feb 24, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §DP
May 26, 2026
Response Filed
Aug 26, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §DP (current)

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

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Prosecution Projections

3-4
Expected OA Rounds
91%
Grant Probability
83%
With Interview (-8.3%)
2y 7m (~8m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 925 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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