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 § 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 1-17 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
The recitation of “wherein the second signaling indicates information about a first flag of a to-be-paged terminal device, the information about the first flag indicates that a type of the first flag is a first type and/or a state of the first flag is a first state” recited in claim 1 , lines 6-7 is vague. It is unclear how the “information about the first flag” relates to the “first flag”? Moreover, it is unclear of the meanings of “a type of the first flag is a first type” and/or “a state of the first flag is a first state”, i.e. “first type” and “first state” are not clearly defined. Therefore, the intended technical meaning of the recitations is unclear.
Similar problems exist for the recitation of “a type as the first type” recited in claim 4, line 2; “the information about the second flag comprises that a type of the second flag is a second type and/or a state of the second flag is a second state” recited in claim 5, lines 5-6; “the information about the first flag indicates that a type of the first flag is a first type and/or a state of the first flag is a first state” recited in claim 10, lines 4-5; “the information about the second flag comprises that a type of the second flag is a second type and/or a state of the second flag is a second state” recited in claim 13, lines 3-4; “the information about the first flag indicates that a type of the first flag is a first type and/or a state of the first flag is a first state” recited in claim 14, lines 4-5; and “the information about the second flag indicates that a type of the second flag is a second type and/or a state of the second flag is a second state” recited in claim 17, lines 3-4.
Dependent claims 3, 6-9, 11-12 and 15-16 are also rejected because of its dependency (directly or indirectly) from claims 1, 10 and 14.
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 1-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Choi et al (WO 2022/049556; art cited by applicant).
Regarding independent claim 1, Choi teaches a paging method, wherein the method is applied to a first device or a chip system in the first device, and comprises: receiving first signaling from a first core network device, wherein the first signaling is for paging a terminal device ([0096]: “At Step 6, based on the information received by the UE-1 301 in the Service Request message (i.e., the 5G-S-TMSI set to "group communication mode-1 identity"), the AMF 311 determines that the UE-2 303 and the UE-3 305 belong to the same group as the UE-1 301 (see block 331). Because both the UE-2 303 and the UE-3 305 are in RRC_IDLE/5GMM-IDLE state, the AMF 311 triggers a CN-initiated paging to the UE-2 303 and the UE-3 305”, wherein the AMF is interpreted as a first core network device; [0097]: “At Step 7a, the AMF 311 sends on NG interface to the gNB 309 the Paging message for the UE-2 303 and the UE-3 305 (see messaging 333). In various embodiments, the NG paging message is according to Table 2, with the following settings: UE Paging Identity set to "group communication mode-1 identity" (depicted as "Group-ID1") … Traffic type set to "audio" (as described above, the Paging cause and the Traffic type may be combined into a single parameter that jointly encodes "MO data retrieval" and the "audio" traffic type)”, wherein the gNB is a first device; [0098] and [0181]: “the first gNB” and [0025]: “chip”, “system-on-a-chip”; and fig. 3A); and sending second signaling, wherein the second signaling indicates information about a first flag of a to-be-paged terminal device, the information about the first flag indicates that a type of the first flag is a first type and/or a state of the first flag is a first state, and the information about the first flag is for determining the to-be-paged terminal device ([0085], [0098], [0099], [0149], [0157] and [0158]).
Regarding independent claims 10 and 14, the claims recite similar subject matter as in claim 1. Therefore, similar rationale is applied as for claim 1.
Regarding dependent claim 2, Choi further teaches wherein the first signaling further indicates the first type and/or the first state. See [0085], [0096] – [0098], [0149] and [0157].
Regarding dependent claims 3 and 15, Choi further teaches wherein the first signaling comprises at least one of the following information: frequency information, wherein the frequency information indicates a frequency at which the first device pages a terminal device; quantity-of-times information, wherein the quantity-of-times information indicates a quantity of times that the first device pages a terminal device; accuracy information, wherein the accuracy information indicates a ratio of a quantity of terminal devices that are successfully paged by the first device to a quantity of terminal devices that are paged by the first device; quantity information, wherein the quantity information indicates an order of magnitude of a quantity of terminal devices expected to be paged by the first device; or paging time information, wherein the paging time information indicates start time and/or end time at which the first device performs paging. See [0057], [0078], [0085], [0096] – [0098], and [0149] – [0157].
Regarding dependent claim 4, Choi further teaches wherein the method further comprises: randomly determining, from a plurality of types of flags, a type as the first type; and/or determining the first state as an initial state of the first flag. See [0085], [0096] – [0099] and [049] – [0157].
Regarding dependent claims 5, 13 and 17, Choi further teaches wherein the method further comprises: sending third signaling based on a first quantity of terminal devices paged by the first device via the second signaling, wherein the third signaling indicates information about a second flag of a terminal device to be paged next time, the information about the second flag comprises that a type of the second flag is a second type and/or a state of the second flag is a second state, and the third signaling is for determining the terminal device to be paged next time. See [0074], [0075], [0085], [0096] – [0099] and [0149]-[0157].
Regarding dependent claims 6 and 11, Choi further teaches wherein the second signaling further indicates action information, and the action information indicates to change the state of the first flag of the terminal device. See [0085], [0088], [0096] – [0101], [0105] and [0149] – [0157].
Regarding dependent claims 7 and 12, Choi further teaches wherein the method further comprises: sending fourth signaling, wherein the fourth signaling indicates action information, and the action information indicates to change the state of the first flag of the terminal device, and/or indicates that the state of the first flag is the first state. See [0085], [0088], [0096] – [0101], [0105] and [0149] – [0157].
Regarding dependent claim 8, Choi further teaches wherein the second signaling further indicates a maximum time unit range in which the to-be-paged terminal device sends data to the first device; or the method further comprises: sending fifth signaling, wherein the fifth signaling indicates a maximum time unit range in which the to-be-paged terminal device sends data to the first device. See [0085], [0088], [0096] – [0112] and [0149] – [0157].
Regarding dependent claims 9 and 16, Choi further teaches wherein the first signaling is non-access stratum signaling. See [0045], [0078], [0085], [0088], [0092] – [0098], [0149] and [0157].
Conclusion
Examiner's note: Examiner has cited particular columns and line numbers in the references as applied to the claims above for the convenience of the applicant. Although the specified citations are representative of the teachings of the art and are applied to the specific limitations within the individual claim, other passages and figures may apply as well. It is respectfully requested from the applicant, in preparing responses, to fully consider the references in entirety as potentially teaching all or part of the claimed invention, as well as the context of the passage as taught by the prior art or disclosed by the Examiner.
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. References Chun (US 2020/0229069), Tiwari et al (US 20230217401) and Tiwari et al (US 2024/0031925) are cited because they are pertinent to the method and apparatus for paging network and devices.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DON NGUYEN VO whose telephone number is (571) 272-3018. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday to Friday from 9:00 to 6:30PM.
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/DON N VO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2634
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