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 § 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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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)(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.
Claim(s) 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Document D1 "3rd Generation Partnership Project; Technical Specification Group Services and System Aspects; Study on enhancement of 5G User Equipment (UE) policy (Release 18)", 3GPP STANDARD; TECHNICAL REPORT; 3GPP TR 23.700-85, 3RD GENERATION PARTNERSHIP PROJECT (3GPP), MOBILE COMPETENCE CENTRE ; 650, ROUTE DES LUCIOLES ; F-06921 SOPHIA-ANTIPOLIS CEDEX ; FRANCE, no. V0.3.0 30 May 2022 (2022-05-30), pages 1-116, XP052182573, Retrieved from the Internet: JRL:https://tp.3gpp.org/Specs/archive/23_series/ 23.700-85/23700-85-030.zip 23700-85-030_MCCclean.docx [retrieved on 2022-05-30].
Regarding claims 1, 8 and 15, Document D1 discloses: a method for processing a terminal policy association/A communication device/A non-transitory readable storage medium, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the communication device is a third communication device, the memory stores a program or instructions capable of running on the processor, wherein the program or the instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the third communication device to perform: receiving, by a third communication device, fourth indication information sent by a seventh communication de- vice, wherein the fourth indication information is used to indicate the third communication device to release or terminate a policy as- sociation of a terminal under a second network (cf. fig. 6.16.2.3.3-1 and par. 6.16.2.3.3 "Handover from 5GS to EPC" where the PCF-UE discloses the "third communication device", the "AMF/PCF-SM" discloses the "seventh communication de- vice" and finally the message of step 2 Npcf_UEPolicyControl_Delete Req GSHandover- ToEPC discloses the indication to release or terminate a policy association of a terminal under a second network. The "5GS to EPC handover" means a handover from a 5G net- work to a 4G network. 5GS stands for 5G System, which refers to the 5G core network and radio access technology. EPC stands for Evolved Packet Core, which is the core net- work architecture used in 4G LTE networks. So, a handover from 5GS to EPC implies that a device is transitioning from a 5G network to a 4G network); and
releasing or terminating, by the third communication device, the policy association of the terminal under the second network (cf. fig. 6.16.2.3.3-1 and par. 6.16.2.3.3 and in particular the passage "If step 2 happens after step 8 the PCF-UE may remove directly the former UE Policy Association").
Regarding claims 4, 11 and 18, Document D1 discloses: A communication device, comprising a processor and a memory/A non-transitory readable storage medium, wherein the memory stores a program or instructions capable of running on the processor, and when the program or the instructions are executed by the processor, the steps of the method for processing a UE policy association, wherein the method comprises: sending, by a seven communication device, fourth indication information sent by a third communication device, wherein the fourth indication information is used to indicate the third communication device to release or terminate a policy as- sociation of a terminal under a second network (cf. fig. 6.16.2.3.3-1 and par. 6.16.2.3.3 "Handover from 5GS to EPC" where the PCF-UE discloses the "third communication device", the "AMF/PCF-SM" discloses the "seventh communication de- vice" and finally the message of step 2 Npcf_UEPolicyControl_Delete Req GSHandover- ToEPC discloses the indication to release or terminate a policy association of a terminal under a second network. The "5GS to EPC handover" means a handover from a 5G net- work to a 4G network. 5GS stands for 5G System, which refers to the 5G core network and radio access technology. EPC stands for Evolved Packet Core, which is the core net- work architecture used in 4G LTE networks. So, a handover from 5GS to EPC implies that a device is transitioning from a 5G network to a 4G network); and releasing or terminating, by the third communication device, the policy association of the terminal under the second network (cf. fig. 6.16.2.3.3-1 and par. 6.16.2.3.3 and in particular the passage "If step 2 happens after step 8 the PCF-UE may remove directly the former UE Policy Association").
Regarding claims 2, 6, 9, 13, 16 and 20, Document D1 also discloses Handover from 5GS to EPC" which discloses the message of step 2 Npcf_UEPolicy- Control_Delete Req (see fig. 6.16.2.3.3-1 and par. 6.16.2.3.3).
Regarding claims 3, 7, 10, 14 and 17, Document D1 also discloses where the PCF-SM disclosed the claimed SM-PCF and the PCF-UE discloses the AM-PCF (the mobility and access PCF for the specific UE). The PGW-C (sixth communication device) is also disclosed (see cf. D1, fig. 6.16.2.3.3-1).
Regarding claims 5, 12 and 19, Document D1 also discloses receiving, by the seventh communication device, indication information that is used for indicating the terminal to access a first network from the second network and that is sent by a sixth communication device (cf. fig. 6.16.2.3.3-1 and par. 6.16.2.3.3 "Handover from 5GS to EPC" where the PCF-UE discloses the "third communication device", the "AMF/PCF-SM" discloses the "seventh communication device" and finally the message of step 2 Npcf_UEPolicyControl_Delete Req GSHandover- ToEPC discloses the indication to release or terminate a policy association of a terminal under a second network. The "5GS to EPC handover" means a handover from a 5G net- work to a 4G network. 5GS stands for 5G System, which refers to the 5G core network and radio access technology. EPC stands for Evolved Packet Core, which is the core net- work architecture used in 4G LTE networks. So, a handover from 5GS to EPC implies that a device is transitioning from a 5G network to a 4G network).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DAVID Q NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-7844. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7:00 AM - 3:00 PM.
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, Jinsong Hu can be reached at 5712723965. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/DAVID Q NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2643
