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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Invention I, claims 1-17 and 20 in the reply filed on 07/02/2026 is acknowledged.
Specification
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed.
Examiner Note
The claims of the application are replete with alternative limitations often making it unclear what applicant intends to claim as their actual invention. In effort to advance prosecution, the examiner recommends limiting the use of alternative limitations. Claims should positively recite all limitations considered to be included as applicants claimed invention. Currently, the claims have been examined utilizing broadest reasonable interpretation and as best understood.
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.
Claim 5 recites the limitation "the first requirement" in line 6 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Claim 5 will be interpreted as best understood.
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)(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.
Claim(s) 1-17, 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Kuo et al. (hereinafter Kuo) USPGPUB 2023/0032503.
In considering claim 1, Kuo discloses An information processing method, comprising:
obtaining, by a first communication device (UE or Base Station, [0023]), first information (i.e. QA timer, [0026]), wherein the first information comprises AT LEAST ONE OF THE FOLLOWING: a PDU set delay budget (PSDB), a packet delay budget (PDB), an access network (AN) PSDB, an access network (AN) PDB, first duration, second duration, first interval duration, a first time, a second time, OR first duration of a first timer [0026]; and
performing, by the first communication device, a first operation based on the first information;
wherein the first operation comprises AT LEAST ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:
determining a delay budget of a first packet set, (“For example, the initial value of the QA timer may be 80% (or some other percentage) of the PSDB for the PDU set”, [0026]);
determining duration of a first object;
modifying remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set, extending remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set, and/or restarting timing of the delay budget of the first packet set;
modifying remaining duration of the first object, extending remaining duration of the first object, and/or restarting timing of the first object;
stopping timing of the delay budget of the first packet set;
stopping timing of the first object;
applying, to a first packet, QoS, a delay, a timer, and/or an operation per packet set;
applying, to a second packet, QoS, a delay, a timer, and/or an operation per packet; or
setting a second access network delay budget or duration of a second timer of a third packet; wherein
the first packet, the second packet, or the third packet is one or more packets in the first packet set;
the first object comprises one of the following: a first timer of the first data set or an access network delay budget of the first data set, wherein the first timer is a discard timer used per packet set;
the second timer is a discard timer used per packet;
the first time is an arrival time of the 1st packet in the first packet set;
the second time is an arrival time of the last packet in the first packet set; and
the first interval duration is interval duration between the arrival time of the last packet in the first packet set and the arrival time of the 1st packet in the first packet set.
In considering claim 2, the claim further limits an embodiment of the claimed
invention that was not selected from the alternate embodiments listed in parent claim 1. Claim 2 therefore holds no patentable weight and is rejected based on its dependency of claim 1.
In considering claim 3, Kuo discloses wherein the determining a delay budget of a
first packet set comprises:
determining the delay budget of the first packet set based on at least one of the PSDB (“For example, the initial value of the QA timer may be 80% (or some other percentage) of the PSDB for the PDU set”, [0026]), the PDB, the first interval duration, the first time, the second time, OR the first duration;
AND/OR
the determining duration of a first object comprises:
determining the duration of the first object based on at least one of the AN PSDB, the first duration, the AN PDB, or the second duration;
AND/OR
the modifying remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set, and/or restarting timing of the delay budget of the first packet set comprises:
modifying the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set and/or restarting timing of the delay budget of the first packet set based on the PDB or the first duration;
AND/OR
the modifying remaining duration of the first object, and/or restarting timing of the first object comprises:
modifying the remaining duration of the first object and/or restarting timing of the first object based on the AN PDB or the second duration.
In considering claim 4, Kuo discloses wherein the determining a delay budget of a
first packet set comprises ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:
determining that the delay budget of the first packet set is the PSDB, (“For example, the initial value of the QA timer may be 80% (or some other percentage) of the PSDB for the PDU set”, [0026]) ;
determining that the delay budget of the first packet set is greater than or equal to the sum of the first interval duration and D1;
determining that the delay budget of the first packet set is greater than or equal to the sum of the first interval duration and D3; OR
determining that the delay budget of the first packet set is greater than or equal to the sum of the PSDB and D1;
AND/OR
the modifying remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set, and/or restarting timing of the delay budget of the first packet set comprises at least one of the following:
modifying the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set to D1;
restarting timing of the delay budget of the first packet set, and setting duration of the delay budget of the first packet set to D1;
modifying the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set to D3;
OR
restarting timing of the delay budget of the first packet set, and setting the duration of the delay budget of the first packet set to D3;
AND/OR
the modifying remaining duration of the first object, and/or restarting timing of the first object comprises at least one of the following:
modifying the remaining duration of the first object to D4;
restarting timing of the first object, and setting the duration of the first object to D4;
modifying the remaining duration of the first object to D2; or
restarting timing of the first object, and setting the duration of the first object to D2;
AND/OR
the determining duration of a first object comprises one of the following:
determining that the duration of the first object is duration greater than or equal to the AN PSDB;
determining that the duration of the first object is greater than or equal to the first duration of the first timer;
determining that the duration of the first object is greater than or equal to the sum of the first interval duration and D2;
determining that the duration of the first object is greater than or equal to the sum of the first interval duration and D4;
determining that the duration of the first object is greater than or equal to the sum of the AN PSDB and D2; OR
determining that the duration of the first object is greater than or equal to the sum of the first duration of the first timer and D2;
wherein D1 is one of the following: the PDB, the first duration, duration greater than the PDB, or duration greater than the first duration;
D2 is one of the following: the AN PDB, the second duration, duration greater than the AN PDB, or duration greater than the second duration;
D3 meets the following condition: enabling a delay budget of the last arriving packet in the first packet set to meet a first requirement; and
D4 meets one of the following conditions: enabling the delay budget of the last arriving packet in the first packet set to meet the first requirement, or enabling a second access network delay budget or a second timer of the last arriving packet in the first packet set to meet a second requirement;
wherein
that the first requirement is met is one of the following: being greater than the PDB/the first duration, or being equal to the PDB/the first duration; and
that the second requirement is met is one of the following: being greater than the AN PDB/the second duration, or being equal to the AN PDB/the second duration;
wherein the first interval duration comprises one of the following:
interval duration between the arrival time of the last packet in the first packet set and the arrival time of the 1st packet in the first packet set; or
interval duration between a time at which the last packet in the first packet set is determined to be lost and the arrival time of the 1st packet in the first packet set;
the PDB/the first duration is short for "the PDB or the first duration"; and
the AN PDB/the second duration is short for "the AN PDB or the second duration".
In considering claim 5, Kuo discloses The method according to claim 1, further
comprising:
in a case that a first condition is met (receiving the PDU set, [0026]), determining that the delay budget of the first packet set is the PSDB, (“For example, the initial value of the QA timer may be 80% (or some other percentage) of the PSDB for the PDU set”, [0026]);
wherein the first condition comprises AT LEAST ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:
when the last packet in the first packet set is received, the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set meets the first requirement, (“if all of the data packets of the PDU set are processed to a lower layer (or transmitted) before the QA timer expires, intra-PDU set QoS adaptation need not be performed.” [0028]);
when the last packet in the first packet set is determined to be lost, the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set meets the first requirement; OR
when the last packet in the first packet set is determined to be lost, remaining duration of the delay budget of the last arriving packet in the first packet set meets the first requirement;
wherein
that the first requirement is met is one of the following: being greater than the PDB/the first duration, or being equal to the PDB/the first duration;
the remaining duration of the delay budget of the last arriving packet is duration obtained by subtracting T1 from a timeout time of the delay budget of the first packet set;
T1 is interval duration between an arrival time of the last arriving packet in the first packet set and an arrival time of the first arriving packet in the first packet set; and
the PDB/the first duration is short for "the PDB or the first duration".
In considering claim 6, Kuo discloses the method according to claim 1, further
comprising:
in a case that a second condition is met (beginning to process the data packets of the PDU set to a lower layer, [0026]), determining the delay budget of the first packet set, (“For example, the initial value of the QA timer may be 80% (or some other percentage) of the PSDB for the PDU set”, [0026]);
AND/OR
in a case that a second condition is met, determining that the delay budget of the first packet set is greater than or equal to the sum of the first interval duration and D1;
AND/OR
in a case that a second condition is met, modifying the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set to D1, and/or restarting timing of the delay budget of the first packet set, and setting the duration of the delay budget of the first packet set to D1;
wherein the second condition comprises AT LEAST ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:
when a fourth packet OR the last packet in the first packet set is received, the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set is less than the PDB/the first duration, (“if all of the data packets of the PDU set are processed to a lower layer (or transmitted) before the QA timer expires, intra-PDU set QoS adaptation need not be performed.” [0028]);
when the last packet in the first packet set is determined to be lost, the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set is less than the PDB/the first duration;
when the last packet in the first packet set is determined to be lost, remaining duration of the delay budget of the last arriving packet in the first packet set is less than the PDB/the first duration;
the delay budget of the first packet set times out, or the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set reaches a first threshold;
when the delay budget of the first packet set times out, the last packet in the first packet set is not received, or the last packet in the first packet set is not determined to be lost; OR
when the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set reaches the first threshold, the last packet in the first packet set is not received, or the last packet in the first packet set is not determined to be lost;
wherein a value of the first threshold is a non-zero value that approaches zero;
the PDB/the first duration is short for "the PDB or the first duration"; and
the fourth packet is a packet other than the last packet in the first packet set.
In considering claim 7, Kuo discloses The method according to claim 6, wherein
in a case that the second condition comprises "the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set is less than the PDB/the first duration", the second condition further comprises: the delay budget of the first packet set does not time out, (“if all of the data packets of the PDU set are processed to a lower layer (or transmitted) before the QA timer expires, intra-PDU set QoS adaptation need not be performed.” [0028];
AND/OR
in a case that the second condition comprises "when the last packet in the first packet set is determined to be lost, the remaining duration of the delay budget of the first packet set is less than the PDB/the first duration", the second condition further comprises: a packet in the first packet set exists in a cache of the first communication device;
wherein the PDB/the first duration is short for "the PDB or the first duration".
In considering claims 8-17, the claims further limit an embodiment of the claimed
invention that was not selected from the alternate embodiments listed in parent claim 1. Claims 8-17 therefore hold no patentable weight and are rejected based on their dependency of claim 1.
In considering claim 20, Kuo discloses A communication device (802, 820),
comprising a processor (804, 822), a memory (806, 824), and a computer program (808, 826) stored in the memory and capable of running on the processor (see Fig. 8), further, while claim 20 recites a different statutory category of invention, the claim recites substantially the same limitations as those in claim 1. Thus, claim 20 is rejected under the same rationale used in the rejection of claim 1.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HASSAN A PHILLIPS whose telephone number is (571)272-3940. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00am to 5:00pm.
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, Deborah Reynolds can be reached at 571-272-0734. 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.
/HASSAN A PHILLIPS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2467
Prosecution Insights