DETAILED ACTION
This Office action is in response to the original application filed on 03/05/2025. Claims 1-33 are canceled and claims 34-54 are newly added in the preliminary amendments filed on 03/05/2025. Claims 34-54 are pending.
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 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)(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.
Claims 34-54 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Kim et al. (US 2022/0360966 A1, hereinafter “Kim”).
Regarding claim 34 (and similarly claims 42, and 51), Kim discloses:
A method for a user equipment (UE) configured to operate as a relay UE for sidelink (SL) communication between a source UE and a target UE, the method comprising:
identifying the target UE based on a SL discovery procedure performed by the UE or by the target UE (identifying remote UE during discovery procedure, Kim: [0045], [0221]);
sending, to the target UE, a first message that includes a relay service code (RSC) that indicates a UE-to-UE relay service provided by the UE (sending discovery message including RSC, Kim: [0045], [0221], [0222]);
obtaining one or more security keys based on a security identifier associated with the target UE (obtaining session key and integrity protection key based on PRUK ID, Kim: [0045], [0221]- [0225]); and
establishing a secure link with the target UE based on the obtained one or more security keys (establishing secure link based on verification of session key and integrity protection key, Kim: [0045], [0221]- [0225]).
Regarding claim 35, Kim teaches all the claimed limitations as set forth in the rejection of claim 34 above.
Kim further discloses:
wherein identifying the target UE is responsive to establishing the secure link with the source UE (initiating discovery procedure for announcement, Kim: [0044]).
Regarding claim 36, Kim teaches all the claimed limitations as set forth in the rejection of claim 34 above.
Kim further discloses:
wherein the security identifier is one of the following: a Subscription Concealed Identifier (SUCI), or a ProSe Remote User Key identifier (PRUK ID) (PRUK ID, Kim: [0044], [0221]).
Regarding claim 37, Kim teaches all the claimed limitations as set forth in the rejection of claim 34 above.
Kim further discloses:
further comprising receiving, from the target UE in response to the first message, a second message that includes the security identifier associated with the target UE (receiving DCR including PRUK ID, Kim: [0044], [0221]).
Regarding claim 38, Kim teaches all the claimed limitations as set forth in the rejection of claim 37 above.
Kim further discloses:
wherein the first message also includes address or identifier information for one or more of the following: the source UE, the target UE, and the UE (discovery message including RSC, Kim: [0045], [0221], [0222]).
Regarding claim 39, Kim teaches all the claimed limitations as set forth in the rejection of claim 37 above.
Kim further discloses:
wherein the first message is a direct communication invite and the second message is a direct communication request (discovery message and DCR, Kim: [0045]).
Regarding claim 40, Kim teaches all the claimed limitations as set forth in the rejection of claim 37 above.
Kim further discloses:
wherein obtaining one or more security keys comprises:
sending, to a communication network, a key request including the RSC and the security identifier received in the second message (transmitting key request message including RSC and PRUK ID, Kim: [0045], [0221]);
receiving a key response from the communication network (receiving key response message, Kim: [0045], [0222]-[0224]); and
deriving the one or more security keys based on the key response (deriving session key and integrity protection key based on key response message, Kim: [0225]).
Regarding claim 41, Kim teaches all the claimed limitations as set forth in the rejection of claim 40 above.
Kim further discloses:
the second message and the key request also include a first key freshness parameter (DCR and key request message including first freshness parameter, Kim: [0221]);
the key response includes a second key freshness parameter (key response message including second freshness parameter, Kim: [0224]); and
establishing a secure link with the target UE comprises:
sending to the target UE a direct security mode command including the second key freshness parameter (sending direct security mode command including second freshness parameter, Kim: [0225]);
receiving a key response from the communication network (receiving direct security mode complete message, Kim: [0225]); and
deriving the one or more security keys based on the key response (verifying integrity of direct security mode complete message, Kim: [0225]).
Regarding claims 43-50 and 52-54, they do not teach or further define over the limitations in claims 35-41. Therefore, claims 43-50 and 52-54 are rejected for the same reasons as set forth in the rejection of claims 35-41 above.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure: Kuo (US 2023/0217346 A1: Method and Apparatus for a Relay UE Supporting Connection with Another Remote UE in a Wireless Communication System), Kim et al. (US 2024/0048981 A1: Method and Systems for Providing Home Network Routing Information of Remote User Equipment (UE) Following Authentication Failure During Establishment of UE-to-Network (U2N) Relay Communication), Chen et al. (US 2022/0394592 A1: Access Control at a Relay User Equipment), and Kim et al. (US 2023/0336992 A1: Method and Apparatus for Authenticating User Equipment in Wireless Communication System).
In the case of amendments, applicant is respectfully requested to indicate the portion(s) of the specification which dictate(s) the structure relied on for proper interpretation and support, for ascertaining the metes and bounds of the claimed invention.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GIL H. LEE whose telephone number is 571-272-3408. The examiner can normally be reached on Mon-Fri: 9am-6pm EST.
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/GIL H. LEE/
Primary Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2446
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