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 .
Detailed Action
This communication is in response to the application filed on 03/26/2025 in which Claims 1-7 are presented for examination.
Drawings
The applicant’s drawings submitted on 03/26/2025 are acceptable for examination purposes.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claims 1, 4-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention are directed to non-statutory subject matter.
As to claim 1, claim 1 appears to be directed to an abstract idea rather than a practical application of the idea. The claim does not result in a physical transformation, nor does it appear to provide a useful, concrete and tangible result. The claimed step of" performed by an application function (AF) of a core network of a visited public land mobile network (VPLMN) configured to perform an Authentication and Key Management for Applications (AKMA) procedure for a user equipment (UE) that has roamed to the VPLMN" Thus, what results from the claimed method is merely an Authentication and Key Management for Applications. The transmission and reception of perform an Authentication is not claimed as applied in a practical application, which provides a tangible, i.e., real world result. perform an Authentication is not produced a tangible result, because it does not use the result of the connect in a practical application nor make the result available for use in such a form as to enable any usefulness of having performed the step of non-acoustic speech signals to be realized. Instead, it appears to remain a mere abstraction. Therefore, claim 1 is not statutory and it is rejected under 35 U. S. C. 101.
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.
Claim(s) 1-7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. (a)(2) as being anticipated by GUPTA U.S. Patent No. 20220210636 A 1 (hereinafter " GUPTA").
As to claim 1, GUPTA teaches a method performed by an application function (AF) of a core network of a visited public land mobile network (VPLMN) configured to perform an Authentication and Key Management for Applications (AKMA) procedure for a user equipment (UE) that has roamed to the VPLMN, the method comprising (GUPTA Pa. [0061-0063]) [when roaming, the LI needs to be possible to perform without explicit support from the HPLMN, that is, HPLMN may not know that the HPLMN's roaming subscriber is the LI target in the VPLMN. Due to above LI requirements, AKMA has currently been restricted as an H-PLMN only functionality. That is, AKMA functionality is not available when user is roaming]: selecting to communicate with an AKMA anchor function (AAnF) of the VPLMN or an AAnF of a home public land mobile network (HPLMN) of the UE to perform the AKMA procedure; andsending an AKMA key get request to the selected AAnF, wherein the AKMA key get request comprises an AKMA key identifier (A-KID) and an identification of the AF (GUPTA Pa. [0009]) [KAF is generated in ME from KAKMA and application function (AF) identity (e.g., an FQDN) which may be pre-configured in the UE. On the network side, KAF is similarly generated in AAnF, upon request from the AF, which provides AAnF with an identity (e.g., FQDN) and A-KID. AF receives A-KID from UE over Ua* signaling connection. AF is the anchor for 3rd party application and interfaces with 3GPP core (AAnF) either directly (when AF is hosted by Operator himself), or indirectly via network exposure function (NEF).] (See also, Pa. [0065-0073])
As to claim 2, GUPTA teaches wherein the selected AAnF is the AAnF of the VPLMN, the method further comprising: receiving, from the AAnF of the VPLMN, an AKMA key get response comprising a key (KAF), an expiration time of the key KAF), and a Subscription Permanent Identifier (SUPI) of the UE (GUPTA Pa. [0009 and 0065-0073]) [KAF is generated in ME from KAKMA and application function (AF) identity (e.g., an FQDN) which may be pre-configured in the UE. On the network side, KAF is similarly generated in AAnF, upon request from the AF, which provides AAnF with an identity (e.g., FQDN) and A-KID. AF receives A-KID from UE over Ua* signaling connection. AF is the anchor for 3rd party application and interfaces with 3GPP core (AAnF) either directly (when AF is hosted by Operator himself), or indirectly via network exposure function (NEF).]
As to claim 3, GUPTA teaches wherein the selected AAnF is the AAnF of the HPLMN, the method further comprising:receiving, from the AAnF of the HPLMN, an AKMA key get response comprising a key (KAF), an expiration time of the key KAF), and a Subscription Permanent Identifier (SUPI) of the UE (GUPTA Pa. [0009 and 0079]) [the AKMA controller (140) establishes the communication with the AF server (200C) to access the application hosted by the AF server (200C), where the UE (100) sends the A-KID to the AF server (200C) over the established communication. The AUSF (200A) derives the KAKMA and the A-KID from the KAUSF, and where the AUSF (200A) registers the KAKMA, the A-KID, and subscription permanent identifier (SUPI) into an AKMA anchor function (AAnF) server (200B1 or 200B2).]
As to claims 4-5, claims 4-5 recites the claimed that contain respectively similar limitations as claim 1; therefore, they are rejected under the same rationale.
As to claims 6-7, GUPTA teaches wherein the network function of the VPLMN is an AAnF; wherein the network function of the VPLMN is the AF (GUPTA Pa. [0089]) [he AKMA controller (240A) receives a second AKMA indication “AKMA indication 2” from the UDM specifying whether the KAKMA and the A-KID and/or the KAF Keys need to be propagated to a Visited-PLMN, depending on operator agreements and/or AKMA support in the VPLMN] [0065] [hen, based on the received A-KID from the UE, the AF discovers the AAnF either in the visited network or in the Home Network.]
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. These include.
US 20200221281 A1 – RAJADURA et al. discloses a wireless communication network, for detecting anti-steering of roaming activity in the wireless communication network.
Conclusion
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/EVANS DESROSIERS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2491
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