Patent Application 18185043 - NETWORK NODE AND METHOD PERFORMED BY NETWORK NODE - Rejection

Patent Application 18185043 - NETWORK NODE AND METHOD PERFORMED BY NETWORK NODE

Title: NETWORK NODE AND METHOD PERFORMED BY NETWORK NODE

Application Information

• Invention Title: NETWORK NODE AND METHOD PERFORMED BY NETWORK NODE
• Application Number: 18185043
• Submission Date: 2025-05-14T00:00:00.000Z
• Effective Filing Date: 2023-03-16T00:00:00.000Z
• Filing Date: 2023-03-16T00:00:00.000Z
• National Class: 370
• National Sub-Class: 329000
• Examiner Employee Number: 82524
• Art Unit: 2464
• Tech Center: 2400

Rejection Summary

• 102 Rejections: 1
• 103 Rejections: 0

Cited Patents

The following patents were cited in the rejection:

• US 0081232🔗

Office Action Text

    DETAILED ACTION
Specification
The lengthy specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the 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.
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.

Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter.  The claim does not fall within at least one of the four categories of patent eligible subject matter because a computer readable medium typically covers forms of non-transitory tangible media and transitory propagating signals per se, particularly when the specification is silent.  When the broadest reasonable interpretation of a claim covers a signal per se, the claims are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 101 as covering non-statutory subject matter.  It is suggested that the claims be amended to narrow the claim to cover only statutory embodiments to avoid a rejection under 35 U.S.C. § 101 by adding the limitation “non-transitory” to the claim.  Such an amendment would typically not raise the issue of new matter, even when the specification is silent because the broadest reasonable interpretation relies on the ordinary and customary meaning that includes signals per se.  
The specification provides many examples of “computer readable storage medium” on pages 42 and 43, at paragraph 194, which are only examples of computer readable storage media and is therefore non-limiting.  In the broadest reasonable interpretation of the claim, there is a possibility that the computer readable storage medium can include a transitory signal, which is non-statutory subject matter.
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.

Claims 1, 2, 14 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Bhamri et al. (US-PGPUB 2025/0081232).
Regarding claim 1, Bhamri teaches a method performed by a network node, the method comprising: obtaining prediction information on an availability of an unlicensed band based on historical data of the unlicensed band [Abstract, obtains information regarding transmission beam usable for channel access based on gain information]; selecting transmission resources of the unlicensed band based on the prediction information [Abstract, uses the transmission beam for transmitting data]; determining a number of data packets capable of being allocated to the transmission resources based on the prediction information [Para 193-195, determines how much data can be transmitted based on channel occupancy duration restriction]; and transmitting the data packets on the transmission resources according to the determined number of data packets capable of being allocated to the transmission resources [Para 201, the data is transmitted based on the allocation information].
Regarding claim 2, Bhamri teaches a probability of the unlicensed band being unavailable using a classification model [Abstract].
Regarding claim 14, Bhamri teaches a network node, comprising: at least one processor [Fig. 4, 405]; and at least one memory for storing computer executable instructions, wherein the computer executable instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform a method comprising: obtaining prediction information on an availability of an unlicensed band based on historical data of the unlicensed band [Abstract, obtains information regarding transmission beam usable for channel access based on gain information]; selecting transmission resources of the unlicensed band based on the prediction information [Abstract, uses the transmission beam for transmitting data]; determining a number of data packets capable of being allocated to the transmission resources based on the prediction information [Para 193-195, determines how much data can be transmitted based on channel occupancy duration restriction]; and transmitting the data packets on the transmission resources according to the determined number of data packets capable of being allocated to the transmission resources [Para 201, the data is transmitted based on the allocation information].
Regarding claim 20, Bhamri teaches a computer readable storage medium storing computer program instructions thereon, wherein the computer program instructions, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement a method comprising: obtaining prediction information on an availability of an unlicensed band based on historical data of the unlicensed band [Abstract, obtains information regarding transmission beam usable for channel access based on gain information]; selecting transmission resources of the unlicensed band based on the prediction information [Abstract, uses the transmission beam for transmitting data]; determining a number of data packets capable of being allocated to the transmission resources based on the prediction information [Para 193-195, determines how much data can be transmitted based on channel occupancy duration restriction]; and transmitting the data packets on the transmission resources according to the determined number of data packets capable of being allocated to the transmission resources [Para 201, the data is transmitted based on the allocation information].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3-13 and 15-19 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure is cited on the form PTO-892.
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/Chandrahas B Patel/     Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2464