Exhibit A

Case 6:20-cv-00454-ADA Document 20-2 Filed 09/03/20 Page 1 of 9
PATENT APPLICATION 

IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE 

In re application of 

Emmanual MARILL Y, et al. 

Appln. No.: 10/307,461 

Confirmation No.: 9501 

Filed: December 2, 2002 

Docket No: Q73020 

Group Art Unit: 2614 

Examiner: Melur RAMAKRISHNAIAH 

For: A METHOD OF DETERMINING SERVICE TRENDS 

AMENDMENT UNDER 37 C.F.R § 1.111 

MAIL STOP AMENDMENT 

Commissioner for Patents 

P.O. Box 1450 

Alexandria, VA 22313-14 5 0 

Sir: 

In response to the Office Action dated February 12, 2007, please amend the aboveidentified application as follows on the accompanying pages. 

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

AMENDMENTS TO THE CLAIMS .......................................................................................... 2 

REMARKS ................................................................................................................................. 5 

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AMENDMENT UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 1.111 

U.S. Patent Application No.: 10/307,461 

AMENDMENTS TO THE CLAIMS 

Attorney Docket No.: Q73020 

This listing of claims will replace all prior versions and listings of claims in the 

application: 

LISTING OF CLAIMS: 

1. (Currently Amended): A method of determining communications network service 

trends, the method comprising the steps of: 

ll-ll selecting two or more parameters of a network representative of a network service 

and variable in time; 

ll-ll measuring and/or calculating at two or more times values of the network parameters; 

IT-]1 determining at two or more times the value of a service indicator as a function of 

said measured and/or calculated parameter values;--arul 

ll-ll determining a trend of the indicator as a function of said determined indicator 

values-:-, and 

determining as a function of the trend of the indicator a time of the service indicator 

crossing a defined threshold. 

2. (Cancelled). 

3. (Original): The method of claim 1, wherein the network service is selected from the 

group comprising: voice; videophone; telephone; multimedia; video on demand; private virtual 

network; real time data; interactive data; and data stream services. 

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AMENDMENT UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 1.111 

U.S. Patent Application No.: 10/307,461 

Attorney Docket No.: Q73020 

4. (Original): The method of claim 1, further comprising a step of determining an 

indicator plane by linear regression of the measured and/or calculated network parameters. 

5. (Currently Amended): The method of claim 1, wherein the determining the service 

trend includes comparing parameter values to predetermined thresholds. 

6. (Currently Amended): The method of claim 5, wherein the determining the service 

trend further comprises: 

ll-lldetermining a network parameter trend, and 

ll-llcomparing the parameter trend to a predetermined threshold. 

7. (Original): The method of claim 1, wherein the trend of the indicator is determined by 

a neural network. 

8. (Original): The method of claim 7, further comprising a training step in which the 

neural network determines rules of association between a service trend and service parameter 

values. 

9. (Original): The method of claim 8, wherein the training step comprises inserting into 

the neural network a training base providing service trend values associated with service 

parameter values. 

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AMENDMENT UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 1.111 

U.S. Patent Application No.: 10/307,461 

Attorney Docket No.: Q73020 

10. (Original): The method of claim 9, wherein the neural network is a multilayer 

network. 

11. (Original): The method of claim 1, further comprising a step of calculating a 

mathematical expectation of financial loss as a function of the network service trend determined. 

12. (Original): The method of claim 1, further comprising a step of determining a 

capacity to provide a network service at a given time. 

13. (Original): A network and/or service management system using a method according 

to claim 1. 

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AMENDMENT UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 1.111 

U.S. Patent Application No.: 10/307,461 

REMARKS 

Attorney Docket No.: Q73020 

Reconsideration and allowance of the subject application are respectfully requested. By 

this Amendment, Applicant has amended claims 1, 5, and 6, and cancelled claim 2. 

Accordingly, upon entry of this Amendment, claims 1 and 3-13 are all the claims pending in the 

application. In response to the Office Action, Applicant respectfully submits that the claims 

define patentable subject matter. 

I. Overview of the Office Action 

Claims 1-3, 5, 6, and 12-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 102(e) as being anticipated by 

Clark (WO 01/80492). Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as being unpatentable over 

Clark in view of Jones et al. (U.S. Patent No. 6,721,750, hereafter "Jones"). Claims 7-10 are 

rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as being unpatentable over Clark in view of Chittipeddi (U.S. 

Patent No. 6,246,325). Claims 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as being unpatentable 

over Clark in view of Deville (U.S. Patent No. 5,909,646). By this Amendment, Applicant has 

cancelled claim 2, therefore rendering moot the rejection of claim 2. 

II. Preliminary Matters 

A. Foreign Priority 

A certified copy of the Foreign Priority document was filed in the U.S. Patent and 

Trademark Office on July 31, 2002. However, the Examiner did not properly acknowledge 

receipt of the Foreign Priority document by checking box 12(a)(l) of the Office Action 

Summary. Applicant respectfully requests that the Examiner fully acknowledge receipt of the 

Foreign Priority documents in the next Office Action. 

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AMENDMENT UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 1.111 

U.S. Patent Application No.: 10/307,461 

B. Information Disclosure Statement 

Attorney Docket No.: Q73020 

Applicant thanks the Examiner for initialing and returning a copy of the form PTO/SB/08 

filed on December 2, 2002. 

III. Prior Art Rejections 

Disclosure of Clark 

Clark discloses generally a quality monitoring system for packet based multimedia signal 

transmission systems. The monitoring system estimates the parameters of a statistical model 

representing the probabilities of the packet based transmission system being in a low loss state or 

a high loss state (page 5, lines 18-24), and uses the estimates to predict the subjective quality of 

the multimedia signal. 

Analysis 

The Examiner alleges that Clark discloses all of the features of independent claim 1. 

Applicant respectfully disagrees with the Examiner's position. 

Clark teaches a quality of service monitor for a multimedia communications system (FIG. 

2) which selects at least two parameters (packet loss and jitter) (page 11, lines 1-13). The 

parameters are measured at regular and frequent intervals (page 10, lines 29-30 and page 11, 

lines 1-13). A service indicator (voice quality) is estimated at regular intervals based on the 

determined parameters (page 11, lines 14-15). The computed voice quality is then transferred to 

a Thresholding and History Tracking function (page 12, lines 13-15). 

There is no teaching or suggestion in Clark of "a subsequent step of determining as a 

function of the trend of the indicator a time of the service indicator crossing a defined threshold" 

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AMENDMENT UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 1.111 

U.S. Patent Application No.: 10/307,461 

Attorney Docket No.: Q73020 

as recited in amended claim 1. The Examiner provides no specific support in the cited reference 

for this feature of the claim, but merely alleges that this feature along with the features of 

dependent claims 3, 5, 6, 12 and 13 are taught in the Abstract, page 5, line 25 - page 6, line 23; 

page 7, line 25 - page 9, line 21; page 10, line 17 - page 14, line 19 and FIGS. 3-7. However, 

these cited portions ( or any other portion) of Clark simply do not disclose "determining as a 

function of the trend of the indicator a time of the service indicator crossing a defined threshold" 

as recited in amended claim 1. 

Accordingly, Applicant respectfully submits that independent claim 1 should be 

allowable because the cited references do not teach or suggest all of the features of the claim. 

Claims 3-13 should also be allowable as least by virtue of their dependency on independent 

claim 1. 

In view of the above, reconsideration and allowance of this application are now believed 

to be in order, and such actions are hereby solicited. If any points remain in issue which the 

Examiner feels may be best resolved through a personal or telephone interview, the Examiner is 

kindly requested to contact the undersigned at the telephone number listed below. 

Applicant files concurrently herewith a Petition (with fee) for an Extension of Time of 

one month, thereby extending the time for response to June 12, 2007. Applicant hereby 

petitions for any extension of time which may be required to maintain the pendency of this 

application, and any required fee for such extension is to be charged to Deposit Account No. 19-

4880. 

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AMENDMENT UNDER 37 C.F.R. § 1.111 

U.S. Patent Application No.: 10/307,461 

Attorney Docket No.: Q73020 

The Commissioner is also authorized to charge any additional fees under 3 7 C.F.R. § 1.16 

and/or § 1.17 necessary to keep this application pending in the Patent and Trademark Office or 

credit any overpayment to said Deposit Account No. 19-4880. 

SUGHRUE MION, PLLC 

Telephone: (202) 293-7060 

Facsimile: (202) 293-7860 

WASHINGTON OFFICE 

23373 

CUSTOMER NUMBER 

Date: June 12, 2007 

8 

Respectfully submitted, 

/Mark E. Wallerson/ 

Mark E. Wallerson 

Registration No. 59,043 

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