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 .
Summary
This action is in reply to Applicant’s Amendments and Remarks filed on 02/25/2026.
Claims 1-2 and 5-22 are pending.
Claims 3-4 are cancelled.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed on 02/25/2026 with respect to claims 1-2 and 5-22 have been considered but they are moot as they are not applicable to combination of prior arts used in this office action.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102 of this title, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim 1-2, 5-20 and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rose et al. (US 20170230074 A1, of IDS, hereinafter ‘ROSE’) in view of TEBOULLE et al. (US 20200007277 A1, of IDS, hereinafter ‘TEBOULLE’) in view of Radmand et al. (US 20210136869 A1, of record, hereinafter ‘RADMAND’) and with further in view of in view of Mao et al. (CN 109495512 A, of IDS, machine translation, hereinafter ‘MAO’).
Regarding claim 1, ROSE teaches LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) with at least one network server (NS), several gateways (G) and several end devices (ED) (Fig. 1, [0030] … one or more end devices …. to transmit resource measurement data to one or more gateway devices. In various examples, the end devices may transmit resource measurement data using LPWAN technologies (e.g., LoRaWAN, GREENWAVE, etc.) to provide low-power communications over longer distances….
[0034] …. the end device may receive an indication of the sensor type over a network from one or more server computing devices….
Fig. 1, [0038] FIG. 1 illustrates an example environment 100 including one or more gateway devices 102 to receive resource measurement data from one or more end devices 104 and 106 for monitoring resources at a monitoring location 108….
Fig. 2, [0045] FIG. 2 illustrates an example environment 200 including one or more gateway devices 202, one or more end devices 204, one or more service providers 206, and one or more computing devices 208, for collecting resource data and monitoring resources.
[0046] … In various examples, the gateway device(s) 202, the end device(s) 204, the service provider(s) 206, and the computing device(s) 208 can communicate via one or more networks 210.
[0056] The gateway devices(s) 202 can include a communication module 220 to communicate with other gateway devices or end devices (e.g., in mesh network) and/or to communicate via the network(s) 210.
[0060] the service provider(s) 206 can include an analytics module 238, including one or modules such as a historical data 240 module, a resource signatures 242 module, a report/alert module 244, an automated analysis 246 module, a graphical user interfaces 248 module, and/or a device management module 250.
(Construed that service providers 206 are the network servers).), characterised in that a gateway (G) has an ACK signal generation unit (ACK) (
[0145] end device (e.g., computing device)…
[0149] … the computing device may enter the low-power mode in response to receiving an ACK from the gateway, indicating that a transmission from the end device to the gateway has been received.),
wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) has a border gateway (BGD) and afront-end gateway (FGD) (
Fig, 2, Gateway Devices 202 working as Mesh Gateway devices or MGD, as defined in Instant Application Specification, can be construed having a combination of a front-end interface or FGD to Eds 204 and border gateway interface or a BGD to Service Provides or Servers 206,
See also [0040] the gateway device 102 and the end devices 104 and 106 can form a mesh network, with the gateway device 102 providing a communication interface with the network(s) 118.
[0056] The gateway devices(s) 202 can include a communication module 220 to communicate with other gateway devices or end devices (e.g., in mesh network) and/or to communicate via the network(s) 210.),
wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) maintains full compatibility with the LoRaWAN specification (
[0030] one or more end devices ….. to transmit resource measurement data to one or more gateway devices …… the end devices may transmit resource measurement data using LPWAN technologies (e.g., LoRaWAN®).
Fig. 1, [0040] ….the end devices 104 and 106 can wirelessly communicate with the gateway device 102, which in turn can wirelessly communicate with network(s) 118….
Fig. 2, [0045] FIG. 2 illustrates an example environment 200 including one or more gateway devices 202, one or more end devices 204, one or more service providers 206, and one or more computing devices 208, for collecting resource data and monitoring resources.
[0058] the end device 204 can transmit and receive data via a long range, wide area network, for example, in accordance with a LoRa modulation protocol provided by SEMTECH, or in accordance with the LoRaWAN specification provided by the LoRa Alliance.
(It is obvious that the Figs. 1 or 2, gateway devices 102 or 202 maintains full compatibility with the LoRaWAN specification since the gateway devices 102 or 202 directly communicates with end devices 104, 106 or 204 transmitting and receiving in accordance with the LoRaWAN specification)).
ROSE does not explicitly disclose wherein the ACK signal generation unit is adapted to generate an ACK signal, wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network(1) has different gateway types (Gn), wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) has a border gateway (BGD) and afront-end gateway (FGD) (when FGD and BGD are separate boxes, ROSE teaches FGD and BGD in single box)), and wherein the ACK signal generation unit is a sub-server unit integrated into a gateway that performs functionalities and objectives intended for the network server according to the LoRaWAN protocol.
In an analogous art, TEBOULLE teaches wherein the ACK signal generation unit is adapted to generate an ACK signal (
[0044] When the server 130 decides to activate the delegation mechanism with the gathering gateway 120 vis-à-vis an end device in question, some of the functions provided by the intermediate layer 332 in its communications with the end device in question are transferred under the responsibility of the adaptation module 321….. the adaptation mode 321 anticipates the acknowledgement of the uplink frames on behalf of the intermediate layer 332 of the server 130….. Thus, when an uplink frame is received from the end device 110, the gathering gateway has available data and mechanisms necessary for acknowledging the uplink frames as quickly as possible and if required to transmit to the end device 110 data that are intended for it from the server 130. This aspect is detailed hereinafter in relation to FIGS. 4 to 9.
Fig. 9, [0090] In a step 904, the end device 112 transmits an uplink frame ULF captured by the gathering gateway 121.
[0091] In a step 905, the gathering gateway 121 forwards the uplink frame ULF to the server 130, in application of the algorithm in FIG. 6.
[0092] In a step 906, the gathering gateway 121 constructs a downlink frame DLF acknowledging the uplink frame ULF received and including the useful data put in the buffer following the reception of the message DL-MSG transmitted at step 903.),
wherein the ACK signal generation unit is a sub-server unit integrated into a gateway that performs functionalities and objectives intended for the network server according to the LoRaWAN protocol (
Fig. 1, [0025] FIG. 1 illustrates schematically a communication system in which the present invention can be implemented. The communication system comprises at least one gathering gateway 120, 121, 122, 123 (denoted GW, standing for “GateWay”, in the Figs.). The gathering gateways 120, 121, 122, 123 have respective communication links with a server 130 (denoted SRV in the Figs.) to which said gathering gateways 120, 121, 122, 123 are attached. For example, the server 130 is of the LNS (LoRaWAN network server) type. Four gathering gateways are shown in FIG. 1, but the communication system may comprise a different number of gathering gateways.
[0026] In the communication system, messages must be transferred in the form of frames from a set of end devices 110, 111, 112 (denoted ED, standing for End Device) as far as the server 130. Three end devices are shown in FIG. 1, but the communication system may comprise a different number of end devices.
Fig. 3, [0037] FIG. 3 illustrates schematically an example of protocol architecture implemented in the communication system of FIG. 1. The protocol architecture is distributed between the end devices, the gathering gateways and the server 130. We shall consider by way of illustration communications between the end device 110 and the server 130 via the gathering gateway 120.
[0039] The server 130 comprises a top layer 331 and a bottom layer 333, as well as an intermediate layer 332 ….
[0041] The gathering gateway 120 comprises a first bottom layer 322 and a second bottom layer 323, as well as an adaptation module 321…..
[0044] When the server 130 decides to activate the delegation mechanism with the gathering gateway 120 vis-à-vis an end device in question, some of the functions provided by the intermediate layer 332 in its communications with the end device in question are transferred under the responsibility of the adaptation module 321. The adaptation mode 321 continues to forward to the server 130 the received frames coming from the end device 110, referred to as uplink frames, and to forward to the end device 110 the received frames coming from the server 130, referred to as downlink frames. However, furthermore, the adaptation mode 321 anticipates the acknowledgement of the uplink frames on behalf of the intermediate layer 332 of the server 130. In addition, the adaptation mode 321 activates a buffer enabling the server 130 to offset as close as possible to the end device 110 the storage of downlink frames to be sent to the end device 110. This buffer is then filled asynchronously, that is to say without taking account of the transmission-reception synchronism to be complied with via the reception windows between the gathering gateways and the end devices. Thus, when an uplink frame is received from the end device 110, the gathering gateway has available data and mechanisms necessary for acknowledging the uplink frames as quickly as possible and if required to transmit to the end device 110 data that are intended for it from the server 130. This aspect is detailed hereinafter in relation to FIGS. 4 to 9.
See also Fig. 9, [0090-0092] cited above).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of delegating some LoRaWan Server functionalities to Gateways of TEBOULLE to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE in order to provide a method for acknowledging the uplink frames to end devices as quickly as possible reducing the reaction time of the communication system when an end device transmits an uplink frame by distributing the processing load normally devolved to the server over the gateways (TEBOULLE: [0006, 0044]).
ROSE and TEBOULLE do not explicitly disclose wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network(1) has different gateway types (Gn), wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) has a border gateway (BGD) and afront-end gateway (FGD) (when FGD and BGD are separate boxes, ROSE teaches FGD and BGD in single box)).
In an analogous art, RADMAND teaches wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network(1) has different gateway types (Gn) (Fig. 1, [0040] Wireless communications system 100 may include gateways 105 of different types such as a LoRaWAN gateway, an IoT gateway, an Internet Protocol (IP) gateway).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of gateways with IP connection to Server in LoRaWAN mesh network of RADMAND to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE and TEBOULLE in order to provide a method for an improved LoRaWAN mesh network with extended coverage requiring less services from the cloud (RADMAND: [0001, 0129])
ROSE, TEBOULLE and RADMAND do not explicitly disclose wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) has a border gateway (BGD) and afront-end gateway (FGD) (when FGD and BGD are separate boxes, ROSE teaches FGD and BGD in single box)).
In an analogous art, MAO teaches characterised the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) has a border gateway (BGD) and a front-end gateway (FGD) (when FGD and BGD are separate boxes) (
Fig. 1, [0021] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, a relay system compatible with the LoRaWAN protocol includes a LoRaWAN protocol server 1, a central gateway 2, several relay gateways 3, and several LoRaWAN nodes 4. The several LoRaWAN nodes 4 communicate with the several relay gateways 3, the several relay gateways 3 communicate with the central gateway 2, and the central gateway 2 communicates with the LoRaWAN protocol server 1.
(It is obvious that a central gateway 2 as the BGD communicates with the LoRaWAN protocol server 1 or the network server, and relay gateways 3 as FGD communicate with the central gateway 2 or the BGD on one direction and communicate with LoRaWAN nodes 4 or end devices)).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of using central gateway and relay gateways as BGD and FGD of MAO to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE, TEBOULLE and RADMAND in order to provide a method for extending LoRaWAN communication range improving the network coverage, reducing the user communication cost, using existing popular LoRaWAN communication protocol (MAO: [0027]).
Regarding claim 2, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that the ACK signal generation unit (ACK) has a processor and a memory (Fig. 2, Gateway Devices 202 include Processor 212, Memory 214 ….
[0149] … ACK from the gateway.
(Construed that a gateway device as a generation unit generating ACK signal and has a processor and a memory)).
Regarding claim 5, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that the front-end gateway (FGD) has the ACK signal generation unit (ACK) (
Fig, 2, Gateway Devices 202 working as Mesh Gateway devices or MGD, as defined in Instant Application Specification, having a combination of a front-end interface or FGD to Eds 204 and border gateway interface or a BGD to Service Provides or Servers 206,
[0056] The gateway devices(s) 202 can include a communication module 220 to communicate with other gateway devices or end devices (e.g., in mesh network)….
[0149] … the computing device may enter the low-power mode in response to receiving an ACK from the gateway).
Regarding claim 6, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that the front-end gateway (FGD) has a first front-end gateway communication port for communication with an end device (ED) and a second front-end gateway communication port for communication with another front-end gateway (FGD) and/or a border gateway (BGD) (
Fig, 2, Gateway Devices 202 working as Mesh Gateway devices or MGD, as defined in Instant Application Specification, having a combination of a front-end interface or FGD to Eds 204 and border gateway interface or a BGD to Service Provides or Servers 206,
[0056] The gateway devices(s) 202 can include a communication module 220 to communicate with other gateway devices or end devices (e.g., in mesh network)….).
Regarding claim 7, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 4, characterised in that each front-end gateway (FGD) is suitable for wireless point-to-point communication with a variety of end devices (EDn) using single-hop LoRa or FSK using the LoRaWAN protocol (
Fig, 2, Gateway Devices 202 working as Mesh Gateway devices or MGD, as defined in Instant Application Specification, having a combination of a front-end interface or FGD to EDs 204 and border gateway interface or a BGD to Service Provides or Servers 206.
[0076] communication between the end device 304 and the gateway device 306 can be a radio link using a modulation technique and/or transceiver in compliance with a SEMTECH LoRa modulation technique.
Fig. 3, GFSK Link capability between Eds 304 and Gateway Devices 306.
See also SORNIN II Page 7, Section 1 Introduction Paragraph 2:
LoRaWAN networks typically are laid out in a star-of-stars topology in which gateways1 4 relay messages between end-devices2 and a central network server at the backend. 5 Gateways are connected to the network server via standard IP connections while end-6 devices use single-hop LoRa™ or FSK communication to one or many gateways).
Regarding claim 8, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 1,
characterised in that the front-end gateway (FGD) and the border gateway (BGD) are combined with a plurality of mesh gateway devices (MGD) and at least one of the mesh gateway devices (MGD) (Fig, 2, Gateway Devices 202 working as Mesh Gateway devices or MGD, as defined in Instant Application Specification, having a combination of a front-end interface or FGD to Eds 204 and border gateway interface or a BGD to Service Provides or Servers 206).
ROSE and TEBOULLE do not explicitly disclose the front-end gateway (FGD) and the border gateway (BGD) are combined with a plurality of mesh gateway devices (MGD) and at least one of the mesh gateway devices (MGD) does not have a direct IP connection (IP).
RADMAND teaches the front-end gateway (FGD) and the border gateway (BGD) are combined with a plurality of mesh gateway devices (MGD) and at least one of the mesh gateway devices (MGD) does not have a direct IP connection (IP) (Fig. 1 showing a Gateway 105 with communication Manager 140, working ana MGD with combined FGD and BGD as defined in Instant Application Specification, is communicating with LoRaWAN nodes 115, other Gateways 105 and core network 130 via base station 145.
Fig. 2, [0079] Wireless communications system 200 illustrates an example with four gateways 105-a and 105-b (collectively referred to herein as gateways 105) in a full-mesh network. That is, each gateway 105 is directly communicatively coupled with every other gateway 105 in wireless communications system 200 via communication links 134-a. Each gateway 105 is also communicatively coupled, directly or indirectly, with an external network 130-a.
[0080] In some examples, gateways 105 are an example of one or more aspects of a LoRaWAN gateway. A LoRaWAN gateway may use the LoRaWAN protocol, which is a long range, low power wide area network (LPWAN) that provides interoperability among smart or IoT devices. In a LoRaWAN gateway, for example, a gateway 105 may be connected to a network server (whether the network runs in the cloud or is on-premise with one or more gateways or nodes) via a standard IP connection or other type of connection, and nodes 115-a may use single-hop wireless communications to the gateways 105.
[0085] Server 215 would analyze the one or more parameters to select a gateway to serve as a primary gateway for communication between the full-mesh network and external network 130-a. In such an example, server 215 would provide an indication of the selected gateway 105 to at least gateway 105-b. Gateway 105-b may inform the other gateways 105 of the identity of the selected gateway 105.
(It is obvious from Fig. 1, Fig. 2 and [0079, 0080, 0085]) that each LoRaWAN gateways 105-a may communicate with server 215 so that server can analyze the one or more parameters, indicating having a BGD feature, while also communication with LoRaWAN nodes 105, indicating having a FGD feature, and one of the gateway 105 may have standard IP connection to the server 215, while the other gateways not have direct standard IP connection to server 215)).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of gateways with IP connection to Server in LoRaWAN mesh network of RADMAND to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE, TEBOULLE, and MAO in order to provide a method for an improved LoRaWAN mesh network with extended coverage requiring less services from the cloud (RADMAND: [0001, 0129]).
Regarding claim 9, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 1, in that a border gateway (BGD) is provided for communication by means of an IP connection and using the LoRaWAN protocol with the network server (NS) (Fig, 2, Gateway Devices 202 working as Mesh Gateway devices or MGD, as defined in Instant Application Specification, having a combination of a front-end interface or FGD to Eds 204 and border gateway interface or a BGD to Service Provides or Servers 206.
[0021] FIG. 16 is an example graphical user interface (GUI) that illustrates a suspected event report and/or alert. A service provider may generate the GUI based on data received from an end device or a gateway device.
Fig. 23A disclosing IP and MAC addresses of respective gateways on an alerting page of GUI.
(It is obvious that there is an IP recognition or connectivity between a gateway device 202 and Service Providers/Servers 206)).
However ROSE and TEBOULLE do not explicitly disclose that a border gateway (BGD) is provided for communication by means of a standard IP connection and using the LoRaWAN protocol with the network server.
RADMAND teaches that a border gateway (BGD) is provided for communication by means of a standard IP connection and using the LoRaWAN protocol with the network server (Fig. 1, [0076] In the example of FIG. 1, one or more of the gateways 105 may include a communication manager 140, which may select a gateway from a number of gateways to deliver data to core network 130.
(Construed that a Gateway 105 with communication manager 140 is a BGD)
[0080] ... gateways 105 are an example of one or more aspects of a LoRaWAN gateway. A LoRaWAN gateway may use the LoRaWAN protocol, which is a long range, low power wide area network (LPWAN) that provides interoperability among smart or IoT devices. In a LoRaWAN gateway, for example, a gateway 105 may be connected to a network server ..... via a standard IP connection.
[0085] Server 215 would analyze the one or more parameters to select a gateway to serve as a primary gateway for communication between the full-mesh network and external network 130-a. In such an example, server 215 would provide an indication of the selected gateway 105 to at least gateway 105-b. Gateway 105-b may inform the other gateways 105 of the identity of the selected gateway 105.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of gateways with IP connection to Server in LoRaWAN mesh network of RADMAND to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE, TEBOULLE and MAO in order to provide a method for an improved LoRaWAN mesh network with extended coverage requiring less services from the cloud (RADMAND: [0001, 0129]).
Regarding claim 10, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 9, characterised in that the border gateway (BGD) has a first border gateway communication port for communication with a network server (NS) (See Fig. 2 Gateway Devices 202 communicating with Service Providers or Servers 206).
ROSE, TEBOULLE and RADMAND do not explicitly disclose characterised in that the border gateway (BGD) has a first border gateway communication port for communication with a network server (NS) and a second border gateway communication port for communication with a front-end gateway (FGD).
MAO teaches characterised in that the border gateway (BGD) has a first border gateway communication port for communication with a network server (NS) (Fig. 1,
[0021] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, a relay system compatible with the LoRaWAN protocol includes a LoRaWAN protocol server 1, a central gateway 2, several relay gateways 3, and several LoRaWAN nodes 4. The several LoRaWAN nodes 4 communicate with the several relay gateways 3, the several relay gateways 3 communicate with the central gateway 2, and the central gateway 2 communicates with the LoRaWAN protocol server 1.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of using central gateway and relay gateways as BGD and FGD of MAO to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE, TEBOULLE and RADMAND in order to provide a method for extending LoRaWAN communication range improving the network coverage, reducing the user communication cost, using existing popular LoRaWAN communication protocol (MAO: [0027]).
Regarding claim 11, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that the front-end gateways (FGD) are each integrated with a border gateway (BGD) in a mesh gateway (MGD) (Fig, 2, Gateway Devices 202 working as Mesh Gateway devices or MGD, as defined in Instant Application Specification, having a combination of a front-end interface or FGD to EDs 204 and border gateway interface or a BGD to Service Provides or Servers 206.
[0056] The gateway devices(s) 202 can include a communication module 220 to communicate with other gateway devices or end devices (e.g., in mesh network) and/or to communicate via the network(s) 210.).
Regarding claim 12, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 1, characterised in that the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) is a wireless network (
Fig. 2, [0056] The gateway devices(s) 202 can include a communication module 220 to communicate with other gateway devices or end devices (e.g., in mesh network) and/or to communicate via the network(s) 210. For example, the communication module 220 can include antennas to communicate with the end device(s) 204 via any low power, long range wide area network.).
ROSE, TEBOULLE and RADMAND do not explicitly disclose characterised in that the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) is a multi-hop wireless network.
MAO teaches characterised in that the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) is a multi-hop wireless network (See Figure 1 or Figure 2,
[0021] The relay gateway 3 includes a second LoRa radio frequency hardware 31 and a second relay protocol module 32).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of using central gateway and relay gateways as BGD and FGD of MAO to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE, TEBOULLE and RADMAND in order to provide a method for extending LoRaWAN communication range improving the network coverage, reducing the user communication cost, using existing popular LoRaWAN communication protocol (MAO: [0027]).
Regarding claim 13 ROSE teaches method for communication in a LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) (
[0030] … one or more end devices …. to transmit resource measurement data to one or more gateway devices. In various examples, the end devices may transmit resource measurement data using LPWAN technologies (e.g., LoRaWAN, GREENWAVE, etc.) to provide low-power communications over longer distances….
Fig. 1, [0040] ….the end devices 104 and 106 can wirelessly communicate with the gateway device 102, which in turn can wirelessly communicate with network(s) 118….
Fig. 2, [0045] FIG. 2 illustrates an example environment 200 including one or more gateway devices 202, one or more end devices 204, one or more service providers 206, and one or more computing devices 208, for collecting resource data and monitoring resources.
[0046] … In various examples, the gateway device(s) 202, the end device(s) 204, the service provider(s) 206, and the computing device(s) 208 can communicate via one or more networks 210.
[0056] The gateway devices(s) 202 can include a communication module 220 to communicate with other gateway devices or end devices (e.g., in mesh network) and/or to communicate via the network(s) 210.
[0056] The gateway devices(s) 202 can include a communication module 220 to communicate with other gateway devices or end devices (e.g., in mesh network) and/or to communicate via the network(s) 210.
[0060] the service provider(s) 206 can include an analytics module 238, including one or modules such as a historical data 240 module, a resource signatures 242 module, a report/alert module 244, an automated analysis 246 module, a graphical user interfaces 248 module, and/or a device management module 250.
(Construed that service providers 206 are the network servers).), wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) has a plurality of end devices (ED), a plurality of gateways (Gn) and a network server (NS) (
Fig. 2, [0046] … In various examples, the gateway device(s) 202, the end device(s) 204, the service provider(s) 206, and the computing device(s) 208 can communicate via one or more networks 210.), comprising the steps of
- Generation of a message in a end device (ED), Sending the message from the end device (ED) to a gateway (G), Receiving the message from the end device on the gateway (G) (
[0030] … one or more end devices …. to transmit resource measurement data to one or more gateway devices. In various examples, the end devices may transmit resource measurement data using LPWAN technologies (e.g., LoRaWAN, GREENWAVE, etc.) to provide low-power communications over longer distances….
Fig. 1, Gateway device 102 communicating with End Devices 104, 106 transmitting and receiving messages,
[0040] ….the end devices 104 and 106 can wirelessly communicate with the gateway device 102, which in turn can wirelessly communicate with network(s) 118….)
- Generation of an ACK signal in the gateway (G), Sending the ACK signal from the gateway (G) to the end device (ED) (
Fig. 2, [0058] the end device 204 can transmit and receive data via a long range, wide area network, for example, in accordance with a LoRa modulation protocol provided by SEMTECH, or in accordance with the LoRaWAN specification provided by the LoRa Alliance.
[0145] end device (e.g., computing device)…
[0149] … the computing device may enter the low-power mode in response to receiving an ACK from the gateway, indicating that a transmission from the end device to the gateway has been received.
(Construed that a Fig. 2 LoRaWAN End Devices 230 or ED transmit and receive data via a long range, wide area network Gateway Devices 202 in accordance with the LoRaWAN specification provided by the LoRa Alliance, implying that for a data transmission from ED 230 to network/Gateway Device 202, an ACK will be received from the Gateway Device 202 which generates the ACK transmission),
wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) maintains full compatibility with the LoRaWAN specification (
[0030] one or more end devices ….. to transmit resource measurement data to one or more gateway devices …… the end devices may transmit resource measurement data using LPWAN technologies (e.g., LoRaWAN®).
Fig. 1, [0040] ….the end devices 104 and 106 can wirelessly communicate with the gateway device 102, which in turn can wirelessly communicate with network(s) 118….
Fig. 2, [0045] FIG. 2 illustrates an example environment 200 including one or more gateway devices 202, one or more end devices 204, one or more service providers 206, and one or more computing devices 208, for collecting resource data and monitoring resources.
[0058] the end device 204 can transmit and receive data via a long range, wide area network, for example, in accordance with a LoRa modulation protocol provided by SEMTECH, or in accordance with the LoRaWAN specification provided by the LoRa Alliance.
(It is obvious that the Figs. 1 or 2, gateway devices 102 or 202 maintains full compatibility with the LoRaWAN specification since the gateway devices 102 or 202 directly communicates with end devices 104, 106 or 204 transmitting and receiving in accordance with the LoRaWAN specification)).
ROSE does not explicitly disclose wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network(1) has different gateway types (Gn), wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) has a border gateway (BGD) and afront-end gateway (FGD) (when FGD and BGD are separate boxes, ROSE teaches FGD and BGD in single box)), and wherein the ACK signal generation unit is a sub-server unit integrated into a gateway that performs functionalities and objectives intended for the network server according to the LoRaWAN protocol.
In an analogous art, TEBOULLE teaches wherein the ACK signal generation unit is a sub-server unit integrated into a gateway that performs functionalities and objectives intended for the network server according to the LoRaWAN protocol (
Fig. 1, [0025] FIG. 1 illustrates schematically a communication system in which the present invention can be implemented. The communication system comprises at least one gathering gateway 120, 121, 122, 123 (denoted GW, standing for “GateWay”, in the Figs.). The gathering gateways 120, 121, 122, 123 have respective communication links with a server 130 (denoted SRV in the Figs.) to which said gathering gateways 120, 121, 122, 123 are attached. For example, the server 130 is of the LNS (LoRaWAN network server) type. Four gathering gateways are shown in FIG. 1, but the communication system may comprise a different number of gathering gateways.
[0026] In the communication system, messages must be transferred in the form of frames from a set of end devices 110, 111, 112 (denoted ED, standing for End Device) as far as the server 130. Three end devices are shown in FIG. 1, but the communication system may comprise a different number of end devices.
Fig. 3, [0037] FIG. 3 illustrates schematically an example of protocol architecture implemented in the communication system of FIG. 1. The protocol architecture is distributed between the end devices, the gathering gateways and the server 130. We shall consider by way of illustration communications between the end device 110 and the server 130 via the gathering gateway 120.
[0039] The server 130 comprises a top layer 331 and a bottom layer 333, as well as an intermediate layer 332 ….
[0041] The gathering gateway 120 comprises a first bottom layer 322 and a second bottom layer 323, as well as an adaptation module 321…..
[0044] When the server 130 decides to activate the delegation mechanism with the gathering gateway 120 vis-à-vis an end device in question, some of the functions provided by the intermediate layer 332 in its communications with the end device in question are transferred under the responsibility of the adaptation module 321. The adaptation mode 321 continues to forward to the server 130 the received frames coming from the end device 110, referred to as uplink frames, and to forward to the end device 110 the received frames coming from the server 130, referred to as downlink frames. However, furthermore, the adaptation mode 321 anticipates the acknowledgement of the uplink frames on behalf of the intermediate layer 332 of the server 130. In addition, the adaptation mode 321 activates a buffer enabling the server 130 to offset as close as possible to the end device 110 the storage of downlink frames to be sent to the end device 110. This buffer is then filled asynchronously, that is to say without taking account of the transmission-reception synchronism to be complied with via the reception windows between the gathering gateways and the end devices. Thus, when an uplink frame is received from the end device 110, the gathering gateway has available data and mechanisms necessary for acknowledging the uplink frames as quickly as possible and if required to transmit to the end device 110 data that are intended for it from the server 130. This aspect is detailed hereinafter in relation to FIGS. 4 to 9.
Fig. 9, [0090] In a step 904, the end device 112 transmits an uplink frame ULF captured by the gathering gateway 121.
[0091] In a step 905, the gathering gateway 121 forwards the uplink frame ULF to the server 130, in application of the algorithm in FIG. 6.
[0092] In a step 906, the gathering gateway 121 constructs a downlink frame DLF acknowledging the uplink frame ULF received and including the useful data put in the buffer following the reception of the message DL-MSG transmitted at step 903.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of delegating some LoRaWan Server functionalities to Gateways of TEBOULLE to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE in order to provide a method for acknowledging the uplink frames to end devices as quickly as possible reducing the reaction time of the communication system when an end device transmits an uplink frame by distributing the processing load normally devolved to the server over the gateways (TEBOULLE: [0006, 0044]).
ROSE and TEBOULLE do not explicitly disclose wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network(1) has different gateway types (Gn), wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) has a border gateway (BGD) and afront-end gateway (FGD) (when FGD and BGD are separate boxes, ROSE teaches FGD and BGD in single box)).
In an analogous art, RADMAND teaches wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network(1) has different gateway types (Gn) (Fig. 1, [0040] Wireless communications system 100 may include gateways 105 of different types such as a LoRaWAN gateway, an IoT gateway, an Internet Protocol (IP) gateway).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of gateways with IP connection to Server in LoRaWAN mesh network of RADMAND to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE and TEBOULLE in order to provide a method for an improved LoRaWAN mesh network with extended coverage requiring less services from the cloud (RADMAND: [0001, 0129])
ROSE, TEBOULLE and RADMAND do not explicitly disclose wherein the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) has a border gateway (BGD) and afront-end gateway (FGD) (when FGD and BGD are separate boxes, ROSE teaches FGD and BGD in single box)).
In an analogous art, MAO teaches characterised the LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) has a border gateway (BGD) and a front-end gateway (FGD) (when FGD and BGD are separate boxes) (
Fig. 1, [0021] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, a relay system compatible with the LoRaWAN protocol includes a LoRaWAN protocol server 1, a central gateway 2, several relay gateways 3, and several LoRaWAN nodes 4. The several LoRaWAN nodes 4 communicate with the several relay gateways 3, the several relay gateways 3 communicate with the central gateway 2, and the central gateway 2 communicates with the LoRaWAN protocol server 1.
(It is obvious that a central gateway 2 as the BGD communicates with the LoRaWAN protocol server 1 or the network server, and relay gateways 3 as FGD communicate with the central gateway 2 or the BGD on one direction and communicate with LoRaWAN nodes 4 or end devices)).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of using central gateway and relay gateways as BGD and FGD of MAO to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE, TEBOULLE and RADMAND in order to provide a method for extending LoRaWAN communication range improving the network coverage, reducing the user communication cost, using existing popular LoRaWAN communication protocol (MAO: [0027]).
Regarding claim 14, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches method for communication in a LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 13,
characterised in that the message is sent from the end device (ED) to the gateway (G) via a single-hop connection (See Fig. 2, communication between End Devices 230 and Gateway Devices 202).
Regarding claim 15, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches the method for communication in a LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 13,
characterised in that the ACK signal is sent from the gateway (G) to the end device (ED) via a single-hop connection (See Fig. 2, communication between End Devices 230 and Gateway Devices 202.
[0030] one or more end devices ….. to transmit resource measurement data to one or more gateway devices …… the end devices may transmit resource measurement data using LPWAN technologies (e.g., LoRaWAN®).
Fig. 1, [0040] ….the end devices 104 and 106 can wirelessly communicate with the gateway device 102, which in turn can wirelessly communicate with network(s) 118….
Fig. 2, [0045] FIG. 2 illustrates an example environment 200 including one or more gateway devices 202, one or more end devices 204, one or more service providers 206, and one or more computing devices 208, for collecting resource data and monitoring resources.
[0058] the end device 204 can transmit and receive data via a long range, wide area network, for example, in accordance with a LoRa modulation protocol provided by SEMTECH, or in accordance with the LoRaWAN specification provided by the LoRa Alliance.).
Regarding claim 16, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches method for communication in a LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 13,
characterised in that the first gateway (G) forwards the message to a second gateway (G) and/or the network server (NS) (Fig. 2,
[0046] The environment 200 includes a plurality of devices such as gateway device(s) 202 and end device(s) 204 configured to gather and process data described herein. The environment 200 also includes one or more service provider(s) 206 that can further provide processing and analytics. The service provider(s) 206 is configured to communicate alerts, reports, analytics, graphical user interfaces, etc., to the computing device(s) 208 and/or the gateway device 202, for example.
[0061] the analytics module 238 can receive input regarding resource usage from the gateway device(s) 202 and/or the end device 204 and can analyze the data to generate historical data….. the analytics module 238 can generate one or more reports, alerts, recommendations, and/or graphical user interfaces.
(Construed that the analytics module 238 of Service Providers or Network Servers 206 receiving data from ED 304 via Gateway Devices 202)).
Regarding claim 17, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches method for communication in a LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 13,
characterised in that the ACK signal is generated and/or sent by a front-end gateway (FGD) (
Fig, 2, Gateway Devices 202 working as Mesh Gateway devices or MGD, as defined in Instant Application Specification, having a combination of a front-end interface or FGD to Eds 204 and border gateway interface or a BGD to Service Provides or Servers 206, and see Fig. 2, communication between End Devices 230 and Gateway Devices 202.
[0030] … one or more end devices …. to transmit resource measurement data to one or more gateway devices. In various examples, the end devices may transmit resource measurement data using LPWAN technologies (e.g., LoRaWAN, GREENWAVE, etc.) to provide low-power communications over longer distances….
[0058] the end device 204 can transmit and receive data via a long range, wide area network, for example, in accordance with a LoRa modulation protocol provided by SEMTECH, or in accordance with the LoRaWAN specification provided by the LoRa Alliance.
[0149] … the computing device may enter the low-power mode in response to receiving an ACK from the gateway, indicating that a transmission from the end device to the gateway has been received.
(Construed that the Gateway Device 202 of Fig. 2 functioning as FGD communicating with end device 204 in accordance with the LoRaWAN specification provided by the LoRa Alliance, generates and sends ACK to ED for a data reception)).
Regarding claim 18, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches method for communication in a LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 13.
ROSE and TEBOULLE do not explicitly disclose characterised in that the network communicates with the network server (NS) via a standard IP connection (IP) using the LoRaWAN protocol.
RADMAND teaches characterised in that the network communicates with the network server (NS) via a standard IP connection (IP) using the LoRaWAN protocol (Fig. 1, [0076] In the example of FIG. 1, one or more of the gateways 105 may include a communication manager 140, which may select a gateway from a number of gateways to deliver data to core network 130.
(Construed that a Gateway 105 with communication manager 140 is a BGD)
[0080] ... gateways 105 are an example of one or more aspects of a LoRaWAN gateway. A LoRaWAN gateway may use the LoRaWAN protocol, which is a long range, low power wide area network (LPWAN) that provides interoperability among smart or IoT devices. In a LoRaWAN gateway, for example, a gateway 105 may be connected to a network server ..... via a standard IP connection.
[0085] Server 215 would analyze the one or more parameters to select a gateway to serve as a primary gateway for communication between the full-mesh network and external network 130-a. In such an example, server 215 would provide an indication of the selected gateway 105 to at least gateway 105-b. Gateway 105-b may inform the other gateways 105 of the identity of the selected gateway 105.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of gateways with IP connection to Server in LoRaWAN mesh network of RADMAND to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE, TEBOULLE and MAO, in order to provide a method for an improved LoRaWAN mesh network with extended coverage requiring less services from the cloud (RADMAND: [0001, 0129]).
Regarding claim 19, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches Method for communication in a LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 13,
characterised in that at least one front-end gateway (FGD) communicates with at least one border gateway (BGD) (Fig, 2, Gateway Devices 202 working as Mesh Gateway devices or MGD, as defined in Instant Application Specification, having a combination of a front-end interface or FGD to Eds 204 and border gateway interface or a BGD to Service Provides or Servers 206).
ROSE, TEBOULLE and RADMAND do not explicitly disclose characterised in that at least one front-end gateway (FGD) communicates with at least one border gateway (BGD) via a wireless point-to-point connection.
MAO teaches characterised in that at least one front-end gateway (FGD) communicates with at least one border gateway (BGD) via a wireless point-to-point connection (
Figure 1, Figure 2, [0021] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, a relay system compatible with the LoRaWAN protocol includes a LoRaWAN protocol server 1, a central gateway 2, several relay gateways 3, and several LoRaWAN nodes 4. The several LoRaWAN nodes 4 communicate with the several relay gateways 3, the several relay gateways 3 communicate with the central gateway 2, and the central gateway 2 communicates with the LoRaWAN protocol server 1.
The central gateway 2 includes a first LoRaWAN protocol module 21, a LoRaWAN protocol compatible module 22, a first relay protocol module 23, and a first LoRa radio frequency hardware 24.
The relay gateway 3 includes a second LoRa radio frequency hardware 31 and a second relay protocol module 32 , and the second LoRa radio frequency hardware 31 and the second relay protocol module 32 communicate with each other.
The LoRaWAN node 4 includes a third LoRaWAN protocol module 42 and a third LoRa radio frequency hardware 41 , and the third LoRaWAN protocol module 42 and the third LoRa radio frequency hardware 41 communicate with each other.
The first LoRaWAN protocol module 21 and the LoRaWAN protocol compatible module 22 communicate with each other by the first LoRaWAN protocol module 21 sending a relay protocol assembly packet to the LoRaWAN protocol compatible module 22, and the LoRaWAN protocol compatible module 22 sending a relay protocol unpacking packet to the first LoRaWAN protocol module 21.
(It is obvious that the communication between central gateway 2 as the BGD and relay gateway 3 is via LoRa radio frequency or a wireless point-to-point connection as shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2)).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of using central gateway and relay gateway as BGD and FGD of MAO to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE, TEBOULLE and RADMAND, in order to provide a method for extending LoRaWAN communication range improving the network coverage, reducing the user communication cost, using existing popular LoRaWAN communication protocol (MAO: [0027]).
Regarding claim 20, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches method for communication in a LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 13,
characterised in that at least one of the front-end gateways (FGD) communicates with at least one of the border gateways (BGD) via a wired network connection (Fig. 2, [0056] The gateway devices(s) 202 can include a communication module 220 to communicate with …. end devices (e.g., in mesh network) and/or to communicate via the network(s) 210. For example, the communication module 220 can include antennas to communicate with the end device(s) 204 via any low power, long range wide area network.
[0060] In some embodiments, the service provider(s) 206 can include an analytics module 238….
[0061] … the analytics module 238 can receive input regarding resource usage from the gateway device(s) 202 and/or the end device 204 and can analyze the data to generate historical data.
(It is construed that since Fig. 2 Gateway Devices 202 collects data from Eds 204 and communicate the data to Service Providers 206 or Network Servers, the Gateway Devices 202 are MGDs which are combination of FGD and BGD as defined in instant Application Specification, and since FGD and BGD are integrated in same Gateway device, the corresponding FGD and BGD communicated via a wired network connection)).
Regarding claim 22, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches method for communication in a LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 13.
ROSE and TEBOULLE do not explicitly disclose characterised in that at least one of the front-end gateways (FGD) communicates with at least one of the border gateways (BGD) via an LTE network.
RADMAND teaches characterised in that at least one of the front-end gateways (FGD) communicates with at least one of the border gateways (BGD) via an LTE network (
Fig. 2 showing Gateway 105-b as BGD communicating with Server 215 and Gateways 105-1a as FGD which collects data from nodes 115-1 as EDs, and therefore it is construed that Gateway 105-b is BGD and Gateways 105-a is FGD as defined in instant Application Specification,
[0049] In some examples, a gateway 105 may access core network 130 via external communication system, such as an LTE system utilizing base stations. Gateways 105 may communicate with one another over communication links 125 (e.g., via an X2, Xn, or other interface) either directly …… or indirectly (e.g., via core network 130).).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of gateways with IP connection to Server in LoRaWAN mesh network of RADMAND to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE, TEBOULLE and MAO, in order to provide a method for an improved LoRaWAN mesh network with extended coverage requiring less services from the cloud (RADMAND: [0001, 0129]).
Claim 21 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Rose et al. (US 20170230074 A1, of IDS, hereinafter ‘ROSE’) in view of TEBOULLE et al. (US 20200007277 A1, of IDS, hereinafter ‘TEBOULLE’) in view of Radmand et al. (US 20210136869 A1, of record, hereinafter ‘RADMAND’) in view of in view of Mao et al. (CN 109495512 A, of IDS, machine translation, hereinafter ‘MAO’) and with further in view of Smith et al. (US 20190349433 A1, of record, hereinafter ‘SMITH’).
Regarding claim 21, ROSE, in view of TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, teaches method for communication in a LoRaWAN mesh gateway network (1) according to claim 13.
ROSE, TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO do not explicitly disclose characterised in that at least one of the front-end gateways (FGD) communicates with at least one of the border gateways (BGD) via a WLAN network.
In an analogous art, SMITH teaches characterised in that at least one of the front-end gateways (FGD) communicates with at least one of the border gateways (BGD) via a WLAN network (Fig. 1, [0041] From the corporate gateway 126, a wireless local area network (WLAN) can be used to communicate with IoT devices 104 through Wi-Fi? links 128. A Wi-Fi link 128 may also be used to couple to a low power wide area (LPWA) gateway 130, which can communicate with IoT devices 104 over LPWA links 132, for example, compatible with the LoRaWan specification promulgated by the LoRa alliance.
(Construed that gateway 126 is a BGD and gateway 130 are FGD and IoT devices 104 are EDs, and BGD gateway 126 and FGD gateway 130 communicate over WiFi/WLAN)).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to take the technique of gateways communication using WLAN with LoRaWAN mesh network for IoT devices of SMITH to the technique of LoRaWAN mesh network of ROSE, TEBOULLE, RADMAND and MAO, in order to provide a method for enhancing mesh network performing inline data-to-information transformation in an efficient manner providing the ability to differentiate between assets and resources and the associated management of each improving the data integrity, quality assurance, and deliver a metric of data confidence and efficient transmission of data from different domains from a source to a target destination by the use of protocol packing (SMITH: [0051-0052, 0079]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Zhang et al. (US 20220174637 A1), describing Method And Apparatus For Registration
Li et al. (US 20210084540 A1), describing TRANSMISSION PARAMETER PROBING AND SEARCHING FOR AGILE LINK QUALITY ADAPTATION
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SHAH M RAHMAN whose telephone number is (571)272-8951. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30AM-5:30PM PST.
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/SHAH M RAHMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2413
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