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 .
Status of the Application
This is in response to the amendment filed on 06/24/2025. Claims 1 - 20 are pending and presented for examination.
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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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 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, 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.
Claims 1-4, 6-9, 11-14 and 16-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim et al. WO-2020032633-A1 (hereinafter “Kim”) in view of Soomro US-20030171116-A1 (hereinafter “Yao”).
As to claim 1:
Kim discloses:
A link processing method, wherein the method comprises:
“according to the present specification, a receiving STA supporting a multi-link including a first link and a second link may transmit quality information regarding the first link to the transmitting STA through the second link.” P3, Lines 26-30 Kim
receiving, by a first multi-link device (MLD), first information of a second link on a first link, wherein
“Specifically, the receiving STA may receive the first packet through the first link. The receiving STA may obtain quality information on the first link based on the first packet. The receiving STA may transmit the second packet through the second link. The second packet may include quality information regarding the first link. That is, the receiving STA may transmit quality information regarding the first link through the second link.” P11 Lines 59-63 Kim
a plurality of links between the first MLD and a second MLD include the first link and the second link; and
“The receiving STA may include a first RF and a second RF. The first RF may operate on the first link / band. The second RF can operate on the second link / band. The receiving STA may receive DL Data 1 through the first link. The receiving STA may transmit an ACK in response to DL Data 1 through the first link. At the same time, the receiving STA may transmit UL Data 1 through the second link. The receiving STA may receivean ACK in response to UL Data 1 through the second link.” P11 Lines, 44-50 Kim
using, by the first MLD, the first information to determine whether a basic service set (BSS) configuration of the second link is updated; and
“The BSSs 100 and 105 are a set of APs and STAs such as APs and STAs capable of successfully synchronizing and communicating with each other, and are not a concept indicating a specific area. The BSS may include one or more STAs that can be combined in one AP.” P5 Lines 11-15 Kim
in response to the BSS configuration of the second link not being updated, transmitting, by the first MLD, a data frame on the switched-to second link or the second link whose link status is transited.
“In addition, the BSS to which the first STA belongs may further include STAs other than the first STA. In this case, since the difference between the time when the channel condition is measured and the time when the channel condition information is transmitted may be widened, the channel condition information may not accurately represent the current channel condition.” P12 Lines 6-10 Kim
Kim does not appear to explicitly disclose:
response to the BSS configuration of the second link not being updated, transmitting, by the first MLD, a data frame on the switched-to second link or the second link whose link status is transited without waiting for a beacon frame to be received and a latest BSS configuration is obtained after switching.
However, Yao teaches
response to the BSS configuration of the second link not being updated, transmitting, by the first MLD, a data frame on the switched-to second link or the second link whose link status is transited without waiting for a beacon frame to be received and a latest BSS configuration is obtained after switching (See ¶ 0010, ¶ 0012; no detection of BSS update and requesting a fast channel switch for all the STAs of operations in the same BSS, switching the STAs to the announced channel prior to the expiration of the channel-switch time, which is independent of the beacon interval).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having the teachings of Kim and Soomro before him or her, to modify the invention of Kim to perform channel switch, if BSS update is not determined, without waiting for a beacon frame to be received and a latest BSS configuration is obtained after switching. The suggestion for doing so would have been to performing "fast channel switching" so as to minimize channel-switching latency and thereby prevent interference with the operations of other co-located systems (¶ 0008).
As to claim 2:
Kim discloses:
The method according to claim 1, wherein the transmitting the data frame by the first MLD includes
transmitting an uplink data frame,
“uplink MU transmission is performed” P8 L12 Kim implies a data frame is transmitted through uplink
a quality of service null (QoS NULL) frame, or
a link status notification frame, wherein the link status notification frame indicates that the second link is in an awake or enable state.
As to claim 3:
Kim discloses:
The method according to claim 1, wherein
the receiving, by the first multi-link device (MLD), the first information of the second link includes
“Specifically, the receiving STA may receive the first packet through the first link. The receiving STA may obtain quality information on the first link based on the first packet. The receiving STA may transmit the second packet through the second link. The second packet may include quality information regarding the first link. That is, the receiving STA may transmit quality information regarding the first link through the second link.” P11 L59 Kim
receiving a sequence number of the BSS configuration, or
“The receiving STA may perform a channel quality report (CQR) setup procedure with the transmitting STA to transmit quality information regarding the first link. 26 shows the format of a MAC header for CQR. Referring to FIG. 26, the MAC header for CQR may include a Sequence Number Field 2610” P13 L19 Kim
an access point configuration sequence number (AP-CSN), or
a check beacon (check beacon) value that is in the second MLD and that identifies the second link.
As to claim 4:
Kim discloses:
The method according to claim 1, wherein
the receiving, by the first multi-link device (MLD), the first information of the second link comprising
“Specifically, the receiving STA may receive the first packet through the first link. The receiving STA may obtain quality information on the first link based on the first packet. The receiving STA may transmit the second packet through the second link. The second packet may include quality information regarding the first link. That is, the receiving STA may transmit quality information regarding the first link through the second link.” P11 L59 Kim
carrying in a link switching response message, or a cross-link information report message, or
a medium access control frame, or
“The receiving STA may perform a channel quality report (CQR) setup procedure with the transmitting STA to transmit quality information regarding the first link. 26 shows the format of a MAC header for CQR. Referring to FIG. 26, the MAC header for CQR may include a Sequence Number Field 2610” P13 L19 Kim
a response frame for negotiating a mapping relationship between a traffic identifier and a link, or a beacon frame, or a control field of the data frame, or a request frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and a link that is received on the first link.
As to claim 6:
Kim discloses:
A link processing method, wherein the method comprises:
“according to the present specification, a receiving STA supporting a multi-link including a first link and a second link may transmit quality information regarding the first link to the transmitting STA through the second link.” P3 L26 Kim
determining, by a second multi-link device (MLD), first information of a second link, wherein the first information is used by a first MLD to determine whether a basic service set (BSS) configuration of the second link is updated; and
“The BSSs 100 and 105 are a set of APs and STAs such as APs and STAs capable of successfully synchronizing and communicating with each other, and are not a concept indicating a specific area. The BSS may include one or more STAs that can be combined in one AP.” P5 L11 Kim
sending, by the second MLD, the first information of the second link on a first link, wherein
“Specifically, the receiving STA may receive the first packet through the first link. The receiving STA may obtain quality information on the first link based on the first packet. The receiving STA may transmit the second packet through the second link. The second packet may include quality information regarding the first link. That is, the receiving STA may transmit quality information regarding the first link through the second link.” P11 L59 Kim
a plurality of links between the second MLD and the first MLD include the first link and the second link, and
“The receiving STA may include a first RF and a second RF. The first RF may operate on the first link / band. The second RF can operate on the second link / band. The receiving STA may receive DL Data 1 through the first link. The receiving STA may transmit an ACK in response to DL Data 1 through the first link. At the same time, the receiving STA may transmit UL Data 1 through the second link. The receiving STA may receive an ACK in response to UL Data 1 through the second link.” P11 L44 Kim
wherein the second link is a link that is switched from the first link or a link whose link status is transited.
“In addition, the BSS to which the first STA belongs may further include STAs other than the first STA. In this case, since the difference between the time when the channel condition is measured and the time when the channel condition information is transmitted may be widened, the channel condition information may not accurately represent the current channel condition.” P12 L6 Kim
Kim does not appear to explicitly disclose:
wherein the second link is a link that is switched from the first link or a link whose link status is transited without waiting for a beacon frame to be received and a latest BSS configuration is obtained after switching.
However, Yao teaches
wherein the second link is a link that is switched from the first link or a link whose link status is transited without waiting for a beacon frame to be received and a latest BSS configuration is obtained after switching. (See ¶ 0010, ¶ 0012; no detection of BSS update and requesting a fast channel switch for all the STAs of operations in the same BSS, switching the STAs to the announced channel prior to the expiration of the channel-switch time, which is independent of the beacon interval).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having the teachings of Kim and Soomro before him or her, to modify the invention of Kim to perform channel switch, if BSS update is not determined, without waiting for a beacon frame to be received and a latest BSS configuration is obtained after switching. The suggestion for doing so would have been to performing "fast channel switching" so as to minimize channel-switching latency and thereby prevent interference with the operations of other co-located systems (¶ 0008).
As to claim 7:
Kim discloses:
The method according to claim 6, wherein the method further comprises:
receiving, by the second MLD, a data frame on the second link, wherein the data frame includes an uplink data frame, a quality of service null (QoS NULL) frame, or a link status notification frame, and the link status notification frame indicates that the second link is in an awake or enable state.
“in order to quickly transmit channel (or link) status information, a need to transmit channel (or link) status information through another band (or link) may be required.” P3 L20 Kim
As to claim 8:
Kim discloses:
The method according to claim 6, wherein
The determining, by the second MLD, the first information of the second link includes
“Specifically, the receiving STA may receive the first packet through the first link. The receiving STA may obtain quality information on the first link based on the first packet. The receiving STA may transmit the second packet through the second link. The second packet may include quality information regarding the first link. That is, the receiving STA may transmit quality information regarding the first link through the second link.” P11 L59 Kim
determining the first information of the second link is a sequence number of the BSS configuration, or
“The receiving STA may perform a channel quality report (CQR) setup procedure with the transmitting STA to transmit quality information regarding the first link. 26 shows the format of a MAC header for CQR. Referring to FIG. 26, the MAC header for CQR may include a Sequence Number Field 2610” P13 L19 Kim
As to claim 9:
Kim discloses:
The method according to claim 6, wherein
the determining, by the second MLD, the first information of the second link includes
“Specifically, the receiving STA may receive the first packet through the first link. The receiving STA may obtain quality information on the first link based on the first packet. The receiving STA may transmit the second packet through the second link. The second packet may include quality information regarding the first link. That is, the receiving STA may transmit quality information regarding the first link through the second link.” P11 L59 Kim
determining the first information of the second link is carried, for sending, in a link switching response message, or a cross-link information report message, or
a medium access control frame, or
“The receiving STA may perform a channel quality report (CQR) setup procedure with the transmitting STA to transmit quality information regarding the first link. 26 shows the format of a MAC header for CQR. Referring to FIG. 26, the MAC header for CQR may include a Sequence Number Field 2610” P13 L19 Kim
a response frame for negotiating a mapping relationship between a traffic identifier and a link, or a beacon frame, or a control field of a data frame, or a request frame for negotiating a mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and a link that is on the first link.
As to claim 11:
Kim discloses:
A communication apparatus for a first multi-link device (MLD), comprising: at least one processor, and a memory storing instructions for execution by the at least one processor;
“the STA 3100 may include a processor 3110, a memory 3120, and a transceiver 3130.” P14 Lines 37-40 Kim
“The processor 3110 may implement functions, processes, and / or methods proposed herein” P14 Lines 42-45 Kim
wherein, when executed, the instructions cause the processor to perform operations including:
receiving, first information of a second link on a first link, wherein
“Specifically, the receiving STA may receive the first packet through the first link. The receiving STA may obtain quality information on the first link based on the first packet. The receiving STA may transmit the second packet through the second link. The second packet may include quality information regarding the first link. That is, the receiving STA may transmit quality information regarding the first link through the second link.” P11 Lines 59-63 Kim
a plurality of links between the apparatus and a second MLD include the first link and the second link; and
“The receiving STA may include a first RF and a second RF. The first RF may operate on the first link / band. The second RF can operate on the second link / band. The receiving STA may receive DL Data 1 through the first link. The receiving STA may transmit an ACK in response to DL Data 1 through the first link. At the same time, the receiving STA may transmit UL Data 1 through the second link. The receiving STA may receive an ACK in response to UL Data 1 through the second link.” P11 Lines 44-50 Kim
use, by the processor, the first information to determine whether a basic service set (BSS) configuration of the second link is updated; and
“The BSSs 100 and 105 are a set of APs and STAs such as APs and STAs capable of successfully synchronizing and communicating with each other, and are not a concept indicating a specific area. The BSS may include one or more STAs that can be combined in one AP.” P5 Lines 11-15 Kim
in response to the BSS configuration of the second link not being updated, transmitting, a data frame on the switched-to second link or the second link whose link status is transited.
“In addition, the BSS to which the first STA belongs may further include STAs other than the first STA. In this case, since the difference between the time when the channel condition is measured and the time when the channel condition information is transmitted may be widened, the channel condition information may not accurately represent the current channel condition.” P12 Lines 6-10 Kim
As to claim 12:
Kim discloses:
The communication apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to transmit the data frame by
transmitting an uplink data frame, a quality of service null (QoS NULL) frame, or a link status notification frame, wherein the link status notification frame indicates that the second link is in an awake or enable state.
“in order to quickly transmit channel (or link) status information, a need to transmit channel (or link) status information through another band (or link) may be required.” P3 Lines 20-25 Kim
As to claim 13:
Kim discloses:
The communication apparatus according to claim 11, wherein
the first information of the second link is a sequence number of the BSS configuration, or
“Specifically, the receiving STA may receive the first packet through the first link. The receiving STA may obtain quality information on the first link based on the first packet. The receiving STA may transmit the second packet through the second link. The second packet may include quality information regarding the first link. That is, the receiving STA may transmit quality information regarding the first link through the second link.” P11 L59 Kim
“The receiving STA may perform a channel quality report (CQR) setup procedure with the transmitting STA to transmit quality information regarding the first link. 26 shows the format of a MAC header for CQR. Referring to FIG. 26, the MAC header for CQR may include a Sequence Number Field 2610” P13 Lines 19-22 Kim
As to claim 14:
Kim discloses:
The communication apparatus according to claim 11, wherein
the first information of the second link is carried in a link switching response message, or a cross-link information report message, or
a medium access control frame, or
“Specifically, the receiving STA may receive the first packet through the first link. The receiving STA may obtain quality information on the first link based on the first packet. The receiving STA may transmit the second packet through the second link. The second packet may include quality information regarding the first link. That is, the receiving STA may transmit quality information regarding the first link through the second link.” P11 L59 Kim
“The receiving STA may perform a channel quality report (CQR) setup procedure with the transmitting STA to transmit quality information regarding the first link. 26 shows the format of a MAC header for CQR. Referring to FIG. 26, the MAC header for CQR may include a Sequence Number Field 2610” P13 Lines 19-22 Kim
a response frame for negotiating a mapping relationship between a traffic identifier and a link, or a beacon frame, or a control field of the data frame, or a request frame for negotiating a mapping relationship between a-the traffic identifier and a link that is received on the first link.
As to claim 16:
Kim discloses:
A communication apparatus for a second multi-link device (MLD), comprising: at least one processor, and a memory storing instructions for execution by the at least one processor;
“the STA 3100 may include a processor 3110, a memory 3120, and a transceiver 3130.” P14 Lines 37-42 Kim
“The processor 3110 may implement functions, processes, and / or methods proposed herein” P14 Lines 42-45 Kim
wherein, when executed, the instructions cause the processor to perform operations including:
determining, first information of a second link, wherein the first information is used by a first MLD to determine whether a basic service set (BSS) configuration of the second link is updated;
“The BSSs 100 and 105 are a set of APs and STAs such as APs and STAs capable of successfully synchronizing and communicating with each other, and are not a concept indicating a specific area. The BSS may include one or more STAs that can be combined in one AP.” P5 Lines 11-15 Kim
sending, the first information of the second link on a first link, wherein
“Specifically, the receiving STA may receive the first packet through the first link. The receiving STA may obtain quality information on the first link based on the first packet. The receiving STA may transmit the second packet through the second link. The second packet may include quality information regarding the first link. That is, the receiving STA may transmit quality information regarding the first link through the second link.” P11 Lines 59-63 Kim
a plurality of links between the apparatus and the first MLD include the first link and the second link; and
“The receiving STA may include a first RF and a second RF. The first RF may operate on the first link / band. The second RF can operate on the second link / band. The receiving STA may receive DL Data 1 through the first link. The receiving STA may transmit an ACK in response to DL Data 1 through the first link. At the same time, the receiving STA may transmit UL Data 1 through the second link. The receiving STA may receive an ACK in response to UL Data 1 through the second link.” P11 Lines 44-50 Kim
the second link is a link that is switched from the first link or a link whose link status is transited.
“In addition, the BSS to which the first STA belongs may further include STAs other than the first STA. In this case, since the difference between the time when the channel condition is measured and the time when the channel condition information is transmitted may be widened, the channel condition information may not accurately represent the current channel condition.” P12 Lines 6-10 Kim
Kim does not appear to explicitly disclose:
the second link is a link that is switched from the first link or a link whose link status is transited without waiting for a beacon frame to be received and a latest BSS configuration is obtained after switching..
However, Yao teaches
the second link is a link that is switched from the first link or a link whose link status is transited without waiting for a beacon frame to be received and a latest BSS configuration is obtained after switching. (See ¶ 0010, ¶ 0012; no detection of BSS update and requesting a fast channel switch for all the STAs of operations in the same BSS, switching the STAs to the announced channel prior to the expiration of the channel-switch time, which is independent of the beacon interval).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having the teachings of Kim and Soomro before him or her, to modify the invention of Kim to perform channel switch, if BSS update is not determined, without waiting for a beacon frame to be received and a latest BSS configuration is obtained after switching. The suggestion for doing so would have been to performing "fast channel switching" so as to minimize channel-switching latency and thereby prevent interference with the operations of other co-located systems (¶ 0008).
As to claim 17:
Kim discloses:
The communication apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the processor is further configured to:
receive, a data frame on the second link, wherein the data frame includes an uplink data frame, a quality of service null (QoS NULL) frame, or a link status notification frame, and the link status notification frame indicates that the second link is in an awake or enable state.
“in order to quickly transmit channel (or link) status information, a need to transmit channel (or link) status information through another band (or link) may be required.” P3 Lines 20-25 Kim
As to claim 18:
Kim discloses:
The communication apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the first information of the second link is a sequence number of the BSS configuration, or
“Specifically, the receiving STA may receive the first packet through the first link. The receiving STA may obtain quality information on the first link based on the first packet. The receiving STA may transmit the second packet through the second link. The second packet may include quality information regarding the first link. That is, the receiving STA may transmit quality information regarding the first link through the second link.” P11 L59 Kim
“The receiving STA may perform a channel quality report (CQR) setup procedure with the transmitting STA to transmit quality information regarding the first link. 26 shows the format of a MAC header for CQR. Referring to FIG. 26, the MAC header for CQR may include a Sequence Number Field 2610” P13 Lines 19-22 Kim
As to claim 19:
Kim discloses:
The communication apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the processor is further configured to:
carry the first information of the second link, for sending, in a link switching response message, or a cross-link information report message, or
a medium access control frame, or
“The receiving STA may perform a channel quality report (CQR) setup procedure with the transmitting STA to transmit quality information regarding the first link. 26 shows the format of a MAC header for CQR. Referring to FIG. 26, the MAC header for CQR may include a Sequence Number Field 2610” P13 L19 Kim
a response frame for negotiating a mapping relationship between a traffic identifier and a link, or a beacon frame, or a control field of a data frame, or a request frame for negotiating a mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and a link that is on the first link.
Claims 5, 10, 15, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim et al. WO-2020032633-A1 (hereinafter “Kim”) in view of Soomro US-20030171116-A1 (hereinafter “Yao”).and further in view of Yao US-20070189168-A1 (hereinafter “Yao”).
As to claim 5:
Kim does not appear to explicitly disclose:
The method according to claim 4, wherein in response to the first information of the second link being carried in the request frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link that is received on the first link, before the transmitting, by the first MLD, the data frame on the second link, the method further comprises:
sending, by the first MLD, the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link on the first link, wherein
the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link indicates whether the first MLD accepts the mapping configuration request between the traffic identifier and the link.
However, Yao teaches
The method according to claim 4, wherein in response to the first information of the second link being carried in the request frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link that is received on the first link, before the transmitting, by the first MLD, the data frame on the second link, the method further comprises:
“the MAC layer at AP returns a "Virtual Link Establishment Response" to the MAC layer at STA through the base link. The response contains virtual link establishment state information and negotiated virtual link binding information” [0061] Yao
sending, by the first MLD, the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link on the first link, wherein
“The response contains virtual link establishment state information and negotiated virtual link binding information” [0061] Yao
the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link indicates whether the first MLD accepts the mapping configuration request between the traffic identifier and the link.
“As shown in Table 2, the capability identification has direct influence on whether virtual link is supported and how to assign the end-point addresses of a virtual link (i.e., the characteristics of end-point address).” [0050] Yao
This method of negotiating the mapping relationship as taught in Yao because “If the negotiation of relevant parameters … cannot reach agreement, for example, the security mechanism or the QoS mechanism required by the opposite end is not supported, or the capability required for binding information cannot be met” [0061] Yao, would be essential for successful communication within communication network taught in Kim as mentioned above. This appears to one of ordinary skill in the art as an obvious combination, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to create the improved method mentioned in this application.
As to claim 10:
Kim does not appear to explicitly disclose:
The method according to claim 9, wherein in response to the first information of the second link being carried, for sending, in the request frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link that is-being received on the first link, before transmitting, by the second MLD, the data frame on the second link, the method further comprises:
receiving, by the second MLD, the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link on the first link, wherein
the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link indicates whether the first MLD accepts a mapping configuration request between the traffic identifier and the link.
However, Yao teaches
The method according to claim 9, wherein in response to the first information of the second link being carried, for sending, in the request frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link that is-being received on the first link, before transmitting, by the second MLD, the data frame on the second link, the method further comprises:
“the MAC layer at AP returns a "Virtual Link Establishment Response" to the MAC layer at STA through the base link. The response contains virtual link establishment state information and negotiated virtual link binding information” [0061] Yao
receiving, by the second MLD, the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link on the first link, wherein
“The response contains virtual link establishment state information and negotiated virtual link binding information” [0061] Yao
the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link indicates whether the first MLD accepts a mapping configuration request between the traffic identifier and the link.
“As shown in Table 2, the capability identification has direct influence on whether virtual link is supported and how to assign the end-point addresses of a virtual link (i.e., the characteristics of end-point address).” [0050] Yao
This method of negotiating the mapping relationship as taught in Yao because “If the negotiation of relevant parameters … cannot reach agreement, for example, the security mechanism or the QoS mechanism required by the opposite end is not supported, or the capability required for binding information cannot be met” [0061] Yao, would be essential for successful communication within communication network taught in Kim as mentioned above. This appears to one of ordinary skill in the art as an obvious combination, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to create the improved method mentioned in this application.
As to claim 15:
Kim does not appear to explicitly disclose:
The communication apparatus according to claim 14, wherein if the first information of the second link is carried in the request frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link that is received on the first link, before the transmitting, the data frame on the second link, the processor further configured to:
send, the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link on the first link, wherein
the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link indicates whether the apparatus accepts a mapping configuration request between the traffic identifier and the link.
However, Yao teaches
The communication apparatus according to claim 14, wherein if the first information of the second link is carried in the request frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link that is received on the first link, before the transmitting, the data frame on the second link, the processor further configured to:
“the MAC layer at AP returns a "Virtual Link Establishment Response" to the MAC layer at STA through the base link. The response contains virtual link establishment state information and negotiated virtual link binding information” [0061] Yao
send, the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link on the first link, wherein
“The response contains virtual link establishment state information and negotiated virtual link binding information” [0061] Yao
the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link indicates whether the apparatus accepts a mapping configuration request between the traffic identifier and the link.
“As shown in Table 2, the capability identification has direct influence on whether virtual link is supported and how to assign the end-point addresses of a virtual link (i.e., the characteristics of end-point address).” [0050] Yao
This method of negotiating the mapping relationship as taught in Yao because “If the negotiation of relevant parameters … cannot reach agreement, for example, the security mechanism or the QoS mechanism required by the opposite end is not supported, or the capability required for binding information cannot be met” [0061] Yao, would be essential for successful communication within communication network taught in Kim as mentioned above. This appears to one of ordinary skill in the art as an obvious combination, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to create the improved method mentioned in this application.
As to claim 20:
Kim does not appear to explicitly disclose:
The communication apparatus according to claim 19, wherein in response to the first information of the second link being carried, for sending, in the request frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link that being received on the first link, before transmitting, the data frame on the second link, the processor is further configured to
receive, the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link on the first link, wherein
the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link indicates whether the first MLD accepts a mapping configuration request between the traffic identifier and the link.
However, Yao teaches
The communication apparatus according to claim 19, wherein in response to the first information of the second link being carried, for sending, in the request frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link that being received on the first link, before transmitting, the data frame on the second link, the processor is further configured to
“the MAC layer at AP returns a "Virtual Link Establishment Response" to the MAC layer at STA through the base link. The response contains virtual link establishment state information and negotiated virtual link binding information” [0061] Yao
receive, the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link on the first link, wherein
“The response contains virtual link establishment state information and negotiated virtual link binding information” [0061] Yao
the response frame for negotiating the mapping relationship between the traffic identifier and the link indicates whether the first MLD accepts a mapping configuration request between the traffic identifier and the link.
“As shown in Table 2, the capability identification has direct influence on whether virtual link is supported and how to assign the end-point addresses of a virtual link (i.e., the characteristics of end-point address).” [0050] Yao
This method of negotiating the mapping relationship as taught in Yao because “If the negotiation of relevant parameters … cannot reach agreement, for example, the security mechanism or the QoS mechanism required by the opposite end is not supported, or the capability required for binding information cannot be met” [0061] Yao, would be essential for successful communication within communication network taught in Kim as mentioned above. This appears to one of ordinary skill in the art as an obvious combination, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to create the improved method mentioned in this application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the claims have been considered but are moot because the arguments do not apply to any of the references being used in the current rejection.
Conclusion
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.
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/KHALED M KASSIM/supervisory patent examiner, Art Unit 2475
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