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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 6/22/2026 has been entered.
Claims 1, 2, 4, 5, 7-10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18 & 19 are pending and presented for examination.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 6/22/2026 was filed after the mailing date of the Final Rejection on 3/24/2026. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Response to Amendment
Claims 6, 14 & 20 have been cancelled.
Claims 1, 9 & 15 have been amended.
Rejections to claims 1, 2, 4, 5, 7-10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18 & 19 under 35 USC 103 made in the Final rejection dated 3/24/2026 have been withdrawn based on amendments to claims 1, 9 & 15, but new grounds of rejections under 35 USC 103 have been made based on new reference Xiao et al (Yin Xiao, “Improving Reliability of IEEE-1588 in Substation Automation Based on Clock Drift Prediction”, Uppsala Universitet, Department of Information Technology, October 2008.).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 6/22/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that the approach of Zhi represents the most intuitive and lowest overhead method in engineering, while the amended claims require at least two observations, assume a constant observation overhead and then solve two equations simultaneously which is computationally more expensive and thus a person having ordinary skill in the art would have no motivation to increase computational complexity in order to isolate a constant overhead. Examiner respectfully disagrees noting that the Zhi discloses making two observations, one at a first RTC time and a second at a second RTC time (see Fig 3 & col 7, lines 6-16 of Zhi), and having a fixed variable representing a time fraction (see Col 6, lines 4-21 of Zhi) and then solves for an RTC drift rate by comparing the first and second RTC times and first and second corresponding GPS times (see Fig 10 & col 12, lines 41-46). It is shown in this office action, as well as in the previous record Final rejection dated 3/24/2026, that comparing first and second RTC times and first and second corresponding GPS times to solve for RTC drift is equivalent to comparing observation errors to solve for RTC drift. Further, performing a comparison of first and second RTC times and first and second GPS times, as functions of RTC drift and a time fraction fixed variable, is no more or less computationally expensive than solving two equations having expressions of observation errors as a function of drift and a fixed variable representing a time overhead of a software program during observations. To someone having ordinary skill in the art, solving of two equations with two unknows, as in the claimed invention, is commonly accomplished through elimination, or subtraction of two equations, which is exactly what Zhi discloses by comparing first and second RTC times and first and second GPS times, as functions of RTC drift and a time fraction fixe variable.
Therefore, applicant’s argument that a person having ordinary skill in the art would have no motivation to increase computational complexity are moot because the complexity of Zhi in solving for drift is exactly the same as the complexity of solving two equations with two unknowns as per the claimed invention.
Applicant’s arguments, see “Remarks”, filed 6/22/2026, with respect to the rejections of claims 1, 2, 4, 5, 7-10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18 & 19 under 35 USC 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, these rejections have been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, new grounds of rejections under 35 USC 103 are made to these claims under 35 USC 103 in view of Xiao et al (Yin Xiao, “Improving Reliability of IEEE-1588 in Substation Automation Based on Clock Drift Prediction”, Uppsala Universitet, Department of Information Technology, October 2008.).
Regarding claims 1, 9 & 15, applicant submits that amendments to these claims traverse the rejection of these claims under 35 USC 103 made in the Final Rejection dated 3/24/2026. Examiner agrees and withdraws rejections of claims 1, 9 & 15 under 35 USC 103 made in the Final Rejection dated 3/24/2026. However, after further consideration, examiner introduces new grounds of rejections of claims 1, 9 & 15 under 35 USC 103 based on new reference Xiao. Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1, 9 & 15 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Regarding claims 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 12, 13, 16, 18 & 19, applicant submits that these claims traverse the rejections of these claims under 35 USC 103 made in the Final Rejection dated 3/24/2026 due to amendments and arguments made for claims 1, 9 & 15 and due to their dependency on claims 1, 9 or 15. Examiner agrees and withdraws rejections of claims 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 12, 13, 16, 18 & 19 under 35 USC 103 made in the Final Rejection dated 3/24/2026. However, for the same reasons as discussed above, examiner introduces new grounds of rejections of claims 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 12, 13, 16, 18 & 19 under 35 USC 103 based on new reference Xiao.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1, 2, 4, 8-10, 12, 15, 16 & 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhi et al. (US 7791534)(herein after “Zhi”) in view of Nelson et al. (US 2007/0024437)(herein after “Nelson”), and further in view of Xiao et al. (Yin Xiao, “Improving Reliability of IEEE-1588 in Substation Automation Based on Clock Drift Prediction”, Uppsala Universitet, Department of Information Technology, October 2008.).
Regarding claims 1, 9 & 15, Zhi discloses a time calibration method (Col 3, lines 31-38 discloses a method for calibrating a real time clock (RTC).) and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions (Fig 1 & col 4, lines 33-43, col 7, lines 52-57 and col 11, lines 57-63 disclose a signal navigation processor that has memory for storing codes of instructions for executing error estimation.), and an electronic device (Fig 1 & col 4, lines 33-43 disclose a GPS receiver.), comprising:
at least one processor (Fig 1 & col 4, lines 33-43 disclose a signal navigation processor.); and
a memory in communication connection with the at least one processor, wherein the memory stores instructions executable by the at least one processor, the instructions when executed by the at least one processor (Fig 1 & col 4, lines 33-43 disclose hot start memory in communication connection with the signal navigation processor. Col 7, lines 52-57 and col 11, lines 57-63 disclose that the signal navigation processor also has memory for storing codes of instructions for executing error estimation.), cause the at least one processor to implement a method, or wherein the computer instructions of the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium cause a computer to implement a method, or wherein the time calibration method is, comprising:
determining a first reference time point and a first system time point, wherein the first reference time point and the first system time point are obtained by respectively observing time values of a reference time point system and a system to be calibrated at a first moment (Fig 3 & col 7, lines 6-16 disclose a drift rate calculator 42 that determines a first RTC time (i.e. a first system time point) and a first corresponding GPS time (i.e. a first reference time point) obtained by observing the first RTC time and the first corresponding GPS time at an RTC time tick (i.e. at a first moment). Col 3, lines 12-20 disclose that the observing of the first RTC time may be for a signal navigation processor including an always-on RTC clock (i.e. a system to be calibrated). Col 4, lines 22-32 disclose that the observing of the first corresponding GPS time may be for global navigation satellite system (i.e. a reference time point system).);
determining a second reference time point and a second system time point, wherein the second reference time point and the second system time point are obtained by respectively observing time values of the reference time point system and the system to be calibrated at a second moment (Fig 3 & col 7, lines 6-16 disclose a drift rate calculator 42 that determines a second RTC time (i.e. a second system time point) and a second corresponding GPS time (i.e. a second reference time point) obtained by observing the second RTC time and the second corresponding GPS time at a later RTC time tick (i.e. at a second moment). Col 3, lines 12-20 disclose that the observing of the second RTC time may be for a signal navigation processor including an always-on RTC clock (i.e. a system to be calibrated). Col 4, lines 22-32 disclose that the observing of the second corresponding GPS time may be for global navigation satellite system (i.e. a reference time point system).);
determining a first observation error between the first reference time point and the first system time point, and a second observation error between the second reference time point and the second system time point (Col 7, lines 18-22 disclose that the drift calculator calculates a difference between the first and second RTC times and a difference between the first and second corresponding GPS times and uses the two differences for determining an RTC drift rate. Fig 10 & col 12, lines 41-46 disclose that that the first and second RTC times and first and second corresponding GPS times are compared to compute the RTC drift rate. By comparing the difference in the first and second RTC times to the difference in the first and second corresponding GPS times, a first observation error between the first RTC time and the first corresponding GPS time and a second observation error between the second RTC time and the second corresponding GPS time are determined and used to calculate the RTC drift rate based on the first RTC time, the second RTC time, the first observation error, and the second observation error. To demonstrate, let TR1 = the first RTC time, TR2 = the second RTC time, TDR = (TR1 – TR2) (this represents a time difference for the RTC clock between the first and second time ticks), TG1 = the first corresponding GPS time, TG2 = the second corresponding GPS time and TGG = TG1 – TG2 (this represents time difference for the GPS signal between the first and second time ticks). Comparing these differences (i.e. taking the difference between the RTC time difference and the GPS time difference) results in:
TDR – TDG = (TR1 – TR2) – (TG1 – TG2) = (TR1 – TG1) – (TR2 – TG2) = OBE1 – OBE2
where OBE1 represents a first observation error between the first RTC time and the first corresponding GPS time and OBE2 represents a second observation error between the second RTC time and the second corresponding GPS time. Thus disclosed is determining a first observation error between the first reference time point and the first system time point, and a second observation error between the second reference time point and the second system time point which is used to calculate a drift rate.);
constructing a first expression based on the first system time point, a first drift variable, a fixed variable, and the first observation error, wherein the first drift variable is a drift per second introduced by the system to be calibrated in a positioning process (Col 7, lines 18-22 disclose the RTC drift rate calculator calculates the drift rate based on the difference between the first and second RTC times and the difference between the first and second corresponding GPS times. Fig 10 & col 12, lines 41-46 disclose that that the first and second RTC times and first and second corresponding GPS times are compared to compute the RTC drift rate. Fig 3 & col 7, lines 37-39 disclose that a time drift estimator multiplies the RTC drift rate by an elapsed time to determine a time drift. Col 6, lines 4-21 disclose that an RTC time fraction, the RTC time data and the RTC time drift may be used for calibrating the RTC time data at turn on of a GPS receiver (i.e. at the second RTC time). Based on the variable definitions discussed in claim 1, a first expression based on the first RTC time (i.e. first system time point), a first drift rate variable (DR), a RTC time fraction (i.e. a fixed variable that will be denoted as TF) and the first observation error can be written as DR*TR1 + TF = OBE1. Col 1, lines 13-17 discloses that the RTC represents a Real Time Clock that is calibrated for determining of fix of GPS positioning. Col 2, lines 41-45 discloses that real time clocks have large time drift rates. Thus the RTC clock drift rate variable DR represents a drift per second introduced by the real time clock of the system to be calibrated in a positioning process.);
constructing a second expression based on the second system time point, the first drift variable, the fixed variable, and the second observation error (Col 7, lines 18-22 disclose the RTC drift rate calculator calculates the drift rate based on the difference between the first and second RTC times and the difference between the first and second corresponding GPS times. Fig 10 & col 12, lines 41-46 disclose that that the first and second RTC times and first and second corresponding GPS times are compared to compute the RTC drift rate. Fig 3 & col 7, lines 37-39 disclose that a time drift estimator multiplies the RTC drift rate by an elapsed time to determine a time drift. Col 6, lines 4-21 disclose that an RTC time fraction, the RTC time data and the RTC time drift may be used for calibrating the RTC time data at turn on of a GPS receiver (i.e. at the second RTC time). Based on the variable definitions discussed in claim 1, a second expression based on the second RTC time (i.e. second system time point), the first drift rate variable, the RTC time fraction TF (i.e. the fixed variable) and the second observation error can be written as DR*TR2 + TF = OBE2.); and
solving the first expression and the second expression to obtain the unit drift per second (Fig 10 & col 12, lines 41-46 disclose that that the first and second RTC times and first and second corresponding GPS times are compared to compute the RTC drift rate. Claim 1 demonstrates that taking the difference between the RTC time differences and the corresponding GPS time differences is equivalent to taking the difference between the first and second expressions above to solve for the drift rate DR:
(DR*TR1 + TF = OBE1) – (DR*TR2 + TF = OBE2) [Wingdings font/0xE0] DR*( TR1 - TR2) = OBE1 – OBE2
[Wingdings font/0xE0] DR = (OBE1 – OBE2)/( TR1 - TR2).
Thus, solving the first and second expressions obtains the RTC Drift rate DR.); and
calibrating the time value of the system to be calibrated based on the unit drift per second (Fig 10 & col 13, lines 5-10 discloses that the RTC time drift is used to calibrate the RTC time.).
Zhi fails to disclose wherein the drift per second is introduced by a clock crystal oscillator.
However, Nelson teaches wherein the drift per second is introduced by a clock crystal oscillator ([0186] discloses a real time clock driven by a crystal oscillator that introduces some degree of drift.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have a time calibration method, or an electronic device implementing a method, or a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium with instructions to cause a computer to implement a method, for calibrating a real time clock creating drift, as disclosed by Zhi, wherein the drift is introduced by a clock crystal oscillator, as taught by Nelson. The motivation to do so would be to have a method, or an electronic device implementing a method, or a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium with instructions to cause a computer to implement a method, for determining and calibrating for drift in a real time clock that is driven by a crystal oscillator in order to insure that electronic tags incorporating such real time clocks remain synchronized with a network and transmit within required receiving windows at the network.
Zhi fails to disclose but Xiao further teaches wherein the fixed variable is used for expressing a time overhead of a software program introduced during observation of the time of the reference time point system or the time value of the system to be calibrated (Page 12, first paragraph discloses an equation (i.e. an expression) for an offset Dt which is a difference between a reference clock and a clock (i.e. an observation error) that includes a synchronization error a0 (i.e. a fixed variable used to express a time overhead which may be for a software program introduced during observation of the time of the refence time point system).), the first expression is that the first observation error equals the sum of a first product and the fixed variable, the first product is the product of the first system time point and the first drift variable (Page 12, first paragraph discloses an equation (i.e. a first expression, for example at a first RTC time as disclosed by Zhi) for an offset Dt which is a difference between a reference clock and a clock (i.e. an observation error) that equals the sum of a product a1t (i.e. a first product when measured at first RTC time as disclosed by Zhi) and a fixed variable a0, wherein the product a1t is a product of a system time point t (i.e. a first system time point when measured at first RTC time as disclosed by Zhi) and a drift variable a1 (i.e. a first drift variable).); and
wherein the second expression is that the second observation error equals the sum of a second product and the fixed variable, the second product is the product of the second system time point and the first drift variable (Page 12, first paragraph discloses an equation (i.e. a second expression, for example at a second RTC time as disclosed by Zhi) for an offset Dt which is a difference between a reference clock and a clock (i.e. an observation error) that equals the sum of a product a1t (i.e. a second product when measured at second RTC time as disclosed by Zhi) and a fixed variable a0, wherein the product a1t is a product of a system time point t (i.e. a second system time point when measured at second RTC time as disclosed by Zhi) and a drift variable a1 (i.e. a first drift variable).).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use the observations at first and second RTC times and perform similar comparisons and computations, as disclosed by Zhi, by using expressions wherein a first expression is that a first observation error equals the sum of a first product and a fixed variable, the first product is the product of a first system time point and a first drift variable, a second expression is that a second observation error equals the sum of a second product and the fixed variable, the second product is the product of a second system time point and the first drift variable, wherein the time fraction disclosed by Zhi is substituted with a fixed variable used for expressing a time overhead of a software program introduced during observation of the time of the reference time point system or the time value of the system to be calibrated, as further taught by Xiao.
The motivation to do so would have been to account for a synchronization error or clock bias during observation and measurement of a time of a reference time point system by including a fixed variable, representing the synchronization error or clock bias, in expressions for time point observations errors between a GPS reference clock and a local clock, in order to be able to more accurately determine a drift associated with the local clock based on solving expressions, based on measurements made at two different RTC time, for time point observation errors defined in terms of drift and the fixed variable accounting for synchronization error or clock bias.
Regarding claim 2, Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao disclose the method as claimed in claim 1.
Zhi discloses wherein calibrating the time value of the system to be calibrated based on the unit drift per second comprises: acquiring a target duration between historical system time point and current system time point, wherein the historical system time point is system time point corresponding to historical calibration of the system to be calibrated (Fig 2, Fig 10 & col 12, lines 47-67 and col 13, lines 1-10 disclose determining an elapsed power down time between a last RTC time before a GPS receiver was turned off (i.e. a historical system time point) and a current RTC time (i.e. a current system time point), wherein the last RTC time before the GPS receiver was turned off represents an RTC time that was previously calibrated (i.e. historically calibrated) in step 208.);
determining target compensation time based on the unit drift per second and the target duration (Fig 10 & col 13, lines 3-5 disclose determining a time drift (i.e. a target compensation time) based on the RTC drift rate and the power down time.); and
calibrating the time value of the system to be calibrated based on the target compensation time (Fig 10 & col 13, lines 5-8 disclose calibrating the RTC time based on the RTC drift time.).
Regarding claim 4, Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao disclose the method as claimed in claim 2.
Zhi discloses wherein determining the target compensation time based on the unit drift per second and the target duration comprises: determining the target compensation time based on a product of the unit drift per second and the target duration (Fig 3 & col 7, lines 37-39 disclose that a time drift estimator multiplies the RTC drift rate by an elapsed time (i.e. a target duration) to determine a time drift (i.e. a target compensation time).).
Regarding claim 8, Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao disclose the method as claimed in claim 1.
Zhi discloses wherein the first moment and the second moment are moments separated by preset time (Fig 2B & col 6, lines 52-55 disclose that the RTC time ticks (i.e. the first and second moments) are separated by preset intervals of 1 ms. Col 3, lines 31-34 disclose that the RTC time has increments of a certain time period based on the on/off time of the GNSS receiver. Thus, the first RTC time and second RTC time would be separated by a preset multiple of 1ms based on the on/off time of the GNSS receiver.).
Regarding claim 10, Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao disclose the method as claimed in claim 9.
Zhi discloses wherein the method comprises: acquiring a target duration between historical system time point and current system time point, wherein the historical system time point is system time point corresponding to historical calibration of the system to be calibrated (Fig 2, Fig 10 & col 12, lines 47-67 and col 13, lines 1-10 disclose determining an elapsed power down time between a last RTC time before a GPS receiver was turned off (i.e. a historical system time point) and a current RTC time (i.e. a current system time point), wherein the last RTC time before the GPS receiver was turned off represents an RTC time that was previously calibrated (i.e. historically calibrated) in step 208.);
determining target compensation time based on the unit drift per second and the target duration (Fig 10 & col 13, lines 3-5 disclose determining a time drift (i.e. a target compensation time) based on the RTC drift rate and the power down time.); and
calibrating the time value of the system to be calibrated based on the target compensation time (Fig 10 & col 13, lines 5-8 disclose calibrating the RTC time based on the RTC drift time.).
Regarding claim 12, Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao disclose the method as claimed in claim 10.
Zhi discloses wherein the method comprises: determining the target compensation time based on a product of the unit drift per second and the target duration (Fig 3 & col 7, lines 37-39 disclose that a time drift estimator multiplies the RTC drift rate by an elapsed time (i.e. a target duration) to determine a time drift (i.e. a target compensation time).).
Regarding claim 16, Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao disclose the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 15.
Zhi discloses wherein the method comprises: acquiring a target duration between historical system time point and current system time point, wherein the historical system time point is system time point corresponding to historical calibration of the system to be calibrated (Fig 2, Fig 10 & col 12, lines 47-67 and col 13, lines 1-10 disclose determining an elapsed power down time between a last RTC time before a GPS receiver was turned off (i.e. a historical system time point) and a current RTC time (i.e. a current system time point), wherein the last RTC time before the GPS receiver was turned off represents an RTC time that was previously calibrated (i.e. historically calibrated) in step 208.);
determining target compensation time based on the unit drift per second and the target duration (Fig 10 & col 13, lines 3-5 disclose determining a time drift (i.e. a target compensation time) based on the RTC drift rate and the power down time.); and
calibrating the time value of the system to be calibrated based on the target compensation time (Fig 10 & col 13, lines 5-8 disclose calibrating the RTC time based on the RTC drift time.).
Regarding claim 18, Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao disclose the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 16.
Zhi discloses wherein the method comprises: determining the target compensation time based on a product of the unit drift per second and the target duration (Fig 3 & col 7, lines 37-39 disclose that a time drift estimator multiplies the RTC drift rate by an elapsed time (i.e. a target duration) to determine a time drift (i.e. a target compensation time).).
Claims 5, 13 & 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhi et al. (US 7791534)(herein after “Zhi”) in view of Nelson et al. (US 2007/0024437)(herein after “Nelson”) and Xiao et al. (Yin Xiao, “Improving Reliability of IEEE-1588 in Substation Automation Based on Clock Drift Prediction”, Uppsala Universitet, Department of Information Technology, October 2008.), as applied to claims 2, 10 & 16 respectively, and further in view of Rischar et al. (US 7656751)(herein after “Rischar”).
Regarding claim 5, Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao disclose the method as claimed in claim 2.
Zhi fails to disclose wherein calibrating the time value of the system to be calibrated based on the target compensation time comprises: performing calibration based on a sum value of the target compensation time and the time value of the system to be calibrated.
However, Rischar further teaches wherein calibrating the time value of the system to be calibrated based on the target compensation time comprises: performing calibration based on a sum value of the target compensation time and the time value of the system to be calibrated (Fig 12 & col 16, lines 42-60 disclose performing calibration of the timestamp for a local clock to provide a compensated timestamp by summing a received timestamp (i.e. the time value of the system to be calibrated) with an offset term (DestOffset – DestLastOffset) – (SourceOffset – SourceLastOffset) (i.e. a target compensation time).).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the method of claim 2, as disclosed by Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao, wherein calibrating the time value of the system to be calibrated based on the target compensation time comprises: performing calibration based on a sum value of the target compensation time and the time value of the system to be calibrated, as further taught by Rischar. The motivation to do so would be to have a method for performing calibration of a real time clock by summing an RTC drift compensation time estimate with a latest RTC time of the real time clock in order to insure that electronic tags incorporating such real time clocks remain synchronized with the network and transmit within required receiving windows at the network.
Regarding claim 13, Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao disclose the method as claimed in claim 10.
Zhi fails to disclose wherein the method comprises: performing calibration based on a sum value of the target compensation time and the time value of the system to be calibrated.
However, Rischar further teaches wherein the method comprises: performing calibration based on a sum value of the target compensation time and the time value of the system to be calibrated (Fig 12 & col 16, lines 42-60 disclose performing calibration of the timestamp for a local clock to provide a compensated timestamp by summing a received timestamp (i.e. the time value of the system to be calibrated) with an offset term (DestOffset – DestLastOffset) – (SourceOffset – SourceLastOffset) (i.e. a target compensation time).).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the method of claim 10, as disclosed by Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao, wherein the method comprises: performing calibration based on a sum value of the target compensation time and the time value of the system to be calibrated, as further taught by Rischar. The motivation to do so would be to have a device that can perform calibration of a real time clock by summing an RTC drift compensation time estimate with a latest RTC time of the real time clock in order to insure that the device incorporating such a real time clock remains synchronized with a network and transmits within required receiving windows at the network.
Regarding claim 19, Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao discloses the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 16.
Zhi fails to disclose wherein the method comprises: performing calibration based on a sum value of the target compensation time and the time value of the system to be calibrated.
However, Rischar further teaches wherein the method comprises: performing calibration based on a sum value of the target compensation time and the time value of the system to be calibrated (Fig 12 & col 16, lines 42-60 disclose performing calibration of the timestamp for a local clock to provide a compensated timestamp by summing a received timestamp (i.e. the time value of the system to be calibrated) with an offset term (DestOffset – DestLastOffset) – (SourceOffset – SourceLastOffset) (i.e. a target compensation time).).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, as disclosed by Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao, wherein the method comprises: performing calibration based on a sum value of the target compensation time and the time value of the system to be calibrated, as further taught by Rischar. The motivation to do so would be to have a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium in a device with instructions that when executed by the device cause the device to perform calibration of a real time clock by summing an RTC drift compensation time estimate with a latest RTC time of the real time clock in order to insure that the device incorporating such a real time clock remains synchronized with a network and transmits within required receiving windows at the network.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhi et al. (US 7791534)(herein after “Zhi”) in view of Nelson et al. (US 2007/0024437)(herein after “Nelson”) and Xiao et al. (Yin Xiao, “Improving Reliability of IEEE-1588 in Substation Automation Based on Clock Drift Prediction”, Uppsala Universitet, Department of Information Technology, October 2008.), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Lin et al. (CN 116647297)(herein after “Lin”).
Regarding claim 7, Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao disclose the method as claimed in claim 1.
Zhi fails to disclose wherein the reference time point of the reference time system and the first system time point of the system to be calibrated are invoked using an invoking interface.
However, Lin further teaches wherein the reference time point of the reference time system and the first system time point of the system to be calibrated are invoked using an invoking interface ([n0044] discloses an internal timing module that can call a navigation controller’s time interface (i.e. invoke a navigation controller’s invoking interface) to obtain a reference time that adjusts a system time.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to someone having ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have the method of claim 1, as disclosed by Zhi in view of Nelson and Xiao, wherein the reference time point of the reference time system and the first system time point of the system to be calibrated are invoked using an invoking interface, as further taught by Lin. The motivation to do so would be to have a method for invoking a time interface of a GPS reference clock and RTC real time clock to obtain a reference time and a system time used for calibrating for drift in the real time clock in order to insure that electronic tags incorporating such real time clocks remain synchronized with the network and transmit within required receiving windows at the network.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Karthik et al. (Anantha Karthik & Rick Blum, “Robust Clock Skew and Offset Estimation for IEEE 1588 in the Presence of Unexpected Deterministic Path Delay Asymmetries”, IEEE Transactions on Communications, Vol. 68, No. 8, August 2020) discloses clock offset estimation expressions.
Freris et al. (Nikolas Freris, Scott Graham, & P.R. Kumar, “Fundamental Limits on Synchronizing Clocks Over Networks”, IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, Vol. 56, No. 6, June 2011) discloses expressions for clock models.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAMES P SEYMOUR whose telephone number is (571)272-7654. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-5 EST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nishant Divecha can be reached at 571-270-3125. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/JAMES P SEYMOUR/Examiner, Art Unit 2419
/Nishant Divecha/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2419
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