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 .
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 2/19/2026 has been entered.
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.
Claim(s) 1 and 3-5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang US 2021/0126947 in view of Kim et al. “Kim” US 2022/0407622 in view of Liu et al. “Liu” US 2021/0007007.
Regarding claim 1, Wang teaches a transmitting station (Figure 1) comprising:
a first radio signal processing circuit configured to transmit a radio signal by using a first channel and store information indicating a sequence number of data to be transmitted (transmitter has multiple radios (i.e. first processing unit); Paragraph 30. Further, the packets are transmit using multi-link frames (i.e. first channel) and the information includes a sequence number (i.e. storing sequence numbers); Paragraphs 39-40);
a second radio signal processing circuit configured to transmit a radio signal by using a second channel different from the first channel and store information indicating a sequence number of data to be transmitted (transmitter has multiple radios (i.e. second processing unit); Paragraph 30. Further, the packets are transmit using multi-link frames (i.e. second channel) and the information includes a sequence number (as the information would be stored, this is viewed as storing sequence numbers; Paragraphs 39-40. The system includes data storage, see Figure 12); and
processing circuitry configured to establish multi-link with a receiving station by using the first radio signal processing circuit and the second radio signal processing circuit and manage communication using the multi-link (the multi-link upper MAC entity constructs frames for communication through the multi-link system to a receiver; Paragraph 39),
wherein
the processing circuitry is configured to distribute a plurality of data units into the first radio signal processing circuit and the second radio signal processing circuit (the multi-link upper mac entity constructs frames for communication through the multi-link system and the MPDUs that belong to the same traffic ID (TID) are transmit on multiple links (i.e. first and second radio processing units for distribution); Paragraphs 38-41),
the first radio signal processing circuit is configured to transmit a first data unit group input from the processing circuitry among the plurality of data units to the receiving station, and store first information indicating a sequence number of a plurality of data unit included in the first data unit group (MPDUs are aggregated (i.e. first data unit group) and then send out on one or the multiple links; Paragraphs 40-41. The MPDUs are associated with sequence numbers that are stored; Paragraphs 38-39),
the second radio signal processing circuit is configured to transmit a second data unit group input from the processing circuitry among the plurality of data units to the receiving station, and store second information indicating a sequence number of a plurality of data units included in the second data unit group (MPDUs are aggregated (i.e. second data unit group) and then send out on one or the multiple links; Paragraphs 40-41. The MPDUs are associated with sequence numbers that are stored; Paragraphs 38-39);
receiving a first frame including third information indicating a reception status of the first data unit group from the receiving station, the first radio signal processing unit refers to a reception status of a sequence number indicated by the first information among sequence numbers indicated by the third information, and determines whether a data unit included in the transmitted first data unit group has been successfully delivered (the receiver will perform and send a BlockACK based on the received MPDUs; Paragraph 42. The BlockACK consolidates acknowledgments for MPDUs received over different links and then failed MPDUs can be re-transmit on the same or different link than the original transmission; Paragraph 43. This shows that the BlockACK indicates what information was successfully received and fails to be received properly. The sequence numbers of the packets are identified to determine if they are out of order as well so that they are sent to the destination in the correct order; Paragraph 57); and
when receiving a second frame including fourth information indicating a reception status of the second data unit group from the receiving station, the second radio signal processing unit refers to a reception status of a sequence number indicated by the second information among sequence numbers indicated by the fourth information, and determines whether a data unit included in the transmitted second data unit group has been successfully delivered (the receiver will perform and send a BlockACK based on the received MPDUs; Paragraph 42. The BockACK consolidates acknowledges for MPDUs received over different links and then failed MPDUs can be re-transmit on the same or different link than the original transmission; Paragraph 43. This shows that the BlockACK indicates what information was successfully received and fails to be received properly. The sequence numbers of the packets are identified to determine if they are out of order as well so that they are sent to the destination in the correct order; Paragraph 57)
Wang does not expressly disclose the use of bitmaps including information indicating a sequence number of a data unit; however, Kim teaches SN bitmaps are included in a first and second MPDU; Paragraphs 115-116 and Figure 9. Thus, one can see the SN is part of a first and second bitmap for first and second MPDUs.
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing to modify the teachings of Wang to include a SN bitmap in the MPDUs as taught by Kim.
One would be motivated to make the modification such that control fields can be identified in the MPDUs as taught by Kim; Paragraphs 115-116.
Wang does not expressly disclose the use of bitmaps including information indicating a sequence number of a data unit; however, Kim teaches SN bitmaps are included in a first and second MPDU; Paragraphs 115-116 and Figure 9. Thus, one can see the SN is part of a first and second bitmap for first and second MPDUs.
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing to modify the teachings of Wang to include a SN bitmap in the MPDUs as taught by Kim.
One would be motivated to make the modification such that control fields can be identified in the MPDUs as taught by Kim; Paragraphs 115-116.
The prior art does not expressly disclose determining successful reception based on a sequence number matching a sequence number of the transmission target indicated by the first information among sequence numbers indicated by the third information; however, Liu teaches a BlockAck bitmap of aggregated information wherein the sequence number matches a value of the starting sequence control subfield (i.e. transmission target) of the BlockAck; Paragraphs 38-39. The exclusion of SN of data not transmitted as claimed is merely a result of the operation being performed and does not carry any patentable weight.
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing to modify the teachings of Wang to include matching sequence numbers to determine successful delivery as taught by Liu.
One would be motivated to make the modification such that the system can properly acknowledge successful reception of aggregated information and individual information as taught by Liu; Paragraph 39.
Regarding claim 3, Wang teaches the first and second radio signal processing units include first/second buffers capable of storing first/second data unit groups (the packets are transmit using multi-link frames (i.e. second channel) and the information includes a sequence number (as the information would be stored, this is viewed as storing sequence numbers; Paragraphs 39-40. The system includes data storage, see Figure 12. MPDUs are aggregated (i.e. first and second data unit groups) and then sent out on one or the multiple links; Paragraphs 40-41. The MPDUs are associated with sequence numbers that are stored; Paragraphs 38-39. Thus one can see there would be storage (buffers) for the aggregated data unit groups as claimed).
Regarding claim 4, Wang teaches the first and second radio signal units set data units determined to have failed to be delivered as retransmission targets (Paragraph 43 teaches failed MPDUs are re-transmit on the same link or different links. Here the failed units are viewed as retransmission targets as they are re-transmit).
Regarding claim 5, Wang teaches a receiving station (Figure 1) comprising:
a first radio signal processing unit configured to receive a radio signal by using a first channel and store first information indicating a data reception status for each sequence number (transmitters and receivers have multiple radios (i.e. first processing unit); Paragraphs 29-31. Further, the packets are transmit using multi-link frames (i.e. first channel) and the information includes a sequence number (i.e. storing sequence numbers); Paragraphs 39-40);
a second radio signal processing unit configured to receive a radio signal using a second channel different from the first channel and store second information indicating a data reception status for each sequence number (transmitters and receivers have multiple radios (i.e. second processing unit); Paragraphs 29-31. Further, the packets are transmit using multi-link frames (i.e. first channel) and the information includes a sequence number (i.e. storing sequence numbers); Paragraphs 39-40); and
a link management unit is configured to establish multi-link with a transmitting station by using the first radio signal processing unit and the second radio signal processing unit and manage communication using the multi-link (the multi-link upper MAC entity constructs frames for communication through the multi-link system to a transmitter; Paragraph 39),
wherein
in an operation in which the transmitting station distributes and transmits a plurality of data units to which sequence numbers are assigned to the first radio signal processing unit and the second radio signal processing unit (the multi-link upper mac entity constructs frames for communication through the multi-link system and the MPDUs that belong to the same traffic ID (TID) are transmit/received on multiple links (i.e. first and second radio processing units for distribution); Paragraphs 38-41),
and
the link management unit is configured to rearrange the data unit received from the first radio signal processing unit and the data unit received from the second radio signal processing unit according to sequence numbers, and output the plurality of data units with ordered sequence numbers to an upper layer (the device will reorder the MPDUs (i.e. data units); Paragraph 42. The reordering is to ensure the data is received in the correct order; Paragraph 57).
Wang does not expressly disclose the use of bitmaps including information indicating a sequence number of a data unit and updating bitmaps based on first data and updating a first start sequence number based on a notification from the transmitting station; however, Kim teaches SN bitmaps are included in a first and second MPDU; Paragraphs 115-116 and Figure 9. Thus, one can see the SN is part of a first and second bitmap for first and second MPDUs. Further, based on information received from the transmitting station, the receiving station can update the bitmap; Paragraph 109. The update would be for the plurality of bitmaps/sequence numbers.
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing to modify the teachings of Wang to include a SN bitmap in the MPDUs as taught by Kim.
One would be motivated to make the modification such that control fields can be identified in the MPDUs as taught by Kim; Paragraphs 115-116.
Wang does not expressly disclose receiving first and second data unit groups and outputting a data in which no error is detected among the received first/second data unit groups to the link management; however, Liu teaches that HARQ packet 1 indicates the information has been received and decoded successfully (i.e. a data output when no errors); Paragraphs 34 and 39-40).
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the effective filing to modify the teachings of Wang to include outputting a data indicating no error in the received data as taught by Liu.
One would be motivated to make the modification such that the system can properly acknowledge successful reception of information and individual information as taught by Liu; Paragraph 39.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 2/19/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues the claimed invention is not merely to express SN as a bitmap but to characterize by each STA function locally maintaining a TBM and a SSN to solve the problem of SN discontinuity (missing numbers) when data of the same TID is distributed across multiple links.
The Examiner notes that the claims state there is a multi-link established between the transmitter/receive but there is no mention about any TIDs, let alone data from the same TID distributed across multiple links.
Applicant argues the prior art does not teach or suggest generating and storing a local TBM for each link and excluding or masking non-transmission target SNs (missing numbers) for that link during BlockAck information of Wang or in the teachings of Kim.
The Examiner respectfully disagrees. First, Wang and Kim were not used to read on the now canceled claim 2 (where this limitation comes from), thus the argument is moot. Further, the claim states “thereby excluding sequence numbers of data units not transmitted to the first radio signal processing circuit from the determination”. This is just a result of the determination of successfully delivered packets or not. Further, the claim is not written in a way to force not all data units from being successfully received, thus in this case, there are no SNs to exclude as no packets are missing.
Regarding claim 5, Applicant argues the RX updates its RBM and SSN based on notifications from the TX which is based on TX-led cooperative logic where the TX identifies delivery failures by referring to its internal TV M and notifies the RX of the minimum SN to be retransmitted prompting the RX to synchronize its own management information.
Examiner notes these limitations are not in claim 5 and thus will not be read into the claim limitations. Further, claim 5 is towards a reception device, so whatever is occurring in a transmission device does not provide any patentable weight to the RX.
Applicant further argues the prior art does not teach the RX updating its RBM and SSN based on retransmission-start SN notifications from the TX to synchronize the SN space. The Examiner notes this is not required in the claim language and thus the argument is moot.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRANDON M RENNER whose telephone number is (571)270-3621. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 7am-5pm 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, Derrick Ferris can be reached at (571)-272-3123. 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.
/BRANDON M RENNER/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2411
Prosecution Insights