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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 8, and 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.
Since the independent claims 1, 8, and 15 remain rejected, the rejection of the dependent claims persists.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
In line 3 of paragraph 0035 of the specification, the line reads, "...190 may experience denial of service (DNS) impairments and/or high disconnects and..." However, the acronym DNS has been established in the art to represent "Domain Name Service", as such, confusion exists in the specification if the impairment is directed to Domain Name Service or Denial of Service...
Though paragraph 0035 of the specification was amended, the informality still exists.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1, 8, and 15 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
The amended claims 1, 8, and 15 specify a "first connection parameter" and a "second connection parameter", however, the specification appears absent of any discussion of a first connection parameter and/or a second connection parameter. Before being cancelled, claims 5, 12, and 19 mentioned one or more parameters, as is the wording in the specifications, but did not address specifics such as a first connection parameter and a second connection parameter.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim(s) 1-2, 8-9, and 15-16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over NAYAK, et al. (US 20200383046 A1, hereinafter, "NAYAK") in view of BANGOLAE, et al. (US 20180098370 A1, hereinafter, "BANGOLAE").
Regarding claim 1, NAYAK teaches a system configured for managing network resources
(paragraph 0064; figure 4, system: 400), the system comprising:
one or more hardware processors configured by machine-readable instructions (paragraph
0067-0068; figure 4, processor(s): 410, CRM:414) to:
set a connection threshold for a local router, the local router being connected to a network
and a mobile device;
NAYAK writes, “With reference to FIG. 1, the UE device 102 can communicate via the wireless network
104 through a connection 112 with the base station 106, a connection 114 with the base station 108, or
with a connection 116 with the base station 110, which may be implemented as any suitable type or
combination of wireless links” (paragraph 0026). NAYAK adds, “In some aspects, the network connection
parameters 316 are predefined or configured by a wireless network provider to specify or indicate one
or more parameters or thresholds useful by user equipment to acquire a connection with a network cell
or base station of a wireless network” (paragraph 0062). NAYAK notes, “In other cases, a number of
radio link failures is compared with a radio link failure threshold to determine that the connection is
marginal” (paragraph 0076). Illustrated in figure 1, NAYAK provides a glimpse of the wireless network,
including a UE device and a base station. NAYAK explains the network connection parameters are
predefined or configured by a wireless network provider, in certain aspects, that specify one or more
parameters or thresholds used by the UE to acquire a connection with a network cell or base station.
NAYAK mentions that radio link failures[(RLFs)] may be compared to an RLF threshold to determine the
connection, in this instance marginal.
monitor one or more connection parameters for the local router;
NAYAK writes, “The signal detection algorithms 232 can also be directed to radio link failures (RFL)
associated with a connection, network cell, or access point of the network cell. For example, a signal
detection algorithm 232 can monitor a number of RFLs for a connection and compare the number of the
RFLs with a threshold or limit” (e.g., a default value of 3 RFLs) (paragraph 0043). NAYAK indicates a
number of RFLs for a connection can be monitored.
NAYAK fails to explicitly disclose information regarding, “in response to a determination that a first connection parameter of the one or more connection parameters satisfies the connection threshold, cause the local router or the mobile device to switch from communicating with the network using a first communication technology to communicate with the network using a second communication technology;” and “and in response to a determination that a second connection parameter of the one or more connection parameters satisfies the connection threshold, cause the mobile device to switch from connecting to the network using the first communication technology with the local router to connecting directly to the network using the second communication technology.”
However, in analogous art, BANGOLAE teaches in response to a determination that a first connection parameter of the one or more connection parameters satisfies the connection threshold, cause the local router or the mobile device to switch from communicating with the network using a first communication technology to communicate with the network using a second communication technology;
BANGOLAE writes, “In one configuration, the relay UE can be associated with the following features: (1) The relay UE can support ProSe D2D communication along with relay operation acting as a UE-to-Network relay to send or receive communication from the eNodeB on one side and other remote UEs from the other side. (2) The relay UE can receive a broadcast of certain relay configuration related parameters. The broadcast can be in existing or new system information. These parameters can include threshold parameters representing a link quality measurement between the relay UE and the remote UE, a mobility state parameter that should be satisfied by the relay UE, and a parameter indicating whether the relay UE supports acting as a relay from idle or connected mode” (paragraph 0111). BANGOLAE adds, “The relay UE can recommend a remote UE to switch its connection from relaying to direct communication based on PC5 and Uu link quality measurements and thresholds (paragraph 0113). BANGOLAE indicates that the relay UE can support ProSe D2D communication as a first communication technology. BANGOLAE explains the relay UE can receive certain relay configuration related parameters, including threshold parameters representing a link quality measurement between the relay UE and the remote UE, a mobility state parameter that should be satisfied by the relay UE, and a parameter indicating whether the relay UE supports acting as a relay from idle or connected mode. BANGOLAE informs the reader that the relay UE can recommend a remote UE to switch its connection from relaying to direct communication based on PC5 and Uu link quality measurements and thresholds, with the direct communication being the second communication technology. BANGOLAE indicates that based on threshold parameters a determination is made to switch from the first communication technology to the second communication technology.
and in response to a determination that a second connection parameter of the one or more connection parameters satisfies the connection threshold, cause the mobile device to switch from connecting to the network using the first communication technology with the local router to connecting directly to the network using the second communication technology.
BANGOLAE writes, “In one configuration, the relay UE can be associated with the following features: (1) The relay UE can support ProSe D2D communication along with relay operation acting as a UE-to-Network relay to send or receive communication from the eNodeB on one side and other remote UEs from the other side. (2) The relay UE can receive a broadcast of certain relay configuration related parameters. The broadcast can be in existing or new system information. These parameters can include threshold parameters representing a link quality measurement between the relay UE and the remote UE, a mobility state parameter that should be satisfied by the relay UE, and a parameter indicating whether the relay UE supports acting as a relay from idle or connected mode” (paragraph 0111). BANGOLAE adds, “The relay UE can recommend a remote UE to switch its connection from relaying to direct communication based on PC5 and Uu link quality measurements and thresholds (paragraph 0113). BANGOLAE indicates that the relay UE can support ProSe D2D communication as a first communication technology. BANGOLAE explains the relay UE can receive certain relay configuration related parameters, including threshold parameters representing a link quality measurement between the relay UE and the remote UE, a mobility state parameter that should be satisfied by the relay UE, and a parameter indicating whether the relay UE supports acting as a relay from idle or connected mode. BANGOLAE informs the reader that the relay UE can recommend a remote UE to switch its connection from relaying to direct communication based on PC5 and Uu link quality measurements and thresholds, with the direct communication being the second communication technology. BANGOLAE indicates that based on threshold parameters a determination is made to switch from the first communication technology to the second communication technology.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the method and invention of NAYAK to include aspects described by BANGOLAE of “Technology for a relay user equipment (UE) operable to act as a relay between a remote UE and an eNodeB is disclosed.” BANGOLAE provides the motivation for modification stating, “In one example, even if the periodicity of the discovery message is defined in the upper layer, the access stratum (AS) layer can perform a retransmission of the relay discovery periodicity, e.g., in order to increase the reliability of the discovery message” (paragraphs 0081).
Regarding claim 2, NAYAK and BANGOLAE teach the system of claim 1, wherein the one or more hardware processors are further configured by machine-readable instructions to:
Additionally, BANGOLAE teaches in response to the determination that the one or more connection parameters satisfies the connection threshold, cause the local router to switch from communicating with the network using the first communication technology to communicating with the network using the second communication technology.
BANGOLAE writes, “In one configuration, the relay UE can be associated with the following features: (1) The relay UE can support ProSe D2D communication along with relay operation acting as a UE-to-Network relay to send or receive communication from the eNodeB on one side and other remote UEs from the other side. (2) The relay UE can receive a broadcast of certain relay configuration related parameters. The broadcast can be in existing or new system information. These parameters can include threshold parameters representing a link quality measurement between the relay UE and the remote UE, a mobility state parameter that should be satisfied by the relay UE, and a parameter indicating whether the relay UE supports acting as a relay from idle or connected mode” (paragraph 0111). BANGOLAE adds, “The relay UE can recommend a remote UE to switch its connection from relaying to direct communication based on PC5 and Uu link quality measurements and thresholds (paragraph 0113). BANGOLAE indicates that the relay UE can support ProSe D2D communication as a first communication technology. BANGOLAE explains the relay UE can receive certain relay configuration related parameters, including threshold parameters representing a link quality measurement between the relay UE and the remote UE, a mobility state parameter that should be satisfied by the relay UE, and a parameter indicating whether the relay UE supports acting as a relay from idle or connected mode. BANGOLAE informs the reader that the relay UE can recommend a remote UE to switch its connection from relaying to direct communication based on PC5 and Uu link quality measurements and thresholds, with the direct communication being the second communication technology. BANGOLAE indicates that based on threshold parameters a determination is made to switch from the first communication technology to the second communication technology.
Claims 8-9 and 15-16 are method and memory claims corresponding to apparatus claims 1-2
that have already been rejected above. The applicant’s attention is directed to the rejection of claims 1-
2. Claims 8-9 and 15-16 are rejected under the same rational as claims 1-2.
Claim(s) 3-4, 6, 10-11, 13, 17-18, and 20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over NAYAK and BANGOLAE as applied to claims 1-2, 8-9, and 15-16 above, and further in view of JEON, et al. (US 20200221373 A1, hereinafter, "JEON").
Regarding claim 3, NAYAK and BANGOLAE teach the system of claim 2,
NAYAK and BANGOLAE fail to explicitly disclose information regarding, “wherein the first
communication technology is 5G standalone and the second communication technology is 5G non -
standalone.”
However, in analogous art, JEON teaches wherein the first communication technology is 5G
standalone and the second communication technology is 5G non-standalone.
JEON writes, “Depending on the network type, the term “base station” or “BS” can refer to any
component (or collection of components) configured to provide wireless access to a network, such as
transmit point (TP), transmit-receive point (TRP), an enhanced base station (eNodeB or eNB), a 5G base
station (gNB), a macrocell, a femtocell, a WiFi access point (AP), or other wirelessly enabled devices.
Base stations may provide wireless access in accordance with one or more wireless communication
protocols, e.g., 5G 3GPP new radio interface/access (NR), long term evolution (LTE), LTE advanced (LTE-
A), high speed packet access (HSPA), Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, etc” (paragraph 0047). JEON adds,
“Hardware capability information field may include information regarding the hardware capabilities of
the mesh BS, such as support for multi-band transmission, for e.g., support of sub 6 GHz frequencies for
a mesh network operating at mm-wave/THz frequencies or vice-versa (e.g., standalone, non-standalone
mode of operation), transmission power of the BS, BS antenna height, number of spatial streams
supported/available, or remaining battery life for the transmitting BS for the case of a battery operated
mesh BSs” (paragraph 0119). JEON defines the term base station (BS) may refer to a transmit point (TP),
transmit-receive point (TRP), an enhanced base station (eNodeB or eNB), a 5G base station (gNB), a
macrocell, a femtocell, a WiFi access point (AP), or other wirelessly enabled devices. The base stations,
JEON informs the reader, may provide wireless access in accordance with one or more wireless
communication protocols, e.g., 5G 3GPP new radio interface/access (NR), long term evolution (LTE), LTE
advanced (LTE-A), high speed packet access (HSPA), Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, etc. JEON expounds that
regarding the hardware capabilities of the mesh BS, such as support for multi-band transmission
including standalone and non-standalone mode of operation.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the method and invention of NAYAK and BANGOLAE to include aspects described by JEON that “relates generally to wireless communication systems, more specifically, the present disclosure relates to neighbor discovery and wireless inter-connection in an advanced wireless communication system.” JEON provides the motivation for modification stating, “Increasing the deployment density of BSs is a way to increase data throughputs, via spatial reuse of frequencies. In fact, such spatial reuse has been one of the main contributors for increase in system throughput since the early days of cellular communication. While improving spatial reuse, a dense BS deployment may be inevitable at millimeter wave (mm-wave) and terahertz (THz) frequencies to improve coverage, by compensating for the pathloss and blockage” (paragraph 0087). JEON notes, “An effective way to “unleash” the BS deployment from fiber and provide improved coverage and better deployment density without additional expensive fiber deployment, is by using wireless backhaul for the BSs. To be most effective, such BSs may be capable of establishing one or more backhaul paths to the fiber network, with each path encompassing one or more wireless links...” (paragraphs 0090).
Regarding claim 4, NAYAK, BANGOLAE, and JEON teach the system of claim 3,
Additionally, NAYAK teaches wherein the one or more connection parameters is one or more
of data stalls of the local router when connected to the network, reconnection of the local router to
an access node, and transmission control protocol impairment of the local router.
NAYAK writes, “The signal detection algorithms 232 can also be directed to radio link failures (RFL)
associated with a connection, network cell, or access point of the network cell. For example, a signal
detection algorithm 232 can monitor a number of RFLs for a connection and compare the number of the
RFLs with a threshold or limit” (e.g., a default value of 3 RFLs) (paragraph 0043). NAYAK indicates a
number of RFLs for a connection can be monitored. RFLs may include connection drops leading to data
stalls.
Regarding claim 6, NAYAK and BANGOLAE teach the system of claim 1,
NAYAK and BANGOLAE fail to explicitly disclose information regarding, “wherein the first communication technology is Wi-Fi and the second communication technology is 5G non-standalone or 5G standalone.”
However, in analogous art, JEON teaches wherein the first communication technology is Wi-Fi and the second communication technology is 5G non-standalone or 5G standalone.
JEON writes, “Depending on the network type, the term “base station” or “BS” can refer to any
component (or collection of components) configured to provide wireless access to a network, such as
transmit point (TP), transmit-receive point (TRP), an enhanced base station (eNodeB or eNB), a 5G base
station (gNB), a macrocell, a femtocell, a WiFi access point (AP), or other wirelessly enabled devices.
Base stations may provide wireless access in accordance with one or more wireless communication
protocols, e.g., 5G 3GPP new radio interface/access (NR), long term evolution (LTE), LTE advanced (LTE-
A), high speed packet access (HSPA), Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, etc” (paragraph 0047). JEON adds,
“Hardware capability information field may include information regarding the hardware capabilities of
the mesh BS, such as support for multi-band transmission, for e.g., support of sub 6 GHz frequencies for
a mesh network operating at mm-wave/THz frequencies or vice-versa (e.g., standalone, non-standalone
mode of operation), transmission power of the BS, BS antenna height, number of spatial streams
supported/available, or remaining battery life for the transmitting BS for the case of a battery operated
mesh BSs” (paragraph 0119). JEON defines the term base station (BS) may refer to a transmit point (TP),
transmit-receive point (TRP), an enhanced base station (eNodeB or eNB), a 5G base station (gNB), a
macrocell, a femtocell, a WiFi access point (AP), or other wirelessly enabled devices. The base stations,
JEON informs the reader, may provide wireless access in accordance with one or more wireless
communication protocols, e.g., 5G 3GPP new radio interface/access (NR), long term evolution (LTE), LTE
advanced (LTE-A), high speed packet access (HSPA), Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, etc. JEON expounds that
regarding the hardware capabilities of the mesh BS, such as support for multi-band transmission
including standalone and non-standalone mode of operation.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the method and invention of NAYAK and BANGOLAE to include aspects described by JEON that “relates generally to wireless communication systems, more specifically, the present disclosure relates to neighbor discovery and wireless inter-connection in an advanced wireless communication system.” JEON provides the motivation for modification stating, “Increasing the deployment density of BSs is a way to increase data throughputs, via spatial reuse of frequencies. In fact, such spatial reuse has been one of the main contributors for increase in system throughput since the early days of cellular communication. While improving spatial reuse, a dense BS deployment may be inevitable at millimeter wave (mm-wave) and terahertz (THz) frequencies to improve coverage, by compensating for the pathloss and blockage” (paragraph 0087). JEON notes, “An effective way to “unleash” the BS deployment from fiber and provide improved coverage and better deployment density without additional expensive fiber deployment, is by using wireless backhaul for the BSs. To be most effective, such BSs may be capable of establishing one or more backhaul paths to the fiber network, with each path encompassing one or more wireless links...” (paragraphs 0090).
Claims 10-11, 13, 17-18, and 20 are method and memory claims corresponding to apparatus claims 3-4 and 6 that have already been rejected above. The applicant’s attention is directed to the rejection of claims 3-4 and 6. Claims 10-11, 13, 17-18, and 20 are rejected under the same rational as claims 3-4 and 6.
Claim(s) 7 and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over NAYAK, BANGOLAE, and JEON as applied to claims 6 and 13 above, and further in view of TZOREFF et al. (US 20210160139 A1, hereinafter, "TZOREFF").
Regarding claim 7, NAYAK, BANGOLAE, and JEON teach the system of claim 6,
NAYAK, BANGOLAE, and JEON fail to explicitly disclose information regarding, “wherein the one or more connection parameters is one or more of domain name service impairment of the mobile device and disconnection and reconnection of the mobile device and the local router.”
However, in analogous art, TZOREFF teaches wherein the one or more connection parameters
is one or more of domain name service impairment of the mobile device and disconnection and
reconnection of the mobile device and the local router.
TZOREFF writes, “Thus, once the Wi-Fi device is enabled again after sleep or after being essentially off
where the memories were reset but the stored connection data is not deleted, or after being
disconnected from the router, it is assumed that there is a good probability that there is a need to
connect to the same MRU Wi-Fi network. For example, a sensor coupled to a Wi-Fi device may still be at
one's home or in a factory. The stored connection data is accessed from the Wi-Fi device's memory, and
the Wi-Fi connection parameters are used to try to reconnect, first without performing a new full
scan…” (paragraph 0012). TZOREFF states that once the device is enabled again after sleep, off where
the memories were reset but the stored connection data is not deleted, or after being disconnected
from the router that there is a good probability that there is a need to connect to the same [most
recently used (MRU)] Wi-Fi network. The stored connection data is accessed from the Wi-Fi device's
memory, and the Wi-Fi connection parameters are used to try to reconnect, first without performing a
new full scan. Thus, TZOREFF indicates that after a disconnection, for instance a DNS impairment, that
the connection parameters will be used to attempt reconnection, first without performing a new full
scan.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the method and invention of NAYAK, BANGOLAE, and JEON to include aspects described by TZOREFF that “relate generally to the field of network communications, more specifically to Wi-Fi enabled devices and Wi-Fi communications.” TZOREFF provides the motivation for modification stating, “Advantages of disclosed Wi-Fi devices having a disclosed accelerated reconnecting to a Wi-Fi network algorithm include a significant improvement in battery lifetime for applications requiring temporary and short access to the network. Such Wi-Fi devices are highly suitable to IoT use cases. There is only a minor degradation in power in the case of a fast reconnection failure, in which conventional/smart scanning may then be used. Disclosed Wi-Fi devices are well suited for home automation, smart energy, multimedia devices, security and safety devices, and industrial machine-to-machine (M2M) applications” (paragraph 0050). TZOREFF notes, “A significant advantage of this first embodiment is that it completely avoids the need for the Wi-Fi device to perform any channel scanning.” (paragraphs 0027).
Claims 14 is a method claim corresponding to the apparatus claim 7 that has already been
rejected above. The applicant’s attention is directed to the rejection of claim 7. Claim 14 is rejected
under the same rational as claim 7.
Claims 5, 12, and 19 have been cancelled by the applicant, respectfully.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER A REYES whose telephone number is (703)756-4558. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:30 - 5:00 EDT.
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/Christopher A. Reyes/Examiner, Art Unit 2475 1/14/2026
/KHALED M KASSIM/supervisory patent examiner, Art Unit 2475