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 .
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.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement filed 31 May 2024 fails to comply with 37 CFR 1.98(a)(2), which requires a legible copy of each cited foreign patent document; each non-patent literature publication or that portion which caused it to be listed; and all other information or that portion which caused it to be listed. It has been placed in the application file, but the information referred to therein has not been considered.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
¶¶66-75 recite “a single 996-tone RU” in line 2. For consistency and clarification with figures 8-17, it is recommended to change “a single 996-tone RU” in line 2 to “a single 3x996-tone RU”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Objections
Claims 2-11 and 13-22 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claims 2-11 and 13-22 recite the limitation “a single 996-tone RU” in line 2. For consistency and clarification with figures 8-17, it is recommended to change “a single 996-tone RU” in line 2 to “a single 3x996-tone RU”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP §§ 706.02(l)(1) - 706.02(l)(3) for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/process/file/efs/guidance/eTD-info-I.jsp.
Claims 1 and 12 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1 and 8 of U.S. Patent No. 12,452,118 B2 (hereinafter referred to as “Hu”). Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because claims 1 and 12 of the instant application merely broaden the scope of claims 1 and 8 of Hu.
Claims 2-3 and 13-14 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1 and 8 of Hu in view of Park et al. US 2021/0274484 A1 (hereinafter referred to as “Park”).
As to claims 2 and 13, Hu teaches the apparatus of claim 12.
Although Hu teaches “The apparatus of claim 12,” Hu does not explicitly disclose “the five…for RU3”.
However, Park teaches the five or more DC tones comprise five DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -500:-3, 3:500, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-500:-3, 3:500] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481 and 483-484; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around five DC tones).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to improve upon the apparatus described in Hu by including “the five…for RU3” as taught by Park because it provides Hu’s apparatus with the enhanced capability of supporting next-generation WLAN with backward compatibility (Park, ¶476).
As to claims 3 and 14, Hu teaches the apparatus of claim 12.
Although Hu teaches “The apparatus of claim 12,” Hu does not explicitly disclose “the five…for RU3”.
However, Park teaches the five or more DC tones comprise seven DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -501:-4, 4:501, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-501:-4, 4:501] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481, 483-484, and 487; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around seven DC tones).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to improve upon the apparatus described in Hu by including “the five…for RU3” as taught by Park because it provides Hu’s apparatus with the enhanced capability of supporting next-generation WLAN with backward compatibility (Park, ¶476).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-3 and 12-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Park et al. US 2021/0274484 A1 (hereinafter referred to as “Park”).
As to claims 1 and 12, Park teaches an apparatus (¶¶544-545; figure 18), comprising:
a transceiver configured to communicate wirelessly (¶¶544-545; figure 18: transceiver); and
a processor coupled to the transceiver and configured to perform operations comprising (¶¶544-545; figure 18: processor):
generating at least one 996-tone resource unit (RU996) (¶¶481-483, 485, 493, and 497-498: generate PPDU including at least one 996-tone RU); and
communicating wirelessly, via the transceiver, using the at least one RU996 in a 240MHz bandwidth (¶¶480, 484, and 514: transmit the at least one RU996 in a 240 MHZ bandwidth),
wherein the at least one RU996 comprises a center RU996 that is centered around five or more direct-current (DC) tones (¶¶481, 483, 485, and 487; figures 13-14: center RU996 centered around at least five DC tones).
As to claims 2 and 13, Park teaches the apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the five or more DC tones comprise five DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -500:-3, 3:500, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-500:-3, 3:500] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481 and 483-484; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around five DC tones).
As to claims 3 and 14, Park teaches the apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the five or more DC tones comprise seven DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -501:-4, 4:501, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-501:-4, 4:501] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481, 483-484, and 487; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around seven DC tones).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, 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) 4-11 and 15-22 are is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Park in view of Chen et al. US 2019/0253296 A1 (hereinafter referred to as “Chen”).
As to claims 4 and 15, Park teaches the apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the five or more DC tones comprise DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -502:-5, 5:502, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-502:-5, 5:502] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481, 483-484, and 487; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around DC tones).
Although Park teaches “the apparatus…comprise DC tones…for RU3,” Park does not explicitly disclose “nine DC tones”.
However, Chen teaches the five or more DC tones comprise nine DC tones (¶¶65, 72-76, and 87-88; figures 3 and 4A: center 996-tone RU of 240 MHz centered around nine (y=9, 5≤y≤23) DC tones).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to improve upon the apparatus described in Oh by including “nine DC tones” as taught by Chen because it provides Park’s apparatus with the enhanced capability of improving efficiency (Chen, ¶¶87-88).
As to claims 5 and 16, Park teaches the apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the five or more DC tones comprise DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -503:-6, 6:503, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-503:-6, 6:503] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481, 483-484, and 487; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around DC tones).
Although Park teaches “the apparatus…comprise DC tones…for RU3,” Park does not explicitly disclose “eleven DC tones”.
However, Chen teaches the five or more DC tones comprise eleven DC tones (¶¶65, 72-76, and 87-88; figures 3 and 4A: center 996-tone RU of 240 MHz centered around eleven (y=11, 5≤y≤23) DC tones).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to improve upon the apparatus described in Oh by including “eleven DC tones” as taught by Chen because it provides Park’s apparatus with the enhanced capability of improving efficiency (Chen, ¶¶87-88).
As to claims 6 and 17, Park teaches the apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the five or more DC tones comprise DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -504:-7, 7:504, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-504:-7, 7:504] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481, 483-484, and 487; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around DC tones).
Although Park teaches “the apparatus…comprise DC tones…for RU3,” Park does not explicitly disclose “thirteen DC tones”.
However, Chen teaches the five or more DC tones comprise thirteen DC tones (¶¶65, 72-76, and 87-88; figures 3 and 4A: center 996-tone RU of 240 MHz centered around thirteen (y=13, 5≤y≤23) DC tones).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to improve upon the apparatus described in Oh by including “thirteen DC tones” as taught by Chen because it provides Park’s apparatus with the enhanced capability of improving efficiency (Chen, ¶¶87-88).
As to claims 7 and 18, Park teaches the apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the five or more DC tones comprise DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -505:-8, 8:505, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-505:-8, 8:505] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481, 483-484, and 487; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around DC tones).
Although Park teaches “the apparatus…comprise DC tones…for RU3,” Park does not explicitly disclose “fifteen DC tones”.
However, Chen teaches the five or more DC tones comprise fifteen DC tones (¶¶65, 72-76, and 87-88; figures 3 and 4A: center 996-tone RU of 240 MHz centered around fifteen (y=15, 5≤y≤23) DC tones).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to improve upon the apparatus described in Oh by including “fifteen DC tones” as taught by Chen because it provides Park’s apparatus with the enhanced capability of improving efficiency (Chen, ¶¶87-88).
As to claims 8 and 19, Park teaches the apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the five or more DC tones comprise DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -506:-9, 9:506, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-506:-9, 9:506] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481, 483-484, and 487; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around DC tones).
Although Park teaches “the apparatus…comprise DC tones…for RU3,” Park does not explicitly disclose “seventeen DC tones”.
However, Chen teaches the five or more DC tones comprise seventeen DC tones (¶¶65, 72-76, and 87-88; figures 3 and 4A: center 996-tone RU of 240 MHz centered around seventeen (y=17, 5≤y≤23) DC tones).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to improve upon the apparatus described in Oh by including “seventeen DC tones” as taught by Chen because it provides Park’s apparatus with the enhanced capability of improving efficiency (Chen, ¶¶87-88).
As to claims 9 and 20, Park teaches the apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the five or more DC tones comprise DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -507:-10, 10:507, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-507:-10, 10:507] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481, 483-484, and 487; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around DC tones).
Although Park teaches “the apparatus…comprise DC tones…for RU3,” Park does not explicitly disclose “nineteen DC tones”.
However, Chen teaches the five or more DC tones comprise nineteen DC tones (¶¶65, 72-76, and 87-88; figures 3 and 4A: center 996-tone RU of 240 MHz centered around nineteen (y=19, 5≤y≤23) DC tones).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to improve upon the apparatus described in Oh by including “nineteen DC tones” as taught by Chen because it provides Park’s apparatus with the enhanced capability of improving efficiency (Chen, ¶¶87-88).
As to claims 10 and 21, Park teaches the apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the five or more DC tones comprise DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -508:-11, 11:508, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-508:-11, 11:508] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481, 483-484, and 487; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around DC tones).
Although Park teaches “the apparatus…comprise DC tones…for RU3,” Park does not explicitly disclose “twenty-one DC tones”.
However, Chen teaches the five or more DC tones comprise twenty-one DC tones (¶¶65, 72-76, and 87-88; figures 3 and 4A: center 996-tone RU of 240 MHz centered around twenty-one (y=21, 5≤y≤23) DC tones).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to improve upon the apparatus described in Oh by including “twenty-one DC tones” as taught by Chen because it provides Park’s apparatus with the enhanced capability of improving efficiency (Chen, ¶¶87-88).
As to claims 11 and 22, Park teaches the apparatus of Claim 12, wherein the five or more DC tones comprise DC tones, and wherein the at least one RU996 comprises:
a single 996-tone RU with a tone index and subcarrier range as [-1524:-1027, -1021:-524, -509:-12, 12:509, 524:1021, 1027:1524]; or
three 996-tone RUs comprising a first 996-tone RU (RU1), a second 996-tone RU (RU2) and a third 996-tone RU (RU3) with respective tone index and subcarrier ranges as:
[-1524:-1027, -1021:-524] for RU1;
[-509:-12, 12:509] for RU2; and
[524:1021, 1027:1524] for RU3 (¶¶481, 483-484, and 487; figures 13-14: single 3x996 RU or three 996 RUs from -1524 to 1524 centered around DC tones).
Although Park teaches “the apparatus…comprise DC tones…for RU3,” Park does not explicitly disclose “twenty-three DC tones”.
However, Chen teaches the five or more DC tones comprise twenty-three DC tones (¶¶65, 72-76, and 87-88; figures 3 and 4A: center 996-tone RU of 240 MHz centered around twenty-three (y=23, 5≤y≤23) DC tones).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to improve upon the apparatus described in Oh by including “twenty-three DC tones” as taught by Chen because it provides Park’s apparatus with the enhanced capability of improving efficiency (Chen, ¶¶87-88).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
Hu et al., US 2025/0310162 A1 – Wide Bandwidth Resource Unit Tone Plan Designs for Next-Generation WLAN
IEEE Std 802.11ax-2021 Amendment 1: Enhancements for High-Efficiency WLAN
Chen et al., US 2019/0281614 A1 – Systems and Methods of Communicating via Sub-Bands in Wireless Communication Networks
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JUSTIN T VAN ROIE whose telephone number is (571)270-0308. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm.
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, Ian N Moore can be reached at 571-272-3085. 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.
/JUSTIN T VAN ROIE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2469