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 .
Claims 1-20 are pending.
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.
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.
Claim(s) 1-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Messer USPGPUB 2015/0046761 (hereinafter “Messer”) in view of Meyer et al. USPGPUB 2013/0204984 (hereinafter “Messer”).
As to claim 1, Messer teaches an electronic device (FIG. 1 computer system) comprising: a management controller (paragraph 0029 and FIG. 1 “management controller”) to: identify modular assemblies installed in the electronic device (paragraph 0061-0064 “appending the information to include various offsets and identifiers” and FIG. 1-2); access a data repository based on the identified modular assemblies to retrieve assembly information elements of the identified modular assemblies (paragraph 0064-0067 “retrieves the particular file from the location as specified, and writes the information contained in the particular file to the FRU image binary, according to one embodiment. In certain embodiments, the identifier will be followed by the name of the particular parameter or value, but no location information”); obtain a compiled representation of the assembly information elements (paragraph 0064-0066 “received information file and checks for a particular identifier, token, or tag that signifies a particular FRUID area to which the information immediately following relates. For example, according to one aspect, when the program encounters a tag such as <InternalUseArea> or "InternalUseArea", the program recognizes that the information that follows relates specifically to the Internal Use Area”).
Messer does not explicitly teach store, in a memory, the compiled representation of the assembly information elements; and a non-transitory storage medium storing instructions that upon execution cause the electronic device to use the compiled representation of the assembly information elements retrieved from the memory in interactions with the modular assemblies.
However, Meyer teaches store, in a memory, the compiled representation of the assembly information elements (paragraph 0016-0018 “stored in memory of the central management server, and managing, by the frame manager, the first FRU using the obtained management records”); and a non-transitory storage medium storing instructions that upon execution cause the electronic device to use the compiled representation of the assembly information elements retrieved from the memory in interactions with the modular assemblies (paragraph 0058-0060 “state of one or more FRUs 112 being interfaced and active (e.g., all manual servicing of the frame 100 is complete). The LEDs 180 may also indicate proper transition from initial to final state as well as error states that may require additional specific recovery operations”).
Messer and Meyer are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor and contain overlapping structural and functional similarities. They both relate to electronic device system.
Therefore at the time of effective filing date, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the above electronic device system, as taught by Messer, and incorporating compiled representation of the assembly information elements retrieved from the memory in interactions with the modular assemblies, as taught by Meyer.
One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to improve monitoring, controlling or providing an architecture or protocol that facilitates communication between a system controller or manager (e.g., including management software) and one or more unique devices being managed, as suggested by Meyer (paragraph 0006).
As to claim 2, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein the management controller is to identify the modular assemblies installed in the electronic device based on retrieving identifiers of the modular assemblies from respective memories of the modular assemblies (paragraph 0066-0067 “retrieves the particular file from the location as specified, and writes the information contained in the particular file to the FRU image binary, according to one embodiment. In certain embodiments, the identifier will be followed by the name of the particular parameter or value, but no location information, in which case the program retrieves the parameter or value from a default location”).
As to claim 3, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein the data repository comprises assembly information elements for a collection of modular assemblies, and wherein the identified modular assemblies are part of a subset of the collection of modular assemblies (paragraph 0069-0072).
As to claim 4, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein the collection of modular assemblies comprises a modular assembly that is not part of the identified modular assemblies (paragraph 0072-0077).
As to claim 5, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein an assembly information element of the assembly information elements comprises one or more of: information relating to a model of a respective modular assembly of the modular assemblies, a part number of the respective modular assembly, a serial number of the respective modular assembly, manufacturing information of the respective modular assembly, or revision information of the respective modular assembly (paragraph 0068-0071).
As to claim 6, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Meyer further teaches wherein an assembly information element of the assembly information elements comprises one or more of: thermal operation information of the respective modular assembly, power operation information of the respective modular assembly, program code for the respective modular assembly, or information of a management protocol supported by the respective modular assembly (paragraph 0039-0042).
As to claim 7, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Meyer further teaches wherein the management controller is to perform the identifying, the accessing, the obtaining, and the storing during a manufacturing stage of the electronic device (paragraph 0055-0063).
As to claim 8, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches further comprising: a central processing unit (CPU), wherein the management controller comprises a baseboard management controller (BMC) separate from the CPU, and the instructions comprise instructions of the BMC or instructions executable on the CPU (paragraph 0082 and FIG. 1-2).
As to claim 9, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein the management controller is to identify the modular assemblies installed in the electronic device based on application of a root of management process that gathers information of a primary system and accumulates information of a plurality of branches from the primary system, wherein the modular assemblies are represented by respective branches of the plurality of branches (paragraph 0048-0049 and FIG. 2-3).
As to claim 10, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein the primary system is represented by a root of a hierarchy from which the plurality of branches depend (paragraph 0046-0049).
As to claim 11, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein the plurality of branches comprise multiple levels of branches, and the management controller is to identify the modular assemblies installed in the electronic device based on iteratively traversing the multiple levels of branches using connectivity information in the assembly information elements (FIG. 1-3 and paragraph 0045-0051).
As to claim 12, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein a branch in a first level of the multiple levels represents a connection plane to which one or more modular assemblies are removably connected, and wherein the one or more modular assemblies removably connected to the connection plane are part of a second level in the hierarchy that is below the first level (paragraph .
As to claim 13, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein the identified modular assemblies comprise field replaceable units (FRUs) (paragraph FIG. 1 and paragraph 0067-0068).
As to claim 14, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein an assembly information element for a first modular assembly of the identified modular assemblies comprises a reference link that refers to an external source of information for the first modular assembly, and wherein the compiled representation of the assembly information elements obtained by the management controller comprises the information obtained from the external source using the reference link (paragraph 0045-0050).
As to claim 15, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein the management controller is to: update the compiled representation of the assembly information elements responsive to an update of the information in the external source for the first modular assembly (paragraph 0054-0055).
As to claim 16, is related to claim 1 with similar limitations also rejected by same rational.
As to claim 17, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Meyer further teaches wherein the compiled representation of the assembly information elements comprises a hierarchical arrangement of the assembly information elements representing a hierarchical interconnection of the installed modular assemblies in the electronic device (paragraph 0096-0097).
As to claim 18, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein the hierarchical arrangement of the assembly information elements comprises multiple levels of branches representing respective modular assemblies of the installed modular assemblies, and wherein the instructions upon execution cause the management controller to identify the installed modular assemblies in the electronic device based on iteratively traversing the multiple levels of branches using connectivity information in the assembly information elements (paragraph 0008-0010 and claim 1 and 2).
As to claim 19, is related to claim 1 with similar limitations also rejected by same rational.
As to claim 20, Messer and Meyer teach all the limitations of the base claims as outlined above.
Messer further teaches wherein the obtaining of the compiled representation of the assembly information elements comprises one of: compiling, by the management controller, the assembly information elements retrieved from the data repository, or receiving, by the management controller over the network from a modular assembly information compiler, the compiled representation of the assembly information elements generated by the modular assembly information compiler from the assembly information elements retrieved from the data repository (paragraph 0066-0072).
It is noted that any citations to specific, pages, columns, lines, or figures in the prior art references and any interpretation of the reference should not be considered to be limiting in any way. A reference is relevant for all it contains and may be relied upon for all that it would have reasonably suggested to one having ordinary skill in the art. See MPEP 2123.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and listed on the attached PTO Form 892 but not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
CHIU et al USPGPUB 20140122753 A1 a management method thereof, and a rack serving system are presented. A management interface packet is transferred to a second connection port of a storage interface through a first connection port of a baseboard management controller (BMC). Also, a hard disk drive (HDD) controller of the storage interface converts the management interface packet into an internal control command that conforms to the storage interface, so as to read the system environment information according to the internal control command. Additionally, the HDD controller encapsulates the system environment information into a response packet, and transfers the response packet to the first connection port of the BMC through the second connection port.
Taylor et al. USPGPUB 20100106562 teaches a method is devised for tailoring downloaded content to the requesting user by upon receiving a message requesting content. The message includes information that provides information about a user requesting the content. Before receipt by the requesting user, the content is modified by inserting user-targeted information directly within the content. The user-targeted information is retrieved using the information. Thereafter, the modified content is transmitted to a device controlled by the requesting user.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ZIAUL KARIM whose telephone number is (571)270-3279. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Thursday 8:00-4:00 PM EST.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Mohammad Ali can be reached on 571 272 4105. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ZIAUL KARIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2119
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