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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Remarks , filed April 7, 2026 with respect to Claims 1-20 have been fully considered and are persuasive. The 35 U.SC 102(a)(1) of claims 1-20 has been withdrawn.
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 prior to the effective filing date of the invention which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Viger et al. (GB 2592931 A1, hereinafter Viger) in view of Chu et al. (US 2021/0212150 A1, hereinafter Chu).
Regarding claim 1, Viger discloses a method, comprising: generating a radio frame, wherein the radio frame comprises a first multi-link element (MLE) and a second MLE, the first MLE comprises a first information element, and the second MLE comprises a second information element (Fig. 9, wherein the first and second MLE include MLE STA 1 and MLE STA 2);
and sending the radio frame (Fig. 9). Viger further describes multi-link information associated with stations and links (Fig. 8; p. 15, ll. 1-7). To the extent Viger does not expressly disclose that the first information element and the second information element correspond to station information of a same link in the precise claimed arrangement, Chu teaches multi-link management signaling in which information for affiliated APs/stations is associated with identified reported/reporting links
and carried in a management frame. Chu further teaches a Per STA Profile element including an Element ID, Element ID Extension, Link ID, and supplements, where the Link ID identifies the reported link (Chu, Fig. 6A; corresponding to the Per STA Profile format, including the disclosure that the Link ID indicates the reported link). Thus, it would have been obvious to
one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to apply Chu's explicit link-identification technique to Viger's multi-link frame so that station
information carried in multiple multi-link information structures is unambiguously associated with the proper link, thereby
yielding the predictable result of reliable per-link parsing and processing.
Regarding claim 2, Viger further discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein each information element of the first information element and the second information element comprises an identifier associated with the corresponding information, and the prior action maps the same-value relationship to p. 12, ll. 16-19 and p. 15, ll. 1-7. Chu expressly teaches a Per STA Profile element having a Link ID field identifying the reported link (Chu, Fig. 6A; Per STA Profile disclosure). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the time of invention touse the same Link ID value in information elements carrying station information for the same link because the Link ID performs the known function of identifying the link to which the information pertains.
Regarding claim 3, Viger further discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein the first information element comprises first indication information, and the first indication information indicates whether the station information is fragmented (Viger, p. 24, ll. 4-10).
Regarding claim 4, Viger further discloses the method according to claim 3, wherein the first indication information is carried in a station control field of the first information element (Viger, p. 24, ll. 6-15).
Regarding claim 5, Viger further discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein the first information element comprises second indication information, and the second indication information indicates a quantity of information elements that carry the station information (Viger, p. 15, ll. 1-7).
Regarding claim 6, Viger further discloses the method according to claim 5, wherein the second indication information is carried in a station control field of the first information element (Viger, p. 24, ll. 6-15).
Regarding claim 7, Viger further discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein the second information element comprises third indication information, and the third indication information indicates that the second information element is a last information element in a plurality of information elements that carry the station information (Viger, p. 4, ll. 1-10, as cited in the prior action).
Regarding claim 8, Viger further discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein the second information element does not comprise a station information field, or the second information element comprises the station information field and a value of the station information field is a reserved value (Viger, p. 15, ll. 1-7, as cited in the prior action).
Regarding claim 9, Viger further discloses the method according to claim 8, wherein an element type of the first information element is the same as an element type of the second information element (Viger, p. 15, ll. 1-7, as cited in the prior action).
Chu additionally teaches use of corresponding Per STA Profile element structures for link-specific information, including
multiple Per STA Profile elements when one element cannot carry all subelements (Chu, Per STA Profile disclosure). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the time of invention touse Chu's link identification in Viger's receiving apparatus so that the
processor can correctly associate and determine station information from the received multi-link frame.
Regarding claim 10, Viger discloses an apparatus comprising a transceiver, at least one processor, and at least one memory storing programming instructions for execution by the processor to generate a radio frame, wherein the radio frame comprises a first MLE and a second MLE, the first MLE comprises a first information element, and the second MLE comprises a second information element (Viger, Fig. 9), and wherein the transceiver is configured to send the radio frame (Viger, Fig. 9). To the extent Viger does not expressly disclose that the first and second information elements correspond to
station information of a same link in the precise claimed arrangement, Chu teaches the explicit per-link identification
discussed above. Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the time of invention to implement that known link-identification technique in Viger's
processor/transceiver apparatus for the same reasons discussed with respect to claim 1.
Regarding claim 11, Viger further discloses the apparatus according to claim 10, wherein each information element comprises an identifier associated with the corresponding information and the same-value relationship is mapped to p. 12, ll. 16-19 and p. 15, ll. 1-7. Chu expressly teaches a Link ID field in the Per STA Profile element identifying the reported link (Chu, Fig. 6A). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the time of invention touse the same Link ID in information elements corresponding to the same link for the reasons discussed with respect to claim 2.
Regarding claim 12, Viger further discloses the apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the first information element comprises first indication information, and the first indication information indicates whether the station information is fragmented (Viger, p. 24, ll. 4-10).
Regarding claim 13, Viger further discloses the apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the first indication information is carried in a station control field of the first information element (Viger, p. 24, ll. 6-15).
Regarding claim 14, Viger discloses an apparatus comprising a transceiver configured to receive a radio frame, wherein the radio frame comprises a first MLE and a second MLE (Viger, Fig. 2, wherein the first and second MLE include MLE STA 1 and MLE STA 2), the first MLE comprises a first information element, and the second MLE comprises a second
information element; at least one processor; and at least one memory coupled to the processor and storing programming instructions for execution by the processor to determine station information based on the radio frame. Viger further describes station operations including generating and sending multi-link request/response frames, allocating a traffic stream to an established link, and maintaining corresponding TSID-to-Link mapping (Viger, p. 15, ll. 1-7). To the extent Viger does not expressly disclose that the first and second information elements correspond to station information of a same link in the precise claimed arrangement, Chu teaches the explicit Link ID/per-link station-information arrangement
discussed above. Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the time of invention touse Chu's link identification in Viger's receiving apparatus so that the
processor can correctly associate and determine station information from the received multi-link frame.
Regarding claim 15, Viger further discloses the apparatus according to claim 14, wherein an element type of the first information element is the same as an element type of the second information element, as mapped in the prior action. Chu additionally teaches multiple Per STA Profile elements of the same defined element structure when one Per STA Profile element cannot carry all subelements (Chu, Per STA Profile disclosure). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the time of invention touse Chu's link identification in Viger's receiving apparatus so that the
processor can correctly associate and determine station information from the received multi-link frame.
Regarding claim 16, Viger further discloses the apparatus according to claim 14, wherein an element type of the first information element is different from an element type of the second information element (figure 8, page 15, lines 10-20). Chu teaches different defined
information structures in the multi-link signaling, including a Per STA Profile element and an Uninherited Element sub element (Chu, Figs. 6A-6B). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the time of invention to use the appropriate defined information structure for the
particular information being conveyed, which is a predictable selection among known element types in the same multi-link management framework.
Regarding claim 17, Viger further discloses the apparatus according to claim 16, wherein each information element comprises a type field and the type-field values are different (page 15, lines 10-20 ). Chu teaches that a Per STA Profile element contains an Element ID and Element ID Extension, while an Uninherited Element subelement contains a Subelement ID and Subelement ID Extension (Chu, Figs. 6A-6B; Per STA Profile and Uninherited Element disclosures). Thus, Chu teaches distinct identifier/type fields for different information structures. Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the time of invention touse Chu's link identification in Viger's receiving apparatus so that the processor can correctly associate and determine station information from the received multi-link frame.
Regarding claim 18, Viger further discloses the apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the type field is a sub element identifier field (page 15, lines 10-20). Chu expressly teaches an Uninherited Element subelement including a Subelement ID, Subelement Length,Subelement ID Extension, and Subelement Information (Chu, Fig. 6B; Uninherited Element subelement disclosure). Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the time of invention touse Chu's link identification in Viger's receiving apparatus so that the processor can correctly associate and determine station information from the received multi-link frame.
Regarding claim 19, Viger further discloses the apparatus according to claim 14, wherein in the radio frame, the first MLE and the second MLE are adjacent MLEs (Viger, Fig. 9, showing the relied-upon first and second MLE structures in the frame arrangement). Thus it would have been an obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the invention to utilize frame-layout choice to place related multi-link information structures consecutively so that the receiver can parse related information in sequence, yielding the predictable result of simplified frame processing.
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Viger and Chu in view of Chitrakar (WO 2021/262092 A1, hereinafter Chitrakar).
Regarding claim 20, Viger further discloses the apparatus according to claim 14. Viger and Chu do not expressly disclose that the second MLE does not comprise a common information field. Panasonic teaches a Multi-Link element having a Common Information field and further teaches that the Common Control field may be placed outside the Common Information field and may indicate whether the Multi-Link element carries the Common Information field (WO 2021/262092 A1, ¶[0097]). Thus, Panasonic teaches a Multi-Link element in which the Common Information field may be absent. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to employ Panasonic’s optional Common Information-field configuration in Viger’s second MLE to avoid transmitting redundant common information when that information is otherwise available, thereby reducing frame overhead and improving signaling efficiency.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ANGEL T BROCKMAN whose telephone number is (571)270-5664. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 6:00 AM-4:30 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Charles Jiang can be reached at 571-270-7191. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ANGEL T BROCKMAN/ Examiner, Art Unit 2412
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