DETAILED ACTION
Status of Case
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
This Office Action is in response to the amendment filed on 6/29/2026.
Claims 1-20 are pending.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed on 6/29/2026 with respect to the pending claims have been considered but are moot because Examiner has applied a new grounds of rejection.
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.
Claims 1, 3-5, 10, 12-14, and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Seok (Mediatek, “PDT-MLO-TID-to-Link-mapping,” IEEE Draft; 11-21-0019-04-00BE-PDT-MLO-TID-TO-LINK-MAPPING, IEEE-SA MENTOR, Piscataway, NJ, USA, vol. 802.11 EHT; 802.11be, no. 4, 4 March 2021, pages 1-11, XP068179452) (cited in Applicant’s IDS filed on 1/3/2025) in view of Park (USPAN 2021/0100053).
Consider claims 1 and 19, Seok discloses a communication method (see paragraph 35.3.6.1.3: “a non-AP MLD may initiate a TID-to-link mapping negotiation by include the TID-to-Link Mapping element in the (Re)Association Request frame”: that is, the frame must be generated and sent; see also paragraphs 9.3.3.5 or 9.3.3.7, disclosing that the Association and Reassociation Request frames comprise both a TID-to-Link Mapping element; and paragraph 9.4.2.295d, disclosing the format of the TID-to-Link Mapping element), and a corresponding communication apparatus, wherein the communication apparatus comprises a processor, and the processor is coupled to a memory; and the processor is configured to execute a computer program stored in the memory (see paragraph 35.3.6.1.3: Examiner submits that it is inherent that a MLD device would comprise a processor and memory), to enable the communication apparatus to perform the following steps:
generating a first frame (see paragraph 35.3.6.1.3: “a non-AP MLD may initiate a TID-to-link mapping negotiation by include the TID-to-Link Mapping element in the (Re)Association Request frame”: that is, the frame must be generated and sent), wherein the first frame comprises a first field (see paragraph 9.4.2.295d and figure 9-788en: “TID bitmap”), the first field indicates a relationship between a first link and at least one link set (see paragraph 9.4.2.295d: “The TID Bitmap subfield indicates a set of TIDs for which the TID-to-Link Mapping Info field provides the link mapping information. A value of 1 in bit position i of the TID Bitmap subfield means that the Link Bitmap subfield in the TID-to-Link Mapping Info field specifies the link mapping information of TID i”), the first link is any one of at least one link established between a first MLD and a second MLD, and one link set comprises one or more of the at least one link (see paragraph 9.4.2.295d: “The Link Bitmap subfield indicates a set of links on which frames belonging to the set of TIDs specified in the TID Bitmap subfield are sent; see figure 9-788en: “Link Bitmap”: that is, the TID Bitmap indicates the TID, that is, the “set of links” for which the Link Bitmap applies, that is, the links indicated in the Link Bitmap belong to the TID indicated in the TID Bitmap; in this respect, it is noted that the claim does not further define the “link set” and a TID can be taken as being a “link set”); and
sending the first frame (see paragraph 35.3.6.1.3: “a non-AP MLD may initiate a TID-to-link mapping negotiation by include the TID-to-Link Mapping element in the (Re)Association Request frame”; that is, the frame must be generated and sent).
Park discloses that a first field indicates a relationship between a first link and at least one link set (see paragraph 62: “The Link Bitmap field indicates the bitmap of the link identifiers. Each link between the AP and STA MLDs is assigned with a link ID and each bit position of the bitmap corresponds to the link ID. When a bit position n is set to 1, the PM bit, trigger frame, or the EOSP bit applies to the link that is assigned with the link ID=n. When a bit position n is set to 0, the PM bit, trigger frame, nor the EOSP bit does apply to the link with the link ID=n. For example, if a bitmap bit associated with STA 1 of an non-AP MLD is set to 1, this indicates that whatever the PM bit, for example, is set to applies to STA 1. That is, the bit link bitmap field is used to indicate which link(s) the PM bit applies to.”).
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 invention of Seok and combine it with the noted teachings of Park. The motivation to combine these references is to provide a method for multi-link power save indication (see paragraph 1 of Park).
Consider claims 3 and 12, Seok discloses that the first field indicates a link set to which the first link belongs (see paragraph 9.4.2.295d: “The TID Bitmap subfield indicates a set of TIDs for which the TID-to-Link Mapping Info field provides the link mapping information. A value of 1 in bit position i of the TID Bitmap subfield means that the Link Bitmap subfield in the TID-to-Link Mapping Info field specifies the link mapping information of TID i”).
Consider claims 4 and 13, Seok discloses that the first field is a bitmap (see paragraph 9.4.2.295d: TID bitmap).
Consider claims 5 and 14, Seok does not specifically disclose that the first frame further comprises a second field, and the second field indicates whether the first field exists.
Park discloses that the first frame further comprises a second field, and the second field indicates whether the first field exists (see paragraph 94: set a more data field to 0 or 1 indicating whether there are more data frames to be sent, thereby indicating whether a first field exists or not).
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 invention of Seok and combine it with the noted teachings of Park. The motivation to combine these references is to provide a method for multi-link power save indication (see paragraph 1 of Park).
Consider claim 10, Seok discloses a communication method (see paragraph 35.3.6.1.3: “a non-AP MLD may initiate a TID-to-link mapping negotiation by include the TID-to-Link Mapping element in the (Re)Association Request frame”: that is, the frame must be generated and sent; see also paragraphs 9.3.3.5 or 9.3.3.7, disclosing that the Association and Reassociation Request frames comprise both a TID-to-Link Mapping element; and paragraph 9.4.2.295d, disclosing the format of the TID-to-Link Mapping element), comprising:
receiving, by a second multi-link device (MLD), a first frame (see paragraph 35.3.6.1.3: “a non-AP MLD may initiate a TID-to-link mapping negotiation by include the TID-to-Link Mapping element in the (Re)Association Request frame”; that is, the frame must be generated and sent and thereby received), wherein the first frame comprises a first field (see paragraph 9.4.2.295d and figure 9-788en: “TID bitmap”), the first field indicates a relationship between a first link and at least one link set (see paragraph 9.4.2.295d: “The TID Bitmap subfield indicates a set of TIDs for which the TID-to-Link Mapping Info field provides the link mapping information. A value of 1 in bit position i of the TID Bitmap subfield means that the Link Bitmap subfield in the TID-to-Link Mapping Info field specifies the link mapping information of TID i”), the first link is any one of at least one link established between a first MLD and the second MLD, and one link set comprises one or more of the at least one link (see paragraph 9.4.2.295d: “The Link Bitmap subfield indicates a set of links on which frames belonging to the set of TIDs specified in the TID Bitmap subfield are sent; see figure 9-788en: “Link Bitmap”: that is, the TID Bitmap indicates the TID, that is, the “set of links” for which the Link Bitmap applies, that is, the links indicated in the Link Bitmap belong to the TID indicated in the TID Bitmap; in this respect, it is noted that the claim does not further define the “link set” and a TID can be taken as being a “link set”); and
obtaining a relationship between the first link and the at least one link set based on the first frame (see paragraph 9.4.2.295d: “The TID Bitmap subfield indicates a set of TIDs for which the TID-to-Link Mapping Info field provides the link mapping information. A value of 1 in bit position i of the TID Bitmap subfield means that the Link Bitmap subfield in the TID-to-Link Mapping Info field specifies the link mapping information of TID i”).
Claims 2, 11, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Seok (Mediatek, “PDT-MLO-TID-to-Link-mapping,” IEEE Draft; 11-21-0019-04-00BE-PDT-MLO-TID-TO-LINK-MAPPING, IEEE-SA MENTOR, Piscataway, NJ, USA, vol. 802.11 EHT; 802.11be, no. 4, 4 March 2021, pages 1-11, XP068179452) (cited in Applicant’s IDS filed on 1/3/2025) in view of Park (USPAN 2021/0100053) and Kwon (USPAN 2021/0144698).
Consider claims 2, 11, and 20, Seok discloses that the first field indicates whether the first link belongs to a first link set, and the at least one link set is the first link set (see paragraph 9.4.2.295d: “The TID Bitmap subfield indicates a set of TIDs for which the TID-to-Link Mapping Info field provides the link mapping information. A value of 1 in bit position i of the TID Bitmap subfield means that the Link Bitmap subfield in the TID-to-Link Mapping Info field specifies the link mapping information of TID i”).
Seok does not specifically disclose that the at least one link set is an enhanced multi-link multi-radio (EMLMR) link set.
Kwon discloses that the at least one link set is an enhanced multi-link multi-radio (EMLMR) link set (see paragraph 40: “A non-AP MLD may operate in the enhanced multi-link multi-radio (EMLMR) mode on a specified set of the enabled links between the non-AP MLD and its associated AP MLD. The specified set of the enabled links in which the EMLMR mode is applied is called EMLMR links”).
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 invention of Seok and combine it with the noted teachings of Kwon. The motivation to combine these references is to provide a method for processing multiple antennas in a multi-link wireless communication system (see paragraph 2), as well as operating in an EMLMR multi-link system to allow for more efficient wireless communications.
Claims 6-9 and 15-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Seok (Mediatek, “PDT-MLO-TID-to-Link-mapping,” IEEE Draft; 11-21-0019-04-00BE-PDT-MLO-TID-TO-LINK-MAPPING, IEEE-SA MENTOR, Piscataway, NJ, USA, vol. 802.11 EHT; 802.11be, no. 4, 4 March 2021, pages 1-11, XP068179452) (cited in Applicant’s IDS filed on 1/3/2025) in view of Park (USPAN 2021/0100053) and Kim (USPAN 2021/0259033).
Consider claims 6 and 15, although Seok in view of Park disclose the second field (see above), Seok and Park do not specifically disclose the second field is carried in a Per-STA Profile field that is configured for each station and that is of a multi-link element Multi-Link element.
Kim discloses a second field that is carried in a Per-STA Profile field that is configured for each station and that is of a multi-link element Multi-Link element (see paragraph 300: a per-STA profile control field in a multi-link system).
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 invention of Seok and combine it with the noted teachings of Kim. The motivation to combine these references is to provide a method for transmitting information related to a link in a multi-link communication (see paragraph 2 of Kim).
Consider claims 7 and 16, although Seok in view of Park disclose the first frame (see above), Seok and Park do not specifically disclose an additional field, and the additional field indicates a number of the at least one link set.
Kim discloses an additional field, and the additional field indicates a number of the at least one link set (see paragraph 300: a per-STA control may may include at least one of a link ID, i.e. a number of the at least one link set).
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 invention of Seok and combine it with the noted teachings of Kim. The motivation to combine these references is to provide a method for transmitting information related to a link in a multi-link communication (see paragraph 2 of Kim).
Consider claims 8 and 17, although Seok in view of Park disclose the first frame (see above), Seok and Park do not specifically disclose the additional field is carried in a common information field of a multi-link element.
Kim discloses the additional field is carried in a common information field of a multi-link element (see paragraph 140: a common information field).
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 invention of Seok and combine it with the noted teachings of Kim. The motivation to combine these references is to provide a method for transmitting information related to a link in a multi-link communication (see paragraph 2 of Kim).
Consider claims 9 and 18, although Seok in view of Park disclose the second field (see above), Seok and Park do not specifically disclose the second field is carried in a Per-STA Profile field that is configured for each station and that is of a multi-link element Multi-Link element.
Kim discloses a second field that is carried in a Per-STA Profile field that is configured for each station and that is of a multi-link element Multi-Link element (see paragraph 300: a per-STA profile control field in a multi-link system).
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 invention of Seok and combine it with the noted teachings of Kim. The motivation to combine these references is to provide a method for transmitting information related to a link in a multi-link communication (see paragraph 2 of Kim).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Jamal Javaid whose telephone number is 571-270-5137 and email address is Jamal.Javaid@uspto.gov.
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, Charles Jiang, can be reached on 571-270-7191. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free).
/JAMAL JAVAID/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2412
Prosecution Insights