DETAILED ACTION
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 amendment filed July 2, 2026, claim 1 has been amended, claims 2-10 canceled, claims 11- 28, are newly added, claims 1 and 11-28 are currently pending for examination.
Response to Arguments
Regarding Specification objections applicant’s arguments, see page 8 Section 2, filed July 2, 2026, with respect to the Title have been fully considered and are persuasive. The claim Specification objections have been withdrawn.
Regarding 35 U.S.C. 112 (f) Claim Interpretation applicant’s arguments, see page 8 Section 3, filed July 2, 2026, have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the 112 (f) rejection has been withdrawn.
Regarding 35 U.S.C. 103 applicant’s arguments, see page 8 Section 4 – page 13, filed July 2, 2026, with respect to amended claim 1 has been fully considered and are not persuasive.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Hence a new ground of rejection is further made in view of Smith (US Pub.:2023/0094149). A new ground of rejection is also presented in view of Beak (US Pub. No.:2024/0306224).
Regarding amended claim 1, the applicant argued that, see page 11 and page 12, “…Applicant would like to note that in the previous Office Action, it appears that the previous Office Action's discussion of TID-to-link mapping and link availability/unavailability based on the power state of an STA in Laurent has been regarded as corresponding to the TID mapping process upon removal of a link with respect to previous claim 1. (See page 5 of the previous Office Action, citing slides 10-13 of Laurent). However, Applicant respectfully submits that Laurent does not disclose the processing performed when a link is removed - as recited in amended independent claim 1. In Laurent, when a link becomes unavailable due to a power state such as a Doze state, that link still remains as an established link. Such a temporary unavailable state is different from removal of a link. In contrast, amended independent claim 1 is related to processing that is performed when a first link among a plurality of links is removed. Further, Laurent describes that the TID-to-link mapping can be dynamically updated and that the mapping is updated in association with a link transition. It should be noted that such a description in Laurent is merely with respect to a general mapping update for changing the link to be used. In particular, Applicant would like to make clear that Laurent does not disclose or suggest the following specific conditional processing recited in Applicant's amended independent claim 1 including:11(1) removing a first link among the plurality of links; and (2) when a first TID mapped to the first link is not mapped to any link other than the first link, mapping the first TID to all links other than the first link. Applicant respectfully submits that Laurent merely provides a general explanation of TID-to-link mapping and states that each TID should be mapped to at least one established link. Applicant respectfully that these general statements in Laurent that each TID should be mapped to at least one established link is different from the configuration set forth in Applicant's amended independent claim 1 as set forth in items (1) and (2) above.
In response to applicant's argument, the examiner respectfully disagrees with the argument above.
Regarding amended claim 1, Laurent clearly teaches, establishing connections with another communication apparatus via plurality of links (see slide 1 and slide 1, AP MLLE with an establishing unit, AP MLLE and non-AP MLLEs (another communication apparatus) exchange link capabilities via Link 1 (2.4GHz band) and Link 2 (5GHz band) to establish connections via link 1 and link 2, see also slides 7 and 8, Link 1,2,3 are setup / establishing connections); mapping a traffic identifiers (TIDs) to plurality of links (see slide 1, AP MLLE with a setting unit established link 1 and link 2 setup and set TID-to-link mapping, all TIDs to link 1 and link 2, see also slides 7 and 8, Link 1,2,3 are setup / mapping a traffic identifiers (TIDs), slide 9, Link 1,2,3 are setup • Step 2: TID-to-link mapping: all TIDs except TID7 on Link 1, TID7 on Link 2 Link 1 and 2 are enabled); and wherein when a first link among the plurality of links is removed in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality links by the establishing and the TID is mapped to the plurality of links by the mapping (see Slide 8, AP disables link 1 / a first link among the plurality of links is removed, and all TIDs now on link 2 and 3, clearly the link is removed when disable and all TIDS are on the Enable / non removed links), in a case where a first TID mapped to the first link by the mapping is not mapped to any link other than the first link among the plurality of links, the first TID is mapped to all links other than the first link among the plurality of links (see slide 8, AP disables/remove link 1 and enables link 2, all TIDs now on link 2 and 3, slide 9, Step 2: TID-to-link mapping: all TIDs except TID7 on Link 1, TID7 on Link 2, Link 1 and 2 are enabled).
Under the broadest reasonable interpretation, the combination of the systems as disclosed by Laurent and Cherian, as set forth in this office action, reads upon communication to “establishing connections with another communication apparatus via plurality of links; mapping a traffic identifiers (TIDs) to the plurality of links; and wherein when a first link among the plurality of links is removed (Laurent clearly teaches removing the first link by disabling and enabling all TIDs on the plurality of connected links) in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality links by the establishing and the TID is mapped to the plurality of links by the mapping, in a case where a first TID mapped to the first link by the mapping is not mapped to any link other than the first link among the plurality of links, the first TID is mapped to all links other than the first link among the plurality of links” as recites in the claim.
The applicant argued that for the reasons set forth in the arguments, see page 13 paragraphs 1-4, with respect to new claims 27 and 28, that they are allowable. Examiner respectfully disagree, per the above cited reasons, these claims are not allowable.
The applicant argued that (see page 13 paragraph 5), 11-26 which depends on the respective independent claim 1, are also allowable. Examiner respectfully disagree, per the above cited reasons, claims 11-26 are not allowable.
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 of this title, 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, 11-16, 18 and 20-26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Laurent et al. (Multi-link: steps for using a link, 2019-11-16), and further in view of Cherian et al. (US Pub. No.: 2021/0282047).
As per claim 1, Laurent disclose A communication apparatus (see Slide 1, Multi-link AP logical entity (AP MLLE)), the communication apparatus perform operations comprising:
establishing connections with another communication apparatus via plurality of links (see slide 1 and slide 1, AP MLLE with an establishing unit, AP MLLE and non-AP MLLEs (another communication apparatus) exchange link capabilities via Link 1 (2.4GHz band) and Link 2 (5GHz band) to establish connections via link 1 and link 2, see also slides 7 and 8, Link 1,2,3 are setup / establishing connections);
mapping a traffic identifiers (TIDs) to plurality of links (see slide 1, AP MLLE with a setting unit established link 1 and link 2 setup and set TID-to-link mapping, all TIDs to link 1 and link 2, see also slides 7 and 8, Link 1,2,3 are setup / mapping a traffic identifiers (TIDs), slide 9, Link 1,2,3 are setup
• Step 2: TID-to-link mapping: all TIDs except TID7 on Link 1, TID7 on Link 2 Link 1 and 2 are enabled); and
wherein when a first link among the plurality of links is removed in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality links by the establishing and the TID is mapped to the plurality of links by the mapping (see Slide 8, AP disables link 1 / a first link among the plurality of links is removed, and all TIDs now on link 2 and 3),
in a case where a first TID mapped to the first link by the mapping is not mapped to any link other than the first link among the plurality of links, the first TID is mapped to all links other than the first link among the plurality of links (see slide 8, AP disables link 1 and enables link 2, all TIDs now on link 2 and 3, slide 9, Step 2: TID-to-link mapping: all TIDs except TID7 on Link 1, TID7 on Link 2, Link 1 and 2 are enabled).
Although Laurent disclose a communication apparatus performing the above functionality as set forth above.
Laurent disclose however does not explicitly A communication apparatus comprising:
at least one memory that stores a set of instructions; and at least one processor that executes the instructions.
Cherian however disclose a communication apparatus (see Fig.2, a wireless communication device 200, Fig.3A, Fig.4, Fig. 9, wireless communication device 900) comprising:
at least one memory (see Fig. 2, memory 208) that stores a set of instructions (see para. 0048, the memory 208 store non-transitory processor- or computer-executable software (SW) code); and at least one processor (see Fig.2, Processor 206) that executes the instructions (see para. 0048, the memory 208 also can store non-transitory processor- or computer-executable software (SW) code containing instructions that, when executed by the processor 206, cause the processor to perform various operations described herein for wireless communication, including the generation, transmission, reception and interpretation of MPDUs, frames or packets, see also Fig.8, para. 0072-0083).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the functionality of a communication apparatus comprising:
at least one memory that stores a set of instructions; and at least one processor that executes the instructions, as taught by Cherian, in the system of Laurent, so as to determine one or more links associated with one or more traffic identifiers (TIDs) based on a mapping of a plurality of TIDs, including the one or more TIDs, to a plurality of links, including the one or more links, see Cherian, paragraphs 7-9.
As per claim 11, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
Laurent further disclose wherein the communication apparatus has a default mode for mapping all types of TIDs to the plurality of links (see Slide 8, a default mode for mapping all types of TIDs to the plurality of links, Slide 11, TID-to-link mapping: all TIDs to Link 1,2, see also Slide 12), and wherein processing for mapping the first TID to all links other than the first link among the plurality of links when the first link is removed is executed when the communication apparatus is not operating in the default mode (see Slide 8, when the first link is removed/disable, all TIDs now in link 2, Slide 10, TID-to-link mapping: all TIDs except TID7 on Link 1, TID7 on Link 2, Slide 13, the first link is removed is executed when the communication apparatus is not operating in the default mode, see also slide 5).
As per claim 12, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
Laurent further disclose wherein each of all types of TIDs is mapped to at least one of the plurality of links (see Slide 9, Slide 10, TID-to-link mapping: all TIDs except TID7 on Link 1, TID7 on Link 2, each of all types of TIDs is mapped to at least one of the plurality of links).
As per claim 13, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
Laurent further disclose wherein, when a first link among the plurality of links is removed in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality of links and the TID is mapped to the plurality of links, in a case where a first TID mapped to the first link is not mapped to any link other than the first link among the plurality of links, all types of TIDs are mapped to all links other than the first link among the plurality of links (see Slide 8, AP disables link I and enables link 2, All TIDs now in link 2).
As per claim 14, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
Laurent further disclose wherein, in response to receiving, from the other communication apparatus, a frame including a request to remove the first link, the communication apparatus performs mapping of the first TID to all links other than the first link among the plurality of links (see slides 4, 10-12, Step2: TID-to-link mapping: AP/non-AP MLLEs negotiate and agree which links to use for frame exchange and TID-to-link mapping, and per Slide 8, all TIDs now in link 2).
As per claim 15, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 14.
Laurent further disclose wherein information for removing the first link and information regarding the first TID to be mapped to all links other than the first link (see slides 4, 10-12, Step2: TID-to-link mapping: AP/non-AP MLLEs negotiate and agree which links to use for frame exchange and TID-to-link mapping); and
Cherian further disclose wherein information for removing the first link and information regarding the first TID to be mapped to all links other than the first link are stored in the frame (see para. 0057, an AP transmit a message including a traffic indication map (TIM)/ a frame, as well as a TID {a TID stored in a frame}, to multiple stations (STAs), see also para. 0058).
As per claim 16, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 15.
Laurent further disclose wherein the information regarding the first TID to be mapped to all links (see slides 4, 10-12, Step2: TID-to-link mapping: AP/non-AP MLLEs negotiate and agree which links to use for frame exchange and TID-to-link mapping); and
Cherian further disclose wherein the information regarding the first TID to be mapped to all links other than the first link is stored in a TID-to-Link Mapping element of the frame (see para. 0057, an AP transmit a message including a traffic indication map (TIM)/ a frame, as well as a TID { a TID-To-Link Mapping element}, to multiple stations (STAs), see also para. 0058).
As per claim 18, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 14.
Laurent further disclose wherein the frame is a management frame or an action frame compliant with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard (see slides 2, 10-12, multi-link operations for 802.llbe, and the different steps before using a link, and define the steps (TID-link mapping step)); and
Cherian further disclose wherein the frame is a management frame or an action frame compliant with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard (see para. 0003, 0004, 0035, as 802.11be networks, enable devices (which may be referred to as multi-link devices (MLDs)) to communicate via two or more communication links simultaneously).
As per claim 20, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
Laurent further disclose wherein the communication apparatus is an access point capable of performing communication compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standard (see slides 2, 10-12, multi-link operations for 802.llbe, and the different steps before using a link, and define the steps (TID-link mapping step)).
As per claim 21, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
Laurent further disclose wherein the communication apparatus performs communication in at least one of the 2.4 GHz band, the 5 GHz band, and the 6 GHz band (see Slides 8-12, AP MLLE performs communication in at least one of the 2.4 GHz band, the 5 GHz band, and the 6 GHz band).
As per claim 22, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
Cherian further disclose wherein the communication apparatus performs communication in at least one of the 4 MHz bandwidth, the 20 MHz bandwidth, the 40 MHz bandwidth, the 80 MHz bandwidth, the 160 MHz bandwidth, the 240 MHz bandwidth, and the 320 MHz bandwidth (see para. 0040, each communication apparatus communicates using the bandwidths of 20 MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, 160 MHz, and 320 MHz ).
As per claim 23, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
Cherian further disclose wherein the communication apparatus performs Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) communication compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standard (see para. 0029, a device performing OFDMA communication compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standard).
As per claim 24, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
Cherian further disclose wherein the communication apparatus communicates with the other communication apparatus using a resource unit (RU) in Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) communication compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standard (see para. 0029, a device using a RU in OFDMA communication compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standard).
As per claim 25, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
Cherian further disclose wherein the communication apparatus performs Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) communication (see para. 0029, a device performs MIMO communication).
As per claim 26, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
Laurent further disclose wherein the communication apparatus includes an antenna capable of communication in at least one of the 2.4 GHz band, the 5 GHz band, and the 6 GHz band (see Slides 8-12, AP MLLE with an antenna performs communication in at least one of the 2.4 GHz band, the 5 GHz band, and the 6 GHz band), and
Cherian further disclose the communication apparatus includes an antenna (see Fig.2, para. 0046, the RF transmitters and receivers, in turn, be coupled to one or more antennas, the wireless communication device 200 includes, or be coupled with, multiple transmit antennas (each with a corresponding transmit chain) and multiple receive antennas (each with a corresponding receive chain)).
As per claim 27, claim 27 is rejected the same way as claim 1.
As per claim 28, claim 28 is rejected the same way as claim 1. Cherian also disclose A non-transitory computer readable medium that stores a set of instructions (see para. 0009,0016, the wireless communication device includes at least one modem; at least one processor communicatively coupled with the at least one modem; and at least one memory communicatively coupled with the at least one processor and storing processor-readable code that, execute instructions by the at least one processor in conjunction with the at least one modem, see also para. 0126-0127).
Claim 19 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Laurent et al. (Multi-link: steps for using a link, 2019-11-16), in view of Cherian et al. (US Pub. No.: 2021/0282047) and further in view of Smith et al. (US Pub. No.: 2023/0094149).
As per claim 19, the combination of Laurent and Cherian disclose the communication apparatus according to claim 1.
The combination of Laurent and Cherian however does not explicitly disclose wherein there are eight types of TIDs.
Smith however disclose wherein there are eight types of TIDs (see para. 0038-0040, the plurality of TIDs are assigned to the links within the TID-to-link map such that a first TID of a TID pair is assigned to one link and a second TID of the TID pair is assigned to another link, the first TIDs of one or more of the TID pairs (e.g., TIDs 0, 2, 4, and 6) are assigned to first link 142, while the second TIDs of the one or more of the TID pairs (e.g., TIDs 1, 3, 5, and 7) are assigned to second link 144 / there are eight types of TIDs, see also para. 0050, 0057-0060).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the functionality of a communication apparatus comprising:
at least one memory that stores a set of instructions; and at least one processor that executes the instructions, as taught by Smith, in the system of Laurent and Cherian, so as to enable and facilitate seamless roaming for MLD clients and increasing capacity and throughput and no disruption, see Smith, paragraphs 2, 19-24.
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Second Rejection:
Claims 1 and 27-28 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Laurent et al. (Multi-link: steps for using a link, 2019-11-16), and further in view of Smith et al. (US Pub. No.: 2023/0094149).
As per claim 1, Laurent disclose A communication apparatus (see Slide 1, Multi-link AP logical entity (AP MLLE)), the communication apparatus perform operations comprising:
establishing connections with another communication apparatus via plurality of links (see slide 1 and slide 1, AP MLLE with an establishing unit, AP MLLE and non-AP MLLEs (another communication apparatus) exchange link capabilities via Link 1 (2.4GHz band) and Link 2 (5GHz band) to establish connections via link 1 and link 2, see also slides 7 and 8, Link 1,2,3 are setup / establishing connections);
mapping a traffic identifiers (TIDs) to plurality of links (see slide 1, AP MLLE with a setting unit established link 1 and link 2 setup and set TID-to-link mapping, all TIDs to link 1 and link 2, see also slides 7 and 8, Link 1,2,3 are setup / mapping a traffic identifiers (TIDs), slide 9, Link 1,2,3 are setup
• Step 2: TID-to-link mapping: all TIDs except TID7 on Link 1, TID7 on Link 2 Link 1 and 2 are enabled); and
wherein when a first link among the plurality of links is removed in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality links by the establishing and the TID is mapped to the plurality of links by the mapping (see Slide 8, AP disables link 1 / a first link among the plurality of links is removed, and all TIDs now on link 2 and 3),
in a case where a first TID mapped to the first link by the mapping is not mapped to any link other than the first link among the plurality of links, the first TID is mapped to all links other than the first link among the plurality of links (see slide 8, AP disables link 1 and enables link 2, all TIDs now on link 2 and 3, slide 9, Step 2: TID-to-link mapping: all TIDs except TID7 on Link 1, TID7 on Link 2, Link 1 and 2 are enabled).
Although it is obvious Laurent teaches when a first link among the plurality of links is removed in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality links by the establishing and the TID is mapped to the plurality of links by the mapping;
Laurent disclose however does not explicitly A communication apparatus comprising:
at least one memory that stores a set of instructions; and at least one processor that executes the instructions and specifically use the term “removed”.
Smith however disclose a communication apparatus (see Fig.9, a computing device 900, see para. 0098-0099) comprising: at least one memory (see Fig. 9, a memory unit 915) that stores a set of instructions (see para. 0098, the memory 208 store software code); and at least one processor (see Fig.9, a processing unit 910) that executes the instructions (see para. 0098-100, while executing on processing unit 910, software module 920 performs, processes for establishing a TID-to-link map for use in directing data traffic over a link of a multi-AP MLD entity) and
when a first link among the plurality of links is removed in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality links by establishing and a TID is mapped to a plurality of links by the mapping (see Fig.3, 0048-0053, a first link 142 among the plurality of links is removed / the first link 142 may be removed, and may be replaced with a link established between client device 104 and the identified neighboring AP, in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality links by establishing and a TID is mapped to a plurality of links by the mapping, see also Fig.4B, para. 0060-0063).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the functionality of A communication apparatus comprising:
at least one memory that stores a set of instructions; and at least one processor that executes the instructions and “removed/removing” a link, as taught by Smith, in the system of Laurent, so as to enable and facilitate seamless roaming for MLD clients and increasing capacity and throughput and no disruption, see Smith, paragraphs 2, 19-24.
As per claim 27, claim 27 is rejected the same way as claim 1.
As per claim 28, claim 28 is rejected the same way as claim 1.
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Third Rejection:
Claims 1 and 27-28 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Laurent et al. (Multi-link: steps for using a link, 2019-11-16), and further in view of Beak et al. (US Pub. No.: 2024/0306224).
As per claim 1, Laurent disclose A communication apparatus (see Slide 1, Multi-link AP logical entity (AP MLLE)), the communication apparatus perform operations comprising:
establishing connections with another communication apparatus via plurality of links (see slide 1 and slide 1, AP MLLE with an establishing unit, AP MLLE and non-AP MLLEs (another communication apparatus) exchange link capabilities via Link 1 (2.4GHz band) and Link 2 (5GHz band) to establish connections via link 1 and link 2, see also slides 7 and 8, Link 1,2,3 are setup / establishing connections);
mapping a traffic identifiers (TIDs) to plurality of links (see slide 1, AP MLLE with a setting unit established link 1 and link 2 setup and set TID-to-link mapping, all TIDs to link 1 and link 2, see also slides 7 and 8, Link 1,2,3 are setup / mapping a traffic identifiers (TIDs), slide 9, Link 1,2,3 are setup
• Step 2: TID-to-link mapping: all TIDs except TID7 on Link 1, TID7 on Link 2 Link 1 and 2 are enabled); and
wherein when a first link among the plurality of links is removed in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality links by the establishing and the TID is mapped to the plurality of links by the mapping (see Slide 8, AP disables link 1 / a first link among the plurality of links is removed, and all TIDs now on link 2 and 3),
in a case where a first TID mapped to the first link by the mapping is not mapped to any link other than the first link among the plurality of links, the first TID is mapped to all links other than the first link among the plurality of links (see slide 8, AP disables link 1 and enables link 2, all TIDs now on link 2 and 3, slide 9, Step 2: TID-to-link mapping: all TIDs except TID7 on Link 1, TID7 on Link 2, Link 1 and 2 are enabled).
Although it is obvious Laurent teaches when a first link among the plurality of links is removed in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality links by the establishing and the TID is mapped to the plurality of links by the mapping;
Laurent disclose however does not explicitly A communication apparatus comprising:
at least one memory that stores a set of instructions; and at least one processor that executes the instructions and specifically use the term “removed”.
Beak however disclose a communication apparatus (see Fig.1, a wireless communication device 100, see para. 0040-0044) comprising: at least one memory (see Fig. 1, a memory 104) that stores a set of instructions (see para. 0042-0045, the memory store software code); and at least one processor (see Fig.1, one or more processors 102) that executes the instructions (see para. 0042-0047, executes the instructions) and
when a first link among the plurality of links is removed in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality links by establishing and a TID is mapped to a plurality of links by the mapping (see Fig. 17, 0228-0239, Fig.18, 0241-0246, a first link among a plurality of links is removed / deleted/deleting, the operation of deleting the TID-to-Link mapping information of a link in an enabled state and converting it to a disabled state, in a state where the communication apparatus and the other communication apparatus are connected via the plurality links by establishing and a TID is mapped to a plurality of links by the mapping, see also Fig.4B, para. 0060-0063).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the functionality of A communication apparatus comprising:
at least one memory that stores a set of instructions; and at least one processor that executes the instructions and “removed/removing/deleting” a link, as taught by Beak, in the system of Laurent, so as to provide a method and device for performing TID-to-link mapping during link management in a wireless LAN system and a method and device for changing (or updating/re-mapping) information of a TID mapped to a link after a multi-link setup process in a wireless LAN system is enabled, see Beak, paragraphs 5-11.
As per claim 27, claim 27 is rejected the same way as claim 1.
As per claim 28, claim 28 is rejected the same way as claim 1.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 17 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Guogang (Discussion on Multi-Link Setup, 2020-09-02) – see slide 6, “The AP MLD change the STA-AP association relationship in the Reassociation Response Frame”.
Kwon (US Pub. No.:2021/0144698) – see Fig.1, Fig.2, para. 0016-0018, “When a first MLD, for example a non-Access Point (AP) MLD associates with a second MLD (e.g., an AP MLD), the first MLD transmits an Operating Mode (OM) 16 to the second MLD. In the example embodiment 10, the OM includes a multi-link capability of 8 SS for the first link 12 and 8 SS for the second link 14. In one embodiment, the first MLD includes an “N” number of RF chains and supports more than N SS streams per configured link (e.g., by sharing RF chain hardware with more than one SS). Subsequent to configuring the links 12 and 14 for multi-link operation with RF chains for corresponding supported SS for each link, and reporting the OM 16, data frames 18 and 20 are communicated over the respective links 12 and 14. The term “communicated” in this context means to transmit, receive or transceiver between the first MLD and the second MLD. In one example the first link 12 uses the 5 GHz band, while the second link 14 uses the 6 GHz band”.
EDWARD AU: "Draft P802.11be_D1.0.pdf", IEEE DRAFT WGDS; 942232876538, IEEE-SA IMEET CENTRAL, PISCATAWAY, NJ USA vol. 802.11 (IDS submitted 7/23/2025) - Editorial 24 May 2021 (2021-05-24), - see para. 255, 258-259.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 LAKERAM JANGBAHADUR whose telephone number is (571)272-1335. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 7 am - 4 pm.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ian Moore can be reached on 571-272-3085. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/LAKERAM JANGBAHADUR/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2469
Prosecution Insights