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 .
This Office action is in response to the application filed on 03/01/2024.
Claims 1-20 are presented for examination.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 06/04/2024 is compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
As to claims 1, 8 and 15, they recite “determining a performance”, “higher
performance” and “selecting between network links based on performance. However, the term “higher performance” in claims is vague and indefinite because they lack a clear boundary or clear point of comparison. The claims 1, 8 and 15 do not specify the criteria or metrics used to evaluate performance for selecting which link is considered to have higher performance. Accordingly, the scope of the claims is unclear, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the boundaries of the claimed invention.
The preamble of claim 15 recites “at least one processor configured to determine a
performance of a wireless local area network link for a first electronic device”. However, the body of the claim further recites “determine a performance”, “automatically select”, and “transmit data”, without clearly specifying whether each of these additional functional steps is performed by the “at least one processor”. As such, the claim does not clearly and unambiguously recite that the processor performs all of the subsequent recited functional steps, including “determine a performance”, “automatically select”, and “transmit data”.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
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 1-6, 8-13 and 15-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Okhravi et al. (US 2015/0109940 A1), in view of MEDAPALLI (US 2014/0192642 A1).
As to claims 1 and 8, Okhravi discloses the invention as claimed, including a first electronic device (Figs. 1-2) comprising:
at least one memory (Fig. 9, 930); and
at least one processor (Fig. 9, 920) coupled with the at least one memory and configured to cause the electronic device to:
determine a performance of a wireless local area network link (Fig. 2, 115) for the first electronic device (Fig. 2, “determine expected WLAN throughput”; Fig. 5, 505; ¶0011, “monitor uplink and/or downlink throughput experienced on a per-user device basis and/or on a network-wide basis by user devices 105 communicating via cellular wireless network 110, and WLAN network analytics server 125 may perform a similar function for WLAN 115”; ¶0012, “determine an expected throughput associated with each of networks 110 and 115. Based on the expected throughput, load balancing server 130 may determine to which wireless network user device 105 should connect”; ¶0014, “determine an expected throughput associated with each of networks 110 and 115. User device 205 may, for example, connect to each network 110 and 115, and may perform a throughput test (e.g., by uploading and/or downloading a known amount of data via networks 110 and/or 115). Additionally, or alternatively, user device 205 may receive information from cellular wireless network 110 and/or WLAN 115 regarding network performance”; ¶0050, “process 500 may include determining the average throughput of a WLAN (block 505)”);
determine a performance of a cellular network link (Fig. 2, 110) for the first electronic device (Fig. 2, “determine expected cellular wireless network throughput”; Fig. 5, 510; ¶0014, “User device 205 may, for example, connect to each network 110 and 115, and may perform a throughput test (e.g., by uploading and/or downloading a known amount of data via networks 110 and/or 115). Additionally, or alternatively, user device 205 may receive information from cellular wireless network 110 and/or WLAN 115 regarding network performance”; ¶0051, “Process 500 may also include determining the average throughput of a cellular wireless network (block 510)”; ¶0052, “determining whether the average cellular wireless network throughput is greater than the average WLAN throughput (block 515)”);
automatically select one of the wireless local area network link and the cellular network link having a higher performance (Fig. 2, “Select wireless network based on throughput”; Fig. 5, 500; Fig. 6, 600; Fig. 7, 700; ¶0014, “Based on the determined expected throughputs associated with networks 110 and 115, user device 205 may select a particular one of networks 110 and 115, and may connect to the selected wireless network”; ¶0015, “user device 205 may be configured to automatically connect to WLAN 115 (e.g., a user's home Wi-Fi network) when user device 205 is in range of WLAN 115”; ¶0048, “processes 500, 600, and 700 (referred to herein as "processes 500-700") for selecting a wireless network based on network performance, and instructing user devices to connect to the selected wireless network”; ¶0056, “the determination made at block 515 may yield different results, based on ever-changing conditions of the cellular wireless network and/or the WLAN (e.g., network congestion, the amount of traffic being sent via the network, the quantity of user devices 305 attached to the network, etc.). For instance, while the cellular wireless network may provide better performance than the WLAN at one particular time (e.g., block 515--YES), the cellular wireless network may provide worse performance than the WLAN at another time”; ¶0061, “Based on the determination (made at block 615), load balancing server 330 may send an instruction (at block 620 or block 625) to user device 305. This instruction may cause user device 305 to connect to a selected network”).
Although Okhravi discloses a plurality of electronic devices (Fig. 1B, 105; Fig. 3A, 305-350) transmitting/receiving data with each other using one of a wireless local area network link or a cellular network link (Fig. 3; ¶0019, “User device 305 may send traffic to and/or receive traffic from network 360 via base station 310, WLAN AP 315, SGW 335, and/or PGW 345”; ¶0020, “Base station 310 may include one or more network devices that receive, process, and/or transmit traffic, such as calls, audio, video, text, and/or other data, destined for and/or received from user device 305”; ¶0044, “user device 400 may continue to send or receive voice call traffic via the cellular wireless network, while sending or receiving other types of traffic (e.g., video calls, data transfer, web browsing, etc.) via the WLAN”), Okhravi does not specifically disclose transmitting, to a second electronic device, data using the selected one of the wireless local area network link and the cellular network link.
MEDAPALLI discloses transmit, to a second electronic device, data using the selected one of the wireless local area network link and the cellular network link (Fig. 2; ¶0025, “while UE 101a is connected to access point 103 for data communication, UE 101a can periodically estimate one or more parameters of the wireless LAN and compare the parameters with link conditions on the cellular network to determine whether it is more suitable for UE 101a to stay on the wireless LAN or would be better to switch back to the cellular network for its data sessions”; ¶0027, “UE 101a, using cellular network module 205, transmits control packets, signaling messages, and/or data and/or voice packets to network device 107 and receives acknowledgments, signaling messages, and/or data and/or voice packets from device 107 through antenna 201, transceiver 203, and cellular network module 205. Cellular module 205 can provide an interface that properly formats (encodes/decodes) packets for communications with the associated cellular network”; ¶0028, “UE 101a, using WiFi network module 205, transmits control packets, signaling messages, and/or data packets to access point 103 and receives acknowledgments, signaling messages, and/or data packets from access point 103 through antenna 201, transceiver 203, and WiFi network module 207”; ¶0050, “If the comparison between the estimated parameter of the wireless LAN and the corresponding metric of the cellular network does not meet the threshold, in step 311, UE 101a will continue its data communication (or will switch back its data communication) on the cellular network. Otherwise, in step 313, UE 101a will switch its data communication (or will continue its data communication) on the wireless LAN”). 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 system of Okhravi to include transmit, to a second electronic device, data using the selected one of the wireless local area network link and the cellular network link, as taught by MEDAPALLI because it would enable the system to support seamless data handling by choosing the best path for speed and stability, thereby enhancing the user experience (MEDAPALLI; ¶0025; ¶0027-¶0028).
As to claim 2, it is rejected for the same reasons set forth in claim 1 above. In addition, Okhravi discloses wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the electronic device to: operate as a mobile hotspot (¶0009, “provide a WLAN by providing Wi-Fi "hot spots" in areas such as stadiums, airports, or other locations, to which users may connect”); receive data from a third electronic device coupled to the first electronic device (Fig. 3; ¶0020, “Base station 310 may include one or more network devices that receive, process, and/or transmit traffic, such as calls, audio, video, text, and/or other data, destined for and/or received from user device 305”).
As to claim 3, it is rejected for the same reasons set forth in claim 1 above. In addition, Okhravi discloses wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the electronic device to: operate as a mobile hotspot (¶0009, “provide a WLAN by providing Wi-Fi "hot spots" in areas such as stadiums, airports, or other locations, to which users may connect”); receive data from a third electronic device coupled to the first electronic device (Fig. 3; ¶0020, “Base station 310 may include one or more network devices that receive, process, and/or transmit traffic, such as calls, audio, video, text, and/or other data, destined for and/or received from user device 305”).
As to claim 4, Okhravi discloses the first electronic device of claim 1, wherein the performance of the wireless local area network link comprises a data throughput of a wireless local area network access point, the performance of the cellular network link comprises a data throughput of the cellular network link, and the higher performance comprises a higher data throughput (¶0014, “Based on the determined expected throughputs associated with networks 110 and 115, user device 205 may select a particular one of networks 110 and 115, and may connect to the selected wireless network”; ¶0015, “user device 205 may be configured to automatically connect to WLAN 115 (e.g., a user's home Wi-Fi network) when user device 205 is in range of WLAN 115”; ¶0048, “processes 500, 600, and 700 (referred to herein as "processes 500-700") for selecting a wireless network based on network performance, and instructing user devices to connect to the selected wireless network”; ¶0056, “the determination made at block 515 may yield different results, based on ever-changing conditions of the cellular wireless network and/or the WLAN (e.g., network congestion, the amount of traffic being sent via the network, the quantity of user devices 305 attached to the network, etc.). For instance, while the cellular wireless network may provide better performance than the WLAN at one particular time (e.g., block 515--YES), the cellular wireless network may provide worse performance than the WLAN at another time”; ¶0061, “Based on the determination (made at block 615), load balancing server 330 may send an instruction (at block 620 or block 625) to user device 305. This instruction may cause user device 305 to connect to a selected network”).
As to claim 5, Okhravi discloses the first electronic device of claim 4, wherein the data throughput of the wireless local area network link comprises a theoretical data throughput of the wireless local area network link, the data throughput of the cellular network link comprises a theoretical data throughput of the cellular network link, and the higher performance comprises a higher theoretical data throughput (¶0014, “Based on the determined expected throughputs associated with networks 110 and 115, user device 205 may select a particular one of networks 110 and 115, and may connect to the selected wireless network”; ¶0015, “user device 205 may be configured to automatically connect to WLAN 115 (e.g., a user's home Wi-Fi network) when user device 205 is in range of WLAN 115”; ¶0048, “processes 500, 600, and 700 (referred to herein as "processes 500-700") for selecting a wireless network based on network performance, and instructing user devices to connect to the selected wireless network”; ¶0056, “the determination made at block 515 may yield different results, based on ever-changing conditions of the cellular wireless network and/or the WLAN (e.g., network congestion, the amount of traffic being sent via the network, the quantity of user devices 305 attached to the network, etc.). For instance, while the cellular wireless network may provide better performance than the WLAN at one particular time (e.g., block 515--YES), the cellular wireless network may provide worse performance than the WLAN at another time”; ¶0061, “Based on the determination (made at block 615), load balancing server 330 may send an instruction (at block 620 or block 625) to user device 305. This instruction may cause user device 305 to connect to a selected network”).
As to claim 6, Okhravi discloses the first electronic device of claim 5, wherein the theoretical data throughput of the wireless local area network link is based at least in part on a type of the wireless local area network and a number of wireless local area network transmitters and a number of wireless local area network receivers of the wireless local area network access point, and the theoretical data throughput of the cellular network link is based at least in part on a frequency band and a generation of the cellular network link (Fig. 3; ¶0009, “a wireless network provider may provide a WLAN by providing Wi-Fi "hot spots" in areas such as stadiums, airports, or other locations, to which users may connect. At times, one type of network (e.g., a cellular network or a WLAN) may become overloaded, thus degrading network performance (e.g., throughput) for some users, while the other type of network (e.g., the other one of the cellular network or the WLAN) may have the capability to provide better performance”; ¶0020, “The air interface between user device 305 and base station 310 may correspond to a frequency band associated with cellular communications (e.g., a frequency band that has been licensed by a governmental entity, such as a 700 MHz band, a 1900 MHz band, etc.).”; ¶0011, “analytics server 120 may monitor uplink and/or downlink throughput experienced on a per-user device basis and/or on a network-wide basis by user devices 105 communicating via cellular wireless network 110, and WLAN network analytics server 125 may perform a similar function for WLAN 115”; ¶0028, “identify applications and/or services that are permitted for and/or accessible by the subscriber; a mobile directory number ("MDN") associated with the subscriber; bandwidth or data rate thresholds associated with the applications and/or services; information associated with the subscriber (e.g., a username, a password, etc.); rate information; minutes allowed for a subscriber; and/or other information”; ¶0081, “average throughput experienced by user devices, other measures of throughput may be used, such as median, minimum, maximum, first quartile, third quartile, etc”).
As to claims 9-13, they are rejected for the same reasons set forth in claims 2-6 above, respectively.
As to claim 15, it is rejected for the same reasons set forth in claim 1 above. In addition, Okhravi discloses at least one processor configured to determine a performance of a wireless local area network link for a first electronic device that includes the at least one processor (Fig. 2, “determine expected WLAN throughput”; Fig. 5, 505; ¶0011, “monitor uplink and/or downlink throughput experienced on a per-user device basis and/or on a network-wide basis by user devices 105 communicating via cellular wireless network 110, and WLAN network analytics server 125 may perform a similar function for WLAN 115”; ¶0012, “determine an expected throughput associated with each of networks 110 and 115. Based on the expected throughput, load balancing server 130 may determine to which wireless network user device 105 should connect”; ¶0014, “determine an expected throughput associated with each of networks 110 and 115. User device 205 may, for example, connect to each network 110 and 115, and may perform a throughput test (e.g., by uploading and/or downloading a known amount of data via networks 110 and/or 115). Additionally, or alternatively, user device 205 may receive information from cellular wireless network 110 and/or WLAN 115 regarding network performance”; ¶0050, “process 500 may include determining the average throughput of a WLAN (block 505)”).
As to claims 16-19, they are rejected for the same reasons set forth in claims 2-5 above, respectively.
Claims 7, 14 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Okhravi et al. (US 2015/0109940 A1), MEDAPALLI (US 2014/0192642 A1), further in view of WANG (US 2023/0066379 A1).
As to claims 7, 14 and 20, Okhravi does not specifically disclose wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the electronic device to: determine a performance of the electronic device when operating as a mobile hotspot; and automatically select the one of the wireless local area network link and the cellular network link having the higher performance in response to the performance of the electronic device when operating as a mobile hotspot being lower than the performance of the wireless local area network link lower and the performance of the cellular network link.
However, WANG discloses wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the electronic device to: determine a performance of the electronic device when operating as a mobile hotspot; and automatically select the one of the wireless local area network link and the cellular network link having the higher performance in response to the performance of the electronic device when operating as a mobile hotspot being lower than the performance of the wireless local area network link lower and the performance of the cellular network link (¶0032; ¶0033, “the external device is enabled to select the Cellular wireless networks of the different operators to enable WiFi hotspots with frequency bands staggered from frequency bands of the Cellular wireless networks”; ¶0051, “the network speeds of WiFi hotspots with connection permissions within the connection range are detected; the WiFi hotspots with network speeds less than the preset threshold are determined as invalid WiFi hotspots; and the hotspot enabling command also carries hotspot information of the invalid WiFi hotspots. Since the hotspot enabling command carries the hotspot information of the WiFi hotspots with the network speeds less than the preset threshold, poor network quality provided by a WiFi hotspot enabled on an external device due to connection of the external device to a WiFi hotspot with too slow network speed is avoided”; ¶0067, “prior to S302 (i.e., the enabling a target WiFi hotspot) is executed, the external device may detect available network resources and select a network connection with the best network quality as a shared network before enabling a target WiFi hotspot. More specifically, the external device may detect signal strengths of connectable WiFi hotspots in the connection range, judge which of the WiFi hotspot with the highest signal strength and a Cellular wireless network currently used by the external device has the best network quality and select the one with the better network quality as a shared network in advance before enabling a target WiFi hotspot”). 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 system of Okhravi to include wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the electronic device to: determine a performance of the electronic device when operating as a mobile hotspot; and automatically select the one of the wireless local area network link and the cellular network link having the higher performance in response to the performance of the electronic device when operating as a mobile hotspot being lower than the performance of the wireless local area network link lower and the performance of the cellular network link, as taught by WANG because it would ensure that connected devices are provided the highest available bandwidth by selecting the faster of the two links (WANG; ¶0033; ¶0051; ¶0067).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Horn et al. (US 2014/0064068), Cuevas Ramirez (US 2020/0107255), Wang (US 2015/0208338), Chou et al. (US 2016/0119846), VANGALA et al. (US 2015/0003420), Huang et al. (US 2014/0323087), Gandhi et al. (US 2019/0028946) disclose network node and methods for selecting access node for communications in wireless communication networks.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JUNGWON CHANG whose telephone number is (571)272-3960. The examiner can normally be reached 9AM-5:30PM.
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/JUNGWON CHANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2454 April 14, 2026
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