DETAILED ACTION
This action is responsive to applicant arguments filed on 10 March 2026. Claims 1-23 are pending examination.
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 filed 10 March 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that the combination of Stru and Yi fails to teach or suggest “allocating the joining request an energy consumption, the energy consumption allocated to the joining request being incorporated in an energy budget, and controlling a sending or not-sending of the joining request according to the energy budget.” Applicant further contends that Yi merely discloses generic operational state transitions and does not disclose energy budgeting associated with a joining request. However, applicant’s arguments are not persuasive.
Yi expressly teaches determining expected power costs for transmitting and receiving data. Specifically, Yi discloses a radio model for determining expected power costs for transmitting and receiving data, wherein transmission power budget includes processing power budget and transmitting power budget, and receiving power budget is likewise determined using expected energy cost calculations (Yi, fig. 11, [0147]-[0183]). One of ordinary skill in the art would have understood that determining expected power costs for a communication transmission constitutes allocating energy consumption to that communication request prior to transmission as claimed.
Yi further expressly teaches incorporating the allocated communication energy consumption into an energy budget. Yi discloses that the user equipment tests whether its current state of charge is greater than an expected energy budget or cost for communication, and based on that determination remains in a communication capable state or transitions to another operational state (Yi, fig. 7, [0111]-[0124]). Yi additionally teaches determining operational state based on comparing state of charge against thresholds corresponding to estimated energy required for transmission (Yi, fig. 12, [0150]-[0189]). Thus, Yi expressly teaches incorporating allocated communication energy consumption into an energy budget framework.
Yi also teaches controlling whether communication is transmitted according to the energy budget. Specifically, Yi discloses that when the current state of charge exceeds the expected communication-energy budget, the device remains capable of communication, whereas if the current state of charge does not exceed the expected communication-energy budget, the device transitions to another operational state in which communication capability is reduced or disable (Yi, Fig. 7 and fig. 12,[0093]-[0110], [0111]-[0124], [0150]-[0189]). One of ordinary skill in the art would have understood this disclosure as controlling whether a communication transmission is sent according to the energy budget.
Applicant’s argument that Yi does not disclose applying the above energy-budgeting framework to joining operations is likewise unpersuasive. Yi expressly discloses join-request communications, including broadcasting a join-group request message, receiving responses, and transmitting a join-group message to join a selected group (Yi, fig. 10, [0139]-[0150]). Yi further teaches joining a group based at least in part on receiving a broadcast group message (Yi, fig. 12, [0150]-[0177]). Thus, Yi expressly discloses join-request communication events.
Stru teaches initiating joining processes to establish connection to the LPWAN, including receiving synchronization information, transmitting a join request message, and opening receive windows associated with the join procedure (Stru, fig. 11, [0126]-[0183]). Accordingly, Stru teaches the claimed join-request framework.
In view of Yi’s express disclosure of determining expected transmission-energy costs, comparing such costs to an energy budget, and enabling or disabling communication based upon that comparison, one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to apply Yi’s disclosed energy-budgeting framework to the join-request communications taught by Stru and Yi in order to conserve battery power, improve operational efficiency, and avoid unnecessary communication attempts when insufficient energy is available. Such medication merely applies a known battery-aware communication-control technique to a known join-request communication process to obtain predicable results.
Therefore, the combination of Stru and Yi teaches or at least renders obvious “allocating the joining request an energy consumption, the energy consumption allocated to the joining request being incorporated in an energy budget, and controlling a sending or not-sending of the joining request according to the energy budget,” as recited.
Thus, the examiner maintains 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Struhsaker et al. (US 2019/0132656 A1) (hereinafter Stru), and further in view of Yi et al. (US 2023/0379664 A1)(hereinafter Yi).
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 relined 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.
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, 3-4, 14, 16-23 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Struhsaker et al. (US 2019/0132656 A1) (hereinafter Stru), and further in view of Yi et al. (US 2023/0379664 A1)(hereinafter Yi).
Regarding claims 1 and 23, Stru and Yi teaches:
A method (Stru, See Fig. 1A-1D ) / An apparatus (Stru, See Fig. 12):
an antenna (Stru, Fig. 3A, [0059]-[0067]);
a controller (Stru, Fig. 4A, [0068]-[0075]);
a battery (Stru, Fig. 5A, [0078]-[0080]);
a sensor and/or an actuator (Stru, Fig. 1C, [0037]-[0043]) and (Yi, Fig. 1, [0035]-[0054]); and
starting, via the battery-powered wireless node, at least one joining process to set up a connection to the LPWAN (Stru, Fig. 11, [0131]-[0138]: [0133] In STEP 1115, the initialized and activated peripheral sensor receives, from a monitoring device already associated with the IoT system, a synchronization beacon that includes a command with a join message. In one or more embodiments, the monitoring device transmits the synchronization beacon transmitted to the peripheral sensor after receiving a command from the IoT system when the IoT system receives a request to join the system from the initialized and activated peripheral sensor. In one or more embodiments the command may be a series of operations, administration, management, and provisioning (OAM&P) messages.);
sending, via the battery-powered wireless node, a joining request for the at least one joining process (Stru, Fig. 11, [0131]-[0138]: [0136] In the event that the determination in STEP 1120 is YES, the process proceeds to STEP 1125 where the peripheral sensor transmits a join request message that includes the identifier data of the peripheral sensor to the monitoring device that transmitted the synchronization beacon. In one or more embodiments, the identifier data of the peripheral sensor transmitted in STEP 1125 may include the peripheral sensor device address and device key.);
opening, via the battery-powered wireless node, at least one receive window after sending the joining request (Stru, Fig. 11, [0131]-[0138]: [0137] In STEP 1130, the peripheral sensor receives a join confirmation message from the monitoring device and the peripheral sensor is now associated with that respective monitoring device in the IoT system. In one or more embodiments, the join confirmation message is repeatedly sent, using a synchronization beacon, by the monitoring device to ensure that the join confirmation message is received by the peripheral sensor.);
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach wherein the battery-powered wireless node supports a low power wide area network (LPWAN) network protocol, which comprises the steps of: allocating the joining request an energy consumption, the energy consumption allocated to the joining request being incorporated in an energy budget; and controlling a sending or not-sending of the joining request according to the energy budget.
Similar to the system of Stru, Yi teaches user equipment’s sending a request to current group leader, then determining whether to move from the on state to the “free rider” state or off state depending on the energy budget, which can be seen as, wherein the battery-powered wireless node supports a low power wide area network (LPWAN) network protocol, which comprises the steps of (Yi, Fig. 6, [0100]-[0110]: [0106] Then at time 640, one or more of the follower user equipment’s in the group sends a data request to the now-current group leader 604B via low-power communication (e.g., 608). In the depicted example, all of the follower user equipment’s send a request to current group leader 604B, but this need not be the case, and requests may be sent on an as-needed basis. In some cases, the data requests may be sent during preconfigured opportunities, such as given time slots, or based on a synchronized count-down timer, or the Linked.):
allocating the joining request an energy consumption, the energy consumption allocated to the joining request being incorporated in an energy budget (Yi, Fig. 7, [0111]-[0117]: [0113] To determine whether to move from the on state 702 to the “free rider” state 704 after some interval, the user equipment may test whether its current state of charge (e.g., in an onboard battery) is greater than an expected energy budget (or cost) for a high-power communications (e.g., an NB-IoT communication in this example). If the current state of charge is greater than the expected energy budget of the high-power communication, e.g., “curr_battery>E(NB-IoT)” in FIG. 7, then the user equipment stays in the “on state” 702. If, on the other hand, the current battery state of charge is less than or equal to the expected energy budget of the high-power communication, e.g., “curr_battery≤E(NB-IoT)” in FIG. 7, then the user equipment transitions to the free rider state 704.); and
controlling a sending or not-sending of the joining request according to the energy budget ( Yi, Fig. 7, [0111]-[0117]: [0115] To determine whether to move from the free rider state 704 to the “off” state 706 after some interval, the user equipment may test whether its current state of charge is greater than an expected energy budget for a low-power communications (e.g., BLE communication in this example). If the current state of charge is greater than the expected energy budget of the low-power communication, e.g., “curr_battery>E(BLE)” in FIG. 7, then the user equipment stays in the free rider state 704. If, on the other hand, the current state of charge is less than or equal to the expected energy budget of the low-power communication, e.g., “curr_battery≤E(BLE)” in FIG. 7, then the user equipment transitions to the off state 706.).
Although, Yi does not explicitly teach energy consumption and joining request, Stru does teach transmitting a join request message and the energy consumption/energy usage of those sensors (Stru, Fig. 5A-5C, Fig. 11, [0078]-[0083], [0131]-[0138]: [0078] A peripheral sensor, interfacing with the monitoring device, may further monitor a pump to monitor vibration, energy consumption, including static and transient energy consumption, and/or to control the pump, and thus, indirectly, the fill level of the storage tank. See above for [0136] discussing the join request.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Yi to improve overall power efficiency for each cooperating device, such as by reducing the power (and network) overhead of enabling a transceiver system (e.g. a modem), establishing a connection with a network entity associated with a WAN, and transmitting and/or receiving data from the network entity (Yi, [0032]).
Regarding claims 3, Yi teaches the method according to claim 2:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach wherein the allocated energy consumption additionally contains the opening of the at least one receive window.
Similar to the system of Stru, Yi teaches the SMO Framework may be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (such as an open cloud (O-Cloud), which can be seen as, wherein the allocated energy consumption additionally contains the opening of the at least one receive window (Yi, Fig. 2, [0055]-[0062]: [0060] The SMO Framework 205 may be configured to support RAN deployment and provisioning of non-virtualized and virtualized network elements. For non-virtualized network elements, the SMO Framework 205 may be configured to support the deployment of dedicated physical resources for RAN coverage requirements which may be managed via an operations and maintenance interface (such as an O1 interface). For virtualized network elements, the SMO Framework 205 may be configured to interact with a cloud computing platform (such as an open cloud (O-Cloud) 290) to perform network element Life cycle management (such as to instantiate virtualized network elements) via a cloud computing platform interface (such as an O2 interface). Such virtualized network elements can include, but are not Limited to, CUs 210, DUs 230, RUs 240 and Near-RT RICs 225. In some implementations, the SMO Framework 205 can communicate with a hardware aspect of a 4G RAN, such as an open eNB (O-eNB) 211, via an O1 interface. Additionally, in some implementations, the SMO Framework 205 can communicate directly with one or more RUs 240 via an O1 interface. The SMO Framework 205 also may include a Non-RT RIC 215 configured to support functionality of the SMO Framework 205.).
Although, Yi does not explicitly teach energy consumption, Stru does teach the energy consumption/energy usage of those sensors (Stru, Fig. 5A-5C, Fig. 11, [0078]-[0083], [0131]-[0138]: [0078] A peripheral sensor, interfacing with the monitoring device, may further monitor a pump to monitor vibration, energy consumption, including static and transient energy consumption, and/or to control the pump, and thus, indirectly, the fill level of the storage tank. See above for [0136] discussing the join request.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Yi to improve overall power efficiency for each cooperating device, such as by reducing the power (and network) overhead of enabling a transceiver system (e.g. a modem), establishing a connection with a network entity associated with a WAN, and transmitting and/or receiving data from the network entity (Yi, [0032]).
Regarding claims 4, Yi teaches the method according to claim 3:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach wherein the allocated energy consumption of receive windows depends on an active time of the battery-powered wireless node in a receive mode.
Similar to the system of Stru, Yi teaches the highest group leader selection score in a group of user equipment’s and how a better channel state metric may generally increase the group leader selection score because better channel state means a better Likelihood of a successful transmission and avoided retransmission, which can be seen as, wherein the allocated energy consumption of receive windows depends on an active time of the battery-powered wireless node in a receive mode (Yi, Fig. 6 and Fig. 7, [0100]-[0110], [0111]-[0117]: [0102] In an example where the highest group leader selection score in a group of user equipment’s becomes the next leader of the group, a higher state of charge may generally increase the group leader selection score because more stored power means more ability to make high-power communications or to perform other high-power operations (e.g., location sensing). Similarly, a better channel state metric may generally increase the group leader selection score because better channel state means a better Likelihood of a successful transmission and avoided retransmission. As another example, a shorter remaining target service Life may generally increase the group leader selection score, provided it also has sufficient energy remaining, because the device has less time to participate in the load balancing to benefit the group. For example, a package tracking device in a package nearing its destination (or its estimated time of arrival) that still has substantial energy stores (e.g., battery charge) may help other package tracking devices in proximity (e.g., all within the same transport vehicle) prior to its delivery and disconnection from the group due to lack of ongoing proximity.).
While, Yi does not explicitly teach allocated energy consumption of receive windows depending on the active time, Yi teaches that operational state transitions and energy budgeting are based on the time spent in different operational states and on energy available (Yi, [0112]-[0116], Fig. 7), which can be seen as, allocated energy consumption of receive windows depending on the active time.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Yi to improve overall power efficiency for each cooperating device, such as by reducing the power (and network) overhead of enabling a transceiver system (e.g. a modem), establishing a connection with a network entity associated with a WAN, and transmitting and/or receiving data from the network entity (Yi, [0032]).
Regarding claims 14, Stru teaches the method according to claim 1:
wherein the battery-powered wireless node sends no joining requests in a predetermined time period (Stru, Fig. 11, [0131]-[0138]: [0135] In the event that the determination in STEP 1120 is NO, the process returns to STEP 1115 and the peripheral sensor continuously listens for a synchronization beacon from a monitoring device associated with the IoT system that includes a join message with the identifier that matches with the identifier data of the peripheral sensor (i.e., STEPs 1115 and 1120 are repeated until the peripheral sensor received a synchronization beacon with a join message that includes identifier data that matches with the identifier data of the peripheral sensor).).
Regarding claims 16, Stru teaches the method according to claim 1:
wherein the battery-powered wireless node supports a second network protocol, wherein the LPWAN network protocol is a first network protocol (Stru, Fig. 12, [0139]-[0148]: [0139] The computing system (1200) may be connected to a network (1212) (e.g., a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet, mobile network, or any other type of network) via a network interface connection (not shown). The input and output device(s) may be locally or remotely (e.g., via the network (1212)) connected to the computer processor(s) (1202), memory (1204), and storage device(s) (1206). Many different types of computing systems exist, and the aforementioned input and output device(s) may take other forms.).
Regarding claims 17, Stru teaches the method according to claim 16:
wherein the second network protocol is an M-Bus (Stru, Fig. 4A, [0067]-[0076]: [0073] In one or more embodiments of the invention, the monitoring device (400) is further equipped with a control interface (not shown). The control interface may include analog or digital outputs, including communication bus systems, and/or relays, motors, or any other equipment that may be used to control functions of the monitored asset (102) and/or other components in vicinity of the monitored asset. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the control interface may be used to control any function of the monitored asset or functions of other components in the monitored environment.).
Regarding claims 18, Stru teaches the method according to claim 1:
which further comprises opening the at least one receive window at a certain time interval after an end of the joining request (Stru, Fig. 11, [0131]-[0138]: See above for [0137].).
Regarding claims 19, Stru teaches the method according to claim 1:
wherein the at least one receive window includes a first receive window and a second receive window, the second receive window is opened if no joining acceptance is received in the first receive window (Stru, Fig. 11, [0131]-[0138]: See above for [0137].).
Regarding claims 20, Yi teaches the method according to claim 19:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach which further comprises opening the second receive window after the first receive window.
Similar to the system of Stru, Yi teaches the second interval where individual user equipments are deployed in generally static locations, which can be seen as, which further comprises opening the second receive window after the first receive window (Yi, Fig. 9A, [0126]-[0138]: [0129] Generally, groups of user equipments may alternate between states 904 and 906 during a second interval T.sub.2 (e.g., as measured by another timer), such as a set number of hours, days, or the like. In some aspects, T.sub.2 may generally be longer than T.sub.1 based on factors, such as deployment, mobility, etc. Further, where individual user equipments are highly mobile, the second interval T.sub.2 may be shortened, and conversely, where individual user equipments are deployed in generally static locations, T.sub.2 may be lengthened. Note that even in the case of static deployments, channel state and other environmental factors, such as other mobile or new objects in an environment, may give rise to a need to continue re-clustering user equipments from time to time.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Yi to improve overall power efficiency for each cooperating device, such as by reducing the power (and network) overhead of enabling a transceiver system (e.g. a modem), establishing a connection with a network entity associated with a WAN, and transmitting and/or receiving data from the network entity (Yi, [0032]).
Regarding claims 21, Stru teaches the method according to claim 1:
which further comprises controlling the sending and/or the not-sending of the joining request by a controller of the battery-powered wireless node (Stru, Fig. 3A-3B, [0059]-[0066]: [0066] In one or more embodiments of the invention, the access point further includes a power system that may include the solar cells (332), a battery (334) and a charge controller (336), powering the access point. The battery may be deep-cycle capable to guarantee continued operation at night or under cloudy conditions when power provided by the solar cells is insufficient. The solar cells may be dimensioned to enable powering the access point while also recharging the battery. Alternatively, the access point may be powered externally, e.g., using power over Ethernet (PoE) or using a dedicated power input. The charge controller in combination with the access point processing engine (342) may provide charging, battery status and power consumption analytics, enabling power management of the access point. A direct current (DC) power and data over DC power link may be used to power the access point by the power system, but also to enable the charge controller to communicate status information (such as battery level, temperature, etc.) to the access point.).
Regarding claims 22, Stru teaches the method according to claim 1:
wherein the low power wide area network (LPWAN) network protocol is a long-range wide area network (LoRaWAN) network protocol or a MIOTY network protocol (Stru, Fig. 3A-3B, [0059]-[0066]: [0062] The IoT radio interface (324) uses the IoT radio antenna (322) to communicate with one or more IoT devices such as the monitoring devices (104). The IoT interface may be based on a low power wide area network standard such as, for example, LoRa. The resulting narrowband link is particularly suitable for communications between the access point and the monitoring devices or other sensors, due to its low power requirements, long range, and its ability to interface with many monitoring devices and/or other devices. In one or more embodiments of the invention, the IoT radio interface (324) supports communication protocol extensions implemented on top of an existing IoT communication protocol to provide scheduled communications and timing beacons as further discussed below, with reference to FIG. 6.).
Claim(s) 2, 5-13, 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yi et al. (US 2023/0379664 A1)(hereinafter Yi) and in view of Struhsaker et al. (US 2019/0132656 A1) (hereinafter Stru) as applied to claim 1/23 above, and further in view of Linn et al (US 20160242117 A1) (hereinafter Linn).
Regarding claims 2, Yi teaches the method according to claim 1:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach wherein an allocated energy consumption depends on a transmission time length of the joining request.
Similar to the system of Stru, Yi teaches user equipment’s sending a request to current group leader (the UE), then determining whether to move from the on state to the “free rider” state or off state depending on the interval between state transition which can be based on the amount of time that has passed, which can be seen as, wherein an allocated energy consumption depends on a transmission time length of the joining request (Yi, Fig. 7, [0111]-[0116]: [0116] In some cases, the interval between state transition considerations may be defined based on: an amount of time that has passed; an amount of communications that have been performed by the user equipment; after the user equipment has served as a group leader; after an amount of data is transmitted by the user equipment; after a number of group leader operation cycles (e.g., group leader high-power communications); and other factors.).
Although, Yi does not explicitly teach energy consumption and joining request, Stru does teach transmitting a join request message and the energy consumption/energy usage of those sensors (Stru, Fig. 5A-5C, Fig. 11, [0078]-[0083], [0131]-[0138]: [0078] A peripheral sensor, interfacing with the monitoring device, may further monitor a pump to monitor vibration, energy consumption, including static and transient energy consumption, and/or to control the pump, and thus, indirectly, the fill level of the storage tank. See above for [0136] discussing the join request.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Yi to improve overall power efficiency for each cooperating device, such as by reducing the power (and network) overhead of enabling a transceiver system (e.g. a modem), establishing a connection with a network entity associated with a WAN, and transmitting and/or receiving data from the network entity (Yi, [0032]).
Regarding claims 5, Lin teaches the method according to claim 2:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach which further comprises determining the allocated energy consumption empirically or estimated.
Similar to the system of Stru, Lin teaches a methodology to estimate the optimal duty cycle for a List of physical requirements and signaling constraints, which can be seen as, which further comprises determining the allocated energy consumption empirically or estimated (Lin, Fig. 3, [0071]-[0104]: [0071] According to an example, a methodology to estimate the optimal duty cycle for a List of physical requirements and signaling constraints is proposed. FIG. 3 shows the process flow for estimating the optimal Link level duty cycle, which comprises the step 32 of modeling the total energy consumption in a given M2M device suing equation (1), the step 34 of determining the information theoretic cost for given physical resources using the equation (2), the step 36 of equating the partial derivative of equation (2) with respect to the sleep duty cycle α and the step 38 of estimating the sleep duty cycle.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Lin improve sensing accuracy by combining various low-accuracy sensing estimates from nodes. (Lin, [0052]).
Regarding claims 6, Lin teaches the method according to claim 1:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach which further comprises conducting the energy budget as a credit point system, wherein the credit point system has a credit point score.
Similar to the system of Stru, Lin teaches dynamic Bayesian game theory providing duty cycle parameters and network connections to the resource constrained node whenever the traffic condition of the network changes regarding sleep duty cycles, which can be seen as, which further comprises conducting the energy budget as a credit point system, wherein the credit point system has a credit point score (Lin, Fig. 5, [0122]-[0156]: [0129] To account for random changes in overall sensing, an adaptive network architecture based on dynamic Bayesian game theory is proposed that models sensing phenomenon and network interactions. The proposed approach provides duty cycle parameters and network connections to the resource constrained node whenever the traffic condition of the network changes and accordingly leads the M2M nodes to adjust their sleep duty cycles. A two-player static Bayesian game according to an example is defined as follows).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Lin to optimize the sleep duty cycle of the devices in the communications network in order to reduce energy consumption and increase battery Lifetime. (Lin, [0041]).
Regarding claims 7, Lin teaches the method according to claim 6:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach wherein the energy consumption allocated to the joining request is associated with a predetermined number of credit points.
Similar to the system of Stru, Lin teaches dynamic Bayesian game theory providing duty cycle parameters and network connections to the resource constrained node whenever the traffic condition of the network changes regarding sleep duty cycles, which can be seen as, wherein the energy consumption allocated to the joining request is associated with a predetermined number of credit points (Lin, Fig. 5, [0122]-[0156]: [0123] Two key technologies are proposed in the interactive sleep management system: [0124] Dynamic updates about network conditions: The use of multi-stage dynamic Bayesian game theory to model interactions between sensing phenomenon and a M2M network is proposed. The game dynamically learns traffic conditions in the network and accordingly leads the M2M devices to tune their sleep duty cycles. [0125] Interactive control of sleep duty cycle parameters: Based on the dynamic updates provided relating to network conditions, an interactive sleep management system for M2M communications is proposed. This sleep management system starts with the network condition analysis and efficiently adjusts the sleep duty cycle parameters across the network, given the updated network condition, and application and topological relationships between local nodes. These updates and adjustments can either be done by dynamic Bayesian game models or interactive machine learning techniques for example.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Lin to optimize the sleep duty cycle of the devices in the communications network in order to reduce energy consumption and increase battery Lifetime. (Lin, [0041]).
Regarding claims 8, Lin teaches the method according to claim 7:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach wherein the credit point score is reduced by an associated number of credit points because of the joining request being sent.
Similar to the system of Stru, Lin teaches dynamic Bayesian game theory providing duty cycle parameters and network connections to the resource constrained node whenever the traffic condition of the network changes regarding sleep duty cycles, which can be seen as, wherein the credit point score is reduced by an associated number of credit points because of the joining request being sent (Lin, Fig. 5, [0122]-[0156]: [0148] Similarly, if the player i chooses the strategy set (NT if its type is critical and NT if it is normal), the dominant strategy for player j is to use the strategy S, no matter what the value of μ is. In such a circumstance, the best strategy for player i will change to T if the type of player i is critical. This analysis reduces to the previous case, resulting in no pure BNE.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Lin to optimize the sleep duty cycle of the devices in the communications network in order to reduce energy consumption and increase battery Lifetime. (Lin, [0041]).
Regarding claims 9, Lin teaches the method according to claim 6:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach which further comprises increasing the credit point score of the battery-powered wireless node for each elapsed unit of time by a predetermined number of credit points.
Similar to the system of Stru, Lin teaches dynamic Bayesian game theory providing duty cycle parameters and network connections to the resource constrained node whenever the traffic condition of the network changes regarding sleep duty cycles, which can be seen as, which further comprises increasing the credit point score of the battery-powered wireless node for each elapsed unit of time by a predetermined number of credit points (Lin, Fig. 5, [0122]-[0156]: [0148] Similarly, if the player i chooses the strategy set (NT if its type is critical and NT if it is normal), the dominant strategy for player j is to use the strategy S, no matter what the value of μ is. In such a circumstance, the best strategy for player i will change to T if the type of player i is critical. This analysis reduces to the previous case, resulting in no pure BNE.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Lin to optimize the sleep duty cycle of the devices in the communications network in order to reduce energy consumption and increase battery Lifetime. (Lin, [0041]).
Regarding claims 10, Lin teaches the method according to claim 6:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach wherein no said joining request is sent if the credit point score of the battery-powered wireless node reaches a Limit value.
Similar to the system of Stru, Lin teaches dynamic Bayesian game theory the aggregated value of such a parameter, which can be seen as, wherein no said joining request is sent if the credit point score of the battery-powered wireless node reaches a Limit value (Lin, Fig. 5, [0122]-[0156]: [0144] The cost of the action strategy of player j comprises two criteria, energy and bandwidth, since they are the most important resources in wireless communication. The cost of the action strategy of player i is an imaginary value 0. Such cost parameters and the reward could be also modelled in monetary value for wireless communication. In this table, the Expected Payoff (EP) of players i and j is equal to the sum of the expected reward and its corresponding cost with a strategy combination. It calculates the virtual outcome of every pair of strategies with the parameter K, representing the number of generated triggers in one game stage. This parameter is related to a sensor traffic (it is Linked to the payload parameter L.sub.n for an M2M node n in the Link level optimization as well as the aggregated value of such a parameter, determined by a common sensing objective of heterogeneous applications and local neighbors’ relationship in the network level optimization).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Lin to optimize the sleep duty cycle of the devices in the communications network in order to reduce energy consumption and increase battery Lifetime. (Lin, [0041]).
Regarding claims 11, Stru-Yi-Lin teaches the method according to claim 1:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach which further comprises sending a plurality of joining requests bundled in a form of a burst according to the energy budget.
Similar to the system of Stru, Lin teaches random bursty traffic, which can be seen as, which further comprises sending a plurality of joining requests bundled in a form of a burst according to the energy budget (Lin, Fig. 5, [0122]-[0156]: [0128] Consider the heterogeneous communications network 10 of FIG. 1 comprising a network including multiple M2M nodes 14, 16 and an M2M gateway 18. The above described processes for estimating cross-layered duty cycle optimization are sufficient to minimise overall energy if the network does not change over time and due to random events. Normally, any M2M network supporting heterogeneous applications would be required to handle periodic and random bursty traffic and face a changing topology. The random and bursty nature of traffic and changing topology limit the network's response towards sensing phenomena when used with static and periodic sleep and wakeup operations, and this can result in performance with high variations, leading to degrading quality of service for example.).
Although, Lin does not explicitly teach joining request and energy budget, Stru does teach transmitting a join request message and the energy consumption/energy usage of those sensors (Stru, Fig. 5A-5C, Fig. 11, [0078]-[0083], [0131]-[0138]: [0078] A peripheral sensor, interfacing with the monitoring device, may further monitor a pump to monitor vibration, energy consumption, including static and transient energy consumption, and/or to control the pump, and thus, indirectly, the fill level of the storage tank. See above for [0136] discussing the join request.). For energy budget Yi teaches this in figure 7, to determine whether to move from the on state to the “free rider” state after some interval, the user equipment may test whether its current state of charge (e.g., in an onboard battery) is greater than an expected energy budget (or cost) for a high-power communications (Yi, Fig. 7, [0111]-[0117]: See above in claim 1 for [0113].)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru and Yi with Lin to optimize the sleep duty cycle of the devices in the communications network in order to reduce energy consumption and increase battery Lifetime. (Lin, [0041]).
Regarding claims 12, Lin teaches the method according to claim 11:
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach wherein a plurality of bursts are sent in mutually spaced in time.
Similar to the system of Stru, Lin teaches random bursty traffic, which can be seen as, wherein a plurality of bursts are sent in mutually spaced in time (Lin, Fig. 5, [0122]-[0156]: [0128] Consider the heterogeneous communications network 10 of FIG. 1 comprising a network including multiple M2M nodes 14, 16 and an M2M gateway 18. The above described processes for estimating cross-layered duty cycle optimization are sufficient to minimise overall energy if the network does not change over time and due to random events. Normally, any M2M network supporting heterogeneous applications would be required to handle periodic and random bursty traffic and face a changing topology. The random and bursty nature of traffic and changing topology limit the network's response towards sensing phenomena when used with static and periodic sleep and wakeup operations, and this can result in performance with high variations, leading to degrading quality of service for example.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Lin to optimize the sleep duty cycle of the devices in the communications network in order to reduce energy consumption and increase battery Lifetime. (Lin, [0041]).
Regarding claims 13, Stru teaches the method according to claim 11:
which further comprises pausing the sending of joining requests after a predetermined number of sent joining requests or of sent joining requests per unit of time, or after a predetermined time has elapsed (Stru, Fig. 11, [0131]-[0138]: [0133] In STEP 1115, the initialized and activated peripheral sensor receives, from a monitoring device already associated with the IoT system, a synchronization beacon that includes a command with a join message. In one or more embodiments, the monitoring device transmits the synchronization beacon transmitted to the peripheral sensor after receiving a command from the IoT system when the IoT system receives a request to join the system from the initialized and activated peripheral sensor. In one or more embodiments the command may be a series of operations, administration, management, and provisioning (OAM&P) messages.).
Regarding claims 15, Stru-Lin teaches the method according to claim 1:
after sending the joining request (Stru, Fig. 11, [0131]-[0138]: See above for paragraph [0137].); and/or
after closing of the at least one receive window (Stru, Fig. 11, [0131]-[0138]: [0135] In the event that the determination in STEP 1120 is NO, the process returns to STEP 1115 and the peripheral sensor continuously listens for a synchronization beacon from a monitoring device associated with the IoT system that includes a join message with the identifier that matches with the identifier data of the peripheral sensor (i.e., STEPs 1115 and 1120 are repeated until the peripheral sensor received a synchronization beacon with a join message that includes identifier data that matches with the identifier data of the peripheral sensor.); and/or
after receiving a joining acceptance; and/or
after a burst.
Thus, Stru does not explicitly teach wherein the battery-powered wireless node goes into an idle mode.
Similar to the system of Stru, Lin teaches the time spent in sleep mode and the transmission, which can be seen as, wherein the battery-powered wireless node goes into an idle mode (Lin, Fig. 3, [0055]-[0098]: [0067] where η and ε respectively correspond to the power amplifier efficiency and peak to average ratio of the signaling scheme, P.sub.th and P.sub.ckt respectively correspond to the communication theoretic power consumption (which includes signaling, coding and digital processing) and circuit power consumption in the transceiver, P.sub.sl and E.sub.ma respectively correspond to the power consumption in sleep mode and energy for multi-access, T.sub.sl and T.sub.tx respectively correspond to the time spent in sleep mode and the transmission of L.sub.n bits. Ignoring the time required to estimate multi-access resources and transition time between sleep mode and active mode, the overall time is T.sub.tot=T.sub.sl+T.sub.tx and the sleep duty cycle is):
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Stru with Lin to optimize the sleep duty cycle of the devices in the communications network in order to reduce energy consumption and increase battery Lifetime. (Lin, [0041]).
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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.
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/FRANCESCA LIMA SANTOS/ Examiner, Art Unit 2468
/Thomas R Cairns/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2468
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