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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-2, 5, 9-10 and 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Aldana, U.S. Publication No. 2016/0249165.
Regarding Claims 1 and 10, Aldana discloses a method of performing a
sensing procedure by a first station (STA) (i.e., responding STA; see figure 2) in a wireless LAN system, the method comprising:
receiving, from a second STA (i.e., initiating STA; see figure 2), a sensing setup request frame for requesting a sensing measurement session including at least one sensing measurement parameter (i.e., the initiating STA may transmit a fine timing measurement request message or frame (“Request”) 202 to the responding STA… a fine timing measurement (FTM) request message transmitted by an initiating STA may include fields, parameters, etc. characterizing a desired exchange of messages with a responding STA to provide fine timing measurements to the initiating STA enabling the initiating STA to compute an RTT measurement; see paragraphs [0032] and [0033]); and
transmitting, to the second STA, a response frame including a status code field related to the request frame (i.e., receive a fine timing request message acknowledgement message or frame (“Ack”) 204 transmitted in response… The initiating STA may then obtain or compute an RTT measurement based, at least in part, on time stamp values (t1, t4) provided in fine timing measurement messages or frames (“M”) 206 received from the responding STA (and transmitted in response to receipt of a fine timing measurement request message); see paragraph [0032] and figure 2 showing status code field in M 206 frames sent),
wherein based on the status code field indicating that the first STA suggests its preferred sensing measurement parameter rather than the at least one sensing measurement parameter, the response frame includes the preferred sensing measurement parameter (i.e., a responding STA may transmit to the initiating STA one or more FTM messages including measurements or parameters enabling the initiating STA to compute RTT or other parameters indicative of range where the “other parameters” are considered as “preferred parameters”; see paragraph [0033]).
Regarding Claim 2, Aldana discloses wherein: the preferred sensing measurement parameter is indicated by a sensing measurement parameters field included in a sensing measurement parameters element, and the sensing measurement parameters element is included in the response frame (see paragraphs [0023] and [0037]).
Regarding Claim 5, Aldana discloses wherein: the at least one sensing measurement parameter is indicated by a sensing measurement parameters element in the request frame (see paragraph [0033]).
Regarding Claim 9, Aldana discloses wherein: the first STA is a sensing responder, and the second STA is a sensing initiator (see figure 2).
Regarding Claim 12, Aldana discloses a second station (STA) (i.e., initiating STA; see figure 2) for performing sensing procedure in a wireless LAN system, the second STA comprising:
at least one transceiver (i.e., transceiver 1121; see figure 15); and
at least one processor (i.e., processor 1111; see figure 15) connected to the at least one transceiver,
wherein the at least one processor is configured to:
transmit, to a first STA (i.e., responding STA; see figure 2) through the at least one transceiver, a request frame for requesting a sensing measurement session including at least one sensing measurement parameter (see rejection for claim 1 above); and
receive, from the first STA through the at least one transceiver, a response frame including a status code field related to the request frame (see rejection for claim 1 above),
wherein based on the status code field indicating that the first STA suggests its preferred sensing measurement parameter rather than the at least one sensing measurement parameter, the response frame includes the preferred sensing measurement parameter (see rejection for claim 1 above).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claim(s) 3-4 and 6-8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Aldana in view of Chitrakar et al. (Chitrakar), U.S. Publication No. 2023/0319877.
Regarding Claim 3, Aldana discloses the method as described above. Aldana
fails to disclose wherein: based on the status code field indicating that the first STA declines the at least one sensing measurement parameter, the sensing measurement parameters field is not included in the response frame. Chitrakar discloses wherein: based on the status code field indicating that the first STA declines the at least one sensing measurement parameter, the sensing measurement parameters field is not included in the response frame (see paragraph [0075] and figures 9 & 18). It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to consider Chitrakar’s invention with Aldana’s invention to prevent inconsistencies and errors as described throughout Chitrakar.
Regarding Claim 4, Aldana discloses the method as described above. Aldana
fails to disclose wherein: based on the status code field indicating that the first STA accepts the at least one sensing measurement parameter, the sensing measurement parameters field is not included in the response frame. Chitrakar discloses wherein: based on the status code field indicating that the first STA accepts the at least one sensing measurement parameter, the sensing measurement parameters field is not included in the response frame (see paragraph [0075] and figures 9 & 18). It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to consider Chitrakar’s invention with Aldana’s invention to prevent inconsistencies and errors as described throughout Chitrakar.
Regarding Claim 6, Aldana discloses the method as described above. Aldana
fails to disclose wherein: the request frame includes at least one of a measurement setup ID, a role of the first STA, or a type of measurement result to be reported by the first STA. Chitrakar discloses wherein: the request frame includes at least one of a measurement setup ID, a role of the first STA, or a type of measurement result to be reported by the first STA (see paragraph [0086]). It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to consider Chitrakar’s invention with Aldana’s invention to prevent inconsistencies and errors as described throughout Chitrakar.
Regarding Claim 7, Aldana discloses the method as described above. Aldana
fails to disclose wherein: the role of the first STA is set as either a sensing transmitter or a sensing receiver by the request frame. Chitrakar discloses wherein: the role of the first STA is set as either a sensing transmitter or a sensing receiver by the request frame (see paragraph [0086]). It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to consider Chitrakar’s invention with Aldana’s invention to prevent inconsistencies and errors as described throughout Chitrakar.
Regarding Claim 8, Aldana discloses the method as described above. Aldana
fails to disclose wherein: a sensing measurement parameters field included in the sensing measurement parameters element of the response frame includes at least one of the role of the first STA or the type of measurement result to be reported by the first STA. Chitrakar discloses wherein: a sensing measurement parameters field included in the sensing measurement parameters element of the response frame includes at least one of the role of the first STA or the type of measurement result to be reported by the first STA (see figure 14). It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to consider Chitrakar’s invention with Aldana’s invention to prevent inconsistencies and errors as described throughout Chitrakar.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SHANTELL LAKETA HEIBER whose telephone number is (571)272-0886. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F from 9am to 5pm.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Anthony Addy, can be reached at telephone number 571-272-7795. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/SHANTELL L HEIBER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2645
January 26, 2026