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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDSs) submitted on February 9, 2024 and May 1, 2026 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
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.
Claim(s) 1-3, 6-15 and 18-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Seok et al. (Seok), U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2012/0026997 in view of Wang et al. (Wang), U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2023/0388753.
Regarding claims 1 and 13, Seok discloses a station (that has a processor and memory inherently with a computer program stored; see circuitry of figure 11; STA 1250 includes a processor 1251, a memory 1252 and an RF unit 1253. The processor 1251 implements a proposed function, process and/or method. The memory 1252 is operatively connected to the processor 1251 and stores information for operating the processor 1251.) (0094) before performing a communication by the station device (STA 1,STA 3, STA 4 shown in figure1), listening on a connection, and delaying communication in the case that a result of the listening indicates that an access point device is performing data transmission, wherein the station device is associated with (as shown in the figure 1 connection) the access point device (A station (STA) listens a wireless medium before starting transmission. As a result of listening, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is not in use, the listening STA starts its transmission. Otherwise, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is in use, the STA does not start its transmission but enters a delay duration determined by the binary exponential backoff algorithm.) (0008). Note that Seok discloses that the stations and access point can operate in a tunneled direct link setup (TDLS) wireless network system, thus encompassing the sta performing a TDLS communication (Hereinafter, a direct link setup procedure in a TDLS wireless network will be described now… A TDLS (Tunneled Direct Link Setup) is a wireless communication protocol newly suggested to overcome such a limitation regarding the existing DLS service. The TDLS allows the QSTAs to set up a direct link in the currently used WLAN environments in accordance with the IEEE 802.11a/b/g. Accordingly, the TDLS defines methods of allowing the QSTAs to set up a direct link even in the BSS managed by the legacy AP. Hereinafter, a wireless network supporting the TDLS method is referred to as a TDLS wireless network.) (0067 and 0069).
Seok, however, fails to specifically disclose wherein the station and the access point utilize a multi-link communication wherein the station can only perform communication on one connection at a same time.
In a similar field of endeavor, Wang discloses methods for power efficient broadcasting in a wireless local area network WLAN.
Wang further discloses wherein the station and the access point utilize a multi-link communication (MLD) wherein the station can only perform communication on one connection at a same time (inherent to enhanced multi-link single radio EMLSR devices) (…the above mentioned methods may apply to a case where it is assumed that: the operation links may be STR; and/or one of the MLD between the transmit MLD and receive MLD, e.g., the non-AP MLD, may operate in the Enhanced multi-link single radio (EMLSR) mode.) (0146).
Therefore, before the effective filing date, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify Seok with the teachings of Wang. The motivation for this modification would have been to combine prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results.
Regarding claims 2 and 14, the combination of Seok and Wang discloses wherein a duration for delaying the TDLS communication is determined based on a duration (the determined delay duration) of the data transmission sensed during the listening (the STA does not start its transmission but enters a delay duration determined by the binary exponential backoff algorithm.) (Seok, 0008).
Regarding claims 3 and 15, the combination of Seok and Wang discloses sending a first message frame to the access point device on a first connection of the multiple connections, wherein the first message frame comprises information indicating that TDLS data transmission is requested by the station device; and receiving a second message frame from the access point device (the first QSTA (QSTA1) as the TDLS initiator intending to set up a direct link to the second QSTA2 as the peer STA transmits to the second QSTA a request message for requesting for setting up a direct link (S1000). The request message may be a TDLS setup request frame. The AP merely relays the request message received from the first QSTA to the second QSTA. The second QSTA having received the TDLS setup request frame transmits a response message to the first QSTA in response to the TDLS setup request frame (S1010). The response message may be a TDLS setup response frame. In this case, the AP merely relays the response message received from the second QSTA to the first QSTA. The first QSTA (QSTA1) as the TDLS initiator intending to switch a channel to a 80 MHz/160 MHz/80+80 MHz direct link as the peer STA transmits to the second QSTA a request message for requesting for switching a channel (S1020). The request message may be a TDLS channel switch request frame. The AP merely relays the request message received from the first QSTA to the second QSTA.) (Seok, 0086), wherein the second message frame is configured to indicate that the station device is allowed to send the TDLS data on the first connection (allowance is indicated since the AP transmits an operation element to the station for channel setup) (a STA receives an operation element for setting up or switching at least one channel from an AP. The operation element includes a channel type field indicating whether the at least one channel is either a single channel or multiple channels, and includes two channel center frequency segment fields indicating channel center frequency of a primary channel and a secondary channel respectively if the channel type field indicates that the at least one channel is multiple channels…In step S1110, the STA determines whether the primary channel is idle during a first interval. The primary interval may immediately precedes the time at which a STA is permitted to begin a transmission opportunity (TXPO) and the SGA has at least one MAC service data unit (MSDU) pending for transmission for the AC of the permitted TXPO) (Seok, 0088,0089).
Regarding claims 6 and 18, the combination of Seok and Wang discloses receiving a third message frame from the access point device, wherein the third message frame comprises duration (reads on the binary exponential backoff algorithm) information of the TDLS communication configured by the access point device (Basic access mechanism of an IEEE 802.11 is a carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA) combined with binary exponential backoff. The CSMA/CA mechanism is also referred to as a distributed coordinate function (DCF) and basically employs a "listen before talk" access mechanism. A station (STA) listens a wireless medium before starting transmission. As a result of listening, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is not in use, the listening STA starts its transmission. Otherwise, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is in use, the STA does not start its transmission but enters a delay duration determined by the binary exponential backoff algorithm.) (Seok, 0008). Note that the duration indication is not specifically disclosed in a third message. However, before the effective filing date, such an indication would be a design choice that would require only routine skill in the art to implement.
Regarding claims 7 and 19, the combination of Seok and Wang as modified discloses wherein the configured duration information of the TDLS communication comprises: the duration of TDLS communication on each of the multiple connections (A station (STA) listens a wireless medium before starting transmission. As a result of listening, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is not in use, the listening STA starts its transmission. Otherwise, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is in use, the STA does not start its transmission but enters a delay duration determined by the binary exponential backoff algorithm.) (Seok, 0008); (…the above mentioned methods may apply to a case where it is assumed that: the operation links may be STR; and/or one of the MLD between the transmit MLD and receive MLD, e.g., the non-AP MLD, may operate in the Enhanced multi-link single radio (EMLSR) mode.) (Wang, 0146).
Regarding claims 8 and 20, Seok discloses a communication method, wherein the communication method is executed by an access point device (that has a processor and memory inherently with a computer program stored; see circuitry of figure 11) that and the communication method comprises: receiving a first message frame from a station on a first connection, wherein the first message frame comprises information indicating that TDLS data transmission is requested by the station device, and the access point device is associated with the station device, and sending a second message frame to the station device in response to receiving the first message frame, wherein the second message frame is configured to indicate that the station device is allowed (allowance is indicated since the AP transmits an operation element to the station for channel setup) (0088, 0089) to send the TDLS data on the first connection (the first QSTA (QSTA1) as the TDLS initiator intending to set up a direct link to the second QSTA2 as the peer STA transmits to the second QSTA a request message for requesting for setting up a direct link (S1000). The request message may be a TDLS setup request frame. The AP merely relays the request message received from the first QSTA to the second QSTA. The second QSTA having received the TDLS setup request frame transmits a response message to the first QSTA in response to the TDLS setup request frame (S1010). The response message may be a TDLS setup response frame. In this case, the AP merely relays the response message received from the second QSTA to the first QSTA. The first QSTA (QSTA1) as the TDLS initiator intending to switch a channel to a 80 MHz/160 MHz/80+80 MHz direct link as the peer STA transmits to the second QSTA a request message for requesting for switching a channel (S1020). The request message may be a TDLS channel switch request frame. The AP merely relays the request message received from the first QSTA to the second QSTA.) (0086).
Seok, however, fails to specifically disclose a multi-link device (MLD) communications wherein the station device can only perform communication on one connection at a same time.
Wang discloses these limitations (…the above mentioned methods may apply to a case where it is assumed that: the operation links may be STR; and/or one of the MLD between the transmit MLD and receive MLD, e.g., the non-AP MLD, may operate in the Enhanced multi-link single radio (EMLSR) mode.) (Wang, 0146).
Therefore, before the effective filing date, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify Seok with the teachings of Wang. The motivation for this modification would have been to combine prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results.
Regarding claim 9, the combination of Seok and Wang discloses receiving information of communication duration and/or cycle of a periodic TDLS service related to the periodic TDLS service of the station device (Basic access mechanism of an IEEE 802.11 is a carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA) combined with binary exponential backoff. The CSMA/CA mechanism is also referred to as a distributed coordinate function (DCF) and basically employs a "listen before talk" access mechanism. A station (STA) listens a wireless medium before starting transmission. As a result of listening, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is not in use, the listening STA starts its transmission. Otherwise, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is in use, the STA does not start its transmission but enters a delay duration determined by the binary exponential backoff algorithm.) (Seok as modified, 0008).
Regarding claim 10, the combination of Seok and Wang discloses wherein the information of communication duration and/or cycle of the periodic TDLS service comprises: the communication duration and/or cycle of the periodic TDLS service on each of the multiple connections (MLD connections) (Wang as modified) (A number of contributions have been submitted to the 802.11be TG regarding Multi-link operations, particularly on non-simultaneous transmit and receive (non-STR) operations. An example of such operation may be described as follows. An UL transmission from a non-AP Multi-link Device (MLD) on link 1 may interfere with reception on link 2 provided a potential solution using sync PPDU. The sync PPDU transmitted from AP on different links to the same non-AP MLD may have the end of PPDUs aligned. When a non-STR MLD (Multi-link Devices) is transmitting on link 1, the transmission on link 2 may effectively render any receive attempt on link 2 useless.) (Wang as modified, 0084).
Regarding claim 11, the combination of Seok and Wang discloses the communication method according to claim 8, further comprising: sending a third message frame, wherein the third message frame comprises duration information of the TDLS communication configured by the access point device (reads on the binary exponential backoff algorithm) information of the TDLS communication configured by the access point device (Basic access mechanism of an IEEE 802.11 is a carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (CSMA/CA) combined with binary exponential backoff. The CSMA/CA mechanism is also referred to as a distributed coordinate function (DCF) and basically employs a "listen before talk" access mechanism. A station (STA) listens a wireless medium before starting transmission. As a result of listening, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is not in use, the listening STA starts its transmission. Otherwise, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is in use, the STA does not start its transmission but enters a delay duration determined by the binary exponential backoff algorithm.) (Seok, 0008). Note that the duration indication is not specifically disclosed in a third message. However, before the effective filing date, such an indication would be a design choice that would require only routine skill in the art to implement.
Regarding claim 12, the combination of Seok and Wang discloses the communication method according to claim 11, wherein the configured duration information of the TDLS communication comprises: the duration of TDLS communication on each of the multiple connections (A station (STA) listens a wireless medium before starting transmission. As a result of listening, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is not in use, the listening STA starts its transmission. Otherwise, if it is sensed that the wireless medium is in use, the STA does not start its transmission but enters a delay duration determined by the binary exponential backoff algorithm.) (Seok, 0008); (…the above mentioned methods may apply to a case where it is assumed that: the operation links may be STR; and/or one of the MLD between the transmit MLD and receive MLD, e.g., the non-AP MLD, may operate in the Enhanced multi-link single radio (EMLSR) mode.) (Wang, 0146).
Claim(s) 4, 5, 16 and 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Seok and Wang and in further view of Kakani et al. (Kakani), U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2009/0279464.
Regarding claims 4 and 16, the combination of Seok and Wang discloses the communication method according to claims 1 and 13 as described above. The combination, however, fails to specifically disclose in a case where the station device has a periodic TDLS service, sending information about communication duration and/or cycle of the periodic TDLS service to the access point device.
In a similar field of endeavor, Kakani discloses a power save mechanism for wireless communication devices. Kakani further discloses in a case where the station device has a periodic TDLS service, sending information about communication duration and/or cycle of the periodic TDLS service to the access point device (The example header portion may include a field 121 indicating that the frame is a data frame and a field 122 that indicates it is a Tunneled Direct Link Setup (TDLS) packet. The example addresses 123 and 124 indicate the transmitting STA 100A and receiving STA 100B. The example fields 125, 126, and 127 indicate the next power mode, the specified time when the next active direct data transfer period, service period or session will start, and the expected data rate, respectively.) (0036).
Therefore, before the effective filing date, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify the combination of Seok and Wang with the teachings of Kakani in order to preserve power as discussed in Kakani (the transmitting STA 100A inserting in the last message frame 120AB according to an embodiment, a specified time 126 when the next active direct data transfer period, service period or session will start and the expected data rate 127, which will enable the receiving STA 100B to decide whether it wants to coordinate beginning of its power save mode for the same time as the transmitting STA 100A and coordinate remaining in the power save mode until that specified time 126 occurs, when both STAs 100A and 100B should be awake. In this manner STA 100A and STA 100B may coordinate entering into and returning from the power save mode over the direct data transfer link.) (0036).
Regarding claims 5 and 17, the combination of Seok, Wang and Kakani discloses wherein the sent information about communication duration and/or cycle of the periodic TDLS service comprises: the communication duration and/or cycle of the periodic TDLS service on each of the multiple connections (MLD connections) (Wang as modified) (A number of contributions have been submitted to the 802.11be TG regarding Multi-link operations, particularly on non-simultaneous transmit and receive (non-STR) operations. An example of such operation may be described as follows. An UL transmission from a non-AP Multi-link Device (MLD) on link 1 may interfere with reception on link 2 provided a potential solution using sync PPDU. The sync PPDU transmitted from AP on different links to the same non-AP MLD may have the end of PPDUs aligned. When a non-STR MLD (Multi-link Devices) is transmitting on link 1, the transmission on link 2 may effectively render any receive attempt on link 2 useless.) (Wang as modified, 0084).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Chu et al. U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2021/0377856 discloses an access point and station multi-link device (MLD) operation.
Asterjadhi et al. U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2021/0007168 discloses signaling for multi-link communication in a wireless local area network (WLAN).
Kim et al. U.S. Patent Pub. No. 2013/0329620 discloses a method for communication based on identifying information assignment and apparatus for the same.
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/TEMICA M BEAMER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2646
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