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 .
The preliminary amendment filed 2/23/2024 has been entered.
Claims 1, 5-6, 8, 10-12, 15, 18, 22-23, 25, 27-29, 32, 35-36, 39-43, 45-46 and 49-53 are pending.
Claims 2-4, 7, 9, 13-14, 16-17, 19-21, 24, 26, 30-31, 33-34, 37-38, 44, 47-48 and 54 are canceled.
Claims 1, 5-6, 8, 10-12, 15, 18, 22-23, 25, 27-29, 32, 35-36, 39-43, 45-46 and 49-53 stand rejected.
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.
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, 5-6, 8, 11, 18, 22-23, 25 and 28 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Avadhanam et al. (Pub. No.: US 20210266808 A1) in view of Min et al. (Pub. No.: US 20200128531 A1), hereafter respectively referred to as Avadhanam and Min.
In regard to Claim 1, Avadhanam teaches A method for wireless communication by a wireless device (a mobile device, Para. 56, FIGS. 5, 8), comprising: establishing a Bluetooth connection (Method 800 may commence with operation 802 during which a first wireless connection may be established. The first wireless connection may be a wireless connection that is initially used to transmit data between devices, such as a source and a sink device. The first wireless connection may be a Bluetooth connection, Para. 56, FIGS. 5, 8) with a peripheral device (a wireless headset, Para. 56, FIGS. 5, 8) based on one or more Bluetooth Specifications (source 150 is a low energy Bluetooth device that is compatible with a Bluetooth Low Energy specification and protocol, also referred to as Bluetooth Smart, Para. 25, FIG. 1).
Avadhanam teaches transmitting one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames to the peripheral device (the mobile device is configured to stream music to the wireless headset via the Bluetooth connection, Para. 56, FIG. 8. An application executed on a mobile device may cause the transmission and streaming of an audio file so that it may be played by the sink device. The streamed data is transmitted from the source device to the sink device as a data stream that is packetized in accordance with the transmission protocol of the first wireless connection, Para. 63, FIG. 8) over the Bluetooth connection (the first wireless connection is a Bluetooth connection, Para. 58, FIG. 8. Method 800 may proceed to operation 810 during which data may be streamed using the first wireless connection. The source and sink device may be any suitable Bluetooth-capable source and sink devices, Para. 63, FIG. 8).
Avadhanam teaches initiating a first handover operation for communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device (If it is determined that a switch should be initiated, method 800 may proceed to operation 816, Para. 65, FIG. 8) responsive to a link metric of the Bluetooth connection being less than a first link metric threshold (Method 800 may proceed to operation 814 during which it may be determined if a switch should be initiated. A drop below the threshold RSSI value for the first wireless connection may trigger a switch, Para. 65, FIG. 8).
Avadhanam teaches the first handover operation including: selecting an access point (AP) (Method 800 may proceed to operation 804 during which one or more discovery operations may be implemented for a second wireless connection, Para. 57, FIG. 8. Method 1100 may commence with operation 1102 during which it may be determined if a software enabled access point has been discovered. Accordingly, during operation 1102, a source device may determine if the sink device supports SoftAP. If it is determined that the sink device does support SoftAP, method 1100 may proceed to operation 1104, Para. 80, FIG. 11) of one or more candidate APs (one or more devices may be configured to support software enabled access point (SoftAP) functionalities, Para. 80, FIG. 11).
Avadhanam teaches switching the communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device from the Bluetooth connection to a wireless local area network (WLAN) channel (the second wireless connection between the source and sink device may be a Wi-Fi connection, Para. 57, FIG. 8. If it is determined that a switch should be initiated, method 800 may proceed to operation 816, Para. 65, FIG. 8. Accordingly, during operation 816 the second wireless connection may be started, Para. 66, FIG. 8) associated with the selected AP (during operation 1102, a source device may determine if the sink device supports SoftAP. If it is determined that the sink device does support SoftAP, method 1100 may proceed to operation 1104, Para. 80, FIG. 11. Accordingly, during operation 1104, a wireless connection may be established via Wi-Fi Direct. Thus, a Wi-Fi connection may be established between the source device and the sink device, Para. 81, FIG. 11).
Avadhanam teaches transmitting one or more second Bluetooth-encoded data frames to the peripheral device over the WLAN channel (Method 800 may proceed to operation 820 during which the switch may be made to the second wireless connection. The source device may encapsulate the data packets such that A2DP data packets originally being sent over the Bluetooth connection are encapsulated and sent over the Wi-Fi connection. In this way, the data packets may be received at the source device, Para. 68, FIG. 8).
Although Avadhanam teaches selecting an access point (AP) of one or more candidate APs, Avadhanam fails to teach selecting an access point (AP) of one or more candidate APs based on signal strengths of frames received from the one or more candidate APs.
Min teaches selecting an access point (AP) of one or more candidate APs based on signal strengths of frames received from the one or more candidate APs (the STA may select only the APs corresponding to the SSID of interest and classify them to keep only the ones with the highest received signal strength indicator (RSSI), Para. 49, FIGS. 1-2. A switch 1603 may be provided between the WLAN FEM circuitry 1604a and the BT FEM circuitry 1604b to allow switching between the WLAN and BT radios according to application needs, Para. 121, FIG. 16).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Min with the teachings of Avadhanam since Min provides a technique for utilizing signal strength indicators in a selection process for access points, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Avadhanam to permit mobile devices to utilize signal strength indicators in selection processes for software enabled access points.
In regard to Claim 5, Avadhanam teaches transmitting one or more additional Bluetooth-encoded data frames to the peripheral device over the Bluetooth connection (during operation 810, one or more components of the source device may cause the transmission of data over the first wireless connection, Para. 63, FIG. 8. Proceed to operation 812 during which the one or more signal quality metrics may be monitored, Para. 64, FIG. 8), without initiating the first handover operation (during operation 814, a determination may be made based on a comparison of the monitored signal quality metrics and the switch parameters. If it is determined that a switch should not be initiated, method 800 may return to operation 812, Para. 65, FIG. 8), responsive to the link metric of the Bluetooth connection being greater than the first link metric threshold (the switch conditions may identify a threshold value for an RSSI value, Para. 65, FIG. 8).
In regard to Claim 6, Avadhanam teaches the link metric includes one or more of received signal strength indicator (RSSI) values (the switch conditions may identify a threshold value for an RSSI value. In this example, a drop below the threshold RSSI value for the first wireless connection may trigger a switch, Para. 65, FIG. 8) of the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames (the mobile device is configured to stream music to the wireless headset via the Bluetooth connection, Para. 56, FIG. 8. The first wireless connection is a Bluetooth connection, Para. 58, FIG. 8. A data stream that is packetized in accordance with the transmission protocol of the first wireless connection, Para. 63, FIG. 8), a quality of the Bluetooth connection, a data rate associated with the Bluetooth connection, a packet error rate (PER) associated with the Bluetooth connection, an average number quantity of packet retransmissions on the Bluetooth connection, or a presence of concurrent downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) transmissions associated with the peripheral device.
In regard to Claim 8, Avadhanam teaches initiating the first handover operation is further based on a distance between the peripheral device and the wireless device (source device 501 and sink device 514 are configured to seamlessly hand off between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connections in response to one or more determinations made based on signal quality and/or distance between source device 501 and sink device 514, Para. 46, FIGS. 5-6), and wherein initiating the first handover operation comprises: initiating the first handover operation based on the distance being greater than a value (a designated distance may be used as a switch parameter. For example, if an inferred distance between the source and sink devices increases above a threshold, a switch may be triggered, Para. 65, FIG. 8) or the distance increasing by more than an amount; or refraining from initiating the first handover operation based on the distance being less than the value (during operation 814, a determination may be made based on a comparison of the monitored signal quality metrics and the switch parameters. If it is determined that a switch should not be initiated, method 800 may return to operation 812, Para. 65, FIG. 8) or the distance not increasing by more than the amount.
In regard to Claim 11, as presented in the rejection of Claim 1, Avadhanam teaches the AP.
Avadhanam fails to teach selecting the AP includes: obtaining received signal strength indicator (RSSI) values of one or more beacon frames received from one or more candidate access points (APs); identifying the AP of the one or more candidate APs associated with the one or more beacon frames having a highest RSSI value of the obtained RSSI values; and associating with the identified AP over the WLAN channel.
Min teaches selecting the AP includes: obtaining received signal strength indicator (RSSI) values of one or more beacon frames received from one or more candidate access points (APs) (APs operating at 2.4/5 GHz and that are co-located with a 6 GHz AP include a Reduced Neighbor Report in beacons and probe response to describe the co-located AP operating at 6 GHz, Para. 16. A STA may scan a lower frequency band (e.g., 2.4/5 GHz band) in order to receive the beacons containing the reduced neighbor report (RNR) from all APs operating at 6 GHz, Para. 48); identifying the AP of the one or more candidate APs associated with the one or more beacon frames having a highest RSSI value of the obtained RSSI values (the STA may select only the APs corresponding to the SSID of interest and classify them to keep only the ones with the highest received signal strength indicator (RSSI), Para. 49, FIGS. 1-2); and associating with the identified AP over the WLAN channel (the STA can send a probe request which is specifically sent to a particular BSSID, Para. 50. An AP receiving this probe request and with an SSID matching one of the SSID in the list may respond with a probe response to this probe request, Para. 52).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Min with the teachings of Avadhanam since Min provides a technique for utilizing signal strength indicators in a selection process for access points, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Avadhanam to permit mobile devices to utilize signal strength indicators in selection processes for software enabled access points.
In regard to Claim 18, Avadhanam teaches A wireless device (a mobile device, Para. 56, FIGS. 5, 8), comprising: one or more processors (host processor 313, Para. 37, FIG. 3); and a memory coupled to the one or more processors and storing processor-executable code (memory system 308 which is configured to store one or more data values associated with seamless switching operations, Para. 37, FIG. 3) that, when executed by the one or more processors, is configured to: establish a Bluetooth connection (Method 800 may commence with operation 802 during which a first wireless connection may be established. The first wireless connection may be a wireless connection that is initially used to transmit data between devices, such as a source and a sink device. The first wireless connection may be a Bluetooth connection, Para. 56, FIGS. 5, 8) with a peripheral device (a wireless headset, Para. 56, FIGS. 5, 8) based on one or more Bluetooth Specifications (source 150 is a low energy Bluetooth device that is compatible with a Bluetooth Low Energy specification and protocol, also referred to as Bluetooth Smart, Para. 25, FIG. 1).
Avadhanam teaches transmit one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames to the peripheral device (the mobile device is configured to stream music to the wireless headset via the Bluetooth connection, Para. 56, FIG. 8. An application executed on a mobile device may cause the transmission and streaming of an audio file so that it may be played by the sink device. The streamed data is transmitted from the source device to the sink device as a data stream that is packetized in accordance with the transmission protocol of the first wireless connection, Para. 63, FIG. 8) over the Bluetooth connection (the first wireless connection is a Bluetooth connection, Para. 58, FIG. 8. Method 800 may proceed to operation 810 during which data may be streamed using the first wireless connection. The source and sink device may be any suitable Bluetooth-capable source and sink devices, Para. 63, FIG. 8).
Avadhanam teaches initiate a first handover operation for communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device (If it is determined that a switch should be initiated, method 800 may proceed to operation 816, Para. 65, FIG. 8) responsive to a link metric of the Bluetooth connection being less than a first link metric threshold (Method 800 may proceed to operation 814 during which it may be determined if a switch should be initiated. A drop below the threshold RSSI value for the first wireless connection may trigger a switch, Para. 65, FIG. 8).
Avadhanam teaches the first handover operation including: select an access point (AP) (Method 800 may proceed to operation 804 during which one or more discovery operations may be implemented for a second wireless connection, Para. 57, FIG. 8. Method 1100 may commence with operation 1102 during which it may be determined if a software enabled access point has been discovered. Accordingly, during operation 1102, a source device may determine if the sink device supports SoftAP. If it is determined that the sink device does support SoftAP, method 1100 may proceed to operation 1104, Para. 80, FIG. 11) of one or more candidate APs (one or more devices may be configured to support software enabled access point (SoftAP) functionalities, Para. 80, FIG. 11).
Avadhanam teaches switch the communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device from the Bluetooth connection to a wireless local area network (WLAN) channel (the second wireless connection between the source and sink device may be a Wi-Fi connection, Para. 57, FIG. 8. If it is determined that a switch should be initiated, method 800 may proceed to operation 816, Para. 65, FIG. 8. Accordingly, during operation 816 the second wireless connection may be started, Para. 66, FIG. 8) associated with the selected AP (during operation 1102, a source device may determine if the sink device supports SoftAP. If it is determined that the sink device does support SoftAP, method 1100 may proceed to operation 1104, Para. 80, FIG. 11. Accordingly, during operation 1104, a wireless connection may be established via Wi-Fi Direct. Thus, a Wi-Fi connection may be established between the source device and the sink device, Para. 81, FIG. 11).
Avadhanam teaches transmit one or more second Bluetooth-encoded data frames to the peripheral device over the WLAN channel (Method 800 may proceed to operation 820 during which the switch may be made to the second wireless connection. The source device may encapsulate the data packets such that A2DP data packets originally being sent over the Bluetooth connection are encapsulated and sent over the Wi-Fi connection. In this way, the data packets may be received at the source device, Para. 68, FIG. 8).
Although Avadhanam teaches select an access point (AP) of one or more candidate APs, Avadhanam fails to teach select an access point (AP) of one or more candidate APs based on signal strengths of frames received from the one or more candidate APs.
Min teaches select an access point (AP) of one or more candidate APs based on signal strengths of frames received from the one or more candidate APs (the STA may select only the APs corresponding to the SSID of interest and classify them to keep only the ones with the highest received signal strength indicator (RSSI), Para. 49, FIGS. 1-2. A switch 1603 may be provided between the WLAN FEM circuitry 1604a and the BT FEM circuitry 1604b to allow switching between the WLAN and BT radios according to application needs, Para. 121, FIG. 16).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Min with the teachings of Avadhanam since Min provides a technique for utilizing signal strength indicators in a selection process for access points, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Avadhanam to permit mobile devices to utilize signal strength indicators in selection processes for software enabled access points.
In regard to Claim 22, Avadhanam teaches execution of the processor-executable code is further configured to: transmit one or more additional Bluetooth-encoded data frames to the peripheral device over the Bluetooth connection (during operation 810, one or more components of the source device may cause the transmission of data over the first wireless connection, Para. 63, FIG. 8. Proceed to operation 812 during which the one or more signal quality metrics may be monitored, Para. 64, FIG. 8), without initiating the first handover operation (during operation 814, a determination may be made based on a comparison of the monitored signal quality metrics and the switch parameters. If it is determined that a switch should not be initiated, method 800 may return to operation 812, Para. 65, FIG. 8), responsive to the link metric of the Bluetooth connection being greater than the first link metric threshold (the switch conditions may identify a threshold value for an RSSI value, Para. 65, FIG. 8).
In regard to Claim 23, Avadhanam teaches the link metric includes one or more of received signal strength indicator (RSSI) values (the switch conditions may identify a threshold value for an RSSI value. In this example, a drop below the threshold RSSI value for the first wireless connection may trigger a switch, Para. 65, FIG. 8) of the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames (the mobile device is configured to stream music to the wireless headset via the Bluetooth connection, Para. 56, FIG. 8. The first wireless connection is a Bluetooth connection, Para. 58, FIG. 8. A data stream that is packetized in accordance with the transmission protocol of the first wireless connection, Para. 63, FIG. 8), a quality of the Bluetooth connection, a data rate associated with the Bluetooth connection, a packet error rate (PER) associated with the Bluetooth connection, an average quantity of packet retransmissions on the Bluetooth connection, or a presence of concurrent downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) transmissions associated with the peripheral device.
In regard to Claim 25, Avadhanam teaches initiating the first handover operation is further based on a distance between the peripheral device and the wireless device (source device 501 and sink device 514 are configured to seamlessly hand off between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connections in response to one or more determinations made based on signal quality and/or distance between source device 501 and sink device 514, Para. 46, FIGS. 5-6), and wherein execution of the processor-executable code for initiating the first handover operation is further configured to: initiate the first handover operation based on the distance being greater than a value (a designated distance may be used as a switch parameter. For example, if an inferred distance between the source and sink devices increases above a threshold, a switch may be triggered, Para. 65, FIG. 8) or the distance increasing by more than an amount; or refrain from initiating the first handover operation based on the distance being less than the value (during operation 814, a determination may be made based on a comparison of the monitored signal quality metrics and the switch parameters. If it is determined that a switch should not be initiated, method 800 may return to operation 812, Para. 65, FIG. 8) or the distance not increasing by more than the amount.
In regard to Claim 28, as presented in the rejection of Claim 1, Avadhanam teaches the AP.
Avadhanam fails to teach execution of the processor-executable code for selecting the AP is further configured to: obtain received signal strength indicator (RSSI) values of one or more beacon frames received from one or more candidate access points (APs); identify the AP of the one or more candidate APs associated with the one or more beacon frames having a highest RSSI value of the obtained RSSI values; and associate with the identified AP over the WLAN channel.
Min teaches execution of the processor-executable code for selecting the AP is further configured to: obtain received signal strength indicator (RSSI) values of one or more beacon frames received from one or more candidate access points (APs) (APs operating at 2.4/5 GHz and that are co-located with a 6 GHz AP include a Reduced Neighbor Report in beacons and probe response to describe the co-located AP operating at 6 GHz, Para. 16. A STA may scan a lower frequency band (e.g., 2.4/5 GHz band) in order to receive the beacons containing the reduced neighbor report (RNR) from all APs operating at 6 GHz, Para. 48); identify the AP of the one or more candidate APs associated with the one or more beacon frames having a highest RSSI value of the obtained RSSI values (the STA may select only the APs corresponding to the SSID of interest and classify them to keep only the ones with the highest received signal strength indicator (RSSI), Para. 49, FIGS. 1-2); and associate with the identified AP over the WLAN channel (the STA can send a probe request which is specifically sent to a particular BSSID, Para. 50. An AP receiving this probe request and with an SSID matching one of the SSID in the list may respond with a probe response to this probe request, Para. 52).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Min with the teachings of Avadhanam since Min provides a technique for utilizing signal strength indicators in a selection process for access points, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Avadhanam to permit mobile devices to utilize signal strength indicators in selection processes for software enabled access points.
Claim(s) 10, 12, 27 and 29 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Avadhanam in view of Min, and further in view of Koo et al. (Pub. No.: US 20140031036 A1), hereafter referred to as Koo.
In regard to Claim 10, as presented in the rejection of Claim 1, Avadhanam teaches the link metric.
Avadhanam fails to teach the link metric comprises a level of co-existence interference between the Bluetooth connection and respective WLAN channels associated with the one or more candidate APs, and wherein initiating the first handover operation comprises: initiating the first handover operation based on the level of co-existence interference being greater than an interference threshold; or refraining from initiating the first handover operation based on the level of co-existence interference being less than the interference threshold.
Koo teaches the link metric comprises a level of co-existence interference between the Bluetooth connection and respective WLAN channels associated with the one or more candidate APs, and wherein initiating the first handover operation comprises: initiating the first handover operation based on the level of co-existence interference being greater than an interference threshold (To support efficient and prompt handover, one or more predetermined triggering events are proposed for use in the "Reason/Triggering" field of the measurement report 5.2, Para. 56. Serving cell becomes worse than absolute threshold due to in-device LTE coexistence interference, Table 6); or refraining from initiating the first handover operation based on the level of co-existence interference being less than the interference threshold.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Koo with the teachings of Avadhanam in view of Min since Koo provides a technique for utilizing values of coexistence interference to determine handover, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Avadhanam in view of Min to take into account coexistence interference for determining when a switch should be initiated.
In regard to Claim 12, as presented in the rejection of Claim 1, Avadhanam teaches the wireless device.
Avadhanam fails to teach initiating a second handover operation for the communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device responsive to a signal strength of a Bluetooth advertisement message received from the peripheral device exceeding a signal strength threshold, wherein the signal strength comprises an average received signal strength indicator (RSSI) value of one or more Bluetooth advertisement messages received from the peripheral device, and the second link metric threshold is based at least in part on a weighted set of RSSI values associated with previously received Bluetooth messages; switching the communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device from the WLAN channel to the Bluetooth connection based on the link metric of the Bluetooth connection being greater than a second link metric threshold and based on one or more of a quality of the Bluetooth connection, a data rate associated with the Bluetooth connection, a packet error rate (PER) associated with the Bluetooth connection, an average quantity of packet retransmissions on the Bluetooth connection, a presence of concurrent downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) transmissions associated with the peripheral device, or a level of cross-link interference associated with the concurrent DL and UL transmissions; and transmitting one or more third Bluetooth-encoded data frames to the peripheral device over the Bluetooth connection.
Koo teaches initiating a second handover operation for the communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device responsive to a signal strength of a Bluetooth advertisement message received from the peripheral device exceeding a signal strength threshold, wherein the signal strength comprises an average received signal strength indicator (RSSI) value of one or more Bluetooth advertisement messages received from the peripheral device, and the second link metric threshold is based at least in part on a weighted set of RSSI values associated with previously received Bluetooth messages; switching the communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device from the WLAN channel to the Bluetooth connection based on the link metric of the Bluetooth connection being greater than a second link metric threshold and based on one or more of a quality of the Bluetooth connection, a data rate associated with the Bluetooth connection, a packet error rate (PER) associated with the Bluetooth connection, an average quantity of packet retransmissions on the Bluetooth connection, a presence of concurrent downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) transmissions associated with the peripheral device, or a level of cross-link interference associated with the concurrent DL and UL transmissions; and transmitting one or more third Bluetooth-encoded data frames to the peripheral device over the Bluetooth connection (the Bluetooth (BT) component error rate is unacceptable when an LTE component is active in some channels of Band 7 or even Band 40 for some BT component channel conditions, Para. 21. The UE 502 scans the neighboring eNB/cells or frequencies (501) to evaluate their signal strength and identify any neighboring eNBs or cells that will not interfere with the non-LTE signaling at the UE 502. Based on the scan results, the UE 502 generates and sends to the serving eNB/cel 504 a measurement report (message signal 5.2) which identifies the triggering event for the handover, Para. 55).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Koo with the teachings of Avadhanam in view of Min since Koo provides a technique for utilizing values of coexistence interference to determine handover, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Avadhanam in view of Min to take into account coexistence interference for determining when a switch should be initiated.
In regard to Claim 27, as presented in the rejection of Claim 18, Avadhanam teaches the link metric.
Avadhanam fails to teach the link metric comprises a level of co-existence interference between the Bluetooth connection and respective WLAN channels associated with the one or more candidate APs, and wherein execution of the processor-executable code for initiating the first handover operation is further configured to: initiate the first handover operation based on the level of co-existence interference being greater than an interference threshold; or refrain from initiating the first handover operation based on the level of co-existence interference being less than the interference threshold.
Koo teaches the link metric comprises a level of co-existence interference between the Bluetooth connection and respective WLAN channels associated with the one or more candidate APs, and wherein execution of the processor-executable code for initiating the first handover operation is further configured to: initiate the first handover operation based on the level of co-existence interference being greater than an interference threshold (To support efficient and prompt handover, one or more predetermined triggering events are proposed for use in the "Reason/Triggering" field of the measurement report 5.2, Para. 56. Serving cell becomes worse than absolute threshold due to in-device LTE coexistence interference, Table 6); or refrain from initiating the first handover operation based on the level of co-existence interference being less than the interference threshold.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Koo with the teachings of Avadhanam in view of Min since Koo provides a technique for utilizing values of coexistence interference to determine handover, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Avadhanam in view of Min to take into account coexistence interference for determining when a switch should be initiated.
In regard to Claim 29, as presented in the rejection of Claim 18, Avadhanam teaches the wireless device.
Avadhanam fails to teach execution of the processor-executable code is further configured to: initiate a second handover operation for the communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device responsive to a signal strength of a Bluetooth advertisement message received from the peripheral device exceeding a signal strength threshold, wherein the signal strength comprises an average received signal strength indicator (RSSI) value of one or more Bluetooth advertisement messages received from the peripheral device, and the second link metric threshold is based at least in part on a weighted set of RSSI values associated with previously received Bluetooth message; switch the communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device from the WLAN channel to the Bluetooth connection based on the link metric of the Bluetooth connection being greater than a second link metric threshold and based on one or more of a quality of the Bluetooth connection, a data rate associated with the Bluetooth connection, a packet error rate (PER) associated with the Bluetooth connection, an average quantity of packet retransmissions on the Bluetooth connection, a presence of concurrent downlink(DL) and uplink (UL) transmissions associated with the peripheral device, or a level of cross-link interference associated with the concurrent DL and UL transmissions; and transmit one or more third Bluetooth-encoded data frames to the peripheral device over the Bluetooth connection.
Koo teaches execution of the processor-executable code is further configured to: initiate a second handover operation for the communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device responsive to a signal strength of a Bluetooth advertisement message received from the peripheral device exceeding a signal strength threshold, wherein the signal strength comprises an average received signal strength indicator (RSSI) value of one or more Bluetooth advertisement messages received from the peripheral device, and the second link metric threshold is based at least in part on a weighted set of RSSI values associated with previously received Bluetooth message; switch the communications between the wireless device and the peripheral device from the WLAN channel to the Bluetooth connection based on the link metric of the Bluetooth connection being greater than a second link metric threshold and based on one or more of a quality of the Bluetooth connection, a data rate associated with the Bluetooth connection, a packet error rate (PER) associated with the Bluetooth connection, an average quantity of packet retransmissions on the Bluetooth connection, a presence of concurrent downlink(DL) and uplink (UL) transmissions associated with the peripheral device, or a level of cross-link interference associated with the concurrent DL and UL transmissions; and transmit one or more third Bluetooth-encoded data frames to the peripheral device over the Bluetooth connection (the Bluetooth (BT) component error rate is unacceptable when an LTE component is active in some channels of Band 7 or even Band 40 for some BT component channel conditions, Para. 21. The UE 502 scans the neighboring eNB/cells or frequencies (501) to evaluate their signal strength and identify any neighboring eNBs or cells that will not interfere with the non-LTE signaling at the UE 502. Based on the scan results, the UE 502 generates and sends to the serving eNB/cel 504 a measurement report (message signal 5.2) which identifies the triggering event for the handover, Para. 55).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Koo with the teachings of Avadhanam in view of Min since Koo provides a technique for utilizing values of coexistence interference to determine handover, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Avadhanam in view of Min to take into account coexistence interference for determining when a switch should be initiated.
Claim(s) 15 and 32 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Avadhanam in view of Min, and further in view of Chen et al. (Pub. No.: US 20210400744 A1), hereafter referred to as Chen.
In regard to Claim 15, as presented in the rejection of Claim 1, Avadhanam teaches the WLAN channel.
Avadhanam fails to teach operating the wireless communication as a wireless station (STA) associated with the selected AP operating on the WLAN channel while also operating as a software-enabled access point (softAP) paired with the peripheral device over the Bluetooth connection.
Chen teaches operating the wireless communication as a wireless station (STA) associated with the selected AP operating on the WLAN channel while also operating as a software-enabled access point (softAP) paired with the peripheral device over the Bluetooth connection (the second device 200 may serve as a soft (Soft) access point (Access Point, AP) to exchange the Wi-Fi connection parameter with the second device 200 serving as a station (Station, STA) through the Bluetooth connection, Para. 167, FIGS. 2, 3A).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Chen with the teachings of Avadhanam in view of Min since Chen provides a technique for utilizing a soft access point in conjunction with a Bluetooth connection for exchanging Wi-Fi connection parameters, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Avadhanam in view of Min to permit efficient interoperation between Bluetooth Smart and a SoftAP employing Wi-Fi Direct for switching between protocols.
In regard to Claim 32, as presented in the rejection of Claim 18, Avadhanam teaches the WLAN channel.
Avadhanam fails to teach execution of the processor- executable code is further configured to: operate the wireless communication as a wireless station (STA) associated with the selected AP operating on the WLAN channel while also operating as a software-enabled access point (softAP) paired with the peripheral device over the Bluetooth connection.
Chen teaches execution of the processor- executable code is further configured to: operate the wireless communication as a wireless station (STA) associated with the selected AP operating on the WLAN channel while also operating as a software-enabled access point (softAP) paired with the peripheral device over the Bluetooth connection (the second device 200 may serve as a soft (Soft) access point (Access Point, AP) to exchange the Wi-Fi connection parameter with the second device 200 serving as a station (Station, STA) through the Bluetooth connection, Para. 167, FIGS. 2, 3A).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Chen with the teachings of Avadhanam in view of Min since Chen provides a technique for utilizing a soft access point in conjunction with a Bluetooth connection for exchanging Wi-Fi connection parameters, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Avadhanam in view of Min to permit efficient interoperation between Bluetooth Smart and a SoftAP employing Wi-Fi Direct for switching between protocols.
Claim(s) 35, 40-42, 45 and 50-52 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee et al. (Pub. No.: US 20170289277 A1) in view of Avadhanam et al. (Pub. No.: US 20210266808 A1), hereafter respectively referred to as Lee and Avadhanam.
In regard to Claim 35, Lee teaches A method for wireless communication by a Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device (a dockee. The Bluetooth host of the dockee, Para. 479, FIG. 16b) paired with a software-enabled (As illustrated in FIG. 16, a Bluetooth device, i.e., docking center, is physically divided into a Bluetooth host part on which a software area is mounted, Para. 477, FIG. 16) access point (softAP) (Bluetooth controller of the docking center, Para. 479, FIG. 16b) via a Bluetooth connection (tunneling Bluetooth HCI information, Para. 470, FIG. 16), comprising: associating with a first access point (AP) (docking center, Para. 481, FIG. 16b) operating on a wireless local area network (WLAN) channel (The dockee is connected to the docking center through wireless communication such as Wi-Fi, Para. 481, FIG. 16b).
Lee teaches exchanging one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the first AP over the WLAN channel (the dockee completes Wi-Fi serious bus (WSB) connection by mutual connection through the docking center and W-Fi, Para. 482, FIG. 16b. The docking center encapsulates HCI information of the Bluetooth controller of the docking center according to the WSB and then transmits or tunnels the encapsulated HCI information through the connected WSB, Para. 483, FIG. 16b. The dockee receives Bluetooth controller HCI information of the docking center which has been encapsulated with the WSB and is connected to the Bluetooth host of the dockee, Para. 484, FIG. 16b).
Although Lee teaches the first AP and the WLAN channel, Lee fails to teach switching communications from the first AP to a second AP during a handover operation responsive to a link metric of the channel indicating one or both of a decrease in received signal strength indicator (RSSI) values of the first Bluetooth-encoded data frames or an increase in a packet error rate (PER) of the first Bluetooth-encoded data frames; and exchanging one or more second Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the second AP over the WLAN channel after the handover operation.
Avadhanam teaches switching communications from the first AP (BT/BLE MAC/PHY layers 518, Para. 45, FIG. 5) to a second AP (Wi-Fi MAC/PHY layers 520, Para. 45, FIG. 5) during a handover operation (determine a switch should be made, and to automatically and dynamically implement such a handoff, Para. 21. If it is determined that a switch should be initiated, method 800 may proceed to operation 816, Para. 65, FIG. 8) responsive to a link metric of the channel indicating one or both of a decrease in received signal strength indicator (RSSI) values (Method 800 may proceed to operation 814 during which it may be determined if a switch should be initiated. A drop below the threshold RSSI value for the first wireless connection may trigger a switch, Para. 65, FIG. 8) of the first Bluetooth-encoded data frames (the mobile device is configured to stream music to the wireless headset via the Bluetooth connection, Para. 56, FIG. 8. An application executed on a mobile device may cause the transmission and streaming of an audio file so that it may be played by the sink device. The streamed data is transmitted from the source device to the sink device as a data stream that is packetized in accordance with the transmission protocol of the first wireless connection, Para. 63, FIG. 8) or an increase in a packet error rate (PER) of the first Bluetooth-encoded data frames.
Avadhanam teaches exchanging one or more second Bluetooth-encoded data frames (A2DP data packets originally being sent over the Bluetooth connection, Para. 68, FIG. 8) with the second AP (Wi-Fi MAC/PHY layers 520, Para. 45, FIG. 5) over the WLAN channel after the handover operation (Method 800 may proceed to operation 820 during which the switch may be made to the second wireless connection. The source device may encapsulate the data packets such that A2DP data packets originally being sent over the Bluetooth connection are encapsulated and sent over the Wi-Fi connection. In this way, the data packets may be received at the source device, Para. 68, FIG. 8).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Avadhanam with the teachings of Lee since Avadhanam provides a technique for switching connections in response to signal strengths dropping for Bluetooth connections and transparently continuing Bluetooth connections through the switching of connections, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee to maintain the tunneling of Bluetooth HCI information despite drops in signal strengths of certain connections.
In regard to Claim 40, Lee teaches exchanging one or more additional Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the first AP over the WLAN channel (the dockee completes Wi-Fi serious bus (WSB) connection by mutual connection through the docking center and W-Fi, Para. 482, FIG. 16b. The docking center encapsulates HCI information of the Bluetooth controller of the docking center according to the WSB and then transmits or tunnels the encapsulated HCI information through the connected WSB, Para. 483, FIG. 16b. The dockee receives Bluetooth controller HCI information of the docking center which has been encapsulated with the WSB and is connected to the Bluetooth host of the dockee, Para. 484, FIG. 16b).
Lee fails to teach exchanging one or more additional Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the first AP over the channel responsive to the link metric of the channel indicating one or both of an absence of the decrease in the RSSI values of the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames or an absence of the increase in the PER of the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames.
Avadhanam teaches exchanging one or more additional Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the first AP over the channel responsive to the link metric of the channel (during operation 810, one or more components of the source device may cause the transmission of data over the first wireless connection, Para. 63, FIG. 8. Proceed to operation 812 during which the one or more signal quality metrics may be monitored, Para. 64, FIG. 8) indicating one or both of an absence of the decrease (during operation 814, a determination may be made based on a comparison of the monitored signal quality metrics and the switch parameters. If it is determined that a switch should not be initiated, method 800 may return to operation 812, Para. 65, FIG. 8) in the RSSI values of the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames (the switch conditions may identify a threshold value for an RSSI value, Para. 65, FIG. 8) or an absence of the increase in the PER of the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Avadhanam with the teachings of Lee since Avadhanam provides a technique for switching connections in response to signal strengths dropping for Bluetooth connections and transparently continuing Bluetooth connections through the switching of connections, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee to maintain the tunneling of Bluetooth HCI information despite drops in signal strengths of certain connections.
In regard to Claim 41, as presented in the rejection of Claim 35, Lee teaches the first AP.
Lee fails to teach switching the communications during the handover operation is further based on respective distances between the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device and each of the first AP and the second AP.
Avadhanam teaches switching the communications during the handover operation is further based on respective distances between the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device and each of the first AP and the second AP (source device 501 and sink device 514 are configured to seamlessly hand off between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connections in response to one or more determinations made based on signal quality and/or distance between source device 501 and sink device 514, Para. 46, FIGS. 5-6. A designated distance may be used as a switch parameter. For example, if an inferred distance between the source and sink devices increases above a threshold, a switch may be triggered, Para. 65, FIG. 8).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Avadhanam with the teachings of Lee since Avadhanam provides a technique for switching connections in response to signal strengths dropping for Bluetooth connections and transparently continuing Bluetooth connections through the switching of connections, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee to maintain the tunneling of Bluetooth HCI information despite drops in signal strengths of certain connections.
In regard to Claim 42, as presented in the rejection of Claim 35, Lee teaches the first AP.
Lee fails to teach switching the communications during the handover operation is further based, at least in part, on a location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being outside a wireless coverage area of the first AP, on the location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being outside a wireless coverage area of the softAP, on the location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being within a wireless coverage area of the second AP, or any combination thereof.
Avadhanam teaches switching the communications during the handover operation is further based, at least in part, on a location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being outside a wireless coverage area of the first AP, on the location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being outside a wireless coverage area of the softAP, on the location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being within a wireless coverage area of the second AP, or any combination thereof (source device 501 and sink device 514 are configured to seamlessly hand off between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connections in response to one or more determinations made based on signal quality and/or distance between source device 501 and sink device 514, Para. 46, FIGS. 5-6. A designated distance may be used as a switch parameter. For example, if an inferred distance between the source and sink devices increases above a threshold, a switch may be triggered, Para. 65, FIG. 8).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Avadhanam with the teachings of Lee since Avadhanam provides a technique for switching connections in response to signal strengths dropping for Bluetooth connections and transparently continuing Bluetooth connections through the switching of connections, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee to maintain the tunneling of Bluetooth HCI information despite drops in signal strengths of certain connections.
In regard to Claim 45, Lee teaches A Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device (a dockee. The Bluetooth host of the dockee, Para. 479, FIG. 16b) paired with a software-enabled (As illustrated in FIG. 16, a Bluetooth device, i.e., docking center, is physically divided into a Bluetooth host part on which a software area is mounted, Para. 477, FIG. 16) access point (softAP) (Bluetooth controller of the docking center, Para. 479, FIG. 16b) via a Bluetooth connection (tunneling Bluetooth HCI information, Para. 470, FIG. 16), comprising: one or more processors (control unit 20, Para. 113, FIG. 2c); and a memory coupled to the one or more processors and storing processor-executable code (memory 112 is connected to the control unit 20 and stores a protocol or a parameter for performing a wireless docking service using Wi-Fi, Para. 113, FIG. 2c) that, when executed by the one or more processors, is configured to: associate with a first access point (AP) (docking center, Para. 481, FIG. 16b) operating on a wireless local area network (WLAN) channel (The dockee is connected to the docking center through wireless communication such as Wi-Fi, Para. 481, FIG. 16b).
Lee teaches exchange one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the first AP over the WLAN channel (the dockee completes Wi-Fi serious bus (WSB) connection by mutual connection through the docking center and W-Fi, Para. 482, FIG. 16b. The docking center encapsulates HCI information of the Bluetooth controller of the docking center according to the WSB and then transmits or tunnels the encapsulated HCI information through the connected WSB, Para. 483, FIG. 16b. The dockee receives Bluetooth controller HCI information of the docking center which has been encapsulated with the WSB and is connected to the Bluetooth host of the dockee, Para. 484, FIG. 16b).
Although Lee teaches the first AP and the WLAN channel, Lee fails to teach switch communications from the first AP to a second AP during a handover operation responsive to a link metric of the channel indicating one or both of a decrease in received signal strength indicator (RSSI) values of the first Bluetooth-encoded data frames or an increase in a packet error rate (PER) of the first Bluetooth-encoded data frames; and exchange one or more second Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the second AP over the WLAN channel after the handover operation.
Avadhanam teaches switch communications from the first AP (BT/BLE MAC/PHY layers 518, Para. 45, FIG. 5) to a second AP (Wi-Fi MAC/PHY layers 520, Para. 45, FIG. 5) during a handover operation (determine a switch should be made, and to automatically and dynamically implement such a handoff, Para. 21. If it is determined that a switch should be initiated, method 800 may proceed to operation 816, Para. 65, FIG. 8) responsive to a link metric of the channel indicating one or both of a decrease in received signal strength indicator (RSSI) values (Method 800 may proceed to operation 814 during which it may be determined if a switch should be initiated. A drop below the threshold RSSI value for the first wireless connection may trigger a switch, Para. 65, FIG. 8) of the first Bluetooth-encoded data frames (the mobile device is configured to stream music to the wireless headset via the Bluetooth connection, Para. 56, FIG. 8. An application executed on a mobile device may cause the transmission and streaming of an audio file so that it may be played by the sink device. The streamed data is transmitted from the source device to the sink device as a data stream that is packetized in accordance with the transmission protocol of the first wireless connection, Para. 63, FIG. 8) or an increase in a packet error rate (PER) of the first Bluetooth-encoded data frames.
Avadhanam teaches exchange one or more second Bluetooth-encoded data frames (A2DP data packets originally being sent over the Bluetooth connection, Para. 68, FIG. 8) with the second AP (Wi-Fi MAC/PHY layers 520, Para. 45, FIG. 5) over the WLAN channel after the handover operation (Method 800 may proceed to operation 820 during which the switch may be made to the second wireless connection. The source device may encapsulate the data packets such that A2DP data packets originally being sent over the Bluetooth connection are encapsulated and sent over the Wi-Fi connection. In this way, the data packets may be received at the source device, Para. 68, FIG. 8).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Avadhanam with the teachings of Lee since Avadhanam provides a technique for switching connections in response to signal strengths dropping for Bluetooth connections and transparently continuing Bluetooth connections through the switching of connections, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee to maintain the tunneling of Bluetooth HCI information despite drops in signal strengths of certain connections.
In regard to Claim 50, Lee teaches execution of the processor-executable code is further configured to: exchange one or more additional Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the first AP over the WLAN channel (the dockee completes Wi-Fi serious bus (WSB) connection by mutual connection through the docking center and W-Fi, Para. 482, FIG. 16b. The docking center encapsulates HCI information of the Bluetooth controller of the docking center according to the WSB and then transmits or tunnels the encapsulated HCI information through the connected WSB, Para. 483, FIG. 16b. The dockee receives Bluetooth controller HCI information of the docking center which has been encapsulated with the WSB and is connected to the Bluetooth host of the dockee, Para. 484, FIG. 16b).
Lee fails to teach exchange one or more additional Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the first AP over the channel responsive to the link metric of the channel indicating one or both of an absence of the decrease in the RSSI values of the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames or an absence of the increase in the PER of the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames.
Avadhanam teaches exchange one or more additional Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the first AP over the channel responsive to the link metric of the channel (during operation 810, one or more components of the source device may cause the transmission of data over the first wireless connection, Para. 63, FIG. 8. Proceed to operation 812 during which the one or more signal quality metrics may be monitored, Para. 64, FIG. 8) indicating one or both of an absence of the decrease (during operation 814, a determination may be made based on a comparison of the monitored signal quality metrics and the switch parameters. If it is determined that a switch should not be initiated, method 800 may return to operation 812, Para. 65, FIG. 8) in the RSSI values of the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames (the switch conditions may identify a threshold value for an RSSI value, Para. 65, FIG. 8) or an absence of the increase in the PER of the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Avadhanam with the teachings of Lee since Avadhanam provides a technique for switching connections in response to signal strengths dropping for Bluetooth connections and transparently continuing Bluetooth connections through the switching of connections, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee to maintain the tunneling of Bluetooth HCI information despite drops in signal strengths of certain connections.
In regard to Claim 51, as presented in the rejection of Claim 45, Lee teaches the first AP.
Lee fails to teach switching the communications during the handover operation is further based on respective distances between the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device and each of the first AP and the second AP.
Avadhanam teaches switching the communications during the handover operation is further based on respective distances between the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device and each of the first AP and the second AP (source device 501 and sink device 514 are configured to seamlessly hand off between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connections in response to one or more determinations made based on signal quality and/or distance between source device 501 and sink device 514, Para. 46, FIGS. 5-6. A designated distance may be used as a switch parameter. For example, if an inferred distance between the source and sink devices increases above a threshold, a switch may be triggered, Para. 65, FIG. 8).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Avadhanam with the teachings of Lee since Avadhanam provides a technique for switching connections in response to signal strengths dropping for Bluetooth connections and transparently continuing Bluetooth connections through the switching of connections, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee to maintain the tunneling of Bluetooth HCI information despite drops in signal strengths of certain connections.
In regard to Claim 52, as presented in the rejection of Claim 45, Lee teaches the first AP.
Lee fails to teach switching the communications during the handover operation is further based, at least in part, on a location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being outside a wireless coverage area of the first AP, on the location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being outside a wireless coverage area of the softAP, on the location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being within a wireless coverage area of the second AP, or any combination thereof.
Avadhanam teaches switching the communications during the handover operation is further based, at least in part, on a location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being outside a wireless coverage area of the first AP, on the location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being outside a wireless coverage area of the softAP, on the location of the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device being within a wireless coverage area of the second AP, or any combination thereof (source device 501 and sink device 514 are configured to seamlessly hand off between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connections in response to one or more determinations made based on signal quality and/or distance between source device 501 and sink device 514, Para. 46, FIGS. 5-6. A designated distance may be used as a switch parameter. For example, if an inferred distance between the source and sink devices increases above a threshold, a switch may be triggered, Para. 65, FIG. 8).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Avadhanam with the teachings of Lee since Avadhanam provides a technique for switching connections in response to signal strengths dropping for Bluetooth connections and transparently continuing Bluetooth connections through the switching of connections, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee to maintain the tunneling of Bluetooth HCI information despite drops in signal strengths of certain connections.
Claim(s) 36 and 46 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee in view of Avadhanam, and further in view of Min et al. (Pub. No.: US 20200128531 A1), hereafter referred to as Min.
In regard to Claim 36, as presented in the rejection of Claim 35, Lee in view of Avadhanam teaches the first AP.
Lee in view of Avadhanam fails to teach the first AP and the second AP belong to the same basic service set (BSS) or extended BSS (ESS).
Min teaches the first AP and the second AP belong to the same basic service set (BSS) (probes with SSID system may define a new element called “BSSID List element” that contains a variable number of BSSID fields/elements. An AP receiving a probe request with the BSSID List element included, and that has a BSSID that matches one of the BSSIDs in the list shall send a probe response in response to the probe request, Para. 24) or extended BSS (ESS).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Min with the teachings of Lee in view of Avadhanam since Min provides a technique for utilizing signal strength indicators in a selection process for access points, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee in view of Avadhanam to permit mobile devices to utilize signal strength indicators in selection processes for software enabled access points.
In regard to Claim 46, as presented in the rejection of Claim 45, Lee in view of Avadhanam teaches the first AP.
Lee in view of Avadhanam fails to teach the first AP and the second AP belong to the same basic service set (BSS) or extended BSS (ESS).
Min teaches the first AP and the second AP belong to the same basic service set (BSS) (probes with SSID system may define a new element called “BSSID List element” that contains a variable number of BSSID fields/elements. An AP receiving a probe request with the BSSID List element included, and that has a BSSID that matches one of the BSSIDs in the list shall send a probe response in response to the probe request, Para. 24) or extended BSS (ESS).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Min with the teachings of Lee in view of Avadhanam since Min provides a technique for utilizing signal strength indicators in a selection process for access points, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee in view of Avadhanam to permit mobile devices to utilize signal strength indicators in selection processes for software enabled access points.
Claim(s) 39, 43, 49 and 53 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee in view of Avadhanam, and further in view of Dees et al. (Pub. No.: US 20210160213 A1), hereafter referred to as Min.
In regard to Claim 39, as presented in the rejection of Claim 35, Lee in view of Avadhanam teaches Bluetooth-encoded data frames.
Lee in view of Avadhanam fails to teach the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames and the one or more second Bluetooth-encoded data frames are encapsulated within physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) protocol data units (PPDUs) compliant with the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication standards for transmission over the WLAN channel.
Dees teaches the one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames and the one or more second Bluetooth-encoded data frames are encapsulated within physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) protocol data units (PPDUs) compliant with the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication standards for transmission over the WLAN channel (IPv6 packet encapsulation at the sensor device itself, whereby the sensor device needs to be aware of its care-of-address, the address of the Home Agent (HA) or Mobility Anchor Point (MAP) to be able to encapsulate the packet, Para. 20. The Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model is employed, which includes the following layers: the physical layer includes the Physical Layer Convergence Procedure (PLCP) sublayer. In Bluetooth, the IP layer (layer 3) is typically encapsulated within the L2 payload of the L2 Cap packet, Para. 46).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Dees with the teachings of Lee in view of Avadhanam since Dees provides a technique for packet encapsulation involving Bluetooth and PLCP sublayer, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee in view of Avadhanam to permit mobile devices to benefit from the utilization of a PLCP sublayer for tunneling Bluetooth HCI information through Wi-Fi serial bus.
In regard to Claim 43, as presented in the rejection of Claim 35, Lee in view of Avadhanam teaches Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device.
Lee in view of Avadhanam fails to teach the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device includes a first earbud and a second earbud, the first and second earbuds paired with the softAP via at least one of an Asynchronous Connection-Less (ACL) link, a Logical Link Control and Adaptation Protocol (L2CAP) link, an Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP) link, a Synchronous Connection-Oriented (SCO) link, or an Isochronous (ISO) link.
Dees teaches the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device includes a first earbud and a second earbud, the first and second earbuds paired with the softAP via at least one of an Asynchronous Connection-Less (ACL) link, a Logical Link Control and Adaptation Protocol (L2CAP) link, an Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP) link, a Synchronous Connection-Oriented (SCO) link, or an Isochronous (ISO) link (device S and T, whereby both devices operate a BLE transport layer using the Logical Link Control and Adaptation Protocol (L2CAP), Para. 45. In Bluetooth, the PHY layer includes the RF and Baseband components, while the layer 2 MAC includes L2CAP and Link Manager layers, Para. 46).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Dees with the teachings of Lee in view of Avadhanam since Dees provides a technique for packet encapsulation involving Bluetooth and PLCP sublayer, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee in view of Avadhanam to permit mobile devices to benefit from the utilization of a PLCP sublayer for tunneling Bluetooth HCI information through Wi-Fi serial bus.
In regard to Claim 49, as presented in the rejection of Claim 45, Lee in view of Avadhanam teaches Bluetooth-encoded data frames.
Lee in view of Avadhanam fails to teach one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames and the one or more second Bluetooth-encoded data frames are encapsulated within physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) protocol data units (PPDUs) compliant with the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication standards for transmission over the WLAN channel.
Dees teaches one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames and the one or more second Bluetooth-encoded data frames are encapsulated within physical layer convergence protocol (PLCP) protocol data units (PPDUs) compliant with the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication standards for transmission over the WLAN channel (IPv6 packet encapsulation at the sensor device itself, whereby the sensor device needs to be aware of its care-of-address, the address of the Home Agent (HA) or Mobility Anchor Point (MAP) to be able to encapsulate the packet, Para. 20. The Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) model is employed, which includes the following layers: the physical layer includes the Physical Layer Convergence Procedure (PLCP) sublayer. In Bluetooth, the IP layer (layer 3) is typically encapsulated within the L2 payload of the L2 Cap packet, Para. 46).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Dees with the teachings of Lee in view of Avadhanam since Dees provides a technique for packet encapsulation involving Bluetooth and PLCP sublayer, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee in view of Avadhanam to permit mobile devices to benefit from the utilization of a PLCP sublayer for tunneling Bluetooth HCI information through Wi-Fi serial bus.
In regard to Claim 53, as presented in the rejection of Claim 45, Lee in view of Avadhanam teaches Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device.
Lee in view of Avadhanam fails to teach the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device includes a first earbud and a second earbud, the first and second earbuds paired with the softAP via at least one of an Asynchronous Connection-Less (ACL) link, a Logical Link Control and Adaptation Protocol (L2CAP) link, an Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP) link, a Synchronous Connection-Oriented (SCO) link, or an Isochronous (ISO) link.
Dees teaches the Bluetooth-enabled peripheral device includes a first earbud and a second earbud, the first and second earbuds paired with the softAP via at least one of an Asynchronous Connection-Less (ACL) link, a Logical Link Control and Adaptation Protocol (L2CAP) link, an Advanced Audio Distribution Profile (A2DP) link, a Synchronous Connection-Oriented (SCO) link, or an Isochronous (ISO) link (device S and T, whereby both devices operate a BLE transport layer using the Logical Link Control and Adaptation Protocol (L2CAP), Para. 45. In Bluetooth, the PHY layer includes the RF and Baseband components, while the layer 2 MAC includes L2CAP and Link Manager layers, Para. 46).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Dees with the teachings of Lee in view of Avadhanam since Dees provides a technique for packet encapsulation involving Bluetooth and PLCP sublayer, which can be introduced into the arrangement of Lee in view of Avadhanam to permit mobile devices to benefit from the utilization of a PLCP sublayer for tunneling Bluetooth HCI information through Wi-Fi serial bus.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Abraham et al. (Pub. No.: US 20150319029 A1) teaches exchanging one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the first AP over the WLAN channel (WB STAs 104a-104b may insert or encapsulate the Bluetooth service descriptors into one or more NAN service discovery frames for subsequent transmission according to one or more WiFi protocols, Para. 26).
AMINI et al. (Pub. No.: US 20180103408 A1) teaches exchanging one or more first Bluetooth-encoded data frames with the first AP over the WLAN channel (tunneling the Bluetooth communications over the WiFi backhaul channel, Para. 129).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JOSHUA Y SMITH whose telephone number is (571)270-1826. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 10:30am-7pm ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, CHIRAG G SHAH can be reached at (571)272-3144. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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Joshua Smith
/J.S./
2-27-2026
/CHIRAG G SHAH/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2477