DETAILED ACTION
Response to Amendment
In response to preliminary amendment filed on 3/6/2024, claims 1- 20 are cancelled and claims 21- 40 are pending for examinations.
Information Disclosure Statement
Information disclosure statement/s filed on 3/6/2024 and 2/13/2026 are under compliance and have been accepted.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 21, 25, 26- 27, 29- 31, 35- 36 and 39- 40 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Patil et al. (US Pub. No. 2021/0014911 A1)4 ].
Regarding claim 21, Patil teaches a method performed by a station (STA) configured to perform multi-link operations by communicating on a plurality of links concurrently (see [0004].. the AP may communicate with one or more STAs over multiple concurrent communication links. Each of the communication links may be of various bandwidths …; further see [0095].. APs 102 and STAs 104 can support multi-user (MU) communications; that is, concurrent transmissions from one device to each of multiple devices (for example, multiple simultaneous downlink (DL) communications from an AP 102 to corresponding STAs 104), or concurrent transmissions from multiple devices to a single device (for example, multiple simultaneous uplink (UL) transmissions from corresponding STAs 104 to an AP 102). To support the MU transmissions, the APs 102 and STAs 104 may utilize multi-user multiple-input, multiple-output (MU-MIMO) and multi-user orthogonal frequency division multiple access (MU-OFDMA) techniques; further see Fig. 1 in context with [0007] #102 as an AP MLD and #104 as a AP MLD ), the method comprising:
receiving, from a first access point (AP) multi-link device (MLD), a frame comprising an indication that the first AP MLD is affiliated with a multi-MLD (MMLD) comprising a plurality of AP MLDs (see [0113] At block 702, the AP transmits a first packet on a first communication link, the first packet including discovery information for at least the first communication link and a second communication link…; now refer to [0007].. the method may also include receiving a multi-link (ML) association request or a ML probe request from a first wireless station (STA) of a STA MLD, and transmitting one or both of association information or discovery information for the first AP and the one or more secondary APs of the first AP MLD to the first STA of the STA MLD based on the request.; further refer to [0012].. the frame (i.e. see [0006, 0008] transmitted to STA) may also include a reduced neighbor report (RNR) element carrying one or more neighbor AP information fields, each field of the one or more neighbor AP information fields carrying the unique link ID of a corresponding secondary AP of the one or more secondary APs of the first AP MLD (i.e. affiliated)).
transmitting a message, wherein the message comprises an indication that the STA supports MMLD operations when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links (see [0113].. At block 704, the AP receives a ML association request (i.e. multi-link request) from a second wireless communication device (i.e. STA has a support for ML association; refer to [0095] discussed above regarding.. APs 102 and STAs 104 can support multi-user (MU) communications; that is, concurrent transmissions from one device to each of multiple devices (for example, multiple simultaneous downlink (DL) communications from an AP 102 to corresponding STAs 104), or concurrent transmissions from multiple devices to a single device (for example, multiple simultaneous uplink (UL) transmissions from corresponding STAs 104 to an AP 102)) on the first communication link based at least in part on the discovery information…); and
receiving first information related to one or more of the plurality of AP MLDs for establishing communications on the plurality of links (see [0113].. At block 706, the AP transmits a second packet on the first communication link, the second packet including association information for at least the first communication link and the second communication link; further see [0071.. the AP MLD then transmits a second packet on the first communication link. The second packet includes association information for at least the first communication link and the second communication link. In some implementations, the AP MLD associates with the STA MLD based at least in part on the association information…).
Regarding claim 25, Patil teaches as per claim 21, wherein the frame is included in at least one of a beacon, a short beacon, a probe response, a fast initial link setup (FILS) discovery frame, or an association response frame; see [0148].. the frame 1000 may be a beacon frame, a probe response frame, an association response frame, or some other appropriate frame.
Regarding claim 26, Patil teaches as per claim 21, wherein:
the frame comprises an MMLD element; the MMLD element comprises at least one of an element ID field, a length field, an element identifier (ID) field, and element ID extension field, a MMLD ID field, a MMLD media access control (MAC) Address field, a partial reporting field, a number of reported MLDs field, or a MLD information field (see abstract .. The AP MLD transmits a frame including a first element carrying discovery information for the first AP and the one or more virtual APs belonging to the first multiple BSSID set, and including a second element …; now refer to [0010].. the second element may include a multi-link attribute element including one or more per-link profile subelements, each per-link profile subelement of the one or more per-link profile subelements carrying the discovery information for a corresponding secondary AP of the one or more secondary APs of the first AP MLD and carrying an ID field carrying an identifier that uniquely identifies a corresponding secondary communication link of the one or more secondary communication links..).
Regarding claim 29, Patil teaches as per claim 21, further comprising transmitting the message to at least one of:
the first AP MLD; or
one or more of the plurality of AP MLDs; already discussed above see [0113].. At block 704, the AP receives a ML association request (i.e. multi-link request) from a second wireless communication device (i.e. STA has a support for ML association; refer to [0095] discussed above regarding.. APs 102 and STAs 104 can support multi-user (MU) communications; that is, concurrent transmissions from one device to each of multiple devices (for example, multiple simultaneous downlink (DL) communications from an AP 102 to corresponding STAs 104), or concurrent transmissions from multiple devices to a single device (for example, multiple simultaneous uplink (UL) transmissions from corresponding STAs 104 to an AP 102)) on the first communication link based at least in part on the discovery information….
Regarding claim 30, Patil teaches as per claim 21, wherein the first information for establishing communications on the plurality of links is provided by at least one of:
the first AP MLD; or
one or more of the plurality of AP MLDs; already discussed above see [0113].. At block 704, the AP receives a ML association request (i.e. multi-link request) from a second wireless communication device (i.e. STA has a support for ML association; refer to [0095] discussed above regarding.. APs 102 and STAs 104 can support multi-user (MU) communications; that is, concurrent transmissions from one device to each of multiple devices (for example, multiple simultaneous downlink (DL) communications from an AP 102 to corresponding STAs 104), or concurrent transmissions from multiple devices to a single device (for example, multiple simultaneous uplink (UL) transmissions from corresponding STAs 104 to an AP 102)) on the first communication link based at least in part on the discovery information….; further see [0070].
Regarding claim 31, Patil teaches a station (STA) configured to perform multi-link operations by communicating on a plurality of links concurrently, the STA comprising: a transceiver; and a processor configured to (see [0004].. the AP may communicate with one or more STAs over multiple concurrent communication links. Each of the communication links may be of various bandwidths …; further see [0095].. APs 102 and STAs 104 can support multi-user (MU) communications; that is, concurrent transmissions from one device to each of multiple devices (for example, multiple simultaneous downlink (DL) communications from an AP 102 to corresponding STAs 104), or concurrent transmissions from multiple devices to a single device (for example, multiple simultaneous uplink (UL) transmissions from corresponding STAs 104 to an AP 102). To support the MU transmissions, the APs 102 and STAs 104 may utilize multi-user multiple-input, multiple-output (MU-MIMO) and multi-user orthogonal frequency division multiple access (MU-OFDMA) techniques; further see Fig. 1 in context with [0007] #102 as an AP MLD and #104 as a AP MLD ):
receive, via the transceiver, from a first access point (AP) multi-link device (MLD), a frame comprising an indication that the first AP MLD is affiliated with a multi-MLD (MMLD) comprising a plurality of AP MLDs (see [0113] At block 702, the AP transmits a first packet on a first communication link, the first packet including discovery information for at least the first communication link and a second communication link…; now refer to [0007].. the method may also include receiving a multi-link (ML) association request or a ML probe request from a first wireless station (STA) of a STA MLD, and transmitting one or both of association information or discovery information for the first AP and the one or more secondary APs of the first AP MLD to the first STA of the STA MLD based on the request.; further refer to [0012].. the frame (i.e. see [0006, 0008] transmitted to STA) may also include a reduced neighbor report (RNR) element carrying one or more neighbor AP information fields, each field of the one or more neighbor AP information fields carrying the unique link ID of a corresponding secondary AP of the one or more secondary APs of the first AP MLD (i.e. affiliated)).
transmit, via the transceiver, a message, wherein the message comprises an indication that the STA supports MMLD operations when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links (see [0113].. At block 704, the AP receives a ML association request (i.e. multi-link request) from a second wireless communication device (i.e. STA has a support for ML association; refer to [0095] discussed above regarding.. APs 102 and STAs 104 can support multi-user (MU) communications; that is, concurrent transmissions from one device to each of multiple devices (for example, multiple simultaneous downlink (DL) communications from an AP 102 to corresponding STAs 104), or concurrent transmissions from multiple devices to a single device (for example, multiple simultaneous uplink (UL) transmissions from corresponding STAs 104 to an AP 102)) on the first communication link based at least in part on the discovery information…); and
receive, via the transceiver, first information related to one or more of the plurality of AP MLDs for establishing communications on the plurality of links (see [0113].. At block 706, the AP transmits a second packet on the first communication link, the second packet including association information for at least the first communication link and the second communication link; further see [0071.. the AP MLD then transmits a second packet on the first communication link. The second packet includes association information for at least the first communication link and the second communication link. In some implementations, the AP MLD associates with the STA MLD based at least in part on the association information…).
Regarding claim 35, Patil teaches as per claim 31, wherein the frame is included in at least one of a beacon, a short beacon, a probe response, a fast initial link setup (FILS) discovery frame, or an association response frame; see [0148].. the frame 1000 may be a beacon frame, a probe response frame, an association response frame, or some other appropriate frame.
Regarding claim 36, Patil teaches as per claim 31, wherein:
the frame comprises an MMLD element; the MMLD element comprises at least one of an element ID field, a length field, an element identifier (ID) field, and element ID extension field, a MMLD ID field, a MMLD media access control (MAC) Address field, a partial reporting field, a number of reported MLDs field, or a MLD information field (see abstract .. The AP MLD transmits a frame including a first element carrying discovery information for the first AP and the one or more virtual APs belonging to the first multiple BSSID set, and including a second element …; now refer to [0010].. the second element may include a multi-link attribute element including one or more per-link profile subelements, each per-link profile subelement of the one or more per-link profile subelements carrying the discovery information for a corresponding secondary AP of the one or more secondary APs of the first AP MLD and carrying an ID field carrying an identifier that uniquely identifies a corresponding secondary communication link of the one or more secondary communication links..).
Regarding claim 39, Patil teaches as per claim 31, further comprising transmitting the message to at least one of:
the first AP MLD; or
one or more of the plurality of AP MLDs; already discussed above see [0113].. At block 704, the AP receives a ML association request (i.e. multi-link request) from a second wireless communication device (i.e. STA has a support for ML association; refer to [0095] discussed above regarding.. APs 102 and STAs 104 can support multi-user (MU) communications; that is, concurrent transmissions from one device to each of multiple devices (for example, multiple simultaneous downlink (DL) communications from an AP 102 to corresponding STAs 104), or concurrent transmissions from multiple devices to a single device (for example, multiple simultaneous uplink (UL) transmissions from corresponding STAs 104 to an AP 102)) on the first communication link based at least in part on the discovery information….
Regarding claim 40, Patil teaches as per claim 31, wherein the first information for establishing communications on the plurality of links is provided by at least one of:
the first AP MLD; or
one or more of the plurality of AP MLDs; already discussed above see [0113].. At block 704, the AP receives a ML association request (i.e. multi-link request) from a second wireless communication device (i.e. STA has a support for ML association; refer to [0095] discussed above regarding.. APs 102 and STAs 104 can support multi-user (MU) communications; that is, concurrent transmissions from one device to each of multiple devices (for example, multiple simultaneous downlink (DL) communications from an AP 102 to corresponding STAs 104), or concurrent transmissions from multiple devices to a single device (for example, multiple simultaneous uplink (UL) transmissions from corresponding STAs 104 to an AP 102)) on the first communication link based at least in part on the discovery information….; further see [0070].
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
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) 22 and 32 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Patil et al. (US Pub. No. 2021/0014911 A1) in view of Jiang et al. (US Pub. No. 2021/0044333 A1).
Regarding claim 22, Patil teaches as per claim 21, but fails to state about further comprising providing second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement coordinated beamforming when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; however Jiang states in [0019] regarding .. an access point (AP) configured for multi-AP coordinated beamforming (CBF) and multi-AP joint transmission (JT) in an Extremely High Throughput (EHT) wireless local area network (WLAN).. when the AP is operating as a first AP (AP1) in a multi-AP network, the AP1 is configured to: encode a null data packet announcement (NDPA) frame for multi-AP channel sounding, the NDPA for transmission to a second AP (AP2) and a plurality of stations (STAs) of an EHT group. The NDPA may be encoded to have an information field indicating whether a sounding sequence type in the NDP1 and NDP2 is for JT channel sounding or CBF channel sounding… The NDP1 is to be transmitted concurrently…….; now refer to [0020].. the AP1 may decode a channel state information (CSI) report frame receive from each STA of the EHT group. Each CSI report frame may include channel state information determined by one of the STAs of the EHT group based on both the NDP1 and the NDP2. For the CBF channel sounding, the CSI reports may be determined by the STAs separately for the NDP1 and the NDP2 (i.e., the CSI reports represent the individual channel). For the JT channel sounding, the CSI reports may be determined by the STAs from a combined reception of the NDP1 and the NDP2 (i.e., the CSI reports represent the joint channel). In these embodiments, the channel sounding sequence for JT can be reused for the channel sounding on CBF. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Jiang with the teachings of Patil to make system more reliable. Having a mechanism wherein providing second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement coordinated beamforming when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; greater way more reliable communication be carried out by coordinated efforts in the communication system.
Regarding claim 32, Patil teaches as per claim 31, but fails to state about the processor further configured to provide, via the transceiver, second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement coordinated beamforming when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; however Jiang states in [0019] regarding .. an access point (AP) configured for multi-AP coordinated beamforming (CBF) and multi-AP joint transmission (JT) in an Extremely High Throughput (EHT) wireless local area network (WLAN).. when the AP is operating as a first AP (AP1) in a multi-AP network, the AP1 is configured to: encode a null data packet announcement (NDPA) frame for multi-AP channel sounding, the NDPA for transmission to a second AP (AP2) and a plurality of stations (STAs) of an EHT group. The NDPA may be encoded to have an information field indicating whether a sounding sequence type in the NDP1 and NDP2 is for JT channel sounding or CBF channel sounding… The NDP1 is to be transmitted concurrently…….; now refer to [0020].. the AP1 may decode a channel state information (CSI) report frame receive from each STA of the EHT group. Each CSI report frame may include channel state information determined by one of the STAs of the EHT group based on both the NDP1 and the NDP2. For the CBF channel sounding, the CSI reports may be determined by the STAs separately for the NDP1 and the NDP2 (i.e., the CSI reports represent the individual channel). For the JT channel sounding, the CSI reports may be determined by the STAs from a combined reception of the NDP1 and the NDP2 (i.e., the CSI reports represent the joint channel). In these embodiments, the channel sounding sequence for JT can be reused for the channel sounding on CBF. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Jiang with the teachings of Patil to make system more reliable. Having a mechanism wherein the processor further configured to provide, via the transceiver, second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement coordinated beamforming when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; greater way more reliable communication be carried out by coordinated efforts in the communication system.
Claim(s) 23 and 33 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Patil et al. (US Pub. No. 2021/0014911 A1) in view of Park et al. (US Pub. No. 2023/0164700 A1).
Regarding claim 23, Patil teaches as per claim 21, but fails to state about providing second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement interference reduction when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; however Park teaches in [0004] regarding method performed by a sharing access point (AP) in a wireless local area network (WLAN) system according to various embodiments may include a technical feature for performing multi-AP transmission (i.e. see [0257] … Multi-AP (MAP) transmission may include joint transmission and coordinated transmission. Joint transmission is a method in which a plurality of APs simultaneously transmits one piece of data to a STA using antennas thereof…). The sharing AP may transmit a first measurement announcement frame for requesting measurement of a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) to a first station (STA). The sharing AP may transmit a first measurement request frame for requesting a first path loss value, which is path loss information of an overlapping basic service set (OBSS) AP and the first STA, and an acceptable receiver interference level (ARIL) value to the first STA. The sharing AP may receive a first measurement report frame including the first path loss and a first ARIL value of the first STA from the first STA. The sharing AP may transmit first data to the first STA.; now refer to [0005]… a sharing AP and a shard AP may transmit data to different STAs by using the same time-frequency resource through spatial reuse. Here, to reduce interference, the sharing AP may obtain path loss information and ARIL information from the STAs, and may determine power of transmission data based on the path loss information and the ARIL information, thereby reducing interference between signals. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Park with the teachings of Patil to make system more reliable. Having a mechanism about providing second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement interference reduction when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; greater way more reliable communication be carried out in the communication system.
Regarding claim 33, Patil teaches as per claim 31, but fails to state about the processor further configured to provide, via the transceiver, second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement interference reduction when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; however Park teaches in [0004] regarding method performed by a sharing access point (AP) in a wireless local area network (WLAN) system according to various embodiments may include a technical feature for performing multi-AP transmission (i.e. see [0257] … Multi-AP (MAP) transmission may include joint transmission and coordinated transmission. Joint transmission is a method in which a plurality of APs simultaneously transmits one piece of data to a STA using antennas thereof…). The sharing AP may transmit a first measurement announcement frame for requesting measurement of a received signal strength indicator (RSSI) to a first station (STA). The sharing AP may transmit a first measurement request frame for requesting a first path loss value, which is path loss information of an overlapping basic service set (OBSS) AP and the first STA, and an acceptable receiver interference level (ARIL) value to the first STA. The sharing AP may receive a first measurement report frame including the first path loss and a first ARIL value of the first STA from the first STA. The sharing AP may transmit first data to the first STA.; now refer to [0005]… a sharing AP and a shard AP may transmit data to different STAs by using the same time-frequency resource through spatial reuse. Here, to reduce interference, the sharing AP may obtain path loss information and ARIL information from the STAs, and may determine power of transmission data based on the path loss information and the ARIL information, thereby reducing interference between signals. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Park with the teachings of Patil to make system more reliable. Having a mechanism about the processor further configured to provide, via the transceiver, second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement interference reduction when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; greater way more reliable communication be carried out in the communication system.
Claim(s) 24 and 34 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Patil et al. (US Pub. No. 2021/0014911 A1) in view of Fang et al. (US Pub. No. 2023/0104554 A1).
Regarding claim 24, Patil teaches as per claim 21, but fails to state about providing second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement spatial efficiency when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; however Fang teaches in [0050] regarding …example of FIG. 9, non-AP MLD 950 associated with AP MLD1 is in the coverage area of 5 GHz BSS 920 and 2.4 GHz BSS, which overlaps with BSS-5 GHz-2 and BSS-2.4 GHz-2 of AP MLD2. Non-AP MLD 950 can measure the path loss of a beacon received frame from neighbor APs, such as 5 GHz BSS 940 affiliated with AP MLD2 930, and can report transmission information to AP MLD1 905. AP MLD1 905 and AP MLD2 930 can perform Coordinated Spatial Reuse (C-SR) transmission on the 5 GHz channel…. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Park with the teachings of Patil to make system more effective. Having a mechanism about providing second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement spatial efficiency when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; greater way resources can be managed/utilized in the communication system.
Regarding claim 34, Patil teaches as per claim 31, but fails to state about the processor further configured to provide, via the transceiver, second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement spatial efficiency when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; however Fang teaches in [0050] regarding …example of FIG. 9, non-AP MLD 950 associated with AP MLD1 is in the coverage area of 5 GHz BSS 920 and 2.4 GHz BSS, which overlaps with BSS-5 GHz-2 and BSS-2.4 GHz-2 of AP MLD2. Non-AP MLD 950 can measure the path loss of a beacon received frame from neighbor APs, such as 5 GHz BSS 940 affiliated with AP MLD2 930, and can report transmission information to AP MLD1 905. AP MLD1 905 and AP MLD2 930 can perform Coordinated Spatial Reuse (C-SR) transmission on the 5 GHz channel…. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Park with the teachings of Patil to make system more effective. Having a mechanism about the processor further configured to provide, via the transceiver, second information to the first AP MLD, wherein the second information is configured to implement spatial efficiency when concurrently communicating on the plurality of links; greater way resources can be managed/utilized in the communication system.
Claim(s) 27- 28 and 37- 38 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Patil et al. (US Pub. No. 2021/0014911 A1) in view of Shafin et al. (US Pub. No. 2022/0303907 A1).
Regarding claim 27, Patil teaches as per claim 21, but fails to teach about providing a transmit wake time (TWT) request message to establish a TWT agreement; and receiving a TWT response message comprising an indication that the TWT agreement is accepted; however Shafin states in context with [0078] teaches in [0007] regarding … The WI-FI devices that support MLO are referred to as multi-link devices (MLDs). With MLO, it is possible for a non-AP MLD to discover, authenticate, associate, and set up multiple links with an AP MLD. Channel access and frame exchange is possible on each link that is set up between the AP MLD and non-AP MLD; now refer to [0069].. present disclosure recognize that a STA affiliated with an MLD may negotiate individual TWT agreements with another STA affiliated with another MLD, and in doing so, may indicate multiple links for negotiation. If multiple links are indicated in one TWT element, then multiple TWT agreements are requested with the same TWT parameters—one for each of the STAs that are operating on the indicated links; further refer to [0164] regarding…. For broadcast TWT operation between an AP MLD and a non-AP MLD, an MLO Enabled bit 2302 may be present in the Control field of the Broadcast TWT element that is sent over the negotiating link either from the AP MLD (Accept TWT, Alternate TWT, or Dictate TWT) or from the non-AP MLD (Request TWT, Suggest TWT, or Demand TWT), and can be used to indicate that broadcast TWT schedules corresponding to all Broadcast TWT Parameter Sets present in that Broadcast TWT element are applicable to the enabled links between the AP MLD and the non-AP MLD. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Shafin with the teachings of Patil to make system more effective. Having a mechanism wherein providing a transmit wake time (TWT) request message to establish a TWT agreement; and receiving a TWT response message comprising an indication that the TWT agreement is accepted; greater way resources can be managed/utilized in the communication system.
Regarding claim 28, Patil in view of Shafin teaches as per claim 27, wherein the STA is configured to communicate on the plurality of links in accordance with the TWT agreement; Shafin already discussed above see [0007] regarding … The WI-FI devices that support MLO are referred to as multi-link devices (MLDs). With MLO, it is possible for a non-AP MLD to discover, authenticate, associate, and set up multiple links with an AP MLD. Channel access and frame exchange is possible on each link that is set up between the AP MLD and non-AP MLD; now refer to [0069].. present disclosure recognize that a STA affiliated with an MLD may negotiate individual TWT agreements with another STA affiliated with another MLD, and in doing so, may indicate multiple links for negotiation. If multiple links are indicated in one TWT element, then multiple TWT agreements are requested with the same TWT parameters—one for each of the STAs that are operating on the indicated links.
Regarding claim 37, Patil teaches as per claim 31, but fails to teach about provide, via the transceiver, a transmit wake time (TWT) request message to establish a TWT agreement; and receive, via the transceiver, a TWT response message comprising an indication that the TWT agreement is accepted; however Shafin states in context with [0078] teaches in [0007] regarding … The WI-FI devices that support MLO are referred to as multi-link devices (MLDs). With MLO, it is possible for a non-AP MLD to discover, authenticate, associate, and set up multiple links with an AP MLD. Channel access and frame exchange is possible on each link that is set up between the AP MLD and non-AP MLD; now refer to [0069].. present disclosure recognize that a STA affiliated with an MLD may negotiate individual TWT agreements with another STA affiliated with another MLD, and in doing so, may indicate multiple links for negotiation. If multiple links are indicated in one TWT element, then multiple TWT agreements are requested with the same TWT parameters—one for each of the STAs that are operating on the indicated links; further refer to [0164] regarding…. For broadcast TWT operation between an AP MLD and a non-AP MLD, an MLO Enabled bit 2302 may be present in the Control field of the Broadcast TWT element that is sent over the negotiating link either from the AP MLD (Accept TWT, Alternate TWT, or Dictate TWT) or from the non-AP MLD (Request TWT, Suggest TWT, or Demand TWT), and can be used to indicate that broadcast TWT schedules corresponding to all Broadcast TWT Parameter Sets present in that Broadcast TWT element are applicable to the enabled links between the AP MLD and the non-AP MLD. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Shafin with the teachings of Patil to make system more effective. Having a mechanism to provide, via the transceiver, a transmit wake time (TWT) request message to establish a TWT agreement; and receive, via the transceiver, a TWT response message comprising an indication that the TWT agreement is accepted; greater way resources can be managed/utilized in the communication system.
Regarding claim 38, Patil in view of Shafin teaches as per claim 37, wherein the STA is configured to communicate on the plurality of links in accordance with the TWT agreement; Shafin already discussed above see [0007] regarding … The WI-FI devices that support MLO are referred to as multi-link devices (MLDs). With MLO, it is possible for a non-AP MLD to discover, authenticate, associate, and set up multiple links with an AP MLD. Channel access and frame exchange is possible on each link that is set up between the AP MLD and non-AP MLD; now refer to [0069].. present disclosure recognize that a STA affiliated with an MLD may negotiate individual TWT agreements with another STA affiliated with another MLD, and in doing so, may indicate multiple links for negotiation. If multiple links are indicated in one TWT element, then multiple TWT agreements are requested with the same TWT parameters—one for each of the STAs that are operating on the indicated links.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Please see PTO-892 form for considered prior arts for record.
Reference Patil et al. (US Pub. No. 2023/0054755 A1) states regarding .. Various implementations relate generally to communications between multi-link devices (MLDs) such as AP MLDs and STA MLDs. Some implementations more specifically relate to wireless stations (STAs) that operate as mobile hotspots on multiple communication links. An AP MLD includes a plurality of APs configured to communicate on a plurality of different communication links. A STA MLD may communicate with the AP MLD using one or more of the different communication links concurrently. The AP MLD may provide a multi-link context that includes or indicates the complete profiles of the different communication links associated with the AP MLD. The complete profile of a respective link may include the capabilities, operation parameters, and discovery information of the respective link. The AP MLD may advertise the multi-link context on one of its communication links so that nearby wireless communication devices (such as a STA MLD) operating on that communication link can receive the multi-link context and obtain the complete profiles for multiple communication links of the AP MLD…; see [0047]. Further see Fig. 7.
Reference DI Taranto et al. (US Pub. No. 2024/0040516 A1) teaches in [abstract] regarding disclosed for joint downlink/uplink (DL/UL) scheduling and parameter selection for constrained simultaneous transmit and receive (STR) access point (AP) multi-link devices (MLDs). In one embodiment, a STR capable MLD includes an AP STA. The MLD is configured to jointly schedule an uplink communication on a first link and a simultaneous downlink communication on a second link by selecting a first non-access point (non-AP) station (STA) for the uplink communication and a second non-AP STA for the simultaneous downlink communication out of a plurality of non-AP STAs, the first and second links being a STR constrained pair of links, the first link being associated with the first non-AP STA, the second link being associated with the second non-AP STA…...
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PARTH PATEL whose telephone number is (571)270-1970. The examiner can normally be reached 7 a.m. -7 p.m. PST.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jae Y. Lee can be reached at 5712703936. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
PARTH PATEL
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2479
/PARTH PATEL/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2479