DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
This office action is a response to an application filed on 06/25/2026, in which claims 1-20 are pending and ready for examination.
Response to Argument
Applicant's arguments filed 06/25/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
With respect to claims rejected under 35 USC 103, the Applicant asserts, on Pg 5 of filed Remarks, that WO 2022/213428 A1 has not been properly cited to serve as prior art because Applicant is not aware of any English language equivalent of WO 2022/13428 A1 and request the required English translation or the English language equivalent.
Examiner cannot concur. Whether an English-language equivalent exists in immaterial to the rejection because the Office is relying upon the original WO reference and has supplied an English machine translation for determining its disclosure. The examination guidance expressly permits the use of an adequate machine translation pursuant to MPEP 2120.
Applicant further argues, see Pg. 6-7, that the deficiency of Kim about TBTT of EBCS info frame by a neighbor AP based on RNR is not cured by Que by asserting that the replied motivation is based on the hindsight from Applicants own disclosure.
Examiner cannot concur. The motivation statement is a close paraphrasing of the cited translation passages such that EBCS info frames are employed for allowing EBCS service switching between APs, which is related to and adaptable by the switching/handover between APs in wireless communication as disclosed in Kim. Thus, it would be obvious for a person of ordinary skill to recognize the adaptation of TBTT-based EBCS services taught in Que for the system in Kim. Consequently, the received info frame from the neighbor AP based on RNR in Kim is modified to the TBTT-based EBCS info frame.
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 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.
Claims 1 and 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim (US Pub. 20240137979 A1) in view of Que (WO 2022213428 A1, English-equivalent document cited).
Regarding claim 1, Kim discloses a method performed by a station (STA), the method comprising (Kim; Para. [0159-160]. A station is used to perform a communication method.):
receiving, from an access point (AP), a Reduced Neighbor Report, wherein the Reduced Neighbor Report includes a Neighbor AP Information field (Kim; Para. [0159-160]. A RNR is received from an AP, wherein the RNR includes a Neighbor AP information field.), and wherein the Neighbor AP Information field includes information regarding a target beacon transmission time (TBTT) (Kim; Para. [0159-160]. The Neighbor AP information field includes TBTT information.); and
receiving the Info frame from the neighbor AP based on the receiving reduced neighbor report (Kim; Para. [0162], Ln. 19-24. An Info frame is received from a neighbor AP in accordance with a RNR.), but information regarding a target beacon transmission time (TBTT) of an enhanced broadcast services (EBCS) Info frame; receiving the EBCS Info frame.
However, Que teaches information regarding a target beacon transmission time (TBTT) of an enhanced broadcast services (EBCS) Info frame (Que; Pg. 7, last Para. to Pg. 8, 2nd Para. An Info frame regarding TBTT is received for EBCS Info frame.); receiving the EBCS Info frame (Que; Pg. 7, last Para. to Pg. 8, 2nd Para. The EBCS Info frame is received.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the pertinent before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the communication system of Kim to adapt a communication standard, by incorporating Que’s teaching wherein EBCS is employed for wireless communication, for the motivation to enable EBCS for a target AP before cross-AP switching (Que; Abstract.).
Claim 11 is directed to a station (STA) comprising a receiver configured to perform a sequence of processing steps corresponding to the same as claimed in claim 1, and is non-patentable over the prior art for the same reason as previously indicated.
Claims 7-10 and 17-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim (US Pub. 20240137979 A1) in view of Que (WO 2022213428 A1, English-equivalent document cited) further in view of Patil (US Pub. 20230026143 A1).
Regarding claim 7, modified Kim teaches the limitation in claim 1 (Kim; See remarks regarding claim 1 above.), but receiving an EBCS traffic stream from the neighbor AP based on the received EBCS Info frame.
However, Patil teaches receiving an EBCS traffic stream from the neighbor AP based on the received EBCS Info frame (Patil; Para. [0065-66]. An EBCS frame stream is received from neighboring AP in accordance with EBCS Info frame.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the pertinent before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify the communication system of modified Kim to adapt EBCS information, by incorporating Patil’s teaching wherein EBCS information countdown is used to indicate timing of EBCS info frames, for the motivation to broadcast an EBCS traffic advertisement indicating a timing of the one or more EBCS DL packets (Patil; Abstract.).
Regarding claim 8, modified Kim further teaches the receiving an EBCS traffic stream from the neighboring AP based on the received EBCS Info frame occurs after the STA associates with the neighbor AP (Patil; Para. [0065]. For associated STA, an EBCS frame stream is received from neighboring AP in accordance with EBCS Info frame.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the pertinent before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify the communication system of modified Kim to adapt EBCS information, by incorporating Patil’s teaching wherein EBCS Info frames are received for associated and un-associated STA, for the motivation to broadcast an EBCS traffic advertisement indicating a timing of the one or more EBCS DL packets (Patil; Abstract.).
Regarding claim 9, modified Kim further teaches the receiving an EBCS traffic stream from the neighboring AP based on the received EBCS Info frame occurs without the STA associating with the neighbor AP (Patil; Para. [0065]. For un-associated STA, an EBCS frame stream is received from neighboring AP in accordance with EBCS Info frame.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the pertinent before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify the communication system of modified Kim to adapt EBCS information, by incorporating Patil’s teaching wherein EBCS Info frames are received for associated and un-associated STA, for the motivation to broadcast an EBCS traffic advertisement indicating a timing of the one or more EBCS DL packets (Patil; Abstract.).
Regarding claim 10, modified Kim further teaches the EBCS Info frame includes an indication of whether a content identifier associated with an EBCS traffic stream is currently being transmitted by the neighbor AP (Patil; Para. [0067], Ln. 11-18. EBCS Info frame includes advertisement indication of a content identifier for an EBCS frame stream being currently transmitted to neighboring AP.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the pertinent before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to further modify the communication system of modified Kim to adapt EBCS information, by incorporating Patil’s teaching wherein EBCS Info frames are transmitted with a content identider, for the motivation to broadcast an EBCS traffic advertisement indicating a timing of the one or more EBCS DL packets (Patil; Abstract.).
Claim 17-20 is directed to a station (STA) comprising a receiver configured to perform a sequence of processing steps corresponding to the same as claimed in claims 7-10, and are non-patentable over the prior art for the same reason as previously indicated.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-6 and 12-16 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Wang (US Pub. 20240349398 A1) teaches a communication system for enhancing broadcast services in wireless local area networks.
Wang (US Pub. 20200163099 A1) teaches a communication system that allows multi-user parallel channel access in WLAN systems.
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALBERT KIR whose telephone number is (571)272-6245. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 8:30am - 5:00pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jay Patel can be reached at (571) 272-2988. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/ALBERT KIR/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2485
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