DETAILED ACTION
Claim Objections
Claims 7 and 14 are objected to because of the following informalities:
The last line of claims 7 and 14 states “TX_PWR is a transmit power at which the second device sends the PPDU” (emphasis added). This is different from the teaching in [0051] and [0096] of the specification. In these paragraphs, AP2 is equivalent to the claimed “first device” as it receives the PPDU from AP1 (see [0050] – “…the PPDU 1 received by AP 2…”). However, [0051] states “TX_PWR is a transmit power at which the AP 2 sends the PPDU”. Based on a review of the prior art, Examiner believes the teaching in the specification is correct and that the claims should be changed to state “TX_PWR is a transmit power at which the first device sends the PPDU”.
Appropriate correction is required.
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1, 8, and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Cariou et al (US 2022/0078621).
Regarding claim 1: Cariou discloses a spatial reuse method, wherein the method comprises:
receiving, by a first device (see AP1 202 of Figure 2, for example), a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) sent by a second device (see the “transmission” and “packet” received from a second device (AP2 204) as described in [0038], for example; as indicated throughout, these transmissions are PPDUs (see [0039] as well as [0017]-[0023], for example)), wherein a bandwidth of the PPDU comprises a plurality of 20 megahertz (MHz) subchannels (disclosed throughout; see [0023] and [0040], for example, which disclose that the PPDUs may comprise a plurality of 20 MHz subchannels (some that are punctured and some that are not punctured)); and
performing, by the first device, overlapping basic service set packet detection (OBSS PD)- based spatial reuse, wherein a first signal strength level of the PPDU received by the first device is less than an OBSS PD level (disclosed throughout; see [0038], for example, which indicates that “AP1 202 will then utilize a threshold and determine that the power of the packet is below the OBSS_PD threshold. In that case, AP1 202 may transmit on channel 1.”; the OBSS_PD threshold is the OBSS PD level and transmitting on channel 1 (the same channel used by AP2 204) is the OBSS PD-based spatial reuse performed when the signal strength level (power level) of the PPDU/transmission is below the OBSS PD level), and a unit of the first signal strength level is decibel-milliwatt (dBm)/20 MHz (disclosed throughout; as indicated above, the OBSS PD level is compared to the received power/signal strength level of the PPDU and thus both of these values are in the same units; further, the OBSS PD level is the power “per 20 MHz” as indicated in [0023] and [0040] (“basic per 20 MHz OBSS_PD”); further, the power/signal strength is measured in dBm as indicated in at least the example power levels of -62 dBm and -82dBm in [0040]).
Regarding claim 8: Cariou discloses a first device (see AP1 202 of Figure 2, for example), wherein the first device comprises at least one processor (see processor 502 of Figure 5, for example), at least one memory coupled to the at least one processor (see memory 504 of Figure 5, for example), and a communication interface (see transceiver 520 and antenna(s) 530 of Figure 5, for example), the communication interface is used by first device to perform information exchange with a second device, and the at least one memory stores programming instructions for execution by the at least one processor to cause the first device to perform operations comprising (see the description of Figure 5 in [0066]-[0076], for example):
receiving a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) sent by the second device (see the “transmission” and “packet” received from a second device (AP2 204) as described in [0038], for example; as indicated throughout, these transmissions are PPDUs (see [0039] as well as [0017]-[0023], for example)), wherein a bandwidth of the PPDU comprises a plurality of 20 megahertz (MHz) subchannels (disclosed throughout; see [0023] and [0040], for example, which disclose that the PPDUs may comprise a plurality of 20 MHz subchannels (some that are punctured and some that are not punctured)); and
performing overlapping basic service set packet detection (OBSS PD)-based spatial reuse, wherein a first signal strength level of the PPDU received by the first device is less than an OBSS PD level (disclosed throughout; see [0038], for example, which indicates that “AP1 202 will then utilize a threshold and determine that the power of the packet is below the OBSS_PD threshold. In that case, AP1 202 may transmit on channel 1.”; the OBSS_PD threshold is the OBSS PD level and transmitting on channel 1 (the same channel used by AP2 204) is the OBSS PD-based spatial reuse performed when the signal strength level (power level) of the PPDU/transmission is below the OBSS PD level), and a unit of the first signal strength level is decibel-milliwatt (dBm)/20 MHz (disclosed throughout; as indicated above, the OBSS PD level is compared to the received power/signal strength level of the PPDU and thus both of these values are in the same units; further, the OBSS PD level is the power “per 20 MHz” as indicated in [0023] and [0040] (“basic per 20 MHz OBSS_PD”); further, the power/signal strength is measured in dBm as indicated in at least the example power levels of -62 dBm and -82dBm in [0040]).
Regarding claim 15: Cariou discloses a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having programming instructions stored thereon which (see memory 504 of Figure 5, for example), when executed by a first device (see AP1 202 of Figure 2, for example), cause the first device to perform operations comprising (see the description of Figure 5 in [0066]-[0076], for example):
receiving a physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) sent by a second device (see the “transmission” and “packet” received from a second device (AP2 204) as described in [0038], for example; as indicated throughout, these transmissions are PPDUs (see [0039] as well as [0017]-[0023], for example)), wherein a bandwidth of the PPDU comprises a plurality of 20 megahertz (MHz) subchannels (disclosed throughout; see [0023] and [0040], for example, which disclose that the PPDUs may comprise a plurality of 20 MHz subchannels (some that are punctured and some that are not punctured)); and
performing overlapping basic service set packet detection (OBSS PD)-based spatial reuse, wherein a first signal strength level of the PPDU received by the first device is less than an OBSS PD level (disclosed throughout; see [0038], for example, which indicates that “AP1 202 will then utilize a threshold and determine that the power of the packet is below the OBSS_PD threshold. In that case, AP1 202 may transmit on channel 1.”; the OBSS_PD threshold is the OBSS PD level and transmitting on channel 1 (the same channel used by AP2 204) is the OBSS PD-based spatial reuse performed when the signal strength level (power level) of the PPDU/transmission is below the OBSS PD level), and a unit of the first signal strength level is decibel-milliwatt (dBm)/20 MHz (disclosed throughout; as indicated above, the OBSS PD level is compared to the received power/signal strength level of the PPDU and thus both of these values are in the same units; further, the OBSS PD level is the power “per 20 MHz” as indicated in [0023] and [0040] (“basic per 20 MHz OBSS_PD”); further, the power/signal strength is measured in dBm as indicated in at least the example power levels of -62 dBm and -82dBm in [0040]).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
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.
Claims 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 14, 16, 18, and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cariou et al (US 2022/0078621).
Regarding claims 2, 9, and 16: Cariou discloses the limitations of parent claims 1, 8, and 15 as indicated above. In Cariou, the OBSS PD-based spatial reuse is performed according to the equation: power (signal strength) of the packet (PPDU) < OBSS PD threshold (level). When this equation is evaluated to be true, OBSS PD-based spatial reuse is performed (“AP1 202 may transmit on channel 1”). Cariou proposes to adjust this equation based on the number of determined (measured) nonpunctured 20 MHz subchannels in the PPDU (see [0048], [0049], and [0055], for example). In Cariou, the adjustment is made to the right side of the equation (the OBSS PD threshold is increased by a value of log10(Nnonpunc) – see [0048] and equation 1). This is mathematically equivalent to reducing the left side of the equation (the signal strength/power level of the PPDU) by a value of 10log10(Nnonpunc) (as done in the claimed invention).
To the extent that Cariou does not explicitly disclose the limitations of claims 2, 9, and 16 that the first signal strength level is obtained based on signal strength measurement results of a plurality of nonpunctured 20 MHz subchannels in the PPDU, this would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention. As noted above, the Applicant and Cariou evaluate the modify equation power (signal strength) of the packet (PPDU) < OBSS PD threshold (level). Applicant modifies the equation by subtracting a value (10log10(Nnonpunc) – based on the measurements of nonpunctured 20 MHz subchannels) from the left side of the equation. Cariou modifies the equation by adding the same value (10log10(Nnonpunc)) to the right side of the equation. Clearly changing the expression A < (B+X) to (A-X) < B is mathematically equivalent. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to adjust for the number of non-punctured subchannels by modifying the left side of the equation instead of the right side of the equation. In this modified version of Cariou, the first signal strength level is obtained based on signal strength measurement results of non-punctured 20 MHz subchannels in the PPDU. This is a simple substitution of one known element (adjusting the left side of the equation as in the present invention) for another (adjusting the right side of the equation as in Cariou).
Regarding claims 4, 11, and 18: Cariou, modified, discloses the limitations of parent claims 2, 9, and 16 as indicated above. Cariou, modified, further discloses the limitations of claims 4, 11, and 18 that the first signal strength level is obtained by normalizing the signal strength measurement results of the plurality of nonpunctured 20 MHz subchannels in the PPDU. In particular, see the rejection of claims 2, 9, and 16 above, where Cariou, modified, adjusts the first signal strength level by subtracting a value (10log10(Nnonpunc)) from it. This adjustment is normalizing the measurements of the nonpunctured 20 MHz subchannels in the PPDU. This interpretation of “normalizing” is consistent with Applicant’s specification (see [0016]-[0017], for example).
Regarding claims 5, 12, and 19: Cariou, modified, discloses the limitations of parent claims 4, 11, and 18 as indicated above. Cariou, modified, further discloses the limitations of claims 5, 12, and 19 that Rx_PWRdBm/20MHz = Rx_PWRnonpunc-measured,total – 10 x log10 Nnonpunc-measured, wherein Rx_PWRdBm/20MHz is the first signal strength level, Rx_PWRnonpunc-measured,total is a sum of the signal strength measurement results of the plurality of nonpunctured 20 MHz sub channels in the PPDU, and Nnonpunc-measured is a number of the plurality of nonpunctured 20 MHz subchannels measured. In particular, see the rejection of claims 2, 9, and 16 above, where Cariou, modified, adjusts the first signal strength level by subtracting a value (10log10(Nnonpunc)) from it. In the above modification of Cariou, the adjustment is moved from the right side of the equation to the left side of the equation. The equation becomes that of claims 5, 12, and 19.
Regarding claims 7 and 14: Cariou discloses the limitations of parent claims 1 and 8, as indicated above. In Cariou, the OBSS PD-based spatial reuse is performed according to the equation: power (signal strength) of the packet (PPDU) < OBSS PD threshold (level). When this equation is evaluated to be true, OBSS PD-based spatial reuse is performed (“AP1 202 may transmit on channel 1”). Cariou proposes to adjust this equation based on the number of determined (measured) nonpunctured 20 MHz subchannels in the PPDU (see [0048], [0049], and [0055], for example). In Cariou, the adjustment is made to the right side of the equation (the OBSS PD threshold is increased by a value of log10(Nnonpunc) – see [0048] and equation 1). This is mathematically equivalent to reducing the left side of the equation (the signal strength/power level of the PPDU) by a value of 10log10(Nnonpunc) (as done in the claimed invention).
To the extent that Cariou does not explicitly disclose the limitations of claims 7 and 14 that OBSS_PDlevel< max (OBSS_PDmin, min (OBSS_PDmax, OBSS_PDmin + (TX_PWRref - TX_PWR))), wherein OBSS_PDlevel is the OBSS PD level, OBSS_PDmin and OBSS_PDmax are respectively a minimum value and a maximum value of OBSS_PDlevel, TX_PWRref is a reference power, and TX_PWR is a transmit power at which the second device sends the PPDU, this would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention. As noted above, the Applicant and Cariou evaluate the modify equation power (signal strength) of the packet (PPDU) < OBSS PD threshold (level). Applicant modifies the equation by subtracting a value (10log10(Nnonpunc) – based on the measurements of nonpunctured 20 MHz subchannels) from the left side of the equation. Cariou modifies the equation by adding the same value (10log10(Nnonpunc)) to the right side of the equation. Clearly changing the expression A < (B+X) to (A-X) < B is mathematically equivalent. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to adjust for the number of non-punctured subchannels by modifying the left side of the equation instead of the right side of the equation. This is a simple substitution of one known element (adjusting the left side of the equation as in the present invention) for another (adjusting the right side of the equation as in Cariou).
In this modified version of Cariou, the OBSS_PDlevel (the right side of the above equation) is the same as that in claims 7 and 14. See [0048], which shows the equation for OBSS_PDlevel. When the adjustment is moved to the left side of the equation (modifying the signal strength level rather than the OBSS_PDlevel), the OBSS_PD level is the same as in equation 1, without the increase by 10 log (Nnonpunc).
Claims 3, 6, 10, 13, 17, and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cariou et al (US 2022/0078621) in view of Park et al (US 2024/0137919).
Regarding claims 3, 10, and 17: Cariou, modified, discloses the limitations of parent claims 2, 9, and 16 as indicated above. Cariou is silent regarding the limitations of claims 3, 10, and 17 that the plurality of nonpunctured 20 MHz subchannels are located on a primary channel. However, Park discloses a similar system which utilizes an EHT/802.11be system (see [0008], for example). Further, Park discloses puncturing of a PPDU (see Figure 10 and [0155]-[0156], for example). In [0155]-[0156], Park discloses that the puncturing is applied to secondary 20 MHz subchannels, and thus, at least some of non-punctured channels are located on a primary channel. In an example with a particular amount of puncturing, the plurality of non-punctured 20 MHz subchannels are located on a primary channel. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Cariou to explicitly allocate the puncturing to secondary subchannels so that primary subchannels are non-punctured as taught by Park. The rationale for doing so would have been to prioritize the use of primary channels as suggested by Park.
Regarding claims 6, 13, and 20: Cariou discloses the limitations of parent claims 1, 8, and 15 as indicated above. Cariou further discloses the limitations that the first signal strength level is obtained based on a signal strength measurement result of a nonpunctured 20 MHz subchannel in the PPDU (disclosed throughout; see [0038], which discloses that the “power of the packet” (PPDU) is compared to the OBSS_PD threshold/level; further, as indicated in [0040], the PPDU is transmitted using a number of non-punctured 20 MHz subchannels; thus, the signal level is based on a signal strength measurement of the one or more 20 MHz non-punctured subchannels in the PPDU). Cariou does not explicitly disclose the limitations of claims 6, 13, and 20 that the nonpunctured 20 MHz subchannel is a primary 20 MHz channel or a 20 MHz channel on which the first device operates. However, Park discloses a similar system which utilizes an EHT/802.11be system (see [0008], for example). Further, Park discloses puncturing of a PPDU (see Figure 10 and [0155]-[0156], for example). In [0155]-[0156], Park discloses that the puncturing is applied to secondary 20 MHz subchannels, and thus, at least some of non-punctured channels are located on a primary channel. In an example with a particular amount of puncturing, the plurality of non-punctured 20 MHz subchannels are located on a primary channel. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Cariou to explicitly allocate the puncturing to secondary subchannels so that primary subchannels are non-punctured as taught by Park. The rationale for doing so would have been to prioritize the use of primary channels as suggested by Park.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Lou et al (US 2025/0048428) discloses an enhanced trigger frame and includes information on normalizing received power level (RPL).
Lou et al (US 2024/0106585) discloses a trigger frame and UORA trigger enhancements and includes teaching related to OBSS packet detection (PD) throughout.
Chu et al (US 2021/0360633) discloses a method of transmit power allocation in wireless systems.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Robert C Scheibel whose telephone number is (571)272-3169. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Hassan A Phillips can be reached at 571-272-3940. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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Robert C. Scheibel
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2467
/Robert C Scheibel/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2467 July 10, 2026
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