DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 12/24/2024 was filed. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Interpretation
Regarding claims 1-6:
The broadest reasonable interpretation (BRI) of “a parameter predetermined by a user” recited in independent claims 1, and 4-6 includes Best Master Clock Algorithm (BMCA) because the algorithm has certain criteria(s) and rule(s) that must be set by a user in order to determine the highest-quality time reference across the system according to instant specification ([0003] The BMCA is an algorithm for a device to repeatedly compare priority information held by the device with priority information acquired from other devices to select a device with the highest priority among all the devices on the network as the grandmaster, or a master station. [0040] The parameter information is based on an input by the user... More specifically, the parameter information includes an item of BMCA (user setting) indicating whether to perform the BMCA, an item of GM (user setting) indicating whether to operate as the master station when not performing the BMCA, and values of the items. For example, the parameter information indicates the BMCA (user setting) being OFF and the GM (user setting) being ON. The value of the BMCA (user setting) in the parameter information is to be ON for all the time-synchronization devices or OFF for all the time-synchronization devices).
Therefore, the BMCA of CHEN (CHEN - [0028] Before the time synchronization is performed, clock parameters need to be configured for each network device in the network, and mainly include: a clock identity (ID), a priority level 1 (priority 1), a priority level 2 (priority 2), and a clock class (Clock Class); [0029] During the time synchronization, two network devices connected via the in-band synchronization link can send in-band time synchronization information to each other... The in-band time synchronization information includes information needed by a Best Master Clock (BMC) algorithm in the IEEE1588 protocol, and specifically includes: a grandmaster clock identity (Grandmaster Identity), a priority level 1 (priority 1), a priority level 2 (priority 2), a clock class (Clock Class)... and a type of time source (timeSource)) is considered “a parameter predetermined by a user”.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-3, are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 1 recites “a master station determiner to determine whether the time-synchronization device including the master station determiner” is indefinite because it is unclear whether any one arbitrary device (1), one specific device (2), or each and every device (3) of the plurality of time-synchronization devices is the one being referred to “the time-synchronization device”. For the purpose of examination, “the time-synchronization device” will be interpreted as “any one arbitrary device of the plurality of time-synchronization devices”.
Claim 1 recites “perform the time synchronization as the device station when... determined not to perform control as the master station” is indefinite because it is unclear whether “time synchronizer” or ““any one arbitrary device of the plurality of time-synchronization devices”” is the one being referred to “perform the time synchronization as the device station”. For the purpose of examination, “perform the time synchronization as the device station” will be interpreted as “any one arbitrary device of the plurality of time-synchronization devices performs the time synchronization as the device station when... determined not to perform control as the master station”.
the examiner applied the same reasoning for the rejection for their dependent claims.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
(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.
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claims 1-2 and 4-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by CHEN et al. (US 20230388949 A1, PCT filed 10/18/2021, hereinafter, CHEN).
Regarding claim 1, CHEN discloses:
A time-synchronization system (Fig. 3; Fig. 7), comprising:
a plurality of time-synchronization devices (e.g., NE1, NE2, NE3) each to perform time synchronization as a master station (e.g., NE2) or a device station (e.g., NE1, NE3; Abstract - Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the technical field of communications, and provide a time synchronization method... the present disclosure further provide a time synchronization method applied to a second node, a first node, a second node, and a network; [0025] with reference to FIG. 3, a network is simultaneously provided with a plurality of network devices, that is, a network device (or referred to as a node) 1 (NE1 in FIG. 3), a network device 2 (NE2 in FIG. 3), and a network device 3 (NE3 in FIG. 3)) connected to the master station (e.g., NE2) to transmit and receive information to and from the master station ([0036] NE2 receives the in-band time synchronization information from NE3 via the in-band synchronization link, and the in-band time synchronization information carries the information such as the grandmaster clock identity, the priority level 1, the priority level 2, and the clock class; [0038] NE2 sends the in-band time synchronization information to NE3 via the in-band synchronization link. At this time... the grandmaster clock identity is the MAC address of NE2, the priority level 1 is 128, and the priority level 2 is 20 in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE2 to NE3),
wherein each of the plurality of time-synchronization devices (e.g., NE2 and NE3) includes a master station determiner ([0034] the clock identities of NE1, NE2, and NE3 are their respective Media Access Control (MAC) addresses; [0030] At the beginning of the time synchronization, that is, when each network device in the network does not have the time thereof synchronized with the time of another network device and still has its own time, the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information is the clock identity configured for the network device; [0029] The in-band time synchronization information includes information needed by a Best Master Clock (BMC) algorithm in the IEEE1588 protocol, and specifically includes: a grandmaster clock identity (Grandmaster Identity), a priority level) to determine whether the time-synchronization device (e.g., NE1, NE2 or NE3) including the master station determiner performs control as the master station (e.g., NE2; [0035] After NE2 receives the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1 via the out-of-band synchronization link... Since the out-of-band time synchronization information does not carry the information such as the priority level 1 and the priority level 2, the grandmaster clock identity is represented by the MAC address of NE2 and the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 of NE2; [0037] Since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the out-of-band time synchronization information is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information, NE2 selects the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE2 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE1, and sets the port of NE2 connected to NE1 to be in a Slave state (a slave port state), and sets a port of NE2 connected to NE3 to be in a Master state (a master port state); [0038] NE2 sends the in-band time synchronization information to NE3 via the in-band synchronization link. At this time, since NE2 has selected the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as the time source, the grandmaster clock identity is the MAC address of NE2, the priority level 1 is 128, and the priority level 2 is 20 in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE2 to NE3) based on a parameter predetermined by a user ([0028] Before the time synchronization is performed, clock parameters need to be configured for each network device in the network, and mainly include: a clock identity (ID), a priority level 1 (priority 1), a priority level 2 (priority 2), and a clock class (Clock Class); [0029] During the time synchronization, two network devices connected via the in-band synchronization link can send in-band time synchronization information to each other... The in-band time synchronization information includes information needed by a Best Master Clock (BMC) algorithm in the IEEE1588 protocol, and specifically includes: a grandmaster clock identity (Grandmaster Identity), a priority level 1 (priority 1), a priority level 2 (priority 2), a clock class (Clock Class), time stability (offsetScaledLogVariance), a hop count (stepRemoved), clock accuracy (clockAccuracy), and a type of time source (timeSource)), and
a time synchronizer (Fig. 6 – first processing module; [0106] The first processing module is configured to determine, in a case where the grandmaster clock identity of the first node is an identity of the second node, one of all third nodes as a preferred node according to the in-band time synchronization information, and synchronize the time of the second node with the time of the preferred node) to perform the time synchronization as the master station (e.g., NE2) when the time-synchronization device including the master station determiner is determined to perform control as the master station ([0035] After NE2 receives the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1 via the out-of-band synchronization link... Since the out-of-band time synchronization information does not carry the information such as the priority level 1 and the priority level 2, the grandmaster clock identity is represented by the MAC address of NE2 and the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 of NE2, i.e., 128 and 20, are used to represent the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 in the reference source data set when NE2 builds the reference source data set according to the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1; [0037] Since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the out-of-band time synchronization information is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information, NE2 selects the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE2 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE1, and sets the port of NE2 connected to NE1 to be in a Slave state (a slave port state), and sets a port of NE2 connected to NE3 to be in a Master state (a master port state)), and
perform the time synchronization as the device station (e.g., NE3) when the time-synchronization device including the master station determiner is determined not to perform control as the master station ([0039] NE3 not only receives the in-band time synchronization information from NE2 but also receives the in-band time synchronization information from NE1... Apparently, since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information from NE2 is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information from NE1, NE3 selects NE2 as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE3 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE2; [0040] NE3 sends the in-band time synchronization information to NE1 via the in-band synchronization link... the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE3 to NE1 is the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE2 to NE3, i.e., the MAC address of NE2, and similarly, the priority level 1 is 128 and the priority level 2 is 20).
Regarding claim 2, CHEN further discloses:
wherein the master station (Fig. 3 – NE2) includes
a configuration detector to detect a configuration of connection with the device station ([0026] An in-band synchronization link refers to a link built between network devices in a network for performing time synchronization in the in-band mode, ports at two ends of the link are generally Ethernet ports, and the link runs the IEEE1588 protocol (Precision Clock Synchronization Protocol for Networked Measurement and Control Systems). For example, the link is a Precision Time Protocol (PTP) link; [0027] An out-of-band synchronization link refers to a link built between the network devices in the network for performing time synchronization in the out-of-band mode, ports at two ends of the link are generally Global Positioning System (GPS) interfaces, and the link runs protocols such as National Marine Electronics Association (NEMA), UBX (a protocol packet developed by a company named U-box), and Chinese Mobile Time of Day (CMTOD). For example, the link is a 1PPS+TOD synchronization link), a port information determiner to determine port information about the device station based on the detected configuration ([0025] FIG. 3... An out-of-band synchronization link exists between NE1 and NE2, NE1 serves as an input end of the out-of-band synchronization link, and NE2 serves as an output end of the out-of-band synchronization link; and in-band synchronization links exist between the other neighboring network devices (that is, between NE1 and NE3 and between NE2 and NE3); [0037] Since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the out-of-band time synchronization information is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information, NE2 selects the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE2 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE1, and sets the port of NE2 connected to NE1 to be in a Slave state (a slave port state), and sets a port of NE2 connected to NE3 to be in a Master state (a master port state)), and
a port information transmitter (Fig. 5 – sending module) to transmit the determined port information to the device station ([0032] NE1 can send out-of-band time synchronization information to NE2... The out-of-band time synchronization information carries a time offset (leaps) between GPS (e.g., port information) and Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), a PPS state, and other information, but does not carry the information needed by the BMC algorithm in the IEEE1588 protocol such as the grandmaster clock identity, the priority level 1, the priority level 2, the clock class, the time stability, the hop count, the clock accuracy, and the type of time source; [0035] After NE2 receives the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1 via the out-of-band synchronization link, NE2 needs to map a port connected to the out-of-band synchronization link or NE1 to be a port connected to the in-band synchronization link, that is, NE2 needs to build the reference source data set according to the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1), and
the device station includes port information receiver (Fig. 6 – receiving module) to receive the port information ([0035] After NE2 receives the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1 via the out-of-band synchronization link, NE2 needs to map a port connected to the out-of-band synchronization link or NE1 to be a port connected to the in-band synchronization link, that is, NE2 needs to build the reference source data set according to the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1. Since the out-of-band time synchronization information does not carry the information such as the priority level 1 and the priority level 2, the grandmaster clock identity is represented by the MAC address of NE2 and the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 of NE2, i.e., 128 and 20, are used to represent the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 in the reference source data set when NE2 builds the reference source data set according to the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1), and a port setter to set a port based on the port information ([0037] Since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the out-of-band time synchronization information is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information, NE2 selects the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE2 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE1, and sets the port of NE2 connected to NE1 to be in a Slave state (a slave port state), and sets a port of NE2 connected to NE3 to be in a Master state (a master port state)).
Regarding claim 4, CHEN discloses:
A time-synchronization device (Fig. 3; Fig. 7) for performing time synchronization as a master station (e.g., NE2) or a device station (e.g., NE3) connected to the master station (e.g., NE2) to transmit and receive information to and from the master station (Abstract - Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the technical field of communications, and provide a time synchronization method... the present disclosure further provide a time synchronization method applied to a second node, a first node, a second node, and a network; [0025] with reference to FIG. 3, a network is simultaneously provided with a plurality of network devices, that is, a network device (or referred to as a node) 1 (NE1 in FIG. 3), a network device 2 (NE2 in FIG. 3), and a network device 3 (NE3 in FIG. 3)), the time-synchronization device (Fig. 2 – NE2, NE3; [0036] NE2 receives the in-band time synchronization information from NE3 via the in-band synchronization link, and the in-band time synchronization information carries the information such as the grandmaster clock identity, the priority level 1, the priority level 2, and the clock class; [0038] NE2 sends the in-band time synchronization information to NE3 via the in-band synchronization link. At this time... the grandmaster clock identity is the MAC address of NE2, the priority level 1 is 128, and the priority level 2 is 20 in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE2 to NE3) comprising:
a master station determiner to determine whether the time-synchronization device (e.g., NE2, NE3) performs control as the master station ([0034] the clock identities of NE1, NE2, and NE3 are their respective Media Access Control (MAC) addresses; [0030] At the beginning of the time synchronization, that is, when each network device in the network does not have the time thereof synchronized with the time of another network device and still has its own time, the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information is the clock identity configured for the network device; [0029] The in-band time synchronization information includes information needed by a Best Master Clock (BMC) algorithm in the IEEE1588 protocol, and specifically includes: a grandmaster clock identity (Grandmaster Identity), a priority level) based on a parameter predetermined by a user ([0028] Before the time synchronization is performed, clock parameters need to be configured for each network device in the network, and mainly include: a clock identity (ID), a priority level 1 (priority 1), a priority level 2 (priority 2), and a clock class (Clock Class); [0029] During the time synchronization, two network devices connected via the in-band synchronization link can send in-band time synchronization information to each other... The in-band time synchronization information includes information needed by a Best Master Clock (BMC) algorithm in the IEEE1588 protocol, and specifically includes: a grandmaster clock identity (Grandmaster Identity), a priority level 1 (priority 1), a priority level 2 (priority 2), a clock class (Clock Class), time stability (offsetScaledLogVariance), a hop count (stepRemoved), clock accuracy (clockAccuracy), and a type of time source (timeSource)); and
a time synchronizer (Fig. 6 – first processing module; [0106] The first processing module is configured to determine, in a case where the grandmaster clock identity of the first node is an identity of the second node, one of all third nodes as a preferred node according to the in-band time synchronization information, and synchronize the time of the second node with the time of the preferred node) to perform the time synchronization as the master station (e.g., NE2) when the time-synchronization device is determined to perform control as the master station ([0035] After NE2 receives the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1 via the out-of-band synchronization link... Since the out-of-band time synchronization information does not carry the information such as the priority level 1 and the priority level 2, the grandmaster clock identity is represented by the MAC address of NE2 and the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 of NE2, i.e., 128 and 20, are used to represent the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 in the reference source data set when NE2 builds the reference source data set according to the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1; [0037] Since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the out-of-band time synchronization information is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information, NE2 selects the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE2 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE1, and sets the port of NE2 connected to NE1 to be in a Slave state (a slave port state), and sets a port of NE2 connected to NE3 to be in a Master state (a master port state)), and
perform the time synchronization as the device station (e.g., NE3) when the time- synchronization device is determined not to perform control as the master station ([0039] NE3 not only receives the in-band time synchronization information from NE2 but also receives the in-band time synchronization information from NE1... Apparently, since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information from NE2 is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information from NE1, NE3 selects NE2 as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE3 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE2; [0040] NE3 sends the in-band time synchronization information to NE1 via the in-band synchronization link... the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE3 to NE1 is the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE2 to NE3, i.e., the MAC address of NE2, and similarly, the priority level 1 is 128 and the priority level 2 is 20)).
Regarding claim 5, CHEN discloses:
A time-synchronization method (Fig. 3; Fig. 7; Abstract - Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to the technical field of communications, and provide a time synchronization method... the present disclosure further provide a time synchronization method applied to a second node, a first node, a second node, and a network; [0025] with reference to FIG. 3, a network is simultaneously provided with a plurality of network devices, that is, a network device (or referred to as a node) 1 (NE1 in FIG. 3), a network device 2 (NE2 in FIG. 3), and a network device 3 (NE3 in FIG. 3)), comprising:
determining, with a computer ([0111] It should be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the functional modules/units in all or some of the operations, the systems and the devices disclosed above may be implemented as software, firmware, hardware, or suitable combinations thereof; [0113] Some or all of the physical components may be implemented as software executed by a processor, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU)... Such software may be distributed on a computer-readable medium, which may include a computer storage medium... and any other medium which can be configured to store desired information and can be accessed by a computer. In addition, it is well known by those of ordinary skill in the art that the communication media generally include computer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in modulated data signals such as carrier wave or other transmission mechanism, and may include any information delivery medium), whether the computer performs control as a master station (e.g., NE2) in a time-synchronization system (Fig. 3; Fig. 7; [0034] the clock identities of NE1, NE2, and NE3 are their respective Media Access Control (MAC) addresses; [0030] At the beginning of the time synchronization, that is, when each network device in the network does not have the time thereof synchronized with the time of another network device and still has its own time, the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information is the clock identity configured for the network device; [0029] The in-band time synchronization information includes information needed by a Best Master Clock (BMC) algorithm in the IEEE1588 protocol, and specifically includes: a grandmaster clock identity (Grandmaster Identity), a priority level) based on a parameter predetermined by a user ([0028] Before the time synchronization is performed, clock parameters need to be configured for each network device in the network, and mainly include: a clock identity (ID), a priority level 1 (priority 1), a priority level 2 (priority 2), and a clock class (Clock Class); [0029] During the time synchronization, two network devices connected via the in-band synchronization link can send in-band time synchronization information to each other... The in-band time synchronization information includes information needed by a Best Master Clock (BMC) algorithm in the IEEE1588 protocol, and specifically includes: a grandmaster clock identity (Grandmaster Identity), a priority level 1 (priority 1), a priority level 2 (priority 2), a clock class (Clock Class), time stability (offsetScaledLogVariance), a hop count (stepRemoved), clock accuracy (clockAccuracy), and a type of time source (timeSource)); and
performing time synchronization (Fig. 3; Fig. 7; Abstract; [0025];) with the computer ([0111]; [0113];) as the master station (e.g., NE2) when the computer is determined to perform control as the master station ([0035] After NE2 receives the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1 via the out-of-band synchronization link... Since the out-of-band time synchronization information does not carry the information such as the priority level 1 and the priority level 2, the grandmaster clock identity is represented by the MAC address of NE2 and the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 of NE2, i.e., 128 and 20, are used to represent the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 in the reference source data set when NE2 builds the reference source data set according to the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1; [0037] Since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the out-of-band time synchronization information is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information, NE2 selects the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE2 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE1, and sets the port of NE2 connected to NE1 to be in a Slave state (a slave port state), and sets a port of NE2 connected to NE3 to be in a Master state (a master port state)), and
performing the time synchronization (Fig. 3; Fig. 7; Abstract; [0025];) with the computer ([0111]; [0113];) as a device station (e.g., NE3) in the time-synchronization system when the computer is determined not to perform control as the master station ([0039] NE3 not only receives the in-band time synchronization information from NE2 but also receives the in-band time synchronization information from NE1... Apparently, since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information from NE2 is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information from NE1, NE3 selects NE2 as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE3 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE2; [0040] NE3 sends the in-band time synchronization information to NE1 via the in-band synchronization link... the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE3 to NE1 is the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE2 to NE3, i.e., the MAC address of NE2, and similarly, the priority level 1 is 128 and the priority level 2 is 20)).
Regarding claim 6, CHEN discloses:
A program for causing a computer to function ([0111] It should be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the functional modules/units in all or some of the operations, the systems and the devices disclosed above may be implemented as software, firmware, hardware, or suitable combinations thereof; [0113] Some or all of the physical components may be implemented as software executed by a processor, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU)... Such software may be distributed on a computer-readable medium, which may include a computer storage medium... and any other medium which can be configured to store desired information and can be accessed by a computer. In addition, it is well known by those of ordinary skill in the art that the communication media generally include computer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data in modulated data signals such as carrier wave or other transmission mechanism, and may include any information delivery medium) as:
a master station determiner to determine whether the computer performs control as a master station (e.g., NE2) in a time-synchronization system (Fig. 3; Fig. 7; [0034] the clock identities of NE1, NE2, and NE3 are their respective Media Access Control (MAC) addresses; [0030] At the beginning of the time synchronization, that is, when each network device in the network does not have the time thereof synchronized with the time of another network device and still has its own time, the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information is the clock identity configured for the network device; [0029] The in-band time synchronization information includes information needed by a Best Master Clock (BMC) algorithm in the IEEE1588 protocol, and specifically includes: a grandmaster clock identity (Grandmaster Identity), a priority level) based on a parameter predetermined by a user ([0028] Before the time synchronization is performed, clock parameters need to be configured for each network device in the network, and mainly include: a clock identity (ID), a priority level 1 (priority 1), a priority level 2 (priority 2), and a clock class (Clock Class); [0029] During the time synchronization, two network devices connected via the in-band synchronization link can send in-band time synchronization information to each other... The in-band time synchronization information includes information needed by a Best Master Clock (BMC) algorithm in the IEEE1588 protocol, and specifically includes: a grandmaster clock identity (Grandmaster Identity), a priority level 1 (priority 1), a priority level 2 (priority 2), a clock class (Clock Class), time stability (offsetScaledLogVariance), a hop count (stepRemoved), clock accuracy (clockAccuracy), and a type of time source (timeSource)); and
a time synchronizer (Fig. 6 – first processing module; [0106] The first processing module is configured to determine, in a case where the grandmaster clock identity of the first node is an identity of the second node, one of all third nodes as a preferred node according to the in-band time synchronization information, and synchronize the time of the second node with the time of the preferred node) to perform time synchronization as the master station (e.g., NE2) when the computer is determined to perform control as the master station ([0035] After NE2 receives the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1 via the out-of-band synchronization link... Since the out-of-band time synchronization information does not carry the information such as the priority level 1 and the priority level 2, the grandmaster clock identity is represented by the MAC address of NE2 and the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 of NE2, i.e., 128 and 20, are used to represent the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 in the reference source data set when NE2 builds the reference source data set according to the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1; [0037] Since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the out-of-band time synchronization information is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information, NE2 selects the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE2 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE1, and sets the port of NE2 connected to NE1 to be in a Slave state (a slave port state), and sets a port of NE2 connected to NE3 to be in a Master state (a master port state)), and
perform the time synchronization as a device station (e.g., NE3) in the time-synchronization system when the computer is determined not to perform control as the master station ([0039] NE3 not only receives the in-band time synchronization information from NE2 but also receives the in-band time synchronization information from NE1... Apparently, since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information from NE2 is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information from NE1, NE3 selects NE2 as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE3 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE2; [0040] NE3 sends the in-band time synchronization information to NE1 via the in-band synchronization link... the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE3 to NE1 is the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE2 to NE3, i.e., the MAC address of NE2, and similarly, the priority level 1 is 128 and the priority level 2 is 20).
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.
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CHEN in view of CHENG et al. (JP2022131917A included in IDS, published in 09/07/2022, which has an English machine translation that the examiner will use for ease of reference, hereinafter, CHENG).
Regarding claim 3, CHEN further discloses:
The time-synchronization system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein each of the plurality of time-synchronization devices (Abstract - the present disclosure further provide a time synchronization method applied to a second node, a first node, a second node, and a network; [0025] with reference to FIG. 3, a network is simultaneously provided with a plurality of network devices, that is, a network device (or referred to as a node) 1 (NE1 in FIG. 3), a network device 2 (NE2 in FIG. 3), and a network device 3 (NE3 in FIG. 3)) further includes a BMCA determiner to determine whether the time-synchronization device including the BMCA determiner ([0034] the clock identities of NE1, NE2, and NE3 are their respective Media Access Control (MAC) addresses; [0030] At the beginning of the time synchronization, that is, when each network device in the network does not have the time thereof synchronized with the time of another network device and still has its own time, the grandmaster clock identity in the in-band time synchronization information is the clock identity configured for the network device; [0029] The in-band time synchronization information includes information needed by a Best Master Clock (BMC) algorithm in the IEEE1588 protocol, and specifically includes: a grandmaster clock identity (Grandmaster Identity), a priority level) performs a BMCA based on the parameter, and the BMCA is a best master clock algorithm ([0037] Since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the out-of-band time synchronization information is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information, NE2 selects the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE2 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE1, and sets the port of NE2 connected to NE1 to be in a Slave state (a slave port state), and sets a port of NE2 connected to NE3 to be in a Master state (a master port state); [0038] NE2 sends the in-band time synchronization information to NE3 via the in-band synchronization link. At this time, since NE2 has selected the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as the time source, the grandmaster clock identity is the MAC address of NE2, the priority level 1 is 128, and the priority level 2 is 20 in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE2 to NE3), and
the master station determiner performs the BMCA to determine whether the time- synchronization device including the master station determiner performs control as the master station (e.g., NE2) when the BMCA is determined to be performed ([0035] After NE2 receives the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1 via the out-of-band synchronization link... Since the out-of-band time synchronization information does not carry the information such as the priority level 1 and the priority level 2, the grandmaster clock identity is represented by the MAC address of NE2 and the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 of NE2; [0037] NE2 selects the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE2 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE1, and sets the port of NE2 connected to NE1 to be in a Slave state (a slave port state), and sets a port of NE2 connected to NE3 to be in a Master state (a master port state); [0038] NE2 sends the in-band time synchronization information to NE3 via the in-band synchronization link. At this time, since NE2 has selected the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as the time source, the grandmaster clock identity is the MAC address of NE2, the priority level 1 is 128, and the priority level 2 is 20 in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE2 to NE3), and
determine whether the time-synchronization device including the master station determiner performs control as the master station (e.g., NE2) based on the parameter ([0037] Since the value of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the out-of-band time synchronization information is less than that of the priority level 2 in the reference source data set built according to the in-band time synchronization information, NE2 selects the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as a time source by the BMC algorithm) when the BMCA is determined to be performed ([0035] After NE2 receives the out-of-band time synchronization information from NE1 via the out-of-band synchronization link... Since the out-of-band time synchronization information does not carry the information such as the priority level 1 and the priority level 2, the grandmaster clock identity is represented by the MAC address of NE2 and the priority level 1 and the priority level 2 of NE2; [0037] NE2 selects the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as a time source by the BMC algorithm, that is, NE2 has the time thereof synchronized with the time of NE1, and sets the port of NE2 connected to NE1 to be in a Slave state (a slave port state), and sets a port of NE2 connected to NE3 to be in a Master state (a master port state); [0038] NE2 sends the in-band time synchronization information to NE3 via the in-band synchronization link. At this time, since NE2 has selected the network device connected thereto via the out-of-band synchronization link as the time source, the grandmaster clock identity is the MAC address of NE2, the priority level 1 is 128, and the priority level 2 is 20 in the in-band time synchronization information sent by NE2 to NE3).
CHEN does not explicitly disclose determine, based on the parameter when the BMCA is determined not to be performed.
However, CHENG discloses determine (Annotated Fig. 6 – S209; [0057] The master device status confirmation terminal 30A transmits information (e.g., identification information) of the master device 10 selected as the time synchronization target to the slave device 20 (step S209)), based on a parameter (Annotated Fig. 6 – S201-S206; [0056] For example, the master device status confirmation terminal 30A determines whether the absolute value of the difference between the first evaluation value and the third evaluation value is greater than or equal to a reference value (step S204). For example, if the master device status confirmation terminal 30A finds that the absolute difference between the first evaluation value and the second evaluation value is greater than or equal to a reference value, it compares the magnitude of the first evaluation value and the third evaluation value (step S205). The master device status confirmation terminal 30A selects the master device 10-1 as the time synchronization target if the first evaluation value is greater than the third evaluation value (step S206)) when a BMCA is determined not to be performed (Annotated Fig. 6 – S208 (e.g., S208 condition is not satisfied hence not performed); [0057] In step S204, if the absolute value of the difference between the first evaluation value and the third evaluation value is less than the reference value, the master device status confirmation terminal 30A uses a known BMCA algorithm to select either master device 10-1 or master device 10-3 as the target for time synchronization (step S208)).
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(annotated Fig. 6)
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention was filed to modify determine whether the time-synchronization device including the master station determiner performs control as the master station based on the parameter when the BMCA is determined to be performed of CHEN to include determine, based on the parameter when the BMCA is determined not to be performed as taught by CHENG in order to select a master station and perform control as the master without needing to perform BMCA, thus saving processing time and ensure the slave device synchronizes with a reliable master device (CHENG - [0006] The problem that this invention aims to solve is to provide a time synchronization system that can suppress the synchronization of the slave device's time to the reference time of an unreliable master device; [0007] The slave device is located on the communication network and synchronizes with the reference time of the master device with the highest evaluation value among the multiple master devices).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure. PTO-892 form.
ARAI et al. (US 20220060310 A1) teaches optimizing a route of time synchronization in a network including apparatuses with different types of precision classes.
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/THERESA NGUYEN/Examiner, Art Unit 2418
/Moo Jeong/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2418
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