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 .
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 – 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bhiday et al. (US Pat. No. 11742951), hereinafter referred to as Bhiday in view of Juillerat et al. (US Pat. No. 8132035), hereinafter referred to as Juillerat.
As to claim 1, Bhiday discloses a system comprising: a user device (user device 150, Fig. 1; col. 4, lines 6-15);
a first computing device including a first port (network switch device 110/310 having ports and transceivers coupled thereto, Fig. 1; Fig. 4 ports 410a-410p; col. 4, lines 15-20; col. 13, lines 50-58), wherein the user device is configured to determine a plurality of first port connection options for the first port using the first port connection information (configuration interface displays available applications/operational modes and identifiers, Fig. 2 step 202; col. 6, lines 8-15); and
display the plurality of first port connection options (display/provide interface indicating one or more operational modes and identifiers, Fig. 2 step 202; col. 4, lines 50-65; col. 8, lines 8-15); connect, via the transceiver device connector, to a first transceiver device (first transceiver 130a/360a coupled to network switch device, Fig. 1);
retrieve, from the first transceiver device, first transceiver information (read application data from EEPROM 361 of transceiver 360, Fig. 2 step 201; Fig. 3); transmit, to the user device, the first transceiver information (configuration interface 122 provides transceiver application information to user device 150, Fig. 1; Fig. 2 step 202), wherein the user device is configured to determine that the first transceiver information corresponds to a first of the plurality of first port connection options (user selects an application identifier corresponding to one of the displayed supported operational modes, Fig. 2 step 203); and
identify the first of the plurality of first port connection options that are being displayed (configuration interface displays available applications and corresponding identifiers for selection, Fig. 2 step 202).
Juillerat discloses, what Bhiday lacks, a cabling (network adapter communicates with network devices and provides information through a user interface, Fig. 1; Fig. 2; col. 4, lines 10-40) assist system; a cabling assist device (network adapter 14 including processor, memory, Ethernet interface, and web server functionality, Fig. 2; col. 4, lines 30-50; col. 5, lines 1-27) that includes a port connector (Ethernet port 36 configured to connect to a communication network and network equipment, Fig. 2; col. 5, lines 1-7) and a transceiver device connector (network adapter 14 having Ethernet port 36 and connectors/interface circuitry, Fig. 2; col. 4, lines 30-50; col. 5, lines 1-7), wherein the cabling assist device is configured to connect, via the port connector, to the first port included on the first computing device (network adapter 14 connects through Ethernet port 36 to communication network/PoE switch, Fig. 1; Fig. 2; col. 4, lines 10-24; col. 5, lines 1-7); receive, from the first computing device, first port connection information for the first port (network adapter communicates over Ethernet and receives/transmits network data, Fig. 2; col. 4, lines 30-40; col. 5, lines 20-27); transmit, to the user device, the first port connection information (network adapter hosts embedded web server accessible by standard browser, Fig. 2; col. 4, lines 35-40).
Bhiday and Juillerat are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor, namely network communication systems, network interface devices, and management of network transceivers and network connections.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having the teachings of Juillerat and Bhiday before him or her, to modify the network adapter 14 of Juillerat to include the transceiver interrogation and operational mode determination functionality of Bhiday.
The suggestion/motivation for doing so would have been to improve network installation, configuration, and troubleshooting by providing users with transceiver capability information and supported operational modes through a network-connected adapter interface, thereby reducing configuration errors and simplifying deployment of transceiver-equipped network devices, as evidenced by Bhiday's disclosure.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Bhiday with Juillerat to obtain the invention as specified in the instant claim.
As to claim 2, Juillerat discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the cabling assist device is configured to establish a wireless connection (wireless connection 73, Fig. 5) with the user device and use the wireless connection to transmit the first port connection information and the first transceiver information to the user device (communication between network adapter 14 and remotely located user devices through network connectivity and embedded web server functionality, Fig. 1; Fig. 2; col. 4, lines 35-40; col. 5, lines 20-27).
As to claim 3, Bhiday discloses the system of claim 1, wherein first port connection information includes a prioritized list of transceiver device identifiers (configuration interface 122 may provide (e.g., display, render, or present) a list of the available applications, col. 4, lines 65 - 67), and wherein the first port connection options are provided by the prioritized list of transceiver device identifiers (application data stored in transceiver memory identifying supported applications/operational modes and corresponding identifiers presented through a configuration interface, Fig. 2 steps 201-202; col. 4, lines 20-31; col. 8, lines 1-15).
As to claim 4, Bhiday discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the port connector is a Quad Small Form-factor Pluggable (QSFP) port connector (a Quad Small Form-factor Pluggable (QSFP) port connector, col. 1, line 11), and wherein the transceiver device connector is configured to receive a QSFP transceiver device (QSFP/OSFP transceivers coupled to switch ports and associated transceiver connectors configured to receive the transceivers, Fig. 1; Fig. 3; Fig. 4; col. 12, lines 50-58).
As to claim 5, Juillerat in view of Bhiday discloses the system of claim 1, further comprising a light emitting device included on the cabling assist device, wherein the cabling assist device is configured to activate, in response to receiving the first port connection information for the first port from the first computing device, the light emitting device (Juillerat discloses network adapter 14 including processor-controlled circuitry, peripheral components, and local device hardware configured to provide operational status and monitoring functions, Fig. 2; col. 4, lines 30-50; col. 5, lines 20-27. Bhiday discloses a network switch environment in which transceiver operational status, supported applications, and configuration information are determined and presented to a user, Fig. 2 steps 201-203; col. 4, lines 20-31; col. 8, lines 1-20. Neither Juillerat nor Bhiday expressly discloses a light emitting device activated in response to receipt of port connection information. However, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to provide a light emitting device, such as an LED status indicator, on the modified network adapter to visually indicate successful receipt of port information, compatibility status, operational state, or user guidance because visual status indicators were well known and commonly used in network devices and adapters to provide immediate user feedback regarding device status, connectivity, and configuration without requiring access to a separate user interface. Such modification merely involves the predictable use of prior art elements according to their established functions to improve usability and troubleshooting of the adapter system.)
As to claim 6, Juillerat in view of Bhiday discloses the system of claim 1, further comprising a second computing device (Juillerat discloses a plurality of network-connected devices, Fig. 1) including a second port (Juillerat discloses a plurality of network-connected devices and adapters communicating through a network, Fig. 1; col. 4, lines 4-24), wherein the cabling assist device is configured to connect, via the port connector, to the second port included on the second computing device (Juillerat discloses network adapter 14 configured for connection to network equipment through Ethernet port 36, Fig. 1; Fig. 2; col. 5, lines 1-7); retrieve (Juillerat discloses receiving network information, Fig. 2), from the second computing device, second port connection information for the second port (Juillerat discloses receiving network information through Ethernet communications, Fig. 2; col. 5, lines 20-27); and transmit, to the user device, the second port connection information (embedded web server communication to user device, Fig. 2; col. 4, lines 35-40), wherein the user device is configured to determine the plurality of first port connection options for the first port using the first port connection information and the second port connection information (Bhiday discloses determining supported operational modes and compatibility information from received transceiver/application information, Fig. 2 steps 201-203; col. 6, lines 1-20).
As to claim 7, Juillerat in view of Bhiday discloses the system of claim 1, wherein the user device is configured to determine a plurality of second port connection (Juillerat discloses a plurality of network-connected devices and adapters communicating through a network, Fig. 1; col. 4, lines 4-24) options for the second port using the second port connection information (Juillerat discloses receiving network information through Ethernet communications, Fig. 2; col. 5, lines 20-27); and display the plurality of second port connection options (Bhiday discloses configuration interface displaying available applications/operational modes and corresponding identifiers, Fig. 2 step 202; col. 4, lines 50-65; col. 8, lines 8-15), and wherein the cabling assist device is configured to connect, via the transceiver device connector (Bhiday discloses network switch device 110, Fig. 1), to a second transceiver device (Bhiday discloses transceivers 130/360 coupled to switch device ports, Fig. 1; Fig. 3); retrieve, from the second transceiver device, second transceiver information (Bhiday discloses reading application data from EEPROM 361 of a transceiver, Fig. 2 step 201; Fig. 3; col. 7, lines 1-9); transmit, to the user device, the second transceiver information (Bhiday discloses providing transceiver application information to user device 150 through configuration interface 122, Fig. 1; Fig. 2 step 202; col. 4, lines 50-65), wherein the user device is configured to determine that the second transceiver information corresponds to a first of the plurality of second port connection options (Bhiday discloses selecting an application identifier corresponding to one of the supported operational modes, Fig. 2 step 203; col. 5, lines 1-22); and identify the first of the plurality of second port connection options that are being displayed (Bhiday discloses configuration interface displays available applications and identifiers for selection, Fig. 2 step 202; col. 8, lines 8-15).
As to claim 13, Juillerat in view of Bhiday discloses the device of claim 8, wherein the cabling assist engine is configured to: connect (Bhiday: by coupling a transceiver 130/360 to the transceiver receiving connector associated with the network switch device, Fig. 1; Fig. 3; col. 4, lines 15-20; modified to be included in the network adapter of Juillerat), via the transceiver device connector (Bhiday: transceiver receiving connector configured to receive transceiver 130/360, Fig. 1; Fig. 3; Fig. 4; col. 13, lines 50-58), to a second transceiver device (Bhiday: second QSFP/OSFP transceiver 130/360, Fig. 1; Fig. 3); retrieve (Bhiday: application data from EEPROM 361 of the second transceiver, Fig. 2 step 201; Fig. 3; col. 4, lines 20-31; col. 7, lines 1-9), from the second transceiver device, second transceiver information; transmit (Juillerat: network adapter 14 communicates information through the embedded web server to a user device, Fig. 2; col. 4, lines 35-40), to the user device, the second transceiver information (Bhiday: configuration interface 122 provides transceiver application information to user device 150, Fig. 1; Fig. 2 step 202; col. 4, lines 50-65; col. 8, lines 8-15).
Claims 8 - 12 recite the corresponding limitation of claims 14 - 18. Therefore, they are rejected accordingly.
Claim 19 recites the corresponding limitation of claim 13. Therefore, they are rejected accordingly.
Claim 20 recites the corresponding limitation of claim 3. Therefore, they are rejected accordingly.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's declaration under 37 CFR 1.130(a) has been considered and the rejection based on Narayanan has been withdrawn. The rejection is maintained in this Final Office Action with newly applied references Bhiday and Juillerat. The newly cited references are necessitated by Applicant's submission of the declaration under 37 CFR 1.130(a), which disqualified the previously applied reference. Accordingly, the new ground of rejection is made final because it was made necessary by Applicant's amendment or information disclosure. See MPEP § 706.07(a).
Conclusion
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.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JUANITO C BORROMEO whose telephone number is (571)270-1720. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday - Friday 9 - 5.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Henry Tsai can be reached on 5712724176. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/J.C.B/ Assistant Examiner, Art Unit 2184
/HENRY TSAI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2184
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