DETAILED ACTION
This Office Action is in response to the filing of a Continuation (CON) of Application 17/647387 which is now United States Patent 12,205,615; hereinafter referred to as Patent (‘615). Claims 1-21, as originally filed, are pending and have been considered as follows.
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 .
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
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Claims 1-21 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over Claims 1-21 of U.S. Patent No. 12,205,615; hereinafter referred to as Patent (‘615). Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other.
Claim 1 of the instant application mirrors Claim 1 of Patent (‘615) with the exception of the following: The step of allocating a resource for communicating real-time voice information between a first device and a second device via a packet-switched connection in the instant application is recited as allocating a frequency resource to the packet-switched connection for communicating real-time voice information between the first device and the second device in Patent (‘615).
The step of using the resource that has been allocated and transmitting a first plurality of packets comprising first real-time voice information that is based on a first voice activity that is detected over a first interval of time in the instant application is recited as generating a first plurality of packets comprising first real-time voice information that is based on a first voice activity that is detected, over a first interval of time, by the first device or by the second device; transmitting the first plurality of packets comprising the first real-time voice information over the packet-switched connection using the frequency resource in Patent (‘615).
The instant application recites a step of then over a second interval of time that follows the first interval of time, is devoid of any detected voice activity and is further devoid of any real-time voice information packets associated therewith to be transmitted, maintaining unaltered the resource that has been allocated for communicating real-time voice information between the first device and the second device and refraining from using the resource for any purpose other than for said communicating real-time voice information between the first device and the second device.
This above step is recited in Patent (‘615) as then over a second interval of time that immediately follows the first interval of time and is devoid of any voice activity as detected by the first device or by the second device, maintaining allocation of the frequency resource to the packet-switched connection during the second interval of time even though the second interval of time is devoid of voice activity, as detected by either one of the first device or the second device, and is devoid of any real-time voice information packets associated therewith to be transmitted;
The instant application recites a step of and then using the resource that has been allocated and maintained unaltered and unused over the second interval of time, and transmitting a second plurality of real-time voice information packets based on a second voice activity that is detected over an interval of time that follows the second interval of time which is recited in Patent (‘615) as then generating a second plurality of packets comprising second real-time voice information that is based on a second voice activity that is detected by the first device or by the second device over an interval of time that immediately follows the second interval of time; and transmitting the second plurality of packets comprising the second real-time voice information over the packet-switched connection using the frequency resource.
Claim 2 of the instant application recites steps of by-passing a signal processing component of the first device and/or of the second device; and causing a delay that is associated with said communicating real-time voice information between the first device and the second device to be reduced which are recited as selecting to by-pass a signal processing component of the first device and/or of the second device in order to reduce a delay associated with said communicating real-time voice information between the first device and the second device; in Claim 1 of Patent (‘615)
Claim 3 of the instant application recites steps of receiving registration information from the first device; receiving registration information from the second device; and establishing a communications path between the first device and the second device devoid of using any cellular base station to receive and/or to transmit information associated with said communications path.
This is recited as registering by the first device with a first access point of a first internet service provider and transferring registration information to a data bank; registering by the second device with a second access point of the first internet service provider or of a second internet service provider and transferring registration information to the data bank; and/or receiving routing information from the data bank and establishing a communications path between the first device and the second device in Claim 3 of Patent (’615).
Claim 4 of the instant application recites steps of wherein said by-passing a signal processing component of the first device and/or of the second device comprises: by-passing at least one vocoder of the first device and/or of the second device; generating a digital representation of voice by using an analog-to-digital converter; and transmitting a bit rate comprising said digital representation of voice that is provided at an output of the analog-to-digital converter.
This is recited in Claim 4 of Patent (’615) as wherein said selecting to by-pass a signal processing component of the first device and/or of the second device in order to reduce a delay associated with said communicating real-time voice information between the first device and the second device further comprises: selecting to by-pass and not use any vocoder of the first device and/or of the second device; generating a digital representation of voice by using an analog-to-digital converter; and transmitting a bit rate comprising said digital representation of voice that is provided at an output of the analog-to-digital converter.
Claim 5 of the instant application recites steps of wherein said maintaining unaltered the resource that has been allocated for communicating real-time voice information between the first device and the second device and refraining from using the resource for any purpose other than for said communicating real-time voice information between the first device and the second device comprises: keeping the resource, that has been allocated and has been used to transmit the first plurality of packets comprising the first real-time voice information, unaltered and not used for any other purpose over the second interval of time even though the second interval of time is devoid of any detected voice activity and is further devoid of any real-time voice information packets associated therewith to be transmitted; and responsive to said keeping the resource, avoiding a delay by refraining from having to reallocate the resource and/or allocate any other resource in order to transmit said second plurality of packets.
This is recited as wherein said maintaining allocation of the frequency resource to the packet-switched connection during the second interval of time, that immediately follows the first interval of time, even though the second interval of time is devoid of voice activity comprises: keeping the frequency resource, that has been allocated and has been used to transmit the first plurality of packets comprising the first real-time voice information, over the second interval of time even though the second interval of time is devoid of voice activity; and responsive to said keeping the frequency resource, refraining from having to reallocate any other frequency resource to the packet-switched connection to be used over the third interval of time for transmitting the second plurality of packets in Claim 5 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 6 of the instant application recites steps of receiving a resource for communicating real-time voice information to/from a second device via a packet-switched connection; detecting, over a first interval of time, first real-time voice information and generating a first plurality of packets comprising the first real-time voice information that is detected; and transmitting the first plurality of packets comprising the first real-time voice information over the packet-switched connection using the resource; then over a second interval of time that follows the first interval of time, is adjacent thereto and is devoid of any real-time voice activity, maintaining the resource even though the second interval of time is devoid of any real-time voice information packets associated therewith to be transmitted; then over a subsequent interval of time that is adjacent to the second interval of time, detecting second real-time voice information and generating a second plurality of packets comprising the second real-time voice information that is detected over said subsequent interval of time; and transmitting the second plurality of packets comprising the second real-time voice information over the packet-switched connection using the resource.
This is recited as requesting that a packet-switched connection be established with a second device; establishing the packet-switched connection with the second device; receiving a frequency resource for communicating real-time voice information between the first device and the second device via a packet-switched connection that is established between the first device and the second device; selecting to by-pass a signal processing component of the first device and/or of the second device in order to reduce a delay associated with said communicating real-time voice information between the first device and the second device; generating a first plurality of packets comprising first real-time voice information that is based on a first voice activity that is detected, over a first interval of time, by the first device; and transmitting the first plurality of packets comprising the first real-time voice information over the packet-switched connection using the frequency resource; then over a second interval of time that immediately follows the first interval of time and is devoid of any voice activity as detected by the first device, maintaining allocation of the frequency resource to the packet-switched connection during the second interval of time, even though the second interval of time is devoid of voice activity, as detected by the first device, and is devoid of any real-time voice information packets associated therewith to be transmitted; then generating a second plurality of packets comprising second real-time voice information that is based on a second voice activity that is detected by the first device over an interval of time that immediately follows the second interval of time; and transmitting the second plurality of packets comprising the second real-time voice information over the packet-switched connection using the frequency resource in Claim 6 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 7 of the instant application recites steps of by-passing a signal processing component; and reducing a delay associated with said transmitting the first and/or second plurality of packets comprising the first and/or second real-time voice information, respectively, over the packet-switched connection using the resource which is recited as wherein said selecting to by-pass a signal processing component of the first device and/or of the second device in order to reduce a delay associated with said communicating real-time voice information between the first device and the second device comprises selecting to by-pass a vocoder of the first device and/or of the second device in Claim 7 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 8 of the instant application recites steps of registering with an access point of an internet service provider and causing registration information to be transferred to a data bank which is recited as registering by the first device with a first access point of a first internet service provider and transferring registration information to a data bank; and receiving information from the data bank in Claim 8 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 9 of the instant application recites steps of wherein said by-passing a signal processing component comprises: by-passing at least one vocoder; generating a digital representation of voice by using an analog-to-digital converter; and transmitting a bit rate comprising said digital representation of voice that is provided at an output of the analog-to-digital converter.
This is recited as selecting to by-pass and not use any vocoder of the first device and/or of the second device; generating a digital representation of voice by using an analog-to-digital converter; and transmitting a bit rate comprising said digital representation of voice that is provided at an output of the analog-to-digital converter in Claim 9 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 10 of the instant application recites steps of keeping the resource over the second interval of time even though the second interval of time is devoid of real-time voice activity; and then reducing a delay by refraining from engaging in an operation of receiving the resource and/or any other resource in order to transmit the second plurality of packets.
This is recited as keeping the frequency resource, that has been allocated and has been used to transmit the first plurality of packets comprising the first real-time voice information, over the second interval of time even though the second interval of time is devoid of voice activity; and responsive to said keeping the frequency resource, refraining from having to reallocate a frequency resource to the packet-switched connection to be used over the third interval of time for transmitting the second plurality of packets in Claim 10 of Patent (‘615)
Claim 11 of the instant application recites steps of allocating a resource for communicating voice information over a packet-switched connection between a first device and a second device which is recited as allocating a frequency resource to a first device for communicating real-time voice information over a packet-switched connection between the first device and a second device.
This is recited as transmitting using the resource, over the packet-switched connection and over a first interval of time, a first plurality of packets associated with first voice activity that is detected over the first interval of time which is recited as transmitting the first plurality of packets over the packet-switched connection using the frequency resource while by-passing a signal processing component of the first device and/or of the second device in order to reduce a delay in transmitting/receiving said first plurality of packets in Claim 11 of Patent (‘615).
The step of maintaining allocation of the resource during a second interval of time that immediately follows the first interval of time even though the second interval of time is devoid of any detected voice activity in the instant application is recited as maintaining allocation of the frequency resource to the first device during the second interval of time even though the second interval of time is devoid of any detected voice activity in Claim 11 of Patent (‘615).
The step of during an interval of time that immediately follows the second interval of time and comprises voice activity, transmitting a second plurality of voice packets that are associated therewith over the packet-switched connection using the resource is recited as transmitting the second plurality of packets over the packet-switched connection using the frequency resource while by-passing a signal processing component of the first device and/or of the second device in order to reduce a delay in transmitting/receiving said second plurality of packets in Claim 11 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 12 of the instant application mirrors Claim 12 of Patent (’615).
Claim 13 of the instant application recites steps of wherein the first plurality of packets comprises a first uncompressed representation of voice activity and is devoid of processing by a vocoder; and wherein the second plurality of packets comprises a second uncompressed representation of voice activity and is devoid of processing by a vocoder which is recited as wherein the first real-time voice information comprises a first uncompressed representation of the first voice activity and is devoid of processing by a vocoder and the second real-time voice information comprises a second uncompressed representation of the second voice activity and is devoid of processing a vocoder as recited in Claim 13 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 14 of the instant application recites steps of wherein the first uncompressed representation comprises a bit rate that is associated with a discrete-time representation of voice activity as provided at an output of an analog-to-digital converter; and wherein the second uncompressed representation comprises a bit rate that is associated with a discrete-time representation of voice activity as provided at the output of the analog-to-digital converter.
This is recited as wherein the first uncompressed representation comprises a bit rate that is associated with a discrete-time representation of the first voice activity as provided at an output of an analog-to-digital converter that operates on said first voice activity; and wherein the second uncompressed representation comprises a bit rate that is associated with a discrete-time representation of the second voice activity as provided at an output of an analog-to-digital converter that operates on said second voice activity as recited in Claim 13 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 15 of the instant application recites steps of wherein said maintaining allocation of the resource during a second interval of time that immediately follows the first interval of time even though the second interval of time is devoid of any detected voice activity; and over the second interval of time, maintaining unaltered the resource that has been allocated for communicating voice information between the first device and the second device and refraining from using the resource for any purpose other than for said communicating voice information between the first device and the second device comprises: avoiding a delay by refraining from having to reallocate the resource and/or allocate any other resource in order to transmit said second plurality of voice packets that is associated with said interval of time that immediately follows the second interval of time.
This is recited as wherein said maintaining allocation of the frequency resource to the first device during the second interval of time even though the second interval of time is devoid of any detected voice activity comprises: refraining from having to reallocate a frequency resource to the first device to be used over the third interval of time for transmitting the second plurality of packets as recite in Claim 15 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 16 of the instant application recites a wireless communications device that is performing the following operations receiving a resource for communicating voice information over a packet-switched connection between the wireless communications device and a second device which is recited as receiving a frequency resource for communicating voice information over a packet-switched connection between the wireless communications device and a second device in Patent (‘615).
The step of detecting a first voice activity during a first interval of time, forming a first plurality of packets comprising the first voice activity and transmitting the first plurality of packets over the packet-switched connection using the resource that has been received in the instant application is recited as detecting a first voice activity during a first interval of time, forming a first plurality of packets comprising the first voice activity and transmitting the first plurality of packets over the packet-switched connection using the frequency resource that has been received recited in Patent (‘615).
The step of during a second interval of time, that follows the first interval of time and is adjacent thereto, maintaining unaltered the resource that has been received even though there is no voice activity detected during said second interval of time and the second interval of time is devoid of any voice-related packets to be transmitted in the instant application is recited as during a second interval of time, that follows the first interval of time and is adjacent to the first interval of time, maintaining the allocation of the frequency resource that has been received even though there is no voice activity detected during said second interval of time and the second interval of time is devoid of any voice-related packets to be transmitted recited in Patent (‘615).
The step of detecting a second voice activity during an interval of time that follows the second interval of time and is adjacent thereto, forming a second plurality of packets comprising the second voice activity and transmitting the second plurality of packets over the packet-switched connection using the resource that has been received and has been maintained is recited as detecting a second voice activity during a third interval of time that follows the second interval of time and is adjacent thereto, forming a second plurality of packets comprising the second voice activity and transmitting the second plurality of packets over the packet-switched connection using the frequency resource that has been received recited in Claim 16 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 17 of the instant application mirrors Claim 17 of Patent (’615).
Claim 18 of the instant application recites steps of by-passing at least one signal processing component; and reducing a processing delay associated with said transmitting the first and/or the second plurality of packets which is recited as by-passing at least one signal processing component, comprising at least one vocoder, of the wireless communications device and/or of the second device in order to reduce a processing delay associated with transmitting/receiving of the first plurality of packets in Claim 18 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 19 of the instant application recites steps of by-passing at least one vocoder; generating a digital representation of voice by using an analog-to-digital converter; and transmitting a bit rate comprising said digital representation of voice that is provided at an output of the analog-to-digital converter which is recited as by-pass and not use any vocoder of the wireless communications device and/or of the second device; generating a digital representation of voice by using an analog-to-digital converter; and transmitting a bit rate comprising said digital representation of voice that is provided at an output of the analog-to-digital converter as recited in Claim 19 of Patent (’615).
Claim 20 of the instant application recites steps of keeping the resource and reducing a delay by refraining from engaging in an operation of receiving the resource and/or any other resource for transmitting the second plurality of packets which is recited as wherein said maintaining the allocation of the frequency resource that has been received comprises: refraining from receiving a reallocation of a frequency resource to be used over the third interval of time for transmitting the second plurality of packets in Claim 20 of Patent (‘615).
Claim 21 of the instant application mirrors Claim 21 of Patent (’615).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-21 are found to contain allowable subject matter.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Edara et al (2015/0009874 A1), CURRY et al (2003/0081115 A1), Lee et al (2007/0097936 A1), Das et al (2019/0319858 A1), Shahrier et al (2009/0238145 A1), Boutros et al (2019/0132220 A1), Filsfils et al (2019/0215267 A1), Filsfils et al (2019/0104058 A1), Previdi et al (2015/0256456 A1), Cai et al (2009/0046639 A1), Kantharaju et al (10,735,120 B1), Kavanagh (2003/0055954 A1) and Filart (2018/0176266 A1). Each of these describes systems and methods of communicating voice using packet-switched networks.
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KHARYE POPE
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2693
/KHARYE POPE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2693
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