DETAILED ACTION
This Final Office Action is in response to amendment filed on 06/11/2026. Claims 1-4 and 6-11 have been amended. Claims 5 have been cancelled. Claims 12-14 have been added. Claims 1-4 and 6-14 remain pending in the application.
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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed in parent Application No. JP2023 217086, filed on 12/22/2023.
Response to Amendment
Applicant’s amendments to the claims filed on 08/04/2026 have been reconsidered.
Applicant’s amendments to the Specification and Claims have been accepted. Objections to the Specification and Claims, previously set forth in the office action mailed on 03/11/2026 are withdrawn.
Drawings
The drawings filed on 12/13/2024 are accepted.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the amended claims, filed 06/11/2026, have been
fully considered and are persuasive. The examiner agrees that although the primary reference
Ho discloses a communication apparatus performing wireless communication with a wireless communication apparatus compliant with a standard of IEEE802.11 series supporting Multi-Link communication, the communication apparatus comprising: at least one memory having instructions stored thereon, and at least one processor that executes the stored instructions, which cause the at least one processor to: receive a signal including information necessary for communication connection for performing the wireless communication from the wireless communication apparatus; and establish a link with the wireless communication apparatus based on the signal, Ho in view of Kishida fails to remedy the following features:
" wherein the predetermined condition includes at least one of: a security standard used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of WPA3, WPA2, WPA, and WEP;
an encryption method used in communication satisfies a first condition; or
an authentication method used in communication satisfies a second condition."
Examiner agrees that Ho in view of Kishida does not disclose the above features
recited in amended Claim 1. However, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in
view of Yuki (JP-2022188744-A). Yuki remedies the deficiencies of Ho in view of
Kishida noted above. The rejection is necessitated by the claim amendments and is directly caused by the changes in the reply. Applicant's arguments are considered moot in light of the newly found prior art): Please see detailed rejection below.
Regarding applicant’s request to consider “…any filed IDSs not previously considered,
by initialing and returning each form PTO-1449” (page 15 of the applicant’s remark), the IDS
filed on 09/03/2026 herein initialized and attached with the final action.
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 (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 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.
Claim(s) 1-4 , 6-11, and 12-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ho (US 20210100051 A1) in view of Kishida (US 20230269804 A1) and in further view of Yuki (JP-2022188744-A).
Regarding claim 1, Ho teaches a communication apparatus performing wireless communication with a wireless communication apparatus compliant with a standard of IEEE802.11 series supporting Multi-Link communication, the communication apparatus comprising ([0057] “Various implementations of this disclosure relate generally to multi-link operation. A first WLAN device (such as an AP) may establish one or more communication links with a second WLAN device, including at least a first communication link”); [0053] “The described implementations can be implemented in any device, system or network that is capable of transmitting and receiving radio frequency (RF) signals according to one or more of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards, the IEEE 802.15 standards, the Bluetooth® standards as defined by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), or the Long Term Evolution (LTE), 3G, 4G or 5G (New Radio (NR)) standards promulgated by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), among others”);
at least one memory having instructions stored thereon, and at least one processor that executes the stored instructions, which cause the at least one processor to ([0007] “Another innovative aspect of the subject matter described in this disclosure may be implemented a first WLAN device. The first WLAN device may include at least one modem. The first WLAN device may include at least one processor communicatively coupled with the at least one modern”);
receive a signal including information necessary for communication connection for performing the wireless communication from the wireless communication apparatus (([0066] “For example, a STA 104 that is moving relative to its associated AP 102 may perform a “roaming” scan to find another AP 102 having more desirable network characteristics such as a greater received signal strength indicator (RSSI) or a reduced traffic load”; [0106] “FIG. 9A shows a block diagram of an example AP 902. For example, the AP 902 can be an example implementation of the AP 102 described with reference to FIG. 1. The AP 902 includes a wireless communication device (WCD) 910. For example, the wireless communication device 910 may be an example implementation of the wireless communication device 800 described with reference to FIG. 8”; [0095] …. The first WLAN device may transmit the first frame 710 as an initial transmission on a first communication link 108a); and
establish a link with the wireless communication apparatus based on the signal ([0109] “Various implementations of this disclosure relate generally to multi-link operation. A first WLAN device (such as an AP) may establish one or more communication links with a second WLAN device, including at least a first communication link”).
However, Ho does not explicitly disclose a predetermined condition. Kishida discloses further wherein at least one link is established with at least one communication unit satisfying a predetermined condition among a plurality of communication units belonging to the wireless communication apparatus and operating via different frequency channels ([0068] "The wireless signal processing units 150 and 250 can be wirelessly connected using the 6 GHz band. In the present specification, each wireless signal processing unit may be referred to as a “STA function”. That is, the wireless system 1 according to the embodiment includes a plurality of STA functions", examiner interprets two communication units, STA 1 and STA2 are determined to exceed the predetermined condition or the “buffer amount” disclosed in reference paragraph [0131]; [0121] “First, an example of the condition for executing the link enable process will be described. FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of execution conditions of the link enable process in the wireless system 1 according to the embodiment. The link management units 120 and 220 execute a series of processes shown in FIG. 13 when only the primary link is in the active mode during the multi-link. Specifically, first, each of the link management units 120 and 220 monitors the data buffer amount of which the transmission is allocated to the TID, and checks whether the data buffer amount exceeds a predetermined threshold value (step S40)” ).
in a case where the signal includes predetermined information indicating that the wireless communication apparatus supports the Multi-Link communication ([0091] In this example, “STAT” corresponds to the STA function using the 6 GHz frequency band, that is, the wireless signal processing unit 150 or 250. “STA2” corresponds to the STA function using the 5 GHz frequency band, that is, the wireless signal processing unit 140 or 240. “STA3” corresponds to the STA function that uses the 2.4 GHz frequency band, that is, corresponds to the wireless signal processing unit 130 or 230); [0092] “In this example, a multi-link using STA1 and STA2 has been established. When the multi-link is established, each of the link management units 120 and 220 transmits the data input from the upper layer using the link of at least one STA function associated with the multi-link. Further, STA1 is set as the primary link and STA2 is set as the secondary link”).
Ho in view of Kishida are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho to incorporate the teachings of
Kishida to implement a predetermined threshold regarding a communication unit. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Kishida [0042] “The server 30 can hold various types of information, and for example, holds data of content for the terminal apparatus 20. The server 30 is connected to, for example, the network NW by wire, and is configured to be able to communicate with the base station 10 via the network NW”).
Although Ho discloses a communication apparatus performing wireless communication with a wireless communication apparatus compliant with a standard of IEEE802.11 series supporting Multi-Link communication, and Kishida discloses further wherein at least one link is established with at least one communication unit satisfying a predetermined condition among a plurality of communication units belonging to the wireless communication apparatus and operating via different frequency channels. However, the combination of Ho in view of Kishida does not explicitly disclose wherein the predetermined condition includes at least one of: a security standard used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of WPA3, WPA2, WPA, and WEP: an encryption method used in communication satisfies a first condition; or an authentication method used in communication satisfies a second condition.
Yuki further discloses wherein the predetermined condition includes at least one of: a security standard used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of WPA3, WPA2, WPA, and WEP: an encryption method used in communication satisfies a first condition; or an authentication method used in communication satisfies a second condition ([0028] “In this embodiment, the communication device 101 and the communication device 102 are assumed to support WPA2 and WPA3 standards in addition to the WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) standard which is a security system. WPA, WPA2, and WPA3 are standards for authentication of a counterpart device and encryption of communication with the counterpart device”; [0066] “If the opposite device is not in a state in which Multi-Link communication can be executed, or if WPA3 is not used to request connection, the connection is refused (S712). Here, in S712, in addition to rejecting the connection, another network may be recommended”; [0073] “FIG. 8 shows an example of a screen display of an authentication method and an encryption method displayed when Multi-Link communication is selected”).
Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho in view of Kishida to incorporate the teachings of Yuki to implement wherein the predetermined condition includes at least one of a security standard used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of WPA3, WPA2, WPA, and WEP. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Yuki [0007] “Therefore, WPA or WPA2 is used for authentication and encryption to perform communication even though WPA3, which is an authentication method that enables more secure authentication and encryption, can be used for authentication and encryption.”)
Regarding the control method claim 10 and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium claim 11, the claims recite similar limitations as the communication apparatus claim 1, therefore, rejected based on the same rationale as claim 1.
Regarding claim 10, Ho discloses a control method for a communication apparatus performing wireless communication with a wireless communication apparatus compliant with a standard of IEEE802.11 series supporting Multi-Link communication ([0006] “The method may include encrypting a first media access control (MAC) protocol data unit (MPDU) based on the temporal key and a second MPDU based on the temporal key. The method may include preparing for transmission a first frame including the encrypted first MPDU and a second frame including the encrypted second MPDU”; examiner interprets MAC as a control method or an access control method that allows a common transmission medium, [0062] “FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of an example wireless communication network 100. According to some aspects, the wireless communication network 100 can be an example of a wireless local area network (WLAN) such as a Wi-Fi network (and will hereinafter be referred to as WLAN 100). For example, the WLAN 100 can be a network implementing at least one of the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication protocol standards (such as that defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 specification or amendments thereof including, but not limited to, 802.11ah, 802.11ad, 802.11ay, 802.11ax, 802.11az, 802.11ba and 802.11be). The WLAN 100 may include numerous wireless communication devices such as an access point (AP) 102 and multiple stations (STAs) 104. While only one AP 102 is shown, the WLAN network 100 also can include multiple APs 102)”):
Regarding claim 11, Ho discloses a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium that stores one or more programs including instructions, which when executed by one or more processors of a communication apparatus performing wireless communication with a wireless communication apparatus compliant with a standard of 10 IEEE802.11 series supporting Multi-Link communication, cause the communication apparatus to perform a control method, the control method comprising ([0006] “The method may include encrypting a first media access control (MAC) protocol data unit (MPDU) based on the temporal key and a second MPDU based on the temporal key. The method may include preparing for transmission a first frame including the encrypted first MPDU and a second frame including the encrypted second MPDU”; examiner interprets MAC as a control method or an access control method that allows a common transmission medium; [0062] “FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of an example wireless communication network 100. According to some aspects, the wireless communication network 100 can be an example of a wireless local area network (WLAN) such as a Wi-Fi network (and will hereinafter be referred to as WLAN 100). For example, the WLAN 100 can be a network implementing at least one of the IEEE 802.11 family of wireless communication protocol standards (such as that defined by the IEEE 802.11-2016 specification or amendments thereof including, but not limited to, 802.11ah, 802.11ad, 802.11ay, 802.11ax, 802.11az, 802.11ba and 802.11be). The WLAN 100 may include numerous wireless communication devices such as an access point (AP) 102 and multiple stations (STAs) 104. While only one AP 102 is shown, the WLAN network 100 also can include multiple APs 102)”; ).
Regarding claim 2, Ho in view of Kishida discloses the communication apparatus according to claim 1. However, the combination of Ho and Kishida does not explicitly disclose the limitation listed below.
Yuki further discloses wherein the first condition includes that an encryption method used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of AES, TKIP, and RC4 ([0028] “the communication device 101 and the communication device 102 are assumed to support WPA2 and WPA3 standards in addition to the WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) standard which is a security system…WPA3 uses AES-CCMP and AES-GCMP instead of TKIP and WEP as encryption methods” ), TKIP and AES refer to the encryption protocols used within WPA/WPA2 standards, and RC4 was used in WEP.
Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho in view of Kishida to incorporate the teachings of Yuki to implement wherein the predetermined condition includes at least one of a security standard used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of WPA3, WPA2, WPA, and WEP. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Yuki [0007] “Therefore, WPA or WPA2 is used for authentication and encryption to perform communication even though WPA3, which is an authentication method that enables more secure authentication and encryption, can be used for authentication and encryption.”).
Regarding claim 3, Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki discloses all features of claim 1 as listed above. Yuki further discloses the communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor determines whether the security standard used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of WPA3, WPA2, WPA, and WE based on information included in the signal a security standard of the communication unit that has transmitted the signal ([0045] “FIG. 4 shows RSNE (Robust Security Network element) defined by IEEE802.11. The RSNE is stored in a management frame conforming to IEEE802.11”; [0065] “When the communication device 101 receives the connection request from the counterpart device, it confirms whether or not the counterpart device is in a state capable of executing Multi-Link communication and compatible with WPA3. Specifically, it is checked whether or not the AKM Suite List field 408 of the Probe Request or Association Request received in S709 contains information indicating that WPA3 can be supported”).
Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho in view of Kishida to incorporate the teachings of Yuki to implement wherein the predetermined condition includes at least one of a security standard used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of WPA3, WPA2, WPA, and WEP. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Yuki [0007] “Therefore, WPA or WPA2 is used for authentication and encryption to perform communication even though WPA3, which is an authentication method that enables more secure authentication and encryption, can be used for authentication and encryption.”).
Regarding claim 4, Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki discloses all features of claim 2 as listed above. Yuki further discloses the communication apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the at least one processor determines whether the communication unit encryption method used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of AES, TKIP, and RC4 based on information included in the signal and indicating an encryption method used by the communication unit that has transmitted the signal (([0028] “the communication device 101 and the communication device 102 are assumed to support WPA2 and WPA3 standards in addition to the WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) standard which is a security system…WPA3 uses AES-CCMP and AES-GCMP instead of TKIP and WEP as encryption methods”; [0045] FIG. 4 shows RSNE (Robust Security Network element) defined by IEEE802.11. The RSNE is stored in a management frame conforming to IEEE802.11”; [0047] “A Pairwise Cipher Suite Count field 405 indicates the number of encryption schemes supported. Specific values are shown in the Pairwise Cipher Suite List field 406 . For example, 00-0F-AC-04 corresponds to CCMP-128. When the Pairwise Cipher Suite Count field 405 indicates that a plurality is supported, for example, when the Pairwise Cipher Suite Count field 405 is set to 2, a plurality of 406 are continued. For example, when supporting CCMP-128 and GCMP-128, 00-0F-AC-04 is followed by 00-0F-AC-08. This order may be reversed. Any number of corresponding numbers may be used” ), TKIP and AES refer to the encryption protocols used within WPA/WPA2 standards, and RC4 was used in WEP; CCMP is in the IEEE 802.11i standard and is the default encryption method for WPA2-Enterprise and WPA3-Enterprise. It is based on the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES).
Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho in view of Kishida to incorporate the teachings of Yuki to implement wherein the predetermined condition includes at least one of a security standard used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of WPA3, WPA2, WPA, and WEP. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Yuki [0007] “Therefore, WPA or WPA2 is used for authentication and encryption to perform communication even though WPA3, which is an authentication method that enables more secure authentication and encryption, can be used for authentication and encryption.”).
Regarding claim 6, Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki discloses all features of claim 1 as listed above. Kishida further discloses the communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor determines whether the communication unit satisfies the predetermined condition based on information about a predetermined mode indicating a usage of the wireless the communication apparatus and included in the signal. ([0112] “When the terminal apparatus 20 receives the affirmative response in step S31, the link management unit 220 of the terminal apparatus 20 changes the STA2 set as the secondary link to the operation pause mode (Doze state) (step S32). As a result, STA1 and STA2 of the terminal apparatus 20 are put into the Awake state and the Doze state, respectively. At this time, the multi-link is in a state where only the data of TID #2 can be transmitted and received”; [0162] In the link enable process and the link disable process described above, the predetermined threshold value used in the link enable process is set to be equal to or higher than the predetermined threshold value used in the link disable process. As described above, the predetermined threshold value used in the link enable process and the predetermined threshold value used in the link disable process may be the same or different. By providing a margin to these threshold values, the wireless system 1 can suppress the frequent occurrence of the link enable process and the link disable process when the traffic amount is near each threshold value”).
Ho in view of Kishida are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho to incorporate the teachings of
Kishida to implement a predetermined threshold regarding a communication unit. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Kishida [0042] “The server 30 can hold various types of information, and for example, holds data of content for the terminal apparatus 20. The server 30 is connected to, for example, the network NW by wire, and is configured to be able to communicate with the base station 10 via the network NW”).
Regarding claim 7, Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki discloses all features of claim 1 as listed above. Kishida further discloses, the communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor determines whether the communication unit satisfies the predetermined condition based on information included in the signal and indicating a frequency band in which the communication unit that has transmitted the signal operates ([0187] “In the embodiment, in the multi-link processing, the case where the terminal apparatus 20 requests the base station to establish the multi-link has been illustrated, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the base station 10 may request the terminal apparatus 20 to establish a multi-link based on the fact that a plurality of links have been established between the base station 10 and the terminal apparatus 20. In the embodiment and each modified example, the “predetermined threshold value” used in the link enable process and the “predetermined threshold value” used in the link disable process may be the same or different”; [0182] “As shown in FIG. 27, the link management information 121 in the fifth modified example of the embodiment has a configuration in which information related to the channel ID for each frequency band is added to the link management information 121 in the embodiment. Also, in this example, the same multi-link as in the embodiment is established using the channel CH2 of “STAT” corresponding to the 6 GHz frequency band and the channel CH3 of “STA2” corresponding to the 6 GHz frequency band”).
Ho in view of Kishida are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho to incorporate the teachings of
Kishida to implement a predetermined threshold regarding a communication unit. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Kishida [0042] “The server 30 can hold various types of information, and for example, holds data of content for the terminal apparatus 20. The server 30 is connected to, for example, the network NW by wire, and is configured to be able to communicate with the base station 10 via the network NW”).
Regarding claim 8, Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki discloses all features of claim 1 as listed above. Kishida further discloses the communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor establishes links with two or more communication units in a case where the at least one processor determines that the two or more communication units satisfy the predetermined condition (0131] As shown in FIG. 15, when STA1 and STA2 are in the Awake state and the Doze state, respectively, data can be transmitted and received using STA1. After that, when the link management unit 120 of the base station 10 detects that “(buffer amount)>(predetermined threshold value)” is satisfied, the terminal apparatus 20 is notified of the fact that “(buffer amount)”>(predetermined threshold value)” is satisfied using a beacon signal (not shown)”), examiner interprets two communication units, STA 1 and STA2 are determined to exceed the “buffer amount” disclosed in reference paragraph [0131.
Ho in view of Kishida are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho to incorporate the teachings of Kishida to implement a predetermined threshold regarding a communication unit. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Kishida [0042] “The server 30 can hold various types of information, and for example, holds data of content for the terminal apparatus 20. The server 30 is connected to, for example, the network NW by wire, and is configured to be able to communicate with the base station 10 via the network NW”).
Regarding claim 9, Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki discloses all features of claim 1 as listed above. Kishida further discloses the communication apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor establishes a link with one communication unit in a case where at least one processor determines that the one communication unit satisfies the predetermined condition ([0121] “First, an example of the condition for executing the link enable process will be described. FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of execution conditions of the link enable process in the wireless system 1 according to the embodiment. The link management units 120 and 220 execute a series of processes shown in FIG. 13 when only the primary link is in the active mode during the multi-link. Specifically, first, each of the link management units 120 and 220 monitors the data buffer amount of which the transmission is allocated to the TID, and checks whether the data buffer amount exceeds a predetermined threshold value (step S40)” [0160] “The “predetermined threshold value” used in this modified example is set for each traffic type, for example. In this case, each of the processes of steps S70 and S71 described above is executed for each traffic type. For example, each of the link management units 120 and 220 executes the link enable process when “YES” is obtained in the determination of step S70 corresponding to at least one of the plurality of traffic types. Similarly, each of the link management units 120 and 220 executes the link disable process when “YES” is obtained in the determination of step S71 corresponding to at least one of the plurality of traffic types. Other configurations and operations of the wireless system 1 according to the second modified example of the embodiment are the same as those of the embodiment”).
Ho in view of Kishida are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho to incorporate the teachings of Kishida to implement a predetermined threshold regarding a communication unit. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Kishida [0042] “The server 30 can hold various types of information, and for example, holds data of content for the terminal apparatus 20. The server 30 is connected to, for example, the network NW by wire, and is configured to be able to communicate with the base station 10 via the network NW”).
Regarding claim 12, Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki discloses the communication apparatus according to claim 1 as listed above.
Yuki further discloses wherein the second condition includes that an authentication method used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of SAE, PSK, common key authentication, and open system authentication ([0070] “In S708, the AKM Suite List field 408 of the RSNE shown in FIG. 4 contains 00-0F-AC-08 indicating that the SAE is supported, and 00-0F-AC that indicates that the PSK is supported. -02 and 00-0F-AC-06 are included. 00-0F-AC-02 indicates that PSK uses SHA-128 as a hash function, and 00-0F-AC-06 indicates that SHA-256 is used as a hash function. Only one of these may be included”), WPA2-PSK uses AES encryption, which is robust and widely regarded as secure.
Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho in view of Kishida to incorporate the teachings of Yuki to implement wherein the predetermined condition includes at least one of a security standard used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of WPA3, WPA2, WPA, and WEP. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Yuki [0007] “Therefore, WPA or WPA2 is used for authentication and encryption to perform communication even though WPA3, which is an authentication method that enables more secure authentication and encryption, can be used for authentication and encryption.”).
Regarding claim 13, Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki discloses the communication apparatus according to claim 12 as listed above.
Yuki further disclose wherein the at least one processor determines whether the authentication method used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of SAE, PSK, common key authentication, and open system authentication based on information included in the signal and indicating an authentication scheme used by the communication unit that has transmitted the signal ([0070] “In S708, the AKM Suite List field 408 of the RSNE shown in FIG. 4 contains 00-0F-AC-08 indicating that the SAE is supported, and 00-0F-AC that indicates that the PSK is supported. -02 and 00-0F-AC-06 are included. 00-0F-AC-02 indicates that PSK uses SHA-128 as a hash function, and 00-0F-AC-06 indicates that SHA-256 is used as a hash function. Only one of these may be included”; [0071] “After building the network, it waits for a connection request from the opposite device (S710). If the opposite device requests connection, the authentication proceeds (S713), and if the authentication passes (Yes in S714), the device connects and starts communication (S715)”).
Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho in view of Kishida to incorporate the teachings of Yuki to implement wherein the predetermined condition includes at least one of a security standard used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of WPA3, WPA2, WPA, and WEP. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Yuki [0007] “Therefore, WPA or WPA2 is used for authentication and encryption to perform communication even though WPA3, which is an authentication method that enables more secure authentication and encryption, can be used for authentication and encryption.”).
Regarding claim 14, Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki discloses the communication apparatus according to claim 1 as listed above.
Yuki further discloses wherein no link is established with a communication unit, in a case where the at least one processor determines that no communication unit satisfy the predetermined condition ([0066] “If the opposite device is not in a state in which Multi-Link communication can be executed, or if WPA3 is not used to request connection, the connection is refused (S712). Here, in S712, in addition to rejecting the connection, another network may be recommended”; [0068] “If the connection request from the STA satisfies the conditions, the communication device 101 authenticates the STA (S713). If the authentication succeeds in S713 (Yes in S714), it connects with the opposite device and starts communication (S715). If the authentication is not successful (No in S714), the connection is refused (S712). In S712, as means for rejecting the connection, setting the Status Code to Failure in the Association Response can be considered”).
Ho in view of Kishida and Yuki are analogous in multi-link communication devices. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Ho in view of Kishida to incorporate the teachings of Yuki to implement wherein the predetermined condition includes at least one of a security standard used in communication is included in a predetermined subset of WPA3, WPA2, WPA, and WEP. Doing so would maintain communication quality (Yuki [0007] “Therefore, WPA or WPA2 is used for authentication and encryption to perform communication even though WPA3, which is an authentication method that enables more secure authentication and encryption, can be used for authentication and encryption.”).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to the applicant’s
disclosure:
Inohiza (WO 2021256209 A1) discloses a communication apparatus capable of performing multilink communication conforming to the IEEE802.11 standard series includes a connection unit configured to establish a first link and a second link via a frequency channel.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to VIVIAN D. HO whose telephone number is (571)272-9957. The examiner can normally be reached M- TH 9:00 - 6:00; F 9:00-1:00.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
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/VIVIAN D HO/Examiner, Art Unit 2497 /BASSAM A NOAMAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2497
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