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 .
Response to Amendment
Claim 25 includes the limitations of original claim 10 along with the limitations of claim 9. The examiner reminds the applicant that claim 9 was originally rejected.
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.
1. Claim 25 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Mula et al. (US 2021/0250300), “Mula”, in view of Pentkovski et al. (US 2001/0013870), “Pentkovski”.
2. As per claim 25, Mula discloses a processor [a processor, paragraph 90]; a memory device for storing a first portion of data in association with a first interface [a buffered data associated with a Duplex Link, figure 1]; a second portion of data in association with a second interface [another buffered data associated with another Duplex Link, figure 1]; a first buffer coupled to the first interface for receiving the first portion of data [a buffer coupled to a Duplex Link, figure 1]; and a second buffer coupled to the second interface for receiving the second portion of data [another buffer coupled to another Duplex Link, figure 1].
Mula does not disclose expressly a combiner unit comprising: one or more selector units, the one or more selector units selecting for output the first (portion of) data based on the combiner unit being in a first state, and selecting for output the first (portion of) data and the second (portion of) data based on the combiner unit being in a second state, wherein an output is received based on a first criterion and an output of the combiner unit being in a second state. The examiner interprets the limitation(s) as combining data based on state(s).
Pentkovski discloses such combining of data based on state(s) in figure 7. Also, Pentkovski discloses outputting values based on the criterion in figure 7.
Mula and Pentkovski are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of memory access control.
Before the effective filing of the application, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to modify Mula by write combining data as taught by Pentkovski in figure 7.
The motivation for doing so would have been efficient use of memory resource(s) as expressly taught by Pentkovski in paragraph 9.
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.
A. Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-4, 6-12, 14, 15, and 21-24 are allowable. Claims 26 and 27 are objected to.
The closest prior art of record, “Mula” discloses a plurality of buffer interfaces in figure 1.
The primary reasons for allowance of claims 1 and 10 in the instant application is the combination with the inclusion in these claims that “wherein the first state is associated with a first level of precision for the data, and the second state is associated with a second level of precision for the data”. The prior art of record neither anticipates nor renders obvious the above recited combination.
The primary reasons for allowance of claim 21 in the instant application is the combination with the inclusion in these claims that “wherein the first state or the second state is selected from among n states, wherein n is based on a number of portions into which the data is partitioned”. The prior art of record neither anticipates nor renders obvious the above recited combination.
The primary reasons for allowance of claim 26 in the instant application is the combination with the inclusion in these claims that “wherein the one or more selector units comprises: a first multiplexer, wherein a first input to the first multiplexer is coupled to the first buffer, and a second input of the first multiplexer is coupled to the second buffer; and a second multiplexer, wherein a first input to the second multiplexer is coupled to the first buffer, a second input to the second multiplexer is coupled to the second buffer, and a third input of the second multiplexer is coupled to an adjustment value generator”. The prior art of record neither anticipates nor renders obvious the above recited combination.
As allowable subject matter has been indicated, applicant's response must either comply with all formal requirements or specifically traverse each requirement not complied with. See 37 C.F.R. § 1.111(b) and § 707.07(a) of the MPEP.
B. Claims Rejected
Claim 25 is rejected.
C. Direction for Future Remarks
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAE UN YU whose telephone number is (571)272-1133. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9-5. 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. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Tim Vo can be reached on (571)272-3642. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/JAE U YU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2138
