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 June 05, 2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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.
Claims 1, 6, 8-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee (US 20220287117 A1) in view of Billuri (US 20220150173 A1).
As for Claim 1, Lee discloses,
A non-transitory computer readable medium having program instructions stored therein that are executable by a client device to perform operations, comprising:
establishing a tethered connection offered by a communication device(i.e. The first external electronic device 205 (external device) may establish a first tethering connection 1005a and a second tethering connection 1005b with the electronic device 215 (communication device), for the tethering service.)(¶0140)(fig.3),
transmitting first network traffic from a first application to the communication device via the first communication channel(905a – Fig.9) (i.e. The first external electronic device 205 may establish a first tethering connection 905a and a second tethering connection 905b with the electronic device 215, for the tethering service. The first tethering connection 905a is related to the first application APP#1 of the first external electronic device 205. Operation 1215 teaches receiving from application #1 at electronic device 215, a packet including its QOS information.)(Operation 1215 – Fig.12;¶0135) to cause the communication device to prioritize communication of the first network traffic(i.e. In operation 1220, the processor 120 of the electronic device 215 selects a backbone network to send the traffic based on the QOS information received from the external electronic device.)(Operation 1220 – Fig.12);
and transmitting second network traffic from a second application to the communication device via the second communication channel(905b – Fig.9)(i.e. The electronic device 215 may provide the tethering service for the second application APP#2 of the external electronic devices through a first tethering connection 705b which is where the second traffic flows through.)(¶0115; 705b – Fig.7)
While Lee discloses transmitting a first and second network traffic from a first and second application via separate distinct communication channels, Lee fails to disclose transmitting a first and second network traffic through a prioritized and non-prioritized communication channel.
In an analogous art, Billuri discloses,
wherein the tethered connection (i.e. tethered connection between UE 115 and the application processor)(¶0099)includes a prioritized communication channel and a non-prioritized communication channel (i.e. The application processor 310 uses separate interfaces or “channels” for the prioritized data 320 and the non-prioritized data 325.)(¶0123)
transmitting first network traffic (320 - fig. 3) from a first application (i.e., video call app, such as WhatsApp or Facebook)(¶0106) to the communication device (305 - fig. 3) via the prioritized communication channel (i.e. application processor 310 may be an example of or function as a data source, such as a tethered client. The application processor 310 may send data (including the prioritized data 320) to the modem 305 for uplink transmission. The application processor 310 uses separate interfaces for the prioritized data 320 and the non-prioritized data 325)(¶0117,0123) to cause the communication device to prioritize communication of the first network traffic (i.e. Billuri teaches prioritizing video call app data by transmitting data for video call over a prioritized interface or “communication channel”.)(¶0106, 0117, 0123);
and transmitting second network traffic (325 - fig. 3) from a second application (i.e. FTP upload data)(¶0106) to the communication device via a non-prioritized communication channel (i.e., application processor 310 may be an example of or function as a data source, such as a tethered client. The application processor 310 may send data (including the non-prioritized data 325) to the modem 305 for uplink transmission. The application processor 310 uses separate interfaces for the prioritized data 320 and the non-prioritized data 325. Billuri teaches assigning a lower priority to an FTP upload data by transmitting data for FTP data over a non-prioritized interface or “communication channel”.)(¶0106, 0117, 0123);
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Lee to include wherein the tethered connection includes a prioritized communication channel and a non-prioritized communication channel; transmitting first network traffic from a first application to the communication device via the prioritized communication channel to cause the communication device to prioritize communication of the first network traffic; and transmitting second network traffic from a second application to the communication device via the non-prioritized communication channel as taught by Billuri for the benefit of prioritizing one of the channels to allow latency-sensitive traffic to be prioritized.
As for Claim 6, Lee in view of Billuri disclose, in particular Lee teaches,
wherein transmitting the first network traffic includes transmitting the first network traffic via a first communication network of the communication device (i.e. the traffic from the first application is sent to the 5G/Cellular Network)(¶0137);
and wherein transmitting the second network traffic includes transmitting the second network traffic via a second communication network of the communication device, the second communication network having distinct characteristics from the first communication network (i.e. the traffic from the second application is sent to the wifi network of AP 925 )(¶0135; AP 925 – Fig.9)
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 1.
As for Claim 8, Lee in view of Billuri discloses, in particular Lee teaches,
identifying that at least one data packet of the first network traffic includes an entitlement indicator included in the at least one data packet by the first application (i.e. the electronic device 215 may identify a WiFi multimedia (WMM) value required for an application from a QoS field included in a packet received from the application of the external electronic device.)(¶0131)
and routing the first network traffic over the communication channel in response to the identifying (i.e. The electronic device 215 may select a backbone network having a low delay according to the WMM value of the application where the tethered connection (communication channel) leads to the backbone network.)(¶0131)
Lee in view Billuri discloses, in particular Billuri teaches,
wherein the tethered connection includes a prioritized communication channel and a non-prioritized communication channel(i.e. a modem of a UE may enforce flow control from a tethered client on a per-flow basis (such as per prioritized or non-prioritized flow) where both flows of traffic are carried to the modem concurrently if resources allow. )(¶0023,0026 and 0055)
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 1.
As for Claim 9, Lee in view of Billuri disclose, in particular Billuri teaches,
wherein the first network traffic includes latency-sensitive traffic relative to a latency-sensitivity of the second network traffic (i.e. When uplink data 220 includes prioritized data and non-prioritized data (where the prioritized data is more latency sensitive), the prioritized data gets “head of the line treatment”.)(¶0104).
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 1.
Claims 2 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee in view of Billuri as applied to Claim 1 above, and further in view of Haider (US 20230180052 A1).
As for Claim 2, Lee in view of Billuri discloses, in particular Lee teaches,
and wherein transmitting the second network traffic includes transmitting the second network traffic to an access point implemented by the communication device.(i.e. Electronic device 215 accesses AP 525 to provide Wi-Fi internet to external devices and their applications.)(¶0106; AP 525 - Fig.5)
Lee in view of Billuri fails to disclose wherein transmitting the first network traffic includes transmitting the first network traffic via a peer-to-peer link.
In an analogous art, Haider discloses
wherein transmitting the first network traffic includes transmitting the first network traffic via a peer-to-peer link (i.e. multiple sets of applications may run in background (e.g., email, web browsing, etc.) on the device which can imply multiple streams of traffic, and the device can specify QoS parameters for multiple streams of traffic in different levels of granularity using SCS and R-TWT( carries application QOS information). Scheduler 118B of the computing device 110B may request R-TWT to transmit latency sensitive traffic using P2P communication.)(¶0067, 0082 and 0098),
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Lee in view of Billuri to include wherein transmitting the first network traffic includes transmitting the first network traffic via a peer-to-peer link as taught by Haider for the benefit of improving network throughput.
As for Claim 10, Lee in view of Billuri and Haider discloses, in particular Haider teaches
wherein the tethered connection is established by a hotspot operating on the communication device (i.e. In certain embodiments, the computing device 110 may be considered a soft access point (e.g., a hotspot device) where the computing device is tethered to the vr headset.)(¶0048-0049);
Lee discloses,
and wherein the first application is more sensitive to latency than the second application (i.e. In an embodiment, the first application may require a normal level of QoS, such as a web browser, and the second application may require a high level of QoS, such as a video chat application in which real-time streaming is important.)(¶0130).
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 2.
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee in view of Billuri as applied to Claim 1 above, and further in view of Saravanaperumal (US 20240028348 A1).
As for Claim 3, Lee in view of Billuri fails to disclose wherein transmitting the first network traffic includes transmitting the first network traffic via a proxy implemented by the communication device.
In an analogous art, Saravanaperumal discloses
wherein transmitting the first network traffic includes transmitting the first network traffic via a proxy implemented by the communication device (i.e. Execution of a first local proxy server by the first electronic device is initiated at step 406. This may include, for example, the framework 302 of the tethering device 202 initiating execution of the first local proxy server 304. Among other things, the first local proxy server 304 is configured to receive traffic (such as to or from the tethering device 202 or a tethered device) and forward the traffic based on the first PAC file. )(¶0069).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Lee in view of Billuri to include wherein transmitting the first network traffic includes transmitting the first network traffic via a proxy implemented by the communication device as taught by Saravanaperumal for the benefit of improved control of network traffic.
Claims 4 and 5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee in view of Billuri as applied to Claim 1 above, and further in view of De Foy (US 20230074838 A1).
As for Claim 4, Lee in view of Billuri fails to disclose wherein the prioritized communication channel includes a plurality of communication links.
In an analogous art, De Foy discloses
wherein the prioritized communication channel includes a plurality of communication links(i.e. teaches a multipath transport connection wherein the paths may be established using QUIC connections including a Quic connections between an endpoint and proxy. MHMP-QUIC supports multiple concurrent indirect as well as direct paths)(¶102-103).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Lee in view of Billuri to include wherein the prioritized communication channel includes a plurality of communication links as taught by De Foy for the benefit of increasing network throughput.
As for Claim 5, Lee in view of Billuri and De Foy disclose, in particular De Foy teaches,
wherein the plurality of communication links correspond to a plurality of QUIC communication links (i.e. teaches a multipath transport connection wherein the paths may be established using QUIC connections including a Quic connections between an endpoint and proxy. MHMP-QUIC supports multiple concurrent indirect as well as direct paths)(¶102-103)
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 4.
Claims 7 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee in view of Billuri as applied to Claim 1 above, and further in view of Trujillo (US 20230336430 A1).
As for Claim 7, Lee in view of Billuri fails to disclose wherein the first communication network has a first latency that is lower than a second latency of the second communication network.
In an analogous art, Trujillo discloses
wherein the first communication network has a first latency that is lower than a second latency of the second communication network (i.e. In step 622, a first latency requirement for a first network connection to user equipment is acquired. In step 624, a second latency requirement for a second network connection to the user equipment is acquired. The user equipment may comprise a mobile computing device. The first latency requirement may be greater than or less than the second latency requirement.)(¶0146).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Lee in view of Billuri to include wherein the first communication network has a first latency that is lower than a second latency of the second communication network as taught by Trujillo for the benefit of improving network throughput.
As for Claim 20, Lee in view of Billuri and Trujillo discloses, in particular Trujillo teaches,
wherein the prioritized outbound network has a first latency that is lower than a second latency of the non-prioritized outbound network (i.e. In step 622, a first latency requirement for a first network connection to user equipment is acquired. In step 624, a second latency requirement for a second network connection to the user equipment is acquired. The user equipment may comprise a mobile computing device. The first latency requirement may be greater than or less than the second latency requirement.)(¶0146).
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 7.
Claims 11-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee in view of Billuri and further in view of Yao (US 20220200893 A1).
As for Claim 11, Lee discloses
establishing a tethered connection offered by a communication device (i.e. The first external electronic device 205 (external device) may establish a first tethering connection 1005a and a second tethering connection 1005b with the electronic device 215 (communication device), for the tethering service.)(¶0140));
transmitting first network traffic from a first application to the communication device (i.e. Operation 1215 teaches receiving from application #1, a packet including its QOS information.)(Operation 1215 – Fig.12)),
and transmitting second network traffic from a second application to the communication device (i.e. the second application connects to the electronic device through connection 1005b which is where the second traffic is sent through.)(¶0140)),
Lee fails to disclose wherein the first network traffic includes prioritization metadata to cause the communication device to transmit the first network traffic via a prioritized outbound network and wherein the communication device is configured to transmit the second network traffic via a non-prioritized outbound network.
In an analogous art, Yao discloses
wherein the first network traffic includes prioritization metadata to cause the communication device to transmit the first network traffic via a outbound network(i.e. teaches that a packet contains an SDGP-ID which identifies which network slice’s resources to use. Low latency traffic will have an SDGP-ID that routes to network slice 1 which is a high-priority network slice.)(¶0178-0181)
wherein the communication device is configured to transmit the second network traffic via a outbound network (i.e. teaches that a packet contains an SDGP-ID which identifies which network slice’s resources to use. Traffic that requires high reliability may have an SDGP-ID that routes to network slice 2 which is a low priority, high reliability network slice.)(¶0178-0181)
While Yao discloses transmitting traffic wherein the first network traffic includes prioritization metadata to cause the communication device to transmit the first network traffic via a outbound network and wherein the communication device is configured to transmit the second network traffic via a outbound network, Yao fails to teach a prioritized and non-prioritized outbound network.
In an analogous art Billuri discloses,
wherein the first network traffic includes metadata to cause the communication device (modem 205 – Fig.2) to transmit the first network traffic (i.e. prioritized data flow, such as from video apps) via a prioritized outbound network (i.e. modem 205 may apply selective flow control enforcement per service flow (e.g., per prioritized data flow or per non-prioritized data flow) to exclude some pre-determined or pre-defined service flows (such as service flows that may be categorized as prioritized data or a prioritized service flow), which may maintain or improve the QoS of the excluded service flows in various network conditions as compared to best effort or heavy data traffic (e.g., non-prioritized data traffic). As such, if the uplink grants 215 provided to the modem 205 by the network device 210 are insufficient (such that flow control may be triggered or applied) the modem 205 may primarily flow control the non-prioritized data while refraining from, or at least secondarily, flow controlling the prioritized data.)(¶0106, 0110, and 0123)
wherein the communication device (modem 205 – Fig.2) is configured to transmit the second network traffic (i.e. non-prioritized data flow, such as FTP) via a non-prioritized outbound network(i.e. modem 205 may apply selective flow control enforcement per service flow (e.g., per prioritized data flow or per non-prioritized data flow) to exclude some pre-determined or pre-defined service flows (such as service flows that may be categorized as prioritized data or a prioritized service flow), which may maintain or improve the QoS of the excluded service flows in various network conditions as compared to best effort or heavy data traffic (e.g., non-prioritized data traffic). As such, if the uplink grants 215 provided to the modem 205 by the network device 210 are insufficient (such that flow control may be triggered or applied) the modem 205 may primarily flow control the non-prioritized data while refraining from, or at least secondarily, flow controlling the prioritized data.)(¶0106, 0110, 0123)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Lee in view of Billuri to include wherein the first network traffic includes prioritization metadata to cause the communication device to transmit the first network traffic via a outbound network and wherein the communication device is configured to transmit the second network traffic via a outbound network as taught by Yao for the benefit of efficient network routing.
As for Claim 12, Lee in view of Billuri and Yao discloses, in particular Lee teaches,
inserting the prioritization metadata into the first network traffic, wherein the prioritization metadata indicates a service class of the first network traffic (i.e. The electronic device 215 may obtain QoS information from an IE included in a transmission control protocol (TCP) sync packet or a user datagram packet (UDP) request packet received from an application of the external electronic device (e.g., the first external electronic device 205 or the second external electronic device 210)(¶0130-0131)
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 11.
As for Claim 13, Lee in view of Billuri and Yao discloses, in particular Yao teaches,
wherein the prioritization metadata indicates that the first network traffic is entitled to be transmitted over the outbound network (i.e. teaches that a packet contains an SDGP-ID which identifies which network slice’s resources to use. Low latency traffic will have an SDGP-ID that routes to network slice 1 which is a high-priority network slice.)(¶0178-0181)
Yao fails to disclose wherein the prioritization metadata indicates that the first network traffic is entitled to be transmitted over the prioritized outbound network.
In an analogous art, Billuri teaches
wherein the metadata indicates that first network traffic (i.e. prioritized data flow) is entitled to be transmitted over the prioritized outbound network(i.e. modem 205 may apply selective flow control enforcement per service flow (e.g., per prioritized data flow or per non-prioritized data flow) to exclude some pre-determined or pre-defined service flows (such as service flows that may be categorized as prioritized data or a prioritized service flow), which may maintain or improve the QoS of the excluded service flows in various network conditions as compared to best effort or heavy data traffic (e.g., non-prioritized data traffic). As such, if the uplink grants 215 provided to the modem 205 by the network device 210 are insufficient (such that flow control may be triggered or applied) the modem 205 may primarily flow control the non-prioritized data while refraining from, or at least secondarily, flow controlling the prioritized data.)(¶0110 and 0123)
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 11.
As for Claim 14, Lee in view of Billuri and Yao discloses, in particular Yao teaches,
encapsulating the prioritization metadata in each data packet of the first network traffic (i.e. teaches that a packet contains an SDGP-ID which identifies which network slice’s resources to use. Low latency traffic will have an SDGP-ID that routes to network slice 1 which is a high-priority network slice.)(¶0178-0181)
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 11.
As for Claim 15, the claim limitations are identical and/or equivalent in
scope to Claim 11, with Lee further teaching the processing device containing a non-
transitory machine-readable storage medium and processor (Lee, ¶0074).
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 11.
As for Claim 16, Lee in view of Billuri and Yao discloses, in particular Yao teaches,
encapsulating the prioritization metadata in at most one data packet of the first network traffic (i.e. teaches that a packet contains an SDGP-ID which identifies which network slice’s resources to use. Low latency traffic will have an SDGP-ID that routes to network slice 1 which is a high-priority network slice.)(¶0178-0181)
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 15.
As for Claim 17, Lee in view of Billuri and Yao discloses, in particular Lee teaches,
transmitting the first network traffic from a first application to the communication device via the first communication channel(905a – Fig.9) (i.e. The first external electronic device 205 may establish a first tethering connection 905a and a second tethering connection 905b with the electronic device 215, for the tethering service. The first tethering connection 905a is related to the first application APP#1 of the first external electronic device 205. Operation 1215 teaches receiving from application #1 at electronic device 215, a packet including its QOS information.)(Operation 1215 – Fig.12;¶0135)
and transmitting the second network traffic from a second application to the communication device via the second communication channel(905b – Fig.9)(i.e. The electronic device 215 may provide the tethering service for the second application APP#2 of the external electronic devices through a first tethering connection 705b which is where the second traffic flows through.)(¶0115; 705b – Fig.7)
While Lee discloses transmitting a first and second network traffic from a first and second application via separate distinct communication channels, Lee fails to disclose transmitting a first and second network traffic through a prioritized and non-prioritized communication channel.
In an analogous art, Billuri discloses,
transmitting the first network traffic (320 - fig. 3) from a first application (i.e., video call app, such as WhatsApp or Facebook)(¶0106) to the communication device (305 - fig. 3) via the prioritized communication channel (i.e. application processor 310 may be an example of or function as a data source, such as a tethered client. The application processor 310 may send data (including the prioritized data 320) to the modem 305 for uplink transmission. The application processor 310 uses separate interfaces for the prioritized data 320 and the non-prioritized data 325. Prioritizing video call app data by transmitting data for video call over a prioritized interface or “communication channel”.) (¶0106, 0117, 0123);
and transmitting the second network traffic (325 - fig. 3) from a second application (i.e. FTP upload data)(¶0106) to the communication device via the non-prioritized communication channel (i.e., application processor 310 may be an example of or function as a data source, such as a tethered client. The application processor 310 may send data (including the non-prioritized data 325) to the modem 305 for uplink transmission. The application processor 310 uses separate interfaces for the prioritized data 320 and the non-prioritized data 325. Billuri teaches assigning a lower priority to an FTP upload data by transmitting data for FTP data over a non-prioritized interface or “communication channel”.)(¶0106, 0117, 0123);
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Lee to include wherein the tethered connection includes a prioritized communication channel and a non-prioritized communication channel; transmitting first network traffic from a first application to the communication device via the prioritized communication channel to cause the communication device to prioritize communication of the first network traffic; and transmitting second network traffic from a second application to the communication device via the non-prioritized communication channel as taught by Billuri for the benefit of prioritizing one of the channels to allow latency-sensitive traffic to be prioritized.
As for Claim 18, Lee in view of Billuri and Yao discloses, in particular Lee teaches
including an entitlement token in the prioritization metadata; and determining that the prioritization metadata includes the entitlement token (i.e. the electronic device 215 may identify a WiFi multimedia (WMM) value required for an application from a QoS field included in a packet received from the application of the external electronic device.)(¶0131)
Lee in view of Yao and Billuri disclose, in particular Yao teaches,
wherein transmitting the first network traffic via the communication channel includes transmitting the first network traffic in response to determining that the prioritization metadata includes the entitlement token (i.e. The electronic device 215 may select a backbone network having a low delay according to the WMM value of the application where the tethered connection (communication channel) leads to the backbone network.)(¶0131)
Lee in view of Yao and Billuri disclose, in particular Billuri teaches,
wherein the tethered connection includes a prioritized communication channel and a non-prioritized communication channel(i.e. a modem of a UE may enforce flow control from a tethered client on a per-flow basis (such as per prioritized or non-prioritized flow) where both flows of traffic are carried to the modem concurrently if resources allow. )(¶0123,0026 and 0055)
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 15.
As for Claim 19, Lee in view of Billuri and Yao discloses, in particular Yao teaches,
appending the prioritization metadata to a data payload of a data packet of the first network traffic (i.e. teaches that a packet contains an SDGP-ID which identifies which network slice’s resources to use. Low latency traffic will have an SDGP-ID that routes to network slice 1 which is a high-priority network slice.)(¶0178-0181)
Motivation to combine is similar to that of Claim 15.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JONATHAN ESTRADA whose telephone number is (571) 272-9978. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM EST to 4:00 PM EST.
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/JONATHAN ESTRADA/Examiner, Art Unit 2451
/Chris Parry/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2451
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