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`UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
`United States Patent and TrademarkOffice
`Address; COMMISSIONER FOR PATENTS
`P.O. Box 1450
`Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450
`
`16/969,699
`
`08/13/2020
`
`Jun MINOTANI
`
`733456.604USPC
`
`3957
`
`Seed IP Law Group LLP/Panasonic (PIPCA)
`701 5th Avenue, Suite 5400
`Seattle, WA 98104
`
`NGO, CHUONG A
`
`PAPER NUMBER
`
`ART UNIT
`
`2645
`
`NOTIFICATION DATE
`
`DELIVERY MODE
`
`09/14/2021
`
`ELECTRONIC
`
`Please find below and/or attached an Office communication concerning this application or proceeding.
`
`The time period for reply, if any, is set in the attached communication.
`
`Notice of the Office communication was sent electronically on above-indicated "Notification Date" to the
`following e-mail address(es):
`USPTOeAction @ SeedIP.com
`
`pairlinkdktg @seedip.com
`
`PTOL-90A (Rev. 04/07)
`
`

`

`
`
`Disposition of Claims*
`1-12 is/are pending in the application.
`)
`Claim(s)
`5a) Of the above claim(s) ___ is/are withdrawn from consideration.
`C} Claim(s)
`is/are allowed.
`Claim(s) 1-12 is/are rejected.
`S)
`) © Claim(s)____is/are objected to.
`Cj) Claim(s
`are subjectto restriction and/or election requirement
`)
`S)
`* If any claims have been determined allowable, you maybeeligible to benefit from the Patent Prosecution Highway program at a
`participating intellectual property office for the corresponding application. For more information, please see
`http://www.uspto.gov/patents/init_events/pph/index.jsp or send an inquiry to PPHfeedback@uspto.gov.
`
`) )
`
`Application Papers
`10)(] The specification is objected to by the Examiner.
`11) The drawing(s) filed on 8/13/2020 is/are: a)(¥) accepted or b)() objected to by the Examiner.
`Applicant may not request that any objection to the drawing(s) be held in abeyance. See 37 CFR 1.85(a).
`Replacement drawing sheet(s) including the correction is required if the drawing(s) is objected to. See 37 CFR 1.121 (d).
`
`Priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119
`12) Acknowledgment is made of a claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a)-(d)or (f).
`Certified copies:
`_—_c)L) None ofthe:
`b)L) Some**
`a)¥) All
`1.4) Certified copies of the priority documents have been received.
`2.2) Certified copies of the priority documents have been received in Application No.
`3.2.) Copies of the certified copies of the priority documents have been receivedin this National Stage
`application from the International Bureau (PCT Rule 17.2(a)).
`* See the attached detailed Office action for a list of the certified copies not received.
`
`Attachment(s)
`
`1)
`
`Notice of References Cited (PTO-892)
`
`Information Disclosure Statement(s) (PTO/SB/08a and/or PTO/SB/08b)
`2)
`Paper No(s)/Mail Date
`U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
`
`3) (J Interview Summary (PTO-413)
`Paper No(s)/Mail Date
`(Qj Other:
`
`4)
`
`PTOL-326 (Rev. 11-13)
`
`Office Action Summary
`
`Part of Paper No./Mail Date 20210909
`
`Application No.
`Applicant(s)
`16/969,699
`MINOTANI etal.
`
`Office Action Summary Art Unit|AIA (FITF) StatusExaminer
`CHUONG A NGO
`2645
`Yes
`
`
`
`-- The MAILING DATEofthis communication appears on the cover sheet with the correspondence address --
`Period for Reply
`
`A SHORTENED STATUTORY PERIOD FOR REPLYIS SET TO EXPIRE 3 MONTHS FROM THE MAILING
`DATE OF THIS COMMUNICATION.
`Extensions of time may be available underthe provisions of 37 CFR 1.136(a). In no event, however, may a reply betimely filed after SIX (6) MONTHSfrom the mailing
`date of this communication.
`If NO period for reply is specified above, the maximum statutory period will apply and will expire SIX (6) MONTHSfrom the mailing date of this communication.
`-
`- Failure to reply within the set or extended period for reply will, by statute, cause the application to become ABANDONED (35 U.S.C. § 133}.
`Any reply received by the Office later than three months after the mailing date of this communication, evenif timely filed, may reduce any earned patent term
`adjustment. See 37 CFR 1.704(b).
`
`Status
`
`1) Responsive to communication(s) filed on 8/13/2020.
`C} A declaration(s)/affidavit(s) under 37 CFR 1.130(b) was/werefiled on
`
`2a)L) This action is FINAL. 2b)¥)This action is non-final.
`3)02 An election was madeby the applicant in responseto a restriction requirement set forth during the interview
`on
`; the restriction requirement and election have been incorporated into this action.
`4\0) Since this application is in condition for allowance except for formal matters, prosecution as to the merits is
`closed in accordance with the practice under Exparte Quayle, 1935 C.D. 11, 453 O.G. 213.
`
`

`

`Application/Control Number: 16/969,699
`Art Unit: 2645
`
`Page 2
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`Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
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`1.
`
`The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined underthe
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`first inventor to file provisions of the AJA.
`
`DETAILED ACTION
`
`2.
`
`This Office Action is in response to the Applicants’ communication filed on 8/13/2020.
`
`In virtue of this communication, claims 1-12 are currently presented in the instant application.
`
`Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
`
`3.
`
`In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to ATA 35 U.S.C.
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`102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the
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`statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new groundofrejection if the prior art
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`relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same undereither status.
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`4,
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`The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the
`
`basis for the rejections under this section madein this Office action:
`
`A personshall be entitled to a patent unless —
`
`(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale or
`otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
`
`5.
`
`Claims 1-12 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) based upon a public use or sale or other
`
`public availability of the invention as being anticipated by US Patent Application Publication
`
`20180227952 (hereinafter referred to as Kim).
`
`Consider claims 1, 12, Kim teaches a radio communication apparatus (see at least
`
`{ [027 1]-9 [0273], Fig. 10, “...the STA device (or STA) 1010 may include memory 1012,
`
`a processor 1011, and a radio frequency (RF) unit 1013 ...”), comprising:
`
`

`

`Application/Control Number: 16/969,699
`Art Unit: 2645
`
`Page 3
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`control circuitry, which, in operation, determines a transmission resource for a
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`Spatial Reuse (SR) signal based on radio quality information transmitted from another
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`radio communication apparatus in a first Basic Service Set (BSS), the SR signal being
`
`transmitted by SR for a second BSS whichis a BSS otherthan the first BSS (see atleast {
`
`[0201], “...an AP 1 and an STA 1 maybelongto a first BSS, and an AP 2 and an STA 2
`
`may belong to a second BSS...” and seeat least {| [0203], “...an STA may perform
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`spatial reuse (SR) (the improvementof efficiency on space) in which spatial resources are
`
`efficiently used by adjusting/setting a proper CCA level according to circumstances, ...
`
`its own signal is determinedto not have a great influence on another STA when
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`executing SR, the STA adjusts a CCAlevel to be low (or reducing a criterion by which
`
`the idle state of a channel is determined), thereby enabling transmission resources to be
`
`used moreefficiently...” and further see at least {| [0265], “...the inter -BSS PPDU may
`
`refer to a PPDU thatis transmitted by an AP or STA associated with a second BSS
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`different from a first BSS with whichthe first STA has been associated...”); and
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`transmission circuitry, which, in operation, transmits the SR signal, using the
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`transmission resource (seeat least { [0268], “...the information aboutthe first and the
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`second CCAlevels indicate the first and the second CCA levels or information about a
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`level difference betweenthe first or the second CCAlevel andthe first and the second
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`CCAlevels...” and see at least { [0270], “...as a result of the execution of CCA, the
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`channelis determined to beidle, the first STA maytransmit a signal/data/frame through
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`the idle channel (S930). Thatis, the first STA may perform SR through the channel
`
`determined...”).
`
`

`

`Application/Control Number: 16/969,699
`Art Unit: 2645
`
`Page 4
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`Consider claim 2 (depends onat least claim 1), Kim discloses the limitations of
`
`claim 1 as applied to claim rejection 1 above and further discloses:
`
`Kim teaches the control circuitry determines, based on the radio quality
`
`information, a band where the SR signal is sendable, and the transmission circuitry
`
`transmits the SR signal in the band where the SR signal is sendable, and the transmission
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`circuitry does not transmit the SR signal in a band other than the band where the SR
`
`signal is sendable (see at least J [0268], “...the information aboutthe first and the second
`
`CCAlevels indicate the first and the second CCA levels or information about a level
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`difference betweenthefirst or the second CCAlevel andthefirst and the second CCA
`
`levels...” and see at least § [0270], “...as a result of the execution of CCA, the channelis
`
`determinedto be idle, the first STA may transmit a signal/data/frame through the idle
`
`channel (S930). Thatis, the first STA may perform SR through the channel
`
`determined...”’).
`
`Consider claim 3 (depends onat least claim 1), Kim discloses the limitations of
`
`claim 1 as applied to claim rejection 1 above and further discloses:
`
`Kim teachesthe control circuitry determines the transmission resource when
`
`transmitting the SR signal in a period obtained based on a signal from the second BSS,
`
`and the control circuitry does not determine the transmission resource when not
`
`transmitting the SR signalin the period (see at least { [0202], “...in an environment in
`
`which the AP 1 and the STA1are sufficiently distant from the AP 2 or the STA 2 or
`
`interference from the signal transmitted by the AP 1 does not have a great influence on
`
`the STA 2...”).
`
`

`

`Application/Control Number: 16/969,699
`Art Unit: 2645
`
`Page 5
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`Consider claim 4 (depends onat least claim 1), Kim discloses the limitations of
`
`claim 1 as applied to claim rejection 1 above and further discloses:
`
`Kim teaches the radio quality information indicates radio quality for each
`
`predetermined band(seeat least { [0268], “...the information aboutthe first and the
`
`second CCAlevels indicate the first and the second CCA levels or information about a
`
`level difference betweenthe first or the second CCAlevel andthe first and the second
`
`CCAlevels...”).
`
`Consider claim 5 (depends onat least claim 1), Kim discloses the limitations of
`
`claim 1 as applied to claim rejection 1 above and further discloses:
`
`Kim teaches the predetermined bandis a bandin units of resource units (RUs)
`
`(see at least { [0201], “...an efficient resource operation on the space may bedifficult
`
`because a CCAlevel, that is, a CCA threshold, is managedas a fixed value within a
`
`single BSS for each channel bandwidth ...” and also seeat least {[ [0250], “... AP/STA
`
`performs OFDMAtransmissionin a frame, the OBSS-DL-CCA-CS-threshold value and
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`the OBSS-UL-CCA-CS-threshold value in the aforementioned embodiments may be
`
`subdivided in a resource unit (RU) unit and indicated/applied...”).
`
`Consider claim 6 (depends onat least claim 1), Kim discloses the limitations of
`
`claim 1 as applied to claim rejection 1 above and further discloses:
`
`Kim teaches the predetermined bandis a band in units of 20 MHz(seeatleast {
`
`[0250], “...a CCA operation is performed in a 20 MHz unit (or channel spacing or a
`
`channel width)...”).
`
`Consider claim 7 (depends onat least claim 1), Kim discloses the limitations of
`
`claim 1 as applied to claim rejection 1 above and further discloses:
`
`

`

`Application/Control Number: 16/969,699
`Art Unit: 2645
`
`Page 6
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`Kim teaches whetheror not the SR signal is receivable in the other radio
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`communication apparatus; whether or not an interference level in the other radio
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`communication apparatus is lower than a threshold; the interference level in the other
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`radio communication apparatus; and received quality when communication is performed
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`from the radio communication apparatus to the other radio communication apparatus (see
`
`at least { [0208], “...the SR STA may set a new CCA-CS-threshold value (of a minimum
`
`receive sensitivity level (or minimum CCAsensitivity level) or higher) ...”).
`
`Consider claim 8 (depends onat least claim 1), Kim discloses the limitations of
`
`claim 1 as applied to claim rejection 1 above and further discloses:
`
`Kim teaches the radio quality information indicates radio quality of each of the
`
`BSSs (seeat least { [0011], “...the BSS although each BSS can transmit a signal
`
`according to a communication environment and/or channel quality ...”).
`
`Consider claim 9 (depends onat least claim 1), Kim discloses the limitations of
`
`claim 1 as applied to claim rejection 1 above and further discloses:
`
`Kim teaches wherein the radio quality information indicates radio quality for a
`
`BSS that belongsto a first group including the first BSS, and radio quality for a BSS that
`
`belongs to a second group whichis different from the first group (see at least {| [0203],
`
`“ ..1ts own signal is determined to not have a great influence on another STA when
`
`executing SR, the STA adjusts a CCAlevel to be low (or reducing a criterion by which
`
`the idle state of a channel is determined), thereby enabling transmission resources to be
`
`used moreefficiently ...”).
`
`Consider claim 10 (dependsonat least claim 1), Kim discloses the limitations of
`
`claim 1 as applied to claim rejection 1 above and further discloses:
`
`

`

`Application/Control Number: 16/969,699
`Art Unit: 2645
`
`Page 7
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`Kim teachesthe radio quality information includes received quality when
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`communication from the radio communication apparatus to the other radio
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`communication apparatus is performed, and the control circuitry calculates, based on the
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`received quality, a first transmission powersatisfying a predeterminederrorrate in the
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`other radio communication apparatus, calculates a second transmission power based on a
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`signal from the second BSS, and when the second transmission poweris greater than the
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`first transmission power, the control circuitry determines transmission of the SR signal
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`(see at least { [0196], “...an STA may determine a channelto be busy if a specific signal
`
`is detected with intensity (dBm) of a threshold value or more regardless of a signal
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`defined in the 802.11 system.In this case, the threshold may be calculated as a value that
`
`is 20 dBm higherthan that of CCA-CS. For example, an STA may determine a channel to
`
`be busyif a threshold is -62 dBm or more in the case of 20 MHz channel spacing...”).
`
`Consider claim 11 (dependsonat least claim 1), Kim discloses the limitations of
`
`claim 1 as applied to claim rejection 1 above and further discloses:
`
`Kim teachesthe transmission powerfor the SR signal is greater than the first
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`transmission powerandis less than the second transmission power(see at least { [0196],
`
`“’..an STA may determine a channel to be busyif a specific signal is detected with
`
`intensity (dBm) of a threshold value or more regardless of a signal defined in the 802.11
`
`system.In this case, the threshold may becalculated as a value that is 20 dBm higher
`
`than that of CCA-CS. For example, an STA may determine a channelto be busyif a
`
`threshold is -62 dBm or more in the case of 20 MHz channel spacing...” and seeat least {
`
`[0230], “...the received powerof the inter-BBS frame is found to be smaller than the
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`threshold value, the SR STA may determinethat the transmission/reception channel of
`
`

`

`Application/Control Number: 16/969,699
`Art Unit: 2645
`
`Page 8
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`the inter-BBS frameis idle and may transmit (i.e., perform SR) a signal/data through the
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`corresponding channel...”).
`
`Conclusion
`
`6.
`
`Anyinquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the
`
`examiner should be directed to CHUONG A NGO whosetelephone numberis (571)270-7264.
`
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`
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`
`encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR)at
`
`http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
`
`If attempts to reach the examinerby telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s
`
`supervisor, Anthony S Addy can be reached on (571) 272-7795. The fax phone numberfor the
`
`organization wherethis application or proceedingis assigned is 571-273-8300.
`
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`1000.
`
`

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`Application/Control Number: 16/969,699
`Art Unit: 2645
`
`Page 9
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`/CHUONG A NGO/
`Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2645
`
`