Ex Parte Russell et al

Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Sep 16, 2016

11320066 (P.T.A.B. Sep. 16, 2016)

UNITED STA TES p A TENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
APPLICATION NO. FILING DATE FIRST NAMED INVENTOR
111320,066 12/28/2005
124447 7590 09/20/2016
Byrne Poh LLP I Google Technology Holdings LLC
11 Broadway, Ste 1115
New York, NY 10004
Michael E. Russell
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Address: COMMISSIONER FOR PATENTS
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450
www .uspto.gov
ATTORNEY DOCKET NO. CONFIRMATION NO.
0715151.190-USl 7573
EXAMINER
TRAN,PAULP
ART UNIT PAPER NUMBER
2649
NOTIFICATION DATE DELIVERY MODE
09/20/2016 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):
info@byrnepoh.com
PTOL-90A (Rev. 04/07)
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
Ex parte MICHAEL E. RUSSELL and THOMAS E. GITZINGER
Appeal2013-010367
Application 11/320,0661
Technology Center 2600
Before MAHSHID D. SAADAT, JOHN D. HAMANN, and
SCOTT E. BAIN, Administrative Patent Judges.
HAMANN, Administrative Patent Judge.
DECISION ON APPEAL
Appellants file this appeal under 35 U.S.C. § 134(a) from the
Examiner's Final Rejection of claims 2, 3, 5-7, 11, 12, 16, 18, and 19. We
have jurisdiction under 35 U.S.C. § 6(b). We reverse.
THE CLAIMED INVENTION
Appellants' claimed invention relates to wireless communications
systems that manage the power level of transmitted signals in an ad-hoc
communications system. Spec. i-f 2. Claim 7 is illustrative of the subject
1 According to Appellants, the real party in interest is Motorola Mobility,
Inc. Br. 2.
Appeal2013-010367
Application 11/320,066
matter of the appeal and is reproduced below with emphasis added to
highlight the dispositive disputed limitation.
7. A method of controlling power level of the transmit
signals from a wireless device that is communicating with more
than one other wireless communication apparatus as part of an
ad-hoc network, comprising the steps of:
a. detecting a first value of a usage parameter of a
communication between the wireless device and a first one of
the more than one other wireless communication apparatus;
b. setting in the wireless device a power level of a
transmit signal for transmitting a message from the wireless
device to the first one of the more than one other wireless
communication apparatus to a first power level corresponding
to the first value;
c. detecting a second value of a usage parameter of a
communication between the wireless device and a second one
of the more than one other wireless communication apparatus;
d. setting in the wireless device a power level of a
transmit signal for transmitting a message from the wireless
device to the second one of the more than one other wireless
communication apparatus to a second power level
corresponding to the second value, different from the first
power level, while maintaining an active communication
connection with the first one of the more than one other
wireless communication apparatus at the first power level.
REJECTIONS ON APPEAL
(1) The Examiner rejected claims 2, 3, 5, and 7 under 35 U.S.C.
§ 102(e) as being anticipated by Wilhelmsson et al. (US 2007/0060132 Al;
issued Mar. 15, 2007) (hereinafter "Wilhelmsson").
(2) The Examiner rejected claim 6 under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as
being unpatentable over the combination of Wilhelmsson and Kurisko et al.
(US 2003/0050009 Al; published Mar. 13, 2003) (hereinafter "Kurisko").
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Appeal2013-010367
Application 11/320,066
(3) The Examiner rejected claims 11 and 12 under 35 U.S.C.
§ 103(a) as being unpatentable over the combination of Wilhelmsson and
Admitted Prior Art of Russell et al. (US 20071014923 7 A 1; published June
28, 2007) (hereinafter "AP A").
(4) The Examiner rejected claims 16, 18, and 19 under 35 U.S.C.
§ 103(a) as being unpatentable over the combination of Wilhelmsson and
Nichols et al. (US 2005/0272457 Al; published Dec. 8, 2005) (hereinafter
"Nichols").
DISPOSITIVE ISSUE ON APPEAL
The dispositive issue for this appeal is whether the Examiner erred in
finding the cited portions of Wilhelmsson disclose "setting in the wireless
device a power level of a transmit signal for transmitting a message from the
wireless device to the second ... communication apparatus ... while
maintaining an active communication connection with the first one of the
more than one other wireless communication apparatus at the first power
level," as recited in claim 7, and similarly recited in claim 16.
ANALYSIS
We find Appellants' arguments persuasive with respect to the cited
portions of Wilhelmsson failing to disclose the above dispositive, disputed
limitation.
Appellants contend Wilhelmsson fails to disclose setting the power
level for transmitting to the second apparatus while actively communicating
with other apparatus. Br. 5---6. Specifically, Appellants argue Wilhelmsson
does not disclose that "a different power level [is] maintained for
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Appeal2013-010367
Application 11/320,066
communications with any one particular network node ... while
communications with a different network node are supported at a different
power level." Br. 6; see also id. (citing Wilhelmsson i-fi-180-83, 86)
(arguing, inter alia, "the particular power level for communications with any
one particular network node is not maintained at a level that differs from the
power level for communications intended for another different network
nodes.").
The Examiner finds Wilhelmsson discloses the disputed limitation.
See Ans. 17-18. Specifically, the Examiner finds Wilhelmsson discloses
that the device can simultaneously transmit signals, where each transmit
signal can be set at a different power level (e.g., P AB, P Ac, PAD, indicating the
power levels between device A and apparatus B, C, and D, respectively). Id.
at 17 (citing Wilhelmsson Figs. 4---6, i-fi-154--55, 77-78, 84--90) (finding
setting different power levels depending on the radio signal strength
indicator of each link or based on the distance between transmitter and
receiver).
We are persuaded by Appellants' arguments. We agree with
Appellants that the Examiner cited portions of Wilhelmsson fail to disclose
the above disputed limitation. Wilhelmsson discloses transmitting signals
having different power levels serially - as opposed to transmitting multiple
signals with different power levels at the same time, which the Examiner
finds. See Wilhelmsson i-fi-1 54 (disclosing "a packet 400 is transmitted from
one device, e.g. device A of FIG. 1, to another device, e.g. one of the devices
B, C, and Din FIG. 1."), 58---61, 67, 78 (disclosing that power levels are first
negotiated between device A and the remaining devices), 84 (disclosing the
payload message is transmitted "at one of the power levels P AB, P Ac, or PAD,
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Appeal2013-010367
Application 11/320,066
depending on which device a message is directed towards."), 85 (disclosing
"if a message is directed towards devices B and C, device A may transmit
the message at a power level P=max(P AB, P Ac)"), 86. Thus, the cited
portions of Wilhelmsson fail to disclose setting a power level for
transmitting to one device while communicating with another.
Accordingly, we do not sustain the Examiner's§ 102 rejection of
claim 7, as well as claims 2, 3, and 5, which depend therefrom and
incorporate the disputed limitation. Further, claim 6 indirectly depends from
claim 7, and thus, we also do not sustain the Examiner's § 103 rejection of
claim 6. As to the Examiner's§ 103 rejection of claims 11 and 12 and§ 103
rejection of claims 16, 18, and 19, the Examiner relies on the above findings
from Wilhelmsson regarding the disputed, dispositive limitation, and
combines additional references for additional limitations. Accordingly, we
also do not sustain the Examiner's§ 103 rejections of claims 11, 12, 16, 18,
and 19.
DECISION
We reverse the Examiner's decision rejecting claims 2, 3, 5-7, 11, 12,
16, 18, and 19.
REVERSED
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