Patent Application 17824075 - METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR TASK MANAGEMENT IN AN

Title: METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR TASK MANAGEMENT IN AN INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT) EDGE NETWORK
Application Information

Invention Title: METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR TASK MANAGEMENT IN AN INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT) EDGE NETWORK
Application Number: 17824075
Submission Date: 2025-05-16T00:00:00.000Z
Effective Filing Date: 2022-05-25T00:00:00.000Z
Filing Date: 2022-05-25T00:00:00.000Z
National Class: 706
National Sub-Class: 018000
Examiner Employee Number: 99340
Art Unit: 2122
Tech Center: 2100
Rejection Summary

102 Rejections: 0
103 Rejections: 1
Cited Patents

No patents were cited in this rejection.
Office Action Text


    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 .
Detailed Action
The following action is in response to the communication(s) received on 05/25/2022.
As of the claims filed 05/25/2022: 
Claims 1-20 are pending.
Claims 1, 8, and 20 are independent claims.


Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.


Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to an abstract idea without significantly more. 
Claim 1 recites a method, thus a process, one of the four statutory categories of patentable subject matter (Step 1). However, Claim 1 further recites:
	 assigning at least one deep neural network (DNN) task from an IoT device to a first edge device; determining whether the first edge device satisfies one of a first predetermined criteria and a second predetermined criteria...; identifying a second edge device subsequent to the triggering of the alarm; ...determining whether to transfer the at least one DNN task to the second edge device or to execute the at least one DNN task on the first edge device, based on determining that the first device satisfies the second predetermined criteria, which are evaluations or judgements that can be performed in the human mind.
	Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea under Step 2A Prong 1.
	Under Step 2A Prong 2, the claim does not include any additional elements which integrate the abstract idea into a practical application, since the additional elements consist of:
	task management in an internet of things (IoT)-edge network, the edge network including an IoT device and a plurality of edge devices..., as the performance of an abstract idea on a computer is not more than instructions to "apply it" on a computer, which by MPEP 2106.05(f) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application;
	triggering an alarm to the IoT device based on the determination, which is merely an insignificant extra-solution activity of triggering an alarm, which by MPEP 2106.05(g) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application;
	transferring the at least one DNN task to the second edge device, based on determining that the first device satisfies the first predetermined criteria, which is merely an insignificant extra-solution activity of data transfer, which by MPEP 2106.05(g) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application.
	Thus, the claim is directed towards an abstract idea.
	Further, the additional elements, alone or in combination, do not provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself, because implementation on a computer (MPEP 2106.05(f)), the activity of triggering an alarm (MPEP 2106.05(g)), and the activity of data transfer (MPEP 2106.05(g)) cannot provide significantly more, as receiving or transmitting data over a network (MPEP 2106.05(d)(II)(i)) and triggering an alarm (Vidgerman [p.1 last ¶] A home security system… is a group of physical electronic components that all work together to protect a home. Often it will consist of the following objects: … Siren: Sirens exist in home security systems both on their own and as part of other devices, such as the base station… Sires often go off at the same time as other alarms and are intended to scare intruders away or alert our neighbor) (MPEP 2106.05(d)) are well understood, routine, and conventional. Lastly, the combination of additional elements does not provide an inventive concept. Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
	Claim 2, dependent upon Claim 1, further recites
	splitting a plurality of DNN tasks into one or more groups of DNN tasks; and assigning at least one of the one or more groups of DNN tasks to the first edge device., which is an evaluation or judgement that can be performed in the human mind.
	Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea under Step 2A Prong 1.
	Under Step 2A Prong 2 and 2B, the claim does not recite any new additional elements which could integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself. Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
	Claim 3, dependent upon Claim 1, further recites
	identifying a nearest edge device as the first edge device to assign the at least one DNN task, using a path loss method, which is a mathematical concept.
	Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea under Step 2A Prong 1.
	Under Step 2A Prong 2 and 2B, the claim does not recite any new additional elements which could integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself. Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
	Claim 4, dependent upon Claim 1, further recites
	the first predetermined criteria is based on a battery level of the first edge device, and wherein determining whether the first edge device satisfies the first criteria comprises: ...determining that the battery level of the first edge device is below a predefined threshold, which is an evaluation or judgement that can be performed in the human mind.
	Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea under Step 2A Prong 1.
	Under Step 2A Prong 2, the claim does not include any additional elements which integrate the abstract idea into a practical application, since the additional elements consist of:
	receiving the battery level of the first edge device at predetermined time intervals, which is merely an insignificant extra-solution activity of data gathering, which by MPEP 2106.05(g) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application.
	Thus, the claim is directed towards an abstract idea.
	Further, under Step 2B, the additional element does not provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself, because the activity of data gathering (MPEP 2106.05(g)) cannot provide significantly more, as storing and retrieving information in memory is well understood, routine, and conventional (MPEP 2106.05(d)(II)(iv)). Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
	Claim 5, dependent upon Claim 1, further recites
	the second predetermined criteria is based on a priority task, which is a detail of an evaluation or judgement that can be performed in the human mind.
	Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea under Step 2A Prong 1.
	Under Step 2A Prong 2, the claim does not include any additional elements which integrate the abstract idea into a practical application, since the additional elements consist of:
	receiving an indication that the priority task is assigned to the first edge device, which is merely an insignificant extra-solution activity of data gathering, which by MPEP 2106.05(g) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application.
	Thus, the claim is directed towards an abstract idea.
	Further, under Step 2B, the additional element does not provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself, because the activity of data gathering (MPEP 2106.05(g)) cannot provide significantly more, as storing and retrieving information in memory is well understood, routine, and conventional (MPEP 2106.05(d)(II)(iv)). Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
	Claim 6, dependent upon Claim 5, further recites no additional abstract ideas. However: 
	Under Step 2A Prong 2, the claim does not include any additional elements which integrate the abstract idea into a practical application, since the additional elements consist of:
	transferring the at least one DNN task to the second edge device for execution...; transferring the priority task to the second edge device, which is merely an insignificant extra-solution activity of data transfer, which by MPEP 2106.05(g) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application;
	executing the priority task at the first edge device; and executing the at least one DNN task at the first edge device, as the performance of an abstract idea on a computer is not more than instructions to "apply it" on a computer, which by MPEP 2106.05(f) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application.
	Thus, the claim is directed towards an abstract idea.
	Further, the additional elements, alone or in combination, do not provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself, because implementation on a computer (MPEP 2106.05(f)),and the activity of data transfer(MPEP 2106.05(g))  cannot provide significantly more, as receiving or transmitting data over a network is well understood, routine, and conventional (MPEP 2106.05(d)(II)(i))  and the combination of additional elements does not provide an inventive concept. Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
	Claim 7, dependent upon Claim 1, further recites
	identifying the second edge device comprises: identifying a second nearest edge device as the second edge device, using a path loss method, which is a mathematical concept.
	Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea under Step 2A Prong 1.
	Under Step 2A Prong 2 and 2B, the claim does not recite any new additional elements which could integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself. Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
	Claim 8, dependent upon Claim 1, further recites
	the IoT device has a first computing capability and each of the plurality of edge devices have a respective second computing capability, the respective second computing capability being higher than the first computing capability, which are details to an evaluation or judgement that can be performed in the human mind (determining whether to transfer…).
	Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea under Step 2A Prong 1.
	Under Step 2A Prong 2 and 2B, the claim does not recite any new additional elements which could integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself. Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
	Claim 18, dependent upon Claim 1, further recites no additional abstract ideas. However: 
	Under Step 2A Prong 2, the claim does not include any additional elements which integrate the abstract idea into a practical application, since the additional elements consist of:
	transferring the at least one DNN task to the second edge device for execution...; and transferring the priority task to the second edge device for execution , which is merely an insignificant extra-solution activity of data transfer, which by MPEP 2106.05(g) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application;
	while executing the priority task at the first edge device...; and executing the at least one DNN task at the first edge device, as the performance of an abstract idea on a computer is not more than instructions to "apply it" on a computer, which by MPEP 2106.05(f) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application.
	Thus, the claim is directed towards an abstract idea.
	Further, the additional elements, alone or in combination, do not provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself, because implementation on a computer (MPEP 2106.05(f)),and the activity of data transfer(MPEP 2106.05(g))  cannot provide significantly more, as receiving or transmitting data over a network is well understood, routine, and conventional (MPEP 2106.05(d)(II)(i))  and the combination of additional elements does not provide an inventive concept. Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
	Claim 19, dependent upon Claim 18, further recites no additional abstract ideas. However: 
	Under Step 2A Prong 2, the claim does not include any additional elements which integrate the abstract idea into a practical application, since the additional elements consist of:
	the at least one DNN task is transferred to the second edge device for execution without being restarted, which is merely an insignificant extra-solution activity of data transfer, which by MPEP 2106.05(g) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application.
	Thus, the claim is directed towards an abstract idea.
	Further, under Step 2B, the additional element does not provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself, because the activity of data transfer (MPEP 2106.05(g)) cannot provide significantly more, as receiving or transmitting data over a network is well understood, routine, and conventional (MPEP 2106.05(d)(II)(i)). Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
Claims 9-16 recite A system, thus a machine, one of the four statutory categories of patentable subject matter. However, Claims 9-16 recite of task management in an internet of things (IoT)-edge network, the IoT-edge network including an IoT device and a plurality of edge devices, and the system comprising: a memory; and a processor coupled to the memory and configured to perform precisely the abstract ideas and additional elements of Claims 1-8, respectively. Therefore, Step 2A Prong 1 analysis remains the same. As for Step 2A Prong 2 and Step 2B: performance on a computer cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application (Step 2A Prong 2) nor provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself (Step 2B) (MPEP 2106.05(f)), Claims 9-16 are rejected as subject-matter ineligible for reasons set forth in the rejections of Claims 1-8, respectively.


	
	Claim 17 recites a method, thus a process, one of the four statutory categories of patentable subject matter (Step 1). However, Claim 1 further recites:
	assigning at least one deep neural network (DNN) task from the IoT device to a first edge device from the plurality of edge devices; determining whether the first edge device satisfies at least one of a first predetermined criteria and a second predetermined criteria; ...determining a second edge device from the plurality of edge devices; based on the first predetermined condition being satisfied...; determining whether to transfer the at least one DNN task to the second edge device or execute the at least one DNN task at the first device, which are evaluations or judgements that can be performed in the human mind.
	Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea under Step 2A Prong 1.
	Under Step 2A Prong 2, the claim does not include any additional elements which integrate the abstract idea into a practical application, since the additional elements consist of:
	distributed task management in an Internet of Things-Edge (IoT- edge) network, the IoT-edge network including an IoT device and a plurality of edge devices... execute the at least one DNN task at the first device, as the performance of an abstract idea on a computer is not more than instructions to "apply it" on a computer, which by MPEP 2106.05(f) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application;
	triggering an alarm at the IoT device, which is merely an insignificant extra-solution activity of triggering an alarm, which by MPEP 2106.05(g) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application;
	transferring the at least one DNN task to the second edge device, which is merely an insignificant extra-solution activity of data transfer, which by MPEP 2106.05(g) cannot integrate an abstract idea into a practical application.
	Thus, the claim is directed towards an abstract idea.
	Further, the additional elements, alone or in combination, do not provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself, because implementation on a computer (MPEP 2106.05(f)), the activity of triggering an alarm (MPEP 2106.05(g)), and the activity of data transfer (MPEP 2106.05(g)) cannot provide significantly more, as receiving or transmitting data over a network (MPEP 2106.05(d)(II)(i)) and triggering an alarm (Vidgerman [p.1 last ¶] A home security system… is a group of physical electronic components that all work together to protect a home. Often it will consist of the following objects: … Siren: Sirens exist in home security systems both on their own and as part of other devices, such as the base station… Sires often go off at the same time as other alarms and are intended to scare intruders away or alert our neighbor) (MPEP 2106.05(d)) are well understood, routine, and conventional. Lastly, the combination of additional elements does not provide an inventive concept. Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
	Claim 20, dependent upon Claim 17, further recites
	the second predetermined criteria is based on another task being assigned to the first edge device, and wherein the determining whether to transfer the at least one DNN task to the second edge device or execute the at least one DNN task at the first device is based on a priority of the another task assigned to the first edge device, which are details to an evaluation or judgement that can be performed in the human mind (determining whether to transfer…).
	Thus, the claim recites an abstract idea under Step 2A Prong 1.
	Under Step 2A Prong 2 and 2B, the claim does not recite any new additional elements which could integrate the abstract idea into a practical application or provide significantly more than the abstract idea itself. Thus, the claim is ineligible.
	
	
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.

The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary.  Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
	Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang et al., “Task Offloading Optimization for UAV-Assisted Fog-Enabled Internet of Things Networks” (hereinafter Huang), in view of Sun et al., US 20220248122 A1 (hereinafter Sun), further in view of CentralCommand, “Alert when devices have low battery” (hereinafter CentralCommand).
	Regarding Claim 1, Huang teaches:
	A method of task management in an internet of things (IoT)-edge network, the edge network including an IoT device and a plurality of edge devices, (Huang [Abst] Recently, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been considered as an efficient way to provide enhanced coverage or relaying services to Internet of Things devices (IDs) in wireless systems with limited or no infrastructure. In this article, a UAVs-assisted fog-enabled Internet of Things (IoT) network is studied, in which moving UAVs are equipped with computing capabilities to offer task offloading opportunities to IDs.)
	Huang does not teach, but Sun further teaches:
	and the method comprising: assigning at least one deep neural network (DNN) task from an IoT device to a first edge device; (Sun [0005] According to the claimed invention, a task assigning device of adaptively assigning at least one operation task between different electronic devices includes a first electronic device, a second electronic device and a central host. [0028] In the present invention, the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14 can have neural net computation function; the first electronic device 12 has simply function of the neural net computation due to a small size and less power storage, and the second electronic device 14 has advanced function of the neural net computation due to a large size and preferred power storage.) (Note: supported by provisional p.4)
	determining whether the first edge device satisfies one of a first predetermined criteria and a second predetermined criteria during execution of the at least one DNN task; (Sun [0015] When the first electronic device 12 has an unprocessed task, the task assigning device 10 can analyze the battery level of the first electronic device 12 to accordingly decide assignment of the unprocessed task between the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14… If the battery level of the first electronic device 12 is in a low level, the task assigning device 10 may control the first electronic device 12 to process few or none of the unprocessed task; the processed task and most of the unprocessed task can be transmitted to the second electronic device 14 for accomplishing the whole task…) (Note: supported by provisional p.4)
	identifying a second edge device subsequent to the triggering of the alarm; transferring the at least one DNN task to the second edge device, based on determining that the first device satisfies the first predetermined criteria; (Sun [0015] When the first electronic device 12 has an unprocessed task, the task assigning device 10 can analyze the battery level of the first electronic device 12 to accordingly decide assignment of the unprocessed task between the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14. If the battery level of the first electronic device 12 is in a high level, the task assigning device 10 can control the first electronic device 12 to process most of the unprocessed task; the processed task and few of the unprocessed task can be transmitted from the first electronic device 12 to the second electronic device 14 for accomplishing the whole task.) (Note: supported by provisional p.4)
	and determining whether to transfer the at least one DNN task to the second edge device or to execute the at least one DNN task on the first edge device, based on determining that the first device satisfies the second predetermined criteria. (Sun [0014] The task assigning device 10 can analyze a detection parameter generated by at least one of the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14, and determine which electronic device can afford partial simple or partial complex operation loading in accordance with an analysis result of the detection parameter, so as to adaptively assign operation tasks for the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14.) (Note: the task being a partial simple operation corresponds to the second predetermined criteria)
	Sun and Huang are analogous to the present invention because both are from the same field of endeavor of methods of assigning tasks to edge devices. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the task transfer method from Sun into Huang’s IoT task offloading method. The motivation would be to “analyze the battery level of the first electronic device 12 to accordingly decide assignment of the unprocessed task between the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device” (Sun [0015]).
	Huang/Sun does not teach, but CentralCommand further teaches:
	triggering an alarm to the IoT device based on the determination; (CentralCommand [p.1 4th ¶] A template sensor which collects all sensors with a device_class of battery and sets it state equal to the number of those sensors with a state <= 10
	A threshold sensor which is true any time that template sensor’s value is above 0
	An alert which notifies me every 12 hours with a count of the number of devices with low battery (if any have low battery)
	CentralCommand and Huang/Sun are analogous to the present invention because both are from the same field of endeavor of managing IOT devices. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the alerting method from CentralCommand into Huang/Sun’s IoT task offloading method. The motivation would be to “Since your phone’s battery gets drained daily, if you get a notification about low battery you’re probably going to go plug it in pretty quickly. But with IOT devices most of them take months, a year or even longer to go from 100% to 0. So a low battery alert probably isn’t urgent at all. It’s something you have to take care of but definitely not an immediate problem. (CentralCommand [p1 2nd ¶]).
	
	Regarding Claim 2, Huang/Sun/CentralCommand respectively teaches and incorporates the claimed limitations and rejections of Claim 1. The Huang/ Sun/CentralCommand combination, via Sun, further teaches:
	The method of claim 1, wherein the assigning comprises: splitting a plurality of DNN tasks into one or more groups of DNN tasks; and assigning at least one of the one or more groups of DNN tasks to the first edge device. (Sun [0014] The task assigning device 10 can analyze a detection parameter generated by at least one of the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14, and determine which electronic device can afford partial simple or partial complex operation loading in accordance with an analysis result of the detection parameter, so as to adaptively assign operation tasks for the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14.) (Note: the tasks comprising partial simple and complex operations correspond to splitting the plurality of DNN tasks.)
	
	Regarding Claim 3, Huang/Sun/CentralCommand respectively teaches and incorporates the claimed limitations and rejections of Claim 1. Huang further teaches:
	The method of claim 1, wherein prior to assigning the at least one DNN task, the method comprises: identifying a nearest edge device as the first edge device to assign the at least one DNN task, using a path loss method. (Huang [Abst] Recently, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been considered as an efficient way to provide enhanced coverage or relaying services to Internet of Things devices (IDs) in wireless systems with limited or no infrastructure. In this article, a UAVs-assisted fog-enabled Internet of Things (IoT) network is studied, in which moving UAVs are equipped with computing capabilities to offer task offloading opportunities to IDs.
	[p.3 1st col 4th ¶] Consider a two-layer UAVs-assisted fog-enabled IoT networks, including the air network layer, which is composed of UAVs, and the ground network layer, which is composed of IoT devices. The IoT devices could communicate by D2D communications link, and the orthogonal multiple access technology is used for the data transmission between the UAVs and R-IDs. Assume there are M R-IDs and X F-IDs, such as smartphones, tablets, client TDs, etc., denoted as M={1,2,…,M} and D={1,2,…,D} , respectively. UAVs are considered as the flying FNs with a fixed circular trajectory, denoted as N={1,2,…,N} , and device groups are randomly allocated in the network, which can dynamically join or leave the coverage of UAVs…
	[p.3 2nd col last ¶] In time slot q, assume that all IDs are located at the xy -plane, as shown in Fig. 3. In the 3-D Cartesian coordinate scenario, the UAV n flies along the trajectory defined as Zn(q)=[xn(q),yn(q),hn(q)] , where the altitude hn(q) is chosen to guarantee the safety for both UAVs and IDs, and the initial position Zn(0) is predetermined. In the scenario, hn(q) of UAV n is fixed [22], [23], [28], [29]; therefore, the trajectory of UAV n on the xy -plane could be optimized. The location of UAV n , R-ID m , and F-ID d is denoted as Zn(q)=[xn(q),yn(q)] , Zm(q)=[xm(q),ym(q)] , and Zd(q)=[xd(q),yd(q)] , respectively. In time slot q , the velocity Vn(q) and the acceleration ψn(q) of UAV n are denoted as
	
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	Regarding Claim 4, Huang/Sun/CentralCommand respectively teaches and incorporates the claimed limitations and rejections of Claim 1. Huang does not teach, but Sun further teaches:
	The method of claim 1, wherein the first predetermined criteria is based on a battery level of the first edge device, and wherein determining whether the first edge device satisfies the first criteria comprises: receiving the battery level of the first edge device…; and determining that the battery level of the first edge device is below a predefined threshold. (Sun [0015] When the first electronic device 12 has an unprocessed task, the task assigning device 10 can analyze the battery level of the first electronic device 12 to accordingly decide assignment of the unprocessed task between the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14… If the battery level of the first electronic device 12 is in a low level, the task assigning device 10 may control the first electronic device 12 to process few or none of the unprocessed task; the processed task and most of the unprocessed task can be transmitted to the second electronic device 14 for accomplishing the whole task.)
	Huang/Sun does not teach, but CentralCommand further teaches:
at predetermined time intervals (CentralCommand [p.1 4th ¶] An alert which notifies me every 12 hours with a count of the number of devices with low battery (if any have low battery)) (Note: every 12 hours corresponds to the predetermined time interval.)
	
	Regarding Claim 5, Huang/Sun/CentralCommand respectively teaches and incorporates the claimed limitations and rejections of Claim 1. Huang does not teach, but Sun further teaches:
	The method of claim 1, wherein the second predetermined criteria is based on a priority task, and wherein determining whether the first edge device satisfies the second predetermined criteria comprises: receiving an indication that the priority task is assigned to the first edge device. (Sun [0015] When the first electronic device 12 has an unprocessed task, the task assigning device 10 can analyze the battery level of the first electronic device 12 to accordingly decide assignment of the unprocessed task between the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14. If the battery level of the first electronic device 12 is in a high level, the task assigning device 10 can control the first electronic device 12 to process most of the unprocessed task; the processed task and few of the unprocessed task can be transmitted from the first electronic device 12 to the second electronic device 14 for accomplishing the whole task.) (Note: the first electronic device having the unprocessed task corresponds to the indication that the priority task is assigned to the first edge device.)
	
	Regarding Claim 6, Huang/Sun/CentralCommand respectively teaches and incorporates the claimed limitations and rejections of Claim 5. Huang further teaches:
	The method of claim 5, wherein determining whether to transfer the at least one DNN task to the second edge device or to execute the at least one DNN task on the first edge device comprises one of: transferring the at least one DNN task to the second edge device for execution while executing the priority task at the first edge device; and executing the at least one DNN task at the first edge device while transferring the priority task to the second edge device. (Huang [p.2 1st col 2nd ¶] Besides, in a computation offloading-enabled network, IDs could partially execute tasks locally or offload to the mobile-edge computing (MEC) to further improve the network performance [13]. Therefore, a computation task can be divided into small parts with different data size, and processed at both the local terminal and the remote MEC parallelly.) 
	
	Regarding Claim 7, Huang/Sun/CentralCommand respectively teaches and incorporates the claimed limitations and rejections of Claim 1. Huang further teaches:
	The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the second edge device comprises: identifying a second nearest edge device as the second edge device, using a path loss method. (Huang [p.4 1st col middle ¶]
	
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) (Note: F-ID corresponds to the second edge device)
	
	Regarding Claim 8, Huang/Sun/CentralCommand respectively teaches and incorporates the claimed limitations and rejections of Claim 1. Huang does not teach, but Sun further teaches:
	The method of claim 1, wherein the IoT device has a first computing capability and each of the plurality of edge devices have a respective second computing capability, the respective second computing capability being higher than the first computing capability. (Sun [0028] In the present invention, the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14 can have neural net computation function; the first electronic device 12 has simply function of the neural net computation due to a small size and less power storage, and the second electronic device 14 has advanced function of the neural net computation due to a large size and preferred power storage.) (Note: supported by provisional p.5)
	
	Regarding Claim 18, Huang/Sun/CentralCommand respectively teaches and incorporates the claimed limitations and rejections of Claim 1. Huang further teaches:
	The method according to claim 1, wherein subsequent to the second predetermined condition being satisfied, the method further comprises one of: transferring the at least one DNN task to the second edge device for execution while executing the priority task at the first edge device; and transferring the priority task to the second edge device for execution and executing the at least one DNN task at the first edge device. (Huang [p.2 1st col 2nd ¶] Besides, in a computation offloading-enabled network, IDs could partially execute tasks locally or offload to the mobile-edge computing (MEC) to further improve the network performance [13]. Therefore, a computation task can be divided into small parts with different data size, and processed at both the local terminal and the remote MEC parallelly.) 
	
	Regarding Claim 19, Huang/Sun/CentralCommand respectively teaches and incorporates the claimed limitations and rejections of Claim 18. Huang further teaches:
	The method according to claim 18, wherein the at least one DNN task is transferred to the second edge device for execution without being restarted. (Huang [p.2 1st col 2nd ¶] Besides, in a computation offloading-enabled network, IDs could partially execute tasks locally or offload to the mobile-edge computing (MEC) to further improve the network performance [13]. Therefore, a computation task can be divided into small parts with different data size, and processed at both the local terminal and the remote MEC parallelly.
	[p.2 2nd col 2nd to last ¶] Additionally, parallel offloading links are used in the scenario to offload tasks simultaneously, namely, the D2D link and the ground-to-air (G2A) links.) (Note: simultaneous offloading of the tasks corresponds to transferring the task to the second edge device for execution without being restarted)
	
Independent Claim 9 recites A system of task management in an internet of things (IoT)-edge network, the IoT-edge network including an IoT device and a plurality of edge devices, and the system comprising (Huang [Abst] Recently, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been considered as an efficient way to provide enhanced coverage or relaying services to Internet of Things devices (IDs) in wireless systems with limited or no infrastructure. In this article, a UAVs-assisted fog-enabled Internet of Things (IoT) network is studied, in which moving UAVs are equipped with computing capabilities to offer task offloading opportunities to IDs.)to perform precisely the methods of Claim 1. Thus, Claim 9 is rejected for reasons set forth in Claim 1. 
Claim(s) 10-16, dependent on Claim 17, also recite the system configured to perform precisely the methods of Claims 2-8, respectively, and thus are rejected for reasons set forth in these claims. 

Regarding Claim 17, Huang teaches:
A method of distributed task management in an Internet of Things-Edge (IoT- edge) network, the IoT-edge network including an IoT device and a plurality of edge devices, the method comprising: (Huang [Abst] Recently, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been considered as an efficient way to provide enhanced coverage or relaying services to Internet of Things devices (IDs) in wireless systems with limited or no infrastructure. In this article, a UAVs-assisted fog-enabled Internet of Things (IoT) network is studied, in which moving UAVs are equipped with computing capabilities to offer task offloading opportunities to IDs.)
	Huang does not teach, but Sun further teaches:
assigning at least one deep neural network (DNN) task from the IoT device to a first edge device from the plurality of edge devices; (Sun [0005] According to the claimed invention, a task assigning device of adaptively assigning at least one operation task between different electronic devices includes a first electronic device, a second electronic device and a central host. [0028] In the present invention, the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14 can have neural net computation function; the first electronic device 12 has simply function of the neural net computation due to a small size and less power storage, and the second electronic device 14 has advanced function of the neural net computation due to a large size and preferred power storage.) (Note: supported by provisional p.4)
determining whether the first edge device satisfies at least one of a first predetermined criteria and a second predetermined criteria; (Sun [0015] When the first electronic device 12 has an unprocessed task, the task assigning device 10 can analyze the battery level of the first electronic device 12 to accordingly decide assignment of the unprocessed task between the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14… If the battery level of the first electronic device 12 is in a low level, the task assigning device 10 may control the first electronic device 12 to process few or none of the unprocessed task; the processed task and most of the unprocessed task can be transmitted to the second electronic device 14 for accomplishing the whole task…) (Note: supported by provisional p.4)
determining a second edge device from the plurality of edge devices; based on the first predetermined condition being satisfied, transferring the at least one DNN task to the second edge device; (Sun [0015] When the first electronic device 12 has an unprocessed task, the task assigning device 10 can analyze the battery level of the first electronic device 12 to accordingly decide assignment of the unprocessed task between the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14. If the battery level of the first electronic device 12 is in a high level, the task assigning device 10 can control the first electronic device 12 to process most of the unprocessed task; the processed task and few of the unprocessed task can be transmitted from the first electronic device 12 to the second electronic device 14 for accomplishing the whole task.) (Note: supported by provisional p.4)
and based on the second predetermined condition being satisfied, determining whether to transfer the at least one DNN task to the second edge device or execute the at least one DNN task at the first device. (Sun [0014] The task assigning device 10 can analyze a detection parameter generated by at least one of the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14, and determine which electronic device can afford partial simple or partial complex operation loading in accordance with an analysis result of the detection parameter, so as to adaptively assign operation tasks for the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14.) (Note: the task being a partial simple operation corresponds to the second predetermined criteria)
	Sun and Huang are analogous to the present invention because both are from the same field of endeavor of methods of assigning tasks to edge devices. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the task transfer method from Sun into Huang’s IoT task offloading method. The motivation would be to “analyze the battery level of the first electronic device 12 to accordingly decide assignment of the unprocessed task between the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device” (Sun [0015]).
Huang/Sun does not teach, but CentralCommand further teaches:
based on the first edge device satisfying the first predetermined condition or the second predetermined condition, triggering an alarm at the IoT device; subsequent to the triggering of the alarm… (CentralCommand [p.1 4th ¶] A template sensor which collects all sensors with a device_class of battery and sets it state equal to the number of those sensors with a state <= 10
	A threshold sensor which is true any time that template sensor’s value is above 0
	An alert which notifies me every 12 hours with a count of the number of devices with low battery (if any have low battery)
	CentralCommand and Huang/Sun are analogous to the present invention because both are from the same field of endeavor of managing IOT devices. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the alerting method from CentralCommand into Huang/Sun’s IoT task offloading method. The motivation would be to “Since your phone’s battery gets drained daily, if you get a notification about low battery you’re probably going to go plug it in pretty quickly. But with IOT devices most of them take months, a year or even longer to go from 100% to 0. So a low battery alert probably isn’t urgent at all. It’s something you have to take care of but definitely not an immediate problem. (CentralCommand [p1 2nd ¶]).

	Regarding Claim 20, Huang/Sun/CentralCommand respectively teaches and incorporates the claimed limitations and rejections of Claim 17. Huang does not teach, but Sun further teaches:
The method according to claim 17, wherein the second predetermined criteria is based on another task being assigned to the first edge device, (Sun [0014] The task assigning device 10 can analyze a detection parameter generated by at least one of the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14, and determine which electronic device can afford partial simple or partial complex operation loading in accordance with an analysis result of the detection parameter, so as to adaptively assign operation tasks for the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14.) (Note: the task being a partial simple operation corresponds to the second predetermined criteria)
and wherein the determining whether to transfer the at least one DNN task to the second edge device or execute the at least one DNN task at the first device is based on a priority of the another task assigned to the first edge device. (Sun [0015] When the first electronic device 12 has an unprocessed task, the task assigning device 10 can analyze the battery level of the first electronic device 12 to accordingly decide assignment of the unprocessed task between the first electronic device 12 and the second electronic device 14. If the battery level of the first electronic device 12 is in a high level, the task assigning device 10 can control the first electronic device 12 to process most of the unprocessed task; the processed task and few of the unprocessed task can be transmitted from the first electronic device 12 to the second electronic device 14 for accomplishing the whole task.) (Note: the first electronic device having the unprocessed task corresponds to the indication that the priority task is assigned to the first edge device.)





Conclusion
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/J.H./Examiner, Art Unit 2122                                                              
/BRIAN M SMITH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2122