“Systems, methods and techniques that permit implementation of a wide variety of line profiles and transitions between such profiles automatically and with ease in communication systems such as DSL systems would represent a significant advancement in the art. In particular, prioritization and implementation of transition options in the communication system would represent a considerable advancement in the field of DSL service rates and associated ranges.”
“197. The patent uses two concepts which are key to the method of selecting profiles it discloses. These are priority and feasibility. Neither expression is a term of art and the skilled reader’s understanding of them would come from reading the patent itself. Essentially the idea is that the system will extract out from a set of possible profiles which a line could adopt, a set of feasible profiles. That is a set of profiles which would provide acceptable operation of the line in the given circumstances. The set of possible profiles is divided into those which are feasible and those which are infeasible. This still presents a problem since the system has to have a means for selecting a particular profile to use from the group of profiles which are determined to be feasible. This is the point at which the priority concept plays a part. The possible profile transitions have an allocated priority which is independent of line conditions. It is an inherent property of each transition from a given profile to each target profile. The transition to a feasible profile with the highest priority is the one which is selected. The DSL line is then operated using this profile. 198. To carry out the method disclosed, the patent describes the use of a profile state transition matrix. The profile state transition matrix is a matrix which records the state transitions which are allowed and contains the priority of each possible transition. An example is matrix T in figure 4 as follows: In this matrix each column relates to a given starting profile. So if the current profile for the DSL line in question is profile 1, the first column is the relevant column to use. If the current profile was profile 2, the second column would be the relevant one, and so on. Thus although T is a matrix, when one is considering a given current profile the data is really just a single column of values, i.e. a list. The numbers in the list represent the target profiles. Thus starting with profile 1 as the current profile, profile 2 has the highest priority since it is at the top of the list. Profile 6 has the next priority, then profile 1 itself and then profile 5. The presence of an entry for the current profile in the list shows that this arrangement would prioritise changing to profiles 2 or 6 (if they were feasible) ahead of staying put at profile 1. On the other hand if profiles 2, 6 and the current profile 1 are found not to be feasible but profile 5 is feasible then profile 5 should be selected.”
“[0052] Knowing the prioritization of states is not sufficient in all embodiments of the present invention. In some embodiments, to assist in determining prioritization to states/profile, the feasibility of available states is evaluated and, in some cases, quantified. For example, for any line of interest in one embodiment, the information in the transition matrix T and current state is always available. Because priorities are already specified in T, a controller such as a DSL optimizer simply needs to examine the feasibility of candidate transitions and choose the feasible next state with highest priority (the state/profile with the lowest priority may be deemed to be feasible at any time without examination). As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, feasibility may be determined in different ways. The “best state” and “best line profile” or “best available line profile” mean the state and/or line profile that is both feasible and possesses the highest priority. In cases where a “presumption of innocence” is used, as in some of the embodiments of the present invention the best state and /or line profiles that has not been deemed infeasible and possesses the highest priority.”
“one of multiple conditions that must be satisfied for a rule governing state transition.”
“identifying for each claim of the patents in suit the Claimant will say at trial are infringed by the Defendant the part or parts of the Defendant’s Confidential Product and Process Description relied upon in respect of each such feature of every such claim.”
“There is some force in Mr Wyand’s submission that his clients were to some extent taken by surprise by the allegation of infringement as it was drawn at trial. I will not decide in this judgment whether it was pleaded or not. Mr Purvis says it was. Mr Wyand says it was not. Whether it was or was not properly pleaded, it is certainly fair to say it did not emerge very clearly until the trial. …”
“When the loop is operating, the table represents all the possible transitions and the table indicates the priority of those transitions.”
“… “estimated data” is data that is estimated by the controller relating to the performance of the line. The reported and estimated data can relate to the performance either of the current or target line profiles.”
“The loop operation begins with the maximum cap level (i.e. cap level 36 downstream in the 80/20 product) and checks whether the next lowest cap level's maximum rate is above the safe rate (i.e. 74Mbps for cap level 35 downstream in the 80/20 product). If so, the loop operation then considers the next lowest cap level (i.e. cap level 35) and checks whether the next lowest cap level's maximum rate is above the safe rate (i.e. 67Mbps for cap level 34 downstream in the 80/20 product). The process is repeated until the loop reaches a cap level for which the next lowest cap level's maximum rate is not above the safe rate: the loop ends on that cap level (the one with the maximum rate above but closest to the safe rate). If the selected cap is not greater than the current cap level, RAMBo will proceed to Decision D but if the selected cap level is greater than the current cap level then that is the cap level that RAMBo determines for use.”
“Does the cap level table “indicate the possible transitions”
“It is clear that the safe rate is not a measured rate, it has been calculated. I think that calculation can fairly be called an estimate. The safe rate is a data rate which is estimated based on the actual rate but is higher than it by a simple factor of the highest possible rate. The safe rate represents a rough calculation of a rate which is higher than the current actual rate but not too high so as to cause too many errors. ”
“249. First, the fact that the NGA system only ever produces a single profile output does not show it is different from the claim. The claimed method is supposed only to produce a single profile at the end. Second, although the NGA system only ever produces a single profile as an output, in reaching this result it will, if necessary, evaluate multiple profiles to decide which one to choose. This takes place in the loop processing which uses the profile cap level table. Unless the first profile tested passes the test, the loop method will evaluate at least two profiles. The use of loop logic means that the testing is carried out sequentially but I do not see why that matters. Whether the evaluations are performed in parallel or in series cannot be relevant. There is nothing in the language of the claim which the skilled reader would think mandated only parallel logic. Third, as I have held already on construction, the claimed method does not need to test every possible profile. I have rejected the defendant’s interpretation of “each” in feature (k). The method can stop once it has found the highest priority feasible profile. 250. Although it is fair to describe the method described in the embodiment described in the patent as having a parallel nature to some extent, for the reasons set out above, I reject the defendant’s submission that the claim is limited to parallel logic. The claim requires the overall rule to be one that “utilizes the one or more sub-rules to determine the feasibility or infeasibility for each of the plurality of target line profiles”
“The basic idea is that the spectrum level, power, spectrum shape, etc. may all be changed in response to reported margin history/distribution. In other words, after evaluating data about prior performance of a modem pair, and knowing one or more of the modem pair’s margin related parameters, a controller or the like can suggest or force the modem pair to adopt operational values that will assist the modems in meeting one or more margin targets, whether imposed by a standard or not.”
“The overall principle is therefore that a construction which leads to a foolish result should, if possible, be rejected as being without the intention of the patentee, for a construction which does not lead to an absurd result is to be preferred. However a finding of invalidity cannot of itself be regarded as an absurd result, unless the relevant piece of prior art is specifically acknowledged in the patent, or unless the invention would to the knowledge of the ordinary reader then be obvious simply in the light of common general knowledge.”
“… there is normally no reason to suppose the patentee when he set the limits of his monopoly knew of a particular piece of prior art … Of course the position is different if the prior art is specifically acknowledged in the patent…”
“The point of claim 6 is to require the system to actually determine what value will meet a given threshold rather than simply come to a conclusion that a parameter should be increased or decreased by a preset amount.”
“When the NGA system checks whether a profile is the one with a maximum data rate above but closest to the safe rate, it is determining what margin-related parameter value will cause the DSL modem pair to meet a performance target.”
“[Claim 6] is directed to determining the margin-related parameter values such that they will have the effect of meeting a performance target or threshold. Kerpez teaches analysing the operational data arising from the use of various configuration parameters to calculate the expected performance. This is done to determine if the proposed change will be effective. This must be by reference to a performance target or threshold such as data rate, transmit power and SNR margin.”
“[ASSIA] point out in argument that there are simpler ways of proceeding than complying with claim 6. A much simpler system would be to move up and down a list of possible profiles as the defendant’s 20CN and 21CN systems do. It seems to me that the claimant is right. The fact that the 20CN and 21CN systems do not infringe claim 6 shows that it is not inevitable that a DSL management system has to operate this way. The 20CN/21CN method is a simpler approach than claim 6. I bear in mind that this point was not put to Dr Adams, nevertheless, it shows that performing the test required by claim 6 would not be inevitable over Kerpez. Since that is the only basis on which claim 6 is said to be obvious, the argument falls away. Thus I find that even if claim 1 was obvious, claim 6 would not be.”