DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, filed 09/29/25, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1-2, 5-10, 13-18 and 21-23 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of newly cited portions of Lee (Pub No 20180007543).
Regarding claim 1,
The applicant argues that the prior art does not teach transmitting the SIB1 at a SIB offset
The examiner relies on a 103 combination of different embodiments of Lee to teach the limitation.
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.
Claim 1-2, 5, 7-10, 13, 15-18, 24-26 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee (Pub No 20180007543).
Regarding claim 1 and 9 and 17,
Lee Embodiment A teaches a method for scheduling System Information Blocks (SIBs), comprising:
A non-transitory computer-readable medium containing instructions for scheduling System Information Blocks (SIBs) which, when executed, cause a wireless network device to perform steps comprising: (interpreted as he processor may include an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a separate chipset, a logic circuit, and/or a data processing unit. The memory may include a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a flash memory, a memory card, a storage medium, and/or other equivalent storage devices, see para [0113])
A wireless network device; (UE para [0065])
transmitting a Master Information Block (MIB) at a first fixed cycle starting from a first System Frnewame number (SFN); (interpreted as an MIB message is broadcast through a BCH according to a periodicity of 40 ms, see Lee para [0066]. See SFN=0, see fig. 6))
transmitting a first complete System Information Block Type 1 (SIB1) at a second fixed cycle after the first SFN, wherein transmitting the first complete SIB1 at the second fixed cycle comprises transmitting the complete SIB every eight plus the SIB offset frames starting after the first SFN; (interpreted as SIB1 is broadcast through a downlink shared channel (DL SCH) according to a periodicity of eight radio frames (that is, 80-ms periodicity), and SIB1 is repeatedly retransmitted on a fifth subframe of an SFN-mod-2 radio frame within the 80-ms periodicity, see para [0068])
transmitting other SIBs at cycles specified by SIB scheduling information elements in SIB1; and (interpreted as SIB1 includes pieces of information associated with cell access, and particularly includes scheduling information on other SIBs (SIB2 to SIBn) than SIB1. SIBs having the same transmission periodicity among the SIBs other than SIB1 are transferred via the same system information (SI) message, see para [0068])
wherein a User Equipment (UE) is preconfigured with the SIB offset, allowing the UE to calculate the subframe number carrying SIB1; (interpreted as Next, a method for a UE to decode the SIB is described. After receiving the MIB, the UE may attempt to decode the PDCCH for the SIB at end time of last MIB repetition subframe+offset. Alternatively, the UE may attempt to decode the PDCCH for the SIB at start time of last MIB repetition subframe+offset, see para [0091]. Also see the first time offset may be predefined or may be indicated by the scheduled MIB, see para [0102])
However Lee Embodiment A does not teach a SIB offset after the SFN.
Lee Embodiment B teaches a SIB offset after the SFN. (interpreted as An SIB scheduling method is described first. An SIB may be scheduled using a time offset related to an MIB repetition period. That is, the SIB may be scheduled in a resource region spaced by the offset away from the start of the MIB repetition period or may be scheduled in a resource region spaced by the offset away from the end of the MIB repetition period, see para [0093])
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the SIB1 taught by Lee Embodiment A with the offset for SIB as taught by Lee Embodiment B with the motivation being to know the scheduling for newly defined SIB.
Regarding claim 2 and 10 and 18,
Lee teaches the method of claim 1, wherein the first SFN is SNF 0 and transmitting a MIB at a first fixed cycle comprises transmitting a MIB every four frames starting after SFN 0. (interpreted as an MIB message is broadcast through a BCH according to a periodicity of 40 ms, see Lee para [0066]. see MIB at SFN 0 fig. 6)
Regarding claim 5 and 13,
Lee teaches the method of claim 1 wherein the transmitting a MIB, transmitting the first complete SIB1 and transmitting other SIBs are performed by an eNodeB (interpreted as The BS 11 generally refers to a fixed station that communicates with the UE 12 and may be called by other names such as eNB (evolved-NodeB), BTS (base transceiver system), access point (AP), etc, see para [0042]. Also see a BS transmits an MIB and an SIB, see para [0085])
Regarding claim 7 and 15,
Lee teaches the method of claim 1 wherein the transmitting a MIB, transmitting the first complete SIB1 and transmitting other SIBs are performed by a coordinating server (interpreted as MTC refers to information exchange between MTC UEs 810 via a BS 820 without involving human interactions or information exchanges between an MTC UE 810 and an MTC server 830 via the BS, see Lee para [0078])
Regarding claim 8 and 16,
Lee teaches the method of claim 1, wherein the transmitting a MIB, transmitting the first complete SIB1 and transmitting other SIBs are performed in part by at least two of an eNodeB, a Multi Radio Access Network (RAN) node, and a coordinating server (interpreted as MTC refers to information exchange between MTC UEs 810 via a BS 820 without involving human interactions or information exchanges between an MTC UE 810 and an MTC server 830 via the BS, see Lee para [0078]).
Regarding claim 24 and 25 and 26,
Lee teaches the method of claim 1, wherein another UE that is not preconfigured the SIB offset is unable to decode the first complete SIB1. (interpreted as The scheduled MIB may be each received MIB. The first SIB is a system information block newly defined for a low-complexity UE, and the first time offset may be predefined or may be indicated by the scheduled MIB, see para [0102]. Wherein it is implicit that the UE cannot decode without knowing the offset.
Claim 6 and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lee (Pub No 20180007543) in view of Silva (Pub No 20180279203)
Regarding claim 6 and 14,
Lee teaches the method of claim 1, however does not teach wherein the transmitting a MIB, transmitting the first complete SIB1 and transmitting other SIBs are performed by a Multi Radio Access Network (RAN) node.
Silva teaches wherein the transmitting a MIB, transmitting the first complete SIB1 and transmitting other SIBs are performed by a Multi Radio Access Network (RAN) node. (interpreted as In a wireless communication network 102, such as a cellular network, wireless communication devices 101, 110 communicate e.g. via a Radio Access Network (RAN) to one or more core networks (CNs), for example as depicted in FIGS. 11 and 12, see Silva para [0033]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the system taught by Lee with the RAN taught by Silva with the motivation being to provide network access to UEs.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 21-23 objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Regarding claim 21 and 22 and 23,
Lee teaches the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1 however does not teach wherein the UE configured with the SIB offset communicates with a first private access network
based on the SIB offset, and another UE configured with another SIB offset communicates with a second private access network based on the other SIB offset enabling the first and second private networks to be isolated from each other.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BAO G NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-7732. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 10pm - 6:30pm.
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/BAO G NGUYEN/Examiner, Art Unit 2461
/HUY D VU/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2461