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 02/02/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that “Although Yang discloses the use of a repetition parameter, there is no teaching in Yang that the repetition parameter is determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter” (see remarks pg. 10).
In response to applicant’s argument, the examiner respectfully disagrees because the examiner interprets Yang’s repetition parameter as the claimed independent, higher-layer parameter. This is reasonable as Yang discloses the repetition parameter is configured by the network device (see at least paragraphs [0049]; [0130]). Accordingly the argument is not found persuasive.
Applicant further argues that “Hang merely discloses that "there is a QCL - Type D relationship between a resource in a channel measurement resource set and a resource in an interference measurement resource set ." But such a relationship is logically different from the recited claim where value of a spatial characteristic of a piece of interference resource is taken as same value as the corresponding piece of channel measurement resource. Put differently, the disclosure of a relationship between channel measurement resource set and interference measurement resource set, as in Hang, does not equate to the assumption of the value of the spatial characteristic of the interference resource information from the value of the spatial characteristic of the piece of channel measurement resource information” (see remarks pg. 10).
In response to applicant’s argument, the examiner respectfully disagrees because it is well known in the art that QCL-Type D is a parameter/value of Type D, specifically one out of the four QCL types (A-D). Accordingly, QCL-Type D reasonably reads on “a same value”, as it is the same QCL type/parameter/value being used. Therefore, the argument is not persuasive.
Claim Objections
Claims 1, 48, 53 and 58 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 1 recites “by assuming that a spatial characteristic of a piece of interference resource information has a same value as that of corresponding piece of channel measurement resource”. For clarity purposes and consistency with the specification, it is suggested to recite as “by assuming that a spatial characteristic of a piece of interference resource information has a same value as that of corresponding piece of channel measurement resource information”. Similar objection applies to claims 48, 53 and 58.
Claim 1 recites “wherein the set of channel measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off”. For clarity purposes, it is suggested to remove the repeated “the” term. Similar objection applies to claims 48, 53 and 58.
Appropriate corrections are required
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 43, 45, 48, 50, 53, 55, 58, 60 and 63-70 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, or for pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Claim 43 recites “acquiring, by the terminal device, channel state information according to the measurement resource information by assuming that a spatial characteristic of a piece of interference resource information has a same value as that of corresponding piece of channel measurement resource”. The term “assuming” raises ambiguity in the claim. It is unclear if the limitation of “a spatial characteristic of a piece of interference resource information has a same value as that of corresponding piece of channel measurement resource” is limiting or not as it appears said limitation is not required to be performed, rendering the claim indefinite. Similar rejection applies to claims 48, 53 and 58.
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 of this title, 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.
Claims 43, 45, 48, 50, 53, 55, 58, 60 and 63-70 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hang et al. (US 2021/0288707 A1, hereinafter “Hang”) in view of Matsumura et al. (US 11,678,174 B2, hereinafter “Matsumura”) and further in view of Yang et al. (US 2021/0336712 A1, hereinafter “Yang”).
As to claim 43:
Hang discloses a channel measurement method (“a channel measurement configuration method”; Abstract), comprising:
receiving, by a terminal device, measurement resource information from a base station (“The network device sends the measurement configuration to the terminal device”; [0241] “where the measurement configuration includes a plurality of resource sets used to transmit a CSI-RS”; [0232]; [0197]), wherein the measurement resource information comprises a set of channel measurement resources (“the plurality of resource sets in the measurement configuration may include: a plurality of resource sets for transmitting a CSI-RS used for channel measurement, which are referred to as ‘channel measurement resource sets’ for short”; [0233]) and a set of interference measurement resources (“and a plurality of resource sets for transmitting a CSI-RS used for interference measurement, which are referred to as “interference measurement resource sets” for short”; [0233]),
wherein each channel measurement resource in the set of channel measurement resources is associated with an interference measurement resource in the set of interference measurement resources (“Resources included in the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and resources included in the plurality of interference measurement resource sets are resources used by a terminal device to perform joint measurement. In other words, joint measurement on all resource sets in a channel measurement setting is used as channel measurement information, and joint measurement on all resource sets in an interference measurement setting is used as interference measurement information. Therefore, the resource set may also be referred to as a joint measurement resource set. A resource included in each resource set may be referred to as a joint measurement resource”; [0233] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for channel measurement, the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement, and the resource setting for channel measurement and the resource setting for interference measurement may be associated with one report setting (also referred to as a ‘second report setting’)”; [0234]-[0236]), and wherein a number of the channel measurement resources equals to a number of the interference measurement resources (“the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement”; [0234]; “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets are in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of second interference measurement resource sets” [0236]);
acquiring, by the terminal device, channel state information according to the measurement resource information (“640. The terminal device generates a CSI group based on the CSI-RSs, where the CSI group includes one or more pieces of CSI”; see Fig. 6; [0244]; [0241] “630. The terminal device receives CSI-RSs on resources included in the plurality of resource sets”; see Fig. 6; [0243]) by assuming that a spatial characteristic of a piece of interference resource information has a same value as that of corresponding piece of channel measurement resource (“there is a QCL-Type D relationship between a resource setting for channel measurement and a resource setting for interference measurement that corresponds to the resource setting for channel measurement, which are associated with a same report setting”; [0178] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets are in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of second interference measurement resource sets, and there is a QCL-Type D relationship between a resource in each of the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and a resource in an interference measurement resource set corresponding to the channel measurement resource set”; [0236]-[0237]; QCL-Type D = spatial characteristic, the examiner notes that QCL-Type D is a parameter/value of Type D, specifically one out of the four QCL types (A-D)), and
transmitting, by the terminal device, the channel state information to the base station (“The terminal device sends the CSI group”; [0417]; [0244]; [0115]; [0135]).
Hang does not explicitly disclose wherein the channel state information includes at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block, wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits.
However, Matsumura discloses wherein the channel state information includes at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block (“The measurement results may be, for example, the CSI including at least one of the L1-RSRP, the L1-RSRQ, the L1-SINR, the L1-SNR, and the like. The measurement results may be referred to as beam measurement, beam measurement results, a beam report, a beam measurement report, or the like”; Col. 6 lines 28-33; see also Fig. 2A and “the L1-RSRP may be interpreted as the L1-SINR,”; Col. 8 lines 14-16), wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits (“wherein when the report RS number indicated by the configuration information is greater than 1, the controller quantizes a largest measurement value of the L1-SINR to 7 bits and quantizes a differential L1-SINR to 4 bits”; see Fig. 2A; Claim 1; Col. 9 lines 19-22; “the L1-RSRP may be interpreted as the L1-SINR, the L1-SNR, the L1-RSRQ, the interference, or a combination of those”; Col. 8 lines 14-16).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Matsumura into Hang’s system/method as it would allow the channel state information to include at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block, wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits. Such combination would have been obvious as the references are from analogous art, where a motivation would have been to reduce overhead, power consumption and improve on communication throughput (Matsumura; Col. 1 lines 54-62).
The combined system/method of Hang and Matsumura does not explicitly disclose wherein the set of channel measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off, wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter.
However, Yang discloses wherein the set of channel measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off (“in a case that the value of repetition is off, a method for channel and interference measurement provided in some embodiments of this disclosure is used to measure the channel and the interference that are corresponding to the at least one first reference signal resource. Conversely, in a case that the value of repetition is on, a method for channel and interference measurement provided in some embodiments of this disclosure may be not used for measurement”; [0130]-[0133] note: value = repetition parameter), wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter (“Before receiving the first group of reference signal resources, the terminal device first receives configuration information of the group of reference signal resources. The configuration information is used for configuring one group of reference signal resources that includes the first group of reference signal resources. To be specific, in step 101, the received first group of reference signal resources may be part or all of the one group of reference signal resources pre-configured by the network, and the one group of reference signal resources pre-configured by the network device may include one or several reference signal resource sets (RS resource set). In addition, the configuration information may further include information such as quasi co-location (QCL) information of the reference signal resources in the first group of reference signal resources and a value of a repetition parameter (repetition) of each RS resource set”; [0049]; [0130] repetition parameter = higher layer parameter).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Yang into the combined system/method of Hang and Matsumura as it would allow the set of channel measurement resources to comprise a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources to comprise a repetition parameter that is on or off, wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter. Such combination would have been obvious as the references are from analogous art, where a motivation would have been to improve a throughput and decreasing a block error rate (Yang; [0005]; [0023]; [0126]).
As to claim 45:
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein the interference measurement resources include a channel state information-interference measurement (CSI-IM) resource or a non-zero power channel state information-reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource (“a resource in the second interference measurement resource set is used to transmit an NZP CSI-RS”; [0235]).
As to claim 48:
Hang discloses a method for obtaining channel measurement (“a channel measurement configuration method”; Abstract), comprising:
transmitting, by a base station, measurement resource information to a terminal device (“The network device sends the measurement configuration to the terminal device”; [0241] “where the measurement configuration includes a plurality of resource sets used to transmit a CSI-RS”; [0232]; [0197]), wherein the measurement resource information comprises a set of channel measurement resources (“the plurality of resource sets in the measurement configuration may include: a plurality of resource sets for transmitting a CSI-RS used for channel measurement, which are referred to as ‘channel measurement resource sets’ for short”; [0233]) and a set of interference measurement resources (“and a plurality of resource sets for transmitting a CSI-RS used for interference measurement, which are referred to as “interference measurement resource sets” for short”; [0233]),
wherein each channel measurement resource in the set of channel measurement resources is associated with an interference measurement resource in the set of interference measurement resources (“Resources included in the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and resources included in the plurality of interference measurement resource sets are resources used by a terminal device to perform joint measurement. In other words, joint measurement on all resource sets in a channel measurement setting is used as channel measurement information, and joint measurement on all resource sets in an interference measurement setting is used as interference measurement information. Therefore, the resource set may also be referred to as a joint measurement resource set. A resource included in each resource set may be referred to as a joint measurement resource”; [0233] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for channel measurement, the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement, and the resource setting for channel measurement and the resource setting for interference measurement may be associated with one report setting (also referred to as a ‘second report setting’)”; [0234]-[0236]), and wherein a number of the channel measurement resources equals to a number of the interference measurement resources (“the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement”; [0234]; “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets are in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of second interference measurement resource sets” [0236]); and
receiving, by the base station, channel state information acquired by the terminal device according to the measurement resource information (“receiving, by the network device, a CSI group”; [0115]; [0417]; [0135] “640. The terminal device generates a CSI group based on the CSI-RSs, where the CSI group includes one or more pieces of CSI”; see Fig. 6; [0244] “630. The terminal device receives CSI-RSs on resources included in the plurality of resource sets”; see Fig. 6; [0243]) by assuming that a spatial characteristic of a piece of interference resource information has a same value as that of corresponding piece of channel measurement resource (“there is a QCL-Type D relationship between a resource setting for channel measurement and a resource setting for interference measurement that corresponds to the resource setting for channel measurement, which are associated with a same report setting”; [0178] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets are in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of second interference measurement resource sets, and there is a QCL-Type D relationship between a resource in each of the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and a resource in an interference measurement resource set corresponding to the channel measurement resource set”; [0236]-[0237]; QCL-Type D = spatial characteristic, the examiner notes that QCL-Type D is a parameter/value of Type D, specifically one out of the four QCL types (A-D)).
Hang does not explicitly disclose wherein the channel state information includes at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block, wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits.
However, Matsumura discloses wherein the channel state information includes at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block (“The measurement results may be, for example, the CSI including at least one of the L1-RSRP, the L1-RSRQ, the L1-SINR, the L1-SNR, and the like. The measurement results may be referred to as beam measurement, beam measurement results, a beam report, a beam measurement report, or the like”; Col. 6 lines 28-33; see also Fig. 2A and “the L1-RSRP may be interpreted as the L1-SINR,”; Col. 8 lines 14-16), wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits (“wherein when the report RS number indicated by the configuration information is greater than 1, the controller quantizes a largest measurement value of the L1-SINR to 7 bits and quantizes a differential L1-SINR to 4 bits”; see Fig. 2A; Claim 1; Col. 9 lines 19-22; “the L1-RSRP may be interpreted as the L1-SINR, the L1-SNR, the L1-RSRQ, the interference, or a combination of those”; Col. 8 lines 14-16).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Matsumura into Hang’s system/method as it would allow the channel state information to include at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block, wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits. Such combination would have been obvious as the references are from analogous art, where a motivation would have been to reduce overhead, power consumption and improve on communication throughput (Matsumura; Col. 1 lines 54-62).
The combined system/method of Hang and Matsumura does not explicitly disclose wherein the set of channel measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off, wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter.
However, Yang discloses wherein the set of channel measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off (“in a case that the value of repetition is off, a method for channel and interference measurement provided in some embodiments of this disclosure is used to measure the channel and the interference that are corresponding to the at least one first reference signal resource. Conversely, in a case that the value of repetition is on, a method for channel and interference measurement provided in some embodiments of this disclosure may be not used for measurement”; [0130]-[0133] note: value = repetition parameter), wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter (“Before receiving the first group of reference signal resources, the terminal device first receives configuration information of the group of reference signal resources. The configuration information is used for configuring one group of reference signal resources that includes the first group of reference signal resources. To be specific, in step 101, the received first group of reference signal resources may be part or all of the one group of reference signal resources pre-configured by the network, and the one group of reference signal resources pre-configured by the network device may include one or several reference signal resource sets (RS resource set). In addition, the configuration information may further include information such as quasi co-location (QCL) information of the reference signal resources in the first group of reference signal resources and a value of a repetition parameter (repetition) of each RS resource set”; [0049]; [0130] repetition parameter = higher layer parameter).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Yang into the combined system/method of Hang and Matsumura as it would allow the set of channel measurement resources to comprise a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources to comprise a repetition parameter that is on or off, wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter. Such combination would have been obvious as the references are from analogous art, where a motivation would have been to improve a throughput and decreasing a block error rate (Yang; [0005]; [0023]; [0126]).
As to claim 50:
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein the interference measurement resources include a channel state information-interference measurement (CSI-IM) resource or a non-zero power channel state information-reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource (“a resource in the second interference measurement resource set is used to transmit an NZP CSI-RS”; [0235]).
As to claim 53:
Hang discloses a communication apparatus (terminal device; Figs. 6 and 11), comprising at least one processor (processor 1120; Fig. 11; [0456]) that is configured to:
receive measurement resource information from a base station (“The network device sends the measurement configuration to the terminal device”; [0241] “where the measurement configuration includes a plurality of resource sets used to transmit a CSI-RS”; [0232]; [0197]),
wherein the measurement resource information comprises a set of channel measurement resources (“the plurality of resource sets in the measurement configuration may include: a plurality of resource sets for transmitting a CSI-RS used for channel measurement, which are referred to as ‘channel measurement resource sets’ for short”; [0233]) and a set of interference measurement resources (“and a plurality of resource sets for transmitting a CSI-RS used for interference measurement, which are referred to as “interference measurement resource sets” for short”; [0233]),
wherein each channel measurement resource in the set of channel measurement resources is associated with an interference measurement resource in the set of interference measurement resources (“Resources included in the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and resources included in the plurality of interference measurement resource sets are resources used by a terminal device to perform joint measurement. In other words, joint measurement on all resource sets in a channel measurement setting is used as channel measurement information, and joint measurement on all resource sets in an interference measurement setting is used as interference measurement information. Therefore, the resource set may also be referred to as a joint measurement resource set. A resource included in each resource set may be referred to as a joint measurement resource”; [0233] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for channel measurement, the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement, and the resource setting for channel measurement and the resource setting for interference measurement may be associated with one report setting (also referred to as a ‘second report setting’)”; [0234]-[0236]), and wherein a number of the channel measurement resources equals to a number of the interference measurement resources (“the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement”; [0234]; “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets are in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of second interference measurement resource sets” [0236]);
acquire channel state information according to the measurement resource information (“640. The terminal device generates a CSI group based on the CSI-RSs, where the CSI group includes one or more pieces of CSI”; see Fig. 6; [0244]; [0241] “630. The terminal device receives CSI-RSs on resources included in the plurality of resource sets”; see Fig. 6; [0243]) by assuming that a spatial characteristic of a piece of interference resource information has a same value as that of corresponding piece of channel measurement resource (“there is a QCL-Type D relationship between a resource setting for channel measurement and a resource setting for interference measurement that corresponds to the resource setting for channel measurement, which are associated with a same report setting”; [0178] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets are in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of second interference measurement resource sets, and there is a QCL-Type D relationship between a resource in each of the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and a resource in an interference measurement resource set corresponding to the channel measurement resource set”; [0236]-[0237]; QCL-Type D = spatial characteristic, the examiner notes that QCL-Type D is a parameter/value of Type D, specifically one out of the four QCL types (A-D)), and
transmit the channel state information to the base station (“The terminal device sends the CSI group”; [0417]; [0244]; [0115]; [0135]).
Hang does not explicitly disclose wherein the channel state information includes at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block, wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits.
However, Matsumura discloses wherein the channel state information includes at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block (“The measurement results may be, for example, the CSI including at least one of the L1-RSRP, the L1-RSRQ, the L1-SINR, the L1-SNR, and the like. The measurement results may be referred to as beam measurement, beam measurement results, a beam report, a beam measurement report, or the like”; Col. 6 lines 28-33; see also Fig. 2A and “the L1-RSRP may be interpreted as the L1-SINR,”; Col. 8 lines 14-16), wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits (“wherein when the report RS number indicated by the configuration information is greater than 1, the controller quantizes a largest measurement value of the L1-SINR to 7 bits and quantizes a differential L1-SINR to 4 bits”; see Fig. 2A; Claim 1; Col. 9 lines 19-22; “the L1-RSRP may be interpreted as the L1-SINR, the L1-SNR, the L1-RSRQ, the interference, or a combination of those”; Col. 8 lines 14-16).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Matsumura into Hang’s system/method as it would allow the channel state information to include at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block, wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits. Such combination would have been obvious as the references are from analogous art, where a motivation would have been to reduce overhead, power consumption and improve on communication throughput (Matsumura; Col. 1 lines 54-62).
The combined system/method of Hang and Matsumura does not explicitly disclose wherein the set of channel measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off, wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter.
However, Yang discloses wherein the set of channel measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off (“in a case that the value of repetition is off, a method for channel and interference measurement provided in some embodiments of this disclosure is used to measure the channel and the interference that are corresponding to the at least one first reference signal resource. Conversely, in a case that the value of repetition is on, a method for channel and interference measurement provided in some embodiments of this disclosure may be not used for measurement”; [0130]-[0133] note: value = repetition parameter), wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter (“Before receiving the first group of reference signal resources, the terminal device first receives configuration information of the group of reference signal resources. The configuration information is used for configuring one group of reference signal resources that includes the first group of reference signal resources. To be specific, in step 101, the received first group of reference signal resources may be part or all of the one group of reference signal resources pre-configured by the network, and the one group of reference signal resources pre-configured by the network device may include one or several reference signal resource sets (RS resource set). In addition, the configuration information may further include information such as quasi co-location (QCL) information of the reference signal resources in the first group of reference signal resources and a value of a repetition parameter (repetition) of each RS resource set”; [0049]; [0130] repetition parameter = higher layer parameter).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Yang into the combined system/method of Hang and Matsumura as it would allow the set of channel measurement resources to comprise a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources to comprise a repetition parameter that is on or off, wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter. Such combination would have been obvious as the references are from analogous art, where a motivation would have been to improve a throughput and decreasing a block error rate (Yang; [0005]; [0023]; [0126]).
As to claim 55:
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein the interference measurement resources include a channel state information-interference measurement (CSI-IM) resource or a non-zero power channel state information-reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource (“a resource in the second interference measurement resource set is used to transmit an NZP CSI-RS”; [0235]).
As to claim 58:
Hang discloses a communication apparatus (network device; Figs. 6 and 14; [0197]), comprising at least one processor (“processor 1420”; Fig. 14; [0489]) that is configured to:
transmit measurement resource information to a terminal device (“The network device sends the measurement configuration to the terminal device”; [0241] “where the measurement configuration includes a plurality of resource sets used to transmit a CSI-RS”; [0232]), wherein the measurement resource information comprises a set of channel measurement resources (“the plurality of resource sets in the measurement configuration may include: a plurality of resource sets for transmitting a CSI-RS used for channel measurement, which are referred to as ‘channel measurement resource sets’ for short”; [0233]) and a set of interference measurement resources (“and a plurality of resource sets for transmitting a CSI-RS used for interference measurement, which are referred to as “interference measurement resource sets” for short”; [0233]),
wherein each channel measurement resource in the set of channel measurement resources is associated with an interference measurement resource in the set of interference measurement resources (“Resources included in the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and resources included in the plurality of interference measurement resource sets are resources used by a terminal device to perform joint measurement. In other words, joint measurement on all resource sets in a channel measurement setting is used as channel measurement information, and joint measurement on all resource sets in an interference measurement setting is used as interference measurement information. Therefore, the resource set may also be referred to as a joint measurement resource set. A resource included in each resource set may be referred to as a joint measurement resource”; [0233] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for channel measurement, the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement, and the resource setting for channel measurement and the resource setting for interference measurement may be associated with one report setting (also referred to as a ‘second report setting’)”; [0234]-[0236]), and wherein a number of the channel measurement resources equals to a number of the interference measurement resources (“the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement”; [0234]; “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets are in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of second interference measurement resource sets” [0236]); and
receive channel state information acquired by the terminal device according to the measurement resource information (“receiving, by the network device, a CSI group”; [0115]; [0417]; [0135] “640. The terminal device generates a CSI group based on the CSI-RSs, where the CSI group includes one or more pieces of CSI”; see Fig. 6; [0244] “630. The terminal device receives CSI-RSs on resources included in the plurality of resource sets”; see Fig. 6; [0243]) by assuming that a spatial characteristic of a piece of interference resource information has a same value as that of corresponding piece of channel measurement resource (“there is a QCL-Type D relationship between a resource setting for channel measurement and a resource setting for interference measurement that corresponds to the resource setting for channel measurement, which are associated with a same report setting”; [0178] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets are in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of second interference measurement resource sets, and there is a QCL-Type D relationship between a resource in each of the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and a resource in an interference measurement resource set corresponding to the channel measurement resource set”; [0236]-[0237]; QCL-Type D = spatial characteristic, the examiner notes that QCL-Type D is a parameter/value of Type D, specifically one out of the four QCL types (A-D)).
Hang does not explicitly disclose wherein the channel state information includes at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block, wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits.
However, Matsumura discloses wherein the channel state information includes at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block (“The measurement results may be, for example, the CSI including at least one of the L1-RSRP, the L1-RSRQ, the L1-SINR, the L1-SNR, and the like. The measurement results may be referred to as beam measurement, beam measurement results, a beam report, a beam measurement report, or the like”; Col. 6 lines 28-33; see also Fig. 2A and “the L1-RSRP may be interpreted as the L1-SINR,”; Col. 8 lines 14-16), wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits (“wherein when the report RS number indicated by the configuration information is greater than 1, the controller quantizes a largest measurement value of the L1-SINR to 7 bits and quantizes a differential L1-SINR to 4 bits”; see Fig. 2A; Claim 1; Col. 9 lines 19-22; “the L1-RSRP may be interpreted as the L1-SINR, the L1-SNR, the L1-RSRQ, the interference, or a combination of those”; Col. 8 lines 14-16).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Matsumura into Hang’s system/method as it would allow the channel state information to include at least one L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) and at least one differential L1-SINR jointly encoded in one block, wherein value of each L1-SINR is indicated by 7 bits and value of each differential L1-SINR is indicated by 4 bits. Such combination would have been obvious as the references are from analogous art, where a motivation would have been to reduce overhead, power consumption and improve on communication throughput (Matsumura; Col. 1 lines 54-62).
The combined system/method of Hang and Matsumura does not explicitly disclose wherein the set of channel measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off, wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter.
However, Yang discloses wherein the set of channel measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off (“in a case that the value of repetition is off, a method for channel and interference measurement provided in some embodiments of this disclosure is used to measure the channel and the interference that are corresponding to the at least one first reference signal resource. Conversely, in a case that the value of repetition is on, a method for channel and interference measurement provided in some embodiments of this disclosure may be not used for measurement”; [0130]-[0133] note: value = repetition parameter), wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter (“Before receiving the first group of reference signal resources, the terminal device first receives configuration information of the group of reference signal resources. The configuration information is used for configuring one group of reference signal resources that includes the first group of reference signal resources. To be specific, in step 101, the received first group of reference signal resources may be part or all of the one group of reference signal resources pre-configured by the network, and the one group of reference signal resources pre-configured by the network device may include one or several reference signal resource sets (RS resource set). In addition, the configuration information may further include information such as quasi co-location (QCL) information of the reference signal resources in the first group of reference signal resources and a value of a repetition parameter (repetition) of each RS resource set”; [0049]; [0130] repetition parameter = higher layer parameter).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Yang into the combined system/method of Hang and Matsumura as it would allow the set of channel measurement resources to comprise a repetition parameter that is on or off and the the set of interference measurement resources to comprise a repetition parameter that is on or off, wherein the repetition parameter of the set of channel measurement resources and the repetition parameter of the set of interference measurement resources are determined from an independent, higher-layer parameter. Such combination would have been obvious as the references are from analogous art, where a motivation would have been to improve a throughput and decreasing a block error rate (Yang; [0005]; [0023]; [0126]).
As to claim 60:
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein the interference measurement resources include a channel state information-interference measurement (CSI-IM) resource or a non-zero power channel state information-reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource (“a resource in the second interference measurement resource set is used to transmit an NZP CSI-RS”; [0235]).
As to claim 63:
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein identifiers of channel measurement resources in the set of channel measurement resources and identifiers of interference measurement resources in the set of interference measurement resources are ordered, and wherein each channel measurement resource in the set of channel measurement resources has a one-to-one association with a corresponding interference measurement resource in the set of interference measurement resources according to an order of the identifiers of channel measurement resources and the identifiers of interference measurement resources (“The correspondence between the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be determined by using resource set identifiers. Optionally, the correspondence may be implemented in ascending order of the resource set identifiers, that is, a resource set with a smallest resource set identifier in the plurality of channel measurement resource sets corresponds to a resource set with a smallest resource set identifier in a plurality of interference measurement resource sets”; [0183] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of interference measurement resource sets”; [0182]; [0180] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for channel measurement, the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement, and the resource setting for channel measurement and the resource setting for interference measurement may be associated with one report setting (also referred to as a ‘second report setting’)”; [0234]-[0236]).
As to claim 64:
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein identifiers of channel measurement resources in the set of channel measurement resources and identifiers of interference measurement resources in the set of interference measurement resources are ordered, and wherein each channel measurement resource in the set of channel measurement resources has a one-to-one association with a corresponding interference measurement resource in the set of interference measurement resources according to an order of the identifiers of channel measurement resources and the identifiers of interference measurement resources (“The correspondence between the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be determined by using resource set identifiers. Optionally, the correspondence may be implemented in ascending order of the resource set identifiers, that is, a resource set with a smallest resource set identifier in the plurality of channel measurement resource sets corresponds to a resource set with a smallest resource set identifier in a plurality of interference measurement resource sets”; [0183] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of interference measurement resource sets”; [0182]; [0180] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for channel measurement, the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement, and the resource setting for channel measurement and the resource setting for interference measurement may be associated with one report setting (also referred to as a ‘second report setting’)”; [0234]-[0236]).
As to claim 65:
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein identifiers of channel measurement resources in the set of channel measurement resources and identifiers of interference measurement resources in the set of interference measurement resources are ordered, and wherein each channel measurement resource in the set of channel measurement resources has a one-to-one association with a corresponding interference measurement resource in the set of interference measurement resources according to an order of the identifiers of channel measurement resources and the identifiers of interference measurement resources (“The correspondence between the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be determined by using resource set identifiers. Optionally, the correspondence may be implemented in ascending order of the resource set identifiers, that is, a resource set with a smallest resource set identifier in the plurality of channel measurement resource sets corresponds to a resource set with a smallest resource set identifier in a plurality of interference measurement resource sets”; [0183] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of interference measurement resource sets”; [0182]; [0180] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for channel measurement, the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement, and the resource setting for channel measurement and the resource setting for interference measurement may be associated with one report setting (also referred to as a ‘second report setting’)”; [0234]-[0236]).
As to claim 66:
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein identifiers of channel measurement resources in the set of channel measurement resources and identifiers of interference measurement resources in the set of interference measurement resources are ordered, and wherein each channel measurement resource in the set of channel measurement resources has a one-to-one association with a corresponding interference measurement resource in the set of interference measurement resources according to an order of the identifiers of channel measurement resources and the identifiers of interference measurement resources (“The correspondence between the plurality of channel measurement resource sets and the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be determined by using resource set identifiers. Optionally, the correspondence may be implemented in ascending order of the resource set identifiers, that is, a resource set with a smallest resource set identifier in the plurality of channel measurement resource sets corresponds to a resource set with a smallest resource set identifier in a plurality of interference measurement resource sets”; [0183] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be in a one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of interference measurement resource sets”; [0182]; [0180] “The plurality of channel measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for channel measurement, the plurality of interference measurement resource sets may be configured by using one resource setting for interference measurement, and the resource setting for channel measurement and the resource setting for interference measurement may be associated with one report setting (also referred to as a ‘second report setting’)”; [0234]-[0236]).
As to claim 67:
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein the channel measurement resources include a synchronization signal block (SSB) resource or a non-zero power channel state information- reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource (“The NZP CSI-RS may include a CSI-RS used for channel measurement”; [0167]-[0168]).
As to claim 68:
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein the channel measurement resources include a synchronization signal block (SSB) resource or a non-zero power channel state information- reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource (“The NZP CSI-RS may include a CSI-RS used for channel measurement”; [0167]-[0168]).
As to claim 69:
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein the channel measurement resources include a synchronization signal block (SSB) resource or a non-zero power channel state information- reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource (“The NZP CSI-RS may include a CSI-RS used for channel measurement”; [0167]-[0168]).
As to claim 70
The combined system/method of Hang, Matsumura and Yang discloses the invention set forth above. Hang further discloses wherein the channel measurement resources include a synchronization signal block (SSB) resource or a non-zero power channel state information- reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource (“The NZP CSI-RS may include a CSI-RS used for channel measurement”; [0167]-[0168]).
Pertinent Prior Art
The prior art made of record below and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure.
Zhang et al. US 2019/0306924 also teaches, in table 3, the channel state information includes a L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) value and a differential L1-SINR value jointly encoded in one block.
Guo et al. US 2019/0297603 also teaches, in table 3 and paragraph [0340], the channel state information includes a L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) value and a differential L1-SINR value jointly encoded in one block.
Onggosanusi et al. US 11,881,905 B2 also teaches, in claim 1, the channel state information includes a L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) value and a differential L1-SINR value jointly encoded in one block. Additionally, Onggosanusi also teaches wherein the channel measurement resources include a synchronization signal block (SSB) resource or a non-zero power channel state information- reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource, see claim 1.
Zhang et al. US 2021/0314801 also teaches, in paragraphs [0026]-[0032], the channel state information includes a L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) value and a differential L1-SINR value jointly encoded in one block.
Guo US 2020/0044797 also teaches, in paragraph [0146], the channel state information includes a L1-signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (L1-SINR) value and a differential L1-SINR value jointly encoded in one block.
Kim et al. US 2023/0208490 also teaches wherein the channel measurement resources include a synchronization signal block (SSB) resource or a non-zero power channel state information- reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource, see paragraphs [0273]-]0274].
Manolakos et al. US 2022/0264348 also teaches wherein the channel measurement resources include a synchronization signal block (SSB) resource or a non-zero power channel state information- reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource, see paragraph [0107].
Han et al. US 2020/0007299 also teaches wherein the channel measurement resources include a synchronization signal block (SSB) resource or a non-zero power channel state information- reference signal (NZP-CSI-RS) resource, see paragraph [0010].
Cha et al. US 2021/0314045 also teaches one setting comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off, see paragraph [0310].
Cha et al. US 2021/0266898 also teaches one setting comprises a repetition parameter that is on or off, see paragraph [0342].
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 MARIELA VIDAL CARPIO whose telephone number is (571)272-1250. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00AM to 5:00PM.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Ayaz Sheikh can be reached at (571)272-3795. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/MARIELA VIDAL CARPIO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2476
Prosecution Insights