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 Amendments and Arguments filed 01/23/2026 have been considered for examination.
With regard to the 103 rejections, Applicant’s arguments filed 01/23/2026 in view of the amendments have been fully considered and are persuasive..
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.
Claims 1-2, 5, 13-14, 17, 25-26, 30, 32, 35 and 38 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claim 1 recites, “in response to the CORESET group IDs are between 0 and z, each nID takes a value ranging from 1 to z, z is a positive number, and different CORESET group IDs correspond to different values of nID.” (last three lines). Claim 1 is indefinite for rationales as follows.
First, the term “between” is indefinite as it fails to clarify whether the points (i.e., 0 and z) are included. Further, it is also indefinite whether each of the CORESET group IDs is an integer. If it is an integer and the endpoints of “between” are not included, each CORESET group ID is larger than 0 and smaller than z where z is a positive number, so that it does not make sense the CORESET group ID to be “between 0 and z” if z is “1” as a positive number.
Second, in a case that z is a specific number such as “1”, each nID should always take a value of 1 (required by the limitation “each nID takes a value ranging from 1 to z). Then, different value of nID cannot be made, which is contradictory to “different CORESET group IDS corresponds to different values of nID.
Third, regarding “z is a positive number”, does the positive number include a real number less than “1”? If so, “a value ranging from 1 to z” is indefinite since the end point (z) of the ranging value cannot be smaller than the start point (1).
For the sake of examination purpose only, it is interpreted as best understood.
Claims 13 and 25-26 is rejected at least based on a similar rationale applied to claim 1.
Claims 2, 5, 14, 17, 30, 32, 35 and 38 are also rejected since they are directly or indirectly dependent upon the rejected claims, as set forth above.
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 SUN JONG KIM whose telephone number is (571)270-3216. The examiner can normally be reached on 7:30am-5:30pm (M-T).
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/SUN JONG KIM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2469