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 .
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(s) 1-5 and 19-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lin US 2018/020472 A1 in view of Tang et al. US 2018/0213457 A1 and Chuberre et al. US 2017/0245185 A1.
Claims 1, 5 and 21:
Lin discloses a method implemented by a user equipment for performing a handover between a first cell and a second cell (See fig. 6, UE performing handover from source eNB to a target eNB) in a network comprising a satellite communication network, the first cell and the second cell being supported by one or more satellites of the satellite communication network, the first cell corresponding to a first base station and the second cell corresponding to a second base station, at least the first cell being supported by a non-geostationary orbit satellite of the satellite communication network (“satellite” and “non-geostationary satellite” are not given any patentable weight because these features are not part of the claim’s body and are not essential in performing the following steps), the method comprising: determining, before the user equipment transmits a first signal to the second base station, a value to be used as a timing advance in the second cell (See fig. 6 and paras 39-44, in step 5 UE receives TA value from the source eNB), the value to be used as a timing advance in the second cell being determined based on:
- a data related to timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell received from the first base station or from a base station to which the user equipment has been connected before being connected to the first base station (See fig. 6 and paras 39-44, in step 5 UE receives TA value from the source eNB which it has received it from the target eNB), or
- a value used as a timing advance in the first cell when no data related to timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell is received from the first base station or from a base station to which the user equipment has been connected before being connected to the first base station; performing an uplink transmission with the second base station using the value to be used as a timing advance in the second cell (See fig. 6. Step 6, UE sending first uplink packet).
data related to timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell comprises at least one among: data informing the user equipment that the value to be used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell is different from the value used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the first cell (See claims 17 and 18, “receive parameters including time advance information of the user equipment from the target access node; and provide the parameters to the user equipment…the time advance information comprises at least one a timing offset…”. The offset corresponds to different value in reference to the value used as in the first cell), when the first cell and the second cell are not supported by a same satellite of the satellites in the satellite communication network.
With regards to claims 5/21, a processor; and a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions stored thereon, which when executed by the processor (See fig. 8, processor and memory).
Lin doesn’t disclose data informing the user equipment that the value to be used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell is the same as a value used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the first cell.
Tang disclose data informing the user equipment that the value to be used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell is the same as a value used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the first cell (See paras 392-393, “sends the TA indication information to the UE by using the source cell… the target cell determines that the TA indication information is first indication information indicating that a TA of the target cell is the same as a TA of the source cell”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Lin with the teachings of Tang to improve the method disclosed by Lin by including the feature of same TA values. The motivation to combine would have been to avoid any delays in communication.
Lin doesn’t disclose that the first cell and the second cell are supported by satellites of the satellite communication network, and at least the first cell is supported by a non-geostationary orbit satellite of the satellite communication network.
Chuberre discloses that the first cell and the second cell are supported by satellites of the satellite communication network, and at least the first cell is supported by a non-geostationary orbit satellite of the satellite communication network (See para 200, “satellites in non-geostationary orbit NGSO, included in the range of satellites ranging from nano-satellites to mini-satellites through macro-satellites, can be used with nongeostationary satellite cells on the ground”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Lin with the teachings of Tang to improve the method disclosed by Lin by including the feature of first and second cell being supported by nongeostationary satellite. The motivation to combine would have been to allow flexibility in coverage and connectivity.
Claim 2:
Lin discloses data related to timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell comprises at least one among: data related to a value to be used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell (See fig. 6 and paras 39-44, in step 5 UE receives TA value from the source eNB which has received it from the target eNB).
Claim 3:
Lin discloses data related to a value to be used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell comprises at least one among:
- data corresponding to a value (See fig. 6 and paras 39-44, in step 5 UE receives TA value from the source eNB which has received it from the target eNB),
- data corresponding to an offset from a value used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the first cell;
- data corresponding to an offset from a generic value.
Claim 4:
Lin discloses that the uplink transmission performed with the second base station is a first uplink transmission performed with the second base station (See fig. 6. Step 6, UE sending first uplink packet).
Claims 19 and 20:
Lin discloses a method for managing a handover of a user equipment between a first cell and a second cell in a network comprising a satellite communication network, the first cell and the second cell (See fig. 6, UE performing handover from source eNB to a target eNB) being supported by one or more satellites of the satellite communication network, the first cell corresponding to a first base station and the second cell corresponding to a second base station, at least the first cell being supported by a non-geostationary orbit satellite of the satellite communication network (“satellite” and “non-geostationary satellite” are not given any patentable weight because these features are not part of the claim’s body and are not essential in performing the following steps), the method comprising:
determining a value to be used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell (See fig. 6 and paras 39-44, in step 4, the source eNB receives TA value from the target eNB);
transmitting to the second base station and/or the user equipment, before the second base station receives any signal from the user equipment, the value to be used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell (See fig. 6 and paras 39-44, in step 5 source eNB sends TA value which it has received it from the target eNB); data related to timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell comprises at least one among: data informing the user equipment that the value to be used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell is different from the value used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the first cell (See claims 17 and 18, “receive parameters including time advance information of the user equipment from the target access node; and provide the parameters to the user equipment…the time advance information comprises at least one a timing offset…”. The offset corresponds to different value in reference to the value used as in the first cell).
With regards to claim 20, a processor; and a non-transitory computer-readable medium (See fig. 8, processor and memory).
Lin doesn’t disclose data informing the user equipment that the value to be used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell is the same as a value used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the first cell.
Tang disclose data informing the user equipment that the value to be used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the second cell is the same as a value used as a timing advance of the user equipment in the first cell (See paras 392-393, “sends the TA indication information to the UE by using the source cell… the target cell determines that the TA indication information is first indication information indicating that a TA of the target cell is the same as a TA of the source cell”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Lin with the teachings of Tang to improve the method disclosed by Lin by including the feature of same TA values. The motivation to combine would have been to avoid any delays in communication.
Lin doesn’t disclose that the first cell and the second cell are supported by satellites of the satellite communication network, and at least the first cell is supported by a non-geostationary orbit satellite of the satellite communication network.
Chuberre discloses that the first cell and the second cell are supported by satellites of the satellite communication network, and at least the first cell is supported by a non-geostationary orbit satellite of the satellite communication network (See para 200, “satellites in non-geostationary orbit NGSO, included in the range of satellites ranging from nano-satellites to mini-satellites through macro-satellites, can be used with nongeostationary satellite cells on the ground”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Lin with the teachings of Tang to improve the method disclosed by Lin by including the feature of first and second cell being supported by nongeostationary satellite. The motivation to combine would have been to allow flexibility in coverage and connectivity.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 6 and 8-18 allowed.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 5 & 19-21 filed on 02/24/2026 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
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.
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HASHIM S. BHATTI
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2472
/HASHIM S BHATTI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2472