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 .
Continued Examination under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 05/08/2026 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
This communication is considered fully responsive to the amendment filed on 05/08/2026.
Claims 1-3, 5- 13, 15-16, 19-22, and 24-30 have been amended.
Claims 14 and 23 have been canceled.
Claims 1-13, 15-22, and 24-30 are pending in the application.
Rejection to claims under 35 USC § 112 is withdrawn since it has been amended accordingly.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1, 15, 24, and 29 filed on 05/08/2026 have been considered but are moot because the arguments related solely to newly added limitations addressed in the instant Office Action with newly identified prior art, thus rendering applicant’s arguments moot.
While the Examiner agrees that Matsuda and Maaref do not teach the “wherein the at least one configuration of the set of RPs includes a set of frequency domain orthogonal cover codes (FD-OCC) associated with at least one of a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and an oversampling factor is applied to the set of FD-OCC” as recited in claim 1, the previously cited reference Lee et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20230046738, whereinafter “Lee”) explicitly teaches configuring a set of RBs to include a set of FD-OCCs associated with a PSCCH or a PSSCH to minimize interference on channel estimation (see paras [0229]-[0230] of Lee) ) (para [0229] of Lee: … in order to minimize the interference effect on channel estimation (of the RX UE), the TX UE may select one from a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS Orthogonal Cover Codes (OCCs) and/or a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS sequences) (para [0230] of Lee: Hereinafter, based on various embodiments of the present disclosure, a method for a TX UE to transmit a PSCCH DMRS and an apparatus supporting the same will be described. …For example, the OCC may include OCC in the frequency domain (hereinafter, FD-OCC) and/or OCC in the time domain (hereinafter, TD-OCC).).
To address the newly added limitation regarding the oversampling factor, a newly identified reference, Nam et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20160248562, whereinafter “Nam”), has been cited. Nam explicitly teaches the general technical principle of applying an oversampling factor to system parameter or signal processing to scale sampling or processing rates relative to a base or minimum rate, thereby optimizing resolution and system performance (see paras [0123]-[0132] of Nam). Paragraphs [0123]-[0132] of Nam are reproduced herein below.
[0123] FIG. 6 illustrates that a precoder codebook construction
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can be flexibly used for both fat and tall 2D arrays, with appropriately configuring parameters M and N. (another precoder codebook construction can also be flexibly used).
[0124] On the other hand, it is also sometimes desired to allocate a smaller DFT oversampling factor for the vertical dimension than for the horizontal dimension, maybe due to different angle/spread distribution. Hence, configurability of parameters to change the oversampled codebooks, vm and un, is desired for that purpose. This motivates the following method.
[0125] In some embodiments, a UE is configured to report PMI, which are generated according to a precoding matrix, comprising at least those two oversampled DFT vectors: vm and un. For the generation of the PMI, the UE is further configured to select a codebook for vm and a codebook for un, wherein each codebook for vm and un is selected from multiple codebook choices. For this purpose, the UE may be configured with a set of parameters by higher layers.
…
[0131] In another method, PM and PN correspond to oversampling factors SN and SM which is allowed to have a value of either 4 or 8.
[0132] In some embodiments, to facilitate the UE CSI reporting operation according to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a CSI resource configuration, i.e., CSI-RS-ConfigNZP comprises an additional field, e.g., newParameterTolndicateDenominator, to indicate DFT oversampling factor as illustrated in the following: …
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to apply the concept of an oversampling factor (as taught by Nam) to the FD-OCC set within the sidelink resource pool configuration (as taught by Lee). Adjusting sampling or processing rates using an oversampling factor represents a routine optimization and design choice to improve signal resolution and system performance. Neither the use of FD-OCC nor the application of an oversampling factor is unconventional; they are well-known signal processing and communication techniques in the art. Their combination yields predictable results without any unexpected synergistic effects or critical functional interactions.
Thus, the rejection of claims 1, 15, 24, and 29 is maintained under 35 U.S.C. 103.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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) 1-4, 8-13, 15-18, 22, 24, and 26-30, rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Matsuda et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20200029270, hereinafter “Matsuda”), in view of Lee et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20230046738, whereinafter “Lee”), in view of Nam et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20160248562, whereinafter “Nam”), and further in view of Maaref et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20200146044, hereinafter “Maaref”).
Examiner’s note: in what follows, references are drawn to Matsuda unless otherwise mentioned.
With respect to independent claims 1, 15, 24, and 29:
Regarding Claim 1, Matsuda teaches An apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE) (Fig. 27, smartphone 900), comprising:
memory (Fig. 27, memory 902); and
at least one processor (Fig. 27, processor 901) coupled to the memory and, based at least in part on information stored in the memory, the at least one processor is configured to:
obtain at least one configuration of a set of resource pools (RPs) from a network node, the set of RPs being associated with grant-free non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) for sidelink communication, (Para [0251]; When the grant-free based transmission is possible, the base station device 1 ensures the resource pool for the grant-free based transmission as necessary (step S102) and performs establishment of connection with the terminal device 2, position designation of the resource pool, and designation of NOMA pattern vector information notification resources (step S103))(Para [0252]; The base station device 1 periodically notifies of the information regarding the NOMA pattern vectors by broadcast (step S104)).
Matsuda discloses that, in the present embodiment of Matsuda, a cell is a sidelink and sidelink transmission is transmission from the terminal device 2 to another terminal device 2 and is transmission of a sidelink physical channel and/or a sidelink physical signal. See paragraphs [0050-0051]. Matsuda further discloses that the base station device 1 and the terminal device 2 can support communication in which a set of one or more cells is used in …a sidelink. (see para [0052]),
Matsuda, however, fails to explicitly teach the limitation
“wherein the at least one configuration of the set of RPs includes a set of frequency domain orthogonal cover codes (FD-OCC) associated with at least one of a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH), and an oversampling factor is applied to the set of FD-OCC” and
“transmit a sidelink transmission via a sidelink channel to at least one other UE in the set of RPs associated with the grant-free NOMA based on the at least one configuration of the set of RPs using resources that are shared by a plurality of UEs including the UE, wherein the resources are associated with a resource allocation indication common to the plurality of UEs.”
Lee, in analogous art, teaches the wherein the at least one configuration of the set of RPs includes a set of frequency domain orthogonal cover codes (FD-OCC) associated with at least one of a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH).
Lee is directed to Sidelink (SL) communication in which a direct link is established between User Equipment’s (UEs) and the UEs exchange voice and data directly with each other without intervention of an evolved Node B (eNB) (see para [0002] of Lee).
Lee teaches the wherein the at least one configuration of the set of RPs (Para [0108] of Lee; For example, the UE 1 may select a resource unit corresponding to a specific resource in a resource pool which implies a set of series of resources. In addition, the UE 1 may transmit a SL signal by using the resource unit. For example, a resource pool in which the UE 1 is capable of transmitting a signal may be configured to the UE 2 which is a receiving UE, and the signal of the UE 1 may be detected in the resource pool.)(para [0109] of Lee: Herein, if the UE 1 is within a connectivity range of the BS, the BS may inform the UE 1 of the resource pool (interpreted as “obtain at least one configuration of a set of resource pools (RPs) from a network node”).) (para [0116] of Lee: in the LTE transmission mode 2, the LTE transmission mode 4, or the NR resource allocation mode 2, the UE may determine a SL transmission resource within a SL resource configured by a BS/network or a pre-configured SL resource. For example, the configured SL resource or the pre-configured SL resource may be a resource pool (interpreted as “obtain at least one configuration of a set of resource pools (RPs) from a network node”).) a set of frequency domain orthogonal cover codes (FD-OCC) associated with at least one of a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) (para [0229] of Lee: In the above-mentioned case, for example, in order to minimize the interference effect on channel estimation (of the RX UE), the TX UE may select one from a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS Orthogonal Cover Codes (OCCs) and/or a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS sequences(interpreted as “a set of frequency domain orthogonal cover codes (FD-OCCs) associated with at least one of a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH)”) (para [0230]: Hereinafter, based on various embodiments of the present disclosure, a method for a TX UE to transmit a PSCCH DMRS and an apparatus supporting the same will be described. For example, based on various embodiments of the present disclosure, CANDI_VAL may be configured or defined for the TX UE. For example, different CANDI_VAL may be mutually orthogonal or pseudo-orthogonal. For example, the OCC may include OCC in the frequency domain (hereinafter, FD-OCC) and/or OCC in the time domain (hereinafter, TD-OCC).) (para [0115] of Lee: a BS may schedule a SL resource to be used by the UE for SL transmission. For example, the BS may perform resource scheduling to a UE 1 through a PDCCH (more specifically, downlink control information (DCI)), and the UE 1 may perform V2X or SL communication with respect to a UE 2 according to the resource scheduling. For example, the UE 1 may transmit a sidelink control information (SCI) to the UE 2 through a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), and thereafter transmit data based on the SCI to the UE 2 through a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) (interpreted as “associated with at least one of a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH)”).).
Nam teaches an oversampling factor is applied to the set of FD-OCC. Nam explicitly teaches the general technical principle of applying an oversampling factor to system parameter or signal processing to scale sampling or processing rates relative to a base or minimum rate, thereby optimizing resolution and system performance (see paras [0123]-[0132] of Nam). Paragraphs [0123]-[0132] of Nam are reproduced herein below.
[0123] FIG. 6 illustrates that a precoder codebook construction
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can be flexibly used for both fat and tall 2D arrays, with appropriately configuring parameters M and N. (another precoder codebook construction can also be flexibly used).
[0124] On the other hand, it is also sometimes desired to allocate a smaller DFT oversampling factor for the vertical dimension than for the horizontal dimension, maybe due to different angle/spread distribution. Hence, configurability of parameters to change the oversampled codebooks, vm and un, is desired for that purpose. This motivates the following method.
[0125] In some embodiments, a UE is configured to report PMI, which are generated according to a precoding matrix, comprising at least those two oversampled DFT vectors: vm and un. For the generation of the PMI, the UE is further configured to select a codebook for vm and a codebook for un, wherein each codebook for vm and un is selected from multiple codebook choices. For this purpose, the UE may be configured with a set of parameters by higher layers.
…
[0131] In another method, PM and PN correspond to oversampling factors SN and SM which is allowed to have a value of either 4 or 8.
[0132] In some embodiments, to facilitate the UE CSI reporting operation according to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a CSI resource configuration, i.e., CSI-RS-ConfigNZP comprises an additional field, e.g., newParameterTolndicateDenominator, to indicate DFT oversampling factor as illustrated in the following: …
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, starting from the sidelink RP and FD-OCC configuration of Masuda and Lee to apply an oversampling factor (as taught by Nam) to the FD-OCC set within the sidelink resource pool configuration, because adjusting sampling or processing rates via an oversampling factor represents a routine optimization and design choice to improve signal resolution and system performance. Neither the use of FD-OCC nor the application of an oversampling factor is unconventional; they are well-known signal processing and communication techniques in the art. Their combination yields predictable results without any unexpected synergistic effects or critical functional interactions.
Matsuda, Lee, and Nam, however, fail to teach:
transmit a sidelink transmission via a sidelink channel to at least one other UE in the set of RPs associated with the grant-free NOMA based on the at least one configuration of the set of RPs using resources that are shared by a plurality of UEs including the UE, wherein the resources are associated with a resource allocation indication common to the plurality of UEs.
Maaref teaches the above missing limitation.
transmit a sidelink transmission via a sidelink channel to at least one other UE in the set of RPs associated with the grant-free NOMA based on the at least one configuration of the set of RPs using resources that are shared by a plurality of UEs including the UE (para [0053] of Maaref; selecting a SL transmission resource (“SideLink transmission via a sidelink channel”) for use in making a SL transmission to a target UE …; and transmitting, by the UE, an SL data communication according to the transmitted SL control information using the selected SL transmission resource (from resource pool (RP), see paragraph [0353-0354] of Maaref). Maaref discloses “at 630 UE1 selects a transmission pattern from a transmission pattern pool”(see para [0201] of Maaref). Maaref further discloses “In transmission 628 from the BS or network 600 to UE1, RRC signaling configures SL data communication resources and SL control resources. A transmission pattern pool is included in the configuration of SL data communication resources in this example” (see para [0202] of Maaref). Here, the transmission pattern from transmission pattern pool discussed in Maaref is, therefore, interpreted as the limitation “at least one configuration of the set of RPs using resources that are shared by a plurality of UEs.” Maaref discloses “At 630, UE1 selects a transmission pattern for SL data transmission from the transmission pattern pool included in transmission 628”(see Fig. 6B and para [0204] of Maaref). Maaref further discloses “The transmission pattern selected by UE1 is used in transmissions 612 (transmission 612 to UE2 is interpreted as “transmit a sidelink transmission via a sidelink channel to at least”, see FIG 6B of Maaref), 616 (see Fig. 6B and para [0204] of Maaref)(Examiner’s note: Maaref discloses that the sidelink transmissions may use non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA). See para [0124] of Maaref), wherein the resources are associated with a resource allocation indication common to the plurality of UEs (para [0187]: a BS may broadcast system information to all the UEs in a cell. The system information (e.g. SIB) may optionally contain some parameters of the resource configuration for SL transmission that is common for all the UEs in the cell (the resource configuration discussed in Maaref is interpreted as the limitation “resource allocation indication”))(Examiner’s note: Figs. 1A-1K of Maaref are block diagrams illustrating examples of two-dimensional resource configurations for grant-free SL transmission)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to modify the method of Matsuda by incorporating the FD-OCC configuration taught by Lee, applying the oversampling factor to the set of FD-OCC as taught by Nam, and utilizing the common resource allocation indication for sidelink transmission as taught by Maaref. The motivation to do so would be to minimize channel estimation interference (LEE) and efficiently coordinate sidelink communication among a plurality of UEs sharing the resource pools (Maaref), ultimately resulting in a more robust and reliable physical sidelink transmission.
Regarding Claim 15, Matsuda teaches An apparatus (Fig. 25, eNB 800), for wireless communication at a network node, comprising:
memory (Fig. 25, memory 822); and
at least one processor (Fig. 25, controller 821) coupled to the memory and, based at least in part on information stored in the memory, the at least one processor is configured to:
transmit at least one configuration of a set of resource pools (RPs) for a plurality of UEs, the set of RPs being associated with grant-free non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) for sidelink communication performed by the plurality of UEs (Para [0251]; When the grant-free based transmission is possible, the base station device 1 ensures the resource pool for the grant-free based transmission as necessary (step S102) and performs establishment of connection with the terminal device 2, position designation of the resource pool, and designation of NOMA pattern vector information notification resources (step S103))(Para [0252]; The base station device 1 periodically notifies of the information regarding the NOMA pattern vectors by broadcast (step S104)). Matsuda discloses that a cell is a sidelink and sidelink transmission is transmission from the terminal device 2 to another terminal device 2 and is transmission of a sidelink physical channel and/or a sidelink physical signal (see paragraphs [0050-0051]). Matsuda further discloses that the base station device 1 and the terminal device 2 can support communication in which a set of one or more cells is used in …a sidelink. (see para [0052]) (The missing/crossed out limitations will be discussed in view of Maaref.)
” (The missing/crossed out limitations will be discussed in view of Lee and Nam.); and
transmit an instruction to activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA for the sidelink communication for the plurality of UEs (Para [0155]; The terminal device 2 monitors a set of PDCCH candidates and/or a set of EPDCCH candidates of one or more activated serving cells set by RRC signaling.) (para [0214]; the base station device 1 … notify the terminal device 2 of the applied NOMA pattern vectors (interpreted as “the instruction to activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA”) by RRC signaling, a system information block (SIB), a DCI, or the like.).
Lee teaches the wherein the at least one configuration of the set of RPs includes a set of frequency domain orthogonal cover codes (FD-OCC) associated with at least one of a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH).
Lee is directed to Sidelink (SL) communication in which a direct link is established between User Equipment’s (UEs) and the UEs exchange voice and data directly with each other without intervention of an evolved Node B (eNB) (see para [0002] of Lee).
Lee teaches the wherein the at least one configuration of the set of RPs (Para [0108] of Lee; For example, the UE 1 may select a resource unit corresponding to a specific resource in a resource pool which implies a set of series of resources. In addition, the UE 1 may transmit a SL signal by using the resource unit. For example, a resource pool in which the UE 1 is capable of transmitting a signal may be configured to the UE 2 which is a receiving UE, and the signal of the UE 1 may be detected in the resource pool.)(para [0109] of Lee: Herein, if the UE 1 is within a connectivity range of the BS, the BS may inform the UE 1 of the resource pool (interpreted as “obtain at least one configuration of a set of resource pools (RPs) from a network node”).) (para [0116] of Lee: in the LTE transmission mode 2, the LTE transmission mode 4, or the NR resource allocation mode 2, the UE may determine a SL transmission resource within a SL resource configured by a BS/network or a pre-configured SL resource. For example, the configured SL resource or the pre-configured SL resource may be a resource pool (interpreted as “obtain at least one configuration of a set of resource pools (RPs) from a network node”).) a set of frequency domain orthogonal cover codes (FD-OCC) associated with at least one of a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) (para [0229] of Lee: In the above-mentioned case, for example, in order to minimize the interference effect on channel estimation (of the RX UE), the TX UE may select one from a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS Orthogonal Cover Codes (OCCs) and/or a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS sequences(interpreted as “a set of frequency domain orthogonal cover codes (FD-OCCs) associated with at least one of a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH)”) (para [0230]: Hereinafter, based on various embodiments of the present disclosure, a method for a TX UE to transmit a PSCCH DMRS and an apparatus supporting the same will be described. For example, based on various embodiments of the present disclosure, CANDI_VAL may be configured or defined for the TX UE. For example, different CANDI_VAL may be mutually orthogonal or pseudo-orthogonal. For example, the OCC may include OCC in the frequency domain (hereinafter, FD-OCC) and/or OCC in the time domain (hereinafter, TD-OCC).) (para [0115] of Lee: a BS may schedule a SL resource to be used by the UE for SL transmission. For example, the BS may perform resource scheduling to a UE 1 through a PDCCH (more specifically, downlink control information (DCI)), and the UE 1 may perform V2X or SL communication with respect to a UE 2 according to the resource scheduling. For example, the UE 1 may transmit a sidelink control information (SCI) to the UE 2 through a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), and thereafter transmit data based on the SCI to the UE 2 through a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) (interpreted as “associated with at least one of a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH)”).).
Nam teaches an oversampling factor is applied to the set of FD-OCC. Nam explicitly teaches the general technical principle of applying an oversampling factor to system parameter or signal processing to scale sampling or processing rates relative to a base or minimum rate, thereby optimizing resolution and system performance (see paras [0123]-[0132] of Nam).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art, starting from the sidelink RP and FD-OCC configuration of Masuda and Lee to apply an oversampling factor (as taught by Nam) to the FD-OCC set within the sidelink resource pool configuration, because adjusting sampling or processing rates via an oversampling factor represents a routine optimization and design choice to improve signal resolution and system performance. Neither the use of FD-OCC nor the application of an oversampling factor is unconventional; they are well-known signal processing and communication techniques in the art. Their combination yields predictable results without any unexpected synergistic effects or critical functional interactions.
Maaref teaches the missing limitation as following:
using resources that are shared by more than one UE of the plurality of UEs, (Maaref discloses “a BS may broadcast system information to all the UEs in a cell. The system information (e.g. SIB) may optionally contain some parameters of the resource configuration for SL transmission that is common for all the UEs in the cell” (see para [0187] of Maaref). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of instant application to modify the system of Matsuda by using the features (Methods and apparatus for sidelink communications and resource allocation) of Maaref in order to have more effective method such that a network node transmits at least one configuration of a set of resource pools (RPs) being associated with grant-free NOMA for sidelink communication performed by the plurality of UEs using resources that are shared by more than one UE of the plurality of UEs.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to modify the method of Matsuda by incorporating the FD-OCC configuration taught by Lee, applying the oversampling factor to the set of FD-OCC as taught by Nam, and utilizing the common resource allocation indication for sidelink transmission as taught by Maaref. The motivation to do so would be to minimize channel estimation interference (LEE) and efficiently coordinate sidelink communication among a plurality of UEs sharing the resource pools (Maaref), ultimately resulting in a more robust and reliable physical sidelink transmission.
Regarding claim 24, it is a method claim corresponding to the apparatus claim 1 and is therefore rejected for the similar reasons set forth in the rejection of claim 1.
Regarding claim 29, it is a method claim corresponding to the apparatus claim 15 and is therefore rejected for the similar reasons set forth in the rejection of claim 15.
With respect to dependent claims:
Regarding Claim 2, Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref teach The apparatus of claim 1, Lee further teaches wherein the at least one configuration of the set of RPs (Para [0108] of Lee; For example, the UE 1 may select a resource unit corresponding to a specific resource in a resource pool which implies a set of series of resources. In addition, the UE 1 may transmit a SL signal by using the resource unit. For example, a resource pool in which the UE 1 is capable of transmitting a signal may be configured to the UE 2 which is a receiving UE, and the signal of the UE 1 may be detected in the resource pool.)(para [0109] of Lee: Herein, if the UE 1 is within a connectivity range of the BS, the BS may inform the UE 1 of the resource pool (interpreted as “obtain at least one configuration of a set of resource pools (RPs) from a network node”).) (para [0116] of Lee: in the LTE transmission mode 2, the LTE transmission mode 4, or the NR resource allocation mode 2, the UE may determine a SL transmission resource within a SL resource configured by a BS/network or a pre-configured SL resource. For example, the configured SL resource or the pre-configured SL resource may be a resource pool (interpreted as “obtain at least one configuration of a set of resource pools (RPs) from a network node”).) includes a set of demodulation reference signal (DMRS) configuration identifiers (IDs) associated with at least one of the PSCCH or the PSSCH (para [0229] of Lee: In the above-mentioned case, for example, in order to minimize the interference effect on channel estimation (of the RX UE), the TX UE may select one from a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS Orthogonal Cover Codes (OCCs) and/or a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS sequences(interpreted as “a set of demodulation reference signal (DMRS) configuration identifiers (IDs) associated with at least one of the PSCCH or the PSSCH”).) (para [0230]: Hereinafter, based on various embodiments of the present disclosure, a method for a TX UE to transmit a PSCCH DMRS and an apparatus supporting the same will be described. For example, based on various embodiments of the present disclosure, CANDI_VAL may be configured or defined for the TX UE. For example, different CANDI_VAL may be mutually orthogonal or pseudo-orthogonal. For example, the OCC may include OCC in the frequency domain (hereinafter, FD-OCC) and/or OCC in the time domain (hereinafter, TD-OCC).) (para [0240] of Lee: In this case, for example, one ID value used for PSCCH DMRS sequence generation and/or initialization may be configured for the TX UE. For example, one ID value used for PSCCH DMRS sequence generation and/or initialization may be configured for the TX UE specifically for a resource pool. For example, the TX UE may generate and/or initialize a PSCCH DMRS sequence by using the one ID value (interpreted as “the at least one configuration of the set of RPs includes a set of demodulation reference signal (DMRS) configuration identifiers (IDs) associated with at least one of the PSCCH or the PSSCH”).), wherein the sidelink channel includes at least one of the PSCCH or the PSSCH (para [0115] of Lee: a BS may schedule a SL resource to be used by the UE for SL transmission. For example, the BS may perform resource scheduling to a UE 1 through a PDCCH (more specifically, downlink control information (DCI)), and the UE 1 may perform V2X or SL communication with respect to a UE 2 according to the resource scheduling. For example, the UE 1 may transmit a sidelink control information (SCI) to the UE 2 through a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), and thereafter transmit data based on the SCI to the UE 2 through a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) (interpreted as “the sidelink channel includes at least one of the PSCCH or the PSSCH”).).
Regarding Claim 16, Claim 16 has similar limitation as of Claim 2, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim 2.
Regarding Claim 3, Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref teach The apparatus of claim 1, Maaref further teaches wherein the at least one configuration of the set of RPs indicates at least one sub-RP (Para [0359] of Maaref; a first grant-free SL configuration) assigned for the grant-free NOMA for the sidelink communication (Para [0354] of Maaref: the SL resource configuration takes place within the resource pool(s) configured for the UE.). Maaref further that the sidelink transmissions may use non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA). See para [0124] of Maaref.) (Para [0128] of Maaref: Sub-channels can instead be associated with different layers of non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA)) (Para [0359] of Maaref: a first grant-free SL configuration).
wherein, to transmit the sidelink transmission via the sidelink channel, the at least one processor is configured to: transmit the sidelink transmission via the sidelink channel further based on the at least one sub-RP assigned for the grant-free NOMA (Para [0359] of Maaref: the UE can also independently and dynamically select between different grant-free SL configurations … will improve SL transmission performance.).
Regarding Claim 17, Claim 17 has similar limitation as of Claim 3, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim 3.
Regarding Claim 4, Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref teach The apparatus of claim 1, Maaref further teaches wherein the at least one configuration of the set of RPs includes dedicated configured grants (Para [0359] of Maaref; a first grant-free SL configuration) shared by the plurality of UEs including the UE to perform grant-free sidelink communication (Para [0354] of Maaref; A UE may be configured to use one or more specified resource pools. Then, the SL resource configuration takes place within the resource pool(s) configured for the UE.).
Regarding Claim 18, Claim 18 has similar limitation as of Claim 4, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim 4.
Regarding Claim 8, Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref teach The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:
Maaref further teaches select a power configuration associated with at least one of the PSSCH or the PSSCH on the set of RPs based on a set of applicable power configurations (Para [0346] of Maaref; the sidelink control information also includes: a power level for the sidelink transmission, … This is included so that other UEs can observe the power level, and factor this in when selecting a transmission resource for their own SL transmissions.)(Para [0019] of Maaref; physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) resources indicated or reserved for transmission by a sidelink control information transmitted by the another UE).
Regarding Claim 26, Claim 26 has similar limitation as of Claim 8, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim 8.
Regarding Claim 9, Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref teach The apparatus of claim 8,
wherein, to select the power configuration, the at least one processor is configured to: It is noted that while disclosing the ‘sidelink control information also includes: a power level for the sidelink transmission’ (see para [0346] of Maaref), Lee further teaches
select the power configuration based on at least one of a source identifier (ID), a destination ID, a zone ID, a data priority, a quality of service (QoS), a PSCCH cyclic redundancy check (CRC), one or more configured IDs for randomization, or a cast type (para [0229] of Lee: In the above-mentioned case, for example, in order to minimize the interference effect on channel estimation (of the RX UE), the TX UE may select one from a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS Orthogonal Cover Codes (OCCs) and/or a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS sequences (interpreted as “select the power configuration”).) (para [0240] of Lee: In this case, for example, one ID value used for PSCCH DMRS sequence generation and/or initialization may be configured for the TX UE. For example, one ID value used for PSCCH DMRS sequence generation and/or initialization may be configured for the TX UE specifically for a resource pool. For example, the TX UE may generate and/or initialize a PSCCH DMRS sequence by using the one ID value (interpreted as “based on at least one of a source identifier (ID), a destination ID, a zone ID, a data priority, a quality of service (QoS), a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) of sidelink control information (SCI) type 1 (SCI-1), one or more configured IDs for randomization, or a cast type”).) (para [0242] of Lee: the TX UE may randomly select one from among (pre-configured) M ID values used for PSCCH DMRS sequence generation and/or initialization (on PSCCH symbols).) (para [0276] of Lee: For example, whether the UE applies at least one rule among rules proposed in various embodiments of the present disclosure may be configured differently or limitedly for the UE for each resource pool. … for each service type. … for each service priority. … for each cast type. … one of unicast, groupcast, and/or broadcast. …for each destination UE. … for each (L1 or L2) destination ID. … for each (L1 or L2) source ID. … for each (service) QoS parameter. … for the UE for each SL mode type. For example, the SL mode type may include SL mode 1 and/or SL mode 2.).
Regarding Claim 10, Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref teach The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:
Maaref further teaches select a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) configuration associated with at least one of PSCCH or the PSSCH on the set of RPs based on a set of applicable DMRS configurations (Para [0164] of Maaref; the time domain configurations could include time domain resource configuration of physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) and/or physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH), frequency domain resource configuration of PSSCH and PSCCH, the transmission pattern, repetition related parameters (e.g. repetition number K, length of the transmission pattern, RV sequence for repetition), code domain resource configuration, waveform configuration, resource configuration for DMRS etc. The time-domain resource configuration may also include … PSSCH/DMRS mapping type (interpreted as “applicable DMRS configurations”)).
Regarding Claim 27, Claim 27 has similar limitation as of Claim 10, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim 10.
Regarding Claim 11, Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref teach The apparatus of claim 10, wherein, to select the DMRS configuration, the at least one processor is configured to: Lee further teaches
select the DMRS configuration based on at least one of a source identifier (ID), a destination ID, a zone ID, a data priority, a quality of service (QoS), a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) of sidelink control information (SCI) type 1 (SCI-1), one or more configured IDs for randomization, or a cast type (para [0229] of Lee: In the above-mentioned case, for example, in order to minimize the interference effect on channel estimation (of the RX UE), the TX UE may select one from a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS Orthogonal Cover Codes (OCCs) and/or a plurality of pre-configured PSCCH DMRS sequences (interpreted as “the DMRS configuration).) (para [0230]: Hereinafter, based on various embodiments of the present disclosure, a method for a TX UE to transmit a PSCCH DMRS and an apparatus supporting the same will be described.) (para [0240] of Lee: In this case, for example, one ID value used for PSCCH DMRS sequence generation and/or initialization may be configured for the TX UE. For example, one ID value used for PSCCH DMRS sequence generation and/or initialization may be configured for the TX UE specifically for a resource pool. For example, the TX UE may generate and/or initialize a PSCCH DMRS sequence by using the one ID value (interpreted as “the DMRS configuration is selected based on at least one of a source identifier (ID), a destination ID, a zone ID, a data priority, a quality of service (QoS), a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) of sidelink control information (SCI) type 1 (SCI-1), one or more configured IDs for randomization, or a cast type”).) (para [0242] of Lee: the TX UE may randomly select one from among (pre-configured) M ID values used for PSCCH DMRS sequence generation and/or initialization (on PSCCH symbols).) (para [0276] of Lee: For example, whether the UE applies at least one rule among rules proposed in various embodiments of the present disclosure may be configured differently or limitedly for the UE for each resource pool. … for each service type. … for each service priority. … for each cast type. … one of unicast, groupcast, and/or broadcast. …for each destination UE. … for each (L1 or L2) destination ID. … for each (L1 or L2) source ID. … for each (service) QoS parameter. … for the UE for each SL mode type. For example, the SL mode type may include SL mode 1 and/or SL mode 2.).
Regarding Claim 12, Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref teach The apparatus of claim 10, wherein, to select the DMRS configuration, the at least one processor is further configured to: Lee further teaches
determine a DMRS scrambling ID associated with the selected DMRS configuration (para [0240] of Lee: In this case, for example, one ID value used for PSCCH DMRS sequence generation and/or initialization may be configured for the TX UE. For example, one ID value used for PSCCH DMRS sequence generation and/or initialization may be configured for the TX UE specifically for a resource pool. For example, the TX UE may generate and/or initialize a PSCCH DMRS sequence by using the one ID value (interpreted as “a DMRS scrambling ID associated with the selected DMRS configuration”).) based on at least one of a source identifier (ID), a destination ID, a zone ID, a data priority, a quality of service (QoS), a cyclic redundancy check (CRC) of sidelink control information (SCI) type 1 (SCI-1), one or more configured IDs for randomization, or a cast type (para [0242] of Lee: the TX UE may randomly select one from among (pre-configured) M ID values used for PSCCH DMRS sequence generation and/or initialization (on PSCCH symbols).) (para [0276] of Lee: For example, whether the UE applies at least one rule among rules proposed in various embodiments of the present disclosure may be configured differently or limitedly for the UE for each resource pool. … for each service type. … for each service priority. … for each cast type. … one of unicast, groupcast, and/or broadcast. …for each destination UE. … for each (L1 or L2) destination ID. … for each (L1 or L2) source ID. … for each (service) QoS parameter. … for the UE for each SL mode type. For example, the SL mode type may include SL mode 1 and/or SL mode 2.).
Regarding Claim 13, Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref teach The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising at least one of a transceiver or an antenna coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: Maaref further teaches
receive, via at least one of the transceiver or the antenna, … a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) configuration associated with at least one of the PSCCH or the PSSCH on the set of RPs (Para [0164] of Maaref; The time-domain resource configuration may also include … PSSCH/DMRS mapping type (interpreted as “a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) configuration associated with … at least one physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) on the set of RPs”)).
Regarding Claim 28, Claim 28 has similar limitation as of Claim 13, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim 13.
Regarding Claim 30, Claim 30 has similar limitation as of Claim 13, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim 13.
Regarding Claim 22, Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref teach The apparatus of claim 15, further comprising at least one of a transceiver (Fig. 25, a wireless communication interface 825) or an antenna coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:
Matsuda further teaches transmit, via at least one of the transceiver or the antenna, a power configuration (Para [0331]; the information regarding the non-orthogonal multiplexing includes information regarding a power level.) … .
Claims 5-6, 19-20, and 25 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Matsuda, in view of Lee, in view of Nam, in view of Maaref, and further in view of Li et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20190254018, hereinafter “Li”).
Regarding Claim 5, Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref teach The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:
Matsuda teaches receive an instruction to activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA for the sidelink communication (para [0214]; the base station device 1 … notify the terminal device 2 of the applied NOMA pattern vectors (interpreted as “an instruction to activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA for the sidelink communication”) by RRC signaling, a system information block (SIB), a DCI, or the like.)(para [0215]: On the other hand, in a case in which uplink transmission or sidelink transmission is assumed, the terminal device 2 needs a technique for knowing or deciding currently usable NOMA pattern vectors before transmission(interpreted as “an instruction to activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA for the sidelink communication”). For example, there is no problem when the terminal device 2 can receive resource allocation information or a NOMA pattern vector information notification in a DCI or the like.).
Matsuda explicitly teaches the an instruction to activate or deactivate the NOMA (Para [0155]; The terminal device 2 monitors a set of PDCCH candidates and/or a set of EPDCCH candidates of one or more activated serving cells set by RRC signaling.) (para [0214]; the base station device 1 … notify the terminal device 2 of the applied NOMA pattern vectors (interpreted as “the instruction to activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA”) by RRC signaling, a system information block (SIB), a DCI, or the like.)
Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref fail to explicitly teach based on at least one of a cast type, a data priority, or a quality of service (QoS).
Li discloses that, in paragraph [0010] of Li, in response to the coverage of the terminal device exceeding a coverage threshold and/or the system traffic exceeding a traffic threshold and/or the required QoS being lower than a predetermined QoS threshold, determining the NOMA mode as the access mode of the terminal device. Li is directed to a network device configuring, based on an access mode of a terminal device, an information transmission pattern for the terminal device from a first resource set associated with a MOMA mode and a second resource set associated with a NOMA mode.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of instant application to modify the combination of Matsuda, Lee, Nam and Maaref by using the features (determining the NOMA mode based on QoS, see para [0010] of Li) of Li in order to have more effective method such that UE receive an instruction to activate or deactivate the NOMA mode for the sidelink communication based on a quality of service (QoS).
Regarding Claim 19, Claim 19 has similar limitation as of Claim 5, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim 5.
Regarding Claim 25, Claim 25 has similar limitation as of Claim 5, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim 5.
Regarding Claim 6, Matsuda, Lee, Nam, Maaref, and Li teach The apparatus of claim 5, Matsuda further teaches wherein to receive the instruction to activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA, the at least one processor is configured to receive the instruction to activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA is received via at least one of a physical layer (L1) signal, a media access control (MAC) layer (L2) signal, or a radio resource control (RRC) layer (L3) signal (Para [0155]; The terminal device 2 monitors a set of PDCCH candidates and/or a set of EPDCCH candidates of one or more activated serving cells set by RRC signaling.)(para [0214]; the base station device 1 … notify the terminal device 2 of the applied NOMA pattern vectors (interpreted as “the instruction to activate or deactivate the NOMA”) by RRC signaling, a system information block (SIB), a DCI, or the like.).
Regarding Claim 20, Claim 20 has similar limitation as of Claim 6, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim 6.
Claim(s) 7 and 21 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Matsuda, in view of Lee, in view of Nam, in view of Maaref, in view of Li, and further in view of Bala et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20200396698, hereinafter “Bala”).
Regarding Claim 7, Matsuda, Lee, Nam, Maaref, and Li teach The apparatus of claim 5, Matsuda, Lee, Nam, Maaref, and Li fail to teach wherein the instruction to activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA includes an indication of a timer, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA expiration of the timer.
Bala teaches:
wherein the instruction to activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA includes an indication of a timer, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA expiration of the timer (para [0134] of Bala: A WTRU may receive an activation indication regarding when to start applying NOMA, a NOMA type, and/or a power offset. The WTRU may receive the activation indication in physical layer signaling. The WTRU may receive the activation indication in MAC layer signaling, such as in a MAC control element (MAC-CE). The activation indication may include a starting time period for applying NOMA, a NOMA type, and/or a power offset. Upon receiving the activation indication, the WTRU may begin applying NOMA, a NOMA type, and/or a power offset at the starting time period. In an example, the WTRU may beginning applying NOMA, a NOMA type, and/or a power offset with an UL transmission that is at least k time periods after the time period in which the activation was received (interpreted as “an indication of a timer… activate or deactivate the grant-free NOMA expiration of the timer”). The value of k may be configurable (e.g., k may be configured to have an integer value such as 0, 1, 4, etc.). In an example, the WTRU may begin applying NOMA, a NOMA type, and/or a power offset with the UL transmission for which a grant or other physical layer signaling that includes the activation was received (The value of k is interpreted as “timer”)).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of instant application to modify the combination of Matsuda, Lee, Nam, Maaref, and Li by using the features (activation indication including a starting time period for applying NOMA ) of Bala in order to have more effective method such that WTRU (UE) receives an activation indication regarding when to start applying a grant-free NOMA.
Regarding Claim 21, Claim 21 has similar limitation as of Claim 7, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim 7.
Conclusion
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/WON JUN CHOI/Examiner, Art Unit 2411 /DERRICK W FERRIS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2411
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