DETAILED ACTION
This communication is response to the amendment filed 01/15/2026. Claims 1-3, 8-10, 14-19, and 21-31 are pending and presented for examination.
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 01/15/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Regarding applicant argument that Xiong provisional application (62/978,684), filed Feb. 19, 2020, fails to disclose the amended claim limitations, the examiner respectfully disagrees.
Xiong provisional application (hereafter Xiong provisional) discloses receive, from the base station, a RS receive power (RSRP) threshold forMsg3 of 4-step random access channel (RACH) via a radio resource control (RRC) signaling; determine number of repetition of a Msg3 for the 4-step random access channel (RACH) based on information indicated by 2 bits of a random access response (RAR) and information included in RACH configuration, wherein the RACH configuration includes the RSRP threshold (see page 4; page 7; page 25; page 26; page 28).
Xiong provisional discloses a repetition level or aggregation factor or the number of slots for Msg3 PUSCH transmission may be configured by higher layers via radio resource control (RRC) signaling or indicated in random access response (RAR). In another embodiment, a set of repetition levels for Msg3 PUSCH transmission can be configured by RMSI or SIB1, and one field in the RAR can be used to indicate which repetition level is applied from the set of values. In one example, a set of repetition levels can be configured as {2, 4, 8, 16} and 2-bit indicator in the RAR may be used to indicate which repetition level is applied from the set of values. In one option, to maintain the same size of RAR, some fields in RAR can be repurposed to indicate the repetition level of Msg3 PUSCH transmission. As a further extension, the repetition level of Msg3 PUSCH transmission may be indicated via existing RAR UL grant (see Xiong provisional, page 4).
Xiong provisional further discloses a UE may interpret the UL grant in RAR in response to a PRACH transmission as per Rel-15, or re-interpret it to determine the number of repetition for the PUSCH carrying Msg3. In another option, coverage enhanced UE may only employ 4-step RACH procedure for random access. In another embodiment, repetition level of Msg3 transmission can be determined in accordance with the repetition level applied for the transmission of PRACH preamble or measured Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP). In one option, two sets of repetition levels for Msg3 PUSCH transmission can be predefined or configured by higher layers via SIB1/RMSI. Further, which one set of repetition levels is selected depends on the coverage enhancement level or the repetition level of PRACH transmission or the measured RSRP. Subsequently, one field in RAR may be used to indicate the repetition level of Msg3 PUSCH from the selected one set of repetition level. Note that
If the repetition level of PRACH transmission is less than or equal to a configured or predefined threshold or measured RSRP is larger than or equal to a configured or predefined threshold, one repetition level is indicated via RAR from the first set of repetition levels for Msg3 PUSCH;
If the repetition level of PRACH transmission is larger than a configured or predefined threshold or measured RSRP is less than or equal to a configured or predefined threshold, another repetition is indicated via RAR from the second set of repetition levels for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong provisional, page 7).
Xiong provisional application further discloses the process includes, at X-201, receiving a message that includes an indication of an aggregation factor for a Msg3 physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) transmission with repetition. The process further includes, at X-202, performing the Msg3 PUSCH transmission based on the indicated aggregated factor (see Fig X-2; page 25; page 26).
Thus, Xiong provisional discloses “receive, from the base station, a RS receive power (RSRP) threshold forMsg3 of 4-step random access channel (RACH) via a radio resource control (RRC) signaling; determine number of repetition of a Msg3 for the 4-step random access channel (RACH) based on information indicated by 2 bits of a random access response (RAR) and information included in RACH configuration, wherein the RACH configuration includes the RSRP threshold” as claimed.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1-3, 8-9, 14, 16-19, 21-25, and 27-31 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over “3rd Generation Partnership Project; Technical Specification Group Radio Access Network; Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA; Requirement for support of radio resource management (Release 16)” (hereafter 3GPP), see IDS date 11/07/2025 in view of US Pub. 2021/0251016 to Xiong et al. (hereafter Xiong).
Regarding claim 1, 3GPP discloses a wireless communications device comprising a processor and a memory, the wireless communications device further including computer-executable instructions stored in the memory of the wireless communications device which, when executed by the processor of the wireless communications device (the UE in 3GPP implicitly contains these elements and discloses the wireless communication device), cause the wireless communications device to:
receive, from a base station, a reference signal (RS) (see 3GPP, Section 6.2.3, Requirements for Cat-M1 UEs, RSRP);
receive, from the base station, a RS receive power (RSRP) threshold for Msg3 of 4-step random access channel (RACH) via a radio resource control (RRC) signaling (see 3GPP, Section 6.2.3: determines the enhanced coverage level based on the RSRP measurement and the configured criterion (RSRP-ThresholdsPRACH); select PRACH resources configured for the corresponding enhanced coverage level as determined in the previous step);
determine, based on the received reference signal (RS) and the RSRP threshold, whether to select resources indicating Msg3 repetition for the wireless communications device (see 3GPP, Section 6.2.3: determines the enhanced coverage level based on the RSRP measurement and the configured criterion (RSRP-ThresholdsPRACH; select PRACH resources configured for the corresponding enhanced coverage level as determined in the previous step);
wherein the RACH configuration includes the RSRP threshold (see 3GPP, Section 6.2.3: determines the enhanced coverage level based on the RSRP measurement and the configured criterion (RSRP-ThresholdsPRACH)); and
3GPP does not explicitly disclose “Msg3 of 4-step RACH and Msg3 repetition; determine number of repetition of a Msg3 for the 4-step random access channel (RACH) based on information indicated by 2 bits of a random access response (RAR) and information included in RACH configuration, wherein the RACH configuration includes the RSRP threshold; and send, based on the determined number of repetition, one or more Msg3 repetitions to the base station.”
However, Xiong discloses receive, from the base station, a RS receive power (RSRP) threshold for Msg3 of 4-step random access channel (RACH) via a radio resource control (RRC) signaling (see Xiong, ¶ 0081: a coverage enhanced UE may only employ the 4-step RACH procedure for random access; ¶ 0082: the repetition level of a Msg3 PUSCH transmission can be determined in accordance with the repetition level applied for the transmission of the PRACH preamble or measured Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP); ¶ 0083: one field in the RAR may be used to indicate the repetition level of the Msg3 PUSCH from the selected one set of repetition level. If the repetition level of a PRACH transmission is less than or equal to a configured or predefined threshold, or the measured RSRP is larger than or equal to a configured or predefined threshold, one repetition level is indicated via the RAR from the first set of repetition levels for the Msg3 PUSCH; ¶ 0055 and ¶ 0079: radio resource control (RRC) signaling);
determine, based on the received reference signal (RS) and the RSRP threshold, whether to select resources for Msg3 repetition for the wireless communications device (see Xiong, ¶ 0062: assuming a 2-bit indicator for the repetition level of the Msg3 PUSCH transmission, the number of bits for the PUSCH frequency resource allocation may be reduced from 14 to 12. In this case, the remaining 2-bit indicator can be used for the repetition level indication of the Msg3 PUSCH transmission; ¶ 0073: whether inter-slot frequency hopping or intra-slot frequency hopping is applied for a Msg3 PUSCH repetition can be configured by higher layers via RMSI (SIB1), OSI or RRC signaling; ¶ 0080: different PRACH resources may be used to indicate the coverage status of the UE. Accordingly, a UE may interpret the UL grant in the RAR in response to a PRACH transmission as per Rel-15, or re-interpret it to determine the number of repetitions for the PUSCH carrying Msg3. In one option, different PRACH resource or PRACH occasions may be configured by the RMSI for a coverage enhanced UE and for a normal UE (e.g., following Rel-15 and Rel-16 configurations) for 2-step and 4-step RACH procedure, respectively. In another option, shared PRACH occasions, but different preamble sequences may be configured by the RMSI for a coverage enhanced UE and normal UE for the 2-step and 4-step RACH procedure, respectively; ¶ 0082: the repetition level of a Msg3 PUSCH transmission can be determined in accordance with the repetition level applied for the transmission of the PRACH preamble or measured Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP); ¶ 0083: the remaining 2-bit indicator can be used for the repetition level indication of the Msg3 PUSCH transmission; ¶ 0079);
determine a number of repetition of a Msg3 for the 4-step random access channel (RACH) (see Xiong, ¶ 0080: a UE may interpret the UL grant in the RAR in response to a PRACH transmission as per Rel-15, or re-interpret it to determine the number of repetitions for the PUSCH carrying Msg3. In one option, different PRACH resource or PRACH occasions may be configured by the RMSI for a coverage enhanced UE and for a normal UE (e.g., following Rel-15 and Rel-16 configurations) for 2-step and 4-step RACH procedure, respectively) based on information indicated by 2 bits of a random access response (RAR) and information included in RACH configuration (see Xiong, ¶ 0057: a set of repetition levels can be configured as (2, 4, 8, 16) and 2-bit indicator in the RAR may be used to indicate which repetition level is applied from the set of values; ¶ 0058: some fields in RAR can be repurposed to indicate the repetition level of a Msg3 PUSCH transmission; ¶ 0062: the remaining 2-bit indicator can be used for the repetition level indication of the Msg3 PUSCH transmission),
wherein the RACH configuration includes the RSRP threshold (see Xiong, ¶ 0083: f the repetition level of a PRACH transmission is less than or equal to a configured or predefined threshold, or the measured RSRP is larger than or equal to a configured or predefined threshold, one repetition level is indicated via the RAR from the first set of repetition levels for the Msg3 PUSCH; if the repetition level of the PRACH transmission is larger than a configured or predefined threshold, or the measured RSRP is less than or equal to a configured or predefined threshold, another repetition is indicated via the RAR from the second set of repetition levels for the Msg3 PUSCH); and
send, based on the determined repetition number, one or more Msg3 repetitions to the base station (see Xiong, Fig 3, Msg 3: L2/L3 message transmission to gNB; ¶ 0058: some fields in RAR can be repurposed to indicate the repetition level of a Msg3 PUSCH transmission. As a further extension, the repetition level of a Msg3 PUSCH transmission may be indicated via existing RAR UL grant; ¶ 0061: the remaining 2-bit indicator can be used for the repetition level indication of the Msg3 PUSCH transmission; ¶ 0074: while if the value of the “Frequency hopping flag” is 1, the UE transmits the PUSCH repetition with inter-slot frequency hopping).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Regarding claim 2, 3GGP in view of Xiong discloses the wireless communications device of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication device is a reduced capability New Radio (NR) device (see 3GPP, Section 6.2.3, Requirement for Cat-M1 UEs: see Cat-M1 UEs).
Xiong also discloses wherein the type is a reduced capability New Radio (NR) device (see Xiong, ¶ 0080: coverage enhanced UE and for a normal UE).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Regarding claim 3, 3GPP in view of Xiong discloses the wireless communications device of claim 1, 3GPP does not explicitly disclose wherein the reference signal (RS) comprises a synchronization signal block (SSB).
However, Xiong discloses wherein the reference signal (RS) comprises a synchronization signal block (SSB) (see Xiong, ¶ 0050: the UE expects to receive the RAR within a time window, of which the start and end are configured by the gNB via a system information block (SIB); ¶ 0056: a set of repetition levels for a Msg3 PUSCH transmission can be configured by the RMSI or SIB1; ¶ 0083: two sets of repetition levels for a Msg3 PUSCH transmission can be predefined or configured by higher layers via SIB1/RMSI).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Regarding claim 8, 3GPP in view of Xiong discloses the wireless communications device of claim 1, but does not explicitly disclose wherein the reference signal (RS) is monitored at a reduced frequency with respect to a legacy user equipment (UE) monitoring frequency.
However, it is well-known in the art to perform the teaching of wherein the reference signal (RS) is monitored at a reduced frequency with respect to a legacy user equipment (UE) monitoring frequency as evidenced by US 2023/0085104 to PARK (see Park, ¶ 0004: provide a new random access method and apparatus for reduced capability (RC) user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system; ¶ 0184: introduction of a low-medium UE (hereinafter, a second type UE or an RC UE) having reduced capability (RC) is being considered to support new IoT, wearable, and various vertical services). Obviously, the reduced capability UE will monitor information at a reduced frequency.
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Park and incorporate it into the system of 3GPP to provide a new random access method and apparatus for reduced capability (RC) user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system (see Park, ¶ 0004).
Regarding claim 9, 3GPP in view of Xiong discloses the wireless communications device of claim 1, 3GPP does not explicitly disclose wherein the one or more Msg3 repetitions are sent in consecutive slots or non-consecutive slots.
However, Xiong discloses wherein the one or more Msg3 repetitions are sent in consecutive slots or non-consecutive slots (see Xiong, ¶ 0072: inter-slot frequency hopping can be used for a Msg3 PUSCH repetition scheduled by a RAR UL grant; ¶ 0091; ¶ 0073: whether inter-slot frequency hopping or intra-slot frequency hopping is applied for a Msg3 PUSCH repetition can be configured by higher layers via RMSI (SIB1), OSI or RRC signaling; ¶ 0076) .
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Regarding claim 14, 3GPP in view of Xiong discloses the wireless communications device of claim 1, 3GPP does not explicitly disclose wherein the one or more Msg repetitions are sent in a frequency hopping mode.
However, Xiong discloses wherein the one or more Msg repetitions are sent in a frequency hopping mode (see Xiong, ¶ 0072: inter-slot frequency hopping can be used for a Msg3 PUSCH repetition scheduled by a RAR UL grant and/or fallbackRAR UL grant or for a Msg3 PUSCH retransmission with repetition; ¶ 0073: whether inter-slot frequency hopping or intra-slot frequency hopping is applied for a Msg3 PUSCH repetition can be configured by higher layers via RMSI (SIB1), OSI or RRC signaling. Note that only one of intra-slot and inter-slot frequency hopping can be configured for a Msg3 PUSCH repetition).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Regarding claim 16, 3GPP in view of Xiong discloses the wireless communications device of claim 1, 3GPP does not explicitly disclose wherein the computer-executable instructions, when executed by the processor of the wireless communications device, further cause the wireless communications device to: receive, from the base station, a fallback random access response (RAR).
However, Xiong discloses receive, from the base station, a fallback random access response (RAR) (see Xiong, ¶ 0065: transmission of a PUSCH that is scheduled by the fallbackRAR in the MsgB for 2-step RACH procedure. As defined in Rel-16, the same content is defined for the fallbackRAR in the MsgB for the 2-step RACH and the RAR in the Msg2 for the 4-step RACH; ¶ 0077: a PUSCH repetition type A and/or B may be used for a Msg3 PUSCH repetition scheduled by a RAR UL grant and/or fallbackRAR UL grant).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Regarding claim 17, it is rejected for the same reasons as set forth in claim 1. Although phrased as a method claim, the claim is nevertheless simple repetitions of the subject matter of claim 1.
Regarding claim 18, it is rejected for the same reasons as set forth in claim 2. Although phrased as a method claim, the claim is nevertheless simple repetitions of the subject matter of claim 2.
Regarding claim 19, it is rejected for the same reasons as set forth in claim 3. Although phrased as a method claim, the claim is nevertheless simple repetitions of the subject matter of claim 3.
Regarding claim 21, 3GPP in view of Xiong discloses the wireless communications device of claim 1, wherein the reference signal (RS) is a received signal strength indicator (see 3GPP, Section 6.2.3: determines the enhanced coverage level based on the RSRP measurement).
Also, Xiong discloses wherein the reference signal (RS) is a received signal strength indicator (see Xiong, ¶ 0082 and ¶ 0083: Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP)).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Regarding claim 22, 3GPP in view of Xiong discloses the wireless communications device of claim 1, 3GPP does not explicitly disclose wherein the 4-step random access channel is a 4-step physical random access channel (PRACH).
However, Xiong discloses wherein the 4-step random access channel is a 4-step physical random access channel (PRACH) (see Xiong, ¶ 0080: shared PRACH occasions, but different preamble sequences may be configured by the RMSI for a coverage enhanced UE and normal UE for the 2-step and 4-step RACH procedure, respectively).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Regarding claim 23, 3GPP in view of Xiong discloses the wireless communications device of claim 1, 3GPP does not explicitly disclose wherein the radio resource control (RRC) configuration includes the RS receive power (RSRP) threshold for 4-step random access channel (RACH).
However, Xiong discloses wherein the radio resource control (RRC) configuration includes the RS receive power (RSRP) threshold for 4-step random access channel (RACH) (see Xiong, ¶ 0079: RRC signaling; ¶ 0080: wherein the radio resource control (RRC) configuration includes the RS receive power (RSRP) threshold for 4-step random access channel (RACH)).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Regarding claim 24, 3GPP in view of Xiong discloses the wireless communications device of claim 1, 3GPP does not explicitly disclose wherein whether to select resources indicating Msg3 repetition for the wireless communications device is determined based on a comparison of the received reference signal (RS) with the RSRP threshold.
However, Xiong discloses wherein whether to select resources indicating Msg3 repetition for the wireless communications device is determined based on a comparison of the received reference signal (RS) with the RSRP threshold (see Xiong, ¶ 0062: assuming a 2-bit indicator for the repetition level of the Msg3 PUSCH transmission, the number of bits for the PUSCH frequency resource allocation may be reduced from 14 to 12. In this case, the remaining 2-bit indicator can be used for the repetition level indication of the Msg3 PUSCH transmission; ¶ 0073: whether inter-slot frequency hopping or intra-slot frequency hopping is applied for a Msg3 PUSCH repetition can be configured by higher layers via RMSI (SIB1), OSI or RRC signaling; ¶ 0080: different PRACH resources may be used to indicate the coverage status of the UE. Accordingly, a UE may interpret the UL grant in the RAR in response to a PRACH transmission as per Rel-15, or re-interpret it to determine the number of repetitions for the PUSCH carrying Msg3. In one option, different PRACH resource or PRACH occasions may be configured by the RMSI for a coverage enhanced UE and for a normal UE (e.g., following Rel-15 and Rel-16 configurations) for 2-step and 4-step RACH procedure, respectively. In another option, shared PRACH occasions, but different preamble sequences may be configured by the RMSI for a coverage enhanced UE and normal UE for the 2-step and 4-step RACH procedure, respectively; ¶ 0082: the repetition level of a Msg3 PUSCH transmission can be determined in accordance with the repetition level applied for the transmission of the PRACH preamble or measured Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP); ¶ 0083: the remaining 2-bit indicator can be used for the repetition level indication of the Msg3 PUSCH transmission; ¶ 0079).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Regarding claim 25, it is rejected for the same reasons as set forth in claim 9. Although phrased as a method claim, the claim is nevertheless simple repetitions of the subject matter of claim 9.
Regarding claim 27, it is rejected for the same reasons as set forth in claim 21. Although phrased as a method claim, the claim is nevertheless simple repetitions of the subject matter of claim 21.
Regarding claim 28, it is rejected for the same reasons as set forth in claim 22. Although phrased as a method claim, the claim is nevertheless simple repetitions of the subject matter of claim 22.
Regarding claim 29, it is rejected for the same reasons as set forth in claim 23. Although phrased as a method claim, the claim is nevertheless simple repetitions of the subject matter of claim 23.
Regarding claim 30, it is rejected for the same reasons as set forth in claim 24. Although phrased as a method claim, the claim is nevertheless simple repetitions of the subject matter of claim 24.
Regarding claim 31, it is rejected for the same reasons as set forth in claim 8. Although phrased as a method claim, the claim is nevertheless simple repetitions of the subject matter of claim 8.
Claim(s) 10, 15, and 26 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over 3GPP in view of Xiong and further in view of US 2023/0085104 to PARK (hereafter Park).
Regarding claim 10, 3GPP in view of Xiong discloses the wireless communications device of claim 1, Xiong discloses wherein the one or more Msg3 repetitions are sent in different resources (see Xiong, ¶ 0082: different PRACH resources may be used to indicate the coverage status of the UE. Accordingly, a UE may interpret the UL grant in the RAR in response to a PRACH transmission as per Rel-15, or re-interpret it to determine the number of repetitions for the PUSCH carrying Msg3) but does not explicitly disclose wherein the one or more Msg3 repetitions are sent in different bandwidth parts (BWPs).
However, Park discloses wherein the one or more Msg3 repetitions are sent in different bandwidth parts (BWPs) (see Park, ¶ 0070; ¶ 0142; ¶ 0290).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Park and incorporate it into the system of 3GPP to provide a new random access method and apparatus for reduced capability (RC) user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system (see Park, ¶ 0004).
Regarding claim 15, 3GPP in view of Xiong discloses wireless communications device of claim 1, Xiong disclose wherein the one or more Msg3 repetitions comprise a preamble indicating that the wireless communication device is a reduced capability new radio (NR) device (see Xiong, ¶ 0080: different preamble sequences may be configured by the RMSI for a coverage enhanced UE and normal UE; ¶ 0082: the repetition level of a Msg3 PUSCH transmission can be determined in accordance with the repetition level applied for the transmission of the PRACH preamble).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Xiong and incorporate it into the system of 3GGP to achieve coverage enhancement for Msg3 PUSCH (see Xiong, ¶ 0052).
Also, Park discloses wherein the one or more Msg3 repetitions comprise a preamble indicating that the wireless communication device is a reduced capability new radio (NR) device (see Park, ¶ 0187: the coverage reduction may be compensated for by repeatedly transmitting the random access preamble or MsgA. Therefore, the coverage level may correspond to the number of repetition transmissions (or repetition level). For example, it is possible to distinguish the RC UE and the existing NR UE in advance during the random access process, it is possible to ensure the reception reliability and coverage of the RC UE as well as optimization for resource utilization for transmission and reception between the base station and the UE after the random access process; ¶ 0189: A first operation that the UE needs to perform within the RA procedure is to transmit a preamble (i.e., PRACH in a 4-step RA) or MsgA (i.e., PRACH and PUSCH in a 2-step RA) through uplink. The RC UE corresponds to a low-performance UE that has low complexity, low cost, low performance, low support bandwidth, a small number of antennas, and the like, which differs from the existing NR UE. A new operation needs to be defined to support the same. To this end, herein proposed is a new resource selection method required for the RC UE that performs the 4-step RA or the 2-step RA to perform a preamble repetition transmission or an MsgA repetition transmission; ¶ 0195: On the other hand, since the RC UE needs to perform a PRACH repetition transmission, a RO selection method different from that of the existing NR UE needs to be considered; ¶ 0221: On the other hand, since the RC UE needs to perform a PRACH repetition transmission, a RO selection method different from that of the existing NR UE needs to be considered; ¶ 0222).
Thus, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the above teaching as taught by Park and incorporate it into the system of 3GPP to provide a new random access method and apparatus for reduced capability (RC) user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system (see Park, ¶ 0004).
Regarding claim 26, it is rejected for the same reasons as set forth in claim 10. Although phrased as a method claim, the claim is nevertheless simple repetitions of the subject matter of claim 10.
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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/RASHEED GIDADO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2464
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