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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 12/15/2025 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
Examiner acknowledges receipt of Applicant's RCE filed 12/15/2025.
In the amendment, claims 1-20 are cancelled and claims 21-37 are new.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 21, 29, 33, and 35 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.
Claim Objections
Claims 22-28 and 30-32, are objected to because of the following informalities: (claims 22-28 depend on claim 1, which was cancelled; and claims 30-32 depend on claim 9, which was also cancelled). Appropriate correction is required.
Examiner will assume that claims 22-28 depend on claim 21 (since claim 1 was cancelled) and claims 30-32 depend on claim 29 (since claim 9 was cancelled).
Claim 28 is objected to because of the following informalities: The communication method according to any one of claim 1. Appropriate correction is required.
Examiner will assume that “Claim 28, The communication method according to claim 21.”
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
The claim 35 is rejected under 101. Claim 35 drawn to a “computer-readable storage medium” comprising stored data. The Specification mentioned in paragraph [00389, etc.], " The computer instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or may be transmitted from a computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium". Applicant fails to define anywhere in the specification “storage medium” as being non-transitory.
Therefore, claim 35 is directed towards non-statutory subject matter (See MPEP section 2106, Seventh Edition, Revision No. dated February 2000, at page 2100-10 and 2100-11).
Other dependent claims, which are not specifically cited above are also rejected because of the deficiencies of their respective parent claims.
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.
Claims 21-22, 25, 27-36 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang et al. (US 20230345332 A1, hereinafter, Wang) in view of Tang Hai (US 20190150107 A1, hereinafter, Tang) further in view of Park et al. (US 20220046580 A1, hereinafter, Park)
Regarding Claim 21, Wang discloses, a communication method, comprising:
determining, by a terminal device, a target first cell, determining, by the terminal device (Fig. 1, element 120), to reselect the first cell, or having reselected, by the terminal device, the first cell, wherein the first cell belongs to a first network ("In some embodiments in which the terminal device 120 is configured with dual connectivity (DC) and the terminal device 120 wants to remain connected state in the first network, the request may include a release or deactivation of at least part of serving cells while remaining a connected state in the first communication network. For example, the terminal device 120 may set the expected RRC state as a connected state, and indicate releasing or deactivating the entire secondary node (SN)." [¶0054]); and
sending, by the terminal device, first information to a network device ("At block 540, the terminal device 120 may transmit the first information to the first network device 110. For example, the terminal device 120 may transmit the first information via UEAssistanceInformation message. It should be noted that any other suitable messages are also feasible." [¶0091]);
wherein the network device belongs to a second network ("At block 550, the terminal device 120 may transmit the second information to the second network device 111. For example, the terminal device 120 may transmit the second information via RRCSetupComplete message. It should be noted that any other suitable messages are also feasible." [¶0092]);
the first information is determined by the terminal device, the first information comprises first configuration information and/or first timing offset information, the first configuration information comprises to-be-used gap, GAP, configuration information or to-be-used time division multiplexing, TDM, pattern configuration information of the terminal device ("At block 530, the terminal device 120 may generate first information of the TDM pattern for the first network device 110 and second information of the TDM pattern for the second network device 111. In some embodiments, the first information and second information may be adapted to meet respective time-domain requirements in the first and second networks." [¶0090]), and
Wang doesn’t explicitly disclose, the first timing offset information comprises a downlink timing offset between the first cell and a second cell; and the second cell belongs to the second network, the network device in the second network transmits data with the terminal device, the terminal device is equipped with a first subscriber identity module card corresponding to the first network and a second subscriber identity module card corresponding to the second network, and the to-be-used GAP configuration information or the to-be-used TDM pattern configuration information indicates a time period in which the terminal device receives a paging message from the first network when the terminal device uses the second network for communication.
Tang in related art discloses, the first timing offset information comprises a downlink timing offset between the first cell and a second cell ("The terminal receives at least one downlink synchronization offset information from the first base station through the first cell and corresponding to the at least one second cell, each downlink synchronization offset information including a time offset between timing of the corresponding second cell and timing of the first cell and the first base station being the base station containing the first cell." [¶0125]); and
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to combine the teaching of Wang with the idea “first timing offset information" defines the time difference (offset) between the downlink signals received from a first cell and a second cell as disclosed by Tang. The rationale for using this the timing offset information is to provide the necessary data for the terminal device to bridge the timing domains of the two different networks, enabling reliable communication.
Park in related art discloses, the second cell belongs to the second network, the network device in the second network transmits data with the terminal device, the terminal device is equipped with a first subscriber identity module card corresponding to the first network and a second subscriber identity module card corresponding to the second network ("The wireless device 1800 may support at least two SIMs 1602, for example, as shown in FIG. 16. The wireless device 1800 may comprise a dual-SIM or a multi-SIM device. The at least two SIMs 1602 may comprise a first SIM (e.g., SIM1) for communicating with the first wireless network (e.g., a PLMN, or any other communication device) and a second SIM (e.g., SIM2) for communicating with second wireless network (e.g., a PLMN, or any other communication device), as shown in FIG. 16..." [¶0202], see also, "A wireless device 2212 may be multi-SIM wireless device. The wireless device 2212 may use a first SIM (e.g., SIM1) to communicate with the first PLMN. The wireless device 2212 may use a second SIM (e.g., SIM2) to communicate with the second PLMN. The wireless device 2212 may have an RRC connection with the second base station 2208..." [¶0221]), and
the to-be-used GAP configuration information or the to-be-used TDM pattern configuration information indicates a time period in which the terminal device receives a paging message from the first network when the terminal device uses the second network for communication ("The second base station 2108 may determine, based on the assistance information, configuration parameters of a monitoring gap (e.g., timing gap). The configuration parameters of the monitoring gap may indicate time resources and/or frequency resources of the monitoring gap. The monitoring gap indicated by the configuration parameters may (or may not) be the same as the radio resources indicated by the wireless device 2112, comprise the radio resources, and/or comprise at least a portion of the radio resources. The second base station 2108 may send (e.g., transmit), to the wireless device 2112, a second message indicating the configuration parameters of the monitoring gap." [¶0215], see also, "FIG. 21B shows an example of wireless device communications via two cells (e.g., the first cell and the second cell) in a time domain. The wireless device 2112 may receive paging indications 2120 via the first cell in/during a monitoring gap 2128. The wireless device 2112 may transmit/receive signals to/from the second cell and/or the other serving cells of the wireless device 2112 in the second wireless network outside the monitoring gap 2128..." [¶0219].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to combine the teaching of Wang and Tang with the idea of mobile networks where a UE with two SIMs uses one network for active data while managing paging from another using GAP or TDM patterns as disclosed by Park. The rationale for using this process is to allow seamless switching or concurrent service by allocating specific time slots for Network 1's pings even when busy on Network 2, crucial for maintaining calls/data on both services.
Regarding Claim 22, Combination Wang, Tang and Park disclose, the communication method according to claim 21.
Wang doesn’t explicitly disclose, wherein after the terminal device has reselected the first cell, the to-be-used GAP configuration information of the terminal device comprises GAP configuration information used by the terminal device when the terminal device transmits data with the network device in the second network; or
after the terminal device has reselected the first cell, the to-be-used TDM pattern configuration information of the terminal device comprises TDM pattern configuration information used by the terminal device when the terminal device transmits data with the network device in the second network.
Park also discloses, wherein after the terminal device has reselected the first cell, the to-be-used GAP configuration information of the terminal device comprises GAP configuration information used by the terminal device when the terminal device transmits data with the network device in the second network (…The wireless device may determine the available resources based on the at least one system information message indicating activation of the DRX configuration parameters, the PSM configuration parameters, a resource gap of the resource gap configuration parameters, and/or the like…” [¶0273] and also "The wireless device may determine, based on the signal information, the assistance information indicating available resources at the second wireless network (e.g., the second base station, the second cell)....The resource gap configuration parameters may be in a subframe structure of the second base station and/or the second cell..."[¶0265]); or
after the terminal device has reselected the first cell, the to-be-used TDM pattern configuration information of the terminal device comprises TDM pattern configuration information used by the terminal device when the terminal device transmits data with the network device in the second network.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to combine the teaching of Wang and Tang with the idea where a device, after switching to a better cell (reselecting the first cell), retains or adapts its GAP settings to align with the different frequency/carrier used by the new network (second network) as disclosed by Park. The rationale for using this concept is to maintain seamless connectivity and measurement capability across diverse network conditions, letting the device know which measurement gaps to use for the new cell it's on and save power.
Regarding Claim 25, Combination Wang, Tang and Park disclose, the communication method according to claim 21.
Wang also teaches, wherein the method further comprises:
when a first condition is met, determining, by the terminal device, the first information, wherein the first condition comprises at least one of the following:
the terminal device has camped on the first cell ("...For example, the terminal device 120 may transmit the suggestion of the TDM pattern via RRCSetupComplete message". [¶0048]) and also,
According to embodiments of the present application, the TDM pattern (also referred to as switch gap herein) is configured for the terminal device 120 to switch to the second network for a certain period, e.g., for a short period to transmit small data, while remaining connected state in the first network". [¶0049], see also [¶0042]); Here, connected state happens after the terminal device is camped;
the downlink timing of the cell before the terminal device reselects is different from the downlink timing of the first cell;
a downlink timing offset between the downlink timing of the cell before the terminal device reselects and the downlink timing of the first cell is greater than a first threshold; and
a network device to which the cell before the terminal device reselects belongs is different from a network device to which the first cell belongs.
Regarding Claim 27, Combination Wang, Tang and Park disclose, the communication method according to claim 21.
Wang doesn’t explicitly disclose, wherein if the first information is the first timing offset information, the method further comprises: determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on the first timing offset information;
wherein the first configuration information comprises the to-be-used GAP configuration information or the to-be-used TDM pattern configuration information of the terminal device.
Park, in related art relates, wherein if the first information is the first timing offset information, the method further comprises: determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on the first timing offset information ("...The wireless device may send, to the second base station and based on receiving the paging indication, a random access preamble to establish an RRC connection. The first message may further comprise discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration parameters associated with the wireless device at the second base station. The first message may comprise assistance information that comprises the indications of the periodicity and the timing offset...."[¶0322]);
wherein the first configuration information comprises the to-be-used GAP configuration information or the to-be-used TDM pattern configuration information of the terminal device ("...The wireless device may receive a second message indicating a timing gap based on the first message. The wireless device may monitor, based on the timing gap, at least one paging occasion of a cell of the second base station. The wireless device may receive, during the timing gap and via the cell, a paging indication." [¶0321], see also, "The wireless device may send (e.g, transmit), to the second base station, a first message comprising assistance information for communication with the first base station. The assistance information may indicate at least one of: a time duration; a timing offset; and/or the like. The wireless device may receive a second message indicating a communication gap to communicate with the first base station. The wireless device may transmit/receive, based on the communication gap, one or more signals to/from the first base station. The wireless device may monitor, in the communication gap, one or more channels in a wireless network of the first base station."[¶0300]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to combine the teaching of Wang and Tang with the idea a method where a device uses timing data from the network to figure out its specific schedule for transmitting and receiving data as disclosed by Park. The rationale for using this is to ensure efficient and interference-free communication by coordinating all devices on the network according to a common schedule.
Regarding Claim 28, Combination Wang, Tang and Park disclose, the communication method according to claim 21. Wang does not explicitly disclose, wherein the method further comprises: receiving, by the terminal device, a first acknowledgment message from the network device, wherein the first acknowledgment message indicates that the network device has received the first information.
Park, in similar art teaches, wherein the method further comprises: receiving, by the terminal device, a first acknowledgment message from the network device, wherein the first acknowledgment message indicates that the network device has received the first information ("The second base station may send (e.g., transmit), to the wireless device, a second message indicating the gap (e.g., the monitoring gap and/or the communication gap). The second message may comprise the configuration parameters of the gap. The second message may comprise the information response message indicating the response to/the acknowledgement of the first message..." [¶0286]).
It therefore would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify Wang and Tang’s teaching by including Park’s idea of network device sending acknowledging message after receiving the first information, thereby, increase reliability and eventually improve the success rate receiving paging message by the terminal device.
Regarding Claim 31, Combination Wang, Tang and Park disclose the communication method according to claim 29.
Wang doesn’t disclose, wherein if the first information is the first timing offset information, the method further comprises: determining, by the network device, the first configuration information based on the first timing offset information;
wherein the first configuration information comprises the to-be-used GAP configuration information or the to-be-used TDM pattern configuration information of the terminal device.
Park discloses, wherein if the first information is the first timing offset information, the method further comprises: determining, by the network device, the first configuration information based on the first timing offset information ("...The first message may comprise assistance information that comprises the indications of the periodicity and the timing offset. The assistance information may be based on at least one of: discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration parameters at the first base station; or a wireless device identifier of the wireless device at a second cell of the first base station..."[¶0322]);
wherein the first configuration information comprises the to-be-used GAP configuration information or the to-be-used TDM pattern configuration information of the terminal device ("...The wireless device may receive a second message indicating a timing gap based on the first message. The wireless device may monitor, based on the timing gap, at least one paging occasion of a cell of the second base station. The wireless device may receive, during the timing gap and via the cell, a paging indication." [¶0321], see also, "The wireless device may send (e.g, transmit), to the second base station, a first message comprising assistance information for communication with the first base station. The assistance information may indicate at least one of: a time duration; a timing offset; and/or the like. The wireless device may receive a second message indicating a communication gap to communicate with the first base station. The wireless device may transmit/receive, based on the communication gap, one or more signals to/from the first base station. The wireless device may monitor, in the communication gap, one or more channels in a wireless network of the first base station."[¶0300]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to combine the teaching of Wang and Tang with the idea a method where a device uses timing data from the network to figure out its specific schedule for transmitting and receiving data as disclosed by Park. The rationale for using this is to ensure efficient and interference-free communication by coordinating all devices on the network according to a common schedule.
Regarding Claim 33, Wang discloses, communication apparatus with at least one processor and non-transitory memory holding computer instructions that when executed by the at least one processor cause the device to perform the steps of ("As shown, the device 1100 includes a processor 1110, a memory 1120 coupled to the processor 1110, a suitable transmitter (TX) and receiver (RX) 1140 coupled to the processor 1110, and a communication interface coupled to the TX/RX 1140. The memory 1110 stores at least a part of a program 1130..." [¶0126], see also, "The program 1130 is assumed to include program instructions that, when executed by the associated processor 1110, enable the device 1100 to operate in accordance with the embodiments of the present disclosure, as discussed herein with reference to FIGS. 1 to 10..." [¶0127]).
Besides, regarding claim [33] “Apparatus”, are rejected under the same reasoning as claims [21] “Method/UE”, where Wang, Tang, Park teaches Method /UE & Apparatus.
Regarding Claim 34, Combination of Wang, Tang and Park disclose, the communication apparatus of claim 33.
Wang also discloses, wherein the communication apparatus is a terminal device, or a chip used in a terminal device ("FIG. 11 is a simplified block diagram of a device 1100 that is suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 1100 can be considered as a further example implementation of the terminal device 120 or the first network device 110 or the second network device 111 as shown in FIG. 1. Accordingly, the device 1100 can be implemented at or as at least a part of the terminal device 120 or the first network device 110 or the second network device 111.” [¶0125]).
Regarding Claim 35, A computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable storage medium stores non-transitory computer instructions, and when the instructions are run on a processing unit of a terminal device to perform the following steps ("The memory 1120 may be of any type suitable to the local technical network and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, semiconductor based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory and removable memory, as non-limiting examples..." [¶0128], see also, "The program 1130 is assumed to include program instructions that, when executed by the associated processor 1110, enable the device 1100 to operate in accordance with the embodiments of the present disclosure, as discussed herein with reference to FIGS. 1 to 10..." [¶0127]).
Besides, regarding claim [35] “CRM”, are rejected under the same reasoning as claims [21] “Method/UE”, where Wang, Tang, Park teaches Method /UE & CRM.
Regarding claim [29] “method/Network”, are rejected under the same reasoning as claims [21] “Method/UE”, where Wang, Tang, Park teaches Method/ Network/UE.
Regarding claim [30] “method/Network”, are rejected under the same reasoning as claims [22] “Method/UE”, where Wang, Tang, Park teaches Method/ Network/UE.
Regarding claim [31] “method/Network”, are rejected under the same reasoning as claims [27] “Method/UE”, where Wang, Tang, Park teaches Method/ Network/UE.
Regarding claim [32] “method/Network”, are rejected under the same reasoning as claims [28] “Method/UE”, where Wang, Tang, Park teaches Method/ Network/UE.
Regarding claim [36] “CRM”, are rejected under the same reasoning as claims [22] “Method/UE”, where Wang, Tang, Park teaches Method/ UE & CRM.
Claims 23-24, 26, and 37 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang in view of Tang in view of Park, further in view of Berggren et al. (US 20220394667 A1), hereinafter, Berggren)
Regarding Claim 23, Combination Wang, Tang and Park disclose, the communication method according to claim 21.
Wang doesn’t explicitly disclose, wherein the method further comprises:
determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing of the first cell and downlink timing of the second cell;
determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing of a cell before reselection, downlink timing of the first cell, and downlink timing of the second cell; or
determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing of a cell before reselection, downlink timing of the first cell, downlink timing of the second cell, and second configuration information, wherein the second configuration information is GAP configuration information or TDM pattern configuration information used by the terminal device before the terminal device reselects the first cell.
Park, in related art relates, wherein the method further comprises:
determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing of the first cell and downlink timing of the second cell ("The wireless device may determine the assistance information for monitoring/receiving paging indications from the first wireless network (e.g., the first base station and/or the first cell)...The assistance information may indicate at least one of a periodicity (e.g., of paging occasions, paging frames/subframes/slots, etc.), a timing offset (e.g., of paging occasions, paging frames/subframes/slots, etc.), a size/duration (e.g., of paging indications/occasions), and/or the like." [¶0266], see also, Fig. 31, see also, "...At step 3116, the wireless device may send (e.g., transmit), to the second base station and based on the signal information, a first message comprising assistance information for signal monitoring/ reception/ transmission. The assistance information may indicate a periodicity and/or a timing offset..." [¶0296]); Here “timing offset” is the time difference between the downlink timing of the first cell and downlink timing of the second cell;
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to combine the teaching of Wang and Tang with the idea to calculate the relative timing difference or propagation delay difference between different cells as disclosed by Park. The rationale for having this information- relative timing difference or propagation delay- is used to align uplink transmissions across these cells.
Berggren discloses in related art, determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing of a cell before reselection, downlink timing of the first cell, and downlink timing of the second cell ("...One option would be that the timing of the second cellular NW 100-2 is acquired at a point in time when the timing of the NW 100-1 as already been acquired (i.e., connecting to a further NW, in addition to an already existing connection). In particular in such a scenario it would be possible that a request control message is transmitted during an attach procedure to the second cellular NW 100-2. Alternatively or additionally, it would be possible that the timing offset 780-1 is determined in response to a cell re-selection, e.g., when the UE 101 re-selects a cell of the second cellular NW 100-2. This can, in particular, be dependent on whether or not there is a synchronization between the multiple cells of the NW 100-2. In yet a further option, it would be possible that the timing offset 780-1 is determined upon an accumulated timing drift between the first and second cellular NWs 100-1, 100-2 exceeding a threshold and/or in accordance with a predefined schedule..."[¶0144], see also, "...wherein the timing offset is determined in response to a cell re selection of cells of the second network depending on whether or not there is a synchronization between the cells of the second network." [Claim14]); or
determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing of a cell before reselection, downlink timing of the first cell, downlink timing of the second cell, and second configuration information, wherein the second configuration information is GAP configuration information or TDM pattern configuration information used by the terminal device before the terminal device reselects the first cell.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to combine the teaching of Wang, Tang and Park with the idea that involves determining timing information during a cell reselection procedure or handover as disclosed by Berggren. The rationale for comparing the timing of the previous cell (before reselection) with the timing of the new cells (first and second cells), the terminal can more efficiently acquire synchronization with the new target cells and determine the necessary timing advance adjustments, thereby reducing service interruption time.
Regarding Claim 24, Combination Wang, Tang and Park disclose, the communication method according to claim 21.
Wang doesn’t explicitly disclose, wherein the method further comprises:
determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing offset information between the first cell and the second cell;
determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing offset information between the first cell and the second cell and downlink timing offset information between the second cell and a cell before reselection;
determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing offset information between the first cell and the second cell and second configuration information, wherein the second configuration information is GAP configuration information or TDM pattern configuration information used by the terminal device before the terminal device reselects the first cell; or
determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing offset information between the first cell and the second cell, downlink timing offset information between the second cell and a cell before reselection, and second configuration information.
Tang in related art discloses, wherein the method further comprises:
determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing offset information between the first cell and the second cell ("Alternatively, the transceiver 610 is further configured to receive at least one downlink synchronization offset information transmitted by the first base station through the first cell and corresponding to the at least one second cell. Each downlink synchronization offset information includes a time offset between timing of the corresponding second cell and timing of the first cell, and the first base station is the base station containing the first cell." [¶0214]);
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to combine the teaching of Wang with the idea of having a first configuration information based on downlink timing offset information between the first cell and the second cell as disclosed by Tang. The rationale for using this the timing offset information is to provide the necessary data for the terminal device to bridge the timing domains of the two different networks, enabling reliable communication.
Berggren in related art relates, determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing offset information between the first cell and the second cell and downlink timing offset information between the second cell and a cell before reselection ("As part of the attach procedure, the UE can determine the timing offset between the first timing of the first POs of the first NW and the second timing of the second POs of the second NW...In case the cells of the second NW are not frame synchronized, the CN has the information of the timing offset between the cells of the second NW and can calculate the new offset to the new cell. For this, the further timing can be read from the UE context at the CN. Thereby, the paging can be coordinated in multiple cells. The paging can also be coordinated when doing cell reselection. This is possible even without the UE having to re-report the desired further timing when mobility occurs." [¶0186]);
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to combine the teaching of Wang, Tang with the idea of having a process which relates to a terminal device (UE) in a cellular network using downlink timing offset information between different cells to determine its first configuration information as disclosed by Berggren. The rationale for using this method allows the UE to use known timing relationships to quickly and efficiently identify and synchronize with the best available cell to camp on.
Park teaches, determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing offset information between the first cell and the second cell and second configuration information, wherein the second configuration information is GAP configuration information or TDM pattern configuration information used by the terminal device before the terminal device reselects the first cell ("The second message may comprise, for the gap, at least one of: parameters for a PSM; parameters for DRX; parameters for a measurement gap; parameters for a paging gap; parameters for a system information gap; and/or the like. The second message may comprise at least one of: an activation indication of the PSM, an activation indication of the DRX, a deactivation indication of the secondary cell, a handover command for the inter-band handover, a bandwidth part switching indication of the first bandwidth part, and/or the like." [¶0279]); or
determining, by the terminal device, the first configuration information based on downlink timing offset information between the first cell and the second cell, downlink timing offset information between the second cell and a cell before reselection, and second configuration information.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to combine the teaching of Wang, Tang, and Berggren with the idea where a terminal device calculates its first configuration information—typically its updated
measurement GAP or TDM pattern—after reselecting a new cell disclosed by Park. The rationale for using this process is to ensure the device maintains synchronization and efficient resource usage as it moves between different network environments.
Regarding Claim 26, Combination Wang, Tang and Park disclose, the communication method according to claim 21.
Combination Wang, Tang and Park don’t explicitly disclose, wherein the method further comprises: obtaining, by the terminal device, the downlink timing of the cell before reselection; and if the terminal device determines that there is a cell that has the same downlink timing as the cell before reselection, using, by the terminal device as the first cell, the cell that has the same downlink timing as the cell before reselection; or
using, by the terminal device as the first cell, a cell whose offset from the downlink timing of the cell before reselection is less than or equal to the first threshold.
Berggren in related art relates, wherein the method further comprises: obtaining, by the terminal device, the downlink timing of the cell before reselection; and if the terminal device determines that there is a cell that has the same downlink timing as the cell before reselection, using, by the terminal device as the first cell, the cell that has the same downlink timing as the cell before reselection ("...the scenario of FIG. 1—considering the same cell configuration with the number of paging events per frame—leads coincident POs. In a second option (synchronization option II), the cellular NWs 100-1, 100-2 are time synchronized (e.g., via a satellite timing reference) with frame synchronization; but there is no SFN synchronization (also cf. FIG. 6 below). Here, the timing offset between the POs for the multiple identities 451, 452 is static and the frame and subframe borders are concurrent, but even the same UE_ID will not create simultaneous POs for the two identities 451, 451. There is a fixed offset between the frame numbers..."[Table 1]); Here two cells are having the same downlink timing indicates the cells are likely synchronized or belong to the same timing area. or
using, by the terminal device as the first cell, a cell whose offset from the downlink timing of the cell before reselection is less than or equal to the first threshold.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to combine the teaching of Wang, Tang and Park with the idea where the UE searches for and measures neighboring cells, likely as part of standard cell reselection procedures as disclosed by Berggren. The rationale for using this is to allow for faster and more efficient reselection, as less time might be needed for timing synchronization with the new cell.
Regarding claim [37] “CRM”, are rejected under the same reasoning as claims [23] “Method/UE”, where Wang, Tang, Park teaches Method/ UE & CRM.
Conclusion
References cited but not used: CHANG et al. (US 20220132613 A1) can be used for independent claims 21, 29 and others in addition to the one used.
References cited but not used: Chirayil; Beena Joy (US-20140128082 A1) can be used for dependent 23-24, 26, and 37 in addition to the one used.
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/MUHAMMAD AINUL HUDA/Examiner, Art Unit 2467
/HASSAN A PHILLIPS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2467