DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Amendment
This is in response to the Response submitted on 03/09/2026.
Claims 1, 3-11, and 13-20 are currently pending, with claims 1, 11, and 19 being independent. Claims 1, 4, 6-11, 14 and 16-19 have been amended.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1,, 3-11. And 13-20 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 Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claims 1, 3-11 and 13-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Di Girolamo et al. (US 20230014303 A1).
Regarding claims 1, 11 and 19 Di Girolamo discloses a transmission or reception method applied to a second device and an electronic device, comprising a processor, a memory, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor (see Figs 26F and 26G), wherein the computer program, when executed by the processor, causes the electronic device to perform:
executing, according to first transmission configuration information, a target behavior in a time resource configured by the first transmission configuration information ([0009] drx-onDurationTimer or drx-InactivityTimer or drx-RetransmissionTimerDL or drx-RetransmissionTimerUL or ra-ContentionResolutionTimer is running and [0104] 1) A sidelink state model to describe the UE behavior for sidelink DRX operation. The DRX operation tailored to each of the sidelink states),
wherein the first transmission configuration information is at least one set of transmission configuration information in N sets of transmission configuration information, and N is an integer greater than or equal to 1 (0112] a UE may execute operations that may include communicating using SL communication with one or more other peer UEs; enabling or disabling SL DRX based on trigger conditions; configuring SL DRX parameters; determining the SL communications that are impacted by the SL DRX configuration; informing the peer UEs impacted by the SL DRX configuration; performing SL DRX operation according to the SL DRX configuration; and monitoring status of SL activity to determine if SL DRX configuration needs to be modified. Trigger conditions may be based on SL state, SL service, configuration from the network, SL carrier frequency/SL BWP/SL resource pool, number of active SL connections, QoS requirements of the SL communication, or UE battery status, among other things. SL DRX Configuration may include drx-InactivityTimerSL, drx-onDurationTimerSL, drx-RetransmissionTimerSL, drx-longCycleStartOffsetSL, drx-shortCycleSL, drxShortCycleTimerSL, or drxPrioritySL, among other things. UE may ask serving cell for assistance in determining the SL DRX configuration. Peer UEs may inform their serving cell about the DRX configuration, so that the serving cell may make appropriate scheduling decisions);
the transmission configuration information comprises: sidelink discontinuous reception (DRX) information ([0114] Note that hereinafter, the following terms may be used as disclosed below. The terms groupcast and multicast may be used interchangeably. The terms Active Mode and DRX ON time may be used interchangeably. These refer to the periods when the UE is actively monitoring the SCI/PSCCH for sidelink transmissions. The term Sidelink DRX group may be used to refer to a single Sidelink DRX configuration that controls the Sidelink DRX operation. The Sidelink DRX group controls the Sidelink DRX for a number of Sidelink Communications that share the same Sidelink DRX configuration. Sidelink DRX groups may be linked (e.g., dependent) on each other. Therefore, the Sidelink DRX configuration for the linked Sidelink DRX groups may share some common parameter(s) or operation(s). For example, the linked Sidelink DRX groups may start the DRX On periods at the same subframe or slot. Alternatively, Sidelink DRX groups may be independent to one another, each with their own Sidelink DRX configurations. Sidelink DRX operation on these independent SL DRX groups do not impact each other. The term Sidelink DRX Configuration may be used to refer to the parameters associated with a Sidelink DRX group that controls the Sidelink DRX operation. Such parameters may include the On duration timer, inactivity timer, retransmission timers, HARQ RTT timers, short and long cycles, etc. The term Sidelink DRX model may refer to how the Sidelink DRX configuration is applied. The configuration may apply to a specific destination, specific source, resource pool, service, source-destination pair, unicast link, etc. This is referred to the SL DRX model. The term Sidelink DRX Operation may refer to the UE actions when the Sidelink DRX is configured and enabled. This may include: when the UE starts the ON duration, what the UE does during the Sidelink DRX active times, the triggers to start and stop the timers, etc. The term ‘SL connection’ may refer to any transfer of data between a UE and a peer UE. A SL connection may be unicast connection, where the SL communication is between a UE and a peer UE. A SL connection may be groupcast connection, where the SL communication is between a UE and a group of UEs. A SL connection may be broadcast connection, where the SL communication is between a UE and all other UEs. In the case of unicast, the SL connection or SL communication between the two peer UEs also has a PC5-RRC signaling connection, and is part of a PC5 unicast link. It is also possible that SL connection could have mix of different cast types. The terms ‘RRC Connected mode’, ‘RRC Connected state’, ‘Connected Mode’, ‘Connected state’ may be used interchangeably. The terms ‘RRC Idle mode’, ‘RRC Idle state’, ‘Idle mode’, ‘Idle state’ may be used interchangeably. The terms ‘RRC Inactive mode’, ‘RRC Inactive state’, ‘Inactive mode’, or ‘Inactive state’ may be used interchangeably); and
the target behavior comprises: sidelink object transmission, wherein the sidelink object comprises: a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) ([0203] For unicast transmissions between UE 201 and UE 202, a PC5 RRC CONNECTION may be established between the two peer UEs. This RRC connection may be used for capability exchange and RB configuration, but may be extended to include information related to SL DRX configuration).
[0204] In a sidelink communication, a source UE may transmit traffic to a peer UE by sending Sidelink Control Information in the PSCCH followed by additional Sidelink Control Information and data in the PSSCH. The SCI may include information that helps identify the target UE at the physical layer. The SCI may be divided into multiple stages (e.g., two), with a first stage including a minimum set of information that may be used to facilitate reception of a second stage. Together, the two stages may include the Layer-1 destination ID, or Layer-1 source ID, along with information that will help decode the PSSCH.
0357] SCI indicates if there is a transmission on SL-SCH and provides the relevant HARQ information. A SCI consists of two parts: the 1st stage SCI on PSCCH and the 2nd stage SCI on PSSCH. The SCI carries a Source ID and Destination ID. The Source ID and the Destination ID may be carried in the 1st stage SCI on PSCCH or the 2nd stage SCI on PSSCH. These IDs correspond to the LSBs of the Layer 2 IDs and may be thought as PHY layer identifier of the source of the SL transmission and the PHY layer identifier of the destination of the SL transmission, respectively. The MSBs of the Layer 2 IDs are carried in the SL-SCH MAC subheader of the MAC PDU. The MSB of the layer 2 ID of the source of the SL transmission is carried in the SRC subheader while the MSB of the layer 2 ID of the destination of the SL transmission is carried in the DST subheader).
Regarding claims 3 and 13, Di Girolamo further discloses wherein the target behavior further comprises at least one of:
sidelink resource selection ([0188] UE 201 will select the SL DRX configuration based on the service or service type, sidelink BWP, device class/category, resource pool, etc. Once selected, UE 201 will start monitoring the SCI/PSCCH for discovery messages during the Discovery window. If a discovery message is received, UE 201 may follow the discovery procedure as described in [3] or [4]. If no discovery message is received, UE 201 may return to DRX until the next discovery period), sidelink resource reselection, sidelink object reception, or sidelink object transmission and reception.
Regarding claims 4 and 14, Di Girolamo further discloses wherein one piece of target information corresponds to at least one set of transmission configuration information; and the first electronic device further comprises at least one piece of following target information: a sidelink signal transmission or reception direction, a sidelink resource scheduling mode, sidelink synchronization-related information, sidelink ID-related information, an electronic device type, a sidelink transmission or reception mode, a sidelink resource pool, ([0172] Some combination of Resource Pool or sidelink BWP and Service or service Type or Device Class. For example, some resource pools may provide a number of SL DRX configurations, one for each service or service type. The SL DRX configurations defining the Discovery Windows. Based on the desired service or service type, the announcing UE selects the appropriate SL DRX configuration and transmits discovery messages during these windows. Similarly, the monitoring UE, based on the desired service or service type, may only monitor discovery announcements during the Discovery windows), a sidelink bandwidth part (BWP), a carrier supporting sidelink, a sidelink feedback mechanism, a sidelink channel state information reference signal, sidelink search space, a format of sidelink downlink control information (DCI), or a radio access technology supported by sidelink.
Regarding claims 5 and 15, Di Girolamo further discloses, wherein the sidelink synchronization-related information comprises at least one of: a synchronization resource, a synchronization priority, a synchronization source type, a priority synchronization source configuration, a current hop-count of the electronic device, a sidelink synchronization signal, a sidelink synchronization signal group, or a synchronization source coverage state ([0219] For Uu DRX operation, the serving cell is the sole entity responsible for enabling/disabling DRX operation, and it typically does this based on UE capability. That is, if the network and UE both support Uu DRX, then the feature is enabled. The serving cell is also responsible for configuring the Uu DRX so that the DRX operation at both the transmitter (gNB/eNB) and receiver (UE) are synchronized. For example, this synchronization prevents a serving cell from attempting to transmit downlink traffic to UE 201 that is in DRX).
Regarding claims 6 and 16, Di Girolamo further discloses wherein the sidelink ID-related information comprises at least one of: a source ID, a destination ID, a connection ID, a service ID, a group ID of a device group of the electronic device, or an index of the electronic device in the device group ([0204] In a sidelink communication, a source UE may transmit traffic to a peer UE by sending Sidelink Control Information in the PSCCH followed by additional Sidelink Control Information and data in the PSSCH. The SCI may include information that helps identify the target UE at the physical layer. The SCI may be divided into multiple stages (e.g., two), with a first stage including a minimum set of information that may be used to facilitate reception of a second stage. Together, the two stages may include the Layer-1 destination ID, or Layer-1 source ID, along with information that will help decode the PSSCH).
Regarding claim 7, Di Girolamo further discloses further comprising: selecting, according to target information of the first electronic device and/or current time information of the first electronic device, at least one set of transmission configuration information from the N sets of transmission configuration information as the first transmission configuration information ([0114] The terms Active Mode and DRX ON time may be used interchangeably. These refer to the periods when the UE is actively monitoring the SCI/PSCCH for sidelink transmissions. The term Sidelink DRX group may be used to refer to a single Sidelink DRX configuration that controls the Sidelink DRX operation. The Sidelink DRX group controls the Sidelink DRX for a number of Sidelink Communications that share the same Sidelink DRX configuration. Sidelink DRX groups may be linked (e.g., dependent) on each other. Therefore, the Sidelink DRX configuration for the linked Sidelink DRX groups may share some common parameter(s) or operation(s). For example, the linked Sidelink DRX groups may start the DRX On periods at the same subframe or slot. Alternatively, Sidelink DRX groups may be independent to one another, each with their own Sidelink DRX configurations. Sidelink DRX operation on these independent SL DRX groups do not impact each other. The term Sidelink DRX Configuration may be used to refer to the parameters associated with a Sidelink DRX group that controls the Sidelink DRX operation. Such parameters may include the On duration timer, inactivity timer, retransmission timers, HARQ RTT timers, short and long cycles, etc. The term Sidelink DRX model may refer to how the Sidelink DRX configuration is applied. The configuration may apply to a specific destination, specific source, resource pool, service, source-destination pair, unicast link, etc.).
Regarding claims 8 and 17, Di Girolamo further discloses further comprising receiving target signaling transmitted by a second electronic device, wherein the target signaling is used for indicating second transmission configuration information in the N sets of transmission configuration information ([0114] ). For example, the linked Sidelink DRX groups may start the DRX On periods at the same subframe or slot. Alternatively, Sidelink DRX groups may be independent to one another, each with their own Sidelink DRX configurations. Sidelink DRX operation on these independent SL DRX groups do not impact each other).
Regarding claim 9 and 18, Di Girolamo further discloses wherein the target signaling comprises at least one of following signaling: switching signaling, used for instructing the first electronic device to switch to the second transmission configuration information; activation or deactivation signaling, used for instructing the first electronic device to activate or deactivate the second transmission configuration information; or sleeping or waking up signaling, used for instructing the first electronic device to enter a sleep or wakeup state and use the second transmission configuration information in the wakeup state.( [0302] A UE may have one or more SL DRX groups. A SL DRX group has a single SL DRX configuration that controls the SL DRX operation. The SL DRX configuration depends on the chosen SL DRX Model. For example this can be per source-destination pair, per source, per destination, per resource pool, per service or service type, etc. The SL DRX operation on each of the SL DRX groups may be independent, for example the SL DRX operation for one SL DRX group may not effect the SL DRX operation on another group. The SL DRX operation on the SL DRX groups are not aligned and do not necessarily share the same SL DRX cycle. Alternatively, the SL DRX groups may be dependent on each other or linked to each other. For example the linked SL DRX groups may have the same SL DRX cycle and/or may have the same wake-up time, but may have different active time durations).
Regarding claim 10, Di Girolamo further discloses executing the target behavior in a time resource configured by the second transmission configuration information ([0303] For each SL DRX group, the SL DRX operation is divided into a number of ON times and OFF times. The ON times are variable and can be extended based on activity on the sidelink communications and or Uu interface. During the OFF times, UE 201 may not receive any sidelink traffic on SL communications that are using the discontinuous reception, and UE 201 may turn off SCI/PSCCH monitoring for these SL communications during the slots or subframes of the OFF period. During the ON periods, UE 201 is expected to monitor the SCI/PSCCH).
Regarding claim 20, Di Girolamo further discloses an electronic device comprising a processor, memory and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the computer program, when executed by the processor, causes the electronic device to perform steps of the transmission or reception configuration method according to claim 11 (Fig. 26F and 26G [0496] It is understood that any or all of the apparatuses, systems, methods and processes described herein may be embodied in the form of computer executable instructions (e.g., program code) stored on a computer-readable storage medium which instructions, when executed by a processor, such as processors 118 or 91, cause the processor to perform or implement the systems, methods and processes described herein. Specifically, any of the steps, operations, or functions described herein may be implemented in the form of such computer executable instructions, executing on the processor of an apparatus or computing system configured for wireless or wired network communications. Computer readable storage media includes volatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any non-transitory (e.g., tangible or physical) method or technology for storage of information, but such computer readable storage media do not include signals. Computer readable storage media include, but are not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other tangible or physical medium which may be used to store the desired information and which may be accessed by a computing system).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Lee et al. (US 11,778,682 B2) discloses a method and apparatus for sidelink (SL) discontinuous Reception (DRX) operation based on multiple DRX configurations and prioritization involving multiple wireless devices..
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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/CHARLES N APPIAH/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2641
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