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
The amendment filed 2/26/2026 has been accepted and entered. Accordingly, claims 1, 11, 19-20 have been amended.
Claims 1, 3-4, 6-11, 13-14, and 16-21 are pending in this application.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1, 3-4, 6-11, 13-14, and 16-21 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 § 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.
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.
Claims 1, 3, 4, 7, 11, 13-14, 17 and 19-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Niu et al. (US 2020/0154421 A1), hereinafter referred to as Niu, in view of Hu et al. (US 2023/0276453 A1), hereinafter referred to as Hu, and Li et al. (US 2022/0225373 A1), hereinafter referred to as Li, and Jang et al. (US 2019/0306890 A1), hereinafter referred to as Jang, and Dinan (US 2023/0246795 A1), hereinafter referred to as Dinan.
Re. Claim 1, Niu teaches the following limitations:
A wireless communication method (Figs. 1A-1F), comprising: transmitting, by a base station, first downlink information to a wireless communication device in a downlink carrier in a first cell; (Fig. 3 (Configuration Add-315) & ¶0093 the first wireless node 310 [i.e. a base station] may generate a first configuration 315 [i.e. first downlink information] corresponding to a first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers [i.e. carrier in first cell]. In some examples, the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell may not comprise (e.g., not include) a downlink carrier. Alternatively and/or additionally, the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell may comprise a downlink carrier [i.e. downlink carrier in a first cell].)
and receiving, by the base station, first uplink information from the wireless communication device in N uplink carriers in the first cell, (Fig. 3 (Confirmation-320) & ¶0093 the first wireless node 310 may generate a first configuration 315 corresponding to a first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers [i.e. uplink carriers in first cell] …the second wireless node 305 may access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell [i.e. use uplink carrier to communicate with base station] responsive to receiving the first configuration 315. In some examples, the second wireless node 305 [i.e. a UE, wireless communication device] may generate a confirmation message 320 [i.e. first uplink information] based upon (e.g., responsive to) identifying and/or accessing the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell [i.e. carrier in first cell]. Accordingly, the second wireless node may transmit the confirmation message 320 to the first wireless node 310 [i.e. base station receives transmission of first uplink information].)
wherein N is an integer greater or equal to 2 (¶0092 The second wireless node 305 may (e.g., be required to) transmit one or more data packets to the first wireless node 310 using one or more uplink carriers and/or one or more (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cells [i.e. comprising multiple uplink carriers].)
the N uplink carriers are deactivated in response to the first cell being deactivated (Fig. 1F & ¶0068 all (e.g., each, every uplink carrier) of one or more uplink carriers of the primary cell may not (e.g., and/or may cease to) be used for data transmission based upon the service demand of the second wireless node and/or the location of the second wireless node. Accordingly, the second wireless node [i.e. a UE] may receive a delete instruction corresponding to the one or more uplink carriers and/or the primary cell [i.e. first cell being deactivated with delete instruction]. The second wireless node may (e.g., then) release (e.g., information of) the one or more uplink carriers and/or the primary cell (e.g., and/or not use the uplink carriers and/or the primary cell for data transmission) responsive to receiving the delete instruction [i.e. one or more (N) uplink carriers are deactivated in response to the first cell being deactivated with delete instruction].)
receiving, by the base station from the wireless communication device, second uplink information in an uplink carrier of a second cell, (¶0094 The first wireless node 310 may generate a second configuration 325 corresponding to a second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers. In some examples, the second configuration 325 may comprise an add instruction configured to instruct the second wireless node 305 to access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell (e.g., for data transmission). Accordingly, the second wireless node 305 may access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell responsive to receiving the second configuration 325. In some examples, the second wireless node 305 may generate a confirmation message 330 based upon (e.g., responsive to) identifying and/or accessing the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell. Accordingly, the second wireless node may transmit the confirmation message 330 to the first wireless node 310. [i.e. base station receives transmission of confirmation message 330 (second uplink information) through access of secondary cell, uplink information using an uplink carrier])
Yet, Niu fails to teach: wherein at least a portion of a first transmission of the first uplink information is received via a first uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers and at least a portion of a second transmission of the first uplink information is received via a second uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers simultaneously,
However, in the analogous art Hu teaches such a limitation:
wherein at least a portion of a first transmission of the first uplink information is received via a first uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers and at least a portion of a second transmission of the first uplink information is received via a second uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers simultaneously, (Fig. 8 S804 & ¶0145 The network device configures the first uplink carrier and the second uplink carrier for the terminal device for simultaneous uplink transmission. & ¶0146 Simultaneous transmission (Simultaneous transmission), also referred to as concurrent transmission (Concurrent Transmission), means that the terminal device simultaneously sends uplink transmission on the first uplink carrier and the second uplink carrier. Optionally, time domain resources occupied by the uplink transmission on the first uplink carrier and the second uplink carrier are at least partially or completely overlapped. Optionally, the terminal device receives a single piece of downlink control information DCI, and sends the uplink transmission on the at least two uplink carriers [i.e. N uplink carriers]. & ¶0179 a PUSCH is simultaneously transmitted on the first uplink carrier through an antenna port [i.e. at least a portion of a transmission on first UL carrier] and on the second uplink carrier through two antenna ports [i.e. at least another portion of the transmission on the second UL carrier].)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Hu’s teaching of a portion of an UL transmission being received via both a first and second carrier of N uplink carriers simultaneously, because it would enable the device to better utilize the spectrum bandwidth in 5G networks by increasing uplink capacity. (see Hu ¶0005 & ¶0008)
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: the N uplink carriers are in a same frequency range
However, in the analogous art, Li teaches such a limitation:
the N uplink carriers are in a same frequency range (¶0081 The network device may send information 1 to the terminal device based on the uplink capability information, where the information 1 is used to configure M uplink carriers for the terminal device. & ¶0084 the M uplink carriers may be located in a frequency range covered by a same frequency band combination (for example, a first frequency band combination) ¶0085 For example, the frequency band combination may include at least one frequency band, and any two of the at least one frequency band may overlap or do not overlap at all. A frequency band in this embodiment of this application may also be referred to as a frequency band, or may be a frequency segment or a frequency range. The frequency range covered by the frequency band combination may be understood as a union set of frequency bands included in the frequency band combination. Table 1 shows examples of some possible frequency bands in a 5G communication system. For example, a frequency range (which is a frequency range of uplink coverage) covered by a band n51 in Table 1 is 285400 Hz to 286400 Hz.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu and Hu’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Li’s teaching of N uplink carriers in the same frequency range, because it allows a selection between different carriers with their own inherent channel quality and would ensure uplink performance by avoiding errors caused by poor channel quality by being able to flexibly select the best possible carrier from multiple carriers. (see Li ¶0066)
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: wherein the second cell has a preconfigured association with the downlink carrier of the first cell that is established by the base station, the preconfigured association mapping the uplink carrier of the second cell to the downlink carrier of the first cell.
However, in the analogous art, Jang teaches such a limitation:
wherein the second cell has a preconfigured association with the downlink carrier of the first cell that is established by the base station, (¶0047 According to the CA technology, instead of using only one carrier for communication between a UE and a base station (i.e., eNB), one primary carrier and a plurality of secondary carriers are additionally used and thus transmission capacity may be significantly increased by the number of secondary carriers. In LTE, a cell served by a base station using the primary carrier is called a PCell and a cell served by the base station using the secondary carrier is called an SCell. & ¶0079-¶0080 Through the RRC connection configuration message or through a subsequent additional RRC message (for example, an RRCReconfiguration message), the UE may obtain BWP configuration information of a PCell (including DL DWP ID and UL BWP ID) at operation 1 g - 05. Accordingly, as described above, the UE may determine a DL/UL BWP linkage or correspondence based on the BWP ID, or directly receive the linkage/mapping information of the DL BWP ID and the UL BWP ID through a signaling message. the base station may directly map the DL BWP ID of the PCell with respect to the UL BWP ID no. 3 of the SCell no. 1 [i.e. DL BWP of PCell (downlink carrier of first cell) is mapped to UP BWP of the SCell (uplink carrier of the second cell), and is preconfigured though RRC signaling by the base station])
the preconfigured association mapping the uplink carrier of the second cell to the downlink carrier of the first cell, (¶0047 According to the CA technology, instead of using only one carrier for communication between a UE and a base station (i.e., eNB), one primary carrier and a plurality of secondary carriers are additionally used and thus transmission capacity may be significantly increased by the number of secondary carriers. In LTE, a cell served by a base station using the primary carrier is called a PCell and a cell served by the base station using the secondary carrier is called an SCell. & ¶0079-¶0080 Through the RRC connection configuration message or through a subsequent additional RRC message (for example, an RRCReconfiguration message), the UE may obtain BWP configuration information of a PCell (including DL DWP ID and UL BWP ID) at operation 1 g - 05. Accordingly, as described above, the UE may determine a DL/UL BWP linkage or correspondence based on the BWP ID, or directly receive the linkage/mapping information of the DL BWP ID and the UL BWP ID through a signaling message. the base station may directly map the DL BWP ID of the PCell with respect to the UL BWP ID no. 3 of the SCell no. 1 [i.e. DL BWP of PCell (downlink carrier of first cell) is mapped to UP BWP of the SCell (uplink carrier of the second cell), and is preconfigured though RRC signaling by the base station])
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, and Li’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Jang’s teaching of the uplink carrier of the second cell being associated with the downlink carrier of the first cell, because it would enable the linkage of downlink and uplink carriers through signaling messages so that the UE may perform communication on active bandwidth parts. (See Jang ¶0011 & ¶0079)
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: wherein the first cell is indicated to be deactivated in response to all cells associated with the first cell having already been deactivated, wherein the all cells comprise the second cell.
However, in the analogous art, Dinan teaches such a limitation:
wherein the first cell is indicated to be deactivated in response to all cells associated with the first cell having already been deactivated (Abstract: Secondary cell management in wireless communications is described. A cell group may comprise a plurality of secondary cells. The cell group may comprise a first cell with a control channel The wireless device may keep the first cell active while at least one secondary cell in the cell group is active. & Claim 1: the cell group comprises: a first cell configured with a control channel; and at least one secondary cell different from the first cell; …keep the first cell active while the at least one secondary cell is active; and deactivate the first cell during or after deactivation of each other secondary cell of the cell group. [i.e. the first cell is deactivated only once all secondary (associated) cells are first deactivated]), wherein the all cells comprise the second cell. (Abstract: Secondary cell management in wireless communications is described. A cell group may comprise a plurality of secondary cells. The cell group may comprise a first cell with a control channel The wireless device may keep the first cell active while at least one secondary cell in the cell group is active. & Claim 1: the cell group comprises: a first cell configured with a control channel; and at least one secondary cell different from the first cell; …keep the first cell active while the at least one secondary cell is active; and deactivate the first cell during or after deactivation of each other secondary cell of the cell group. [i.e. the first cell is deactivated only once all secondary (associated) cells are first deactivated])
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Li, and Jang’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Dinan’s teaching of the first cell being deactivated in response to all associated secondary cell being deactivated first, because it would enable an efficient deactivation mechanism for the cell groups. (see Dinan ¶0095)
Re. Claim 3, Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, and Dinan teaches claim 1.
Li further teaches:
wherein the N uplink carriers are in a same frequency band (¶0081 The network device may send information 1 to the terminal device based on the uplink capability information, where the information 1 is used to configure M uplink carriers for the terminal device. & ¶0084 the M uplink carriers may be located in a frequency range covered by a same frequency band combination (for example, a first frequency band combination) ¶0085 For example, the frequency band combination may include at least one frequency band, and any two of the at least one frequency band may overlap or do not overlap at all. A frequency band in this embodiment of this application may also be referred to as a frequency band, or may be a frequency segment or a frequency range. The frequency range covered by the frequency band combination may be understood as a union set of frequency bands included in the frequency band combination. Table 1 shows examples of some possible frequency bands in a 5G communication system. For example, a frequency range (which is a frequency range of uplink coverage) covered by a band n51 in Table 1 is 285400 Hz to 286400 Hz.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Jang, and Dinan’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Li’s teaching of N uplink carriers in the same frequency band or different frequency bands, because it allows a selection between different carriers with their own inherent channel quality and would ensure uplink performance by avoiding errors caused by poor channel quality by being able to flexibly select the best possible carrier from multiple carriers. (see Li ¶0066)
Re. Claim 4, Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, and Dinan teaches claim 1.
Niu further teaches: further comprising one of:
transmitting, by the base station to the wireless communication device, an indication that indicates activation or deactivation of M uplink carriers of the N uplink carriers, wherein M is a positive integer, and M is equal to or less than N; (¶0087 Alternatively and/or additionally, the deactivation instruction [i.e. deactivation indication] may be configured to trigger deactivation of a plurality of uplink carriers (e.g., some, all, etc.) [i.e. M uplink carriers, equal or less than the sum of all the carriers] of the (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell. [It is noted the examiner interprets that only one of the claimed features is mapped, due to the presence of “one of”.])
Re. Claim 7, Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, and Dinan teaches claim 1.
Dinan further teaches: wherein at least one of:
the uplink carrier of the second cell and one of the uplink carrier of the first cell are within a same frequency range;
at most N uplink carriers are associated with the downlink carrier of the first cell, wherein N is a positive integer, and N is determined based on capability of the wireless communication device or base station configuration;
the second cell is activated when the first cell has already been activated;
or the first cell is deactivated when all cells with one or more uplink carriers that are associated with the downlink carrier of the first cell have already been deactivated (Abstract: Secondary cell management in wireless communications is described. A cell group may comprise a plurality of secondary cells. The cell group may comprise a first cell with a control channel The wireless device may keep the first cell active while at least one secondary cell in the cell group is active. & Claim 1: the cell group comprises: a first cell configured with a control channel; and at least one secondary cell different from the first cell; …keep the first cell active while the at least one secondary cell is active; and deactivate the first cell during or after deactivation of each other secondary cell of the cell group. [i.e. the first cell is deactivated only once all secondary (associated) cells are first deactivated]), wherein the all cells comprises the second cell (Abstract: Secondary cell management in wireless communications is described. A cell group may comprise a plurality of secondary cells. The cell group may comprise a first cell with a control channel The wireless device may keep the first cell active while at least one secondary cell in the cell group is active. & Claim 1: the cell group comprises: a first cell configured with a control channel; and at least one secondary cell different from the first cell; …keep the first cell active while the at least one secondary cell is active; and deactivate the first cell during or after deactivation of each other secondary cell of the cell group. [i.e. the first cell is deactivated only once all secondary (associated) cells are first deactivated])
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Li, and Jang’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Dinan’s teaching of the first cell being deactivated in response to all associated secondary cell being deactivated first, because it would enable an efficient deactivation mechanism for the cell groups. (see Dinan ¶0095)
Claim 11 recites similar features to claim 20. Therefore, the rejection for claim 11 is directed towards the same reasons which are stated in claim 20.
Re. Claim 13, Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, and Dinan teaches claim 11.
Li further teaches:
wherein the N uplink carriers are in a same frequency band (¶0081 The network device may send information 1 to the terminal device based on the uplink capability information, where the information 1 is used to configure M uplink carriers for the terminal device. & ¶0084 the M uplink carriers may be located in a frequency range covered by a same frequency band combination (for example, a first frequency band combination) ¶0085 For example, the frequency band combination may include at least one frequency band, and any two of the at least one frequency band may overlap or do not overlap at all. A frequency band in this embodiment of this application may also be referred to as a frequency band, or may be a frequency segment or a frequency range. The frequency range covered by the frequency band combination may be understood as a union set of frequency bands included in the frequency band combination. Table 1 shows examples of some possible frequency bands in a 5G communication system. For example, a frequency range (which is a frequency range of uplink coverage) covered by a band n51 in Table 1 is 285400 Hz to 286400 Hz.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Jang, and Dinan’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Li’s teaching of N uplink carriers in the same frequency band or different frequency bands, because it allows a selection between different carriers with their own inherent channel quality and would ensure uplink performance by avoiding errors caused by poor channel quality by being able to flexibly select the best possible carrier from multiple carriers. (see Li ¶0066)
Claims 14 and 17 recite similar features to claims 4 and 7. Therefore, the rejections for claims 14 and 17 are directed towards the same reasons which are stated in claims 4 and 7.
Re. Claim 19, Niu teaches the following limitations:
A base station, comprising: at least one processor (Fig. 12: base station-1250 & Processor-1210) configured to:
transmit, via a transceiver, first downlink information to a wireless communication device in a downlink carrier in a first cell; (Fig. 3 (Configuration Add-315) & Fig. 12 (network adapter-1214) & ¶0136 The base station 1250 may comprise a variety of peripheral components, such as a wired and/or wireless network adapter 1214 [i.e. a transceiver] connectible to a local area network and/or wide area network; & ¶0093 the first wireless node 310 [i.e. a base station] may generate a first configuration 315 [i.e. first downlink information] corresponding to a first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers [i.e. carrier in first cell]. In some examples, the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell may not comprise (e.g., not include) a downlink carrier. Alternatively and/or additionally, the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell may comprise a downlink carrier [i.e. downlink carrier in a first cell].)
and receive, via the transceiver, first uplink information from the wireless communication device in N uplink carriers in the first cell. (Fig. 3 (Confirmation-320) & Fig. 12 (network adapter-1214) & ¶0136 The base station 1250 may comprise a variety of peripheral components, such as a wired and/or wireless network adapter 1214 [i.e. a transceiver] connectible to a local area network and/or wide area network; & ¶0093 the first wireless node 310 may generate a first configuration 315 corresponding to a first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers [i.e. N or multiple uplink carriers in first cell] …the second wireless node 305 may access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell [i.e. use uplink carrier to communicate with base station] responsive to receiving the first configuration 315. In some examples, the second wireless node 305 [i.e. a UE, wireless communication device] may generate a confirmation message 320 [i.e. first uplink information] based upon (e.g., responsive to) identifying and/or accessing the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell [i.e. carrier in first cell]. Accordingly, the second wireless node may transmit the confirmation message 320 to the first wireless node 310 [i.e. base station receives transmission of first uplink information].)
the N uplink carriers are deactivated in response to the first cell being deactivated (Fig. 1F & ¶0068 all (e.g., each, every uplink carrier) of one or more uplink carriers of the primary cell may not (e.g., and/or may cease to) be used for data transmission based upon the service demand of the second wireless node and/or the location of the second wireless node. Accordingly, the second wireless node [i.e. a UE] may receive a delete instruction corresponding to the one or more uplink carriers and/or the primary cell [i.e. first cell being deactivated with delete instruction]. The second wireless node may (e.g., then) release (e.g., information of) the one or more uplink carriers and/or the primary cell (e.g., and/or not use the uplink carriers and/or the primary cell for data transmission) responsive to receiving the delete instruction [i.e. one or more (N) uplink carriers are deactivated in response to the first cell being deactivated with delete instruction].)
receive, via the transceiver, second uplink information from the wireless communication device in an uplink carrier of a second cell (¶0094 The first wireless node 310 may generate a second configuration 325 corresponding to a second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers. In some examples, the second configuration 325 may comprise an add instruction configured to instruct the second wireless node 305 to access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell (e.g., for data transmission). Accordingly, the second wireless node 305 may access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell responsive to receiving the second configuration 325. In some examples, the second wireless node 305 may generate a confirmation message 330 based upon (e.g., responsive to) identifying and/or accessing the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell. Accordingly, the second wireless node may transmit the confirmation message 330 to the first wireless node 310. [i.e. base station receives transmission of confirmation message 330 (second uplink information) through access of secondary cell, uplink information using an uplink carrier])
Yet, Niu fails to teach: wherein at least a portion of a first transmission of the first uplink information is received via a first uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers and at least a portion of a second transmission of the first uplink information is received via a second uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers simultaneously,
However, in the analogous art Hu teaches such a limitation:
wherein at least a portion of a first transmission of the first uplink information is received via a first uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers and at least a portion of a second transmission of the first uplink information is received via a second uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers simultaneously, (Fig. 8 S804 & ¶0145 The network device configures the first uplink carrier and the second uplink carrier for the terminal device for simultaneous uplink transmission. & ¶0146 Simultaneous transmission (Simultaneous transmission), also referred to as concurrent transmission (Concurrent Transmission), means that the terminal device simultaneously sends uplink transmission on the first uplink carrier and the second uplink carrier. Optionally, time domain resources occupied by the uplink transmission on the first uplink carrier and the second uplink carrier are at least partially or completely overlapped. Optionally, the terminal device receives a single piece of downlink control information DCI, and sends the uplink transmission on the at least two uplink carriers [i.e. N uplink carriers]. & ¶0179 a PUSCH is simultaneously transmitted on the first uplink carrier through an antenna port [i.e. a portion of a transmission on first UL carrier] and on the second uplink carrier through two antenna ports [i.e. another portion of the transmission on the second UL carrier].)
wherein N is an integer greater or equal to 2, (¶0146 the terminal device receives a single piece of downlink control information DCI, and sends the uplink transmission on the at least two uplink carriers [i.e. N uplink carriers; greater or equal to 2].)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Hu’s teaching of a portion of an UL transmission being received via both a first and second carrier of N uplink carriers simultaneously, because it would enable the device to better utilize the spectrum bandwidth in 5G networks by increasing uplink capacity. (see Hu ¶0005 & ¶0008)
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: the N uplink carriers are in a same frequency range
However, in the analogous art, Li explicitly teaches such a limitation:
the N uplink carriers are in a same frequency range (¶0081 The network device may send information 1 to the terminal device based on the uplink capability information, where the information 1 is used to configure M uplink carriers for the terminal device. & ¶0084 the M uplink carriers may be located in a frequency range covered by a same frequency band combination (for example, a first frequency band combination) ¶0085 For example, the frequency band combination may include at least one frequency band, and any two of the at least one frequency band may overlap or do not overlap at all. A frequency band in this embodiment of this application may also be referred to as a frequency band, or may be a frequency segment or a frequency range. The frequency range covered by the frequency band combination may be understood as a union set of frequency bands included in the frequency band combination. Table 1 shows examples of some possible frequency bands in a 5G communication system. For example, a frequency range (which is a frequency range of uplink coverage) covered by a band n51 in Table 1 is 285400 Hz to 286400 Hz.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu and Hu’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Li’s teaching of N uplink carriers in the same frequency range, because it allows a selection between different carriers with their own inherent channel quality and would ensure uplink performance by avoiding errors caused by poor channel quality by being able to flexibly select the best possible carrier from multiple carriers. (see Li ¶0066)
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: wherein the second cell has a preconfigured association with the downlink carrier of the first cell that is established by the base station the preconfigured association mapping the uplink carrier of the second cell to the downlink carrier of the first cell.
However, in the analogous art, Jang teaches such a limitation:
wherein the second cell has a preconfigured association with the downlink carrier of the first cell that is established by the base station (¶0047 According to the CA technology, instead of using only one carrier for communication between a UE and a base station (i.e., eNB), one primary carrier and a plurality of secondary carriers are additionally used and thus transmission capacity may be significantly increased by the number of secondary carriers. In LTE, a cell served by a base station using the primary carrier is called a PCell and a cell served by the base station using the secondary carrier is called an SCell. & ¶0079-¶0080 Through the RRC connection configuration message or through a subsequent additional RRC message (for example, an RRCReconfiguration message), the UE may obtain BWP configuration information of a PCell (including DL DWP ID and UL BWP ID) at operation 1 g - 05. Accordingly, as described above, the UE may determine a DL/UL BWP linkage or correspondence based on the BWP ID, or directly receive the linkage/mapping information of the DL BWP ID and the UL BWP ID through a signaling message. the base station may directly map the DL BWP ID of the PCell with respect to the UL BWP ID no. 3 of the SCell no. 1 [i.e. DL BWP of PCell (downlink carrier of first cell) is mapped to UP BWP of the SCell (uplink carrier of the second cell), and is preconfigured though RRC signaling by the base station])
the preconfigured association mapping the uplink carrier of the second cell to the downlink carrier of the first cell, (¶0047 According to the CA technology, instead of using only one carrier for communication between a UE and a base station (i.e., eNB), one primary carrier and a plurality of secondary carriers are additionally used and thus transmission capacity may be significantly increased by the number of secondary carriers. In LTE, a cell served by a base station using the primary carrier is called a PCell and a cell served by the base station using the secondary carrier is called an SCell. & ¶0079-¶0080 Through the RRC connection configuration message or through a subsequent additional RRC message (for example, an RRCReconfiguration message), the UE may obtain BWP configuration information of a PCell (including DL DWP ID and UL BWP ID) at operation 1 g - 05. Accordingly, as described above, the UE may determine a DL/UL BWP linkage or correspondence based on the BWP ID, or directly receive the linkage/mapping information of the DL BWP ID and the UL BWP ID through a signaling message. the base station may directly map the DL BWP ID of the PCell with respect to the UL BWP ID no. 3 of the SCell no. 1 [i.e. DL BWP of PCell (downlink carrier of first cell) is mapped to UP BWP of the SCell (uplink carrier of the second cell), and is preconfigured though RRC signaling by the base station])
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, and Li’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Jang’s teaching of the uplink carrier of the second cell being associated with the downlink carrier of the first cell, because it would enable the linkage of downlink and uplink carriers through signaling messages so that the UE may perform communication on active bandwidth parts. (See Jang ¶0011 & ¶0079)
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: wherein the first cell is indicated to be deactivated in response to all cells associated with the first cell having already been deactivated, wherein the all cells comprise the second cell.
However, in the analogous art, Dinan teaches such a limitation:
wherein the first cell is indicated to be deactivated in response to all cells associated with the first cell having already been deactivated (Abstract: Secondary cell management in wireless communications is described. A cell group may comprise a plurality of secondary cells. The cell group may comprise a first cell with a control channel The wireless device may keep the first cell active while at least one secondary cell in the cell group is active. & Claim 1: the cell group comprises: a first cell configured with a control channel; and at least one secondary cell different from the first cell; …keep the first cell active while the at least one secondary cell is active; and deactivate the first cell during or after deactivation of each other secondary cell of the cell group. [i.e. the first cell is deactivated only once all secondary (associated) cells are first deactivated]), wherein the all cells comprise the second cell. (Abstract: Secondary cell management in wireless communications is described. A cell group may comprise a plurality of secondary cells. The cell group may comprise a first cell with a control channel The wireless device may keep the first cell active while at least one secondary cell in the cell group is active. & Claim 1: the cell group comprises: a first cell configured with a control channel; and at least one secondary cell different from the first cell; keep the first cell active while the at least one secondary cell is active; and deactivate the first cell during or after deactivation of each other secondary cell of the cell group. [i.e. the first cell is deactivated only once all secondary (associated) cells are first deactivated])
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Li, and Jang’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Dinan’s teaching of the first cell being deactivated in response to all associated secondary cell being deactivated first, because it would enable an efficient deactivation mechanism for the cell groups. (see Dinan ¶0095)
Re. Claim 20, Niu teaches the following limitations:
A wireless communication device, comprising: at least one processor (Fig. 13: user equipment-1350 & processor-1310) configured to:
receive, via a transceiver from a base station, first downlink information in a downlink carrier in a first cell; (Fig. 3 (Configuration Add-315) & Fig. 13 (network adapter-1306) & ¶0140 The UE 1350 may comprise a variety of peripheral components, such as a wired and/or wireless network adapter 1306 [i.e. a transceiver] connectible to a local area network and/or wide area network; & ¶0093 the first wireless node 310 [i.e. a base station] may generate a first configuration 315 [i.e. first downlink information] corresponding to a first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers [i.e. carrier in first cell]. In some examples, the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell may not comprise (e.g., not include) a downlink carrier. Alternatively and/or additionally, the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell may comprise a downlink carrier [i.e. downlink carrier in a first cell].)
and transmit, via the transceiver to the base station, first uplink information in N uplink carriers in the first cell. (Fig. 3 (Confirmation-320) & Fig. 13 (network adapter-1306) & ¶0140 The UE 1350 may comprise a variety of peripheral components, such as a wired and/or wireless network adapter 1306 [i.e. a transceiver] connectible to a local area network and/or wide area network; & ¶0093 the first wireless node 310 may generate a first configuration 315 corresponding to a first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers [i.e. uplink carriers in first cell] …the second wireless node 305 may access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell [i.e. use uplink carrier to communicate with base station] responsive to receiving the first configuration 315. In some examples, the second wireless node 305 [i.e. a UE, wireless communication device] may generate a confirmation message 320 [i.e. first uplink information] based upon (e.g., responsive to) identifying and/or accessing the first (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell [i.e. carrier in first cell]. Accordingly, the second wireless node may transmit the confirmation message 320 to the first wireless node 310 [i.e. base station receives transmission of first uplink information].)
wherein N is an integer greater or equal to 2 (¶0092 The second wireless node 305 may (e.g., be required to) transmit one or more data packets to the first wireless node 310 using one or more uplink carriers and/or one or more (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cells [i.e. comprising multiple uplink carriers].)
the N uplink carriers are deactivated in response to the first cell being deactivated (Fig. 1F & ¶0068 all (e.g., each, every uplink carrier) of one or more uplink carriers of the primary cell may not (e.g., and/or may cease to) be used for data transmission based upon the service demand of the second wireless node and/or the location of the second wireless node. Accordingly, the second wireless node [i.e. a UE] may receive a delete instruction corresponding to the one or more uplink carriers and/or the primary cell [i.e. first cell being deactivated with delete instruction]. The second wireless node may (e.g., then) release (e.g., information of) the one or more uplink carriers and/or the primary cell (e.g., and/or not use the uplink carriers and/or the primary cell for data transmission) responsive to receiving the delete instruction [i.e. one or more (N) uplink carriers are deactivated in response to the first cell being deactivated with delete instruction].)
transmit, via the transceiver to the base station, second uplink information in an uplink carrier of a second cell (¶0094 The first wireless node 310 may generate a second configuration 325 corresponding to a second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers. In some examples, the second configuration 325 may comprise an add instruction configured to instruct the second wireless node 305 to access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell (e.g., for data transmission). Accordingly, the second wireless node 305 may access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell responsive to receiving the second configuration 325. In some examples, the second wireless node 305 may generate a confirmation message 330 based upon (e.g., responsive to) identifying and/or accessing the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell. Accordingly, the second wireless node may transmit the confirmation message 330 to the first wireless node 310. [i.e. base station receives transmission of confirmation message 330 (second uplink information) through access of secondary cell, uplink information using an uplink carrier])
Yet Niu fails to teach: wherein a first transmission of the first uplink information is transmitted via a first uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers and a second transmission of the first uplink information is transmitted via a second uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers simultaneously
However, in the analogous art, Hu teaches such a limitation:
wherein a first transmission of the first uplink information is transmitted via a first uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers and a second transmission of the first uplink information is transmitted via a second uplink carrier of the N uplink carriers simultaneously, (Fig. 8 S804 & ¶0145 The network device configures the first uplink carrier and the second uplink carrier for the terminal device for simultaneous uplink transmission. & ¶0146 Simultaneous transmission (Simultaneous transmission), also referred to as concurrent transmission (Concurrent Transmission), means that the terminal device simultaneously sends uplink transmission on the first uplink carrier and the second uplink carrier. Optionally, time domain resources occupied by the uplink transmission on the first uplink carrier and the second uplink carrier are at least partially or completely overlapped. Optionally, the terminal device receives a single piece of downlink control information DCI, and sends the uplink transmission on the at least two uplink carriers [i.e. N uplink carriers]. & ¶0179 a PUSCH is simultaneously transmitted on the first uplink carrier through an antenna port [i.e. a first transmission of UL information on first UL carrier] and on the second uplink carrier through two antenna ports [i.e. a second transmission of the UL information on the second UL carrier].)
wherein N is an integer greater or equal to 2, (¶0146 the terminal device receives a single piece of downlink control information DCI, and sends the uplink transmission on the at least two uplink carriers [i.e. N uplink carriers; greater or equal to 2].)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Hu’s teaching of an UL transmission being received via both a first and second carrier of N uplink carriers simultaneously, because it would enable the device to better utilize the spectrum bandwidth in 5G networks by increasing uplink capacity. (see Hu ¶0005 & ¶0008)
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: the N uplink carriers are in a same frequency range
However, in the analogous art, Li explicitly teaches such a limitation:
the N uplink carriers are in a same frequency range (Li: ¶0081 The network device may send information 1 to the terminal device based on the uplink capability information, where the information 1 is used to configure M uplink carriers for the terminal device. & ¶0084 the M uplink carriers may be located in a frequency range covered by a same frequency band combination (for example, a first frequency band combination) ¶0085 For example, the frequency band combination may include at least one frequency band, and any two of the at least one frequency band may overlap or do not overlap at all. A frequency band in this embodiment of this application may also be referred to as a frequency band, or may be a frequency segment or a frequency range. The frequency range covered by the frequency band combination may be understood as a union set of frequency bands included in the frequency band combination. Table 1 shows examples of some possible frequency bands in a 5G communication system. For example, a frequency range (which is a frequency range of uplink coverage) covered by a band n51 in Table 1 is 285400 Hz to 286400 Hz.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu and Hu’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Li’s teaching of N uplink carriers in the same frequency range, because it allows a selection between different carriers with their own inherent channel quality and would ensure uplink performance by avoiding errors caused by poor channel quality by being able to flexibly select the best possible carrier from multiple carriers. (see Li ¶0066)
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: wherein the second cell has a preconfigured association with the downlink carrier of the first cell that is established by the base station, the preconfigured association mapping the uplink carrier of the second cell to the downlink carrier of the first cell.
However, in the analogous art, Jang teaches such a limitation:
wherein the second cell has a preconfigured association with the downlink carrier of the first cell that is established by the base station, (¶0047 According to the CA technology, instead of using only one carrier for communication between a UE and a base station (i.e., eNB), one primary carrier and a plurality of secondary carriers are additionally used and thus transmission capacity may be significantly increased by the number of secondary carriers. In LTE, a cell served by a base station using the primary carrier is called a PCell and a cell served by the base station using the secondary carrier is called an SCell. & ¶0079-¶0080 Through the RRC connection configuration message or through a subsequent additional RRC message (for example, an RRCReconfiguration message), the UE may obtain BWP configuration information of a PCell (including DL DWP ID and UL BWP ID) at operation 1 g - 05. Accordingly, as described above, the UE may determine a DL/UL BWP linkage or correspondence based on the BWP ID, or directly receive the linkage/mapping information of the DL BWP ID and the UL BWP ID through a signaling message. the base station may directly map the DL BWP ID of the PCell with respect to the UL BWP ID no. 3 of the SCell no. 1 [i.e. DL BWP of PCell (downlink carrier of first cell) is mapped to UP BWP of the SCell (uplink carrier of the second cell), and is preconfigured though RRC signaling by the base station])
the preconfigured association mapping the uplink carrier of the second cell to the downlink carrier of the first cell, (¶0047 According to the CA technology, instead of using only one carrier for communication between a UE and a base station (i.e., eNB), one primary carrier and a plurality of secondary carriers are additionally used and thus transmission capacity may be significantly increased by the number of secondary carriers. In LTE, a cell served by a base station using the primary carrier is called a PCell and a cell served by the base station using the secondary carrier is called an SCell. & ¶0079-¶0080 Through the RRC connection configuration message or through a subsequent additional RRC message (for example, an RRCReconfiguration message), the UE may obtain BWP configuration information of a PCell (including DL DWP ID and UL BWP ID) at operation 1 g - 05. Accordingly, as described above, the UE may determine a DL/UL BWP linkage or correspondence based on the BWP ID, or directly receive the linkage/mapping information of the DL BWP ID and the UL BWP ID through a signaling message. the base station may directly map the DL BWP ID of the PCell with respect to the UL BWP ID no. 3 of the SCell no. 1 [i.e. DL BWP of PCell (downlink carrier of first cell) is mapped to UP BWP of the SCell (uplink carrier of the second cell), and is preconfigured though RRC signaling by the base station])
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, and Li’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Jang’s teaching of the uplink carrier of the second cell being associated with the downlink carrier of the first cell, because it would enable the linkage of downlink and uplink carriers through signaling messages so that the UE may perform communication on active bandwidth parts. (See Jang ¶0011 & ¶0079)
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: wherein the first cell is indicated to be deactivated in response to all cells associated with the first cell having already been deactivated, wherein the all cells comprise the second cell.
However, in the analogous art, Dinan teaches such a limitation:
wherein the first cell is indicated to be deactivated in response to all cells associated with the first cell having already been deactivated (Abstract: Secondary cell management in wireless communications is described. A cell group may comprise a plurality of secondary cells. The cell group may comprise a first cell with a control channel The wireless device may keep the first cell active while at least one secondary cell in the cell group is active. & Claim 1: the cell group comprises: a first cell configured with a control channel; and at least one secondary cell different from the first cell; …keep the first cell active while the at least one secondary cell is active; and deactivate the first cell during or after deactivation of each other secondary cell of the cell group. [i.e. the first cell is deactivated only once all secondary (associated) cells are first deactivated]), wherein the all cells comprise the second cell. (Abstract: Secondary cell management in wireless communications is described. A cell group may comprise a plurality of secondary cells. The cell group may comprise a first cell with a control channel The wireless device may keep the first cell active while at least one secondary cell in the cell group is active. & Claim 1: the cell group comprises: a first cell configured with a control channel; and at least one secondary cell different from the first cell; …keep the first cell active while the at least one secondary cell is active; and deactivate the first cell during or after deactivation of each other secondary cell of the cell group. [i.e. the first cell is deactivated only once all secondary (associated) cells are first deactivated])
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Li, and Jang’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Dinan’s teaching of the first cell being deactivated in response to all associated secondary cell being deactivated first, because it would enable an efficient deactivation mechanism for the cell groups. (see Dinan ¶0095)
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, Dinan and further in view of Yi et al. (US 2022/0225360 A1), hereinafter referred to as Yi.
Re. Claim 6, Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, and Dinan teaches claim 1.
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: further comprising one of: indicating, by the base station to the wireless communication device, a slot format for the second cell, wherein the wireless communication device determines uplink symbols of the second cell based on the slot format for the second cell; determining, by the wireless communication device, at least one of flexible symbols or downlink symbols for the second cell based on a slot format for the first cell; indicating, by the base station to the wireless communication device, the slot format for the second cell, wherein the wireless communication device determines at least one of the uplink symbols or the flexible symbols of the second cell based on the slot format for the second cell; or determining, by the wireless communication device, the downlink symbols for the second cell based on the slot format for the first cell;
However, in the analogous art, Yi explicitly discloses the following limitation: further comprising one of:
indicating, by the base station to the wireless communication device, a slot format for the second cell, wherein the wireless communication device determines uplink symbols of the second cell based on the slot format for the second cell;
determining, by the wireless communication device, at least one of flexible symbols or downlink symbols for the second cell based on a slot format for the first cell;
indicating, by the base station to the wireless communication device, the slot format for the second cell, (¶0438 A slot format indication of the first cell may be same as a slot format indication of the second cell. For example, a single SFI-DCI and/or a single SFI information/entry may indicate slot format(s) of one or more slots of the first cell and the second cell)
wherein the wireless communication device determines at least one of the uplink symbols or the flexible symbols of the second cell based on the slot format for the second cell; (¶0276 For example, FIG. 21A and FIG. 21B may illustrate 4 times of repetition. The wireless device may determine four PUSCHs (in FIG. 21A) or four PUCCHs (in FIG. 21B), where a set of OFDM symbols in each slot of four slots is identical [i.e. a slot format for repetitions where all symbols are identical; this slot format being used would convey the same slot format of at least one of the uplink symbols of the second cell being based on the slot format indication for the second cell]. & ¶0438 A slot format indication of the first cell may be same as a slot format indication of the second cell. For example, a single SFI-DCI and/or a single SFI information/entry may indicate slot format(s) of one or more slots of the first cell and the second cell.)
or determining, by the wireless communication device, the downlink symbols for the second cell based on the slot format for the first cell;
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Li, Jang and Dinan’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Yi’s teaching of a base station indicating a slot format for a second cell where the format is based on the slot format of the second cell, because it would enable the device to use a single slot format indicator to indicate the formats of one or more slots of multiple cells, which would lower system overhead. (see Yi ¶0438)
Claims 8, 10, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, Dinan and further in view of Oroskar et al. (US Patent No. 8,509,792 B1), hereinafter referred to as Oroskar.
Re. Claim 8, Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang and Dinan teaches claim 1.
Niu further teaches:
further comprising transmitting, by the base station to the wireless communication device, second downlink information in a downlink carrier of a second cell, (Fig. 3 (Configuration Add-325) [i.e. second downlink information] & ¶0094 The first wireless node 310 [i.e. a base station] may generate a second configuration 325 corresponding to a second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers. In some examples, the second configuration 325 may comprise an add instruction configured to instruct the second wireless node 305 [i.e. wireless communication device] to access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell (e.g., for data transmission). …Accordingly, the second wireless node may transmit the confirmation message 330 to the first wireless node 310.)
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: wherein the downlink carrier of the first cell and the downlink carrier of the second cell share a same frequency resource.
However, in the analogous art, Oroskar explicitly discloses the following limitation:
wherein the downlink carrier of the first cell and the downlink carrier of the second cell share a same frequency resource. (Fig. 1 (i.e. D1 of 12b and D1 of 12a share the same frequency))
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Li, Jang, and Dinan’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Oroskar’s teaching of the downlink carriers belonging to multiple cells sharing the same frequency, because it would increase network capacity and help balance usage of network carriers by allowing the use of different combinations of carriers. (see Oroskar Col. 1 ln. 6-67 & Col. 2 ln. 1-2)
Re. Claim 10, Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, and Dinan teaches claim 1.
Niu further teaches:
and receiving, by the base station from the wireless communication device, second uplink information in an uplink carrier of the second cell, (Fig. 3 (Confirmation-330) [i.e. second uplink information] & ¶0094 The first wireless node 310 may generate a second configuration 325 corresponding to a second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers. In some examples, the second configuration 325 may comprise an add instruction configured to instruct the second wireless node 305 to access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell (e.g., for data transmission). …Accordingly, the second wireless node may transmit the confirmation message 330 to the first wireless node 310.)
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: further comprising: transmitting, by the base station to the wireless communication device, second downlink information in two or more downlink carriers of a second cell; wherein one of the two or more downlink carriers has a center frequency that is same as has a center frequency the uplink carrier of the second cell, and another one of the two or more downlink carriers shares a same frequency resource with the downlink carrier of the first cell.
However, in the analogous art, Oroskar explicitly discloses the following limitations:
transmitting, by the base station to the wireless communication device, second downlink information in two or more downlink carriers of a second cell; (Fig. 1 (12b – second cell) & Col. 4 ln. 63-65: The mobile station receives [i.e. receives transmission from a base station] a frequency listing [i.e. second downlink information] that identifies M downlink carrier frequencies and N uplink carrier frequencies available in that sector, as indicated by block 102. M and N are integers greater than one. For example, a frequency listing for sector 12 b may identify downlink carrier frequencies D 1 , D 2 , and D 3 [i.e. two or more downlink carriers of a second cell 12b] and uplink carrier frequencies U 1 and U 2 , whereby M=3 and N=2.)
wherein one of the two or more downlink carriers has a center frequency that is same as has a center frequency the uplink carrier of the second cell, (Fig. 1 (i.e. D1 and U1 of cell 12b share the same frequency, which implies that the center frequencies are also the same) & Col. 6 ln. 3-18: In an exemplary embodiment, the uplink traffic channel uses the uplink carrier frequency selected by the mobile station. But the downlink traffic channel may use either the downlink carrier frequency selected by the mobile station or a different carrier frequency. For example, in order to provide compatibility with other sectors, the downlink traffic channel might use a downlink carrier frequency that is normally paired with the mobile station's selected uplink carrier frequency, so that the uplink and downlink carrier frequencies used for the call have the standard frequency separation between them. In that case, if the mobile station has selected U 2 as the uplink carrier frequency and D 1 as the downlink carrier frequency, the uplink traffic channel assigned for the call would use U 2 as the uplink carrier frequency, but the downlink traffic channel would use D 2, instead of D 1 , as the downlink carrier frequency.)
and another one of the two or more downlink carriers shares a same frequency resource with the downlink carrier of the first cell. (Fig. 1 (D1 of 12b and U1 of 12a share the same frequency, which implies that the center frequencies are also the same) & Col. 6 ln. 3-18: In an exemplary embodiment, the uplink traffic channel uses the uplink carrier frequency selected by the mobile station. But the downlink traffic channel may use either the downlink carrier frequency selected by the mobile station or a different carrier frequency. For example, in order to provide compatibility with other sectors, the downlink traffic channel might use a downlink carrier frequency that is normally paired with the mobile station's selected uplink carrier frequency, so that the uplink and downlink carrier frequencies used for the call have the standard frequency separation between them. In that case, if the mobile station has selected U 2 as the uplink carrier frequency and D 1 as the downlink carrier frequency, the uplink traffic channel assigned for the call would use U 2 as the uplink carrier frequency, but the downlink traffic channel would use D 2, instead of D 1, as the downlink carrier frequency. & ¶0034 In this way, a mobile station may select an uplink carrier frequency independently of the downlink carrier frequency.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Li, Jang and Dinan’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Oroskar’s teaching of receiving downlink information in two or more downlink carriers of a second cell, because it would increase network capacity and help balance usage of network carriers. (see Oroskar Col. 1 ln. 6-67 & Col. 2 ln. 1-2)
Re. Claim 18, Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, and Dinan teaches claim 11.
Niu further teaches:
further comprising receiving, by the wireless communication device from the base station, second downlink information in a downlink carrier of a second cell, (Fig. 3 (Configuration Add-325) [i.e. second downlink information] & ¶0094 The first wireless node 310 [i.e. a base station] may generate a second configuration 325 corresponding to a second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell comprising one or more uplink carriers. In some examples, the second configuration 325 may comprise an add instruction configured to instruct the second wireless node 305 [i.e. wireless communication device] to access (e.g., identify, use, communicate via, etc.) the second (e.g., primary and/or secondary) cell (e.g., for data transmission). …Accordingly, the second wireless node may transmit the confirmation message 330 to the first wireless node 310. [i.e. wireless communication device receives the transmitted second downlink information from a base station])
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: wherein the downlink carrier of the first cell and the downlink carrier of the second cell share a same frequency resource.
However, in the analogous art, Oroskar explicitly discloses the following limitation:
wherein the downlink carrier of the first cell and the downlink carrier of the second cell share a same frequency resource. (Fig. 1 (i.e. D1 of 12b and D1 of 12a share the same frequency))
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Li, Jang and Dinan’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Oroskar’s teaching of the downlink carriers belonging to multiple cells sharing the same frequency, because it would increase network capacity and help balance usage of network carriers by allowing the use of different combinations of carriers. (see Oroskar Col. 1 ln. 6-67 & Col. 2 ln. 1-2)
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, Dinan, Oroskar, and further in view of Yi.
Re. Claim 9, Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, Dinan, and Oroskar teaches claim 8.
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: further comprising one of: indicating, by the base station to the wireless communication device, a first slot format for the first cell and a second slot format for the second cell, wherein a total length of uplink symbols in each slot of the first cell is equal to a total length of the uplink symbols in each slot of the second cell.
However, in the analogous art, Yi teaches such a limitation: further comprising one of:
indicating, by the base station to the wireless communication device, a first slot format for the first cell (¶0438 A slot format indication of the first cell may be same as a slot format indication of the second cell. For example, a single SFI-DCI [i.e. DCI from a base station] and/or a single SFI information/entry may indicate slot format(s) of one or more slots of the first cell and the second cell)
and a second slot format for the second cell, (¶0438 A slot format indication of the first cell may be same as a slot format indication of the second cell. For example, a single SFI-DCI [i.e. DCI from a base station] and/or a single SFI information/entry may indicate slot format(s) of one or more slots of the first cell and the second cell)
wherein a total length of uplink symbols in each slot of the first cell is equal to a total length of the uplink symbols in each slot of the second cell; (¶0276 For example, FIG. 21A and FIG. 21B may illustrate 4 times of repetition. The wireless device may determine four PUSCHs (in FIG. 21A) or four PUCCHs (in FIG. 21B), where a set of OFDM symbols in each slot of four slots is identical [i.e. a slot format for repetitions where all symbols are identical; this slot format being used would convey the same slot format of all uplink symbols throughout for each cell when taking into consideration that the SFI can signal a same slot format for a first and second cell, as shown below]. & ¶0438 A slot format indication of the first cell may be same as a slot format indication of the second cell. For example, a single SFI-DCI and/or a single SFI information/entry may indicate slot format(s) of one or more slots of the first cell and the second cell.)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Li, Jang, Dinan and Oroskar’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Yi’s teaching of a base station indicating a slot format for a first and second cell, because it would enable the device to use a single slot format indicator to indicate the formats of one or more slots of multiple cells, which would lower system overhead. (see Yi ¶0438)
Claim 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, Dinan and further in view of Lee et al. (US 2022/0295531 A1), hereinafter referred to as Lee.
Re. Claim 16, Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, and Dinan teaches claim 11.
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: further comprising one of: receiving, by the wireless communication device from the base station, second downlink information of the second cell using the downlink carrier of the first cell; receiving, by the wireless communication device from the base station, an indication of a slot format for the second cell, wherein the wireless communication device determines uplink symbols of the second cell based on the slot format for the second cell; determining, by the wireless communication device, at least one of flexible symbols or downlink symbols for the second cell based on a slot format for the first cell; receiving, by the wireless communication device from the base station, the indication of the slot format for the second cell, wherein the wireless communication device determines at least one of the uplink symbols or the flexible symbols of the second cell based on the slot format for the second cell; determining, by the wireless communication device, the downlink symbols for the second cell based on the slot format for the first cell;
However, in the analogous art, Lee explicitly discloses the following limitation: further comprising one of:
receiving, by the wireless communication device from the base station, second downlink information of the second cell using the downlink carrier of the first cell; (¶0109 If a PDCCH on a serving cell schedules a PDSCH or PUSCH of another serving cell, this is referred to as cross-carrier scheduling [i.e. downlink carrier of a first cell used to transmit information of a second cell]. Cross-carrier scheduling using a carrier indicator field (CIF) may permit a PDCCH of a serving cell to schedule resources on another serving cell. If cross-carrier scheduling is used on a cell, the BS may provide information about a cell for scheduling the cell on which cross-carrier scheduling is used to the UE. For example, the BS may provide the UE with information [i.e. second downlink information received by wireless communication device] as to whether a serving cell is scheduled by a PDCCH on another (scheduling) cell or by the serving cell, or which cell signals DL assignments and UL assignments for the serving cell when the serving cell is scheduled by another (scheduling) cell. [It is noted the examiner interprets that only one of the claimed features is mapped, due to the presence of “one of”.])
receiving, by the wireless communication device from the base station, an indication of a slot format for the second cell, wherein the wireless communication device determines uplink symbols of the second cell based on the slot format for the second cell;
determining, by the wireless communication device, at least one of flexible symbols or downlink symbols for the second cell based on a slot format for the first cell;
receiving, by the wireless communication device from the base station, the indication of the slot format for the second cell, wherein the wireless communication device determines at least one of the uplink symbols or the flexible symbols of the second cell based on the slot format for the second cell;
determining, by the wireless communication device, the downlink symbols for the second cell based on the slot format for the first cell;
or receiving, by the wireless communication device from the base station, an indication to update dormancy of the first cell or the second cell, wherein the wireless communication device updates dormancy of both the first cell and the second cell in response to receiving the indication to update the dormancy.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Li, Jang, Dinan’s invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Lee’s teaching of receiving second downlink information of a second cell using the downlink carrier of the first cell, because it would allow efficient transmission and reception of uplink/downlink data or control information in scenarios where there are limited radio resources. (see Lee ¶0006-¶0009 & ¶109)
Claim 21 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, Dinan and further in view of Kim et al. (US 2021/0195523 A1), hereinafter referred to as Kim.
Re. Claim 21, Niu combined with Hu, Li, Jang, and Dinan teaches claim 1.
Yet, the combined references fail to teach: further comprising indicating, by the base station to the wireless communication device, an indication to update dormancy of the first cell or the second cell, wherein the wireless communication device updates dormancy of both the first cell and the second cell in response to receiving the indication.
However, in the analogous art, Kim teaches such a limitation:
further comprising indicating, by the base station to the wireless communication device, an indication to update dormancy of the first cell or the second cell, (¶0008 receiving, from the base station, downlink control information (DCI); and identifying information associated with a dormancy for the secondary cell based on an information field included in the DCI, & ¶0187 The dormancy indicator may be configured by a bitmap having N bits, and each of the bits of the bitmap may correspond to one secondary cell or one secondary cell group including multiple secondary cells.)
wherein the wireless communication device updates dormancy of both the first cell and the second cell in response to receiving the indication. (Fig. 7 Change dormant state of secondary cell & ¶0186 A dormancy indicator for a secondary cell as described above may be configured based on the following parameters. & ¶0187 The dormancy indicator may be configured by a bitmap having N bits, and each of the bits of the bitmap may correspond to one secondary cell or one secondary cell group including multiple secondary cells [i.e. dormancy indicator capable of updating/changing dormancy for a first and second cells as in multiple secondary cells].)
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Niu, Hu, Li, Jang, and Dinan’s Invention of an uplink carrier configuration to include Kim’s teaching of an indication for updating dormancy of a first or second cell, because it would enable the device to consume less power by controlling the dormant state of cells that are not currently in use. (see Kim ¶0184)
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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/G.A.M./Examiner, Art Unit 2417
/REBECCA E SONG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2417
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