CTNF 18/006,687 CTNF 92320 DETAILED ACTION 1. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. This action is responsive to amendments filed on 01/29/2026. Claims 21-37 are previously cancelled. No claims are currently amended. Claims 1-20 are pending for examination. Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114 07-42-04 AIA 2. A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 01/29/2026 has been entered. Response to Arguments 3. Applicant’s arguments filed on 01/29/2026 with respect to claims 1, 11 and 20 have been considered but are moot in view of the new ground of rejection necessitated by applicant’s amendment. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-20-aia AIA 4. 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. 07-23-aia AIA The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co. , 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied 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. 07-21-aia AIA 5. Claims 1- 4, 6-20 are re jected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Na der (US 2020/0083991 A1) in view of Awadin (US 2023/0140213 A1). Re garding claims 11 and 1, Nader teaches a method, comprising: receiving, by a user equipment ( receiving node 14/UE—Fig. 1; [0038] ), a subset of a plurality of scheduled repetitions of a transport block ( data block 16 ) ( [0069], Fig. 7, transmitting radio node 12 initially schedules a 1st HARQ transmission 34 - 1 that includes data block 16 as well as eleven repetitions 18 - 1 , 18 - 2 , . . . 18 - 11 . the node 12 upon receiving this feedback 22 schedules a different number of repetitions (6 more repetitions) of the data block 16 to be transmitted to the node 14 in a subsequent HARQ transmission 34-2. ) ( Hence, the UE receives a subset of scheduled repetitions that correspond to the subset 34-1 of Fig. 7 that includes 11 out of 16 scheduled repetitions of TB 16. ), wherein the plurality of scheduled repetitions includes one or more remaining scheduled repetitions ( 34-2 includes 6 remaining repetitions ) not included in the subset ( subset 34-1 includes 11 scheduled repetitions ) ( [0069], Fig. 7, transmitting radio node 12 initially schedules a first HARQ transmission 34 - 1 that includes the data block 16 as well as 11 repetitions 18 - 1 , 18 - 2 , . . . 18 - 11 . And the node 12 upon receiving feedback, schedules 6 repetitions {additional/remaining} of the data block 16 to be transmitted in the next HARQ transmission 34 - 2; [0039] ) ( Hence plurality schedules includes remaining repetitions in 34-2 is not included in subset 34-1. ); estimating a quantity of remaining repetitions for correct reception of the transport block ( data block 16 ) ( [0069], Fig. 7, the receiving radio node 14 generates feedback 22 to indicate how many more repetitions 18 (6 more repetitions) of the data block 16, the node 14 will need to combine in order to successfully decode the data block 16 . The node 14 maintains a history of reception (channel) conditions and the number of repetitions respectively needed under those different conditions, and then map the current reception conditions to a number of additional repetitions needed. ) ( Hence obvious, the 14 estimates 6 remaining repetitions for correct reception of the TB 16. ); transmitting a conditional acknowledgement ( feedback 22 ) that corresponds to the quantity of remaining repetitions ( [0069], Fig. 7, the receiving radio node 14 transmits feedback 22 to the transmitting radio node 12 , to indicate how many more repetitions 18 (6 more repetitions) of the data block 16, the node 14 will need to combine in order to successfully decode the data block 16 . ); receiving one or more of the quantity of remaining repetitions ( [0069], Fig. 7, the transmitting radio node 12 transmits to the receiving radio node 14 , 6 repetitions {additional/remaining} of the data block 16 in the next HARQ transmission 34 - 2 . ); and providing the transport block ( data block 16 ) from a buffer( memory ) to a processing layer ( of a processor ) ( [0069]; [0085], the receiving radio node 14 comprises microprocessor in conjunction with memory {by executing instructions stored in memory –[0086]} to perform the steps in FIG. 9. Hence, it is obvious, the 14 provides the data block 16 from a buffer to a processing layer at a processor, in order to combine all the received repetitions of the TB. ). Nader does not teach the conditional feedback including a conditional acknowledgement indicating a change in an attribute for one or more of the quantity of remaining repetitions. However, in an analogous art, Awadin teaches the conditional feedback including a conditional acknowledgement ( NACK ) indicating a change( modify ) in an attribute ( number ) for one or more of the quantity ( number ) of remaining repetitions ( [0236], UE can transmit ACK/NACK. If gNB receives an ACK, then the gNB aborts the remaining repetitions; and [0237], If the UE transmits an UL signal/channel {carries an indication---see [0235]; [0234]} requesting to modify the number of repetitions either explicitly or implicitly (by NACK to suggest number of repetitions). ) ( Hence, the NACK (conditional feedback) indicates a change in number for the remaining repetitions. ). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claim invention to take the teaching of Awadin and apply them on the teaching of Nader to provide UE to assist network in determining or modifying number of remaining repetitions ( Awadin; [0005]; [0237] and [0236] ). Regarding claims 2 and 12, Nader further teaches wherein the conditional feedback comprises: a negative acknowledgement ( not selected ), a conditional acknowledgement ( feedback 22 ) that indicates the quantity of remaining repetitions ( [0069], Fig. 7, the receiving radio node 14 transmits feedback 22 to the transmitting radio node 12 , to indicate how many more repetitions 18 (6 more repetitions) of the data block 16, the receiving radio node 14 will need to combine in order to successfully decode the data block 16 . ). Regarding claims 3 and 13, Nader further teaches further comprising: receiving one or more of the quantity of remaining repetitions when the conditional feedback comprises a conditional acknowledgement ( feedback 22) ( [0069], Fig. 7, the transmitting radio node 12 upon receiving this feedback 22 {to indicate how many more repetitions 18 (6 more repetitions) of the data block 16 will need} may schedule 6 repetitions {additional/remaining} of the data block 16 to be transmitted/and transmits in the next HARQ transmission 34 - 2.). Regarding claims 4 and 14, Nader further teaches further comprising: providing the transport block ( data block 16 ) from a buffer( memory ) to a processing layer ( of a processor ) ( [0069]; [0085], the receiving radio node 14 comprises microprocessor in conjunction with memory {by executing instructions stored in memory –[0086]} to perform the steps in FIG. 9. Hence, it is obvious, the 14 provides the data block 16 from a buffer to a processing layer at a processor, in order to combine all the received repetitions of the TB. ), or flushing the buffer associated with the transport block ( not selected ). Regarding claims 6 and 15, Nader further teaches wherein the transport block ( data block 16 ) is related to a hybrid automatic repeat request ( HARQ ) process ( [0069];[0070] ). Regarding claims 7 and 16, Nader further teaches wherein estimating the quantity of remaining repetitions further comprises: estimating the quantity of remaining repetitions ( [0069], Fig. 7, the receiving radio node 14 generates the feedback 22 to indicate how many more repetitions 18 (6 more repetitions) of the data block 16, the receiving radio node 14 will need to combine in order to successfully decode the data block 16 . the receiving radio node 14 may maintain a history of reception (channel) conditions and the number of repetitions respectively needed under those different conditions, and then map the current reception conditions to a number of additional repetitions needed. ) periodically ([0060]; [0062]) . Regarding claims 8 and 17, Nader further teaches further comprising: determining whether to transmit the conditional feedback based on a configuration of an uplink opportunity or a scheduling gap for the conditional feedback ( feedback 22 ) ( [0065], the feedback resources 32 may be scheduled to occur during transmission gaps configured between some or all of the repetitions 18 . Similar transmission gaps may be used for transmitting the feedback 22). Regarding claims 9 and 18, Nader further teaches wherein the conditional feedback includes an indication of a time of transmission of the conditional feedback or a quantity of repetitions included in the received subset when the conditional feedback comprises a conditional acknowledgement ( feedback 22 ) (( [0069], Fig. 7, the transmitting radio node 12 initially schedules a first HARQ transmission 34 - 1 that includes the data block 16 as well as 11 repetitions 18 - 1 , 18 - 2 , . . . 18 - 11 . . the transmitting radio node 12 upon receiving this feedback 22 may schedule 6 more repetitions of the data block 16 ; [0059]) (Hence obvious the 22 includes 11 repetitions included in the received subset 34-1.). Regarding claims 10 and 19, Nader further teaches wherein the conditional feedback indicates a quantity of requested repetitions that is equal to or greater than the quantity of remaining repetitions for correct reception of the transport block when the conditional feedback comprises a conditional acknowledgement ( feedback 22 ) ( [0069], Fig. 7, the receiving radio node 14 generates the feedback 22 to indicate how many more repetitions 18 (6 more repetitions){i.e. requested repetitions} of the data block 16, the receiving radio node 14 will need to combine in order to successfully decode the data block 16 . ). Regarding claims 20, Nader teaches a method, comprising: transmitting, by a network node ( transmitting node 12/Base station—Fig. 1; [0038] ), a subset of a plurality of scheduled repetitions of a transport block ( data block 16 ) ( [0069], Fig. 7, transmitting radio node 12 initially schedules a 1st HARQ transmission 34 - 1 that includes data block 16 as well as eleven repetitions 18 - 1 , 18 - 2 , . . . 18 - 11 . the node 12 upon receiving this feedback 22 schedules a different number of repetitions (6 more repetitions) of the data block 16 to be transmitted to the node 14 in a subsequent HARQ transmission 34-2. ) ( Hence, the BS transmits a subset of scheduled repetitions that correspond to the subset 34-1 of Fig. 7 that includes 11 out of 16 scheduled repetitions of TB 16. ), wherein the plurality of scheduled repetitions includes one or more remaining scheduled repetitions ( 34-2 includes 6 remaining repetitions ) not included in the subset ( subset 34-1 includes 11 scheduled repetitions ) ( [0069], Fig. 7, transmitting radio node 12 initially schedules a first HARQ transmission 34 - 1 that includes the data block 16 as well as 11 repetitions 18 - 1 , 18 - 2 , . . . 18 - 11 . And the node 12 upon receiving feedback, schedules 6 repetitions {additional/remaining} of the data block 16 to be transmitted in the next HARQ transmission 34 - 2; [0039] ) ( Hence plurality schedules includes remaining repetitions in 34-2 is not included in subset 34-1. ); receiving a message that includes conditional feedback that corresponds to a quantity of remaining repetitions to be transmitted with respect to the transport block ( [0069], Fig. 7, the receiving radio node 14 transmits feedback 22 to the transmitting radio node 12 , to indicate how many more repetitions 18 (6 more repetitions) of the data block 16, the node 14 will need to combine in order to successfully decode the data block 16 . ); and adjusting( adapting ) a quantity of the one or more remaining scheduled repetitions based on the quantity of remaining repetitions ( [0069], Fig. 7, the transmitting radio node 12 upon receiving this feedback 22 {to indicate how many more repetitions 18 (6 more repetitions) of the data block 16 will need} may schedule 6 repetitions {additional/remaining} of the data block 16 {by adapting---see [0080];[0068]} to be transmitted/and transmits in the next HARQ transmission 34 - 2.). Nader does not teach the conditional feedback including a conditional acknowledgement indicating a change in an attribute for one or more of the quantity of remaining repetitions. However, in an analogous art, Awadin teaches the conditional feedback including a conditional acknowledgement ( NACK ) indicating a change( modify ) in an attribute ( number ) for one or more of the quantity ( number ) of remaining repetitions ( [0236], UE can transmit ACK/NACK. If gNB receives an ACK, then the gNB aborts the remaining repetitions; and [0237], If the UE transmits an UL signal/channel {carries an indication---see [0235]; [0234]} requesting to modify the number of repetitions either explicitly or implicitly (by NACK to suggest number of repetitions). ) ( Hence, the NACK (conditional feedback) indicates a change in number for the remaining repetitions. ). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claim invention to take the teaching of Awadin and apply them on the teaching of Nader to provide UE to assist network in determining or modifying number of remaining repetitions ( Awadin; [0005]; [0237] and [0236] ) . 07-21-aia AIA 6. Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nader (US 2020/0083991 A1) in view of Awadin (US 2023/0140213 A1), in view of Mucke (US 2015/0043481 A1) . Regarding claim 5, Nader- Awadin does not teach further comprising: flushing a buffer when the conditional feedback comprises a negative acknowledgement However, in an analogous art, Mucke teaches further comprising: flushing a buffer when the conditional feedback comprises a negative acknowledgement ( NACK ) ( Abstract; [0031]; flushes HARQ buffers of the UE, when NACK/not ACK feedback. ). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claim invention to take the teaching of Mucke and apply them on the teaching of Nader- Awadin to provide a method enables alleviating impact of Hybrid-ARQ on power savings while reducing wake-up timeline in a C-DRX/SPS configuration, thus enhancing tradeoff between latency and UE power savings, and hence avoiding staying awake of the UE (Mucke ; [0028]; [0029] ). Conclusion 7. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MEHEDI S ALEY whose telephone number is (571)270-0439. The examiner can normally be reached Mon, Thus, Fri: 9-5. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jeffrey M Rutkowski can be reached at 571-270-01215. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /MEHEDI S ALEY/Examiner, Art Unit 2415 /JEFFREY M RUTKOWSKI/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2415 Application/Control Number: 18/006,687 Page 2 Art Unit: 2415 Application/Control Number: 18/006,687 Page 3 Art Unit: 2415 Application/Control Number: 18/006,687 Page 4 Art Unit: 2415 Application/Control Number: 18/006,687 Page 5 Art Unit: 2415 Application/Control Number: 18/006,687 Page 6 Art Unit: 2415 Application/Control Number: 18/006,687 Page 7 Art Unit: 2415 Application/Control Number: 18/006,687 Page 8 Art Unit: 2415 Application/Control Number: 18/006,687 Page 9 Art Unit: 2415 Application/Control Number: 18/006,687 Page 10 Art Unit: 2415 Application/Control Number: 18/006,687 Page 11 Art Unit: 2415 Application/Control Number: 18/006,687 Page 12 Art Unit: 2415
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