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 .
Application Status
The examiner acknowledges the preliminary amendment filed December 13, 2022, that included a substitute specification, a replacement Abstract, the cancellation of claims 1-16, and the addition of claims 17-25.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements filed January 6, 2023, and September 30, 2024, have been considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 17-25 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by US 2023/0019024 A1, published by Stare et al., on January 19, 2023, having been filed on December 18, 2020, (hereinafter "Stare"), and claiming priority to US 62/953,254, filed December 24, 2019, (hereinafter “Pro254”). The examiner notes that the disclosure of Pro254 is not identical to the disclosure of Stare as some of the figures included in Pro254 have not been included in Stare. Accordingly, support for the following rejections has been provided referencing both Stare and Pro254.
Regarding claim 17, Pro254 and Stare disclose a method of performing a feedback transmission for a multicast or broadcast service (MBS) for a user equipment (UE) (Pro254, page 8, line 6-11 methods performed by user equipment (UE) for feedback in relation to multicast transmissions from a network node (e.g., base station), Stare [0023]), the method comprising:
receiving, from a base station (BS), a radio resource control (RRC) message (Pro254, page 25, lines 2-3, UE configuration received via RRC from the network, Stare [0129]) enabling the UE to provide Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) Acknowledgment (ACK) information (Pro254, page 25, lines 2-3, enabling the UE's HARQ transmission responsive to MC-RNTI, Stare [0129]) for a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) reception corresponding to the MBS (Pro254, page 25, lines 8-10, a DCI for scheduling a multicast transmission can include a field, HARQ_config, to indicate whether HARQ feedback is required and type, if required, for the related PDSCH transmission, Stare [0130]);
receiving, from the BS, a first downlink control information (DCI) format (Pro254, page 29, lines 12-14, UE can receive, from the network node, first downlink control information (DCI) scheduling a first multicast transmission associated with the UE, Stare [0151]) that schedules a first PDSCH (Pro254, page 19, lines 1-2, UE receives the corresponding PDSCH based on the DL scheduling information of the DCI, Stare [0097]) for receiving MBS data, the first DCI format being a DCI format with Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) scrambled (Pro254, page 29, lines 21-22, first DCI includes a cyclic redundancy check (CRC), of the first DCI payload, that is scrambled by a group-specific identifier associated with the UE, Stare [0154]) by a Group-Radio Network Temporary Identifier (G-RNTI) (Pro254, page 29, line 31, group-specific identifier associated with the UE (e.g., an MC-RNTI-1), Stare [0156]; Pro254, page 23, lines 31-33, a group of UEs can be efficiently addressed using a new group identifier defined for multicast transmissions, e.g., using a multicast RNTI (MCRNTI) that is a function of or based on a group_ID associated with the multicast group, Stare [0125]);
determining a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource (Pro254, page 5, lines 1-2, PUCCH is used by UE to transmit HARQ feedback, Stare [0017]; Pro254, page 12, lines 22-24, convey HARQ ACK/NACK on PUCCH, Stare [0060]) according to the first DCI format (Pro254, page 29, lines 15-16, block 820, UE can, based on the first DCI, determine a HARQ feedback mode for the first multicast transmission, Stare [0152]);
transmitting, to the BS, first HARQ ACK information (page 20, lines 17-18, UE transmission of HARQ feedback, UE sends ACK/NACK on PUCCH, Stare [0017] and [0060]) corresponding to the first PDSCH (Pro254, page 25, lines 8-10, a DCI for scheduling a multicast or unicast transmission can include a field, HARQ_config, to indicate whether HARQ feedback is required and type, if required, for the related PDSCH transmission, Stare [0130]) on the PUCCH resource (Pro254, page 20, line 18, in UL UE sends ACK/NACK on PUCCH, Stare [0017]); and
receiving, from the BS, a second PDSCH (Pro254, page 19, lines 1-2, UE receives the corresponding PDSCH based on the DL scheduling information of the DCI, Stare [0097]) providing a retransmission of the MBS data (Pro254, page 30, lines 22-23, UE can receive second DCI scheduling a retransmission of the first multicast transmission, Stare [0162]), the second PDSCH being scheduled by a second DCI (Pro254, page 19, lines 1-2, UE receives the corresponding PDSCH based on the DL scheduling information of the DCI, Stare [0097]) format using the G-RNTI (Pro254, Figure 8, page 31, lines 4-6, the second DCI can include a CRC, of the second DCI payload, that is scrambled by a second group-specific identifier associated with the group of UEs (MC RNTI-2), Stare [0171]) or a Cell-Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI) (Pro254, page 30, lines 28-29, the second DCI can include a CRC, of the second DCI payload, that is scrambled by a UE-specific identifier (e.g., C-RNTI), Stare [0170]).
Regarding claim 18, Pro254 and Stare disclose wherein the first HARQ ACK information includes an Acknowledgment (ACK) value or a Negative-acknowledgement (NACK) value (Pro254, page 29, lines 17-20, the HARQ feedback mode indicated by the field can be both ACK and NACK, Stare [E3 both lines, and [0225]) that indicates a decoding status of the MBS data (Pro254, page 44, lines 12-18, based on the first DCI, determining a HARQ feedback mode for the first multicast transmission; based on the first DCI, attempting to receive and decode the first multicast transmission; and selectively transmitting HARQ feedback to the network node based on the determined HARQ feedback mode and on whether the attempt (to receive and decode) was successful or unsuccessful, Stare [0219] – [0221]).
Regarding claim 19, Pro254 and Stare disclose wherein in a case that the second PDSCH is scheduled by the second DCI format using the C-RNTI, the second PDSCH is transmitted by the BS (Pro254, page 30, lines 22-23, page 19, line 2, UE receives second DCI scheduling a retransmission of the first multicast transmission and the corresponding PDSCH based on the DL scheduling information of the DCI, Stare [0162] and [0097]; Pro254, page 30, lines 28-29 the second DCI can include a CRC, of the second DCI payload, that is scrambled by a DE-specific identifier (e.g., C-RNTI), Stare [0170]), via a unicast transmission (Pro254, page 30, lines 27-28, the second DCI indicates that the retransmission is a unicast transmission to the UE, Stare [0163]).
Regarding claim 20, Pro254 and Stare disclose a user equipment (UE) for performing a feedback transmission for a multicast or broadcast service (MBS) (Pro254, page 8, line 6-11 methods performed by user equipment (UE) for feedback in relation to multicast transmissions from a network node (e.g., base station), Stare [0023]), the UE comprising:
at least one processor (Pro254, page 34, line 4 UE 1000 can include a processor 1010, Stare [0184] UE 900 can include a processor 910); and
at least one memory coupled to the at least one processor (Pro254, page 34, lines 4-5 processor 1010 can be operably connected to a program memory 1020 and/or a data memory 1030, Stare [0184] processor 910 (also referred to as "processing circuitry") that can be operably connected to a program memory 920 and/or a data memory 930), the at least one memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the UE to (Pro254, page 34, lines 7-11, program memory 1020 can store software code, programs, and/or instructions (collectively shown as computer program product 1061 in Figure 10) that, when executed by processor 1010, can configure and/or facilitate UE 1000 to perform operations corresponding to the exemplary methods described herein, Stare [0184] program memory 920 can store software code, programs, and/or instructions (collectively shown as computer program product 961 in Figure 9) that, when executed by processor 910, can configure and/or facilitate UE 900 to perform operations corresponding to the exemplary methods described herein):
receive, from a base station (BS), a radio resource control (RRC) message (Pro254, page 25, lines 2-3, UE configuration received via RRC from the network, Stare [0129]) enabling the UE to provide Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) Acknowledgment (ACK) information (Pro254, page 25, lines 2-3, enabling the UE's HARQ transmission responsive to MC-RNTI, Stare [0129]) for a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) reception corresponding to the MBS (Pro254, page 25, lines 8-10, a DCI for scheduling a multicast transmission can include a field, HARQ_config, to indicate whether HARQ feedback is required and type, if required, for the related PDSCH transmission, Stare [0130];
receive, from the BS, a first downlink control information (DCI) format (Pro254, page 29, lines 12-14, UE can receive, from the network node, first downlink control information (DCI) scheduling a first multicast transmission associated with the UE, Stare [0151]) that schedules a first PDSCH for receiving MBS data (Pro254, page 19, lines 1-2, UE receives the corresponding PDSCH based on the DL scheduling information of the DCI, Stare [0097]), the first DCI format being a DCI format with Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) scrambled (Pro254, page 29, lines 21-22, first DCI includes a cyclic redundancy check (CRC), of the first DCI payload, that is scrambled by a group-specific identifier associated with the UE, Stare [0154]) by a Group-Radio Network Temporary Identifier (G-RNTI) (Pro254, page 29, line 31, group-specific identifier associated with the UE (e.g., an MC-RNTI-1), Stare [0156]; Pro254 page 23, lines 31-33, a group of UEs can be efficiently addressed using a new group identifier defined for multicast transmissions, e.g., using a multicast RNTI (MCRNTI) that is a function of or based on a group_ID associated with the multicast group, Stare [0125]);
determine a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource (Pro254, page 5, lines 1-2, PUCCH is used by UE to transmit HARQ feedback, Stare [0017]; Pro254, page 12, lines 22-24, convey HARQ ACK/NACK on PUCCH, Stare [0060]) according to the first DCI format (Pro254, page 29, lines 15-16, block 820, UE can, based on the first DCI, determine a HARQ feedback mode for the first multicast transmission, Stare [0152]);
transmit, to the BS, first HARQ ACK information (page 20, lines 17-18, UE transmission of HARQ feedback, UE sends ACK/NACK on PUCCH, Stare [0017] and [0060]) corresponding to the first PDSCH on the PUCCH resource (Pro254, page 25, lines 8-10, a DCI for scheduling a multicast or unicast transmission can include a field, HARQ_config, to indicate whether HARQ feedback is required and type, if required, for the related PDSCH transmission, Stare [0130]); and
receive, from the BS, a second PDSCH providing a retransmission of the MBS data (Pro254, page 30, lines 22-23, UE can receive second DCI scheduling a retransmission of the first multicast transmission, Stare [0162]), the second PDSCH being scheduled by a second DCI format (Pro254, page 19, lines 1-2, UE receives the corresponding PDSCH based on the DL scheduling information of the DCI, Stare [0097]) using the G-RNTI (Pro254, Figure 8, page 31, lines 4-6, the second DCI can include a CRC, of the second DCI payload, that is scrambled by a second group-specific identifier associated with the group of UEs (MC RNTI-2), Stare [0171]) or a Cell-Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI) (Pro254, page 30, lines 28-29, the second DCI can include a CRC, of the second DCI payload, that is scrambled by a UE-specific identifier (e.g., C-RNTI), Stare [0170]).
Regarding claim 21, Pro254 and Stare disclose wherein the first HARQ ACK information includes an Acknowledgment (ACK) value or a Negative-acknowledgement (NACK) value (Pro254, page 29, lines 17-20, the HARQ feedback mode indicated by the field can be both ACK and NACK, Stare [E3 both lines, and [0225]) that indicates a decoding status of the MBS data (Pro254, page 44, lines 12-18, based on the first DCI, determining a HARQ feedback mode for the first multicast transmission; based on the first DCI, attempting to receive and decode the first multicast transmission; and selectively transmitting HARQ feedback to the network node based on the determined HARQ feedback mode and on whether the attempt (to receive and decode) was successful or unsuccessful, Stare [0219] – [0221]).
Regarding claim 22, Pro254 and Stare disclose wherein in a case that the second PDSCH is scheduled by the second DCI format using the C-RNTI (Pro254, page 30, lines 22-23, page 19, line 2, UE receives second DCI scheduling a retransmission of the first multicast transmission and the corresponding PDSCH based on the DL scheduling information of the DCI, Stare [0162] and [0097]; Pro254, page 30, lines 28-29 the second DCI can include a CRC, of the second DCI payload, that is scrambled by a DE-specific identifier (e.g., C-RNTI), Stare [0170]), the second PDSCH is transmitted by the BS via a unicast transmission (Pro254, page 30, lines 27-28, the second DCI indicates that the retransmission is a unicast transmission to the UE, Stare [0163]).
Regarding claim 23, Pro254 and Stare disclose a base station (BS) for performing a feedback transmission for a multicast or broadcast service (MBS) (Pro254, page 38, lines 5-8 network node 1100 can be configured to perform operations corresponding to exemplary methods and/or procedures described above, network node 1100 can comprise a base station, Stare [0196] network node 1000 can be configured to perform operations corresponding to exemplary methods and/or procedures described above, network node 1000 can comprise a base station), the BS comprising:
at least one processor (Pro254, page 38, line 13 network node 1100 can include processor 1110, Stare [0197] network node 1000 can include processor 1010); and
at least one memory coupled to the at least one processor (Pro254, page 38, lines 13-14 processor 1110 is operably connected to program memory 1120 and data memory 1130, Stare [0197] processor 1010 is operably connected to program memory 1020 and data memory 1030), the at least one memory storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the BS to (Pro254, page 38, lines 17-21 program memory 1120 can store software code, programs, and/or instructions (collectively shown as computer program product 1121 in Figure 11) that, when executed by processor 1110, can configure and/or facilitate network node 1100 to perform operations corresponding to the exemplary methods described herein, Stare [0198] program memory 1020 can store software code, programs, and/or instructions (collectively shown as computer program product 1021 in Figure 10) that, when executed by processor 1010 can configure and/or facilitate network node 1000 to perform operations corresponding to various exemplary methods described herein):
transmit, to a user equipment (UE), a radio resource control (RRC) message (Pro254, page 25, lines 2-3, UE configuration received via RRC from the network, Stare [0129]) enabling the UE to provide Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) Acknowledgment (ACK) information (Pro254, page 25, lines 2-3, enabling the UE's HARQ transmission responsive to MC-RNTI, Stare [0129]) for a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) reception corresponding to the MBS (Pro254, page 25, lines 8-10, a DCI for scheduling a multicast transmission can include a field, HARQ_config, to indicate whether HARQ feedback is required and type, if required, for the related PDSCH transmission, Stare [0130]);
transmit, to the UE, a first downlink control information (DCI) format (Pro254, page 29, lines 12-14, UE can receive, from the network node, first downlink control information (DCI) scheduling a first multicast transmission associated with the UE, Stare [0151]) that schedules a first PDSCH for transmitting MBS data (Pro254, page 19, lines 1-2, UE receives the corresponding PDSCH based on the DL scheduling information of the DCI, Stare [0097]), the first DCI format being a DCI format with Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) scrambled (Pro254, page 29, lines 21-22, first DCI includes a cyclic redundancy check (CRC), of the first DCI payload, that is scrambled by a group-specific identifier associated with the UE, Stare [0154]) by a Group-Radio Network Temporary Identifier (G-RNTI) (Pro254, page 29, line 31, group-specific identifier associated with the UE (e.g., an MC-RNTI-1), Stare [0156]; Pro254 page 23, lines 31-33, a group of UEs can be efficiently addressed using a new group identifier defined for multicast transmissions, e.g., using a multicast RNTI (MCRNTI) that is a function of or based on a group_ID associated with the multicast group, Stare [0125]);
receive, from the UE, first HARQ ACK information (Pro254, page 20, line 18, in UL UE sends ACK/NACK on PUCCH, Stare [0017] and [0060]) corresponding to the first PDSCH on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource (Pro254, page 25, lines 8-10, a DCI for scheduling a multicast or unicast transmission can include a field, HARQ_config, to indicate whether HARQ feedback is required and type, if required, for the related PDSCH transmission, Stare [0130]); and
transmit, to the UE, a second PDSCH providing a retransmission of the MBS data (Pro254, page 30, lines 22-23, UE can receive second DCI scheduling a retransmission of the first multicast transmission, Stare [0162]), the second PDSCH being scheduled by a second DCI format (Pro254, page 19, lines 1-2, UE receives the corresponding PDSCH based on the DL scheduling information of the DCI, Stare [0097]) using the G-RNTI (Pro254, Figure 8, page 31, lines 4-6, the second DCI can include a CRC, of the second DCI payload, that is scrambled by a second group-specific identifier associated with the group of UEs (MC RNTI-2), Stare [0171]) or a Cell-Radio Network Temporary Identifier (C-RNTI) (Pro254, page 30, lines 28-29, the second DCI can include a CRC, of the second DCI payload, that is scrambled by a UE-specific identifier (e.g., C-RNTI), Stare [0170]).
Regarding claim 24, Pro254 and Stare disclose wherein the first HARQ ACK information includes an Acknowledgment (ACK) value or a Negative-acknowledgement (NACK) value (Pro254, page 29, lines 17-20, the HARQ feedback mode indicated by the field can be both ACK and NACK, Stare [E3 both lines, and [0225]) that indicates a decoding status of the MBS data (Pro254, page 44, lines 12-18, based on the first DCI, determining a HARQ feedback mode for the first multicast transmission; based on the first DCI, attempting to receive and decode the first multicast transmission; and selectively transmitting HARQ feedback to the network node based on the determined HARQ feedback mode and on whether the attempt (to receive and decode) was successful or unsuccessful, Stare [0219] – [0221]).
Regarding claim 25, Pro254 and Stare disclose wherein in a case that the second PDSCH is scheduled by the second DCI format using the C-RNTI (Pro254, page 30, lines 22-23, page 19, line 2, UE receives second DCI scheduling a retransmission of the first multicast transmission and the corresponding PDSCH based on the DL scheduling information of the DCI, Stare [0162] and [0097]; Pro254, page 30, lines 28-29 the second DCI can include a CRC, of the second DCI payload, that is scrambled by a DE-specific identifier (e.g., C-RNTI), Stare [0170]), the second PDSCH is transmitted by the BS via a unicast transmission (Pro254, page 30, lines 27-28, the second DCI indicates that the retransmission is a unicast transmission to the UE, Stare [0163]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 2021/0120526 A1, published by Zhu et al., on April 22, 2021, claiming priority to provisional application no. 62/923,283, filed on October 18, 2019, discloses aspects of coordinating multicast/broadcast and unicast communications.
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/WRZ/Examiner, Art Unit 2479 /JAE Y LEE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2479