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 Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed July 6, 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Regarding claims 25 and 28, the applicant asserts that Grant fails to teach or suggest, as recited in the claims: “transmitting the reference signal in an available time slot determined based on one of plurality of available slot offset values. The examiner respectfully disagrees. Fig. 9 and page 18, lines 18-20, page 24, lines 1-35, page 25, lines 30-34, page 27, lines 1-25 of Grant clearly disclose transmitting a reference signal (SRS) in an uplink or flexible time slot that is determined based on slot offset k and additional offset value Δ (slot n+k+Δ).
Regarding claims 25 and 28, the applicant further asserts that Grant fails to teach or suggest “the available slot is determined based on tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon and/or tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationDedicated regardless of dynamic scheduling and slot format indication.” The examiner respectfully disagrees. Page 22, lines 27-34 and page 23, lines 1-2, clearly disclose receiving tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon configuration for defining which slots are downlink, flexible, and uplink slots, which reads on determining an available slot based on tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon and/or tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationDedicated regardless of dynamic scheduling and slot format indication, as recited in the claim.
The examiner therefore maintains that Grant discloses all the limitation recited in claims 25 and 28.
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)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(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 25 and 28 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a0(1)/102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Grant et al WO 2020084362 A1 (hereinafter Grant).
Regarding claim 25, Grant discloses a method for a terminal (UE/wireless device, see page 11, lines 17-18, page 13, lines 8-21) comprising:
receiving an indication in a slot n for triggering a transmission of a reference signal (page 18, lines 18-20, page 23, lines 8-15 and 27-28); and
transmitting the reference signal in an available slot determined based on one of a plurality of available slot offset values (figs. 7 and 9, page 18, lines 20-21, page 23, line 32 - page 24, lines 23, page 25, lines 8-11) determined based on one of a plurality of available slot offset values (slot n+k+Δ, which is the first slot that is not downlink slot after a DCI aperiodic triggering SRS is received in slot n, see fig. 9, page 18, lines 18-20, page 24, lines 1-35, page 25, lines 30-34, page 27, lines 1-25),
wherein:
the available slot comprises uplink symbol(s) or flexible symbol(s) for a time-domain location(s) for all RS resources in a resource set (wireless device transmits the SRS in a slot that is not a downlink slot, figs. 7 and 9, page 18, lines 20-21, page 23, line 32 - page 24, line 23, page 25, lines 8-11);
the available slot satisfies a minimum timing requirement between triggering PDCCH and all the RS resources in the resource set (slot n+k+Δ, which is the first slot that is not downlink slot after a DCI aperiodic triggering SRS is received in slot n, see fig. 9, page 18, lines 18-20, page 24, lines 1-35, page 25, lines 30-34, page 27, lines 1-25);
symbol(s) in the available slot is indicated as flexible by tdd-UL-DL- ConfigurationCommon and/or tdd-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated (page 22, lines 31-34, page 27, lines 17-25); and
the available slot is based on a latest determination of a plurality of determinations no later than slot n (slots 901-906, already determined or known as DL slots prior to receiving the DCI triggering aperiodic SRS with slot n+k+Δ, based on additional slot offset Δ. If slot n is 901, the UE already knows/determines slots 902-906 as DL slots, thus enabling UE to skip the DL slots at Δ=5, fig. 9, page 23, lines 12-30, page 24 – page 27, line 25); and
the available slot is determined based on tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon and/or tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationDedicated regardless of dynamic scheduling and slot format indication (TDD-UL-DL-ConfigCommon IE, see page 22, lines 27-34, page 23, lines 1-2).
Regarding claim 28, Grant discloses a terminal comprising a processor (WD/UE, see figs. 10 and 11, page 27, lines 31-33, page 35, lines 1-8, page 38, lines 6-14, page 40, lines 6-34) configured to:
receive an indication in a slot n for triggering a transmission of a reference signal (page 18, lines 18-20, page 23, lines 8-15 and 27-28); and
transmit the reference signal in an available slot (figs. 7 and 9, page 18, lines 20-21, page 23, line 32 - page 24, lines 23, page 25, lines 8-11) determined based on one of a plurality of available slot offset values (slot n+k+Δ, which is the first slot that is not downlink slot after a DCI aperiodic triggering SRS is received in slot n, see fig. 9, page 18, lines 18-20, page 24, lines 1-35, page 25, lines 30-34, page 27, lines 1-25),
wherein:
the available slot comprises uplink symbol(s) or flexible symbol(s) for a time-domain location(s) for all RS resources in a resource set (wireless device transmits the SRS in a slot that is not a downlink slot, figs. 7 and 9, page 18, lines 20-21, page 23, line 32 - page 24, line 23, page 25, lines 8-11);
the available slot satisfies a minimum timing requirement between triggering PDCCH and all the RS resources in the resource set (slot n+k+Δ, which is the first slot that is not downlink slot after a DCI aperiodic triggering SRS is received in slot n, see fig. 9, page 18, lines 18-20, page 24, lines 1-35, page 25, lines 30-34, page 27, lines 1-25);
symbol(s) in the available slot is indicated as flexible by tdd-UL-DL- ConfigurationCommon and/or tdd-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated (page 22, lines 31-34, page 27, lines 17-25); and
the available slot is based on a latest determination of a plurality of determinations no later than slot n (slots 901-906, already determined or known as DL slots prior to receiving the DCI triggering aperiodic SRS with slot n+k+Δ, based on additional slot offset Δ. If slot n is 901, the UE already knows/determines slots 902-906 as DL slots, thus enabling UE to skip the DL slots at Δ=5, fig. 9, page 23, lines 12-30, page 24 – page 27, line 25); and
the available slot is determined based on tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon and/or tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationDedicated regardless of dynamic scheduling and slot format indication (TDD-UL-DL-ConfigCommon IE, see page 22, lines 27-34, page 23, lines 1-2).
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to OLUMIDE T AJIBADE AKONAI whose telephone number is (571)272-6496. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8AM-4PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, RESHA DESAI can be reached at 571-272-7904. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/OLUMIDE AJIBADE AKONAI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3648
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