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
2. This is a Final Office action in response to applicant’s remarks and arguments filed on 03/11/2026.
3. Status of the claims:
• Claims 1, 5, 10, 13, 20, 24, 29, 32, and 39-40 have been amended.
• Claims 1-40 are currently pending and have been examined.
Response to remarks and arguments
4. Applicant’s remarks and arguments filed on 03/11/2026 with respect to the amended independent claims have been fully considered but are moot in view of the new ground(s) of rejection. Upon further search and consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view Walton et al. (US 20060121946 A1).
5. In response to applicant’s remarks, the examiner acknowledges that the cited references do not appear to explicitly teach the newly added limitation. However, the system of Walton et al. (US 20060121946 A1) cures this deficiency.
Please see new ground(s) of rejections below.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
6. 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.
7. 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.
8. 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.
9. 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.
10. Claims 1-40 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Xia et al. (US 20220369111 A1) in view of Pan et al. (US 8072899 B2), Lee et al. (US 20240162948 A1) and further in view of Walton et al. (US 20060121946 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Xia discloses a first device for wireless communications (Fig. 10: Device 1010a), comprising: at least one memory comprising instructions (Fig. 12: Memory 1208); and at least one processor (Fig. 12: CPU 1214) coupled to the at least one memory and configured to: determine a set of possible multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) paths (Xia, Fig. 7, para. 67, 79, 83-84: The encoding produces secured and encoded parts, which are transmitted to the receiving device (RD). As shown in FIG. 7, each secured and encoded part is transmitted over a different path (such as PATH_1 720, PATH_2 722, and PATH_3 724) to the receiving device (RD)); identify, from the set of possible MIMO paths, a plurality of MIMO paths for allocation of transmit power based on a number of MIMO paths to be used and a physical layer security configuration (Xia, para. 84, 67, 78-79: The receiving device (RD) may then select a subset of the identified BPLs or paths to associate with the intended recipient. As an example, the TD may select the BPL of the LOS path, as well as the BPLs of any first order reflection paths. If there are more BPLs or paths, the TD may select the BPLs or paths with the highest signal strength. Moreover, Xia discloses the RD receiving the message, highlighting the providing of PHY layer security for the message).
Xia does not appear to explicitly disclose receive channel state information, wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements; rank the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements; and allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message.
In the same field of endeavor, Pan discloses receive channel state information (Pan, col 13, lines 43-62: receiving channel state information that includes channel estimation), wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements (Pan, col 13, lines 43-62: receiving channel state information that includes channel estimation); rank the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements (Pan, Fig. 3, col 4, lines 11-31: a value of a metric indicative of the channel condition of the MIMO communication by the WTRU using a rank is determined. This metric may be based on one or more measured quantities indicative of the channel condition. Moreover, figure 3 of Pan further shows a method for selecting a rank for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication by a wireless device).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia with the teaching of Pan to include the above features into the system of Xia such as receiving channel state information, wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements and ranking the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements as taught by Pan. The motivation for doing so would have been to improve the quality and reliability of the MIMO communications (Pan, col. 1, lines 24-25).
The combination of Xia and Pan does not appear to explicitly disclose allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message.
In the same field of endeavor, Lee discloses allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message (Lee, abstract, para. 6, 7, 23, 45, 52, 58: allocate transmission power to different antennas when transmitting data from the wireless communication user equipment 200 to the base station (para. [0045]; receiving, from the base station, a transmit precoding matrix indicator (TPMI) indicating a precoding matrix and a rank indicator (RI) indicating a rank value, allocating a gain to each of a plurality of transmission paths, based on the precoding matrix and loss information of each of the plurality of transmission paths, and transmitting a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) through the plurality of transmission paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as allocating the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message as taught by Lee. The motivation for doing so would have been to provide a wireless communication user equipment for performing multi-antenna-based transmission and reception by determining a precoding matrix based on loss information of a transmission path of a terminal (Lee, para. [0005]).
The references do not appear to teach wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths.
In the same field of endeavor, Walton teaches wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths (Walton, para. [0323], [0395] [0398]: a plurality of available MIMO spatial channels (e.g., possible MIMO paths). The reference teaches selecting the number of independent data streams transmitted over the MIMO channel to achieve a desired data throughput or bit rate. Since each data stream corresponds to a spatial MIMO path, thus, the reference teaches selecting the number of MIMO paths to be used based on the data rate capability of the available MIMO paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths as taught by Walton. The motivation for doing so would have been to achieve a high level of efficiency and performance (Walton, para. [0271]).
Regarding claim 2, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the first device of claim 1, wherein, to allocate transmit power, the at least one processor is configured to allocate a total transmit power to the plurality of MIMO paths to obtain a common data rate on the plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 67: splitting the encoded message into a plurality of parts, which may then be transmitted over different BPLs to an intended recipient. The splitting of the encoded message may be performed in any of a variety of ways, e.g., splitting the message so that each path has the same data rate. It is noted that, when allocating power to the paths is an obvious design option, because the target data is a parameter commonly used in power control).
Regarding claim 3, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the first device of claim 1, wherein, to allocate transmit power, the at least one processor is configured to allocate transmit power to the plurality of MIMO paths to achieve a minimum data rate on the plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 67: Xia, para. 67: splitting the encoded message into a plurality of parts, which may then be transmitted over different BPLs to an intended recipient. The splitting of the encoded message may be performed in any of a variety of ways, e.g., splitting the message so that different paths have different data rates, which implies a path with a minimum data rate. It is noted that, when allocating power to a path is an obvious design option, because the target data is a parameter commonly used in power control).
Regarding claim 4, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the first device of claim 1, wherein a number of MIMO paths used for increased physical layer security is greater than a number of MIMO paths used for data transmissions (Xia, para. 84: If there are more BPLs or paths, the TD may select the BPLs or paths with the highest signal strength, signal plus interference to noise ratio (SINR), signal to noise ratio (SNR), etc. Typically, the larger the number of BPLs or paths selected by the TD results in increased security because the likelihood of the eavesdropper being able to receive all parts of the message decreases with the number of BPLs or paths used).
Regarding claim 5, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the first device of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a first indication of the physical layer security configuration (Xia, para. 67, 77-79: a technique for providing PHY layer security to a transmission includes applying a security code to the message of the transmission); and determine the number of MIMO paths to be used for transmission of the message based on the first indication (Xia, para. 67, 77-79: a technique for providing PHY layer security includes transmitting a message, that is partitioned into two or more parts, using two or more BPLs or over two or more paths to an intended recipient).
Regarding claim 6, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the first device of claim 5, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: transmit, based on the first indication, two or more reference signals for increased physical layer security to a second device, the two or more reference signals transmitted on different MIMO paths (Xia, para. 21, 67, 78-79, 83: receiving, by the second device, from the first device, beamformed reference signals using receive beams associated with the second device); and receive, from the second device, channel state information based on the two or more reference signals (Xia, para. 83: which recites transmitting reference signals based on which channel state information is received).
Regarding claim 7, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the first device of claim 6, wherein the channel state information further includes MIMO path ranking information, and wherein the plurality of MIMO paths is identified further based on the MIMO path ranking information (Xia, para. 83-85: The TD may then select (i.e., rank) a subset of the identified BPLs or paths to associate with the intended recipient. As an example, the TD may select the BPL of the LOS path, as well as the BPLs of any first order reflection paths. If there are more BPLs or paths, the TD may select the BPLs or paths with the highest signal strength, signal plus interference to noise ratio (SINR), signal to noise ratio (SNR), etc. Typically, the larger the number of BPLs or paths selected by the TD results in increased security because the likelihood of the eavesdropper being able to receive all parts of the message decreases with the number of BPLs or paths used).
Regarding claim 8, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the first device of claim 6, wherein the plurality of MIMO paths is identified further based on the ranked plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 83-85: The TD may share information about the selected (i.e., ranked) BPLs or paths with the intended recipient. In an embodiment, the TD shares information about the selected BPLs or paths each time there is a change in the selected BPLs or paths), and wherein the at least one processor is further configured to transmit an indication of the plurality of MIMO paths to the second device (Xia, para. 21, 67, 78-79, 83: receiving, by the second device, from the first device, beamformed reference signals using receive beams associated with the second device).
Regarding claim 9, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the first device of claim 4, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to transmit a second indication of the physical layer security configuration to a second device (Xia, para. 85: The TD may share information about the selected BPLs or paths with the intended recipient).
Regarding claim 10, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the first device of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to transmit the number of MIMO paths to be used for transmission of the message to a second device (Xia, para. 26: transmit, to a second device, the at least two parts of the encoded and secured message over at least two BPLs associated with the first device and the second device).
Regarding claim 11, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the first device of claim 1, wherein at least one MIMO path, of the plurality of MIMO paths, reflects off a reconfigurable intelligent surface (Xia, para. 60, 64-65, 71: Because transmission 420 reflects off one surface (wall 425) between TD 405 and RD_B 412, the transmission beam of transmission 420 is referred to as a first order reflection beam. Similarly, if a transmission reflects off two surfaces, the transmission beam of the transmission is referred to as a second order reflection beam, and so on. In an environment with N reflective surfaces, there are at most N first order reflection beams. As an example, in a room, there are 6 reflective surfaces (4 walls, 1 ceiling, and 1 floor), hence, there are at most 6 first order reflection beams).
Regarding claim 12, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the first device of claim 1, wherein the message is transmitted on the plurality of MIMO paths concurrently (Xia, para. 80: the secured and encoded parts may be transmitted over the different paths at different times, different frequencies, different codes, or a combination thereof. The transmissions may be limited by the capabilities of the intended recipient, which may not be able to receive multiple transmissions simultaneously, for example. Alternatively, the intended recipient may be able to receive two simultaneous transmissions).
Regarding claim 13, Xia discloses a method for wireless communications (FIG. 12, para. [0052]: FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a computing system that may be used for implementing the devices and methods), comprising: receiving a first indication of a physical layer security configuration (Xia, para. 67, 77-79: a technique for providing PHY layer security to a transmission includes applying a security code to the message of the transmission); receiving a second indication of two or more reference signals for increased physical layer security (Xia, para. 23: a second indicator indicating an ordering index of a first secured and encoded part scheduled by control information in the control information), the two or more reference signals transmitted on different multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) paths (Xia, para. 21, 67, 78-79, 83: receiving, by the second device, from the first device, beamformed reference signals using receive beams associated with the second device); measuring, based on the second indication, the two or more reference signals (Xia, para. 23, 83: the TD and the intended recipient performs a beam management process to identify the BPLs or paths between the TD and the intended recipient. In an example beam management process, the TD may transmit beamformed reference signals over its available transmit beams and the intended recipient cycles through its own receive beams to detect the reference signals. The intended recipient reports to the TD information regarding the reference signals that it was able to detect and which receive beam detected the reference signals); transmitting information associated with the measured two or more reference signals to a device (Xia, para. 83: the TD may transmit beamformed reference signals over its available transmit beams and the intended recipient cycles through its own receive beams to detect the reference signals. The intended recipient reports to the TD information regarding the reference signals that it was able to detect and which receive beam detected the reference signals); determining a plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 21, 85: determining the BPLs or paths associated with the second device and the first device. The TD may share information about the selected BPLs or paths with the intended recipient. In an embodiment, the TD shares information about the selected BPLs or paths each time there is a change in the selected BPLs or paths).
Xia does not appear to explicitly disclose rank a set of MIMO paths based on the measured two or more reference signals.
In the same field of endeavor, Pan discloses rank a set of MIMO paths based on the measured two or more reference signals (Pan, Fig. 3, col 4, lines 11-31: a value of a metric indicative of the channel condition of the MIMO communication by the WTRU using a rank is determined. This metric may be based on one or more measured quantities indicative of the channel condition. Moreover, figure 3 of Pan further shows a method for selecting a rank for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication by a wireless device).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia with the teaching of Pan to include the above features into the system of Xia such as rank a set of MIMO paths based on the measured two or more reference signals as taught by Pan. The motivation for doing so would have been to improve the quality and reliability of the MIMO communications (Pan, col. 1, lines 24-25).
The combination of Xia and Pan does not appear to explicitly disclose receiving a message across the plurality of MIMO paths, wherein a transmit power is allocated among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the set of MIMO paths.
In the same field of endeavor, Lee discloses receiving a message across the plurality of MIMO paths, wherein a transmit power is allocated among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the set of MIMO paths (Lee, abstract, para. 6, 7, 23, 45, 52, 58: allocate transmission power to different antennas when transmitting data from the wireless communication user equipment 200 to the base station (para. [0045]; receiving, from the base station, a transmit precoding matrix indicator (TPMI) indicating a precoding matrix and a rank indicator (RI) indicating a rank value, allocating a gain to each of a plurality of transmission paths, based on the precoding matrix and loss information of each of the plurality of transmission paths, and transmitting a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) through the plurality of transmission paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as receiving a message across the plurality of MIMO paths, wherein a transmit power is allocated among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the set of MIMO paths as taught by Lee. The motivation for doing so would have been to provide a wireless communication user equipment for performing multi-antenna-based transmission and reception by determining a precoding matrix based on loss information of a transmission path of a terminal (Lee, para. [0005]).
The references do not appear to teach wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths.
In the same field of endeavor, Walton teaches wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths (Walton, para. [0323], [0395] [0398]: a plurality of available MIMO spatial channels (e.g., possible MIMO paths). The reference teaches selecting the number of independent data streams transmitted over the MIMO channel to achieve a desired data throughput or bit rate. Since each data stream corresponds to a spatial MIMO path, thus, the reference teaches selecting the number of MIMO paths to be used based on the data rate capability of the available MIMO paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths as taught by Walton. The motivation for doing so would have been to achieve a high level of efficiency and performance (Walton, para. [0271]).
Regarding claim 14, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 13, wherein a number of MIMO paths used for the physical layer security configuration is greater than a number of MIMO paths used for data transmissions (Xia, para. 84: If there are more BPLs or paths, the TD may select the BPLs or paths with the highest signal strength, signal plus interference to noise ratio (SINR), signal to noise ratio (SNR), etc. Typically, the larger the number of BPLs or paths selected by the TD results in increased security because the likelihood of the eavesdropper being able to receive all parts of the message decreases with the number of BPLs or paths used).
Regarding claim 15, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 13, wherein the information associated with the measured two or more reference signals includes an indication of the ranked set of MIMO paths to the device (Xia, para. 83-85: The TD may share information about the selected (i.e., ranked) BPLs or paths with the intended recipient. In an embodiment, the TD shares information about the selected BPLs or paths each time there is a change in the selected BPLs or paths), the method further comprising determining the plurality of MIMO paths based on the ranked set of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 21, 67, 78-79, 83: receiving, by the second device, from the first device, beamformed reference signals using receive beams associated with the second device).
Regarding claim 16, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 13, wherein the information associated with the measured two or more reference signals includes measurements of the two or more reference signals, and wherein the method further comprises: receiving an indication of the plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 67, 77-79: a technique for providing PHY layer security to a transmission includes applying a security code to the message of the transmission); and determining the plurality of MIMO paths based on the received indication of the plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 67, 77-79: a technique for providing PHY layer security includes transmitting a message, that is partitioned into two or more parts, using two or more BPLs or over two or more paths to an intended recipient).
Regarding claim 17, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 13, further comprising receiving an indication of a number of MIMO paths, and wherein the plurality of MIMO paths are determined based on the number of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 85, 21, 67, 78-79, 83: The TD may share information about the selected BPLs or paths with the intended recipient. Moreover, Xia discloses receiving, by the second device, from the first device, beamformed reference signals using receive beams associated with the second device).
Regarding claim 18, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 13, wherein the message is received across the plurality of MIMO paths concurrently (Xia, para. 80: the secured and encoded parts may be transmitted over the different paths at different times, different frequencies, different codes, or a combination thereof. The transmissions may be limited by the capabilities of the intended recipient, which may not be able to receive multiple transmissions simultaneously, for example. Alternatively, the intended recipient may be able to receive two simultaneous transmissions).
Regarding claim 19, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 13, wherein at least one MIMO path, of the plurality of MIMO paths, reflects off a reconfigurable intelligent surface (Xia, para. 60, 64-65, 71: Because transmission 420 reflects off one surface (wall 425) between TD 405 and RD_B 412, the transmission beam of transmission 420 is referred to as a first order reflection beam. Similarly, if a transmission reflects off two surfaces, the transmission beam of the transmission is referred to as a second order reflection beam, and so on. In an environment with N reflective surfaces, there are at most N first order reflection beams. As an example, in a room, there are 6 reflective surfaces (4 walls, 1 ceiling, and 1 floor), hence, there are at most 6 first order reflection beams).
Regarding claim 20, Xia discloses a method for wireless communications (FIG. 12, para. [0052]: FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a computing system that may be used for implementing the devices and methods), comprising: determining a set of possible multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) paths (Xia, Fig. 7, para. 67, 79, 83-84: The encoding produces secured and encoded parts, which are transmitted to the receiving device (RD). As shown in FIG. 7, each secured and encoded part is transmitted over a different path (such as PATH_1 720, PATH_2 722, and PATH_3 724) to the receiving device (RD)); identifying, from the set of possible MIMO paths, a plurality of MIMO paths for allocation of transmit power based on a number of MIMO paths to be used and a physical layer security configuration (Xia, para. 84, 67, 78-79: The receiving device (RD) may then select a subset of the identified BPLs or paths to associate with the intended recipient. As an example, the TD may select the BPL of the LOS path, as well as the BPLs of any first order reflection paths. If there are more BPLs or paths, the TD may select the BPLs or paths with the highest signal strength. Moreover, Xia discloses the RD receiving the message, highlighting the providing of PHY layer security for the message).
Xia does not appear to explicitly disclose receiving channel state information, wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements; rank the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements; and allocating the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message.
In the same field of endeavor, Pan discloses receiving channel state information (Pan, col 13, lines 43-62: receiving channel state information that includes channel estimation), wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements (Pan, col 13, lines 43-62: receiving channel state information that includes channel estimation); rank the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements (Pan, Fig. 3, col 4, lines 11-31: a value of a metric indicative of the channel condition of the MIMO communication by the WTRU using a rank is determined. This metric may be based on one or more measured quantities indicative of the channel condition. Moreover, figure 3 of Pan further shows a method for selecting a rank for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication by a wireless device).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia with the teaching of Pan to include the above features into the system of Xia such as receiving channel state information, wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements and ranking the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements as taught by Pan. The motivation for doing so would have been to improve the quality and reliability of the MIMO communications (Pan, col. 1, lines 24-25).
The combination of Xia and Pan does not appear to explicitly disclose allocating the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message.
In the same field of endeavor, Lee discloses allocating the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message (Lee, abstract, para. 6, 7, 23, 45, 52, 58: allocate transmission power to different antennas when transmitting data from the wireless communication user equipment 200 to the base station (para. [0045]; receiving, from the base station, a transmit precoding matrix indicator (TPMI) indicating a precoding matrix and a rank indicator (RI) indicating a rank value, allocating a gain to each of a plurality of transmission paths, based on the precoding matrix and loss information of each of the plurality of transmission paths, and transmitting a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) through the plurality of transmission paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as allocating the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message as taught by Lee. The motivation for doing so would have been to provide a wireless communication user equipment for performing multi-antenna-based transmission and reception by determining a precoding matrix based on loss information of a transmission path of a terminal (Lee, para. [0005]).
The references do not appear to teach wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths.
In the same field of endeavor, Walton teaches wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths (Walton, para. [0323], [0395] [0398]: a plurality of available MIMO spatial channels (e.g., possible MIMO paths). The reference teaches selecting the number of independent data streams transmitted over the MIMO channel to achieve a desired data throughput or bit rate. Since each data stream corresponds to a spatial MIMO path, thus, the reference teaches selecting the number of MIMO paths to be used based on the data rate capability of the available MIMO paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths as taught by Walton. The motivation for doing so would have been to achieve a high level of efficiency and performance (Walton, para. [0271]).
Regarding claim 21, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 20, wherein allocating transmit power comprises allocating a total transmit power to the plurality of MIMO paths to obtain a common data rate on the plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 67: splitting the encoded message into a plurality of parts, which may then be transmitted over different BPLs to an intended recipient. The splitting of the encoded message may be performed in any of a variety of ways, e.g., splitting the message so that each path has the same data rate. It is noted that, when allocating power to the paths is an obvious design option, because the target data is a parameter commonly used in power control).
Regarding claim 22, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 20, wherein allocating transmit power comprises allocating transmit power to the plurality of MIMO paths to achieve a minimum data rate on the plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 67: Xia, para. 67: splitting the encoded message into a plurality of parts, which may then be transmitted over different BPLs to an intended recipient. The splitting of the encoded message may be performed in any of a variety of ways, e.g., splitting the message so that different paths have different data rates, which implies a path with a minimum data rate. It is noted that, when allocating power to a path is an obvious design option, because the target data is a parameter commonly used in power control).
Regarding claim 23, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 20, wherein a number of MIMO paths used for increased physical layer security is greater than a number of MIMO paths used for data transmissions (Xia, para. 84: If there are more BPLs or paths, the TD may select the BPLs or paths with the highest signal strength, signal plus interference to noise ratio (SINR), signal to noise ratio (SNR), etc. Typically, the larger the number of BPLs or paths selected by the TD results in increased security because the likelihood of the eavesdropper being able to receive all parts of the message decreases with the number of BPLs or paths used).
Regarding claim 24, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 20, further comprising: receiving a first indication of the physical layer security configuration (Xia, para. 67, 77-79: a technique for providing PHY layer security to a transmission includes applying a security code to the message of the transmission); and determining the number of MIMO paths to be used for transmission of the message based on the first indication (Xia, para. 67, 77-79: a technique for providing PHY layer security includes transmitting a message, that is partitioned into two or more parts, using two or more BPLs or over two or more paths to an intended recipient).
Regarding claim 25, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 24, further comprising: transmitting, based on the first indication, two or more reference signals for increased physical layer security to a second device, the two or more reference signals transmitted on different MIMO paths (Xia, para. 21, 67, 78-79, 83: receiving, by the second device, from the first device, beamformed reference signals using receive beams associated with the second device); and receiving, from the second device, channel state information based on the two or more reference signals (Xia, para. 83: which recites transmitting reference signals based on which channel state information is received).
Regarding claim 26, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 25, wherein the channel state information further includes MIMO path ranking information, and wherein the plurality of MIMO paths is identified further based on the MIMO path ranking information (Xia, para. 83-85: The TD may then select (i.e., rank) a subset of the identified BPLs or paths to associate with the intended recipient. As an example, the TD may select the BPL of the LOS path, as well as the BPLs of any first order reflection paths. If there are more BPLs or paths, the TD may select the BPLs or paths with the highest signal strength, signal plus interference to noise ratio (SINR), signal to noise ratio (SNR), etc. Typically, the larger the number of BPLs or paths selected by the TD results in increased security because the likelihood of the eavesdropper being able to receive all parts of the message decreases with the number of BPLs or paths used).
Regarding claim 27, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 25, wherein the plurality of MIMO paths is identified further based on the ranked plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 83-85: The TD may share information about the selected (i.e., ranked) BPLs or paths with the intended recipient. In an embodiment, the TD shares information about the selected BPLs or paths each time there is a change in the selected BPLs or paths), the method further comprising transmitting an indication of the plurality of MIMO paths to the second device (Xia, para. 21, 67, 78-79, 83: receiving, by the second device, from the first device, beamformed reference signals using receive beams associated with the second device).
Regarding claim 28, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 23, further comprising transmitting a second indication of the physical layer security configuration to a second device (Xia, para. 85: The TD may share information about the selected BPLs or paths with the intended recipient).
Regarding claim 29, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 20, further comprising transmitting the number of MIMO paths to be used to a second device (Xia, para. 85: The TD may share information about the selected BPLs or paths with the intended recipient).
Regarding claim 30, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 20, wherein at least one MIMO path, of the plurality of MIMO paths, reflects off a reconfigurable intelligent surface (Xia, para. 60, 64-65, 71: Because transmission 420 reflects off one surface (wall 425) between TD 405 and RD_B 412, the transmission beam of transmission 420 is referred to as a first order reflection beam. Similarly, if a transmission reflects off two surfaces, the transmission beam of the transmission is referred to as a second order reflection beam, and so on. In an environment with N reflective surfaces, there are at most N first order reflection beams. As an example, in a room, there are 6 reflective surfaces (4 walls, 1 ceiling, and 1 floor), hence, there are at most 6 first order reflection beams).
Regarding claim 31, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the method of claim 20, wherein the message is transmitted on the plurality of MIMO paths concurrently (Xia, para. 80: the secured and encoded parts may be transmitted over the different paths at different times, different frequencies, different codes, or a combination thereof. The transmissions may be limited by the capabilities of the intended recipient, which may not be able to receive multiple transmissions simultaneously, for example. Alternatively, the intended recipient may be able to receive two simultaneous transmissions).
Regarding claim 32, Xia discloses an apparatus for wireless communications (FIG. 10: Base Station1020a), comprising: at least one memory comprising instructions (Xia, Fig. 12); and at least one processor (Xia, Fig. 12: CPU 1214) coupled to the at least one memory (Xia, Fig. 12) and configured to: receive a first indication of a physical layer security configuration (Xia, para. 67, 77-79: a technique for providing PHY layer security to a transmission includes applying a security code to the message of the transmission); receive a second indication of two or more reference signals for increased physical layer security, the two or more reference signals transmitted on different multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) paths (Xia, para. 21, 67, 78-79, 83: receiving, by the second device, from the first device, beamformed reference signals using receive beams associated with the second device); measure, based on the second indication, the two or more reference signals (Xia, para. 83: the TD and the intended recipient performs a beam management process to identify the BPLs or paths between the TD and the intended recipient. In an example beam management process, the TD may transmit beamformed reference signals over its available transmit beams and the intended recipient cycles through its own receive beams to detect the reference signals. The intended recipient reports to the TD information regarding the reference signals that it was able to detect and which receive beam detected the reference signals); transmit information associated with the measured two or more reference signals to a device (Xia, para. 83: the TD may transmit beamformed reference signals over its available transmit beams and the intended recipient cycles through its own receive beams to detect the reference signals. The intended recipient reports to the TD information regarding the reference signals that it was able to detect and which receive beam detected the reference signals); determine a plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 21, 85: determining the BPLs or paths associated with the second device and the first device. The TD may share information about the selected BPLs or paths with the intended recipient. In an embodiment, the TD shares information about the selected BPLs or paths each time there is a change in the selected BPLs or paths).
Xia does not appear to explicitly disclose receive channel state information, wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements; rank the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements; and allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message.
In the same field of endeavor, Pan discloses receive channel state information (Pan, col 13, lines 43-62: receiving channel state information that includes channel estimation), wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements (Pan, col 13, lines 43-62: receiving channel state information that includes channel estimation); rank the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements (Pan, Fig. 3, col 4, lines 11-31: a value of a metric indicative of the channel condition of the MIMO communication by the WTRU using a rank is determined. This metric may be based on one or more measured quantities indicative of the channel condition. Moreover, figure 3 of Pan further shows a method for selecting a rank for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication by a wireless device).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia with the teaching of Pan to include the above features into the system of Xia such as receiving channel state information, wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements and ranking the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements as taught by Pan. The motivation for doing so would have been to improve the quality and reliability of the MIMO communications (Pan, col. 1, lines 24-25).
The combination of Xia and Pan does not appear to explicitly disclose allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message.
In the same field of endeavor, Lee discloses allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message (Lee, abstract, para. 6, 7, 23, 45, 52, 58: allocate transmission power to different antennas when transmitting data from the wireless communication user equipment 200 to the base station (para. [0045]; receiving, from the base station, a transmit precoding matrix indicator (TPMI) indicating a precoding matrix and a rank indicator (RI) indicating a rank value, allocating a gain to each of a plurality of transmission paths, based on the precoding matrix and loss information of each of the plurality of transmission paths, and transmitting a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) through the plurality of transmission paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as allocating the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message as taught by Lee. The motivation for doing so would have been to provide a wireless communication user equipment for performing multi-antenna-based transmission and reception by determining a precoding matrix based on loss information of a transmission path of a terminal (Lee, para. [0005]).
The references do not appear to teach wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths.
In the same field of endeavor, Walton teaches wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths (Walton, para. [0323], [0395] [0398]: a plurality of available MIMO spatial channels (e.g., possible MIMO paths). The reference teaches selecting the number of independent data streams transmitted over the MIMO channel to achieve a desired data throughput or bit rate. Since each data stream corresponds to a spatial MIMO path, thus, the reference teaches selecting the number of MIMO paths to be used based on the data rate capability of the available MIMO paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths as taught by Walton. The motivation for doing so would have been to achieve a high level of efficiency and performance (Walton, para. [0271]).
Regarding claim 33, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the apparatus of claim 32, wherein a number of MIMO paths used for the physical layer security configuration is greater than a number of MIMO paths used for data transmissions (Xia, para. 84: If there are more BPLs or paths, the TD may select the BPLs or paths with the highest signal strength, signal plus interference to noise ratio (SINR), signal to noise ratio (SNR), etc. Typically, the larger the number of BPLs or paths selected by the TD results in increased security because the likelihood of the eavesdropper being able to receive all parts of the message decreases with the number of BPLs or paths used).
Regarding claim 34, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the apparatus of claim 32, wherein the information associated with the measured two or more reference signals includes an indication of the ranked set of MIMO paths to the device (Xia, para. 83-85: The TD may share information about the selected (i.e., ranked) BPLs or paths with the intended recipient. In an embodiment, the TD shares information about the selected BPLs or paths each time there is a change in the selected BPLs or paths), wherein the at least one processor is further configured to determine the plurality of MIMO paths based on the ranked set of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 21, 67, 78-79, 83: receiving, by the second device, from the first device, beamformed reference signals using receive beams associated with the second device).
Regarding claim 35, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the apparatus of claim 32, wherein the information associated with the measured two or more reference signals includes measurements of the two or more reference signals, and wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive an indication of the plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 67, 77-79: a technique for providing PHY layer security to a transmission includes applying a security code to the message of the transmission); and determine the plurality of MIMO paths based on the received indication of the plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 67, 77-79: a technique for providing PHY layer security includes transmitting a message, that is partitioned into two or more parts, using two or more BPLs or over two or more paths to an intended recipient).
Regarding claim 36, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the apparatus of claim 32, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to receive an indication of a number of MIMO paths, and wherein the plurality of MIMO paths are determined based on the number of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 85, 21, 67, 78-79, 83: The TD may share information about the selected BPLs or paths with the intended recipient. Moreover, Xia discloses receiving, by the second device, from the first device, beamformed reference signals using receive beams associated with the second device).
Regarding claim 37, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the apparatus of claim 32, wherein the message is received across the plurality of MIMO paths concurrently (Xia, para. 80: the secured and encoded parts may be transmitted over the different paths at different times, different frequencies, different codes, or a combination thereof. The transmissions may be limited by the capabilities of the intended recipient, which may not be able to receive multiple transmissions simultaneously, for example. Alternatively, the intended recipient may be able to receive two simultaneous transmissions).
Regarding claim 38, Xia, Pan, Lee, and Walton disclose the apparatus of claim 32, wherein at least one MIMO path, of the plurality of MIMO paths, reflects off a reconfigurable intelligent surface (Xia, para. 60, 64-65, 71: Because transmission 420 reflects off one surface (wall 425) between TD 405 and RD_B 412, the transmission beam of transmission 420 is referred to as a first order reflection beam. Similarly, if a transmission reflects off two surfaces, the transmission beam of the transmission is referred to as a second order reflection beam, and so on. In an environment with N reflective surfaces, there are at most N first order reflection beams. As an example, in a room, there are 6 reflective surfaces (4 walls, 1 ceiling, and 1 floor), hence, there are at most 6 first order reflection beams).
Regarding claim 39, Xia discloses a non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that (FIG. 12: computing system 1200 that may be used for implementing the devices and methods disclosed herein), when executed by at least one processor (FIG. 12: CPU 1214), cause the at least one processor to: determine a set of possible multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) paths (Xia, Fig. 7, para. 67, 79, 83-84: The encoding produces secured and encoded parts, which are transmitted to the receiving device (RD). As shown in FIG. 7, each secured and encoded part is transmitted over a different path (such as PATH_1 720, PATH_2 722, and PATH_3 724) to the receiving device (RD)); identify, from the set of possible MIMO paths, a plurality of MIMO paths for allocation of transmit power based on a number of MIMO paths to be used and a physical layer security configuration (Xia, para. 84, 67, 78-79: The receiving device (RD) may then select a subset of the identified BPLs or paths to associate with the intended recipient. As an example, the TD may select the BPL of the LOS path, as well as the BPLs of any first order reflection paths. If there are more BPLs or paths, the TD may select the BPLs or paths with the highest signal strength. Moreover, Xia discloses the RD receiving the message, highlighting the providing of PHY layer security for the message).
Xia does not appear to explicitly disclose receive channel state information, wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements; rank the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements; and allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message.
In the same field of endeavor, Pan discloses receive channel state information (Pan, col 13, lines 43-62: receiving channel state information that includes channel estimation), wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements (Pan, col 13, lines 43-62: receiving channel state information that includes channel estimation); rank the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements (Pan, Fig. 3, col 4, lines 11-31: a value of a metric indicative of the channel condition of the MIMO communication by the WTRU using a rank is determined. This metric may be based on one or more measured quantities indicative of the channel condition. Moreover, figure 3 of Pan further shows a method for selecting a rank for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication by a wireless device).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia with the teaching of Pan to include the above features into the system of Xia such as receiving channel state information, wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements and ranking the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements as taught by Pan. The motivation for doing so would have been to improve the quality and reliability of the MIMO communications (Pan, col. 1, lines 24-25).
The combination of Xia and Pan does not appear to explicitly disclose allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message.
In the same field of endeavor, Lee discloses allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message (Lee, abstract, para. 6, 7, 23, 45, 52, 58: allocate transmission power to different antennas when transmitting data from the wireless communication user equipment 200 to the base station (para. [0045]; receiving, from the base station, a transmit precoding matrix indicator (TPMI) indicating a precoding matrix and a rank indicator (RI) indicating a rank value, allocating a gain to each of a plurality of transmission paths, based on the precoding matrix and loss information of each of the plurality of transmission paths, and transmitting a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) through the plurality of transmission paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as allocating the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message as taught by Lee. The motivation for doing so would have been to provide a wireless communication user equipment for performing multi-antenna-based transmission and reception by determining a precoding matrix based on loss information of a transmission path of a terminal (Lee, para. [0005]).
The references do not appear to teach wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths.
In the same field of endeavor, Walton teaches wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths (Walton, para. [0323], [0395] [0398]: a plurality of available MIMO spatial channels (e.g., possible MIMO paths). The reference teaches selecting the number of independent data streams transmitted over the MIMO channel to achieve a desired data throughput or bit rate. Since each data stream corresponds to a spatial MIMO path, thus, the reference teaches selecting the number of MIMO paths to be used based on the data rate capability of the available MIMO paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths as taught by Walton. The motivation for doing so would have been to achieve a high level of efficiency and performance (Walton, para. [0271]).
Regarding claim 40, Xia discloses a non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that (FIG. 12: computing system 1200 that may be used for implementing the devices and methods disclosed herein), when executed by at least one processor (FIG. 12: CPU 1214), cause the at least one processor to: receive a first indication of a physical layer security configuration (Xia, para. 67, 77-79: a technique for providing PHY layer security to a transmission includes applying a security code to the message of the transmission); receive a second indication of two or more reference signals for increased physical layer security, the two or more reference signals transmitted on different multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) paths (Xia, para. 21, 67, 78-79, 83: receiving, by the second device, from the first device, beamformed reference signals using receive beams associated with the second device); measure, based on the second indication, the two or more reference signals (Xia, para. 83: the TD and the intended recipient performs a beam management process to identify the BPLs or paths between the TD and the intended recipient. In an example beam management process, the TD may transmit beamformed reference signals over its available transmit beams and the intended recipient cycles through its own receive beams to detect the reference signals. The intended recipient reports to the TD information regarding the reference signals that it was able to detect and which receive beam detected the reference signals); transmit information associated with the measured two or more reference signals to a device (Xia, para. 83: the TD may transmit beamformed reference signals over its available transmit beams and the intended recipient cycles through its own receive beams to detect the reference signals. The intended recipient reports to the TD information regarding the reference signals that it was able to detect and which receive beam detected the reference signals); determine a plurality of MIMO paths (Xia, para. 21, 85: determining the BPLs or paths associated with the second device and the first device. The TD may share information about the selected BPLs or paths with the intended recipient. In an embodiment, the TD shares information about the selected BPLs or paths each time there is a change in the selected BPLs or paths).
Xia does not appear to explicitly disclose receive channel state information, wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements; rank the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements; and allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message.
In the same field of endeavor, Pan discloses receive channel state information (Pan, col 13, lines 43-62: receiving channel state information that includes channel estimation), wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements (Pan, col 13, lines 43-62: receiving channel state information that includes channel estimation); rank the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements (Pan, Fig. 3, col 4, lines 11-31: a value of a metric indicative of the channel condition of the MIMO communication by the WTRU using a rank is determined. This metric may be based on one or more measured quantities indicative of the channel condition. Moreover, figure 3 of Pan further shows a method for selecting a rank for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication by a wireless device).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia with the teaching of Pan to include the above features into the system of Xia such as receiving channel state information, wherein the channel state information includes channel measurements and ranking the plurality of MIMO paths based on the channel measurements as taught by Pan. The motivation for doing so would have been to improve the quality and reliability of the MIMO communications (Pan, col. 1, lines 24-25).
The combination of Xia and Pan does not appear to explicitly disclose allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message.
In the same field of endeavor, Lee discloses allocate the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message (Lee, abstract, para. 6, 7, 23, 45, 52, 58: allocate transmission power to different antennas when transmitting data from the wireless communication user equipment 200 to the base station (para. [0045]; receiving, from the base station, a transmit precoding matrix indicator (TPMI) indicating a precoding matrix and a rank indicator (RI) indicating a rank value, allocating a gain to each of a plurality of transmission paths, based on the precoding matrix and loss information of each of the plurality of transmission paths, and transmitting a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) through the plurality of transmission paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as allocating the transmit power among the plurality of MIMO paths based on the rank of the plurality of MIMO paths to transmit a message as taught by Lee. The motivation for doing so would have been to provide a wireless communication user equipment for performing multi-antenna-based transmission and reception by determining a precoding matrix based on loss information of a transmission path of a terminal (Lee, para. [0005]).
The references do not appear to teach wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths.
In the same field of endeavor, Walton teaches wherein the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths (Walton, para. [0323], [0395] [0398]: a plurality of available MIMO spatial channels (e.g., possible MIMO paths). The reference teaches selecting the number of independent data streams transmitted over the MIMO channel to achieve a desired data throughput or bit rate. Since each data stream corresponds to a spatial MIMO path, thus, the reference teaches selecting the number of MIMO paths to be used based on the data rate capability of the available MIMO paths).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art at the time of invention to combine the teaching of Xia as modified by Pan with the teaching of Lee to include the above features into the system of Xia such as the number of MIMO paths to be used is selected based on a data rate of MIMO paths of the set of possible MIMO paths as taught by Walton. The motivation for doing so would have been to achieve a high level of efficiency and performance (Walton, para. [0271]).
Conclusion
12. 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.
13. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JEAN F VOLTAIRE whose telephone number is (571)272-3953. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:30-6:30 PM.
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/JEAN F VOLTAIRE/Examiner, Art Unit 2417
/PAUL H. MASUR/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2417
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