Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent provisions.
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 11/21 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed on 11/21/2025 have been fully considered. Applicant’s arguments and examiner’s response are provided below.
Double Patenting:
Applicant asserts that a timely terminal disclaimer has been filed. However, a review of the application file does not show any terminal disclaimer of record.
Accordingly, the double patenting rejection is maintained.
To overcome the rejection, applicant must file a terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 C.F.R. 1.321 (c).
Rejections under 35 U.S.C. 102:
Applicant argues (pages 4-5): It may be considered that "it is possible to perform radio communication between the neighbor cell base station and the terminal" if the neighbor cell base station may transmit a data signal to the terminal in Ko. However, this means only that it is possible "to perform radio communication between the neighbor cell base station and the terminal".
Thus, Ko fails to disclose and suggest, the second base station enables radio
communication with the mobile terminal in coordination with the first base station. As such, "the neighbor cell base station may transmit a data signal to the terminal" in Ko cannot be properly characterized as disclosing "the second base station enables radio communication with the mobile terminal in coordination with the first base station".
Examiner’s response: Examiner respectfully disagrees. The generation and transmission of a data signal based on the scheduling information inherently involves enabling radio communication. A data signal cannot be transmitted unless the radio communication has been enabled according to the scheduling information. Therefore, the act of generating and transmitting a data signal based on the scheduling information functionally encompasses and implies enabling radio communication based on scheduling information, since transmission cannot occur without such enabling. The claim uses broad functional language “enables radio communication”, which reasonably covers actions that establish or support radio communication, including transmitting a data signal. A POSITA would recognize that enabling radio communication is inherently accomplished by transmitting the data signal. Ko expressly discloses transmitting a data signal, which inherently enables radio communication. Therefore, Ko discloses "the second base station enables radio communication with the mobile terminal in coordination with the first base station".
Applicant argues (pages 5-6): In contrast to Ko's centralized scheduling approach, claim 6 explicitly recites that the second base station performs scheduling to allocate radio resources without using scheduling information received from at least one other base station among a plurality of base stations. This independent scheduling by the second base station is not disclosed or suggested by Ko.
Examiner’s response: The newly added limitation is disclosed by Ji (US 20090196245 A1), as set forth in this office action.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be
used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on a non-statutory double
patenting ground provided the conflicting application or patent either is shown to be
commonly owned with this application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities
undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement.
Effective January 1, 1994, a registered attorney or agent of record may sign a terminal
disclaimer. A terminal disclaimer signed by the assignee must fully comply with 37 CFR
3.73(b).
Claims 2-3 and 6 are rejected on the ground of non-statutory obviousness-type double patenting as being unpatentable over claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 9,887,826 B2. Although the conflicting claims are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because the main difference between the Instant Application and the U.S. Patent No. 9,887,826 B2 is the broadening of the claimed subject matter which is already covered by the claim of the U.S. Patent No. 9,887,826 B2 (See claim mapping below).
Instant Application
US Patent No. 9,887,826 B2
2. A mobile communication system comprising:
a mobile terminal, a first base station, and a
second base station, wherein resource allocation information is transmitted from the first base station to the second base station, and
when the second base station receives the
resource allocation information, the second base
station enables radio communication with the
mobile terminal in coordination with the first
base station based on the resource allocation
information which has been received.
1. A communication system comprising:
a plurality of base station devices communicably
connected and a terminal device configured to
perform radio communication with each of said
base station devices, wherein each of said base station devices is configured to communicate
with said terminal device in cooperation among
the other base station devices,
each of said base station devices includes
a processor that performs scheduling to
determine which radio resource is allocated to
the communication with said terminal device;
a communication unit that communicates with
said terminal device based on results of said
scheduling by said processor;
3. A base station performing communication with
a mobile terminal in coordination with another
base station, wherein when a processor of the base station receive resource allocation information transmitted from another processor of the another base station, the base station enables radio communication with the mobile terminal in coordination with the another base station based on the resource allocation information which has been received.
1. A communication system comprising:
a plurality of base station devices communicably
connected and a terminal device configured to
perform radio communication with each of said
base station devices, wherein each of said base
station devices is configured to communicate
with said terminal device in cooperation among
the other base station devices,
each of said base station devices includes
a processor that performs scheduling to
determine which radio resource is allocated to
the communication with said terminal device; a communication unit that communicates with
said terminal device based on results of said
scheduling by said processor;
6.The mobile communication system according to claim 2, wherein the second base station performs scheduling to allocate radio resources without using scheduling information received from at least one other base station among a plurality of base stations.
1. said processor is configured to ignore the acquired scheduling information for said scheduling notified from at least one of the other base station devices among the acquired scheduling information for said scheduling notified from said other base station devices and acquired by said acquisition unit, when the acquired scheduling information is notified after a predetermined time, so that the determination of which radio resource is allocated to the communication with said terminal device is made without using the acquired scheduling information.
Claims 4-5 are rejected on the ground of non-statutory double patenting as being
unpatentable over claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 9,887,826 B2 in view of Ko et al. (US
20120087423 A1).
Claim 1 of U.S. Patent No. 9,887,826 B2 does not explicitly disclose sending MCS
information.
However, Ko discloses “wherein modulation and coding scheme (MCS) information is
transmitted from the first base station to the second base station” (See ¶ [0055] Also, the
serving base station may transmit, to a neighbor base station, scheduling information
including at least one of the received precoding information, information about radio
resource allocated to the terminal, and modulation and coding scheme (MCS) information).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the
invention was made to have modified the teachings of U.S. Patent No. 9,887,826 B2 with
the teachings of Ko to include MCS information with resource allocation information, and
the motivation to do so would have been for better resource allocation.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102(e) that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(e) the invention was described in (1) an application for patent, published under section
122(b), by another filed in the United States before the invention by the applicant for
patent or (2) a patent granted on an application for patent by another filed in the United
States before the invention by the applicant for patent, except that an international
application filed under the treaty defined in section 351(a) shall have the effects for
purposes of this subsection of an application filed in the United States only if the
international application designated the United States and was published under Article
21(2) of such treaty in the English language.
Claims 2-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(e) as being anticipated by Ko et al. (US
20120087423 A1).
Regarding claim 2,
Ko discloses “A mobile communication system comprising: a mobile terminal, a
first base station, and a second base station” (See Fig. 1, ¶ [0022] In the multi-
cell cooperative communication system according to an embodiment of the present
invention, both a serving cell base station 120 and a neighbor cell base station 130
transmit data signals required by a terminal 110 to the terminal 110), “wherein
resource allocation information is transmitted from the first base station to the
second base station” (See ¶ [0055] the serving cell base station may transmit, to a
neighbor cell base station, scheduling information including at least one of the
received precoding information, information about radio resource allocated to the terminal, and modulation and coding scheme (MCS) information), “and when the
second base station receives the resource allocation information, the second base
station enables radio communication with the mobile terminal in coordination
with the first base station based on the resource allocation information which has
been received” (See ¶ [0056] the neighbor cell base station may generate a data signal
further based on the scheduling information, and may transmit the data signal to the
terminal. That is, the neighbor cell base station may transmit the data signal to the terminal
based on the scheduling information transmitted from the serving cell base station. In this
instance, it is preferable that the serving cell base station and the neighbor cell base station
are synchronized. Note: The second (neighbor) base station transmits data to the terminal
(enables radio communication) based on the scheduling information including resource
allocation information. Transmitting a data signal based on the scheduling information functionally encompasses and implies enabling radio communication based on scheduling information, since transmission cannot occur without such enabling. [0057] there may be need for a subject that generally manages a cooperative communication performed between the plurality of base stations to cooperatively perform the MIMO communication. The plurality of base stations may include a first base station controlling the cooperative communication and at least one second base station that is controlled by the first base station, the first base station is referred to as a supernode and a set of at least one cell managed by the at least one second base station is referred to as a supercell. [0058] The supernode may determine scheduling of at least one terminal involved, in the cooperative communication and may transmit the determined scheduling information of the at least one terminal to the at least one second base station that manages the supercell to enable the at least one second base station to transmit a data signal according to the scheduling information. Note: The second (neighbor) base station enables radio communication with the terminal in coordination/cooperation with the first (serving) base station based on the scheduling information received.
Regarding claim 3,
Ko discloses “A base station performing communication with a mobile terminal in
coordination with another base station, wherein the base station comprises a
processor coupled to a memory, and the another base station comprises another
processor coupled to another memory” (See Fig. 1, ¶ [0022] In the multi-cell cooperative
communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention, both a
serving cell base station 120 and a neighbor cell base station 130 transmit data signals
required by a terminal 110 to the terminal 110), “when the processor of the base station
receives resource allocation information transmitted from the another processor of the
another base station” (See ¶ [0055] the serving cell base station may transmit, to a
neighbor cell base station, scheduling information including at least one of the received
precoding information, information about radio resource allocated to the terminal, and
modulation and coding scheme (MCS) information), “the base station enables radio
communication with the mobile terminal in coordination with the another base station
based on the resource allocation information which has been received” (See ¶ [0056] the
neighbor cell base station may generate a data signal further based on the scheduling
information, and may transmit the data signal to the terminal. That is, the neighbor cell base
station may transmit the data signal to the terminal based on the scheduling information
transmitted from the serving cell base station. In this instance, it is preferable that the
serving cell base station and the neighbor cell base station are synchronized. Note: The
second (neighbor) base station transmits data to the terminal (enables radio
communication) based on the scheduling information including resource allocation
information. Transmitting a data signal based on the scheduling information functionally encompasses and implies enabling radio communication based on scheduling information, since transmission cannot occur without such enabling. [0057] there may be need for a subject that generally manages a cooperative communication performed between the plurality of base stations to cooperatively perform the MIMO communication. The plurality of base stations may include a first base station controlling the cooperative communication and at least one second base station that is controlled by the first base station, the first base station is referred to as a supernode and a set of at least one cell managed by the at least one second base station is referred to as a supercell. [0058] The supernode may determine scheduling of at least one terminal involved, in the cooperative communication and may transmit the determined scheduling information of the at least one terminal to the at least one second base station that manages the supercell to enable the at least one second base station to transmit a data signal according to the scheduling information. Note: The second (neighbor) base station enables radio communication with the terminal in coordination/cooperation with the first (serving) base station based on the scheduling information received.
Regarding claim 4,
Ko discloses “The mobile communication system according to claim 2, wherein
modulation and coding scheme (MCS) information is transmitted from the first
base station to the second base station” (See ¶ [0055] the serving cell base station
may transmit, to a neighbor cell base station, scheduling information including at
least one of the received precoding information, information about radio resource
allocated to the terminal, and modulation and coding scheme (MCS) information), “and
wherein, when the second base station receives the resource allocation information and
the MCS information, the second base station enables radio communication with the
mobile terminal in coordination with the first base station based on the resource
allocation information and the MCS information which have been received” (See ¶ [0056] the neighbor cell base station may generate a data signal further based on the scheduling
information, and may transmit the data signal to the terminal. That is, the neighbor cell base
station may transmit the data signal to the terminal based on the scheduling information
transmitted from the serving cell base station. In this instance, it is preferable that the
serving cell base station and the neighbor cell base station are synchronized. Note: The
second (neighbor) base station transmits data to the terminal (enables radio
communication) based on the scheduling information including resource allocation
information. Transmitting a data signal based on the scheduling information functionally encompasses and implies enabling radio communication based on scheduling information, since transmission cannot occur without such enabling. [0057] there may be need for a subject that generally manages a cooperative communication performed between the plurality of base stations to cooperatively perform the MIMO communication. The plurality of base stations may include a first base station controlling the cooperative communication and at least one second base station that is controlled by the first base station, the first base station is referred to as a supernode and a set of at least one cell managed by the at least one second base station is referred to as a supercell. [0058] The supernode may determine scheduling of at least one terminal involved, in the cooperative communication and may transmit the determined scheduling information of the at least one terminal to the at least one second base station that manages the supercell to enable the at least one second base station to transmit a data signal according to the scheduling information. Note: The second (neighbor) base station enables radio communication with the terminal in coordination/cooperation with the first (serving) base station based on the scheduling information received.
Regarding claim 5,
Ko discloses “The base station according to claim 3, wherein, when the processor of the
base station receives resource allocation information, and modulation and coding scheme (MCS) information are transmitted from the another processor of the another base
station” (See ¶ [0055] the serving cell base station may transmit, to a neighbor cell base
station, scheduling information including at least one of the received precoding information,
information about radio resource allocated to the terminal, and modulation and coding
scheme (MCS) information), “the base station enables radio communication with the
mobile terminal in coordination with the another base station based on the resource
allocation information and the MCS information which have been received” (See ¶ [0056]
the neighbor cell base station may generate a data signal further based on the scheduling
information, and may transmit the data signal to the terminal. That is, the neighbor cell base
station may transmit the data signal to the terminal based on the scheduling information
transmitted from the serving cell base station. In this instance, it is preferable that the
serving cell base station and the neighbor cell base station are synchronized. Note: The
second (neighbor) base station transmits data to the terminal (enables radio
communication) based on the scheduling information including resource allocation
information. Transmitting a data signal based on the scheduling information functionally encompasses and implies enabling radio communication based on scheduling information, since transmission cannot occur without such enabling. [0057] there may be need for a subject that generally manages a cooperative communication performed between the plurality of base stations to cooperatively perform the MIMO communication. The plurality of base stations may include a first base station controlling the cooperative communication and at least one second base station that is controlled by the first base station, the first base station is referred to as a supernode and a set of at least one cell managed by the at least one second base station is referred to as a supercell. [0058] The supernode may determine scheduling of at least one terminal involved, in the cooperative communication and may transmit the determined scheduling information of the at least one terminal to the at least one second base station that manages the supercell to enable the at least one second base station to transmit a data signal according to the scheduling information. Note: The second (neighbor) base station enables radio communication with the terminal in coordination/cooperation with the first (serving) base station based on the scheduling information received.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent may not be obtained though the invention is not identically disclosed or described as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the subject matter sought to be patented and the prior art are such that the subject matter as a whole would have been obvious at the time the invention was made to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which said subject matter pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) 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.
Claim 6 is rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Ko et al. (US 20120087423 A1) in view of Ji (US 20090196245 A1).
Regarding claim 6,
Ko discloses “The mobile communication system according to claim 2”, but does not explicitly disclose that the second base station performs scheduling without using scheduling information received from at least one other base station.
However, Ji discloses “wherein the second base station performs scheduling to allocate radio resources without using scheduling information received from at least one other base station among a plurality of base stations” (See ¶ [0051] a common AP can provide coordinated scheduling among neighboring cells in a particular coverage area served by the common AP. ¶ [0053] Priority can be utilized by a recipient AP to determine whether to obey, modify or ignore the scheduling provided by the common AP. Note: Since the recipient AP can ignore the scheduling information provided by the common AP, the recipient AP necessarily performs its own scheduling independently without using the scheduling information received.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the
invention was made to have modified the teachings of Ko with the teachings of Ji, and the motivation to do so would have been to ensure better QoS management and meet different traffic priorities without being constrained by external scheduling (Ji [0053]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SALMA A AYAD whose telephone number is (571)270-0285. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00 to 5:30 ET.
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/SALMA AYAD/Examiner, Art Unit 2462 /YEMANE MESFIN/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2462