Prosecution Insights
Last updated: August 17, 2026
Application No. 18/135,204

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR SCHEDULING DEVICE-TO-DEVICE SIDELINK TRANSMISSION IN A WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
Apr 17, 2023
Priority
Feb 11, 2020 — provisional 62/972,843 +2 more
Examiner
HARLEY, JASON A
Art Unit
2468
Tech Center
2400 — Computer Networks
Assignee
ASUSTeK Computer Inc.
OA Round
3 (Non-Final)
67%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
9m
Est. Remaining
98%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 67% — above average
67%
Career Allowance Rate
437 granted / 654 resolved
+8.8% vs TC avg
Strong +32% interview lift
Without
With
+31.7%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
4y 1m
Avg Prosecution
31 currently pending
Career history
702
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
5.8%
-34.2% vs TC avg
§103
67.4%
+27.4% vs TC avg
§102
20.0%
-20.0% vs TC avg
§112
3.5%
-36.5% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 654 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §103
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 . 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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 4/16/26 has been entered. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action: A person shall be entitled to a patent unless – (a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claim(s) 1-6, 8-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by (U.S. Patent No. 11.601,789 B2) 1, Panteleev teaches a method of a second device performing sidelink transmission, comprising: receiving, by the second device, receives a signal from a first device [col 9, ln 40-43, Step 2: a second UE may detect the SR from the first UE at operation 504. The SR may be detected by decoding the PSCCH and validating that the SR is intended for the second UE], wherein the signal indicates both (i) one or more sets of resources[col, 11, ln 36-41, However, to assist in better resource selection, as discussed above, the SR may also include information to convey time-frequency resources of candidate sets R.sub.1, R.sub.1.sup.PSCCH, R.sub.1.sup.PSSCH as a bit-field in SCI according to the CRSI option 1 or option 2], and (ii) at least one of one or more characteristics or one or more characteristic values for the one or more sets of resources [col 11, ln 59-65, col 12, ln 1-5, The SR may also include a reliability indicator of the pending traffic. The reliability indicator may be a ProSe Per Packet Reliability (PPPR) or any sidelink reliability indicator derived based on PPPR. he SR may also include identification information such as link or group or UE identity. The identification information may either explicitly signaled or implicitly included as a scrambling sequence for at least a part of CRC of the SCI format carrying the SR. The SR may also include identification information such as link or group or UE identity. The SR may also include resource reservation information—e.g. periodicity of the requested resources and/or reservation time. This may also be a part of BSR field as this information relates to traffic characteristics], and the signal is for inter-device coordination[claim 1, the apparatus comprising: processing circuitry; and memory, the processing circuitry configured to: decode sidelink control information (SCI) received from another UE, the SCI comprising a first SCI format, the first SCI format indicating whether inter-UE coordination information is being provided or is being requested, wherein when the first SCI format indicates that inter-UE coordination information is being provided, the processing circuitry is configured to determine a set of resources for a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) transmission by the UE based on a reference slot indicated by the first SCI format]; in response to the one or more sets of resources indicated by the received signal, determining, by the second device, a set of candidate resources based on: both (i) the one or more indicated characteristics for the one or more sets of resources and (ii)specific characteristics of a data to be transmitted by the second device or both (i) the one or more indicated characteristic values for the one or more sets of resources and a (ii)specific characteristic value of a data to be transmitted by the second device[col 9, ln 35-60, As an option, the SR may also convey information about candidate resource set R.sub.1 in order to assist in further steps of resource selection. Once the SR is detected, the second UE may select a PSCCH resource for SG transmission from a candidate resource set R.sub.2. The set R.sub.2 may be obtained at operation 506 by the second UE performing the same basic channel sensing procedure undertaken by the first UE as for determination of set R.sub.1. If information about the set R.sub.1 is provided in the SR, the second UE may select PSCCH resources for SG transmission as a function of both sets R.sub.1 and R.sub.2. The SG may at least convey information about transmission parameters and resources for the first UE]; wherein the determining comprises excluding one or more candidate resources from the set of candidate resources or selecting one or more candidate resources from the set of candidate resources based on the specific characteristics of the data to be transmitted by the second device or the specific characteristic value of the data to be transmitted by the second device [col 9, ln 19-26, 35-60, col 10, ln 25-36, For example, resource selection may exclude predetermined resources among the least congested candidate resources, may take into account priority information of the UE or data, or may use collision avoidance. Once the SR is detected, the second UE may select a PSCCH resource for SG transmission from a candidate resource set R.sub.2. If information about the set R.sub.1 is provided in the SR, the second UE may select PSCCH resources for SG transmission as a function of both sets R.sub.1 and R.sub.2. Such a function may be based on intersection of these sets, i.e., R.sub.1∩R.sub.2. In one embodiment, the resource selection procedure for SR and/or SG resources may be adjusted to select less congested PSCCH resources by changing selection characteristics such as Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP) thresholds, Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) thresholds, transmission priority, number of occupied resources, if possible, etc.], and selecting a resource, from the determined set of candidate resources, for performing a sidelink transmission carrying the data [claim 2, determine the set of resources for the PSSCH transmission by the other UE based on the resource selection window, the processing circuitry is to configure the UE to select one or more resources from within the resource selection window based on a measured Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP) of the first SCI format]. 2, Panteleev disclose the method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the one or more characteristics is a priority, or the one or more characteristic values is a priority value [ col 10, In 45-54,col 11, In 50-63, The PSCCH candidate resource set may be identified using different procedures depending on the SCI format to be transmitted. If the SCI format carries the SR, the PSCCH candidate resources may be selected without any linkage to the PSSCH to be transmitted. The SR may contain the priority of the pending traffic. The priority also may be a ProSe Per-Packet Priority (PPPP) or any sidelink transmission priority level derived based on PPPP. The priority may also be used by the receiving UE to decide the candidate resource set R.sub.2 and/or be used by other UEs to take into account in channel access procedures, e.g., [apply priority-specific RSRP, RSSI thresholds for resource selection and exclusion examiner interprets as characteristic values]. 3, Panteleev provide the method of claim 1, wherein the one or more characteristics or the one or more characteristic values is a Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP) or an RSRP level [col 11, In 50-63, the SR may contain the priority of the pending traffic. The priority also may be a ProSe Per-Packet Priority (PPPP) or any sidelink transmission priority level derived based on PPPP. The priority may also be used by the receiving UE to decide the candidate resource set R.sub.2 and/or be used by other UEs to take into account in channel access procedures, e.g., [apply priority-specific RSRP, RSSI thresholds for resource selection and exclusion examiner interprets as characteristic values]. 4, Panteleev define the method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the one or more characteristics or the one or more characteristic values is at least one of: a geographic distance level, an RSRP level, a Channel Busy Ratio (CBR) range or value, a carrier index, a sidelink resource pool index, a sidelink Bandwidth Part (BWP) index, an entry in an inter-carrier frequency list, a group identity for a group performing groupcast sidelink transmission, one or more L1 or L2 destination identity(s) for indicating identity(s) of one or more device(s), or a member Identity of one or more device(s) in a group for groupcast sidelink transmission[col12, In 50-65, In some embodiments, the UE may estimate whether the UE is in proximity of the other UE in the pair. If both UEs consider each other in proximity, the UEs may employ DSM-Cat-1 instead of DSM-Cat- 2 because of sets R.sub.1 and R.sub.2 may be highly correlated. The validation of the proximity may be done by at least one or a combination of: a determination that a measured RSRP (e.g., of a reference signal) is above a configured RSRP threshold at both UE1 and UE2; an estimated distance between UE1 and UE2 is below a configured distance threshold at both UE1 and UE2; and candidate resource sets] 5, Panteleev conveys the method of claim 1, wherein when the data with a first priority comes in the second device, the determined set of candidate resources is associated with the first priority [col 8, In 65-67, col 9, In 1-7, a basic step of channel access procedure may be defined based on identification of a set of least congested PSCCH and PSSCH resources for a given priority of transmission. The set of least congested resources may be identified based on multi-step channel sensing procedures that may depend on multiple higher layer configured parameters, traffic/service types, traffic/service priorities, congestion control functions, etc. The channel sensing procedure defined for LTE V2V communication (sensing channel occupation) may be reused as a baseline for identification of the set of least congested resources]. 6, Panteleev discloses the method of claim 1, at least one of: wherein the one or more characteristics comprises at least some of a source identity of the first device [col 8, ln 5-8, The SR may also include other control information such as identification of UE-1 and/or UE-2, the buffer state of UE-1, and resource allocation information, among others. In response to a successfully detected SR]; wherein the determining the set of candidate resources in response to the one or more sets of resources based on the one or more indicated characteristics and the specific characteristics of the data to be transmitted by the second device comprises excluding a candidate resource from the set of candidate resources [col 9, ln 19-26, 35-60, As an option, the SR may also convey information about candidate resource set R.sub.1 in order to assist in further steps of resource selection. The set R.sub.2 may be obtained at operation 506 by the second UE performing the same basic channel sensing procedure undertaken by the first UE as for determination of set R.sub.1. If information about the set R.sub.1 is provided in the SR, the second UE may select PSCCH resources for SG transmission as a function of both sets R.sub.1 and R.sub.2], determined in response to the one or more sets of resources, based on a destination identity of the sidelink transmission being the same as the source identity of the first device; or wherein the determining the set of candidate resources in response to the one or more sets of resources based on the one or more indicated characteristics and the specific characteristics of the data to be transmitted by the second device comprises selecting a determining the set of candidate resources, as being within the one or more sets of resources[col 9, ln 19-26, 35-60, col 10, ln 25-36, For example, resource selection may exclude predetermined resources among the least congested candidate resources, may take into account priority information of the UE or data, or may use collision avoidance. Once the SR is detected, the second UE may select a PSCCH resource for SG transmission from a candidate resource set R.sub.2. If information about the set R.sub.1 is provided in the SR, the second UE may select PSCCH resources for SG transmission as a function of both sets R.sub.1 and R.sub.2. Such a function may be based on intersection of these sets, i.e., R.sub.1∩R.sub.2. In one embodiment, the resource selection procedure for SR and/or SG resources may be adjusted to select less congested PSCCH resources by changing selection characteristics such as Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP) thresholds, Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) thresholds, transmission priority, number of occupied resources, if possible, etc.], based on a destination identity of the sidelink transmission being the same as the source identity of the first device [col 9, ln 56-61, The SG may be transmitted at operation 508 by the second UE in a period between time instances T.sub.2 and T.sub.3. The SG may at least convey information about transmission parameters and resources for the first UE. As an option, the SG may also convey the candidate set R.sub.2 or an intersection of sets] 8. Panteleev create the method of claim 1, wherein the signal is transmitted via a broadcast sidelink transmission a groupcast sidelink transmission or a unicast sidelink transmission [col 6, ln 39-44, Note that such new use cases mainly assume groupcast or unicast type of sidelink communication wherein the knowledge of intended message recipients may help in adapting transmitter and receiver behavior to select optimal resources in terms of system capacity and link performance]. 9, Panteleev describe the method of claim 1, at least one of: wherein the signal is transmitted via one or more Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Elements (CE); wherein the signal is transmitted via one or more specific sidelink control information multiplexed with one or more sidelink data transmissions; or wherein the signal comprises at least one of a second stage sidelink control information and/or a Physical Sidelink Shared Channel [abstract, The transmitting UE selects the PSCCH resource and transmits a scheduling request using the PSCCH resource, while the receiving UE selects a PSCCH and the PSSCH resource and transmits a scheduling grant in the PSCCH containing transmission parameters and the PSSCH resource to the transmitting UE. When the scheduling request contains the candidate resources for the PSCCH transmission, the receiving UE uses the intersection of the candidate resources for the PSCCH transmission and the candidate resources for transmission to determine the PSCCH and the PSSCH resource]. 10. Panteleev display the method of claim 1, wherein the one or more sets of resources is determined based upon sensing performed by the first device and based on the at least one of the one or more characteristics or the one or more characteristic values [abstract, Systems and methods of providing NR V2V communications are disclosed. Channel sensing is used by both UEs to determine sets of candidate resources, and subsequently select a resource, for PSCCH and PSSCH transmissions. The transmitting UE selects the PSCCH resource and transmits a scheduling request using the PSCCH resource, while the receiving UE selects a PSCCH and the PSSCH resource and transmits a scheduling grant in the PSCCH containing transmission parameters and the PSSCH resource to the transmitting UE]. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 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. Claim(s) 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Panteleev et al. (U.S. Patent No. 11,601,789 B2) in view of Zhao et al. (U.S. Patent No. 11,202,287 B2). 7, Panteleev disclose the method of claim 1, Panteleev fail to show wherein the second device determines the set of resources associated with a member Identity of the second device in a group, In an analogous art Zhao show wherein the second device determines the set of resources associated with a member Identity of the second device in a group [claim 1, the first transmission resource comprises: determining, by the first terminal device, the first transmission resource from a first transmission resource set, wherein determining, by the first terminal device, the first transmission resource from a first transmission resource set comprises: determining, by the first terminal device, the first transmission resource from a first transmission resource set according to identifier information of the first terminal device, wherein the identifier information of the first terminal device comprises a member identifier of the first terminal device in the first group], wherein the group comprises a plurality of devices for performing groupcast sidelink transmission[col 9, ln 44-52, the first indication information can be carried in a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) or a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH).The second terminal device can send the first indication information to the first terminal device while transmitting groupcast data to group members. For example, the second terminal device can transmit groupcast data to group members in subframe n and send the first indication information to the first terminal device in subframe n]. Before the effective filing date it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Panteleev and Zhao because this would provide a solution for sending, by the group members, to the group header feedback information in response to the groupcast message.[Zhou, col1, ln34-37] Claim(s) 11-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Panteleev et al. (U.S. Patent No. 11,601,789 B2) in view of Hoang et al. (U.S. Pub No. 20190306835 Aft) 11. Panteleev describe a method of a first device performing sidelink transmission, comprising: transmitting, by the first device a first sidelink control information, wherein the first sidelink control information assigns or schedules a first set of sidelink resources [col 11, ln 41-46, claim 4, The SR may also convey additional information. The SR may, for example, include an SCI Format indicator to differentiate various types of SCI Formats (e.g. Scheduling Request, Scheduling Grant, Resource Reservation, etc.). The SR may also include power control-related parameters. Wherein for transmission of a PSSCH to the other UE, the processing circuitry is configured to encode a scheduling request (SR) for transmission to the other UE, the SR indicating the resources for the transmission of the PSSCH to the other UE]; transmitting by the first device a second sidelink control information to a second device, wherein the second sidelink control information assigns or schedules a second set of sidelink resources[claim 1, the SCI comprising a first SCI format, the first SCI format indicating whether inter-UE coordination information is being provided or is being requested, wherein when the first SCI format indicates that inter-UE coordination information is being provided, the processing circuitry is configured to determine a set of resources for a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) transmission by the UE based on a reference slot indicated by the first SCI format, wherein when the first SCI format indicates that inter-UE coordination information is being requested, the processing circuitry is configured to: determine a set of resources for a PSSCH transmission by the other UE based on a resource selection window] wherein the second sidelink control information instructs or indicates the second device to perform one or more second sidelink transmissions in one or more sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information [claim 1, the processing circuitry is configured to: determine a set of resources for a PSSCH transmission by the other UE based on a resource selection window, the resource selection window determined from information in the first SCI format; encode a second SCI format for transmission to the other UE in response to the first SCI format when the first SCI format indicated that inter-UE coordination information is being requested, the second SCI format encoded to provide the requested inter-UE coordination information including the set of resources determined for a PSSCH transmission by the other UE; and decode the PSSCH transmission from the other UE, the PSSCH transmission comprising data, wherein the memory is configured to store an indication of the set of resources]. wherein the second sidelink control information is generated by the first device to indicate the second set of sidelink resources for a transmission by the second device[col 9, ln 51-59, In addition, the SR may contain the priority of the pending traffic. The priority also may be a ProSe Per-Packet Priority (PPPP) or any sidelink transmission priority level derived based on PPPP. The priority may also be used by the receiving UE to decide the candidate resource set R.sub.2 and/or be used by other UEs to take into account in channel access procedures, e.g., apply priority-specific RSRP, RSSI thresholds for resource selection and exclusion]; Panteleev fail to show performing by the first device a first sidelink transmission in a first sidelink resource of the second sidelink control information assigns or schedules a second set of sidelink resources In an analogous art Hoang show performing by the first device a first sidelink transmission in a first sidelink resource of the second sidelink control information assigns or schedules a second set of sidelink resources [abstract, par 0004, par 0166, A wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) operating in an autonomous-scheduled mode may select a first resource from a resource pool. The WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for at least one sidelink transmission scheduled via a network-scheduled mode. The WTRU may evaluate the availability of resources in the resource pool based on determining that the first resource is reserved for the sidelink transmission. The WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for at least one sidelink transmission scheduled via the first sidelink scheduling mode. For example, the WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for at least one sidelink transmission scheduled via the first sidelink scheduling mode based on an indication (e.g., an explicit indication) received in SCI. The WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for the sidelink transmission based on decoding second SCI. For example, the second SCI may include an indication that the first resource is reserved for the sidelink transmission.] Before the effective filing date it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Panteleev and Hoang because pool sharing between network-scheduled and autonomous-scheduled WTRUs may be used to improve spectral efficiency of a system. [Hoang, Par 0084] 12, Panteleev and Hoang demonstrate the method of claim 11, at least one of: wherein the first sidelink control information is not indicative of a transmitter device switch; wherein the first sidelink control information does not instruct or indicate a receiver device to perform sidelink transmission in a sidelink resource assigned or scheduled by the first sidelink control information[Panteleev, claim 1, the SCI comprising a first SCI format, the first SCI format indicating whether inter-UE coordination information is being provided or is being requested]; wherein the second sidelink control information is indicative of transmitter device switch; or wherein the second sidelink control information comprises at least one of a field, a bit, or a code-point for instructing or indicating the transmitter device switch [col 11, 35-41, . However, to assist in better resource selection, as discussed above, the SR may also include information to convey time-frequency resources of candidate sets R.sub.1, R.sub.1.sub.PSCCH, R.sub.1.sup.PSSCH as a bit-field in SCI according to the CRSI option 1 or option 2]. 13. Panteleev and Hoang defines the method of claim 11, Panteleev fail to show at least one of: wherein the one or more sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information comprise one or more second sidelink resources of the second set of sidelink resources other than the first sidelink resource; or wherein the first sidelink resource is in the same TTI with transmission of the second sidelink control information; or the first set of sidelink resources is assigned or scheduled by one or more fields in the first sidelink control information and the second set of sidelink resources is assigned or scheduled by the one or more fields in the second sidelink control information. In an analogous art Hoang show at least one of: wherein the one or more sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information comprise one or more second sidelink resources of the second set of sidelink resources other than the first sidelink resource; or wherein the first sidelink resource is in the same TTI with transmission of the second sidelink control information; or the first set of sidelink resources is assigned or scheduled by one or more fields in the first sidelink control information and the second set of sidelink resources is assigned or scheduled by the one or more fields in the second sidelink control information [par 0006, 0170, The WTRU may reselect to a second resource in the resource pool based on the evaluated resource availability. For example, there may be a set of available resources, and the WTRU may choose the second resource from the set of available resources. The WTRU may transmit a second resource reservation message (e.g., via second SCI) indicating a forward booking of the second resource. The WTRU may select a second resource based on the determined availabilities of the resources in the resource pool. For example, the WTRU may reselect to the second resource. The WTRU may transmit a second resource reservation message after selecting the second resource]. Before the effective filing date it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Panteleev and Hoang because pool sharing between network-scheduled and autonomous-scheduled WTRUs may be used to improve spectral efficiency of a system. [Hoang, Par 0084] 14. Panteleev and Hoang convey the method of claim 11, at least one of: wherein the first device has a unicast link or connection with the second device; wherein the first device has a groupcast link or connection with the second device; or wherein a sidelink group comprises the first device and the second device [Panteleev, col 6, ln 54-65, The transmitter-based channel sensing scheme, if directly applied for unicast and groupcast operation targeted to be supported by NR V2X, would substantially limit the achievable link reliability and spectrum efficiency due to the same problems of hidden node interference, in-band emissions, and near-far effects. The intended receiver/group of receivers for unicast and groupcast may be assumed to be known due to pre-association, authorization, discovery procedures at least from higher layer perspective]. 15, Panteleev and Hoang create the method of claim 11,Pantelev fail to show wherein the first device receives the one or more second sidelink transmissions in the one or more sidelink resources. In an analogous art Hoang show wherein the first device receives the one or more second sidelink transmissions in the one or more sidelink resources [par 0003, A WTRU may be configured to operate in a second sidelink scheduling mode (e.g., an autonomous-scheduled mode). For example, a WTRU operating in the second sidelink scheduling mode may autonomously select sidelink resources for sidelink transmissions]. Before the effective filing date it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Panteleev and Hoang because pool sharing between network-scheduled and autonomous-scheduled WTRUs may be used to improve spectral efficiency of a system. [Hoang, Par 0084] 16, Panteleev discloses a method of a second device performing sidelink transmission, comprising: receiving by the second device a second sidelink control information from a first device, wherein the second sidelink control information assigns or schedules a second set of sidelink resources[fig 4, col 8, ln 21-40,55-64, In particular, the data transmission may be initiated by the first UE sending a SR control message at time T1. As above, the SR may also include other control information. The UE, having received the SG, may transmit the SA together with data between time T3 and time T4. The SA and data transmissions may follow the SG transmission parameters may use new parameters, which may be indicated in the SA. As in DSM-Cat-2a, the SR may indicate intended resources for the data transmission, which may be confirmed or overwritten by the SG transmission. Further, in some embodiments, the SA, SR, and SG transmissions may be transmitted in a PSCCH as a SCI format. For example, the SA, SR, and SG transmissions may correspond to SCI formats 0_0, 1_0, and 2_0 respectively if the transmissions have different sizes and/or are monitored in different resource sets. Alternatively, the control information types may be carried by a single SCI format (e.g. 0_0) with a header field indicating the type of control information] wherein the second sidelink control information was generated by the first device to indicate the second set of sidelink resources for a transmission by the second device [fig 4, col 8, ln 21-45, The UE, having received the SG, may transmit the SA together with data between time T3 and time T4. The SA and data transmissions may follow the SG transmission parameters may use new parameters, which may be indicated in the SA. As in DSM-Cat-2a, the SR may indicate intended resources for the data transmission, which may be confirmed or overwritten by the SG transmission. The SR may also indicate a resource for the SG transmission itself, which may be optimal from a transmitter perspective]; performing, by and the second device one or more second sidelink transmissions in one or more sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information [claim 2, The apparatus of claim 1, wherein to determine the set of resources for the PSSCH transmission by the other UE [second device] based on the resource selection window, the processing circuitry is to configure the UE to select one or more resources from within the resource selection window based on a measured Reference Signal Receive Power]. Panteleev fail to show receiving by the second device a first sidelink transmission in a first sidelink resource of the second set of sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information; In an analogous art Hoang show receiving by the second device a first sidelink transmission in a first sidelink resource of the second set of sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information[abstract, par 0004, par 0166, A wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) operating in an autonomous-scheduled mode may select a first resource from a resource pool. The WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for at least one sidelink transmission scheduled via a network-scheduled mode. The WTRU may evaluate the availability of resources in the resource pool based on determining that the first resource is reserved for the sidelink transmission. The WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for at least one sidelink transmission scheduled via the first sidelink scheduling mode. For example, the WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for at least one sidelink transmission scheduled via the first sidelink scheduling mode based on an indication (e.g., an explicit indication) received in SCI. The WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for the sidelink transmission based on decoding second SCI. For example, the second SCI may include an indication that the first resource is reserved for the sidelink transmission.] Before the effective filing date it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Panteleev and Hoang because pool sharing between network-scheduled and autonomous-scheduled WTRUs may be used to improve spectral efficiency of a system. [Hoang, Par 0084] 17, Panteleev and Hoang create the method of claim 16, at least one of: wherein the second sidelink control information instructs or indicates the second device to perform the one or more second sidelink transmissions in the one or more sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information [Panteleev, claim 1, the SCI comprising a first SCI format, the first SCI format indicating whether inter-UE coordination information is being provided or is being requested]; wherein the second sidelink control information is indicative of transmitter device switch; or wherein the second sidelink control information comprises at least one of a field, a bit, or a code-point for instructing or indicating the transmitter device switch[col 11, 35-41, . However, to assist in better resource selection, as discussed above, the SR may also include information to convey time-frequency resources of candidate sets R.sub.1, R.sub.1.sub.PSCCH, R.sub.1.sup.PSSCH as a bit-field in SCI according to the CRSI option 1 or option 2]. 18. Panteleev and Hoang define the method of claim 16, Panteleev fail to show at least one of: wherein the one or more sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information comprise one or more second sidelink resources of the second set of sidelink resources other than the first sidelink resource; wherein the first sidelink resource is in the same TTI with reception of the second sidelink control information; or wherein the second set of sidelink resources is assigned or scheduled by one or more fields in the second sidelink control information. In an analogous art Hoang show at least one of: wherein the one or more sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information comprise one or more second sidelink resources of the second set of sidelink resources other than the first sidelink resource; wherein the first sidelink resource is in the same TTI with reception of the second sidelink control information; or wherein the second set of sidelink resources is assigned or scheduled by one or more fields in the second sidelink control information[par 0006, 0170, The WTRU may reselect to a second resource in the resource pool based on the evaluated resource availability. For example, there may be a set of available resources, and the WTRU may choose the second resource from the set of available resources. The WTRU may transmit a second resource reservation message (e.g., via second SCI) indicating a forward booking of the second resource. The WTRU may select a second resource based on the determined availabilities of the resources in the resource pool. For example, the WTRU may reselect to the second resource. The WTRU may transmit a second resource reservation message after selecting the second resource]. Before the effective filing date it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Panteleev and Hoang because pool sharing between network-scheduled and autonomous-scheduled WTRUs may be used to improve spectral efficiency of a system. [Hoang, Par 0084] 19. Panteleev and Hoang provide the method of claim 16, at least one of: wherein the second device has a unicast link or connection with the first device; wherein the second device has a groupcast link or connection with the first device; or wherein a sidelink group comprises the second device and the first device[Panteleev, col 6, ln 54-65, The transmitter-based channel sensing scheme, if directly applied for unicast and groupcast operation targeted to be supported by NR V2X, would substantially limit the achievable link reliability and spectrum efficiency due to the same problems of hidden node interference, in-band emissions, and near-far effects. The intended receiver/group of receivers for unicast and groupcast may be assumed to be known due to pre-association, authorization, discovery procedures at least from higher layer perspective]. 20. Panteleev and Hoang create the method of claim 16, further comprising: receiving by second device a first sidelink control information, wherein the first sidelink control information assigns or schedules a first set of sidelink resources, and the first sidelink control information does not instruct or indicate the second device to perform sidelink transmission in a sidelink resource assigned or scheduled by the first sidelink control information[col 9, 26-39, claim 1, Similarly, in some embodiments, UEs operating in DSM-Cat-2, may follow a three step scheduling procedure. FIG. 5 illustrates operations of distributed scheduling mode category 2a in accordance with some embodiments. Step 1: a first UE operating in DSM-Cat-2 may perform a basic step of channel access procedure to identify candidate resources R.sub.1 for transmission of the SR in the PSCCH.]; Panteleev fail to show receiving by the second device one or more first sidelink transmissions in the first set of sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the first sidelink control information. In an analogous art Hoang show the second device receives one or more first sidelink transmissions in the first set of sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the first sidelink control information [abstract, par 0004, par 0166, A wireless transmit/receive unit (WTRU) operating in an autonomous-scheduled mode may select a first resource from a resource pool. The WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for at least one sidelink transmission scheduled via a network-scheduled mode. The WTRU may evaluate the availability of resources in the resource pool based on determining that the first resource is reserved for the sidelink transmission. The WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for at least one sidelink transmission scheduled via the first sidelink scheduling mode. For example, the WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for at least one sidelink transmission scheduled via the first sidelink scheduling mode based on an indication (e.g., an explicit indication) received in SCI. The WTRU may determine that the first resource is reserved for the sidelink transmission based on decoding second SCI. For example, the second SCI may include an indication that the first resource is reserved for the sidelink transmission.] Before the effective filing date it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teachings of Panteleev and Hoang because pool sharing between network-scheduled and autonomous-scheduled WTRUs may be used to improve spectral efficiency of a system. [Hoang, Par 0084] Response to Arguments Notably, Panteleev seems to be silent as to in response to the one or more sets of resources indicated by the received signal, determining, by the second device, a set of candidate resources based on: both (i) the one or more indicated characteristics for the one or more sets of resources and (ii) specific characteristics of a data to be transmitted by the second device, or both (i) the one or more indicated characteristic values for the one or more sets of resources and (ii) a specific characteristic value of a data to be transmitted by the second device; wherein the determining comprises excluding one or more candidate resources from the set of candidate resources or selecting one or more candidate resources from the set of candidate resources based on the specific characteristics of the data to be transmitted by the second device or the specific characteristic value of the data to be transmitted by the second device. These operations are driven by channel conditions, sensing measurements, and signaling-derived parameters, not by characteristics of the data to be transmitted. The examiner respectfully disagrees Panteleev shows Step 1: a first UE operating in DSM-Cat-2 may perform a basic step of channel access procedure to identify candidate resources R1 for transmission of the SR in the PSCCH in col 9, ln 26-39 Panteleev does not disclose such a combined determination, nor does it disclose excluding or selecting candidate resources based on characteristics of the data payload. The examiner respectfully disagree in Panteleev col 9, ln 19-26, 35-60, col 10, ln 25-36, For example, resource selection may exclude predetermined resources among the least congested candidate resources, may take into account priority information of the UE or data, or may use collision avoidance. Once the SR is detected, the second UE may select a PSCCH resource for SG transmission from a candidate resource set R.sub.2. If information about the set R.sub.1 is provided in the SR, the second UE may select PSCCH resources for SG transmission as a function of both sets R.sub.1 and R.sub.2. Such a function may be based on intersection of these sets, i.e., R.sub.1∩R.sub.2. In one embodiment, the resource selection procedure for SR and/or SG resources may be adjusted to select less congested PSCCH resources by changing selection characteristics such as Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP) thresholds, Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) thresholds, transmission priority, number of occupied resources, if possible, etc.], The column shows selection or excluding resources based on data or characteristics such as Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP) thresholds, Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) thresholds, transmission priority, number of occupied resources. Notably, in Panteleev, priority is conveyed in control signaling and is used to influence thresholding or channel access behavior (e.g., applying priority-dependent RSRP/RSSI thresholds). For example, in Panteleev, priority is a scheduling/QoS parameter used to adjust sensing thresholds, not a data characteristic used to exclude or select candidate resources from a candidate set. Moreover, Panteleev does not disclose using any other characteristic of the data to be transmitted as a basis for excluding or selecting candidate resources. Additionally, Panteleev's candidate resource determination appears to be environment-driven, relying on sensing, thresholds, and overlap conditions. The examiner respectfully disagrees the Panteleev shows in Panteleev col 9, ln 19-26, 35-60, col 10, ln 25-36, For example, resource selection may exclude predetermined resources among the least congested candidate resources, may take into account priority information of the UE or data, or may use collision avoidance. Panteleev does not provide for a determination in which candidate resources are actively filtered (excluded) or selected based on characteristics of the data to be transmitted, for example. The examiner respectfully disagrees the Panteleev shows in Panteleev col 9, ln 19-26, 35-60, col 10, ln 25-36, For example, resource selection may exclude predetermined resources among the least congested candidate resources, may take into account priority information of the UE or data, or may use collision avoidance. Panteleev, does not teach in response to the one or more sets of resources indicated by the received signal, determining, by the second device, a set of candidate resources based on: both (i) the one or more indicated characteristics for the one or more sets of resources and (ii) specific characteristics of a data to be transmitted by the second device, or both (i) the one or more indicated characteristic values for the one or more sets of resources and (ii) a specific characteristic value of a data to be transmitted by the second device; wherein the determining comprises excluding one or more candidate resources from the set of candidate resources or selecting one or more candidate resources from the set of candidate resources based on the specific characteristics of the data to be transmitted by the second device or the specific characteristic value of the data to be transmitted by the second device as provided for by independent claim 1. It is thus respectfully submitted that independent claim 1 and the remaining claims that depend therefrom are not taught by the reference cited, and allowance of the same is therefore respectfully requested. Therefore, withdrawal of the rejection and allowance of the pending claims is respectfully requested. The examiner respectfully disagree in Panteleev col 9, ln 19-26, 35-60, col 10, ln 25-36, For example, resource selection may exclude predetermined resources among the least congested candidate resources, may take into account priority information of the UE or data, or may use collision avoidance. Once the SR is detected, the second UE may select a PSCCH resource for SG transmission from a candidate resource set R.sub.2. If information about the set R.sub.1 is provided in the SR, the second UE may select PSCCH resources for SG transmission as a function of both sets R.sub.1 and R.sub.2. Such a function may be based on intersection of these sets, i.e., R.sub.1∩R.sub.2. In one embodiment, the resource selection procedure for SR and/or SG resources may be adjusted to select less congested PSCCH resources by changing selection characteristics such as Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP) thresholds, Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) thresholds, transmission priority, number of occupied resources, if possible, etc.], The column shows selection or excluding resources based on data or characteristics such as Reference Signal Receive Power (RSRP) thresholds, Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) thresholds, transmission priority, number of occupied resources. Notably, Panteleev and/or Hoang seem to be silent as to transmitting, by the first device, a second sidelink control information to a second device, wherein the second sidelink control information assigns or schedules a second set of sidelink resources, wherein the second sidelink control information is generated by the first device to indicate the second set of sidelink resources for a transmission by the second device; and performing, by the first device, a first sidelink transmission in a first sidelink resource of the second set of sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information, wherein the second sidelink control information instructs or indicates the second device to perform one or more second sidelink transmissions in one or more sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information. However, Panteleev's disclosure is limited to providing coordination information about resources for another UE and decoding transmissions, and does not disclose that the transmitting UE both (i) generates SCI to assign resources for transmission by another device and (ii) itself performs a sidelink transmission in a resource of that same assigned set. The examiner disagrees applicant claim states assigning resources or scheduling resources for another UE and decoding transmissions. In Panteleev discloses in col 11, ln 41-46, claim 4, The SR may also convey additional information. The SR may, for example, include an SCI Format indicator to differentiate various types of SCI Formats (e.g. Scheduling Request, Scheduling Grant, Resource Reservation, etc.). The SR may also include power control-related parameters. Wherein for transmission of a PSSCH to the other UE, the processing circuitry is configured to encode a scheduling request (SR) for transmission to the other UE, the SR indicating the resources for the transmission of the PSSCH to the other UE. The column shows scheduling resources for another UE. Claim 1, of Panteleev shows the set of resources determined for a PSSCH transmission by the other UE; and decode the PSSCH transmission from the other UE. Nor does Panteleev disclose that the same SCI both assigns resources to another device and governs transmissions of both devices in the claimed manner. The examiner response the applicant claim doesn’t state the SCI both assigns resources to another device and governs transmissions of both devices. Therefore applicant argument is moot. Hoang does not disclose SCI that is generated to assign a set of resources for transmission by another device, nor SCI that instructs another device to perform transmissions in those assigned resources. The examiner disagrees applicant claim states assigning resources or scheduling resources for another UE and decoding transmissions. In Panteleev discloses in col 11, ln 41-46, claim 4, The SR may also convey additional information. The SR may, for example, include an SCI Format indicator to differentiate various types of SCI Formats (e.g. Scheduling Request, Scheduling Grant, Resource Reservation, etc.). The SR may also include power control-related parameters. Wherein for transmission of a PSSCH to the other UE, the processing circuitry is configured to encode a scheduling request (SR) for transmission to the other UE, the SR indicating the resources for the transmission of the PSSCH to the other UE. The column shows scheduling resources for another UE. Moreover, Hoang teaches behavior that is fundamentally different from the claimed arrangement. Upon determining that a resource is reserved, the WTRU evaluates availability and may reselect a different resource to avoid collision. The examiner respectfully disagree the Panteleev disclose col 9, ln 20-25, . In other embodiments, other selection techniques rather than random selection may be used in this operation (as well as selection of other resource sets as described herein). For example, resource selection may exclude predetermined resources among the least congested candidate resources, may take into account priority information of the UE or data, or may use collision avoidance, based upon the column the examiner believes the Hoang is not fundamentally different. In contrast, in the claim, the second SCI actively directs the second device to transmit in specified resources. Hoang does not disclose or suggest a control message that both assigns resources for another device's transmission and instructs that device to transmit in those resources. In Panteleev discloses in col 11, ln 41-46, claim 4, The SR may also convey additional information. The SR may, for example, include an SCI Format indicator to differentiate various types of SCI Formats (e.g. Scheduling Request, Scheduling Grant, Resource Reservation, etc.). The SR may also include power control-related parameters. Wherein for transmission of a PSSCH to the other UE, the processing circuitry is configured to encode a scheduling request (SR) for transmission to the other UE, the SR indicating the resources for the transmission of the PSSCH to the other UE. The column shows scheduling resources for another UE. Hoang, do not teach transmitting, by the first device, a second sidelink control information to a second device, wherein the second sidelink control information assigns or schedules a second set of sidelink resources, wherein the second sidelink control information is generated by the first device to indicate the second set of sidelink resources for a transmission by the second device; and performing, by the first device, a first sidelink transmission in a first sidelink resource of the second set of sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information, wherein the second sidelink control information instructs or indicates the second device to perform one or more second sidelink transmissions in one or more sidelink resources assigned or scheduled by the second sidelink control information as provided for by independent claim 11, and as similarly provided for by independent claim 16, at least in part. It is thus respectfully submitted that independent claims 11 and 16 and the remaining claims that depend therefrom are not taught by the suggested combination, and allowance of the same is therefore respectfully requested. The examiner respectfully disagrees according to the examiner’s rejection Panteleev in view of Hoang anticipates applicant’s claim. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JASON A HARLEY whose telephone number is (571)270-5435. The examiner can normally be reached 7:30-300 6:30-8:30. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Marcus Smith can be reached at (571) 270-1096. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /JASON A HARLEY/Examiner, Art Unit 2468
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Prosecution Timeline

Apr 17, 2023
Application Filed
Jul 14, 2025
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102, §103
Oct 10, 2025
Response Filed
Jan 16, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §102, §103
Apr 16, 2026
Request for Continued Examination
Apr 26, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action
Jul 14, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102, §103 (current)

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3-4
Expected OA Rounds
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4y 1m (~9m remaining)
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