DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-5, 7-13, 15-19, and 21 have been considered but are moot due to a new basis of rejection necessitated by amendments to the claims.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 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) 1-5, 7, 15-19, and 21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bagheri et al. (US 2020/0107319 A1; “Bagheri”) in view of Chen et al. (EP 2763480 A1; cited in Applicant’s IDS submitted 02/13/2024; “Chen”).
Regarding claim 1, Bagheri teaches a method performed by a wireless communication device [Bagheri ¶ 0015, Fig. 1: UE 110], the method comprising:
receiving, from a wireless communication node [Bagheri ¶ 0015, Fig. 1: network entity 120 or 125], a configuration associated with a channel state information (CSI) report [Bagheri ¶ 0013: control channel containing DCI is received, wherein the DCI contains a CSI report trigger (i.e. CSI report configuration)];
determining a CSI report based on the configuration [Bagheri ¶ 0013: CSI report can be generated in response to receiving the CSI report trigger; ¶ 0019: if an aperiodic CSI report is triggered via a DL assignment, the resource used for CSI calculation, such as a CSI reference resource, can be indicated in the DL assignment (i.e. report is determined based on configured CSI reference resources)];
performing a measurement comprises generating the CSI report based on the measurement [Bagheri ¶ 0053: CSI report can be generated based on measurements associated with the determined CSI reference resources that are in valid downlink slots]; and
transmitting the CSI report to the wireless communication node [Bagheri ¶ 0013: generated CSI report can be transmitted in the determined at least one uplink resource].
However, Bagheri does not explicitly disclose determining a CSI report type based on the received configuration; and performing, according to the CSI report, a measurement based on at least one of: an interference measurement resource (IMR) or a channel measurement resource (CMR) from the wireless communication node
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Chen teaches determining a CSI report type based on the received configuration [Chen ¶ 0038: ¶ 0038: a base station notifying a terminal of interference measurement reference information which specifies a reference signal used for interference measurement (i.e. received configuration); ¶¶ 0062-0064, Tables 2-4: interference measurement reference information contains 1, 2, or 3 bit field to indicate reporting state (i.e. type), e.g., CSI-RS acting as an IMR or CMR (Table 4) or interference according to date (i.e. data)]; and
performing, according to the CSI report, a measurement based on at least one of: an interference measurement resource (IMR) or a channel measurement resource (CMR) from the wireless communication node [Chen ¶ 0042: terminal performs interference measurement according to the reference signal used for interference measurement and/or the reference resource position for interference measurement specified in the interference measurement reference information notified by the base station];
wherein the performing the measurement comprises determining a starting occasion related to IMR and/or CMR associated with the CSI report; determining an ending occasion related to the IMR and/or CMR [Chen ¶ 0067: base station notifies the UE that the reference resource position of the interference is the following set of REs within one TTI, e.g., {(0,0), (0,1), (3,0), (3,1), (6,0), (6,1), (9,0), (9,1)}; here, a TTI, analogous to a measurement occasion, wherein all RE to be measured in the TTI are indicated by the base station, i.e., a starting and ending RE are indicated]; and
measuring CSI based on: the starting occasion, the ending occasion, and each IMR and/or CMR occasion between the starting occasion and the ending occasion [Chen ¶ 0042: terminal performs interference measurement according to the reference resource position for interference measurement specified in the interference measurement reference information notified by the base station].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention combine the method of determining reference resources used for CSI report measurements based on a received configuration and transmitting the measurement report to the network in accordance with the configuration as taught by Bagheri, with the method of indicating an interference, channel measurement, or data measurement type associated with CSI reporting and performing interference measurements according to the indication as taught by Chen. The motivation to combine these references would be to provide support for dynamic configuration of various IM/CM reference measurements types [Chen ¶ 0059-0061].
Regarding claim 2, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 1, wherein: the measurement is performed based on a transport block transmitted in physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) associated with the CSI report [Bagheri ¶ 0053: CSI report can be generated based on measurements associated with the determined CSI reference resources that are in valid downlink slots; ¶¶ 0028-0029: measurements performed on reference resources of PDSCH TB repetition].
However, Bagheri does not explicitly disclose the CSI report type is determined to be a first type when the configuration contains no configuration information related to IMR or CMR associated with the CSI report.
However, Chen teaches the CSI report type is determined to be a first type when the configuration contains no configuration information related to IMR or CMR associated with the CSI report [Chen ¶¶ 0062-0064, Tables 2-4: interference measurement reference information (i.e. configuration) contains 1, 2, or 3 bit field to indicate reporting state, e.g., CSI-RS acting as an IMR or CMR (Table 4) or interference according to date (i.e. data) (Table 3) (here, as shown in table 2, a 2 bit indication of ‘11’ indicates data (i.e. PDSCH) measurements and NOT IMR/CMR CSI resources)].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 3, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving a plurality of PDSCH repetitions associated with the CSI report from the wireless communication node [Bagheri ¶ 0053: CSI report can be generated based on measurements associated with the determined CSI reference resources that are in valid downlink slots; ¶¶ 0028-0029: measurements performed on reference resources of PDSCH TB repetition; Fig. 2 shows received PDSCH repetitions]; and
determining a PDSCH repetition among the plurality of PDSCH repetitions, wherein the CSI report is generated based on the PDSCH repetition [Bagheri ¶ 0053: CSI report can be generated based on measurements associated with the determined CSI reference resources that are in valid downlink slots; ¶¶ 0028-0029: measurements performed on reference resources of PDSCH TB repetition],
wherein the PDSCH repetition is determined based on at least one of: the first time PDSCH repetition among the plurality of PDSCH repetitions based on a system pre-definition, the last time PDSCH repetition among the plurality of PDSCH repetitions based on a system pre-definition, a sub-signaling in the configuration semi-statically received through radio resource control (RRC) signaling, or a triggering status indication dynamically indicated by a downlink (DL) grant or uplink (UL) grant triggering the CSI report [Bagheri ¶ 0029: value for nCQI_ref can be determined such that the CSI reference resource in the time-domain is the latest (i.e. last time), valid downlink slot in the window of N_PDSCH_Rep_Max slots, wherein N_PDSCH_Rep_Max is configured by higher layers, such as an RRC layer (i.e. PDSCH is determined based on a configured/predefined value received through RRC; number of DL slots to use as CSI reference resource(s) can be specified in 3GPP specifications, such as a function of PDSCH repetition number); Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
Regarding claim 4, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 1, further comprising:
receiving a plurality of PDSCH repetitions associated with the CSI report from the wireless communication node [Bagheri ¶ 0053: CSI report can be generated based on measurements associated with the determined CSI reference resources that are in valid downlink slots; ¶¶ 0028-0029: measurements performed on reference resources of PDSCH TB repetition; Fig. 2 shows received PDSCH repetitions]; and
determining at least some PDSCH repetitions among the plurality of PDSCH repetitions, wherein the CSI report is generated based on a combination of the at least some PDSCH repetitions [Bagheri ¶ 0053: CSI report can be generated based on measurements associated with the determined CSI reference resources that are in valid downlink slots; ¶¶ 0028-0029: measurements performed on reference resources of PDSCH TB repetition],
wherein the at least some PDSCH repetitions are determined based on at least one of: some of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions based on a system pre-definition, some of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions indicated by a sub-signaling in the configuration semi-statically received through radio resource control (RRC) signaling, some of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions dynamically indicated in a triggering status indication by a DL grant or UL grant triggering the CSI report, all of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions based on a system pre-definition, all of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions indicated by a sub-signaling m the configuration semi-statically received through RRC signaling, or all of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions dynamically indicated in a triggering status indication by a DL grant or UL grant triggering the CSI report [Bagheri ¶ 0029: value for nCQI_ref can be determined such that the CSI reference resource in the time-domain is the latest (i.e. last time), valid downlink slot in the window of N_PDSCH_Rep_Max slots, wherein N_PDSCH_Rep_Max is configured by higher layers, such as an RRC layer (i.e. PDSCH is determined based on a configured/predefined value received through RRC, see also ¶ 0032: number of DL slots to use as CSI reference resource(s) can be specified in 3GPP specifications, such as a function of PDSCH repetition number); Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
Regarding claim 5, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 1, however, does not explicitly disclose wherein: the CSI report type is determined to be a second type when the configuration contains configuration information related to IMR and/or CMR associated with the CSI report; and the measurement is performed based on the IMR and/or CMR received from the wireless communication node.
However, Chen teaches wherein: the CSI report type is determined to be a second type when the configuration contains configuration information related to IMR and/or CMR associated with the CSI report; and the measurement is performed based on the IMR and/or CMR received from the wireless communication node [Chen ¶¶ 0062-0064, Tables 2-4: interference measurement reference information (i.e. configuration) contains 1, 2, or 3 bit field to indicate reporting state, e.g., CSI-RS acting as an IMR (Table 2) (here, as shown in table 2, a 2 bit indication of ‘01’ indicates interference measurements using CSI-RS and NOT on data)].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 7, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 1, wherein the starting occasion is determined based on at least one of:
a slot or sub-slot in which a DL grant or UL grant triggering the CSI report is received from the wireless communication node; a slot or sub-slot where the DL grant or UL grant is located, when an end symbol of the DL grant or UL grant is not later than a predetermined time position; a next slot or sub-slot where the DL grant or UL grant is located, when the end symbol of the DL grant or UL grant is later than the predetermined time position, wherein the predetermined time position is determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition; or a next available slot or sub-slot where the DL grant or UL grant is located, when the end symbol of the DL grant or UL grant is later than the predetermined time position, wherein the predetermined time position is determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition [Bagheri ¶ 0030, Fig. 2: PDSCH transmission in slot n (i.e. starting occasion) can include a DCI that schedules four PDSCH transmissions in slots n through n+3 (i.e. a slot in which a DL grant triggering the CSI report is received); Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
Regarding claim 15, Bagheri teaches a method performed by a wireless communication node [Bagheri ¶ 0015, Fig. 1: network entity 120 or 125], the method comprising:
transmitting, to a wireless communication device [Bagheri ¶ 0015, Fig. 1: UE 110], a configuration associated with a channel state information (CSI) report [Bagheri ¶ 0013: control channel containing DCI is received, wherein the DCI contains a CSI report trigger (i.e. CSI report configuration)],
wherein the configuration indicates a CSI report [Bagheri ¶ 0013: CSI report can be generated in response to receiving the CSI report trigger; ¶ 0019: if an aperiodic CSI report is triggered via a DL assignment, the resource used for CSI calculation, such as a CSI reference resource, can be indicated in the DL assignment (i.e. report is determined based on configured CSI reference resources)], and
determining a CSI report based on the configuration [Bagheri ¶ 0013: CSI report can be generated in response to receiving the CSI report trigger; ¶ 0019: if an aperiodic CSI report is triggered via a DL assignment, the resource used for CSI calculation, such as a CSI reference resource, can be indicated in the DL assignment (i.e. report is determined based on configured CSI reference resources)]; and
receiving the CSI report from the wireless communication device [Bagheri ¶ 0013: generated CSI report can be transmitted in the determined at least one uplink resource].
However, Bagheri does not explicitly disclose a configuration associated with a channel state information (CSI) report type; the CSI report is generated based on a measurement that is performed according to the CSI report type based on at least one of: an interference measurement resource (IMR) or a channel measurement resource (CMR) from the wireless communication node, wherein the measurement is performed by: determining a starting occasion related to IMR and/or CMR associated with the CSI report; determining an ending occasion related to the IMR and/or CMR; and measuring CSI based on: the starting occasion, the ending occasion, and each IMR and/or CMR occasion between the starting occasion and the ending occasion.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Chen teaches a configuration associated with a channel state information (CSI) report type [Chen ¶¶ 0062-0064, Tables 2-4: interference measurement reference information (i.e. configuration) contains 1, 2, or 3 bit field to indicate reporting state (i.e. type), e.g., CSI-RS acting as an IMR or CMR (Table 4) or interference according to date (i.e. data)];
the CSI report is generated based on a measurement that is performed according to the CSI report type based on at least one of: an interference measurement resource (IMR) or a channel measurement resource (CMR) from the wireless communication node [Chen ¶ 0042: terminal performs interference measurement according to the reference signal used for interference measurement and/or the reference resource position for interference measurement specified in the interference measurement reference information notified by the base station], wherein
the measurement is performed by: determining a starting occasion related to IMR and/or CMR associated with the CSI report; determining an ending occasion related to the IMR and/or CMR [Chen ¶ 0067: base station notifies the UE that the reference resource position of the interference is the following set of REs within one TTI, e.g., {(0,0), (0,1), (3,0), (3,1), (6,0), (6,1), (9,0), (9,1)}; here, a TTI, analogous to a measurement occasion, wherein all RE to be measured in the TTI are indicated by the base station, i.e., a starting and ending RE are indicated]; and
measuring CSI based on: the starting occasion, the ending occasion, and each IMR and/or CMR occasion between the starting occasion and the ending occasion [Chen ¶ 0042: terminal performs interference measurement according to the reference resource position for interference measurement specified in the interference measurement reference information notified by the base station].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention combine the method of determining reference resources used for CSI report measurements based on a received configuration and transmitting the measurement report to the network in accordance with the configuration as taught by Bagheri, with the method of indicating an interference, channel measurement, or data measurement type associated with CSI reporting and performing interference measurements according to the indication as taught by Chen. The motivation to combine these references would be to provide support for dynamic configuration of various IM/CM reference measurements types [Chen ¶ 0059-0061].
Regarding claim 16, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 15, wherein the measurement is performed based on a transport block transmitted m physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) associated with the CSI report [Bagheri ¶ 0053: CSI report can be generated based on measurements associated with the determined CSI reference resources that are in valid downlink slots; ¶¶ 0028-0029: measurements performed on reference resources of PDSCH TB repetition].
However, Bagheri does not explicitly disclose wherein: the CSI report type indicates a first type when the configuration contains no configuration information related to IMR or CMR associated with the CSI report [Chen ¶¶ 0062-0064, Tables 2-4: interference measurement reference information (i.e. configuration) contains 1, 2, or 3 bit field to indicate reporting state, e.g., CSI-RS acting as an IMR or CMR (Table 4) or interference according to date (i.e. data) (Table 3) (here, as shown in table 2, a 2 bit indication of ‘11’ indicates data (i.e. PDSCH) measurements and NOT IMR/CMR CSI resources)].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 15 above.
Regarding claim 17, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 15, further comprising: transmitting a plurality of PDSCH repetitions associated with the CSI report to the wireless communication device [Bagheri ¶ 0053: CSI report can be generated based on measurements associated with the determined CSI reference resources that are in valid downlink slots; ¶¶ 0028-0029: measurements performed on reference resources of PDSCH TB repetition; Fig. 2 shows received PDSCH repetitions],
wherein the CSI report is generated based on a PDSCH repetition among the plurality of PDSCH repetitions [Bagheri ¶ 0053: CSI report can be generated based on measurements associated with the determined CSI reference resources that are in valid downlink slots; ¶¶ 0028-0029: measurements performed on reference resources of PDSCH TB repetition], wherein the PDSCH repetition is determined based on at least one of: the first time PDSCH repetition among the plurality of PDSCH repetitions based on a system pre-definition, the last time PDSCH repetition among the plurality of PDSCH repetitions based on a system pre-definition, a sub-signaling in the configuration semi-statically transmitted through radio resource control (RRC) signaling, or a triggering status indication dynamically indicated by a downlink (DL) grant or uplink (UL) grant triggering the CSI report [Bagheri ¶ 0029: value for nCQI_ref can be determined such that the CSI reference resource in the time-domain is the latest (i.e. last time), valid downlink slot in the window of N_PDSCH_Rep_Max slots, wherein N_PDSCH_Rep_Max is configured by higher layers, such as an RRC layer (i.e. PDSCH is determined based on a configured/predefined value received through RRC; number of DL slots to use as CSI reference resource(s) can be specified in 3GPP specifications, such as a function of PDSCH repetition number); Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
Regarding claim 18, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 15, further comprising: transmitting a plurality of PDSCH repetitions associated with the CSI report to the wireless communication device [Bagheri ¶ 0053: CSI report can be generated based on measurements associated with the determined CSI reference resources that are in valid downlink slots; ¶¶ 0028-0029: measurements performed on reference resources of PDSCH TB repetition; Fig. 2 shows received PDSCH repetitions],
wherein the CSI report is generated based on a combination of at least some PDSCH repetitions among the plurality of PDSCH repetitions [Bagheri ¶ 0053: CSI report can be generated based on measurements associated with the determined CSI reference resources that are in valid downlink slots; ¶¶ 0028-0029: measurements performed on reference resources of PDSCH TB repetition],
wherein the at least some PDSCH repetitions are determined based on at least one of: some of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions based on a system pre-definition, some of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions indicated by a sub-signaling in the configuration semi-statically transmitted through radio resource control (RRC) signaling, some of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions dynamically indicated in a triggering status indication by a DL grant or UL grant triggering the CSI report, all of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions based on a system pre-definition, all of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions indicated by a sub-signaling m the configuration semi-statically transmitted through RRC signaling, or all of the plurality of PDSCH repetitions dynamically indicated in a triggering status indication by a DL grant or UL grant triggering the CSI report [Bagheri ¶ 0029: value for nCQI_ref can be determined such that the CSI reference resource in the time-domain is the latest (i.e. last time), valid downlink slot in the window of N_PDSCH_Rep_Max slots, wherein N_PDSCH_Rep_Max is configured by higher layers, such as an RRC layer (i.e. PDSCH is determined based on a configured/predefined value received through RRC, see also ¶ 0032: number of DL slots to use as CSI reference resource(s) can be specified in 3GPP specifications, such as a function of PDSCH repetition number); Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
Regarding claim 19, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 15, however, does not explicitly disclose wherein: the CSI report type indicates a second type when the configuration contains configuration information related to IMR and/or CMR associated with the CSI report; and the measurement is performed based on the IMR and/or CMR transmitted to the wireless communication device.
However, Chen teaches wherein: the CSI report type indicates a second type when the configuration contains configuration information related to IMR and/or CMR associated with the CSI report; and the measurement is performed based on the IMR and/or CMR transmitted to the wireless communication device [Chen ¶¶ 0062-0064, Tables 2-4: interference measurement reference information (i.e. configuration) contains 1, 2, or 3 bit field to indicate reporting state, e.g., CSI-RS acting as an IMR (Table 2) (here, as shown in table 2, a 2 bit indication of ‘01’ indicates interference measurements using CSI-RS and NOT on data)].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 15 above.
Regarding claim 21, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 15, wherein the starting occasion is determined based on at least one of: a slot or sub-slot in which a DL grant or UL grant triggering the CSI report is transmitted to the wireless communication device; a slot or sub-slot where the DL grant or UL grant is located, when an end symbol of the DL grant or UL grant is not later than a predetermined time position; a next slot or sub-slot where the DL grant or UL grant is located, when the end symbol of the DL grant or UL grant is later than the predetermined time position, wherein the predetermined time position is determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition; or a next available slot or sub-slot where the DL grant or UL grant is located, when the end symbol of the DL grant or UL grant is later than the predetermined time position, wherein the predetermined time position is determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition [Bagheri ¶ 0030, Fig. 2: PDSCH transmission in slot n (i.e. starting occasion) can include a DCI that schedules four PDSCH transmissions in slots n through n+3 (i.e. a slot in which a DL grant triggering the CSI report is received); Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
Claim(s) 9-10 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bagheri in view of Chen in view of Bae et al. (US 2021/0258118 A1; “Bae”).
Regarding claim 9, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 5, however, does not explicitly disclose further comprising: determining that the configuration indicates to include statistical information of CSI in the CSI report; and calculating the statistical information for the CSI report when the measurement is performed under at least one of the following conditions: the measurement is performed for at least N IMR and/or CMR occasions, wherein N is a positive integer determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition, or the measurement is performed within a monitoring window having a length of at least M time units, wherein M is a positive integer determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition, wherein each of the M time units is one of: an OFDM symbol, a sub-slot or a slot.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Bae teaches determining that the configuration indicates to include statistical information of CSI in the CSI report [Bae ¶ 0027: A UE may determine the CSI-RS transmission powers are the same if the reception occasions are within a channel occupancy duration indicated by a DCI 2_0, wherein if at least one of a slot format indication (SFI) and channel occupancy (CO) duration fields in DCI 2_0 is configured, the UE may average measurements of two or more instances of a periodic or semi-persistent non-zero power (NZP) CSI-RS for a channel measurement or for an interference measurement that occur in the indicated remaining CO duration (i.e. UE performs statistical channel/interference measurement according to configuration in DCI)]; and
calculating the statistical information for the CSI report when the measurement is performed under at least one of the following conditions: the measurement is performed for at least N IMR and/or CMR occasions, wherein N is a positive integer determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition, or
the measurement is performed within a monitoring window having a length of at least M time units, wherein M is a positive integer determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition,
wherein each of the M time units is one of: an OFDM symbol, a sub-slot or a slot [Bae ¶ 0029: UE may average measurements of two or more instances of a periodic or semi-persistent NZP CSI-RS for a channel measurement or for an interference measurement that occur in a time duration for which all OFDM symbols are occupied by a set of PDSCH and/or CSI-RS(s) that are scheduled/triggered to the UE (here, Fig. 3B shows 3 repetitions of CSI-RS, i.e., positive integer, N, occasions, within a CO, i.e., monitoring window, spanning a positive integer, M, time units divided into PFDM symbols); Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention combine the method of determining reference resources used for CSI report measurements based on a received configuration and transmitting the measurement report to the network in accordance with the configuration as taught by Bagheri, with the method of configuring a UE, through DCI, to perform averaging of repeated CSI-RS channel and interference measurements as taught by Bae. The motivation to combine these references would be to improve channel measurement accuracy in an unlicensed spectrum communication environment [Bae ¶ 0021].
Regarding claim 10, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 5, however, does not explicitly disclose further comprising: determining that the configuration indicates to include statistical information of CSI in the CSI report; and
determining to generate the CSI report without the statistical information or cancel the CSI report, when the measurement is performed without satisfying at least one of the following conditions: the measurement is performed for at least N IMR and/or CMR occasions, wherein N is a positive integer determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition, or the measurement is performed within a monitoring window having a length of at least M time units, wherein M is a positive integer determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition, wherein each of the M time units is one of: an OFDM symbol, a sub-slot or a slot.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Bae teaches determining that the configuration indicates to include statistical information of CSI in the CSI report [Bae ¶ 0027: A UE may determine the CSI-RS transmission powers are the same if the reception occasions are within a channel occupancy duration indicated by a DCI 2_0, wherein if at least one of a slot format indication (SFI) and channel occupancy (CO) duration fields in DCI 2_0 is configured, the UE may average measurements of two or more instances of a periodic or semi-persistent non-zero power (NZP) CSI-RS for a channel measurement or for an interference measurement that occur in the indicated remaining CO duration (i.e. UE performs statistical channel/interference measurement according to configuration in DCI)]; and
determining to generate the CSI report without the statistical information or cancel the CSI report, when the measurement is performed without satisfying at least one of the following conditions: the measurement is performed for at least N IMR and/or CMR occasions, wherein N is a positive integer determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition, or the measurement is performed within a monitoring window having a length of at least M time units, wherein M is a positive integer determined based on a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node or based on a system pre-definition, wherein each of the M time units is one of: an OFDM symbol, a sub-slot or a slot [Bae ¶ 0029: UE may not average measurements of two or more instances of a periodic or semi-persistent NZP CSI-RS for channel measurement or for interference measurement that occur in a time duration for which not all orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols are occupied by a set of PDSCH and/or CSI-RS(s) scheduled/triggered to the UE, including the scheduling/triggering PDCCH(s) (here, when measurement is not performed on a N number of occasions, e.g., if there are no (N<1), CSI-RS, then averaging is not performed); Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention combine the method of determining reference resources used for CSI report measurements based on a received configuration and transmitting the measurement report to the network in accordance with the configuration as taught by Bagheri, with the method of configuring a UE, through DCI, to perform averaging of repeated CSI-RS channel and interference measurements as taught by Bae. The motivation to combine these references would be to improve channel measurement accuracy in an unlicensed spectrum communication environment [Bae ¶ 0021].
Claim(s) 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Song et al. (US 2021/0075486 A1; “Song”).
Regarding claim 11, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 5, wherein the CSI report is transmitted on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource at the time position to the wireless communication node [Bagheri ¶ 0034: CSI report transmitted on PUCCH resources].
however, does not explicitly disclose further comprising: determining a first time unit where an ending occasion related to the IMR and/or CMR is located; and determining a time position to be another first time unit that is later than the first time unit by N second time units, wherein each first time unit is one of: an OFDM symbol, a sub-slot or a slot, each second time unit is one of: an OFDM symbol, a sub-slot or a slot, N is an integer determined based on: a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node, a system pre-definition, and/or a capability of the wireless communication device, and the CSI report is transmitted on a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource at the time position to the wireless communication node.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Song teaches determining a first time unit where an ending occasion related to the IMR and/or CMR is located [Song ¶ 0101 a time offset X is determined for transmission of an aperiodic CSI-RS associated with aperiodic CSI report (see ¶ 0106, CSI-RS for interference measurement)]; and
determining a time position to be another first time unit that is later than the first time unit by N second time units, wherein each first time unit is one of: an OFDM symbol, a sub-slot or a slot, each second time unit is one of: an OFDM symbol, a sub-slot or a slot [Song ¶ 0104: a slot offset Y (for transmission of CSI report) is determined as
≥
X
+
Z
N
s
y
m
b
s
l
o
t
+
N
, where the time unit Y would be later in time than X)],
N is an integer determined based on: a semi-static configuration by the wireless communication node, a system pre-definition, and/or a capability of the wireless communication device; the CSI report is transmitted on resource at the time position to the wireless communication node [Song ¶ 0104: a slot offset Y (¶ 0011: slot offset Y for the UE to transmit the aperiodic CSI report) is determined as a function of Z; ¶ 0064: Z is determined according to UE capability].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention combine the method of determining reference resources used for CSI report measurements based on a received configuration and transmitting the measurement report to the network in accordance with the configuration as taught by Bagheri, with the method of configuring a UE, with slot offset information corresponding to a CSI-RS reception time and CSI report timing as taught by Song. The motivation to combine these references would be to improve aperiodic CSI reporting in consideration on UE capability [Song ¶ 0007].
Claim(s) 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bagheri in view of Chen in view of Matsumura et al. (US 2022/0345268 A1; “Matsumura”).
Regarding claim 13, Bagheri in view of Chen teaches the method of claim 5, further comprising: determining that the configuration indicates to measure aperiodic CSI based on aperiodic IMR and/or CMR [Bagheri ¶ 0021: DCI triggers aperiodic CSI reporting; ¶ 0019: wherein the aperiodic resources are indicated by DL assignment].
However, Bagheri in view of Chen does not explicitly disclose determining that time-frequency resources occupied by the aperiodic IMR and/or CMR are partially or completely overlapped with time-frequency resources of a PDSCH; performing a rate matching for the overlapped time-frequency resources when receiving the PDSCH.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Matsumura teaches determining that time-frequency resources occupied by the aperiodic IMR and/or CMR are partially or completely overlapped with time-frequency resources of a PDSCH; performing a rate matching for the overlapped time-frequency resources when receiving the PDSCH [Matsumura ¶0126: may perform rate match of the PDSCH in the symbol, i.e., overlap symbol/around the overlap symbol, in which the PDSCH and the CSI-RS overlap each other].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention combine the method of determining reference resources used for CSI report measurements based on a received configuration and transmitting the measurement report to the network in accordance with the configuration as taught by Bagheri, with the method of performing rate matching on overlapping PDCH and CSI-RS as taught by Matsumura. The motivation to do so would be to improve system performance when processing DL signals having difference QCL parameters [Song ¶ 0007].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 8 and 12 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
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.
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/BRIAN P COX/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2474