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 .
This paper is responsive to the Request for Reconsideration after non-final rejection filed November 11, 2025. The application is continuation of PCT/CN2020/126981 filed November 6, 2020.
Status of the Claims
Claims 1-9 and 11-23 and 25-30 are currently pending in the application.
Claims 1, 11, 12, 14, 16, 25, 29 and 30 have been amended.
Claims 10 and 24 have been canceled
Response to Amendment
The amendments to the claims are supported by the specification and the amendments have been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1-9 and 11-23 and 25-30 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1, 2, 7-9, 11, 14, 16, 17, 21- 23, 27, 29 and 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US Pat. Pub. 20220060967 to Kai Xu and Chao Li (hereinafter Kai Xu) in view of US. Pat. Pub. 20190313315 to Xiaodong Xu et al. (hereinafter Xiaodong Xu).
Regarding claim 1, Kai Xu teaches A method for wireless communications at a user equipment (UE), comprising:
receiving, [[via a radio resource control release message]], a measurement configuration for performing a plurality of measurements on each relay UE candidate in a list of relay UE candidates; (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0075] UE 104 establishing an RRC connection to a base station 102 for allocating resources in D2D communication. Kai Xu paras. [0083]-[0084] and Fig. 4, block S210 teach receiving a candidate relay UE list from a base station and “determine link quality of a first link of each candidate relay UE in the candidate relay UE list.”)
wherein the measurement configuration indicates the list of relay UE candidates for the UE to measure; (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0084] “For example, if the relay selection device is the base station, the relay selection device may determine the candidate relay UE list according to indication information sent by the first UE or a network configuration.... the relay selection device may receive indication information that is sent by a network side device (for example, the base station) and that is used to indicate the candidate relay UE list”. Examiner interprets “measurement configuration” as “indication information” that indicates the list of relay UE candidates for the UE to measure.)
performing the plurality of measurements on each relay UE candidate in the list of relay UE candidates in accordance with the measurement configuration; (Kai Xu Fig. 3 and para. [0087] teaches that the relay selection device may be UE that receives “indication information set by the base station”. Kai Xu para. [0088]-[0089] and Fig. 3, block S220 teaches that the UE determines the link quality of the first link of each candidate using a specific selection criterion, such as a link quality threshold.)
PNG
media_image1.png
287
520
media_image1.png
Greyscale
)
transmitting, to a base station, a measurement report comprising an indication of the plurality of measurements associated with the list of relay UE candidates. (Kai Xu teaches Fig. 7 step S530 and para. [0180] transmitting to a “Measurement report (the signal quality of the PC5 link of each candidate relay UE”) from remote UE to eNB:
PNG
media_image2.png
942
733
media_image2.png
Greyscale
receiving, from the base station, a relay configuration comprising a relay pairing between the UE and a first relay UE candidate of the list of relay UE candidates based at least in part on the measurement report; (Kai Xu teaches in Fig. 7, step S560 a relay selection acknowledgement message regarding a target relay UE. Kai Xu step S550, para. [0187] teaches that the eNB determines the target relay UE from the candidate relay UE list. Para. [0197] teaches that step S560 includes sending a relay selection which includes information about the target relay UE.)
and
establishing a sidelink communication link with the first relay UE candidate in accordance with the relay configuration. (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0075] that a D2D link is a “sidelink” communication. but does not specifically teach establishing a sidelink communication link with a first relay UE candidate in accordance with the relay configuration).
However, in the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Xiaodong Xu teaches establishing a sidelink communication link with the first relay UE candidate in accordance with the relay configuration. (Xiaodong Xu teaches in para. [0039] that after determining candidate links “The selecting unit 113 is configured to select a communication link to be applied to the user equipment from the candidate links based on the information acquired by the acquiring unit 111.”)
Although Kai Xu teaches a generic RRC connection, Kai Xu does not teach receiving, via a radio resource control release message, a measurement configuration message.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Xiaodong Xu teaches an RRC release message in Fig. 15 and para. [0145] “the eNB informs the remote UE of the measurement configuration message by using the measConfig cell carried in the RRCConnectionReconfiguration message:
PNG
media_image3.png
603
570
media_image3.png
Greyscale
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Xiaodong Xu to teach establishing a communication link with a relay candidate and an RRC release message. Each of Kai Xu and Xiaodong Xu are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Xu and Xu to provide a better guarantee of service continuity as taught in Xiaodong Xu para. [0062].
Regarding claim 2, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 1, further comprising:
receiving, from the base station, a message indicating a request to transmit the measurement report in accordance with the measurement configuration.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications Xiaodong Xu teaches receiving, from the base station, a message indicating a request to transmit the measurement report in accordance with the measurement configuration. (Xiaodong Xu teaches receiving a message indicating a request to transmit the measurement report in Fig. 9, and para. [0091] wherein the eNB sends a Uu measurement configuration to a remote UE and in response the UE may send a measurement report to the base station:
PNG
media_image4.png
600
852
media_image4.png
Greyscale
)
Examiner interprets the Uu measurement configuration as a “a message indicating a request to transmit the measurement report in accordance with the measurement configuration” because it causes the measurement report to be sent.)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Xiaodong Xu to teach receiving, from the base station, a message indicating a request to transmit the measurement report candidate. Each of Kai Xu and Xiaodong Xu are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Xu and Xu to provide a better guarantee of service continuity as taught in Xiaodong Xu para. [0062].
Regarding claim 7, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 1, wherein the relay configuration is formatted in a radio resource control reconfiguration message, the radio resource control reconfiguration message further comprising:
an indication of the relay pairing or a cell configuration based at least in part on a connection status of the UE.
However, in the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Xiaodong Xu teaches , wherein the relay configuration is formatted in a radio resource control reconfiguration message, (Xiaodong Xu para. [0145] “RRCConnectionReconfiguration message”) the radio resource control reconfiguration message further comprising:
an indication of the relay pairing or a cell configuration based at least in part on a connection status of the UE (Xiaodong Xu, para. [0145] teaches “When the eNB informs the remote UE of the measurement configuration message by using the measConfig cell carried in the RRCConnectionReconfiguration message, in the cell table, SupportERelay (1 bit) is additionally used to indicate whether the cell supports the UE-to-Network Relay, “1” indicates that the cell supports the UE-to-Network Relay, and “0” indicates that the cell does not support the UE-to-Network Relay.” The 1 bit teaches a connection status of the UE.
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Xiaodong Xu to teach establishing a communication link with a relay candidate. Each of Kai Xu and Xiaodong Xu are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Xiaodong Xu and Kai Xu to provide a better guarantee of service continuity as taught in Xiaodong Xu para. [0062].
Regarding claim 8, Kai Xu teaches The method of claim 1, wherein the measurement report further comprises an identifier of the first relay UE candidate, a different identifier of a cell associated with the first relay UE candidate, one or more measurement quantities associated with the first relay UE candidate and the UE, or any combination thereof. (Kai Xu teaches that in para. [0198] and Fig. 7 sending a measurement report in step S530, and that the information about the target relay UE may include an equipment identifier and may include “an equipment identifier, a user identifier, a random access radio network temporary identifier (Random Access Radio Network Temporary Identifier, RA_CNTI), an IP address, or the like of the target relay UE.” Kai Xu therefore teaches an identifier of a cell associated with the first UE relay candidate mapped to “the target relay UE” because the random access radio network temporary identifier and IP address identifies the cell associated with the target relay UE.)
Regarding claim 9, Kai Xu teaches The method of claim 8, wherein the one or more measurement quantities comprise a reference signal receive power, a reference signal receive quality, a signal to interference plus noise ratio, or any combination thereof. (Kai Xu para. [0085] teaches that the link quality for the measurement report includes parameters reference signal received power (RSRP), CQI, RSSI and the like.)
Regarding claim 11, Kai Xu teaches, The method of claim 1, further comprising:
performing the plurality of measurements on each relay UE candidate in the list of relay UE candidates prior to a determination to establish the sidelink communication link in accordance with the measurement configuration. (Kai Xu teaches in Fig. 7 step S520 performing signal quality measurements of each candidate relay UE prior to a determination in step S560 selecting a target relay UE:
PNG
media_image5.png
703
544
media_image5.png
Greyscale
)
Regarding claim 14, Kai Xu teaches The method of claim 1, wherein the sidelink communication link comprises a PC5 unicast link between the UE and the first relay UE candidate. (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0075] that the sidelink, D2D link can be a PC5 link. Further in para. [0178] Kai Xu teaches sending the signal quality of the PC5 link of each candidate relay UE to the remote UE “by using the PC5 link between each candidate relay UE and the remote UE”.)
Regarding claim 16, Kai Xu in view of Xiaodong Xu teaches A method for wireless communications at a base station (Kai Xu Fig. 2 base station 102), comprising:
transmitting, to a user equipment (UE) [[via radio resource control release message]], a measurement configuration for the UE to perform a plurality of measurements on each relay UE in a list of relay UE candidates; (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0075] UE 104 establishing an RRC connection with a base station 102 for allocating resources in D2D communication. Kai Xu paras. [0083]-[0084] and Fig. 4, block S210 teach receiving a candidate relay UE list from a base station and “determine link quality of a first link of each candidate relay UE in the candidate relay UE list.”)
wherein the measurement configuration indicates the list of relay UE candidates for the UE to measure; (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0084] “For example, if the relay selection device is the base station, the relay selection device may determine the candidate relay UE list according to indication information sent by the first UE or a network configuration.... the relay selection device may receive indication information that is sent by a network side device (for example, the base station) and that is used to indicate the candidate relay UE list”. Examiner interprets “measurement configuration” as “indication information” that indicates the list of relay UE candidates for the UE to measure.)
receiving from the UE a measurement report comprising an indication of the plurality of measurements associated with the list of UE candidates; (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0084] “For example, if the relay selection device is the base station, the relay selection device may determine the candidate relay UE list according to indication information sent by the first UE or a network configuration.... the relay selection device may receive indication information that is sent by a network side device (for example, the base station) and that is used to indicate the candidate relay UE list”. Examiner interprets “measurement configuration” as “indication information” that indicates the list of relay UE candidates for the UE to measure.)
determining a relay pairing between the UE and a first relay UE candidate of the list of relay UE candidates based at least in part on selection of the first relay UE candidate from the list of relay UE candidates in accordance with the measurement report, the relay pairing for establishing a sidelink communication link between the UE and the first relay UE candidate; (Kai Xu teaches in Fig. 7, step S560 a relay selection acknowledgement message regarding a target relay UE. Kai Xu step S550, para. [0187] teaches that the eNB determines the target relay UE from the candidate relay UE list. Para. [0197] teaches that step S560 includes sending a relay selection which includes information about the target relay UE.)
and
transmitting, to the UE, a relay configuration comprising the relay pairing. (Kai Xu teaches in Fig. 7, step S560 a relay selection acknowledgement message regarding a target relay UE. Kai Xu step S550, para. [0187] teaches that the eNB determines the target relay UE from the candidate relay UE list. Para. [0197] teaches that step S560 includes sending a relay selection which includes information about the target relay UE.)
Although Kai Xu teaches a generic RRC connection, Kai Xu does not teach receiving, via a radio resource control release message, a measurement configuration message.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Xiaodong Xu teaches an RRC release message in Fig. 15 and para. [0145] “the eNB informs the remote UE of the measurement configuration message by using the measConfig cell carried in the RRCConnectionReconfiguration message:
PNG
media_image3.png
603
570
media_image3.png
Greyscale
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Xiaodong Xu to teach an RRC release message. Each of Kai Xu and Xiaodong Xu are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Xu and Xu to provide a better guarantee of service continuity as taught in Xiaodong Xu para. [0062].
Regarding claim 17, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 16, further comprising:
transmitting, to the UE, a message indicating a request to transmit the measurement report in accordance with the measurement configuration.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications Xiaodong Xu teaches transmitting, to the UE, a message indicating a request to transmit the measurement report in accordance with the measurement configuration. (Xiaodong Xu teaches transmitting from a base station a message indicating a request to transmit the measurement report in Fig. 9, and para. [0091] wherein the eNB sends a Uu measurement configuration to a remote UE and in response the UE may send a measurement report to the base station:
PNG
media_image4.png
600
852
media_image4.png
Greyscale
)
Examiner interprets the Uu measurement configuration as a “a message indicating a request to transmit the measurement report in accordance with the measurement configuration” because it causes the measurement report to be sent.)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Xiaodong Xu to teach receiving, from the base station, a message indicating a request to transmit the measurement report candidate. Each of Kai Xu and Xiaodong Xu are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Xu and Xu to provide a better guarantee of service continuity as taught in Xiaodong Xu para. [0062].
Regarding claim 21, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 16, further comprising:
formatting the relay configuration in a radio resource control reconfiguration message, the radio resource control reconfiguration message further comprising an indication of the relay pairing or a cell configuration based at least in part on a connection status of the UE.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Xiaodong Xu teaches formatting the relay configuration in a radio resource control reconfiguration message, the radio resource control reconfiguration message further comprising an indication of the relay pairing or a cell configuration based at least in part on a connection status of the UE (Xiaodong Xu teaches in para. [0145] and Fig. 15 that the eNB informs the remote UE of the measurement configuration message by using the measConfig cell carried in the RRCConnectionReconfiguration message. Further, in the cell table, SupportERelay (1 bit) is additionally used to indicate whether the cell supports the UE-to-Network Relay, “1” indicates that the cell supports the UE-to-Network Relay, and “0” indicates that the cell does not support the UE-to-Network Relay. In addition, remoteThresh needs to be used to inform the cell of the threshold condition configured for the remote UE.)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Xiaodong Xu to teach establishing a communication link with a relay candidate. Each of Folke and Xu are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Kai Xu with Xiaodong Xu to provide a better guarantee of service continuity as taught in Xiaodong Xu para. [0062].
Regarding claim 22, Kai Xu teaches The method of claim 16, , wherein the measurement report further comprises an identifier of the first UE relay candidate, a different identifier of a cell associated with the first relay UE candidate, one or more measurement quantities associated with the first relay UE candidate and the UE, or any combination thereof. (Kai Xu teaches that in para. [0198] and Fig. 7 sending a measurement report in step S530, and that the information about the target relay UE may include an equipment identifier and may include “an equipment identifier, a user identifier, a random access radio network temporary identifier (Random Access Radio Network Temporary Identifier, RA_CNTI), an IP address, or the like of the target relay UE.” Kai Xu therefore teaches an identifier of a cell associated with the first UE relay candidate mapped to “the target relay UE” because the random access radio network temporary identifier and IP address identifies the cell associated with the target relay UE.)
Regarding claim 23, Kai Xu teaches The method of claim 22, wherein the one or more measurement quantities comprise a reference signal receive power, a reference signal receive quality, a signal to interference plus noise ratio, or any combination thereof. (Kai Xu para. [0085] teaches that the link quality for the measurement report includes parameters reference signal received power (RSRP), CQI, RSSI and the like.)
Regarding claim 27, Kai Xu teaches The method of claim 16, wherein the sidelink communication link comprises a PC5 unicast link between the UE and the first relay UE candidate. (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0075] that the sidelink, D2D link can be a PC5 link. Further in para. [0178] Kai Xu teaches sending the signal quality of the PC5 link of each candidate relay UE to the remote UE “by using the PC5 link between each candidate relay UE and the remote UE”.)
Regarding claim 29, Kai Xu in view of Xiaodong Xu teaches An apparatus for wireless communications at a user equipment (UE), comprising:
one or more processors, (Kai Xu processor 1610 in apparatus 1600 described as a UE in para. [0350])
one or more memories coupled with the one or more processors; (Kai Xu para. [0354] teaches that the UE may include a memory)
and
instructions stored in the one or more memories (Kai Xu para. [0355] teaches software stored in memory) and executable by the one or more processors to cause the apparatus to:
receive a measurement configuration , [[via a radio resource control release message]], for performing a plurality of measurements on a list of relay UE candidates, ((Kai Xu teaches in para. [0075] UE 104 establishing an RRC connection to a base station 102 for allocating resources in D2D communication. Kai Xu paras. [0083]-[0084] and Fig. 4, block S210 teach receiving a candidate relay UE list from a base station and “determine link quality of a first link of each candidate relay UE in the candidate relay UE list.”)
wherein the measurement configuration comprises an indication of the list of relay UE candidates for the UE to measure; (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0084] “For example, if the relay selection device is the base station, the relay selection device may determine the candidate relay UE list according to indication information sent by the first UE or a network configuration.... the relay selection device may receive indication information that is sent by a network side device (for example, the base station) and that is used to indicate the candidate relay UE list”. Examiner interprets “measurement configuration” as “indication information” that indicates the list of relay UE candidates for the UE to measure.)
perform the plurality of measurements on the list of relay UE candidates in accordance with the measurement configuration; (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0084] “For example, if the relay selection device is the base station, the relay selection device may determine the candidate relay UE list according to indication information sent by the first UE or a network configuration.... the relay selection device may receive indication information that is sent by a network side device (for example, the base station) and that is used to indicate the candidate relay UE list”. Examiner interprets “measurement configuration” as “indication information” that indicates the list of relay UE candidates for the UE to measure.)
transmit, to a base station, a measurement report comprising an indication of the plurality of measurements associated with the list of relay UE candidates; (Kai Xu teaches Fig. 7 step S530 and para. [0180] transmitting to a “Measurement report (the signal quality of the PC5 link of each candidate relay UE”) from remote UE to eNB:
PNG
media_image2.png
942
733
media_image2.png
Greyscale
receive, from the base station, a relay configuration comprising a relay pairing between the UE and a first relay UE candidate of the list of relay UE candidates based at least in part on the measurement report; (Kai Xu teaches in Fig. 7, step S560 a relay selection acknowledgement message regarding a target relay UE. Kai Xu step S550, para. [0187] teaches that the eNB determines the target relay UE from the candidate relay UE list. Para. [0197] teaches that step S560 includes sending a relay selection which includes information about the target relay UE.)
and
establish a sidelink communication link with the first relay UE candidate in accordance with the relay configuration. (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0075] that a D2D link is a “sidelink” communication. but does not specifically teach establishing a sidelink communication link with a first relay UE candidate in accordance with the relay configuration).
However, in the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Xiaodong Xu teaches establishing a sidelink communication link with the first relay UE candidate in accordance with the relay configuration. (Xiaodong Xu teaches in para. [0039] that after determining candidate links “The selecting unit 113 is configured to select a communication link to be applied to the user equipment from the candidate links based on the information acquired by the acquiring unit 111.”)
Although Kai Xu teaches a generic RRC connection, Kai Xu does not teach receiving, via a radio resource control release message, a measurement configuration message.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Xiaodong Xu teaches an RRC release message in Fig. 15 and para. [0145] “the eNB informs the remote UE of the measurement configuration message by using the measConfig cell carried in the RRCConnectionReconfiguration message:
PNG
media_image3.png
603
570
media_image3.png
Greyscale
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Xiaodong Xu to teach establishing a communication link with a relay candidate and an RRC release message. Each of Kai Xu and Xiaodong Xu are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Xu and Xu to provide a better guarantee of service continuity as taught in Xiaodong Xu para. [0062].
Regarding claim 30, Kai Xu in view of Xiaodong Xu teach An apparatus for wireless communications at a base station (Kai Xu Fig. 2 base station 102) comprising:
one or more processors, (Kai Xu para. [0073] teaches base station 102 includes a processor)
one or more memories coupled with the one or more processors; (Kai Xi teaches a memory in para. [0354] in apparatus 1600 shown in Fig. 16 which could be a base station per para. [0350]) and
instructions stored in the one or more memories and executable by the one or more processors (Kai Xu para. [0355] teach instructions in a form of software executable by a processor) to cause the apparatus to:
transmit, to a user equipment (UE), [[via radio resource control release message,]] a measurement configuration for the UE to perform a plurality of measurements on each relay UE candidate in a list of relay UE candidates; (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0075] UE 104 establishing an RRC connection with a base station 102 for allocating resources in D2D communication. Kai Xu paras. [0083]-[0084] and Fig. 4, block S210 teach receiving a candidate relay UE list from a base station and “determine link quality of a first link of each candidate relay UE in the candidate relay UE list.”)
wherein the measurement configuration indicates a list of relay UE candidates for the UE to measure; (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0084] “For example, if the relay selection device is the base station, the relay selection device may determine the candidate relay UE list according to indication information sent by the first UE or a network configuration.... the relay selection device may receive indication information that is sent by a network side device (for example, the base station) and that is used to indicate the candidate relay UE list”. Examiner interprets “measurement configuration” as “indication information” that indicates the list of relay UE candidates for the UE to measure.)
receive, from the UE, a measurement report comprising an indication of the plurality of measurements associated with the list of relay UE candidates; (Kai Xu teaches in para. [0084] “For example, if the relay selection device is the base station, the relay selection device may determine the candidate relay UE list according to indication information sent by the first UE or a network configuration.... the relay selection device may receive indication information that is sent by a network side device (for example, the base station) and that is used to indicate the candidate relay UE list”. Examiner interprets “measurement configuration” as “indication information” that indicates the list of relay UE candidates for the UE to measure.)
determine a relay pairing between the UE and a first relay UE candidate of the list of relay UE candidates based at least in part on selection of the first relay UE candidate from the list of relay UE candidates in accordance with the measurement report, the relay pairing for establishing a sidelink communication link between the UE and the first relay UE candidate; (Kai Xu teaches in Fig. 7, step S560 a relay selection acknowledgement message regarding a target relay UE. Kai Xu step S550, para. [0187] teaches that the eNB determines the target relay UE from the candidate relay UE list. Para. [0197] teaches that step S560 includes sending a relay selection which includes information about the target relay UE.)
and
transmit, to the UE, a relay configuration comprising the relay pairing. (Kai Xu teaches in Fig. 7, step S560 a relay selection acknowledgement message regarding a target relay UE. Kai Xu step S550, para. [0187] teaches that the eNB determines the target relay UE from the candidate relay UE list. Para. [0197] teaches that step S560 includes sending a relay selection which includes information about the target relay UE.)
Although Kai Xu teaches a generic RRC connection, Kai Xu does not transmit, to a user equipment (UE), [[via radio resource control release message,]] a measurement configuration message.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Xiaodong Xu teaches an RRC release message in Fig. 15 and para. [0145] “the eNB informs the remote UE of the measurement configuration message by using the measConfig cell carried in the RRCConnectionReconfiguration message:
PNG
media_image3.png
603
570
media_image3.png
Greyscale
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Xiaodong Xu to teach an RRC release message. Each of Kai Xu and Xiaodong Xu are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Xu and Xu to provide a better guarantee of service continuity as taught in Xiaodong Xu para. [0062].
Claims 3, 13, 18 and 26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kai Xu in view of Xiaodong Xu further in view of US Pat. Pub. 20130315075 to Takashi Tamura, Takahisa Aoyama and Hidenori Matsuo (hereinafter Tamura)
Regarding claim 3, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 2, wherein the message comprises a one-bit request indication.
However, in the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Tamura teaches wherein the message comprises a one-bit request indication. Tamura teaches “FIG. 13 is a timing chart illustrating an example in which the terminal provides the information at the time of the radio link failure to the base station. The terminal transmits the RRC connection reestablishment complete message in which the RLF information available flag (rlf-InfoAvailable) is included, and the flag is set to the true (true), to the base station. The base station receives the RRC connection reestablishment complete message in which the RLF information available flag is set to the true (true). The base station determines whether the information from the terminal at the time of the radio link failure is necessary, or not. When determining that the information from the terminal is necessary, the base station transmits a terminal information request message (UEInformationRequest) in which an RLF report request flag (rlf-ReportReq) is set to the true (true) to the terminal in order to request transmission of the information at the time of the radio link failure to the terminal.”
PNG
media_image6.png
412
678
media_image6.png
Greyscale
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Tamura to teach a one-bit flag for messaging a UE. Each of Folke and Tamura are in field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Tamura and Kai Xu to enable a base station to optimize a network as taught in Tamura para. [0011].
Regarding claim 13, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 1, further comprising: transmitting the measurement report based at least in part on an idle connection status or an inactive connection status of the UE.
However, in the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Tamura teaches transmitting the measurement report based at least in part on an idle connection status or an inactive connection status of the UE. (Tamura teaches in para. [0069] “For example, the terminal transitions to an idle state (Idle) after having detected the RLF. Thereafter, when the connection is newly established, the RLF information available flag (rlf-InfoAvailable) may be set to the true (true) and included in an RRC connection setup complete message (RRC Connection Setup Complete), and transmitted to the base station.”
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Tamura to teach a one-bit flag for messaging a UE. Each of Kai Xu and Tamura are in field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Tamura and Kai Xu to enable a base station to optimize a network as taught in Tamura para. [0011].
Regarding claim 18, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 17, wherein the message comprises a one-bit request indication.
However, in the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Tamura teaches wherein the message comprises a one-bit request indication. (Tamura teaches “FIG. 13 is a timing chart illustrating an example in which the terminal provides the information at the time of the radio link failure to the base station. The terminal transmits the RRC connection reestablishment complete message in which the RLF information available flag (rlf-InfoAvailable) is included, and the flag is set to the true (true), to the base station. The base station receives the RRC connection reestablishment complete message in which the RLF information available flag is set to the true (true). The base station determines whether the information from the terminal at the time of the radio link failure is necessary, or not. When determining that the information from the terminal is necessary, the base station transmits a terminal information request message (UEInformationRequest) in which an RLF report request flag (rlf-ReportReq) is set to the true (true) to the terminal in order to request transmission of the information at the time of the radio link failure to the terminal.”)
PNG
media_image6.png
412
678
media_image6.png
Greyscale
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Tamura to teach a one-bit flag for messaging a UE. Each of Kai and Tamura are in field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Tamura and Folke to enable a base station to optimize a network as taught in Tamura para. [0011].
Regarding claim 26, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 16, further comprising: receiving the measurement report based at least in part on an idle connection status or an inactive connection status of the UE.
However, in the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Tamura teaches transmitting the measurement report based at least in part on an idle connection status or an inactive connection status of the UE. (Tamura teaches in para. [0069] “For example, the terminal transitions to an idle state (Idle) after having detected the RLF. Thereafter, when the connection is newly established, the RLF information available flag (rlf-InfoAvailable) may be set to the true (true) and included in an RRC connection setup complete message (RRC Connection Setup Complete), and transmitted to the base station.”
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Tamura to teach a one-bit flag for messaging a UE. Each of Kai Xu and Tamura are in field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Tamura and Kai Xu to enable a base station to optimize a network as taught in Tamura para. [0011].
Claims 4 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kai Xu in view of Xiaodong Xu further in view of US Pat. Pub. 20110009116 to Peter Moberg et al. (hereinafter Moberg).
Regarding claim 4, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 1, further comprising: transmitting, to the base station, an indication that the measurement report is available based at least in part on a first connection status of the UE.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Moberg teaches transmitting, to the base station, an indication that the measurement report is available based at least in part on a first connection status of the UE. (Moberg teaches in para. [0042] that a UE “may transmit a scheduling request when the measurement report is ready for transmission. In such an instance. BS 120 may transmit the measurement report grant in response thereto.”)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Moberg. Each of Kai Xu and Moberg are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Kai Xu and Moberg to reduce the number of messages in a scheduling procedure and/or reduce a time period in which messages are exchanged and measurement reports may be transmitted as taught in Moberg para. [0021].
Regarding claim 19, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 16, further comprising:
receiving, from the UE, an indication that the measurement report is available based at least in part on a first connection status of the UE.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Moberg teaches receiving, from the UE, an indication that the measurement report is available based at least in part on a first connection status of the UE. (Moberg teaches in para. [0042] that a UE “may transmit a scheduling request when the measurement report is ready for transmission. In such an instance. BS 120 may transmit the measurement report grant in response thereto.”)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Kai Xu with Moberg. Each of Kai Xu and Moberg are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Kai Xu and Moberg to reduce the number of messages in a scheduling procedure and/or reduce a time period in which messages are exchanged and measurement reports may be transmitted as taught in Moberg para. [0021].
Claims 5, 6, 12, 15, 20, 25 and 28 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kai Xu in view of Xiaodong Xu further in view of US Pat. Pub. 20190200288 to Mats Folke et al. (hereinafter Folke).
Regarding claim 5, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the measurement configuration further comprises:
identifying a timer associated with performing the plurality of measurements;
and
initiating the timer in accordance with the measurement configuration, wherein performing the plurality of measurements is based at least in part on the timer.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Folke teaches identifying a timer associated with performing the plurality of measurements; (Folke para. [0137] and Fig. 12 teach starting a timer T2 upon receiving msg-3)
and
initiating the timer in accordance with the measurement configuration, (Folke para. [0137] teaches starting T2 if it is not already started when receiving msg-3) wherein performing the plurality of measurements is based at least in part on the timer. (Folke, Fig. 12 and 13 and para. [0137] teach that the timer is associated with the threshold values of the measurements).
Regarding claim 6, Kai Xu does NOT teaches The method of claim 5, further comprising:
suspending the timer and the performing of the plurality of measurements in response to an identified cell reselection event; and resuming the timer based at least in part on a completion of the identified cell reselection event.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Folke teaches suspending the timer and the performing of the plurality of measurements in response to an identified cell reselection event; (Folke para. [0137] teaches “Note that the purpose of the timer T2 is to ensure that the process of FIGS. 12 and 13 returns to its original state if the Remote UE stops transmitting msg-3, which should happen if another Relay UE replies or if the Remote UE is no longer interested in relaying.”)
and
resuming the timer based at least in part on a completion of the identified cell reselection event. (Folke para. [0137] teaches “As illustrated in FIG. 13, upon expiry of timer T2 or transmission of msg-4 to the Remote UE (step 1000; YES), the Relay UE resets counter1 (e.g., rests counter1 to 0), sets thresh1 to its original value, and stops timer T2 (if still running) (step 1002).”)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Folke with Kai Xu to teach a timer. Each of Kai Xu and Folke are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Folke and Kai Xu in order to provide rules and principles for a relay as taught in Folke para. [0013].
Regarding claim 12, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 1, wherein the measurement configuration further comprises a list of frequencies associated with the list of relay UE candidates, one or more identifiers of the list of relay UE candidates, a plurality of measurement quantities, one or more filtering parameters associated with the sidelink communication link, a demodulation reference signal configuration, one or more beam measurement and reporting thresholds for the list of UE relay candidates, or any combination thereof.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Folke teaches wherein the measurement configuration further comprises a list of frequencies associated with the list of relay UE candidates, one or more identifiers of the list of relay UE candidates, a plurality of measurement quantities, one or more filtering parameters associated with the sidelink communication link, a demodulation reference signal configuration, one or more beam measurement and reporting thresholds for the list of UE relay candidates, or any combination thereof. (Examiner notes that claim 12 requires “or any combination thereof” and notes that Folke teaches a list of frequencies “radio channels” along with measurement quantities. Specifically, Folke teaches in Fig. 7 that the relay candidates are ranked in step 400. The ranking rules are predefined by the network (see para. [0049]) and are listed in para. [0142] as “measurements, reported measurements, status reports and link quality measurements” and “Link quality assessments may include, e.g., D2D link quality assessments for the links or radio channels between the Relay UEs and the Remote UE that the Remote UE performs itself, reported measurements (as discussed above), and/or radio quality of the link or radio channel between the Remote UE and the eNB.”)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Folke with Kai Xu to teach measurement quantities. Each of Kai Xu and Folke are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Folke and Kai Xu in order to provide rules and principles for a relay as taught in Folke para. [0013].
Regarding claim 15, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 1, wherein the relay configuration comprises a L2 relay configuration.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Folke teaches wherein the relay configuration comprises a L2 relay configuration.(Folke teaches in para. [0105] “If the one or more criteria are satisfied, then the relay WD 12 responds to the remote WD 12 (step 104). This response may include, for example, an indication of one or more services provided by the relay WD 12 and a ProSe UE ID of the relay W”D 12 (which is a layer 2 identifier of the WD 12). Examiner interprets an “L2 relay configuration” as a MAC layer configuration, and Folke utilizes the MAC layer for relay configurations in that Folke further teaches that the measurement reports for relay configuration include “MAC buffer status” reports as taught in Folke para. [0006]: “The index may later be used as a 4-bit short reference to a given group or unicast destination, e.g. as used in the MAC Buffer Status Report when transmitting data to the destination”.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Folke with Kai Xu to teach an L2 relay. Each of Kai Xu and Folke are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Folke and Kai Xu in order to provide rules and principles for a relay as taught in Folke para. [0013].
Regarding claim 20, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 16, wherein transmitting the measurement configuration further comprises: configuring a timing indication comprising a threshold period of time for the UE to perform the plurality of measurements in accordance with the measurement configuration.
configuring a timing indication comprising a threshold period of time for the UE to perform the plurality of measurements in accordance with the measurement configuration.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Folke teaches configuring a timing indication comprising a threshold period of time for the UE to perform the plurality of measurements in accordance with the measurement configuration. (Folke teaches in Fig. 12 and 13 and para. [0137] that the timer is associated with the threshold values of the measurements associated with the measurement configurations illustrated in steps 604 and 606 in Fig. 9A.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Folke with Kai Xu to teach measurement quantities. Each of Kai Xu and Folke are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Folke and Kai Xu in order to provide rules and principles for a relay as taught in Folke para. [0013].
Regarding claim 25, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 16, wherein the measurement configuration further comprises a list of frequencies associated with the set of relay UE candidates, one or more identifiers of the set of relay UE candidates, a plurality of measurement quantities, one or more filtering parameters associated with the sidelink communication link, a demodulation reference signal configuration, one or more beam measurement and reporting thresholds for the set of relay UE candidates, or any combination thereof.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Folke teaches wherein the measurement configuration further comprises a list of frequencies associated with the set of relay UE candidates, one or more identifiers of the set of relay UE candidates, a plurality of measurement quantities, one or more filtering parameters associated with the sidelink communication link, a demodulation reference signal configuration, one or more beam measurement and reporting thresholds for the set of relay UE candidates, or any combination thereof. (Examiner notes that claim 12 requires “or any combination thereof” and notes that Folke teaches a list of frequencies “radio channels” along with measurement quantities. Specifically, Folke teaches in Fig. 7 that the relay candidates are ranked in step 400. The ranking rules are predefined by the network (see para. [0049]) and are listed in para. [0142] as “measurements, reported measurements, status reports and link quality measurements” and “Link quality assessments may include, e.g., D2D link quality assessments for the links or radio channels between the Relay UEs and the Remote UE that the Remote UE performs itself, reported measurements (as discussed above), and/or radio quality of the link or radio channel between the Remote UE and the eNB.”)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Folke with Kai Xu to teach frequencies and different measurement quantities. Each of Kai Xu and Folke are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Folke and Kai Xu in order to provide rules and principles for a relay as taught in Folke para. [0013].
Regarding claim 28, Kai Xu does NOT teach The method of claim 16, wherein the relay configuration comprises a L2 relay configuration.
In the analogous art of 3GPP LTE wireless communications, Folke teaches wherein the relay configuration comprises a L2 relay configuration.(Folke teaches in para. [0105] “If the one or more criteria are satisfied, then the relay WD 12 responds to the remote WD 12 (step 104). This response may include, for example, an indication of one or more services provided by the relay WD 12 and a ProSe UE ID of the relay W”D 12 (which is a layer 2 identifier of the WD 12). Examiner interprets an “L2 relay configuration” as a MAC layer configuration, and Folke utilizes the MAC layer for relay configurations in that Folke further teaches that the measurement reports for relay configuration include “MAC buffer status” reports as taught in Folke para. [0006]: “The index may later be used as a 4-bit short reference to a given group or unicast destination, e.g. as used in the MAC Buffer Status Report when transmitting data to the destination”.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective date of the invention to combine Folke with Kai Xu to teach an L2 relay. Each of Kai Xu and Folke are in the field of wireless communications. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to combine Folke and Kai Xu in order to provide rules and principles for a relay as taught in Folke para. [0013].
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MARGARET MARIE ANDERSON whose telephone number is (703)756-1068. The examiner can normally be reached M-F.
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, CHARLIES JIANG can be reached at 51-270-7191. 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.
/MARGARET MARIE ANDERSON/Examiner, Art Unit 2412
/CHARLES C JIANG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2412