CTNF 18/253,366 CTNF 81622 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 5/11/26 is being considered by the examiner. Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114 07-42-04 AIA A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 5/5/26 has been entered. 07-30-03-h AIA Claim Interpretation 07-30-03 AIA The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(f): (f) Element in Claim for a Combination. – An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof. The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph: An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof. 07-30-05 The claims in this application are given their broadest reasonable interpretation using the plain meaning of the claim language in light of the specification as it would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. The broadest reasonable interpretation of a claim element (also commonly referred to as a claim limitation) is limited by the description in the specification when 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is invoked. As explained in MPEP § 2181, subsection I, claim limitations that meet the following three-prong test will be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph: (A) the claim limitation uses the term “means” or “step” or a term used as a substitute for “means” that is a generic placeholder (also called a nonce term or a non-structural term having no specific structural meaning) for performing the claimed function; (B) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is modified by functional language, typically, but not always linked by the transition word “for” (e.g., “means for”) or another linking word or phrase, such as “configured to” or “so that”; and (C) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is not modified by sufficient structure, material, or acts for performing the claimed function. Use of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim with functional language creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites sufficient structure, material, or acts to entirely perform the recited function. Absence of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is not to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is not interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites function without reciting sufficient structure, material or acts to entirely perform the recited function. Claim limitations in this application that use the word “means” (or “step”) are being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. Conversely, claim limitations in this application that do not use the word “means” (or “step”) are not being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. Claims 49-51 uses the phrase “means for”. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 10-12, 14-16, 31-33, 35-37, 40-42, 44-46 and 49-51 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ying (US 2020/0128447 A1) in view of Berggren et al. (US 2019/0239273 A1) . Consider claim 10, Ying teaches a method for wirelss communication at a remote user equipment (UE) (abstract and Fig. 7), comprising: communicate with a first base station via a relay UE, wherein the relay UE is configured to relay wireless communications between the remote UE and the first base station via at least a sidelink communication link between the relay UE and the remote UE (Fig. 4, step S101 and paragraph 3 and 107, a remote UE communicates to a source eNB via a relay UE and the connection between the relay UE and the remote UE is a device to device link with is the claimed sidelink communication link); receiving an indication of a trigger for the remote UE to perform a handover procedure or a reselection procedure (Fig. 6B, step s214 and 7B and step S309 and paragraph 165-168, 180 and 190-197, the remote UE receives a handover command); and perform at least one of the handover procedure or the reselection procedure based at least in part on receiving the indication of the trigger (Fig. 6B, step s214 and 7B and step S309 and paragraph 165-168 and 198, the remote UE and the relay UE is handover to the target eNB). Ying does not teaches D2D link. However, Ying does not teach the D2D link can be a sidelink for communicating a sidelink radio resource control message. Berggren further teaches the D2D link can be a sidelink for communicating a sidelink radio resource control message (paragraph 4, D2D link is also called sidelink). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify and utilize the above teachings for the purpose of communication information in a D2D/sidelink environment. Consider claims 31, 40 and 49, claims 31, 40 and 49 having similar limitations as claim 10, therefore, claims 31, 40 and 49 are rejected for the same reasons claim 10 is rejected. Consider claims 11, 32, 41 and 50, Ying also teaches wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the remote UE to: perform the second handover procedure or the reselection procedure with the relay UE based at least in part on the first handover procedure and identifying an interruption in data transfer between the relay UE and the remote UE (paragraph 181, handover is decided according to low quality or low receive level); and communicate with the relay UE via the sidelink communication link based at least in part on performing the second handover procedure or the reselection procedure (Fig. 7B, step S310 and paragraph 198). Consider claims 12, 33, 42 and 51, Ying also teaches wherein the sidelink radio resource control message comprises a sidelink release message indicating for the remote UE to release a wireless connection between the relay UE and the remote UE, wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the remote UE to: and release the wireless connection between the relay UE and the remote UE based at least in part on receiving the sidelink release message, wherein performing the second handover procedure or the reselection procedure is based at least in part on releasing the wireless connection (paragraph 140-141, the relay UE and the remote UE are handover to the target eNB separately then associated back together after both of the relay and remote UEs are finished with the handover procedure. Therefore, the remote UE must release the connection with the relay UE when handover to the target eNB). Consider claims 14, 35 and 44, Ying also teaches wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the remote UE to: communicate with the relay UE, the first base station, the second base station, an additional UE, an additional base station, or any combination thereof, based at least in part on performing the second handover procedure, the reselection procedure, or both (Fig. 7B, step S310 and paragraph 140-141 and paragraph 198, the remote UE communicate to the relay UE or the target eNB). Consider claims 15, 36 and 45, Ying also teaches wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the remote UE to: receive, from the relay UE, a radio resource control message comprising an indication of the first handover procedure, an identifier associated with the second base station, or both, wherein the indication to perform the second handover procedure, the reselection procedure, or both, is based at least in part on the indication of the first handover procedure, the identifier associated with the second base station, or both (paragraph 140-141 and handover information include the identification of the target eNB). Consider claims 16, 37 and 46, Ying also teaches wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the remote UE to: receive, from the relay UE based at least in part on identifying an interruption of data transfer between the relay UE and the remote UE, a radio resource control message comprising an indication of a completion of the first handover procedure, an indication of an identifier associated with the second base station, or both; transmit, to the relay UE, a request to reestablish wireless communications between the relay UE and the remote UE based at least in part on the radio resource control message; and communicate with the relay UE via the sidelink communication link based at least in part on receiving the request (paragraph 140-141, 181 and 198, handover is determined when a low quality or a low receive level occurs. The remote and relay UE connection is re-established at the target eNB) . Allowable Subject Matter 12-151-08 AIA 07-43 12-51-08 Claim s 13, 17-18, 34, 38-39, 43 and 47-48 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 Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JUSTIN YE LEE whose telephone number is (571)272-5258. The examiner can normally be reached 9:30-8:00. 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, Kathy Wang-Hurst can be reached at 5712705371. 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If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /JUSTIN Y LEE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2644 6/3/26 Application/Control Number: 18/253,366 Page 2 Art Unit: 2644 Application/Control Number: 18/253,366 Page 3 Art Unit: 2644 Application/Control Number: 18/253,366 Page 4 Art Unit: 2644 Application/Control Number: 18/253,366 Page 5 Art Unit: 2644 Application/Control Number: 18/253,366 Page 6 Art Unit: 2644 Application/Control Number: 18/253,366 Page 7 Art Unit: 2644 Application/Control Number: 18/253,366 Page 8 Art Unit: 2644 Application/Control Number: 18/253,366 Page 9 Art Unit: 2644 Application/Control Number: 18/253,366 Page 10 Art Unit: 2644
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