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 . Claims 1-20 are pending.
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.
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 1-5, 8-17, 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Karimli et al. (US# 2020/0178334 hereinafter referred to as Karimli) in view of Shah et al. (US# 2021/0068135 hereinafter referred to as Shah).
RE Claim 1, Karimli discloses A method performed by a network node in a communications system for handling resources in a frequency spectrum of the communications system (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043]), the method comprising:
categorizing the communication resources into a plurality of congestion level groups, wherein each congestion level group in the plurality of congestion level groups is associated with a number of User Equipment's, UE (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – allocating resources based on numbers of UEs (i.e. # of 4G users, # of 5G users)), in a cell sharing the resources (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – dynamically sharing resources in a cell), wherein the resources categorized in a first congestion level group are shared by a higher number of UE's than in a second congestion level group (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – wherein one group has a higher number of UEs than the other group);
assigning the categorized resources to different parts of the frequency spectrum (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – allocating different parts of the frequency spectrum to each group/user (i.e. FIGs 2A-2D)), wherein the first congestion level group is assigned to a first part of the frequency spectrum and the resources categorized in the second congestion level group are assigned to a second part of the spectrum (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – i.e. 5G users are assigned first part of frequency spectrum and 4G users are assigned a second part of the frequency spectrum); and
determining, for a UE in the cell, that the resources categorized in the first congestion level group and assigned to the first part of the frequency spectrum should be used by the UE prior to using the resources categorized in the second congestion level group and assigned to the second part of the frequency spectrum (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – i.e. 5G users used assigned first part of frequency spectrum before using 4G assigned resources).
Karimli does not specifically disclose the resources being Physical Uplink Control Channel , PUCCH, resources within a configured PUCCH resource set; or
wherein the second part is closer to center of the spectrum than the first part.
However, Shah teaches allocating PUCCH resources within a configured PUCCH resource set (See Shah [0049], [0134] – assigning resources from PUCCH resource set; assignment of resources based on current circumstances such as the channel state, congestion, number of UEs in its cell, the amount of UE traffic, the priority of UEs, etc.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to implement the communication system handling resources, as disclosed in Karimli, comprising the resources being Physical Uplink Control Channel , PUCCH, resources within a configured PUCCH resource set, as taught in Shah. One is motivated as such in order to better carry out uplink transmissions when there is different usage scenarios and requirements (See Shah Background; Summary).
Karimli, modified by Shah, does not specifically disclose wherein the second part is closer to center of the spectrum than the first part.
However, since Karimli teaches that both the second part and the first part are both part of the assigned frequency spectrum (See Karimli FIGs 2A-2D – F1 – FN -> FM – any of F1 through FM can be any part of the frequency spectrum), having the second part assigned to the part of the frequency spectrum that is closer to the center of the spectrum than the first part would be an obvious matter of design choice within the skill of the art. In re Launder, 42 CCPA 886, 222 F.2d 371, 105 USPQ 446 (1955); Flour City Architectural Metals v. Alpana Aluminum Products, Inc., 454 F. 2d 98, 172 USPQ 341 (8th Cir. 1972); National Connector Corp. v. Malco Manufacturing Co., 392 F.2d 766. 157 USPQ 401 (8th Cir.) cert. denied, 393 U.S. 923, 159 USPQ 799 (1968).
RE Claim 2, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a method, as set forth in claim 1 above, comprising:
determining, based on a UE priority, a number of PUCCH resources per set of PUCCH resources from each congestion level group of the plurality of congestion level groups to be used by the UE (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – number of resources per group are determined based in part based on the priority of the UEs (i.e. 5G vs 4G)).
RE Claim 3, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a method, as set forth in claim 1 above, wherein the categorizing the PUCCH resources into a plurality of congestion level groups is performed any time, at cell setup or at a first time using any of the first congestion level group and the second congestion level group (See Karimli [0019] – i.e. dynamically, at any time (which includes cell setup or first time using)).
RE Claim 4, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a method, as set forth in claim 1 above, wherein the assigning the PUCCH resources categorized to the frequency spectrum are performed any time, at cell setup or at a first time using any of the first congestion level group and the second congestion level group (See Karimli [0019] – i.e. dynamically, at any time (which includes cell setup or first time using)).
RE Claim 5, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a method, as set forth in claim 2 above, wherein the determining, based on the UE priority (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – number of resources per group are determined based in part based on the priority of the UEs (i.e. 5G vs 4G)), a number of PUCCH resources per set of PUCCH resources from each congestion level group of the plurality of congestion level groups to be used by the UE is performed any time or at UE setup (See Karimli [0019] – i.e. dynamically, at any time (which includes cell setup or first time using)).
RE Claim 8, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a method, as set forth in claim 2 above, wherein a first number of PUCCH resources is determined to be used by the UE when it has a first UE priority, and wherein a second number of PUCCH resources is determined to be used by the UE when it has a second UE priority, wherein the first number is higher than the second number, and the first UE priority is higher than the second UE priority (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – number of resources per group are determined based in part based on the priority of the UEs (i.e. 5G vs 4G); more resources are allocated (i.e. dynamically) to higher priority group of UEs).
RE Claim 9, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a method, as set forth in claim 2 above, wherein the UE priority is associated with a Quality of Service, QoS, class of the UE (See Karimli [0029] – priority associated with QoS).
RE Claim 10, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a method, as set forth in claim 1 above, wherein the PUCCH resources are associated with PUCCH Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request Acknowledgement, HARQ ACK or associated with Semi-Persistent Channel State Information, SP CSI (See Shah [0039]-[0040], [0044]-[0045] – PUCCH – ACK signals; SP-CSI).
RE Claim 11, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a method, as set forth in claim 2 above, wherein the determining, based on the UE priority, a number of PUCCH resources per set of PUCCH resources from each congestion level group of the plurality of congestion level groups to be used by the UE (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – number of resources per group are determined based in part based on the priority of the UEs (i.e. 5G vs 4G)) is performed for each UE that is connected to or reconfigured in the cell (See Karimli [0019] – i.e. dynamically, at any time (which includes cell setup or first time using)).
RE Claim 12, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a method, as set forth in claim 1 above, wherein the network node is a base station, an access node, a radio access node or a next generation Node B, gNodeB (See Karimli FIGs 1; [0039], [0041], [0043] – i.e. base station).
RE Claim 13, Karimli discloses a network node in a communications system for handling resources in a frequency spectrum of the communications system (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043]), he network node comprising processing circuitry and memory, the memory comprising instructions executable by the processing circuitry whereby the network node is configured to:
categorize the communication resources into a plurality of congestion level groups, wherein each congestion level group in the plurality of congestion level groups is associated with a number of User Equipment's, UE (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – allocating resources based on numbers of UEs (i.e. # of 4G users, # of 5G users)), in a cell sharing the resources (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – dynamically sharing resources in a cell), wherein the resources categorized in a first congestion level group are shared by a higher number of UE's than in a second congestion level group (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – wherein one group has a higher number of UEs than the other group);
assign the categorized resources to different parts of the frequency spectrum (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – allocating different parts of the frequency spectrum to each group/user (i.e. FIGs 2A-2D)), wherein the first congestion level group is assigned to a first part of the frequency spectrum and the resources categorized in the second congestion level group are assigned to a second part of the spectrum (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – i.e. 5G users are assigned first part of frequency spectrum and 4G users are assigned a second part of the frequency spectrum); and
determine, for a UE in the cell, that the resources categorized in the first congestion level group and assigned to the first part of the frequency spectrum should be used by the UE prior to using the resources categorized in the second congestion level group and assigned to the second part of the frequency spectrum (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – i.e. 5G users used assigned first part of frequency spectrum before using 4G assigned resources).
Karimli does not specifically disclose the resources being Physical Uplink Control Channel , PUCCH, resources within a configured PUCCH resource set; or
wherein the second part is closer to center of the spectrum than the first part.
However, Shah teaches allocating PUCCH resources within a configured PUCCH resource set (See Shah [0049], [0134] – assigning resources from PUCCH resource set; assignment of resources based on current circumstances such as the channel state, congestion, number of UEs in its cell, the amount of UE traffic, the priority of UEs, etc.).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to implement the communication system handling resources, as disclosed in Karimli, comprising the resources being Physical Uplink Control Channel , PUCCH, resources within a configured PUCCH resource set, as taught in Shah. One is motivated as such in order to better carry out uplink transmissions when there is different usage scenarios and requirements (See Shah Background; Summary).
Karimli, modified by Shah, does not specifically disclose wherein the second part is closer to center of the spectrum than the first part.
However, since Karimli teaches that both the second part and the first part are both part of the assigned frequency spectrum (See Karimli FIGs 2A-2D – F1 – FN -> FM – any of F1 through FM can be any part of the frequency spectrum), having the second part assigned to the part of the frequency spectrum that is closer to the center of the spectrum than the first part would be an obvious matter of design choice within the skill of the art. In re Launder, 42 CCPA 886, 222 F.2d 371, 105 USPQ 446 (1955); Flour City Architectural Metals v. Alpana Aluminum Products, Inc., 454 F. 2d 98, 172 USPQ 341 (8th Cir. 1972); National Connector Corp. v. Malco Manufacturing Co., 392 F.2d 766. 157 USPQ 401 (8th Cir.) cert. denied, 393 U.S. 923, 159 USPQ 799 (1968).
RE Claim 14, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a network node, as set forth in claim 13 above, configured to:
determine, based on a UE priority, a number of PUCCH resources per set of PUCCH resources from each congestion level group of the plurality of congestion level groups to be used by the UE (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – number of resources per group are determined based in part based on the priority of the UEs (i.e. 5G vs 4G)).
RE Claim 15, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a network node, as set forth in claim 13 above, configured to categorize the PUCCH resources into a plurality of congestion level groups is performed any time, at cell setup or at a first time using any of the first congestion level group and the second congestion level group (See Karimli [0019] – i.e. dynamically, at any time (which includes cell setup or first time using)).
RE Claim 16, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a network node, as set forth in claim 13 above, configured to assign the PUCCH resources categorized to the frequency spectrum are performed any time, at cell setup or at a first time using any of the first congestion level group and the second congestion level group (See Karimli [0019] – i.e. dynamically, at any time (which includes cell setup or first time using)).
RE Claim 17, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a network node, as set forth in claim 14 above, configured to determine, based on the UE priority (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – number of resources per group are determined based in part based on the priority of the UEs (i.e. 5G vs 4G)), a number of PUCCH resources per set of PUCCH resources from each congestion level group of the plurality of congestion level groups to be used by the UE is performed any time or at UE setup (See Karimli [0019] – i.e. dynamically, at any time (which includes cell setup or first time using)).
RE Claim 20, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a network node, as set forth in claim 14 above, wherein a first number of PUCCH resources is determined to be used by the UE when it has a first UE priority, and wherein a second number of PUCCH resources is determined to be used by the UE when it has a second UE priority, wherein the first number is higher than the second number, and the first UE priority is higher than the second UE priority (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D; [0039], [0041], [0043] – number of resources per group are determined based in part based on the priority of the UEs (i.e. 5G vs 4G); more resources are allocated (i.e. dynamically) to higher priority group of UEs).
Claims 6-7, 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Karimli et al. (US# 2020/0178334 hereinafter referred to as Karimli) in view of Shah et al. (US# 2021/0068135 hereinafter referred to as Shah) and Basu Mallick et al. (US# 2019/0253531 hereinafter referred to as Basu).
RE Claim 6, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a method, as set forth in claim 1 above, wherein the assigning the PUCCH resources categorized to different parts of the frequency spectrum comprises:
assigning a first frequency resource to the PUCCH resources categorized in the first congestion level group (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D); and
assigning a second frequency resource to the PUCCH resources categorized in the second congestion level group (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D).
Karimli, modified by Shah, does not specifically disclose wherein the assigning the PUCCH resources categorized to different parts of the frequency spectrum comprises:
assigning a first Physical Resource Block, PRB, index or a first set of PRB index to the PUCCH resources categorized in the first congestion level group; and
assigning a second PRB index or a second set of PRB index to the PUCCH resources categorized in the second congestion level group (emphasis added).
However Basu teaches of wherein the assigning the PUCCH resources categorized to different parts of the frequency spectrum comprises:
assigning a first Physical Resource Block, PRB, index or a first set of PRB index to the PUCCH resources categorized in the first congestion level group (See Basu [0096], [0098] – allocating partitioned resources (i.e. UL BWP; specific PRB index/es) to UE for PUCCH); and
assigning a second PRB index or a second set of PRB index to the PUCCH resources categorized in the second congestion level group (See Basu [0096], [0098] – allocating other partitioned resources (i.e. UL BWP; specific PRB index/es) to other UEs for PUCCH).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to implement the communication system handling resources, as disclosed in Karimli, modified by Shah. One is motivated as such in order to improve wireless transmission by indicating BWPs to use for the UEs (See Basu Background; Summary).
RE Claim 7, Karimli, modified by Shah and Basu, discloses a method, as set forth in claim 6 above wherein the first PRB index and the first set of PRB index are lower than the second PRB and the second set of PRB index (See Basu [0098] – lowest PRB index for higher priority (i.e first group is higher priority)).
RE Claim 18, Karimli, modified by Shah, discloses a network node, as set forth in claim 13 above, configured to assign the PUCCH resources categorized to different parts of the frequency spectrum by:
assigning a first frequency resource to the PUCCH resources categorized in the first congestion level group (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D); and
assigning a second frequency resource to the PUCCH resources categorized in the second congestion level group (See Karimli FIGs 1-2D).
Karimli, modified by Shah, does not specifically disclose wherein the assigning the PUCCH resources categorized to different parts of the frequency spectrum comprises:
assigning a first Physical Resource Block, PRB, index or a first set of PRB index to the PUCCH resources categorized in the first congestion level group; and
assigning a second PRB index or a second set of PRB index to the PUCCH resources categorized in the second congestion level group (emphasis added).
However Basu teaches of wherein the assigning the PUCCH resources categorized to different parts of the frequency spectrum comprises:
assigning a first Physical Resource Block, PRB, index or a first set of PRB index to the PUCCH resources categorized in the first congestion level group (See Basu [0096], [0098] – allocating partitioned resources (i.e. UL BWP; specific PRB index/es) to UE for PUCCH); and
assigning a second PRB index or a second set of PRB index to the PUCCH resources categorized in the second congestion level group (See Basu [0096], [0098] – allocating other partitioned resources (i.e. UL BWP; specific PRB index/es) to other UEs for PUCCH).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to implement the communication system handling resources, as disclosed in Karimli, modified by Shah. One is motivated as such in order to improve wireless transmission by indicating BWPs to use for the UEs (See Basu Background; Summary).
RE Claim 19, Karimli, modified by Shah and Basu, discloses a network node, as set forth in claim 18 above wherein the first PRB index and the first set of PRB index are lower than the second PRB and the second set of PRB index (See Basu [0098] – lowest PRB index for higher priority (i.e first group is higher priority)).
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 06/23/2026 have been fully considered but they are moot in view of new grounds of rejection, necessitated by amendment (See Claims above, Shah reference).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Chmiel et al. (US# 2017/0048869 – which teaches of different User Equipments are primarily allocated to different tree levels based on a metric, wherein the metric considers at least one of requests of a number of the User Equipments to be scheduled on its Secondary Cell(s), the User Equipment buffer, the User Equipment radio conditions, the load of the User Equipment's Secondary Cell(s)).
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Steve R Young whose telephone number is (571)270-7518. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9am-5pm.
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, Chirag G Shah can be reached at (571) 272-3144. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/STEVE R YOUNG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2477
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