DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) have been considered but are moot in view of new ground of rejection. Response to the amendment is as below.
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.
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
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 non-obviousness.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 3, 12 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Manolakos et al. (US2023/0050521) (hereafter Manolakos) in view of Zhou et al. (US 2022/0252690)(hereafter Zhou).
Regarding claims 1 and 12, Manolakos discloses a method performed by a user equipment (UE)
receiving, by the user equipment (UE) from a location server, configuration information related to a positioning reference signal (PRS) (see, Fig. 6, the location server, 630 send the assistance data to the target device (UE) , 604);
receiving by the UE from base station, the PRS (see, abstract, plurality of PRS transmitted by network node, see, para [0043] UE receiving the downlink reference signals (PRS)); and
transmitting, by the UE to the location server, measurement which is associated with the PRS (see, Fig. 6, the target device, 604 sends the measurements, to the location server, 630).
Furthermore, Manolakos discloses one or more transceivers; one or more processors configured to control the one or more transceivers (see, Fig. 6, target device, 604, para [0008]); and one or more memories operably connected to the one or more processors, wherein the one or more memories are configured to store instructions performing operations based on being executed by the one or more processors as per claim 12 (see, para [0008], [0063]).
But, does not explicitly disclose wherein the measurement information includes i) one or more UE reception-transmission (Rx-Tx) time difference measurements and ii) an ID of UE RxTx Timing Error Group (TEG) associated with the one or more UE Rx-Tx time difference measurements.
However, in same field of endeavor, Zhou teaches in para [0013], a method may include generating a transmit timing error group (Tx TEG) based on a time delay of a transmit (Tx) signal, wherein the time delay is a time measured from generation of the Tx signal at a baseband processor to a time of transmission of the Tx signal by a Tx antenna of a user equipment (UE), determining a timing error group (TEG) index corresponding to the generated Tx TEG, reporting an association information of sounding reference signal (SRS) resources for positioning with the Tx TEG index, and transmitting the SRS resources for 5G node B (gNB) measurement. See, Fig. 2, the timing error (TE) contained in the measurement and TEG index. Para [0083], the UE measurement from the same antenna may contain timing errors that have different values. In such case, the TEG may be defined according to classes of thresholds to differentiate various TEGs under different scenarios. For example, for NR positioning in general commercial use cases, the TEG index may be defined according an index such as the ones shown below in a table in FIG. 2. See, para [0071], UE implementing the measurement report to the location sever.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Zhou with the Manolakos, as a whole, so as to determining the timing error and TEG index associated with the timing error, the motivation is to enhance or improve the accuracy of the positioning.
Regarding claim 2, the combined teachings further discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the UE RxTx TEG is associated with the one or more UE Rx-Tx time difference measurements which have differences by a sum of Rx timing errors and Tx timing errors within a certain margin (see, Zhou, para [0059], TRP Rx TEG may be associated with one or more UL measurements, which have the Rx timing errors within a margin. UE Rx-Tx TEG may be associated with one or more UE Rx-Tx time difference measurements, and one or more UL SRS resources for positioning, which have the “Rx timing errors+ Tx timing errors” within a certain margin. TRP Rx-Tx TEG may be associated with one or more gNB Rx-Tx time difference measurements and one or more DL PRS resources, which have the “Rx timing errors +Tx timing errors” within a certain margin.).
Regarding claim 3, Manolakos further discloses the method further comprising receiving from the location server, a request information for the measurement information (see, Fig. 6, the location server, 630 sending the UE the assistance data for measurement).
Regarding claim 16, Monolakos discloses a location server
one or more transceivers (see, Fig. 6, location server, 630 sending and receiving as shown); one or more processors configured to control the one or more transceivers (see, para [0201]); and one or more memories operably connected to the one or more processors, wherein the one or more memories are configured to store instructions performing operations based on being executed by the one or more processors (see para [0201]), wherein the operations comprise:
transmitting, to a user equipment (UE), configuration information related to a positioning reference signal (PRS}, the PRS being transmitted from a base station to the UE (see, Fig. 6, the location server, 630 sending assistance data to the target device, 604, see abstract, a user equipment (UE) performs a plurality of positioning measurements of a plurality of positioning reference signals (PRS) transmitted by at least one network node, [0043], UE receives PRS signal ); and
receiving, from the UE, measurement information which is associated with the PRS (see, Fig. 6 , the measurements or location from target device, 604 to the location server, 630).
But, does not explicitly disclose wherein the measurement information includes i) one or more UE reception-transmission (Rx-Tx) time difference measurements and ii) an ID of UE RxTx Timing Error Group (TEG) associated with the one or more UE Rx-Tx time difference measurements.
However, in same field of endeavor, Zhou teaches in para [0013], a method may include generating a transmit timing error group (Tx TEG) based on a time delay of a transmit (Tx) signal, wherein the time delay is a time measured from generation of the Tx signal at a baseband processor to a time of transmission of the Tx signal by a Tx antenna of a user equipment (UE), determining a timing error group (TEG) index corresponding to the generated Tx TEG, reporting an association information of sounding reference signal (SRS) resources for positioning with the Tx TEG index, and transmitting the SRS resources for 5G node B (gNB) measurement. See, Fig. 2, the timing error (TE) contained in the measurement and TEG index. Para [0083], the UE measurement from the same antenna may contain timing errors that have different values. In such case, the TEG may be defined according to classes of thresholds to differentiate various TEGs under different scenarios. For example, for NR positioning in general commercial use cases, the TEG index may be defined according an index such as the ones shown below in a table in FIG. 2. See, para [0071], UE implementing the measurement report to the location sever.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skilled in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of Zhou with the Manolakos, as a whole, so as to determining the timing error and TEG index associated with the timing error, the motivation is to enhance or improve the accuracy of the positioning.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7 and 8 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/DHAVAL V PATEL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2631
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