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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
Claims 46, 53 and 59-61 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 46, line 1, “the core network” lacks a proper antecedent basis in claim 46/45/43 since there is no prior recitation of “a core network.” See claim 44, line 3, which recites “a core network.”
Claim 53, line 1, “prior to receiving the uplink signal” lacks a proper antecedent basis in claim 53/51 since there is no prior recitation of “a receiving an uplink signal.” See claim 51, line 3, which recites “detecting an uplink signal.”
Claim 59 is directed to an apparatus claim user equipment. However, the claim fails to recite any structural elements of the apparatus.
Claim 60 is directed to an apparatus claim first network node comprising a gNodeB and/or a listening node. However, the claim fails to recite any structural elements of the apparatus.
Claim 61 is directed to an apparatus claim core network node. However, the claim fails to recite any structural elements of the apparatus.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 51, 52 and 60 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Keating et al. (US 2020/0229130 A1).
Keating teaches idle-mode positioning using a unique identifier on preconfigured uplink resource (paragraphs 0052-0062).
With respect to the claims, references to the prior art appear in parenthesis.
Claims
51. (New) A method by a first network node comprising a gNodeB and/or a listening node (Keating US 2020/0229130 A1, paragraphs 0052-0062) , the method comprising:
detecting an uplink signal from a User Equipment, UE, in a low power state, the uplink signal comprising a unique identifier, wherein the unique identifier is valid within a region of multiple cells or a Radio Network Area, RNA; and based on the unique identifier, identifying the UE from which the uplink signal is sent (Uplink data transmission during idle or inactive mode in paragraph 0059 where the unique identifier is the RRC suspend ID in paragraph 0054 and the UL transmission includes the suspend ID in paragraphs 0060-0061 for the radio access network in Figure 8 and paragraph 0082) ; and in response to identifying the UE associated with the uplink signal, performing at least one positioning operation associated with the UE (Positioning operation includes passing the report to the LS in paragraphs 0060-0061) .
52. (New) The method of Claim 51, wherein performing the at least one positioning operation comprises at least one of:
transmitting, to a second network node, a measurement report for the UE; determining that the UE is associated with and/or causing interference; transmitting, to the UE, a signal to trigger the UE to transition to a connected mode; and transmitting an adapted configuration to the UE (Positioning operation includes passing the report to the LS in paragraphs 0060-0061).
60. (New) A first network node comprising a gNodeB and/or a listening node, the first network node adapted to perform the method of Claim 51 (gNB in paragraph 0054) .
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 43-45, 47-50, 56-58 and 61 are allowed.
Claims 54 and 55 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.
Claims 46, 59 and 61 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
Claim 53 would be allowable if rewritten to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action and to include all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the prior art of record Keating et al. (US 2020/0229130 A1) and Goyal et al. (US 2024/0137897 A1) do not anticipate or make obvious the feature of “transmitting, when the UE is in a low power state, to a network node, an uplink signal that is generated based on a unique identifier associated with the UE on the preconfigured uplink resource”; ” receiving the unique identifier from a second network node operating as a Location Management Function, LMF, or an Application Management Function, AMF; and transmitting the unique identifier to the UE”; and ” transmitting, a unique identifier to be used by a User Equipment, UE, to a second network node operating as a gNodeB or listening node, wherein the unique identifier is applicable to multiple cells or a Radio Network Area, RNA, within which region the core network node is functioning; receiving, from the second network node, a measurement report for the UE according to an uplink signal generated based on the unique identifier.”
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MELVIN C MARCELO whose telephone number is (571)272-3125. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:30-6:00.
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MELVIN C. MARCELO
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2463
/MELVIN C MARCELO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2463 January 7, 2026