DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
1a. The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
1b. 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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 01/09/2026 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
2. Amendments filed on 01/09/2026 are entered for prosecution. Claims 1, 3-11 and 13-22 remain pending in the application. The amendments changes the scope of the previously presented claims.
Response to Arguments
3. Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1, 3-11 and 13-22 filed 01/09/2026 have been considered but are moot because the arguments do not apply to any of the references being used in the current rejection.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
4. 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.
5. Claims 1, 3-4, 7-9, 11, 13-14, 17-19 and 21-22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over LEE et al. (US 20220295530 A1, hereafter LEE) in view of JUNG et al. (US 20210321442 A1, hereafter JUNG) and in view of Okamura et al. (US-20230319823-A1, hereinafter OKAMURA).
Regarding claim 1, LEE discloses a method for transmitting downlink control information (DCI), the method comprising:
simultaneously scheduling a plurality of physical downlink shared channels (PDSCHs) through a single DCI transmitted via a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) ([0017] The method includes transmitting, to a terminal, DCI scheduling a plurality of PDSCHs on a PDCCH; Fig. 12),
wherein a first PDSCH (Fig. 12 – PDSCH #1) of the plurality of PDSCHs is associated with a first cell in a plurality of cells (Fig. 12 - multiple PDSCHs 12-05, 12-10, 12-15, and 12-20; [0280] PDSCH scheduled in the DCI format is transmitted to a serving sell other than the scheduling cell (hence “a plurality of cell”). A serving cell corresponding to a value of the CIF field is called a scheduled cell for convenience; [0286] If the UE receives multi-PDSCH scheduling through single DCI information when cross-carrier scheduling is configured, the following situation may be assumed in the PDSCH reception TCI state/QCL assumption configuration) and a second PDSCH (Fig. 12 – PDSCH #1) of the plurality of the PDSCHs is associated with a second cell in the plurality of cells ([0280];); and
transmitting data to or receiving data from a user equipment (UE) based on scheduling information ([0086] scheduling information about uplink data (or physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) or downlink data (or physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH)) is transmitted from a base station to a UE through the DCI),
wherein the plurality of PDSCHs occur no earlier in time than a time offset following the PDCCH ([0173] time-domain resource allocation information may include PDCCH-to-PDSCH slot timing (corresponding to a time gap in slot units between a time point of receiving a PDCCH and a time point of transmitting a PDSCH scheduled by the received PDCCH, and marked as K0 (the PDCCH needs to be received first in order to schedule a time point of transmitting a PDSCH – Hence the PDSCHs cannot occur before the PDCCH and K0)); [0243] Each PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a different slot offset for each PDSCH through DCI information, or only the first PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a slot offset (K0); Fig. 12),
the time offset being configured to permit at least one of beam switching or PDCCH decoding by the UE ([0257] PDSCHs 12-05 and 12-10 have PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset values less than timeDurationForQCL 12-25, and the PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset values of the remaining PDSCHs 12-15 and 12-20 are equal to or greater than the timeDurationForQCL. Since DCI decoding and PDSCH reception beam configuration complete are expected after timeDurationForQCL, the UE cannot use the TCI field in DCI before timeDurationForQCL. Therefore, PDSCH #1 12-05 and PDSCH #2 12-10, having the PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset values less than timeDurationForQCL, can be received based on the default TCI state/QCL assumption configuration… When the TCI field in DCI is used, it is necessary to consider a beam switching time due to a change in the TCI state/QCL assumption configuration. Here, beam configurations for multiple PDSCHs may expect the following operations),
wherein the time offset is defined as being between an end of the PDCCH and a beginning of the first PDSCH of the plurality of the PDSCHs ([0243] FIG. 12 illustrates the multi-PDSCH scheduling according to an embodiment of the disclosure. Single DCI 12-00 transmitted via the PDCCH is configured to schedule one or multiple PDSCHs 12-05, 12-10, 12-15, and 12-20… or only the first PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a slot offset (K0); [0173] time-domain resource allocation information may include PDCCH-to-PDSCH slot timing (corresponding to a time gap in slot units between a time point of receiving a PDCCH and a time point of transmitting a PDSCH scheduled by the received PDCCH, and marked as K0).
LEE does not appear to explicitly disclose the beam is an analog beam.
However, JUNG discloses the use of an analog beam for beamforming ([0003] For higher data transmit rates, 5G communication systems are considered to be implemented on ultra-high frequency bands (mmWave)… the following techniques are taken into account for the 5G communication system: beamforming… array antenna, analog beamforming, and large scale antenna).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify the beam of LEE to be an analog beam as taught by JUNG in order to reduce path loss of radio waves and increase a propagation distance of radio waves in millimeter wave frequency bands, in 5G communication system (JUNG - [0002]; LEE – [0003] [0004] there has been ongoing standardization regarding beamforming and massive multiple- input and multiple-output (MIMO) for mitigating radio-wave path loss and increasing radio-wave transmission distances in mmWave).
LEE and JUNG do not explicitly disclose wherein the first cell is different from the second cell.
However, OKAMURA discloses wherein a first cell is different from a second cell (Fig. 7 – PDSCH on CC#x, PDSCH on CC#y; [0120] For example, suppose CC#x corresponds to CC of “Cell, PSCell, PUCCH-SCell” and CC#y corresponds to CC of cells other than “Cell, PSCell, PUCCH-SCell”; [0121] In this case, for example, one CC of two CCs to be scheduled is PCell (or PSCell or PUCCH-SCell) and the other CC is CC of a cell other than “PCell, PSCell, PUCCH-SCell”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention was filed to modify the first cell and the second cell of LEE and JUNG to include the first cell is different from the second cell as taught by OKAMURA in order to improve the transmission efficiency by transmitting the HARQ information once for multiple PDSCH ([0060] If the timing of returning HARQ information is different between CC#x and CC#y, use of PUCCH resources is inefficient because the terminal 20 must return HARQ information twice; [0061] Accordingly, in the present embodiment, when PDSCH reception of multiple CCs is scheduled with a single DCI, as shown in FIG. 7, the terminal 20 can transmit HARQ information for PDSCH reception of each CC at the same timing (that is, in the same slot) between the multiple CCs).
Regarding claim 3, LEE further discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the time offset is further determined based on a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) of the PDCCH and an SCS of the first PDSCH of the plurality PDSCHs ([0178] if a data channel and a control channel have the same subcarrier spacing (8-00, μPDSCH=μPDCCH), since a data slot number and a control slot number are the same, a base station and a UE recognize that a scheduling offset occurs in accordance with predetermined slot offset K0; Fig. 8; Fig. 12; [0243] Single DCI 12-00 transmitted via the PDCCH is configured to schedule one or multiple PDSCHs 12-05, 12-10, 12-15, and 12-20. Each PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a different slot offset for each PDSCH through DCI information, or only the first PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a slot offset (K0). If only the first PDSCH is indicated with a slot offset, multiple PDSCHs may appear in consecutive slots).
Regarding claim 4, LEE further discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the time offset is determined independently for each one of the plurality of the PDSCHs ([0243] Single DCI 12-00 transmitted via the PDCCH is configured to schedule one or multiple PDSCHs 12-05, 12-10, 12-15, and 12-20. Each PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a different slot offset (K0) for each PDSCH through DCI information).
Regarding claim 7, LEE further discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the time offset includes an additional time interval, the additional time interval being based on a capability of a UE ([0243] The UE reports timeDurationForQCL 12-25 to the base station according to capability transmission; ([0284] when the subcarrier spacing of the DCI and the subcarrier spacing of the PDSCH are different… the base station and the UE add a slot correction value to the predetermined K0 value based on the subcarrier spacing of the PDCCH. The timeDurationForQCL, which is UE capability, may be configured in a similar manner. When enableDefaultBeamForCCS is configured, an additional timing delay value
(
d
2
μ
P
D
S
C
H
2
μ
P
D
C
C
H
)
defined in Table 27 below may be added to the determined timeDurationForQCL).
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LEE and OKAMURA do not explicitly disclose wherein the additional time interval supports a single physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) associated with the simultaneously scheduling the plurality of PDSCHs through the single DCI.
However, JUNG discloses wherein the additional time interval supports a single PUCCH HARQ-ACK associated with the simultaneously scheduling the plurality of PDSCHs through the single DCI ([0432] Referring to FIGS. 16, 17, and 18, FIGS. 16-00, 17-00, and 18-00 correspond to a case in which Koffset between a plurality of PDSCHs allocated to the UE by the base station is 0 based on scheme 3 or 4. In particular, the base station may transmit the first PDCCH and the first and second PDSCHs corresponding thereto to the UE… The UE may receive the plurality of PDSCHs and transmit an HARQ ACK/NACK to PUCCHs #1 and #2 indicated in the PDCCH set by the base station according to whether decoding is successful. A plurality of PDSCHs scheduled in a single PDCCH may repeatedly transmit the same data (e.g., when the indicated RV value is the same); [0437] For example, the UE identifies that the TCI states {#1, #2, #3, #4} are indicated through the TCI codepoint within the DCI, and it may be identified as illustrated in 16-00 that it is instructed to apply TCI state #1 to the first PDSCH, TCI state #2 to the second PDSCH, TCI state #3 to the third PDSCH, and TCI state #4 to the fourth PDSCH).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention was filed to modify the additional time interval of LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA to include a single PUCCH HARQ-ACK associated with the simultaneously scheduling the plurality of PDSCHs through the single DCI as taught by JUNG in order for the UE to efficiently indicate to the base station whether decoding is successful for a plurality of PDSCHs (JUNG – [0432] The UE may… transmit an HARQ ACK/NACK to PUCCHs #1 and #2 indicated in the PDCCH set by the base station according to whether decoding is successful).
Regarding claim 8, LEE further discloses the method of claim 7, wherein the additional time interval is based on a value of a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) ([0284] when the subcarrier spacing of the DCI and the subcarrier spacing of the PDSCH are different… the base station and the UE add a slot correction value to the predetermined K0 value based on the subcarrier spacing of the PDCCH. The timeDurationForQCL, which is UE capability, may be configured in a similar manner… an additional timing delay value... may be added to the determined timeDurationForQCL).
Regarding claim 9, LEE further discloses the method of claim 7, wherein the additional time interval is reported by the UE ([0243] The UE reports timeDurationForQCL 12-25 to the base station according to capability transmission; [0284] an additional timing delay value… may be added to the determined timeDurationForQCL).
Regarding claim 11, LEE discloses a base station (BS) in a wireless communication network, the BS comprising ([0304] Fig. 17 illustrates a structure of a base station in a wireless communication system):
a radio frequency (RF) transceiver configured to transmit and receive, via at least one antenna ([306] The base station receiver 17-00 and the base station transmitter 17-10 may be collectively called a transceiver);
and processing circuitry coupled to the RF transceiver, the processing circuitry configured to cause the BS to ([306] the base station receiver 17-00, the base station transmitter 17-10, and the base station processor 17-05 may be implemented in the form of a single chip):
simultaneously schedule a plurality of physical downlink shared channels (PDSCHs) through a single DCI transmitted via a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) ([0017] a method performed by a base station in a wireless communication system is provided. The method includes transmitting, to a terminal, DCI scheduling a plurality of PDSCHs on a PDCCH; Fig. 12),
wherein a first PDSCH of the plurality of PDSCHs is associated with a first cell in a plurality of cells (Fig. 12 - multiple PDSCHs 12-05, 12-10, 12-15, and 12-20; [0280] PDSCH scheduled in the DCI format is transmitted to a serving sell other than the scheduling cell (hence “a plurality of cell”). A serving cell corresponding to a value of the CIF field is called a scheduled cell for convenience; [0286] If the UE receives multi-PDSCH scheduling through single DCI information when cross-carrier scheduling is configured, the following situation may be assumed in the PDSCH reception TCI state/QCL assumption configuration) and a second PDSCH (Fig. 12 – PDSCH #1) of the plurality of the PDSCHs is associated with a second cell in the plurality of cells ([0280];); and
transmit data to or receive data from a user equipment (UE) based on scheduling information ([0086] scheduling information about uplink data (or physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) or downlink data (or physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH)) is transmitted from a base station to a UE through the DCI),
wherein the plurality of PDSCHs occurs no earlier in time than a time offset following the PDCCH ([0173] time-domain resource allocation information may include PDCCH-to-PDSCH slot timing (corresponding to a time gap in slot units between a time point of receiving a PDCCH and a time point of transmitting a PDSCH scheduled by the received PDCCH, and marked as K0 (the PDCCH needs to be received first in order to schedule a time point of transmitting a PDSCH – Hence the PDSCHs cannot occur before the PDCCH and K0)); [0243] Each PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a different slot offset for each PDSCH through DCI information, or only the first PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a slot offset (K0); Fig. 12),
the time offset being configured to permit at least one of beam switching by the UE or PDCCH decoding by the UE ([0257] PDSCHs 12-05 and 12-10 have PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset values less than timeDuratio/nForQCL 12-25, and the PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset values of the remaining PDSCHs 12-15 and 12-20 are equal to or greater than the timeDurationForQCL. Since DCI decoding and PDSCH reception beam configuration complete are expected after timeDurationForQCL, the UE cannot use the TCI field in DCI before timeDurationForQCL. Therefore, PDSCH #1 12-05 and PDSCH #2 12-10, having the PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset values less than timeDurationForQCL, can be received based on the default TCI state/QCL assumption configuration… When the TCI field in DCI is used, it is necessary to consider a beam switching time due to a change in the TCI state/QCL assumption configuration. Here, beam configurations for multiple PDSCHs may expect the following operations),
wherein the time offset is defined as being between an end of the PDCCH and a beginning of the first PDSCH of the plurality of the PDSCHs ([0243] FIG. 12 illustrates the multi-PDSCH scheduling according to an embodiment of the disclosure. Single DCI 12-00 transmitted via the PDCCH is configured to schedule one or multiple PDSCHs 12-05, 12-10, 12-15, and 12-20… or only the first PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a slot offset (K0); [0173] time-domain resource allocation information may include PDCCH-to-PDSCH slot timing (corresponding to a time gap in slot units between a time point of receiving a PDCCH and a time point of transmitting a PDSCH scheduled by the received PDCCH, and marked as K0).
LEE does not appear to explicitly disclose the beam is an analog beam.
However, JUNG discloses the use of an analog beam for beamforming ([0003] For higher data transmit rates, 5G communication systems are considered to be implemented on ultra-high frequency bands (mmWave)… the following techniques are taken into account for the 5G communication system: beamforming… array antenna, analog beamforming, and large scale antenna).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify the beam of LEE to be an analog beam as taught by JUNG in order to reduce path loss of radio waves and increase a propagation distance of radio waves in millimeter wave frequency bands, in 5G communication system (JUNG - [0002]; LEE – [0003] [0004] there has been ongoing standardization regarding beamforming and massive multiple- input and multiple-output (MIMO) for mitigating radio-wave path loss and increasing radio-wave transmission distances in mmWave).
LEE and JUNG do not explicitly disclose wherein the first cell is different from the second cell.
However, OKAMURA discloses wherein a first cell is different from a second cell (Fig. 7 – PDSCH on CC#x, PDSCH on CC#y; [0120] For example, suppose CC#x corresponds to CC of “Cell, PSCell, PUCCH-SCell” and CC#y corresponds to CC of cells other than “Cell, PSCell, PUCCH-SCell”; [0121] In this case, for example, one CC of two CCs to be scheduled is PCell (or PSCell or PUCCH-SCell) and the other CC is CC of a cell other than “PCell, PSCell, PUCCH-SCell”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention was filed to modify the first cell and the second cell of LEE and JUNG to include the first cell is different from the second cell as taught by OKAMURA in order to improve the transmission efficiency by transmitting the HARQ information once for multiple PDSCH ([0060] If the timing of returning HARQ information is different between CC#x and CC#y, use of PUCCH resources is inefficient because the terminal 20 must return HARQ information twice; [0061] Accordingly, in the present embodiment, when PDSCH reception of multiple CCs is scheduled with a single DCI, as shown in FIG. 7, the terminal 20 can transmit HARQ information for PDSCH reception of each CC at the same timing (that is, in the same slot) between the multiple CCs).
Regarding claim 13, LEE further discloses the BS of claim 11, wherein the time offset is further determined based on a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) of the PDCCH and an SCS of the first PDSCH of the plurality of the PDSCHs ([0178] if a data channel and a control channel have the same subcarrier spacing (8-00, μPDSCH=μPDCCH), since a data slot number and a control slot number are the same, a base station and a UE recognize that a scheduling offset occurs in accordance with predetermined slot offset K0; Fig. 8; Fig. 12; [0243] Single DCI 12-00 transmitted via the PDCCH is configured to schedule one or multiple PDSCHs 12-05, 12-10, 12-15, and 12-20. Each PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a different slot offset for each PDSCH through DCI information, or only the first PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a slot offset (K0). If only the first PDSCH is indicated with a slot offset, multiple PDSCHs may appear in consecutive slots).
Regarding claim 14, LEE further discloses the BS of claim 11, wherein the time offset is determined independently for each one of the plurality of the PDSCHs ([0243] Single DCI 12-00 transmitted via the PDCCH is configured to schedule one or multiple PDSCHs 12-05, 12-10, 12-15, and 12-20. Each PDSCH may be configured to receive indication of a different slot offset (K0) for each PDSCH through DCI information).
Regarding claim 17, LEE further discloses the BS of claim 11, wherein the time offset includes an additional time interval, the additional time interval being based on a capability of a UE ([0243] The UE reports timeDurationForQCL 12-25 to the base station according to capability transmission; ([0284] when the subcarrier spacing of the DCI and the subcarrier spacing of the PDSCH are different… the base station and the UE add a slot correction value to the predetermined K0 value based on the subcarrier spacing of the PDCCH. The timeDurationForQCL, which is UE capability, may be configured in a similar manner. When enableDefaultBeamForCCS is configured, an additional timing delay value
(
d
2
μ
P
D
S
C
H
2
μ
P
D
C
C
H
)
defined in Table 27 below may be added to the determined timeDurationForQCL).
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LEE and OKAMURA do not explicitly disclose wherein the additional time interval supports a single physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) associated with the simultaneously scheduling the plurality of the PDSCHs through the single DCI.
However, JUNG discloses wherein the additional time interval supports a single PUCCH HARQ-ACK associated with the simultaneously scheduling the plurality of PDSCHs through the single DCI ([0432] Referring to FIGS. 16, 17, and 18, FIGS. 16-00, 17-00, and 18-00 correspond to a case in which Koffset between a plurality of PDSCHs allocated to the UE by the base station is 0 based on scheme 3 or 4. In particular, the base station may transmit the first PDCCH and the first and second PDSCHs corresponding thereto to the UE… The UE may receive the plurality of PDSCHs and transmit an HARQ ACK/NACK to PUCCHs #1 and #2 indicated in the PDCCH set by the base station according to whether decoding is successful. A plurality of PDSCHs scheduled in a single PDCCH may repeatedly transmit the same data (e.g., when the indicated RV value is the same); [0437] For example, the UE identifies that the TCI states {#1, #2, #3, #4} are indicated through the TCI codepoint within the DCI, and it may be identified as illustrated in 16-00 that it is instructed to apply TCI state #1 to the first PDSCH, TCI state #2 to the second PDSCH, TCI state #3 to the third PDSCH, and TCI state #4 to the fourth PDSCH).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention was filed to modify the additional time interval of LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA to include a single PUCCH HARQ-ACK associated with the simultaneously scheduling the plurality of PDSCHs through the single DCI as taught by JUNG in order for the UE to efficiently indicate to the base station whether decoding is successful for a plurality of PDSCHs (JUNG – [0432] The UE may… transmit an HARQ ACK/NACK to PUCCHs #1 and #2 indicated in the PDCCH set by the base station according to whether decoding is successful).
Regarding claim 18, LEE further discloses the BS of claim 17, wherein the additional time interval is based on a value of a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) ([0284] when the subcarrier spacing of the DCI and the subcarrier spacing of the PDSCH are different… the base station and the UE add a slot correction value to the predetermined K0 value based on the subcarrier spacing of the PDCCH. The timeDurationForQCL, which is UE capability, may be configured in a similar manner… an additional timing delay value... may be added to the determined timeDurationForQCL).
Regarding claim 19, LEE further discloses the BS of claim 17, wherein the additional time interval is reported by the UE ([0243] The UE reports timeDurationForQCL 12-25 to the base station according to capability transmission; [0284] an additional timing delay value… may be added to the determined timeDurationForQCL).
Regarding claim 21, LEE further discloses:
wherein the time offset is determined independently ([0257] PDSCHs 12-05 and 12-10 have PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset values less than timeDurationForQCL 12-25, and the PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset values of the remaining PDSCHs 12-15 and 12-20 are equal to or greater than the timeDurationForQCL. Since DCI decoding and PDSCH reception beam configuration complete are expected after timeDurationForQCL, the UE cannot use the TCI field in DCI before timeDurationForQCL) based on a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) of the PDCCH and an SCS of the first PDSCH of the plurality of the PDSCHs ([0284] when the subcarrier spacing of the DCI and the subcarrier spacing of the PDSCH are different… the base station and the UE add a slot correction value to the predetermined K0 value based on the subcarrier spacing of the PDCCH. The timeDurationForQCL, which is UE capability, may be configured in a similar manner… an additional timing delay value... may be added to the determined timeDurationForQCL).
LEE and JUNG do not explicitly disclose a mapping type wherein the mapping type comprises a mapping type A or a mapping type B.
However, OKAMURA discloses a mapping type wherein the mapping type comprises a mapping type A or a mapping type B ([0270] The slot may include a plurality of mini slots... The mini slot may be configured of symbols of which the number is less than that of the slot. PDSCH (or PUSCH) to be transmitted in time unit greater than the mini slot may be referred to as a PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type A. PDSCH (or PUSCH) to be transmitted by using the mini slot may be referred to as a PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type B).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention was filed to modify the determination of the time offset of LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA to include the mapping type as taught by OKAMURA in order to avoid collision by transmitting the PDSCH at a later time using mapping type A or B (OKAMURA – [0270] PDSCH (or PUSCH) to be transmitted in time unit greater than the mini slot may be referred to as a PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type A).
Regarding claim 22, LEE further discloses:
wherein the time offset is determined independently ([0257] PDSCHs 12-05 and 12-10 have PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset values less than timeDurationForQCL 12-25, and the PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset values of the remaining PDSCHs 12-15 and 12-20 are equal to or greater than the timeDurationForQCL. Since DCI decoding and PDSCH reception beam configuration complete are expected after timeDurationForQCL, the UE cannot use the TCI field in DCI before timeDurationForQCL) based on a sub-carrier spacing (SCS) of the PDCCH and an SCS of the first PDSCH of the plurality of the PDSCHs ([0284] when the subcarrier spacing of the DCI and the subcarrier spacing of the PDSCH are different… the base station and the UE add a slot correction value to the predetermined K0 value based on the subcarrier spacing of the PDCCH. The timeDurationForQCL, which is UE capability, may be configured in a similar manner… an additional timing delay value... may be added to the determined timeDurationForQCL).
LEE and JUNG do not explicitly disclose a mapping type wherein the mapping type comprises a mapping type A or a mapping type B.
However, OKAMURA discloses a mapping type wherein the mapping type comprises a mapping type A or a mapping type B ([0270] The slot may include a plurality of mini slots... The mini slot may be configured of symbols of which the number is less than that of the slot. PDSCH (or PUSCH) to be transmitted in time unit greater than the mini slot may be referred to as a PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type A. PDSCH (or PUSCH) to be transmitted by using the mini slot may be referred to as a PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type B).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention was filed to modify the determination of the time offset of LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA to include the mapping type as taught by OKAMURA in order to avoid collision by transmitting the PDSCH at a later time using mapping type A or B (OKAMURA – [0270] PDSCH (or PUSCH) to be transmitted in time unit greater than the mini slot may be referred to as a PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type A).
6. Claims 5-6, 10, 15-16 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over LEE in view of JUNG and Okumura, and in further view of ETSI TS 138 214 3GPP TS 38.214, "5G; NR; Physical layer procedures for data", Version 16.2.0 Release 16, July 2020 (hereafter ETSI TS).
Regarding claim 5, LEE further discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the time offset is further determined based on a particular PDSCH in the plurality of the PDSCHs that has a largest time offset relaxation d ([0249] If the UE receives multi-PDSCH scheduling through single DCI information, the following situation may be assumed in the PDSCH reception TCI state/QCL assumption configuration. Here, the PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset calculation may be divided into i) a case in which a slot offset is indicated with different values for each PDSCH; [0284] when the subcarrier spacing of the DCI and the subcarrier spacing of the PDSCH are different (8-05, μPDSCH≠μPDCCH), a data slot number and a control slot number are different, and thus the base station and the UE add a slot correction value to the predetermined K0 value based on the subcarrier spacing of the PDCCH (the time offset relaxation d is based on the SCS of the PDCCH and the SCS for each of the PDSCHs are different. Therefore, at least one of the PDSCHs will have a larger/largest time offset relaxation d compare to others). The timeDurationForQCL, which is UE capability, may be configured in a similar manner. When enableDefaultBeamForCCS is configured, an additional timing delay value
(
d
2
μ
P
D
S
C
H
2
μ
P
D
C
C
H
)
defined in Table 27 below may be added to the determined timeDurationForQCL), wherein d is 8 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 0, 8 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 1, 14 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 2, wherein the µPDCCH is the subcarrier spacing for the PDCCH ([0284] Table 27).
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LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA do not explicitly disclose wherein the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise.
However, ETSI TS discloses the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise (Page 36 - an additional timing delay is added to the timeDurationForQCL, where d is defined in 5.2.1.5.1a-1, otherwise d is zero).
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It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify the time offset relaxation d of LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA to include the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise as taught by ETSI TS in order to ensure the standardization and interoperability across different mobile networks and devices when implementing the additional timing delay. Thereby fostering a harmonized mobile telecommunication network globally.
Regarding claim 6, LEE further discloses the method of claim 1, wherein the time offset is further determined independently for each of the plurality of PDSCHs each determination being based on a time offset relaxation d ([0249], [0284]), wherein d is 8 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 0, 8 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 1, 14 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 2, wherein the µPDCCH is the subcarrier spacing for the PDCCH ([0284] Table 27).
LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA do not explicitly disclose wherein the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise.
However, ETSI TS discloses the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise (Page 36 - an additional timing delay is added to the timeDurationForQCL, where d is defined in 5.2.1.5.1a-1, otherwise d is zero).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify the time offset relaxation d of LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA to include the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise as taught by ETSI TS in order to ensure the standardization and interoperability across different mobile networks and devices when implementing the additional timing delay. Thereby fostering a harmonized mobile telecommunication network globally.
Regarding claim 10, LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA do not explicitly disclose the method of claim 7, wherein the additional time interval is defined in a wireless specification. However, ETSI TS discloses the additional time interval is defined in a wireless specification (Page 59 - Table 5.2.1.5.1a-1: Additional beam switching timing delay d (ETSI TS is a wireless specification)).
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It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to replace the additional time interval of LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA as taught by ETSI TS in order to ensure full functional integrity and interoperability of 5G NR specifications through standardization of the Table 27 (LEE; [0284]).
Regarding claim 15, LEE further discloses the BS of claim 11, wherein the time offset is further determined based on a particular PDSCH in the plurality of the PDSCHs that has a largest time offset relaxation d ([0249] If the UE receives multi-PDSCH scheduling through single DCI information, the following situation may be assumed in the PDSCH reception TCI state/QCL assumption configuration. Here, the PDCCH-to-PDSCH time offset calculation may be divided into i) a case in which a slot offset is indicated with different values for each PDSCH; [0284] when the subcarrier spacing of the DCI and the subcarrier spacing of the PDSCH are different (8-05, μPDSCH≠μPDCCH), a data slot number and a control slot number are different, and thus the base station and the UE add a slot correction value to the predetermined K0 value based on the subcarrier spacing of the PDCCH (the time offset relaxation d is based on the SCS of the PDCCH and the SCS for each of the PDSCHs are different - at least one of the PDSCHs will have a larger/largest time offset relaxation d compare to others). The timeDurationForQCL, which is UE capability, may be configured in a similar manner. When enableDefaultBeamForCCS is configured, an additional timing delay value
(
d
2
μ
P
D
S
C
H
2
μ
P
D
C
C
H
)
defined in Table 27 below may be added to the determined timeDurationForQCL), wherein d is 8 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 0, 8 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 1, 14 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 2, wherein the µPDCCH is the subcarrier spacing for the PDCCH ([0284] Table 27).
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LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA do not explicitly disclose wherein the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise.
However, ETSI TS discloses the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise (Page 36 - an additional timing delay is added to the timeDurationForQCL, where d is defined in 5.2.1.5.1a-1, otherwise d is zero).
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It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify the time offset relaxation d of LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA to include the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise as taught by ETSI TS in order to ensure the standardization and interoperability across different mobile networks and devices when implementing the additional timing delay. Thereby fostering a harmonized mobile telecommunication network globally.
Regarding claim 16, LEE further discloses the BS of claim 11, wherein the time offset is further determined independently for each of the plurality of PDSCHs, each determination being based on a time offset relaxation d ([0249], [0284]), wherein d is 8 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 0, 8 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 1, 14 PDCCH symbols if µPDCCH is 2, wherein the µPDCCH is the subcarrier spacing for the PDCCH ([0284] Table 27).
LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA do not explicitly disclose wherein the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise.
However, ETSI TS discloses the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise (Page 36 - an additional timing delay is added to the timeDurationForQCL, where d is defined in 5.2.1.5.1a-1, otherwise d is zero).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to modify the time offset relaxation d of LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA to include the time offset relaxation d is zero otherwise as taught by ETSI TS in order to ensure the standardization and interoperability across different mobile networks and devices when implementing the additional timing delay. Thereby fostering a harmonized mobile telecommunication network globally.
Regarding claim 20, LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA do not explicitly disclose the method of claim 11, wherein the additional time interval is defined in a wireless specification. However, ETSI TS discloses the additional time interval is defined in a wireless specification (Page 59 - Table 5.2.1.5.1a-1: Additional beam switching timing delay d (ETSI TS is a wireless specification)).
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It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to replace the additional time interval of LEE, JUNG and OKAMURA as taught by 3GPP in order to ensure full functional integrity and interoperability of 5G NR specifications through standardization of the Table 27 (LEE; [0284]).
Conclusion
7. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure. PTO-892 form.
KIM et al (US-20220174708-A1) teaches a front-load DMRS location for PDSCH mapping type A configured to the UE, there may be an advantage in that a collision between the PDCCH and PDSCH which is repeatedly transmitted may be avoided through the proposed method.
8. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to THERESA NGUYEN whose telephone number is (571)272-2386. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 9AM - 5PM EST.
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/THERESA NGUYEN/ Examiner, Art Unit 2418
/Moo Jeong/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2418