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 .
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) 1-3 and 21 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Yao et al. (Yao, US PGPub 2025/0330857).
Referring to Claim 1, Yao teaches determining GNSS assistance information, wherein the GNSS assistance information comprises a GNSS position fix time duration for measurement indicating a time duration required for the UE to acquire a GNSS position fix; reporting the GNSS assistance information to a base station; receiving, from the base station, a scheduling indication comprising a configuration of a measurement gap or a timer for re-acquiring ([0031]) a GNSS position fix while the UE remains in a radio resource control (RRC) connected state; and acquiring, in the RRC connected state, the GNSS position fix during the measurement gap or the timer; see Fig. 2-5, particularly [0042-0055] and [0074-0077] as well as other associated text.
Referring to Claim 2, Yao teaches determining and reporting GNSS related information, wherein the GNSS assistance information and the GNSS related information include at least one of: a GNSS validity duration or a remaining GNSS validity duration, a differential GNSS validity duration indicating a difference between an updated GNSS validity duration and a reference GNSS validity duration or a difference between an updated remaining GNSS validity duration and a reference remaining GNSS validity duration, a fixed UE indication indicating whether the UE is stationary, a simultaneous GNSS and Internet of things (IoT) module indication indicating whether the UE supports simultaneous GNSS and IoT modules, a first UE indication indicating whether the UE is expected to monitor and respond to a network GNSS measurement trigger sent from the base station, and a capability indication indicating whether the UE is capable to perform GNSS measurements in the RRC connected state; [0047-0048], [0077] and [0090].
Referring to Claim 3, Yao teaches wherein each type of the GNSS related information and the GNSS assistance information other than the GNSS position fix time duration for measurement, the GNSS validity duration or the remaining GNSS validity duration, and the differential GNSS validity duration is: an explicit indication by an RRC signaling parameter, or a Medium Access Control (MAC) control element (CE); or an implicit indication derived from at least one of the GNSS validity duration or the remaining GNSS validity duration and the GNSS position fix time duration for measurement; see at least [0097].
Referring to Claim 21, Yao teaches receiving, from a base station, a scheduling indication comprising a configuration of a measurement gap or a timer for re-acquiring a GNSS position fix; re-acquiring, in a radio resource control (RRC) connected state, the GNSS position fix during the measurement gap or the timer; and after re-acquiring the GNSS position fix in the RRC connected state, reporting a GNSS validity duration or a remaining GNSS validity duration to the base station via a Medium Access Control (MAC) control element (CE); See citations of Claim 1 and at least [0097].
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 4-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yao in view of Shrestha et al. (Shrestha, US PGPub 2023/0213661).
Referring to Claim 4, Yao teaches the limitations of Claim 2, but does not explicitly disclose nor limit wherein the reference GNSS validity duration is one of a latest reported GNSS validity duration or a GNSS validity duration reported in initial access, and the reference remaining GNSS validity duration is one of a latest reported remaining GNSS validity duration or a remaining GNSS validity duration reported in initial access.
However, Shrestha teaches wherein the reference GNSS validity duration is one of a latest reported GNSS validity duration or a GNSS validity duration reported in initial access, and the reference remaining GNSS validity duration is one of a latest reported remaining GNSS validity duration or a remaining GNSS validity duration reported in initial access; See Fig. 6 and associated text, [0052] and [0110].
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Yao with the reference GNSS validity duration as taught Shrestha so as to predictably maintaining the accuracy of the GNSS tracking information over a time period and it is well known to apply a known technique to a known device (method, or product) ready for improvement to yield predictable results.
Referring to Claim 5, Yao as modified by Shrestha teaches wherein when a specific type of the one or more types of GNSS related information and the GNSS assistance information are not reported, the specific type of GNSS related information and the GNSS assistance information not reported is same as a reference reported one of the specific type of GNSS related information and the GNSS assistance information; [0117-0119] of Shrestha.
Referring to Claim 6, Yao as modified by Shrestha teaches wherein the reference reported one of the specific type of GNSS related information and the GNSS assistance information is one of a latest reported one of the specific type of GNSS related information and the GNSS assistance information or a reported one of the specific type of GNSS related information and the GNSS assistance information reported in initial access; [0117-0119] of Shrestha.
Referring to Claim 7, Yao teaches determining GNSS assistance information comprising a GNSS position fix time duration for measurement indicating a time duration required for the UE to acquire a GNSS position fix, wherein the GNSS assistance information includes at he GNSS position fix time duration for measurement, and receiving, from the base station based on the reported GNSS position fix time duration for measurement, a scheduling indication comprising a configuration of a measurement gap or a timer for re-acquiring the GNSS position fix in a radio resource control (RRC) connected state; see citations of Claim 1, but does not explicitly disclose nor limit reporting the GNSS assistance information to the base station in a Msg5 message, wherein the GNSS assistance information includes a GNSS position fix time duration for measurement during an initial access procedure, and wherein the Msg5 message comprises at least one of RRCConnectionSetupComplete, RRCConnectionSetupComplete-NB, RRCConnectionResumeComplete, or RRCConnectionResumeComplete-NB.
Shrestha teaches reporting the GNSS assistance information to the base station in a Msg5 message, wherein the GNSS assistance information includes a GNSS position fix time duration for measurement during an initial access procedure, and wherein the Msg5 message comprises at least one of RRCConnectionSetupComplete, RRCConnectionSetupComplete-NB, RRCConnectionResumeComplete, or RRCConnectionResumeComplete-NB; [0127].
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Yao with the Msg5 message as taught Shrestha so as to predictably maintaining the accuracy and security of the GNSS tracking information and avoiding outside manipulation and it is well known to apply a known technique to a known device (method, or product) ready for improvement to yield predictable results.
Referring to Claim 8, Yao as modified by Shrestha teaches wherein the GNSS assistance information are reported aperiodically to the base station via an uplink message in the RRC connected state or reported in a Msg5 message or in a random access procedure or in a handover procedure; [0083] and at least [0127] of Shrestha.
Referring to Claim 9, Yao as modified by Shrestha teaches wherein the uplink message is reported in at least one of following messages: RRCConnectionSetupComplete, RRCConnectionSetupComplete-NB, RRCConnectionResumeComplete,RRCConnectionResumeComplete-NB, RRCConnectionReestablishmentComplete, RRCConnectionReestablishmentComplete-NB, and RRCConnectionReconfigurationComplete; [0064] and [0127] of Shrestha.
Referring to Claim 10, Yao as modified by Shreshta teaches wherein the GNSS assistance information are stored in UE context, and the information stored in the UE context during RRC Connection Establishment avoid the needs to signal information in a RRC connection suspend procedure or a RRC connection resume procedure; [0118-0119] of Shrestha.
Referring to Claim 11, Yao as modified by Shrestha teaches receiving a higher layer parameter indicating a reporting periodicity, wherein the GNSS assistance information are reported periodically according to the reporting periodicity; [0083] of Shrestha.
Referring to Claim 12, Yao as modified by Shrestha teaches wherein the higher layer parameter is received or updated via UE-specific dedicated RRC signaling or a Medium Access Control (MAC) control element (CE); [0126] of Shrestha.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-12 and 21 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WHITNEY T MOORE whose telephone number is (571)270-3338. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday from 7am-4pm.
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/WHITNEY MOORE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3646
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