Office Action Predictor
Last updated: April 15, 2026
Application No. 18/392,423

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR IMPROVING COVERAGE IN WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Dec 21, 2023
Examiner
OSIFADE, IDOWU O
Art Unit
2675
Tech Center
2600 — Communications
Assignee
Samsung Electronics Co., LTD.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
81%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 0m
To Grant
92%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 81% — above average
81%
Career Allow Rate
545 granted / 671 resolved
+19.2% vs TC avg
Moderate +10% lift
Without
With
+10.4%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Fast prosecutor
2y 0m
Avg Prosecution
18 currently pending
Career history
689
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
11.7%
-28.3% vs TC avg
§103
59.9%
+19.9% vs TC avg
§102
11.6%
-28.4% vs TC avg
§112
14.1%
-25.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 671 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 . DETAILED ACTION Claims 1 – 20 are pending in this application. Claims 1, 6, 11 and 16 are independent. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 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 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 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. (a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. Claim(s) 1 – 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by AGIWAL, Anil (US-20210099954-A1, hereinafter simply referred to as Anil). Regarding independent claim(s) 1 and 11, Anil teaches: A method performed by a user equipment (UE) (e.g., UE of Anil) in a wireless communication system (e.g., 5th generation wireless communication system of Anil), the method comprising: receiving a medium access control (MAC) protocol data unit (PDU) (e.g., a medium access control (MAC) protocol data unit (PDU) structure (FIG. 2K) of Anil) including a MAC control element (CE) (e.g., MAC CE of Anil) indicating at least one target cell configuration (e.g., the search space configuration identifier for the WUS can be indicated (by the gNB) to the UE using MAC control element (CE)) (See at least Anil, ¶ [0293]; FIGS. 2A, 2K; "…The UE ID may be included in the MAC PDU... The UE ID such as C-RNTI may be carried in MAC CE wherein MAC CE is included in MAC PDU…"); and performing a primary cell (PCell) change (e.g., handover or cell/BS/TRP switching of Anil) to a target cell based on the at least one target cell configuration (See at least Anil, ¶ [0293]; FIGS. 2A, 2K; "…The UE ID may be included in the MAC PDU... The UE ID such as C-RNTI may be carried in MAC CE wherein MAC CE is included in MAC PDU…control information may be included in the MAC PDU of the MsgA. The control information may include one or more of buffer status indication, beam information (e.g., one or more DL TX beam ID(s) or SSB ID(s)), beam failure recovery indication/information, data indicator, cell/BS/TRP switching indication, connection re-establishment indication, reconfiguration complete or handover complete message, etc…"). Regarding independent claim(s) 6 and 16, Anil teaches: A method performed by a base station (e.g., gNB of Anil) in a wireless communication system (e.g., 5th generation wireless communication system of Anil), the method comprising: generating a medium access control (MAC) protocol data unit (PDU) (e.g., a medium access control (MAC) protocol data unit (PDU) structure (FIG. 2K) of Anil) including a MAC control element (CE) (e.g., MAC CE of Anil) indicating at least one target cell configuration (e.g., the search space configuration identifier for the WUS can be indicated (by the gNB) to the UE using MAC control element (CE)) (See at least Anil, ¶ [0288, 0293]; FIGS. 2A, 2K; "…Several RARs for various Random access preambles detected by the gNB can be multiplexed in the same RAR MAC PDU by the gNB…", "…The UE ID may be included in the MAC PDU... The UE ID such as C-RNTI may be carried in MAC CE wherein MAC CE is included in MAC PDU…"); and transmitting the MAC PDU including the MAC CE (See at least Anil, ¶ [0292, 0293]; FIGS. 2A, 2K; "…after MsgA transmission, the UE monitors for a response from the network (i.e. the gNB) within a configured window. The response is also referred as MsgB…", "…The UE ID may be included in the MAC PDU of the MsgA. The UE ID such as C-RNTI may be carried in MAC CE wherein MAC CE is included in MAC PDU…control information may be included in the MAC PDU of the MsgA. The control information may include one or more of buffer status indication, beam information (e.g., one or more DL TX beam ID(s) or SSB ID(s)), beam failure recovery indication/information, data indicator, cell/BS/TRP switching indication, connection re-establishment indication, reconfiguration complete or handover complete message, etc…") wherein the at least one target cell configuration is associated with a target cell to which a primary cell (PCell) change (e.g., via a handover or cell/BS/TRP switching operation of Anil) is performed (See at least Anil, ¶ [0293]; FIGS. 2A, 2K; "…The UE ID may be included in the MAC PDU of the MsgA. The UE ID such as C-RNTI may be carried in MAC CE wherein MAC CE is included in MAC PDU…control information may be included in the MAC PDU of the MsgA. The control information may include one or more of buffer status indication, beam information (e.g., one or more DL TX beam ID(s) or SSB ID(s)), beam failure recovery indication/information, data indicator, cell/BS/TRP switching indication, connection re-establishment indication, reconfiguration complete or handover complete message, etc…"). Regarding dependent claim(s) 2, 7, 12 and 17, Anil teaches: wherein the MAC PDU further includes a MAC header (e.g., MAC Header (FIG. 2K) of Anil) that indicates whether a message authentication code for integrity (MAC-I) (e.g., message authentication code (MAC-I) of Anil) for the MAC CE (e.g., MAC CE of Anil) is included in the MAC PDU (e.g., a medium access control (MAC) protocol data unit (PDU) structure (FIG. 2K) of Anil) (See at least Anil, ¶ [0334, 0352, 0482]; FIGS. 2A, 2E, 2K, 2G; "…For integrity protection algorithms the receiver verifies the data integrity of the message by comparing it to the received message authentication code, i.e. MAC-I…", "…Referring to FIG. 2G, in NR, multiple unicast links can be established between same pair of UEs... Source Layer L2 ID, Destination L2 ID and LCID 0 is included in MAC PDU... Same issue will occur for security mode command, security mode complete and other signaling messages…", "…Link ID is included in SL SCH MAC header of SL SCH MAC PDU as shown in 2K-10. So, MAC SDU(s) of one unicast link are multiplexed in MAC PDU…"). Regarding dependent claim(s) 3 and 13, Anil teaches: wherein the MAC-I (e.g., message authentication code (MAC-I) of Anil) is determined by a MAC entity of the terminal (See at least Anil, ¶ [0334, 0367]; FIGS. 2A, 2E, 2K, 2G; "…For integrity protection algorithms the receiver verifies the data integrity of the message by comparing it to the received message authentication code, i.e. MAC-I…", "…FIG. 2E illustrates the use of the integrity algorithm EIA to authenticate the integrity of messages. Based on these input parameters the sender computes a 32-bit message authentication code (MAC-I) using the integrity algorithm EIA…"). Regarding dependent claim(s) 4 and 14, Anil teaches: performing, by a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) entity (e.g., packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) of Anil) of the terminal, an integrity verification for the MAC-I (e.g., message authentication code (MAC-I) of Anil) (See at least Anil, ¶ [0306, 0319, 0334, 0367]; FIGS. 2A, 2E, 2K, 2G; "…The UE requests transmission resources from the gNB. The gNB schedules transmission resources for transmission of sidelink control information and data…", "…Protection for the signaling and user plane data between the UEs is provided at the PDCP layer…", "…For integrity protection algorithms the receiver verifies the data integrity of the message by comparing it to the received message authentication code, i.e. MAC-I…", "…FIG. 2E illustrates the use of the integrity algorithm EIA to authenticate the integrity of messages. Based on these input parameters the sender computes a 32-bit message authentication code (MAC-I) using the integrity algorithm EIA…"). Regarding dependent claim(s) 5 and 15, Anil teaches: receiving a UE information request message (See at least Anil, ¶ [0306]; FIGS. 2A, 2E, 2K, 2G; "…The UE requests transmission resources from the gNB. The gNB schedules transmission resources for transmission of sidelink control information and data…"); and transmitting a UE information response message including capability information indicating whether the UE supports processing of the MAC PDU (See at least Anil, ¶ [0293]; FIGS. 2A, 2K; "…The UE ID may be included in the MAC PDU of the MsgA. The UE ID such as C-RNTI may be carried in MAC CE wherein MAC CE is included in MAC PDU…control information may be included in the MAC PDU of the MsgA. The control information may include one or more of buffer status indication, beam information (e.g., one or more DL TX beam ID(s) or SSB ID(s)), beam failure recovery indication/information, data indicator, cell/BS/TRP switching indication, connection re-establishment indication, reconfiguration complete or handover complete message, etc…"). Regarding dependent claim(s) 8 and 18, Anil teaches: wherein the MAC-I is generated by a MAC entity of the base station (See at least Anil, ¶ [0306, 0319, 0334, 0367]; FIGS. 2A, 2E, 2K, 2G; "…The UE requests transmission resources from the gNB. The gNB schedules transmission resources for transmission of sidelink control information and data…", "…Protection for the signaling and user plane data between the UEs is provided at the PDCP layer…", "…For integrity protection algorithms the receiver verifies the data integrity of the message by comparing it to the received message authentication code, i.e. MAC-I…", "…FIG. 2E illustrates the use of the integrity algorithm EIA to authenticate the integrity of messages. Based on these input parameters the sender computes a 32-bit message authentication code (MAC-I) using the integrity algorithm EIA…"). Regarding dependent claim(s) 9 and 19, Anil teaches: wherein the MAC-I is generated by a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) entity of the base station (See at least Anil, ¶ [0306, 0319, 0334, 0367]; FIGS. 2A, 2E, 2K, 2G; "…The UE requests transmission resources from the gNB. The gNB schedules transmission resources for transmission of sidelink control information and data…", "…Protection for the signaling and user plane data between the UEs is provided at the PDCP layer…", "…For integrity protection algorithms the receiver verifies the data integrity of the message by comparing it to the received message authentication code, i.e. MAC-I…", "…FIG. 2E illustrates the use of the integrity algorithm EIA to authenticate the integrity of messages. Based on these input parameters the sender computes a 32-bit message authentication code (MAC-I) using the integrity algorithm EIA…"). Regarding dependent claim(s) 10 and 20, Anil teaches: transmitting a UE information request message (See at least Anil, ¶ [0306, 0319, 0334, 0367]; FIGS. 2A, 2E, 2K, 2G; "…The UE requests transmission resources from the gNB. The gNB schedules transmission resources for transmission of sidelink control information and data…", "…Protection for the signaling and user plane data between the UEs is provided at the PDCP layer…", "…For integrity protection algorithms the receiver verifies the data integrity of the message by comparing it to the received message authentication code, i.e. MAC-I…", "…FIG. 2E illustrates the use of the integrity algorithm EIA to authenticate the integrity of messages. Based on these input parameters the sender computes a 32-bit message authentication code (MAC-I) using the integrity algorithm EIA…"); and receiving a UE information response message including capability information indicating whether the UE supports processing of the MAC PDU (See at least Anil, ¶ [0293]; FIGS. 2A, 2K; "…The UE ID may be included in the MAC PDU of the MsgA. The UE ID such as C-RNTI may be carried in MAC CE wherein MAC CE is included in MAC PDU…control information may be included in the MAC PDU of the MsgA. The control information may include one or more of buffer status indication, beam information (e.g., one or more DL TX beam ID(s) or SSB ID(s)), beam failure recovery indication/information, data indicator, cell/BS/TRP switching indication, connection re-establishment indication, reconfiguration complete or handover complete message, etc…"). Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to Applicant's disclosure: See the Notice of References Cited (PTO–892) Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to IDOWU O OSIFADE whose telephone number is (571)272-0864. The Examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday 8:00am-5:00pm EST. 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, ANDREW MOYER can be reached on (571) 272 – 9523. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is (571) 273 – 8300. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at (866) 217 – 9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call (800) 786 – 9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or (571) 272 – 1000. /IDOWU O OSIFADE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2675
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Prosecution Timeline

Dec 21, 2023
Application Filed
Dec 23, 2025
Non-Final Rejection — §102
Apr 01, 2026
Response Filed

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
81%
Grant Probability
92%
With Interview (+10.4%)
2y 0m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 671 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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