DETAILED ACTION
This office action is responsive to communications filed on January 11, 2024. Claims 1-20 are pending in the application.
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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The Information Disclosure Statements filed on 1/11/2024 and 11/26/2024 have been considered.
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.
(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.
Claims 1-3, 9, 10, and 14-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Martin (US 2018/0063768).
Regarding Claim 1, Martin teaches a method for processing a radio resource management (RRM) measurement, performed by a non-relay sidelink terminal, the method comprising:
acquiring a first RRM measurement criterion corresponding to a first relay sidelink terminal, the first relay sidelink terminal being a relay sidelink terminal serving the non-relay sidelink terminal (“The signal characteristic of the relay UE(s) which is measured (including the signal characteristic of signals transmitted by a currently selected relay UE and the signal characteristic of discovery signals transmitted by potential relay UEs—see below) may be the PC5 link quality (as defined above)” – See [0056]; “The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling or in dedicated signalling, or in case the remote UE 112 is out of coverage, the reselection threshold would have to be either preconfigured in the UE 112 or sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; The remote UE (non-relay sidelink terminal) acquires a reselection threshold (first RRM measurement criterion corresponding to a first relay sidelink terminal), wherein the reselection threshold corresponds to the PC5/sidelink interface between the remote UE and a serving relay UE (first relay sidelink terminal)); and
in response to measuring that channel quality associated with the first relay sidelink terminal meets the first RRM measurement criterion, performing a first RRM measurement processing on a second relay sidelink terminal, other than the first relay sidelink terminal, in relay sidelink terminals, the second relay sidelink terminal having a serving range covering the non-relay sidelink terminal (“the present disclosure aims to help manage selection and/or reselection of an appropriate relay node 114 when there is a plurality of potential relay nodes which may be used by a first UE 112 to perform communication with a base station” – See [0053]; “Because measurements are initiated on the other relay UEs only once the PC5 link quality of the currently selected relay UE 114 goes below the reselection threshold, power consumption by the relay UE 112 is reduced. This is because the remote UE 112 does not have to perform such measurements while the current relay UE is measured to be above the reselection threshold” – See [0059]; “To be clear, with the present technique, if the measured signal characteristic from a first, current relay node becomes less than the reselection threshold, then the controller 404 of the UE 112 performs a procedure for allowing selection of a second, new relay node. In one example, the procedure for allowing selection of the second relay node comprises performing measurements of a signal characteristic of a discovery signal transmitted by each relay node 114A-C in the plurality of relay nodes and received at the receiver 402 of the UE 112” – See [0060]; See also Fig. 8; In response to measuring that the quality of the PC5/sidelink between the remote UE and relay UE meets the first RRM measurement criterion (e.g., quality above or below the reselection threshold), the remote UE performs first RRM measurement processing on a second relay sidelink terminal. For example, if the quality is above the reselection threshold, the remote UE performs RRM measurement processing to not perform measurements on the other potential relay UEs (second relay sidelink terminal, other than the first relay sidelink terminal). If the quality of the serving relay UE is below the reselection threshold, the remote UE performs RRM measurement processing to perform measurements on other potential relay UEs).
Regarding Claim 2, Martin teaches the method of Claim 1. Martin further teaches that the first RRM measurement processing comprises stopping the RRM measurement or performing a relaxed RRM measurement (“Because measurements are initiated on the other relay UEs only once the PC5 link quality of the currently selected relay UE 114 goes below the reselection threshold, power consumption by the relay UE 112 is reduced. This is because the remote UE 112 does not have to perform such measurements while the current relay UE is measured to be above the reselection threshold” – See [0059]; “To be clear, with the present technique, if the measured signal characteristic from a first, current relay node becomes less than the reselection threshold, then the controller 404 of the UE 112 performs a procedure for allowing selection of a second, new relay node. In one example, the procedure for allowing selection of the second relay node comprises performing measurements of a signal characteristic of a discovery signal transmitted by each relay node 114A-C in the plurality of relay nodes and received at the receiver 402 of the UE 112” – See [0060]; As shown above with respect to Claim 1, the first RRM measurement processing includes not performing the RRM measurements on the potential relay UEs (i.e., stopping/relaxing the measurements) when the link quality of the current/serving relay UE is above the reselection threshold).
Regarding Claim 3, Martin teaches the method of Claim 1. Martin further teaches that acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion corresponding to the first relay sidelink terminal comprises: receiving the first RRM measurement criterion sent by the first relay sidelink terminal, wherein receiving the first RRM measurement criterion sent by the first relay sidelink terminal comprises: receiving the first RRM measurement criterion sent by the first relay sidelink terminal by means of sidelink broadcasting; or receiving the first RRM measurement criterion sent by the first relay sidelink terminal through a dedicated sidelink signalling (“The signal characteristic of the relay UE(s) which is measured (including the signal characteristic of signals transmitted by a currently selected relay UE and the signal characteristic of discovery signals transmitted by potential relay UEs—see below) may be the PC5 link quality (as defined above)” – See [0056]; “The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling or in dedicated signalling, or in case the remote UE 112 is out of coverage, the reselection threshold would have to be either preconfigured in the UE 112 or sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; The threshold (first RRM measurement criterion) is received from the relay UE (first relay sidelink terminal) by beams of a Master Information Block on the SL-BCH (sidelink broadcast) channel).
Regarding Claim 9, Martin teaches a method for processing a radio resource management (RRM) measurement, performed by a first relay sidelink terminal, the method comprising:
sending measurement criterion indication information to a non-relay sidelink terminal, the first relay sidelink terminal being a relay sidelink terminal serving the non-relay sidelink terminal (“The signal characteristic of the relay UE(s) which is measured (including the signal characteristic of signals transmitted by a currently selected relay UE and the signal characteristic of discovery signals transmitted by potential relay UEs—see below) may be the PC5 link quality (as defined above)” – See [0056]; “The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling or in dedicated signalling, or in case the remote UE 112 is out of coverage, the reselection threshold would have to be either preconfigured in the UE 112 or sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; The serving relay UE (first relay sidelink terminal) sends, to a remote UE (non-relay sidelink terminal), a Master Information Block-sl message (measurement criterion indication information), wherein the serving relay UE serves the remote UE via the PC5/sidelink interface),
wherein the measurement criterion indication information is used for instructing the non-relay sidelink terminal to acquire a first RRM measurement criterion corresponding to the first relay sidelink terminal (“The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling or in dedicated signalling, or in case the remote UE 112 is out of coverage, the reselection threshold would have to be either preconfigured in the UE 112 or sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; A reselection threshold (first RRM measurement criterion corresponding to a first relay sidelink terminal) is acquired by the remote UE, wherein the reselection threshold corresponds to the PC5/sidelink interface between the remote UE and a serving relay UE (first relay sidelink terminal)),
such that the non-relay sidelink terminal performs a first RRM measurement processing on a second relay sidelink terminal, other than the first relay sidelink terminal, in relay sidelink terminals, in response to the non-relay sidelink terminal measuring that channel quality associated with the first relay sidelink terminal meets the first RRM measurement criterion, and wherein the second relay sidelink terminal has a serving range covering the non-relay sidelink terminal (“the present disclosure aims to help manage selection and/or reselection of an appropriate relay node 114 when there is a plurality of potential relay nodes which may be used by a first UE 112 to perform communication with a base station” – See [0053]; “Because measurements are initiated on the other relay UEs only once the PC5 link quality of the currently selected relay UE 114 goes below the reselection threshold, power consumption by the relay UE 112 is reduced. This is because the remote UE 112 does not have to perform such measurements while the current relay UE is measured to be above the reselection threshold” – See [0059]; “To be clear, with the present technique, if the measured signal characteristic from a first, current relay node becomes less than the reselection threshold, then the controller 404 of the UE 112 performs a procedure for allowing selection of a second, new relay node. In one example, the procedure for allowing selection of the second relay node comprises performing measurements of a signal characteristic of a discovery signal transmitted by each relay node 114A-C in the plurality of relay nodes and received at the receiver 402 of the UE 112” – See [0060]; See also Fig. 8; In response to measuring that the quality of the PC5/sidelink between the remote UE and relay UE meets the first RRM measurement criterion (e.g., quality above or below the reselection threshold), the remote UE performs first RRM measurement processing on a second relay sidelink terminal. For example, if the quality is above the reselection threshold, the remote UE performs RRM measurement processing to not perform measurements on the other potential relay UEs (second relay sidelink terminal, other than the first relay sidelink terminal). If the quality of the serving relay UE is below the reselection threshold, the remote UE performs RRM measurement processing to perform measurements on other potential relay UEs).
Regarding Claim 10, Martin teaches the method of Claim 9. Martin further teaches that the first RRM measurement processing comprises stopping the RRM measurement, or performing a relaxed RRM measurement; or the first RRM measurement criterion comprises at least one of a not-at-cell-edge criterion or a low mobility criterion (“Because measurements are initiated on the other relay UEs only once the PC5 link quality of the currently selected relay UE 114 goes below the reselection threshold, power consumption by the relay UE 112 is reduced. This is because the remote UE 112 does not have to perform such measurements while the current relay UE is measured to be above the reselection threshold” – See [0059]; “To be clear, with the present technique, if the measured signal characteristic from a first, current relay node becomes less than the reselection threshold, then the controller 404 of the UE 112 performs a procedure for allowing selection of a second, new relay node. In one example, the procedure for allowing selection of the second relay node comprises performing measurements of a signal characteristic of a discovery signal transmitted by each relay node 114A-C in the plurality of relay nodes and received at the receiver 402 of the UE 112” – See [0060]; As shown above with respect to Claim 9, the first RRM measurement processing includes not performing the RRM measurements on the potential relay UEs (i.e., stopping/relaxing the measurements) when the link quality of the current/serving relay UE is above the reselection threshold).
Regarding Claim 14, Martin teaches the method of Claim 10. Martin further teaches receiving measurement criterion configuration information sent by a network side device; and acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on the measurement criterion configuration information, wherein the measurement criterion configuration information indicates the first RRM measurement criterion (“The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling or in dedicated signalling, or in case the remote UE 112 is out of coverage, the reselection threshold would have to be either preconfigured in the UE 112 or sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; The serving relay UE (first relay sidelink terminal) receives measurement criterion configuration information from the eNB (network side device) and acquires the reselection threshold (first RRM measurement criterion) from the measurement criterion configuration information, so that it can be relayed to the remote UE that is outside of the eNB’s coverage).
Regarding Claim 15, Martin teaches the method of Claim 10. Martin further teaches receiving measurement criterion configuration information sent by a network side device; and acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on the measurement criterion configuration information, wherein receiving the measurement criterion configuration information sent by the network side device comprises: receiving the measurement criterion configuration information sent by the network side device by means of broadcasting; or receiving the measurement criterion configuration information sent by the network side device through a dedicated signalling (“The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling or in dedicated signalling, or in case the remote UE 112 is out of coverage, the reselection threshold would have to be either preconfigured in the UE 112 or sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; The serving relay UE (first relay sidelink terminal) receives measurement criterion configuration information from the eNB (network side device) and acquires the reselection threshold (first RRM measurement criterion) from the measurement criterion configuration information, so that it can be relayed to the remote UE that is outside of the eNB’s coverage, and wherein the measurement criterion configuration information is sent by the eNB by means of broadcast or dedicated signaling).
Regarding Claim 16, Martin teaches the method of Claim 1. Martin further teaches a non-relay sidelink terminal, comprising a processor, a memory, and a transceiver, wherein the processor is configured to cooperate with the transceiver to perform the method of claim 1 (“the present technique provides a storage medium storing a computer program for controlling a computer to perform a method” – See [0025]; “As shown in FIG. 6, the first UE 112 includes a transmitter 401, a receiver 402 and a controller 404 to control the transmission and reception of signals to the second UE 114 acting as a relay node” – See [0051]; The remote UE 112 (non-relay sidelink terminal) includes a controller (processor), storage, and transmitter/receiver, wherein the controller cooperates with the transmitter/receiver to perform the disclosed functions).
Regarding Claim 17, Martin teaches the method of Claim 9. Martin further teaches a first relay sidelink terminal, comprising a processor, a memory, and a transceiver, wherein the transceiver is controlled by the processor to perform the method of claim 9 (“the present technique provides a storage medium storing a computer program for controlling a computer to perform a method” – See [0025]; “The second UE 114 could be a conventional UE and so includes also a transmitter 401 receiver 402 and a controller 404. The second UE 114 operates in accordance with a conventional arrangement but transmits signals on the uplink as shown by an arrow 124 and receives signals on the downlink as represented by an arrow 126 so as to transmit signals to and receive signals from the base station 102, respectively” – See [0051]; The relay UE 114 (first relay sidelink terminal) includes a controller (processor), storage, and transmitter/receiver, wherein the controller cooperates with the transmitter/receiver to perform the disclosed functions).
Regarding Claim 18, Martin teaches a network side device, comprising a processor, a memory, and a transceiver (“The base station 102 includes a transmitter 404 a receiver 408 and a controller 410 which may include a scheduler for scheduling the transmission and reception of signals on the downlink and the uplink in accordance with the wireless access interface used” – See [0051]; The eNB 102 (network side device) includes a controller (processor), storage, and transmitter/receiver),
wherein the transceiver is controlled by the processor to send measurement criterion configuration information to a sidelink terminal (“The signal characteristic of the relay UE(s) which is measured (including the signal characteristic of signals transmitted by a currently selected relay UE and the signal characteristic of discovery signals transmitted by potential relay UEs—see below) may be the PC5 link quality (as defined above)” – See [0056]; “The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling or in dedicated signalling, or in case the remote UE 112 is out of coverage, the reselection threshold would have to be either preconfigured in the UE 112 or sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; The eNB (network side device) sends, to a remote UE (sidelink terminal), a Master Information Block-sl message (measurement criterion indication information)),
the measurement criterion configuration information is used for instructing the sidelink terminal to acquire a first RRM measurement criterion corresponding to a first relay sidelink terminal (“The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling or in dedicated signalling, or in case the remote UE 112 is out of coverage, the reselection threshold would have to be either preconfigured in the UE 112 or sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; A reselection threshold (first RRM measurement criterion corresponding to a first relay sidelink terminal) is acquired by the remote UE),
such that a non-relay sidelink terminal performs a first RRM measurement processing on a second relay sidelink terminal, other than the first relay sidelink terminal, in relay sidelink terminals, in response to the non-relay sidelink terminal measuring that channel quality associated with the first relay sidelink terminal meets the first RRM measurement criterion, the first relay sidelink terminal is a relay sidelink terminal serving the non-relay sidelink terminal, and wherein the second relay sidelink terminal has a serving range covering the non-relay sidelink terminal (“the present disclosure aims to help manage selection and/or reselection of an appropriate relay node 114 when there is a plurality of potential relay nodes which may be used by a first UE 112 to perform communication with a base station” – See [0053]; “Because measurements are initiated on the other relay UEs only once the PC5 link quality of the currently selected relay UE 114 goes below the reselection threshold, power consumption by the relay UE 112 is reduced. This is because the remote UE 112 does not have to perform such measurements while the current relay UE is measured to be above the reselection threshold” – See [0059]; “To be clear, with the present technique, if the measured signal characteristic from a first, current relay node becomes less than the reselection threshold, then the controller 404 of the UE 112 performs a procedure for allowing selection of a second, new relay node. In one example, the procedure for allowing selection of the second relay node comprises performing measurements of a signal characteristic of a discovery signal transmitted by each relay node 114A-C in the plurality of relay nodes and received at the receiver 402 of the UE 112” – See [0060]; See also Fig. 8; In response to measuring that the quality of the PC5/sidelink between the remote UE (non-relay sidelink terminal) and serving relay UE (first relay sidelink terminal) meets the first RRM measurement criterion (e.g., quality above or below the reselection threshold), the remote UE performs first RRM measurement processing on a second relay sidelink terminal, wherein the serving relay UE serves the remote UE via the PC5/sidelink interface. For example, if the quality is above the reselection threshold, the remote UE performs RRM measurement processing to not perform measurements on the other potential relay UEs (second relay sidelink terminal, other than the first relay sidelink terminal). If the quality of the serving relay UE is below the reselection threshold, the remote UE performs RRM measurement processing to perform measurements on other potential relay UEs).
Regarding Claim 19, Martin teaches the network side device of Claim 18. Martin further teaches that the first RRM measurement processing comprises stopping the RRM measurement, or performing a relaxed RRM measurement (“Because measurements are initiated on the other relay UEs only once the PC5 link quality of the currently selected relay UE 114 goes below the reselection threshold, power consumption by the relay UE 112 is reduced. This is because the remote UE 112 does not have to perform such measurements while the current relay UE is measured to be above the reselection threshold” – See [0059]; “To be clear, with the present technique, if the measured signal characteristic from a first, current relay node becomes less than the reselection threshold, then the controller 404 of the UE 112 performs a procedure for allowing selection of a second, new relay node. In one example, the procedure for allowing selection of the second relay node comprises performing measurements of a signal characteristic of a discovery signal transmitted by each relay node 114A-C in the plurality of relay nodes and received at the receiver 402 of the UE 112” – See [0060]; As shown above with respect to Claim 18, the first RRM measurement processing includes not performing the RRM measurements on the potential relay UEs (i.e., stopping/relaxing the measurements) when the link quality of the current/serving relay UE is above the reselection threshold).
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.
Claims 4-8, 11, and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Martin (US 2018/0063768) in view of Martin et al. (US 2020/0068510, hereinafter Martin ‘510).
Regarding Claim 4, Martin teaches the method of Claim 1. Martin further teaches receiving measurement criterion configuration information sent by a network device, wherein acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion corresponding to the first relay sidelink terminal comprises: acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on the measurement criterion configuration information (“The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling or in dedicated signalling, or in case the remote UE 112 is out of coverage, the reselection threshold would have to be either preconfigured in the UE 112 or sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; The reselection threshold (first RRM measurement criterion) is acquired by the remote UE based on the broadcast/dedicated signalling sent by the eNB (measurement criterion configuration information sent by a network device)).
Martin does not explicitly teach that in response to the first RRM measurement criterion comprising a not-at-cell-edge criterion, the measurement criterion configuration information comprises N RRM measurement criteria and transmitting power information corresponding to the N RRM measurement criteria, N being a positive integer, and acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on the measurement criterion configuration information comprises: receiving first transmitting power information of the first relay sidelink terminal sent by the first relay sidelink terminal; and acquiring, based on the measurement criterion configuration information, an RRM measurement criterion corresponding to the first transmitting power information as the first RRM measurement criterion; or, wherein in response to the first RRM measurement criterion comprising a not-at-cell-edge criterion, the measurement criterion configuration information comprises a reference RRM measurement criterion and reference transmitting power information, and acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on the measurement criterion configuration information comprises: receiving first transmitting power information of the first relay sidelink terminal sent by the first relay sidelink terminal; and acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on an offset between the first transmitting power information and the reference transmitting power information, and the reference RRM measurement criterion.
However, Martin ‘510 teaches that in response to the first RRM measurement criterion comprising a not-at-cell-edge criterion, the measurement criterion configuration information comprises N RRM measurement criteria and transmitting power information corresponding to the N RRM measurement criteria, N being a positive integer, and acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on the measurement criterion configuration information comprises: receiving first transmitting power information of the first relay sidelink terminal sent by the first relay sidelink terminal; and acquiring, based on the measurement criterion configuration information, an RRM measurement criterion corresponding to the first transmitting power information as the first RRM measurement criterion (“The relay can therefore determine the level of coverage within the cell, and can set a maximum transmit power to the remote UE on that basis. For example, a coverage indicating that the relay is at the centre of the cell may result in a lower maximum power setting and conversely, a coverage indicating that the relay is at the edge of the cell may result in a higher maximum power setting” – See [0061]; “In some cases the maximum power setting may not be maintained or may be maintained very infrequently. In some cases it may occur based on the measurement of the Uu link quality between the relay and base station such that a higher maximum transmit power is allowed when the relays and/or remote terminals are further from the cell centre and a lower maximum transmit power is set when they are closer to the cell centre as discussed above. It is noteworthy that this can also allow for better extension of coverage while the remote UE is out of coverage of the cell, for larger range of the relay link when near the cell edge, while limiting interferences with other terminals in the cell when closer to the cell centre (where it may be more efficient for the remote UE to connect directly with the network such that the remote UE would still be able to connect to the network)” – See [0063]; The first RRM measurement criterion includes a cell center (not-at-cell-edge) criterion, such that there is N=1 RRM measurement criteria, and the remote UE receives transmitting power information from the relay UE and acquires an RRM measurement criterion corresponding to the transmitting power information).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Martin such that in response to the first RRM measurement criterion comprising a not-at-cell-edge criterion, the measurement criterion configuration information comprises N RRM measurement criteria and transmitting power information corresponding to the N RRM measurement criteria, N being a positive integer, and acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on the measurement criterion configuration information comprises: receiving first transmitting power information of the first relay sidelink terminal sent by the first relay sidelink terminal; and acquiring, based on the measurement criterion configuration information, an RRM measurement criterion corresponding to the first transmitting power information as the first RRM measurement criterion. Motivation for doing so would be to limit interference with other terminals when closer to the cell center (See Martin ‘510, [0063]).
Regarding Claim 5, Martin in view of Martin ‘510 teaches the method of Claim 4. Martin ‘510 further teaches that the transmitting power information comprises a maximum transmitting power or a transmitting power class (“The relay can therefore determine the level of coverage within the cell, and can set a maximum transmit power to the remote UE on that basis. For example, a coverage indicating that the relay is at the centre of the cell may result in a lower maximum power setting and conversely, a coverage indicating that the relay is at the edge of the cell may result in a higher maximum power setting” – See [0061]; The transmitting power is a maximum transmitting power).
Regarding Claim 6, Martin in view of Martin ‘510 teaches the method of Claim 4. Martin further teaches that receiving the first transmitting power information of the first relay sidelink terminal sent by the first relay sidelink terminal comprises: receiving the first transmitting power information sent by the first relay sidelink terminal by means of sidelink broadcasting; or receiving the first transmitting power information sent by the first relay sidelink terminal through a dedicated sidelink signalling (“sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; The relay UE transmits information to the remote UE by sidelink broadcast on the PC5 interface).
Regarding Claim 7, Martin in view of Martin ‘510 teaches the method of Claim 4. Martin further teaches that the measurement criterion configuration information indicates the first RRM measurement criterion (“The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling or in dedicated signalling, or in case the remote UE 112 is out of coverage, the reselection threshold would have to be either preconfigured in the UE 112 or sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; The reselection threshold (first RRM measurement criterion) is indicated by broadcast/dedicated signaling (measurement criterion configuration information) sent by the eNB).
Regarding Claim 8, Martin in view of Martin ‘510 teaches the method of Claim 4. Martin further teaches that receiving the measurement criterion configuration information sent by the network device comprises: receiving the measurement criterion configuration information sent by the network side device by means of broadcasting; or receiving the measurement criterion configuration information sent by the network side device through a dedicated signalling (“The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling” – See [0063]; The measurement criterion configuration information sent by the eNB/network device is broadcast or dedicated signaling).
Regarding Claim 11, Martin teaches the method of Claim 10. Martin further teaches receiving measurement criterion configuration information sent by a network side device; and acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on the measurement criterion configuration information (“The reselection threshold may be defined … as an absolute threshold specified by the network. This would be set by the eNB 102 either in broadcast signalling or in dedicated signalling, or in case the remote UE 112 is out of coverage, the reselection threshold would have to be either preconfigured in the UE 112 or sent by the relay UE 114A-C itself via the PC5 interface (for example, broadcast in the “Master Information Block-sl” on the SL-BCH channel)” – See [0063]; The reselection threshold (first RRM measurement criterion) is acquired by the relay UE based on the broadcast/dedicated signalling sent by the eNB (measurement criterion configuration information sent by a network device)).
Martin does not explicitly teach that in response to the first RRM measurement criterion comprising the not-at-cell-edge criterion, the measurement criterion configuration information comprises N RRM measurement criteria and transmitting power information corresponding to the N RRM measurement criteria, N being a positive integer, and acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on the measurement criterion configuration information comprises: acquiring, based on the measurement criterion configuration information, an RRM measurement criterion corresponding to first transmitting power information of the first relay sidelink terminal as the first RRM measurement criterion.
However, Martin ‘510 teaches that in response to the first RRM measurement criterion comprising the not-at-cell-edge criterion, the measurement criterion configuration information comprises N RRM measurement criteria and transmitting power information corresponding to the N RRM measurement criteria, N being a positive integer, and acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on the measurement criterion configuration information comprises: acquiring, based on the measurement criterion configuration information, an RRM measurement criterion corresponding to first transmitting power information of the first relay sidelink terminal as the first RRM measurement criterion (“The relay can therefore determine the level of coverage within the cell, and can set a maximum transmit power to the remote UE on that basis. For example, a coverage indicating that the relay is at the centre of the cell may result in a lower maximum power setting and conversely, a coverage indicating that the relay is at the edge of the cell may result in a higher maximum power setting” – See [0061]; “In some cases the maximum power setting may not be maintained or may be maintained very infrequently. In some cases it may occur based on the measurement of the Uu link quality between the relay and base station such that a higher maximum transmit power is allowed when the relays and/or remote terminals are further from the cell centre and a lower maximum transmit power is set when they are closer to the cell centre as discussed above. It is noteworthy that this can also allow for better extension of coverage while the remote UE is out of coverage of the cell, for larger range of the relay link when near the cell edge, while limiting interferences with other terminals in the cell when closer to the cell centre (where it may be more efficient for the remote UE to connect directly with the network such that the remote UE would still be able to connect to the network)” – See [0063]; The first RRM measurement criterion includes a cell center (not-at-cell-edge) criterion, such that there is N=1 RRM measurement criteria, and the relay UE acquires transmitting power information and acquires an RRM measurement criterion corresponding to the transmitting power information).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Martin such that in response to the first RRM measurement criterion comprising the not-at-cell-edge criterion, the measurement criterion configuration information comprises N RRM measurement criteria and transmitting power information corresponding to the N RRM measurement criteria, N being a positive integer, and acquiring the first RRM measurement criterion based on the measurement criterion configuration information comprises: acquiring, based on the measurement criterion configuration information, an RRM measurement criterion corresponding to first transmitting power information of the first relay sidelink terminal as the first RRM measurement criterion for the same reasons as those given with respect to Claim 4.
Regarding Claim 12, Martin in view of Martin ‘510 teaches the method of Claim 11. Martin ‘510 further teaches that the transmitting power information comprises a maximum transmitting power or a transmitting power class (“The relay can therefore determine the level of coverage within the cell, and can set a maximum transmit power to the remote UE on that basis. For example, a coverage indicating that the relay is at the centre of the cell may result in a lower maximum power setting and conversely, a coverage indicating that the relay is at the edge of the cell may result in a higher maximum power setting” – See [0061]; The transmitting power is a maximum transmitting power).
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Martin (US 2018/0063768) in view of He (US 2022/0312243).
Regarding Claim 20, Martin teaches the network side device of Claim 18. Martin does not explicitly teach that the first RRM measurement criterion comprises at least one of a not-at-cell-edge criterion or a low mobility criterion.
However, He teaches that the first RRM measurement criterion comprises at least one of a not-at-cell-edge criterion or a low mobility criterion (“In some aspects, a stationary UE may be considered to be not at a cell edge when a serving cell received signal level (e.g., Srxlev) is greater than a first threshold value (e.g., SSearchThresholdP_stationary) and a signal quality (e.g., Squat) is greater than a second threshold value (e.g., SSearchThresholdQ stationary), when the second threshold value is configured. In other words, when this not-at-cell-edge criterion is satisfied, the UE may be considered to not be at the cell edge” – See [0071]; The first RRM measurement criterion is a not-at-cell-edge criterion where the UE’s signal quality is above a threshold value).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Martin such that the first RRM measurement criterion comprises at least one of a not-at-cell-edge criterion or a low mobility criterion. Since a UE can be considered to be not at a cell edge when its signal quality is above a threshold, relaxation of measurements can easily be performed so that power savings can be increased at the UE (See He, [0048] and [0071]).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 13 is 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
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Scott M Sciacca whose telephone number is (571)270-1919. The examiner can normally be reached Monday thru Friday, 7:30 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. 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, Joseph Avellino can be reached at (571) 272-3905. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/SCOTT M SCIACCA/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2478