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 .
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of the invention of Group 1 claims 19-25 in the reply filed on 08 May 2026 is acknowledged.
Claim Objections
New claims 37-47 are objected to for not being in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121 (c).
Furthermore, applicant is advised that should claim 24 be found allowable, claim 46 will be objected to under 37 CFR 1.75 as being a substantial duplicate thereof. When two claims in an application are duplicates or else are so close in content that they both cover the same thing, despite a slight difference in wording, it is proper after allowing one claim to object to the other as being a substantial duplicate of the allowed claim. See MPEP § 608.01(m).
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) 19-20, 22, 37-38 and 40 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Huang et al. (US 2018/0092022 A1).
Regarding claim 19, Huang appears to disclose a method, comprising:
receiving, from a network device, by a first terminal component used by a second terminal to access the network device, system information, wherein the first terminal component is one of a first terminal or a chip of the first terminal ([0286] disclosing “The relay UE can learn load conditions of the serving cell and/or the adjacent cell according to an Access Class Barring (ACB) parameter value broadcast in a system message SIB of the serving cell and/or the adjacent cell.”);
determining, based on the system information, that the second terminal fails to camp on a first cell of the network device ([0286] disclosing “in consideration of load balancing, the relay UE can merely send information of the cell in which it is located and/or the adjacent cell with relatively light load to the remote UE. For example, if the load of the cell in which the relay UE is located is heavy (which can be judged by the relay UE according to an AC parameter), then it is indicated that the cell in which the relay UE is located is barred to be accessed or the cell access probability parameter is broadcast…so as to prevent the [remote] UE from…attempting to access the cell in which the relay UE is located”); and
sending first indication information to the second terminal, wherein the first indication information indicates to break a sidelink between the first terminal component and the second terminal, or that the second terminal fails to camp on the first cell ([0184] disclosing “the first D2D UE receives the auxiliary information from the relay node, wherein the auxiliary information includes at least one of cell information of the first cell, cell information of the adjacent cell”; [0186]-[0188] disclosing the cell information includes cell access barred information to indicate the first D2D UE is barred to access the corresponding cell).
Regarding claim 20, Huang appears to disclose the method according to claim 19, wherein the system information indicates that the first cell is in an access-barred state, and wherein the second terminal fails to camp on the first cell of the network device ([0184], [0186]-[0188], [0286]).
Regarding claim 22, Huang appears to disclose the method according to claim 19, wherein the system information comprises first cell access status information, and wherein the first cell access status information comprises at least one of information indicating that the first cell is in an access-barred state or information indicating that the first cell is in a non-access-barred state ([0184], [0186]-[0188], [0286]).
Regarding claim 37, Huang appears to disclose a method, comprising:
receiving, from a network device, by a first terminal component that is used by a second terminal to access the network device, system information, wherein the first terminal component is one of a first terminal or a chip of the first terminal ([0286] disclosing “The relay UE can learn load conditions of the serving cell and/or the adjacent cell according to an Access Class Barring (ACB) parameter value broadcast in a system message SIB of the serving cell and/or the adjacent cell.”);
determining, based on the system information, that the second terminal fails to camp on a first cell of the network device ([0286] disclosing “in consideration of load balancing, the relay UE can merely send information of the cell in which it is located and/or the adjacent cell with relatively light load to the remote UE. For example, if the load of the cell in which the relay UE is located is heavy (which can be judged by the relay UE according to an AC parameter), then it is indicated that the cell in which the relay UE is located is barred to be accessed or the cell access probability parameter is broadcast…so as to prevent the [remote] UE from…attempting to access the cell in which the relay UE is located”); and
sending first indication information to the second terminal, wherein the first indication information indicates that the second terminal fails to camp on the first cell ([0184] disclosing “the first D2D UE receives the auxiliary information from the relay node, wherein the auxiliary information includes at least one of cell information of the first cell, cell information of the adjacent cell”; [0186]-[0188] disclosing the cell information includes cell access barred information to indicate the first D2D UE is barred to access the corresponding cell).
Regarding claim 38, Huang appears to disclose the method according to claim 37, wherein the system information indicates that the first cell is in an access-barred state, and wherein the second terminal fails to camp on the first cell of the network device ([0184], [0186]-[0188], [0286]).
Regarding claim 40, Huang appears to disclose the method according to claim 37, wherein the system information comprises first cell access status information, and wherein the first cell access status information comprises at least one of information indicating that the first cell is in an access-barred state or information indicating that the first cell is in a non-access-barred state ([0184], [0186]-[0188], [0286]).
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) 21, 24, 39, 42 and 46 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang et al. (US 2018/0092022 A1) in view of Tenny et al. (US 2018/0220356 A1).
Regarding claim 21, Huang appears to disclose the method according to claim 19, wherein determining, based on the system information, that the second terminal fails to camp on the first cell of the network device comprises:
determining based on the system information that the second terminal fails to camp on the first cell ([0184], [0186]-[0188], [0286]).
Huang does not disclose the following; however, Tenney suggests determining based on radio resource control (RRC) status information of the first terminal component ([0044], [0046] disclosing the relay UE in RRC_IDLE state must perform a RACH procedure to transition to RRC_CONNECTED state to serve as a relay; [0081] disclosing the relay UE in RRC_IDLE receives updated barring information and forwards it to the remote UE; [0083] disclosing the relay UE (in RRC_IDLE state) also performs barring procedure because the relay UE is the device actually occupying the physical random access channel).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the techniques of Huang as suggested by Tenny because this helps prevent system overload in high congestion areas or times or during emergencies ([0003]).
Regarding claim 24, Huang does not disclose the following; however, Tenny suggests the method according to claim 21, wherein the RRC status information of the first terminal component indicates a RRC status of the first terminal component ([0044], [0046], [0083]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the techniques of Huang as suggested by Tenny because this helps prevent system overload in high congestion areas or times or during emergencies ([0003]).
Regarding claim 39, Huang appears to disclose the method according to claim 37, wherein determining, based on the system information, that the second terminal fails to camp on the first cell of the network device comprises:
determining based on the system information that the second terminal fails to camp on the first cell ([0184], [0186]-[0188], [0286]).
Huang does not disclose the following; however, Tenney suggests determining based on radio resource control (RRC) status information of the first terminal component ([0044], [0046] disclosing the relay UE in RRC_IDLE state must perform a RACH procedure to transition to RRC_CONNECTED state to serve as a relay; [0081] disclosing the relay UE in RRC_IDLE receives updated barring information and forwards it to the remote UE; [0083] disclosing the relay UE (in RRC_IDLE state) also performs barring procedure because the relay UE is the device actually occupying the physical random access channel).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the techniques of Huang as suggested by Tenny because this helps prevent system overload in high congestion areas or times or during emergencies ([0003]).
Regarding claim 42, Huang does not disclose the following; however, Tenny suggests the method according to claim 39, wherein the RRC status information of the first terminal component indicates a RRC status of the first terminal component ([0044], [0046], [0083]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the techniques of Huang as suggested by Tenny because this helps prevent system overload in high congestion areas or times or during emergencies ([0003]).
Regarding claim 46, Huang does not disclose the following; however, Tenny suggests the method according to claim 21, wherein the RRC status information of the first terminal component indicates a RRC status of the first terminal component ([0044], [0046], [0083]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify the techniques of Huang as suggested by Tenny because this helps prevent system overload in high congestion areas or times or during emergencies ([0003]).
Claim(s) 23, 41 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang et al. (US 2018/0092022 A1) in view of Sharma et al. (US 2020/0367146 A1).
Regarding claim 23, Huang does not disclose the following; however, Sharma suggests the method according to claim 19, wherein the system information further comprises first cell reservation status information, wherein the first cell reservation status information indicates a reservation status of the first cell, and wherein the reservation status comprises at least one of the first cell being reserved for use by an operator, the first cell being restricted from other uses, or the first cell being restricted from future use ([0045], [0050] disclosing the system information indicates “reserved for operator use”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date if the invention to modify the techniques of Huang with the invention of Sharma because this allows remote UEs to access cells normally reserved for operator employees ([0050]).
Regarding claim 41, Huang does not disclose the following; however, Sharma suggests the method according to claim 37, wherein the system information further comprises first cell reservation status information, wherein the first cell reservation status information indicates a reservation status of the first cell, and wherein the reservation status comprises at least one of the first cell being reserved for use by an operator, the first cell being restricted from other uses, or the first cell being restricted from future use ([0045], [0050] disclosing the system information indicates “reserved for operator use”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date if the invention to modify the techniques of Huang with the invention of Sharma because this allows remote UEs to access cells normally reserved for operator employees ([0050]).
Claim(s) 25, 43-44 and 47 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang et al. (US 2018/0092022 A1) in view of LG Electronics Inc. “Relay (re-)selection and path switching”, 3GPP TSG-RAN WG2 Meeting #113e, Online Meeting, 2021 April 12- April 20, R2-2103994, hereafter D1.
Regarding claim 25, Huang does not disclose the following; however, D1 suggests the method according to claim 19, further comprising:
breaking the sidelink (Section 2.1 third triggering condition “when the relay UE is barred” disclosing when the relay UE is barred it cannot do a relaying operation and can directly trigger relay reselection of remote UE).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the techniques of Huang as suggested by D1 because the suggestion lies in D1 that this can improve service continuity (top of pg. 2 paragraph below excerpt from 3GPP TR 38.836).
Regarding claim 43, Huang appears to disclose a method comprising:
receiving, from a network device, by a first terminal component that is used by a second terminal to access the network device, system information, wherein the first terminal component is one of a first terminal or a chip of the first terminal ([0286] disclosing “The relay UE can learn load conditions of the serving cell and/or the adjacent cell according to an Access Class Barring (ACB) parameter value broadcast in a system message SIB of the serving cell and/or the adjacent cell.”);
determining, based on the system information, that the second terminal fails to camp on a first cell of the network device ([0286] disclosing “in consideration of load balancing, the relay UE can merely send information of the cell in which it is located and/or the adjacent cell with relatively light load to the remote UE. For example, if the load of the cell in which the relay UE is located is heavy (which can be judged by the relay UE according to an AC parameter), then it is indicated that the cell in which the relay UE is located is barred to be accessed or the cell access probability parameter is broadcast…so as to prevent the [remote] UE from…attempting to access the cell in which the relay UE is located”); and
sending first indication information to the second terminal, wherein the first indication information indicates that the second terminal fails to camp on the first cell ([0184] disclosing “the first D2D UE receives the auxiliary information from the relay node, wherein the auxiliary information includes at least one of cell information of the first cell, cell information of the adjacent cell”; [0186]-[0188] disclosing the cell information includes cell access barred information to indicate the first D2D UE is barred to access the corresponding cell).
Huang does not disclose the following; however, D1 suggests wherein the first indication information indicates to break a sidelink between the first terminal component and the second terminal (Section 2.1 third triggering condition “when the relay UE is barred” disclosing when the relay UE is barred it cannot do a relaying operation and can directly trigger relay reselection of remote UE).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the techniques of Huang as suggested by D1 because the suggestion lies in D1 that this can improve service continuity (top of pg. 2 paragraph below excerpt from 3GPP TR 38.836).
Regarding claim 44, Huang appears to disclose the method according to claim 43, wherein the system information comprises first cell access status information, and wherein the first cell access status information comprises at least one of information indicating that the first cell is in an access-barred state or information indicating that the first cell is in a non-access-barred state ([0184], [[0186]-[0188], [0286]).
Regarding claim 47, Huang does not disclose the following, however, D1 suggests the method according to claim 43, further comprising:
breaking the sidelink (Section 2.1 third triggering condition “when the relay UE is barred” disclosing when the relay UE is barred it cannot do a relaying operation and can directly trigger relay reselection of remote UE).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the techniques of Huang as suggested by D1 because the suggestion lies in D1 that this can improve service continuity (top of pg. 2 paragraph below excerpt from 3GPP TR 38.836).
Claim(s) 45 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Huang et al. (US 2018/0092022 A1) in view of D1, further in view of Sharma et al. (US 2020/0367146 A1).
Regarding claim 45, Huang does not disclose the following; however, Sharma suggests the method according to claim 43, wherein the system information further comprises first cell reservation status information, wherein the first cell reservation status information indicates a reservation status of the first cell, and wherein the reservation status comprises at least one of the first cell being reserved for use by an operator, the first cell being restricted from other uses, or the first cell being restricted from future use ([0045], [0050] disclosing the system information indicates “reserved for operator use”).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date if the invention to modify the techniques of Huang with the invention of Sharma because this allows remote UEs to access cells normally reserved for operator employees ([0050]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Joseph A Bednash whose telephone number is (571)270-7500. The examiner can normally be reached 7 AM - 4:30 PM M-F.
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/JOSEPH A BEDNASH/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2461
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