Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/435,834

Precoding Design for Integrated Sensing and Communication Systems

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
Feb 07, 2024
Examiner
MILLER, SHAWN D
Art Unit
2412
Tech Center
2400 — Computer Networks
Assignee
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
96%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 7m
To Grant
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 96% — above average
96%
Career Allow Rate
217 granted / 226 resolved
+38.0% vs TC avg
Moderate +6% lift
Without
With
+5.8%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 7m
Avg Prosecution
20 currently pending
Career history
246
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
2.7%
-37.3% vs TC avg
§103
61.0%
+21.0% vs TC avg
§102
16.5%
-23.5% vs TC avg
§112
10.1%
-29.9% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 226 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
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 § 103 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. 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. The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows: 1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art. 2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue. 3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art. 4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness. This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention. Claim(s) 1-3, 5-11, 13-18 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ji (US 2015/0341093 A1) in view of Liu (US 2019/0109679 A1). In particular, examiner is interpreting the instant claims in light of Ji Fig. 9 and Liu Fig. 4, respectively recreated below, as well as the associated paragraphs of the Specification(s). PNG media_image1.png 766 482 media_image1.png Greyscale PNG media_image2.png 776 314 media_image2.png Greyscale Regarding Claim 1, Ji discloses the below limitation(s): determining, based on one or more first signals from one or more second electronic devices (Ji Fig 9 block 910 receive configuration information regarding CSI-RSs (interpreted as the first signal)), determining, based on one or more second signals from one or more of the second electronic devices, channel state information for a communication functionality associated with the first electronic device (Fig 9 block 930 receive CSI-RS (interpreted as the second signal), perform channel estimation); generating, based on one or more of the sensing requirements or the channel state information, one or more codebooks ([0104] the PMI codebook information is information on a set of precoding matrixes available to the corresponding feedback. When no PMI codebook information is contained in the RRC information for feedback (i.e. first signal), the UE may determine that all precoding matrixes predefined in the standard are usable for feedback, which is interpreted as generating one or more codebooks); determining, based on one or more of the codebooks, a sensing precoder and a communication precoder (Fig 9 block 940 generate feedback information according to received feedback configuration information and defined codebook); and transmitting a sensing signal and a communication signal from the first electronic device, wherein the sensing signal is generated based on the sensing precoder, and wherein the communication signal is generated based on the communication precoder (Fig 9 block 930 perform channel estimation (interpreted as a sensing signal) and block 950 transmit feedback information (interpreted as the communication signal)). Ji does not disclose the below limitation(s): one or more sensing requirements for a sensing functionality associated with the first electronic device; In the same field of endeavor of measuring channel conditions at a UE, Liu does disclose the below limitation(s): one or more sensing requirements for a sensing functionality associated with the first electronic device (Liu [0067] ReportConfig includes one or more parameters for reporting channel measurement information, e.g. CSI type, codebook configuration including codebook subset restriction, time domain behavior of the reporting, frequency granularity, etc., which is interpreted as reading on at least "sensing requirements for a sensing functionality"); determining, based on one or more second signals from one or more of the second electronic devices, channel state information for a communication functionality associated with the first electronic device (Fig 3 block 309 send CSI-RS and block 311 measure SRS and/or Fig 4 block 409 receive CSI-RS); determining, based on one or more of the codebooks, a sensing precoder and a communication precoder (Fig 3 block 313 select precoder and block 315 send selected precoder information and/or Fig 4 block 411 determine candidate precoders); and transmitting a sensing signal and a communication signal from the first electronic device, wherein the sensing signal is generated based on the sensing precoder, and wherein the communication signal is generated based on the communication precoder (Fig 3 block 317 receive transmission from UE and/or Fig. 4 block 413 send precoded SRS (i.e. sensing signal via sensing precoder) and block 417 send precoded transmission (i.e. communication signal via communication precoder)). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the teaching of Ji to include a sensing requirement/parameter as taught by Liu. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to include a sensing requirement so that the sensing operation can be performed in the manner best suited to the network. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 2, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 1. Ji further discloses the below limitation(s): receiving, at the first electronic device from the one or more second electronic devices, the one or more first signals via one or more of an uplink signaling, a downlink signaling, or a control signaling (Ji Fig 9 block 910 receive configuration information regarding CSI-RSs (i.e. control signaling)). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include control signaling to trigger a sensing operation as taught by Ji. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to use control signaling to communicate a configuration for a sensing operation. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 3, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 1. Ji further discloses the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more sensing requirements comprise one or more of a metric informing a sensing direction, a metric informing a sensing location, a metric informing a sensing area, or a metric informing a desired sensing accuracy (Ji Fig 9 step 910 and associated [0192] On the basis of the received configuration information, the UE may identify information regarding at least one of the number of ports associated with each CSI-RS and resource positions of CSI-RS, which is interpreted as "a metric informing a sensing location"). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include identifying a metric, for example ports and/or resource positions for CSI-RS in a sensing operation configuration as taught by Ji. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to indicate a position for channel sensing in order to prevent interference during the sensing operation that could skew measurement result(s). Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 5, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 1. Ji does not disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more second signals comprise one or more of a sounding reference signal (SRS), a reference signal, or a pilot signal. In the same field of endeavor of measuring channel conditions at a UE, Liu does disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more second signals comprise one or more of a sounding reference signal (SRS), a reference signal, or a pilot signal (Liu Fig 4 block 413 send precoded SRS). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include sending an SRS as part of a sensing operation as taught by Liu. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to transmit an SRS to perform sensing as it is intended to be used for that purpose and is well-understood in the art. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 6, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 1. Ji further discloses the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more second signals comprise one or more explicit signals (Ji Fig 9 which transmits CSI-RS, which is interpreted as an explicit measurement signal), wherein the one or more codebooks comprise one or more sensing codebooks ([0104] PMI codebook information is information on a set of precoding matrixes available to the corresponding feedback, which is interpreted as a "sensing codebook"), wherein the sensing precoder is determined further based on the one or more sensing requirements and the one or more sensing codebooks ([0032] precoded matrix indicator (PMI) is an index to the precoding matrix preferred by the UE in the current channel condition), and wherein the communication precoder is determined further based on the sensing precoder ([0104] PMI codebook information is information on a set of precoding matrixes available to the corresponding feedback, which is interpreted as encompassing both a communication precoder for providing the feedback information). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include transmit explicit sensing signals according to a determined codebook configured for that purpose as taught by Ji. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to use explicit signaling to enable the base station to more efficiently perform the sensing operation. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 7, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 1. Ji further discloses the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more second signals comprise one or more implicit signals (Ji [0032] precoded matrix indicator (PMI) is an index to the precoding matrix preferred by the UE in the current channel condition, and wherein the instant Specification [0055] teaches PMI as an exemplary implicit signaling-based precoder design), receiving, from one or more of the second electronic devices, one or more reference-signal reports ([0003] UE measures radio channel quality and reports the measurement result to a base station); wherein generating the one or more codebooks comprises generating one or more system codebooks based on the one or more sensing requirements and the one or more reference-signal reports ([0104] PMI codebook information is information on a set of precoding matrixes available to the corresponding feedback, which is interpreted as a "sensing codebook"), and wherein the sensing precoder and the communication precoder are determined further based on the one or more system codebooks (Fig 9 block 940 generate feedback information according to received feedback configuration information and defined codebook). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include using implicit signaling for a sensing operation as taught by Ji. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to use implicit signaling to multiplex different signals and lower congestion while simultaneously performing a sensing operation. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 8, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 1. Ji further discloses the below limitation(s): transmitting, from the first electronic device to one or more of the second devices, information associated with the sensing precoder and the communication precoder (Ji [0030] UE feedbacks the following information to eNB: [0032] Precoder Matrix Indicator (PMI) is an index to the precoding matrix preferred by the UE in the current channel condition and [0104] PMI codebook information is information on a set of precoding matrixes available to the corresponding feedback). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include indicating the selected precoder(s) to the network device via, for example, PMI as taught by Ji. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to indicate the selected precoders to the base station to make subsequent decoding more efficient. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 9, Ji discloses the below limitation(s): determine, based on one or more first signals from one or more second electronic devices (Ji Fig 9 block 910 receive configuration information regarding CSI-RSs (interpreted as the first signal)), determine, based on one or more second signals from one or more of the second electronic devices, channel state information for a communication functionality associated with the first electronic device (Fig 9 block 930 receive CSI-RS (interpreted as the second signal), perform channel estimation); generate, based on one or more of the sensing requirements or the channel state information, one or more codebooks ([0104] the PMI codebook information is information on a set of precoding matrixes available to the corresponding feedback. When no PMI codebook information is contained in the RRC information for feedback (i.e. first signal), the UE may determine that all precoding matrixes predefined in the standard are usable for feedback, which is interpreted as generating one or more codebooks); determine, based on one or more of the codebooks, a sensing precoder and a communication precoder (Fig 9 block 940 generate feedback information according to received feedback configuration information and defined codebook); and transmit a sensing signal and a communication signal from the first electronic device, wherein the sensing signal is generated based on the sensing precoder, and wherein the communication signal is generated based on the communication precoder (Fig 9 block 930 perform channel estimation (interpreted as a sensing signal) and block 950 transmit feedback information (interpreted as the communication signal)). Ji does not disclose the below limitation(s): one or more sensing requirements for a sensing functionality associated with the first electronic device; In the same field of endeavor of measuring channel conditions at a UE, Liu does disclose the below limitation(s): one or more sensing requirements for a sensing functionality associated with the first electronic device (Liu [0067] ReportConfig includes one or more parameters for reporting channel measurement information, e.g. CSI type, codebook configuration including codebook subset restriction, time domain behavior of the reporting, frequency granularity, etc., which is interpreted as reading on at least "sensing requirements for a sensing functionality"); determine, based on one or more second signals from one or more of the second electronic devices, channel state information for a communication functionality associated with the first electronic device (Fig 3 block 309 send CSI-RS and block 311 measure SRS and/or Fig 4 block 409 receive CSI-RS); determine, based on one or more of the codebooks, a sensing precoder and a communication precoder (Fig 3 block 313 select precoder and block 315 send selected precoder information and/or Fig 4 block 411 determine candidate precoders); and transmit a sensing signal and a communication signal from the first electronic device, wherein the sensing signal is generated based on the sensing precoder, and wherein the communication signal is generated based on the communication precoder (Fig 3 block 317 receive transmission from UE and/or Fig. 4 block 413 send precoded SRS (i.e. sensing signal via sensing precoder) and block 417 send precoded transmission (i.e. communication signal via communication precoder)). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the teaching of Ji to include a sensing requirement/parameter as taught by Liu. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to include a sensing requirement so that the sensing operation can be performed in the manner best suited to the network. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 10, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 9. Ji further discloses the below limitation(s): receiving, at the first electronic device from the one or more second electronic devices, the one or more first signals via one or more of an uplink signaling, a downlink signaling, or a control signaling (Ji Fig 9 block 910 receive configuration information regarding CSI-RSs (i.e. control signaling)). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include control signaling to trigger a sensing operation as taught by Ji. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to use control signaling to communicate a configuration for a sensing operation. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 11, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 9. Ji further discloses the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more sensing requirements comprise one or more of a metric informing a sensing direction, a metric informing a sensing location, a metric informing a sensing area, or a metric informing a desired sensing accuracy (Ji Fig 9 step 910 and associated [0192] On the basis of the received configuration information, the UE may identify information regarding at least one of the number of ports associated with each CSI-RS and resource positions of CSI-RS, which is interpreted as "a metric informing a sensing location"). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include identifying a metric, for example ports and/or resource positions for CSI-RS in a sensing operation configuration as taught by Ji. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to indicate a position for channel sensing in order to prevent interference during the sensing operation that could skew measurement result(s). Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 13, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 19 Ji does not disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more second signals comprise one or more of a sounding reference signal (SRS), a reference signal, or a pilot signal. In the same field of endeavor of measuring channel conditions at a UE, Liu does disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more second signals comprise one or more of a sounding reference signal (SRS), a reference signal, or a pilot signal (Liu Fig 4 block 413 send precoded SRS). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include sending an SRS as part of a sensing operation as taught by Liu. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to transmit an SRS to perform sensing as it is intended to be used for that purpose and is well-understood in the art. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 14, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 9. Ji further discloses the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more second signals comprise one or more explicit signals (Ji Fig 9 which transmits CSI-RS, which is interpreted as an explicit measurement signal), wherein the one or more codebooks comprise one or more sensing codebooks ([0104] PMI codebook information is information on a set of precoding matrixes available to the corresponding feedback, which is interpreted as a "sensing codebook"), wherein the sensing precoder is determined further based on the one or more sensing requirements and the one or more sensing codebooks ([0032] precoded matrix indicator (PMI) is an index to the precoding matrix preferred by the UE in the current channel condition), and wherein the communication precoder is determined further based on the sensing precoder ([0104] PMI codebook information is information on a set of precoding matrixes available to the corresponding feedback, which is interpreted as encompassing both a communication precoder for providing the feedback information). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include transmit explicit sensing signals according to a determined codebook configured for that purpose as taught by Ji. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to use explicit signaling to enable the base station to more efficiently perform the sensing operation. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 15, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 9. Ji further discloses the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more second signals comprise one or more implicit signals (Ji [0032] precoded matrix indicator (PMI) is an index to the precoding matrix preferred by the UE in the current channel condition, and wherein the instant Specification [0055] teaches PMI as an exemplary implicit signaling-based precoder design), receiving, from one or more of the second electronic devices, one or more reference-signal reports ([0003] UE measures radio channel quality and reports the measurement result to a base station); wherein generating the one or more codebooks comprises generating one or more system codebooks based on the one or more sensing requirements and the one or more reference-signal reports ([0104] PMI codebook information is information on a set of precoding matrixes available to the corresponding feedback, which is interpreted as a "sensing codebook"), and wherein the sensing precoder and the communication precoder are determined further based on the one or more system codebooks (Fig 9 block 940 generate feedback information according to received feedback configuration information and defined codebook). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include using implicit signaling for a sensing operation as taught by Ji. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to use implicit signaling to multiplex different signals and lower congestion while simultaneously performing a sensing operation. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 16, Ji discloses the below limitation(s): determine, based on one or more first signals from one or more second electronic devices (Ji Fig 9 block 910 receive configuration information regarding CSI-RSs (interpreted as the first signal)), determine, based on one or more second signals from one or more of the second electronic devices, channel state information for a communication functionality associated with the first electronic device (Fig 9 block 930 receive CSI-RS (interpreted as the second signal), perform channel estimation); generate, based on one or more of the sensing requirements or the channel state information, one or more codebooks ([0104] the PMI codebook information is information on a set of precoding matrixes available to the corresponding feedback. When no PMI codebook information is contained in the RRC information for feedback (i.e. first signal), the UE may determine that all precoding matrixes predefined in the standard are usable for feedback, which is interpreted as generating one or more codebooks); determine, based on one or more of the codebooks, a sensing precoder and a communication precoder (Fig 9 block 940 generate feedback information according to received feedback configuration information and defined codebook); and transmit a sensing signal and a communication signal from the first electronic device, wherein the sensing signal is generated based on the sensing precoder, and wherein the communication signal is generated based on the communication precoder (Fig 9 block 930 perform channel estimation (interpreted as a sensing signal) and block 950 transmit feedback information (interpreted as the communication signal)). Ji does not disclose the below limitation(s): one or more sensing requirements for a sensing functionality associated with the first electronic device; In the same field of endeavor of measuring channel conditions at a UE, Liu does disclose the below limitation(s): one or more sensing requirements for a sensing functionality associated with the first electronic device (Liu [0067] ReportConfig includes one or more parameters for reporting channel measurement information, e.g. CSI type, codebook configuration including codebook subset restriction, time domain behavior of the reporting, frequency granularity, etc., which is interpreted as reading on at least "sensing requirements for a sensing functionality"); determine, based on one or more second signals from one or more of the second electronic devices, channel state information for a communication functionality associated with the first electronic device (Fig 3 block 309 send CSI-RS and block 311 measure SRS and/or Fig 4 block 409 receive CSI-RS); determining, based on one or more of the codebooks, a sensing precoder and a communication precoder (Fig 3 block 313 select precoder and block 315 send selected precoder information and/or Fig 4 block 411 determine candidate precoders); and transmit a sensing signal and a communication signal from the first electronic device, wherein the sensing signal is generated based on the sensing precoder, and wherein the communication signal is generated based on the communication precoder (Fig 3 block 317 receive transmission from UE and/or Fig. 4 block 413 send precoded SRS (i.e. sensing signal via sensing precoder) and block 417 send precoded transmission (i.e. communication signal via communication precoder)). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the teaching of Ji to include a sensing requirement/parameter as taught by Liu. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to include a sensing requirement so that the sensing operation can be performed in the manner best suited to the network. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 17, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 16. Ji further discloses the below limitation(s): receiving, at the first electronic device from the one or more second electronic devices, the one or more first signals via one or more of an uplink signaling, a downlink signaling, or a control signaling (Ji Fig 9 block 910 receive configuration information regarding CSI-RSs (i.e. control signaling)). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include control signaling to trigger a sensing operation as taught by Ji. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to use control signaling to communicate a configuration for a sensing operation. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 18, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 16. Ji further discloses the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more sensing requirements comprise one or more of a metric informing a sensing direction, a metric informing a sensing location, a metric informing a sensing area, or a metric informing a desired sensing accuracy (Ji Fig 9 step 910 and associated [0192] On the basis of the received configuration information, the UE may identify information regarding at least one of the number of ports associated with each CSI-RS and resource positions of CSI-RS, which is interpreted as "a metric informing a sensing location"). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include identifying a metric, for example ports and/or resource positions for CSI-RS in a sensing operation configuration as taught by Ji. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to indicate a position for channel sensing in order to prevent interference during the sensing operation that could skew measurement result(s). Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 20, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 16. Ji does not disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more second signals comprise one or more of a sounding reference signal (SRS), a reference signal, or a pilot signal. In the same field of endeavor of measuring channel conditions at a UE, Liu does disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more second signals comprise one or more of a sounding reference signal (SRS), a reference signal, or a pilot signal (Liu Fig 4 block 413 send precoded SRS). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include sending an SRS as part of a sensing operation as taught by Liu. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to transmit an SRS to perform sensing as it is intended to be used for that purpose and is well-understood in the art. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji and Liu to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Claim(s) 4, 12 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ji in view of Liu and further in view of Ding (US 2024/0292194 A1). Regarding Claim 4, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 1. Ji and Liu do not disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more sensing requirements are determined based on a radar waveform distortion on a desired sensing direction. In the same field of endeavor of measuring channel conditions at a UE, Ding does disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more sensing requirements are determined based on a radar waveform distortion on a desired sensing direction (Ding [0211] first sensing signal related configuration information (i.e. sensing requirement) may include: [0212] waveform, which may specifically include: a radar signal waveform). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include configuring sensing based on a radar signal waveform as taught by Ding. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to enable sensing of channels associated with radars in order to enable the system to use radar without interference and/or congestion. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji, Liu and Ding to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 12, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 9. Ji and Liu do not disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more sensing requirements are determined based on a radar waveform distortion on a desired sensing direction. In the same field of endeavor of measuring channel conditions at a UE, Ding does disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more sensing requirements are determined based on a radar waveform distortion on a desired sensing direction (Ding [0211] first sensing signal related configuration information (i.e. sensing requirement) may include: [0212] waveform, which may specifically include: a radar signal waveform). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include configuring sensing based on a radar signal waveform as taught by Ding. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to enable sensing of channels associated with radars in order to enable the system to use radar without interference and/or congestion. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji, Liu and Ding to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Regarding Claim 19, Ji and Liu disclose the limitation(s) of Claim 16. Ji and Liu do not disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more sensing requirements are determined based on a radar waveform distortion on a desired sensing direction. In the same field of endeavor of measuring channel conditions at a UE, Ding does disclose the below limitation(s): wherein the one or more sensing requirements are determined based on a radar waveform distortion on a desired sensing direction (Ding [0211] first sensing signal related configuration information (i.e. sensing requirement) may include: [0212] waveform, which may specifically include: a radar signal waveform). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the aforementioned method/electronic device to include configuring sensing based on a radar signal waveform as taught by Ding. The suggestion/motivation to do so would have been to enable sensing of channels associated with radars in order to enable the system to use radar without interference and/or congestion. Therefore, it would have been obvious to combine Ji, Liu and Ding to obtain the invention, as specified in the instant claim. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SHAWN D MILLER whose telephone number is (571)272-8599. The examiner can normally be reached M-TR 8-5. 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, Charles C Jiang can be reached at (571) 270-7191. 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. /SHAWN D MILLER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2412 /CHARLES C JIANG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2412
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Prosecution Timeline

Feb 07, 2024
Application Filed
Apr 01, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §103 (current)

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Patent 12604253
ANALYTICS AND PATH SELECTION
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12598154
METHODS, SYSTEMS, AND DEVICES TO ENABLE AN ASSOCIATION BETWEEN A BASE STATION AND AN ACCESS & MOBILITY MANAGEMENT FUNCTION (AMF) IN THE MOBILE NETWORK CORE LOCATED IN THE PUBLIC CLOUD NETWORK THROUGH A NETWORK ADDRESS TRANSLATION (NAT) GATEWAY
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12598544
CORRELATING A USER EQUIPMENT AND AN ACCESS AND MOBILITY MANAGEMENT FUNCTION
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12598508
UTILIZING CELLULAR QUALITY OF SERVICE GUARANTEED CHANNELS FOR OVER-THE-TOP APPLICATIONS
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 07, 2026
Patent 12588005
MANAGEMENT METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR SHARED RADIO UNIT
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 24, 2026
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
96%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+5.8%)
2y 7m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 226 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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