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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 1/17/25 and 1/21/25. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 9, 11, 12, 14, 16, 17, 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Patwardhan et al. (US Publication 2017/0064770).
Regarding claims 1 and 11, Patwardhan teaches an apparatus and a communication method, comprising: (i.e. fig. 3 shows wireless communication between a UE and base station, each comprising a processor, memory and transceiver for executing programmed instructions; see paragraphs 44 - 46)
sending first signaling, wherein the first signaling indicates at least one of a length or a start time unit of each discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle in a plurality of DRX cycles, and wherein at least two DRX cycles of the plurality of DRX cycles have different lengths; (i.e. fig. 4 shows a base station (105) may transmit configuration signaling (400) to a UE (115), the configuration including DTX parameters indicating lengths for both short and long DRX cycles, the parameters also including a timer indicating how many short or long cycles to perform before switching cycle length, indicating a plurality of DRX cycles of different lengths; see paragraph 53, 54) and
transmitting information based on the plurality of DRX cycles. (i.e. fig. 4 shows communications between the UE and base station based upon DRX configuration parameters (406, 408); see paragraphs 54)
Regarding claims 2 and 12, Patwardhan teaches the method according to claim 1, wherein there is a correspondence between the start time unit of each DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles, a start offset, and a period. (i.e. the configuration of the plurality DRX cycles from the parameter information also comprises in addition to the cycle length a start time, offset and period information; see paragraph 54)
Regarding claims 4 and 14, Patwardhan teaches the method according to claim 1, wherein there is a correspondence between the length of each DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles and a period.
Regarding claims 6 and 16, Patwardhan teaches an apparatus and a communication method, comprising: (i.e. fig. 3 shows wireless communication between a UE and base station, each comprising a processor, memory and transceiver for executing programmed instructions; see paragraphs 44 - 46)
receiving first signaling, wherein the first signaling indicates at least one of a length or a start time unit of each discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle in a plurality of DRX cycles, and wherein at least two DRX cycles of the plurality of DRX cycles have different lengths; (i.e. fig. 4 shows a base station (105) may transmit configuration signaling (400) to a UE (115), the configuration including DTX parameters indicating lengths for both short and long DRX cycles, the parameters also including a timer indicating how many short or long cycles to perform before switching cycle length, indicating a plurality of DRX cycles of different lengths; see paragraph 53, 54) and
transmitting information based on the plurality of DRX cycles. (i.e. fig. 4 shows communications between the UE and base station based upon DRX configuration parameters (406, 408); see paragraphs 54)
Regarding claims 7 and 17, Patwardhan teaches the method according to claim 6, wherein there is a correspondence between the start time unit of each DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles, a start offset, and a period. (i.e. the configuration of the plurality DRX cycles from the parameter information also comprises in addition to the cycle length a start time, offset and period information; see paragraph 54)
Regarding claims 9 and 19, Patwardhan teaches the method according to claim 6, wherein there is a correspondence between the length of each DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles and a period.
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.
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.
Claims 3, 5, 8, 10, 13, 15, 18, 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being obvious over Patwardhan et al. (US Publication 2017/0064770).
Regarding claim 3 and 13, Patwardhan discloses all the recited limitations of claim 2 and 12 as described previously from which claims 3 and 13 depend. Patwardhan does not teach wherein a start time unit of an nth DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles satisfies the following formula: start time unit of the nth DRX cycle=fun(Tx(n-1)+startoffset, wherein fun is a rounding function, n is a positive integer, startoffset is the start offset, and T is the period.
It would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the art before the time the invention was filed to use the formula: “fun(Tx(n-1)+startoffset” to find a start time of a particular DRX cycle unit in a plurality of cycles. The prior formula simply adds to the start time of the first DRX cycle (startoffset) to the product of the period or length of a single DRX cycle and the integer number of the instant DRX cycle unit. A simple example being we need to find the time at which a particular boxcar in a train, say boxcar 10, passes a station, we would need the time the first boxcar passes the station (startoffset) and add this to the time it takes each boxcar to pass the station (period) times the boxcar we want, 10 in this case.
A person with ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification to Patwardhan to improve network performance by finding a particular DRX cycle for different data or network types.
Regarding claim 5 and 15, Patwardhan discloses all the recited limitations of claim 4 and 14 as described previously from which claims 5 and 15 depend. Patwardhan does not teach wherein a length of an nth DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles satisfies the following formula: length of the nth DRX cycle=fun(Txn)-fun(Tx(n-1)), wherein fun is a rounding function, n is a positive integer, and T is the period.
It would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the art before the time the invention was filed to use the formula: “fun(Txn)-fun(Tx(n-1))” to find a length or period of a particular DRX cycle unit in a plurality of cycles. The prior formula simply subtracts the total transmission period or length up to the prior DRC unit from total transmission period or length of the instant DRX unit.
A person with ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification to Patwardhan to improve network performance by finding a particular DRX cycle for different data or network types.
Regarding claim 8 and 18, Patwardhan discloses all the recited limitations of claim 7 and 17 as described previously from which claims 8 and 18 depend. Patwardhan does not teach wherein a start time unit of an nth DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles satisfies the following formula: start time unit of the nth DRX cycle=fun(Tx(n-1)+startoffset, wherein fun is a rounding function, n is a positive integer, startoffset is the start offset, and T is the period.
It would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the art before the time the invention was filed to use the formula: “fun(Tx(n-1)+startoffset” to find a start time of a particular DRX cycle unit in a plurality of cycles. The prior formula simply adds to the start time of the first DRX cycle (startoffset) to the product of the period or length of a single DRX cycle and the integer number of the instant DRX cycle unit. A simple example being we need to find the time at which a particular boxcar in a train, say boxcar 10, passes a station, we would need the time the first boxcar passes the station (startoffset) and add this to the time it takes each boxcar to pass the station (period) times the boxcar we want, 10 in this case.
A person with ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification to Patwardhan to improve network performance by finding a particular DRX cycle for different data or network types.
Regarding claim 10 and 20, Patwardhan discloses all the recited limitations of claim 9 and 19 as described previously from which claims 10 and 20 depend. Patwardhan does not teach wherein a length of an nth DRX cycle of the plurality of DRX cycles satisfies the following formula: length of the nth DRX cycle=fun(Txn)-fun(Tx(n-1)), wherein fun is a rounding function, n is a positive integer, and T is the period.
It would have been obvious to a person with ordinary skill in the art before the time the invention was filed to use the formula: “fun(Txn)-fun(Tx(n-1))” to find a length or period of a particular DRX cycle unit in a plurality of cycles. The prior formula simply subtracts the total transmission period or length up to the prior DRC unit from total transmission period or length of the instant DRX unit.
Conclusion
A person with ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make the modification to Patwardhan to improve network performance by finding a particular DRX cycle for different data or network types.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ROBERT J LOPATA whose telephone number is (571)270-5158. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 10-7 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, Sujoy Kundu can be reached at (571)272-8586. 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.
ROBERT J. LOPATA
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2471
/ROBERT J LOPATA/
January 27, 2026Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2471