Prosecution Insights
Last updated: May 29, 2026
Application No. 18/444,364

SSB TRANSMISSION FOR TRANSITION PERIOD FOR SCELL OPERATION

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Feb 16, 2024
Examiner
TRAN, TUAN A
Art Unit
2648
Tech Center
2600 — Communications
Assignee
Qualcomm Incorporated
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
85%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2m
Est. Remaining
92%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 85% — above average
85%
Career Allowance Rate
663 granted / 780 resolved
+23.0% vs TC avg
Moderate +7% lift
Without
With
+7.3%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 6m
Avg Prosecution
11 currently pending
Career history
795
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
4.7%
-35.3% vs TC avg
§103
59.7%
+19.7% vs TC avg
§102
15.5%
-24.5% vs TC avg
§112
7.0%
-33.0% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 780 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 § 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)(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 1-2, 10-12, 14-15 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by He (2024/0188089). Regarding claim 1, He discloses an apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), comprising: at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled to the at least one memory and, based at least in part on stored information that is stored in the at least one memory, the at least one processor, individually or in any combination (See fig. 2), is configured to: receive a configuration for synchronization signal blocks (SSBs) associated with a secondary cell (SCell) for a transition period associated with a transition from a deactivated state of the SCell to an activated state of the SCell for the UE (See fig. 4, step 405 and par [0046-0048, 0051-0053); and measure, during the transition period associated with an activation of the SCell for the UE, a first set of SSBs from the SCell based on the configuration (See figs. 4-5 and par [0054, 0058-0061]). Regarding claim 2, He discloses as cited in claim 1. He further discloses the first set of SSBs comprises a plurality of SSB bursts and the configuration indicates a frequency associated with the plurality of SSB bursts (See fig. 5). Regarding claim 10, He discloses as cited in claim 1. He further discloses the first set of SSBs are used as reference for identifying a quasi-co-location (QCL) of a tracking reference signal associated with the SCell (See par [0060-0061, 0069]). Regarding claim 11, He discloses as cited in claim 1. He further discloses the configuration is received from one of a primary cell (PCell), a primary SCell (PSCell), or an additional SCell (See fig. 4 and par [0046-0048]). Regarding claim 12, He discloses as cited in claim 1. He further discloses a transceiver coupled to the at least one processor, the transceiver being configured to receive the configuration via one or more of a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) (MAC-CE) or downlink control information (DCI) (See fig. 4, step 425 and par [0053]). Regarding claim 14, He discloses an apparatus for wireless communication at a network device, comprising: at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled to the at least one memory and, based at least in part on stored information that is stored in the at least one memory, the at least one processor, individually or in any combination (See fig. 3), is configured to: output a configuration for synchronization signal blocks (SSBs) from a secondary cell (SCell) associated with a transition period from a deactivated state of the SCell to an activated state of the SCell for a user equipment (UE) (See fig. 4, step 405 and par [0046-0048, 0051-0053); and output, during the transition period associated with an activation of the SCell for the UE, a first set of SSBs from the SCell based on the configuration (See figs. 4-5 and par [0054, 0058-0061]). Regarding claim 15, He discloses as cited in claim 14. He further discloses the first set of SSBs comprises a plurality of SSB bursts and the configuration indicates a frequency associated with the plurality of SSB bursts (See fig. 5). Regarding claim 19, He discloses as cited in claim 14. He further discloses a transceiver coupled to the at least one processor, the transceiver being configured to output the configuration via a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) (MAC-CE) (See fig. 4, step 425 and par [0053]). Allowable Subject Matter Claims 3-9, 13, 16-18 and 20 are 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. Regarding claims 3-5, He discloses as cited in claim 1. However, He does not disclose that the configuration is a first configuration, and wherein the at least one processor, individually or in any combination, is further configured to: receive a second configuration for SSBs associated with the SCell for an activated time period associated with the activated state of the SCell for the UE; and measure, during the activated time period, a second set of SSBs from the SCell based on the second configuration. Regarding claim 6, He discloses as cited in claim 1. However, He does not disclose that the configuration further configures at least one of: a second set of SSBs for an activated time period associated with the activated state of the SCell, a third set of SSBs for a deactivated time period associated with the deactivated state of the SCell, or an absence of SSBs for the deactivated time period associated with the deactivated state of the SCell. Regarding claim 7, He discloses as cited in claim 1. However, He does not disclose that the first set of SSBs from the SCell comprise a first set of SSB bursts associated with a first periodicity, wherein at least one SSB burst in the first set of SSB bursts is identified as a first SSB burst in a second set of SSBs associated with the SCell for an activated time period associated with the activated state of the SCell for the UE, wherein the second set of SSBs is associated with a second periodicity. Regarding claim 8, He discloses as cited in claim 1. However, He does not disclose that the first set of SSBs is measured during a measurement window, and the configuration for the SSBs comprises an indication of a timing offset from an end of the measurement window for a first SSB in a second set of SSBs associated with the SCell for an activated time period associated with the activated state of the SCell for the UE. Regarding claim 9, He discloses as cited in claim 1. However, He does not disclose that the configuration for the SSBs comprises an indication of a timing offset from an activation time to a first SSB in a second set of SSBs associated with the SCell for an activated time period associated with the activated state of the SCell for the UE. Regarding claim 13, He discloses as cited in claim 1. However, He does not disclose that when cell discontinuous transmission (DTX) is configured, the at least one processor, individually or in any combination, is configured to: measure aperiodic SSB transmissions and periodic SSB transmissions during a non-active period of the cell DTX, skip measurement of the aperiodic SSB transmissions and the periodic SSB transmissions during the non-active period of the cell DTX, or skip measurement of the periodic SSB transmissions and measure the aperiodic SSB transmissions during the non-active period of the cell DTX. Regarding claim 16, He discloses as cited in claim 14. However, He does not disclose that the first set of SSBs from the SCell comprise a first set of SSB bursts associated with a first periodicity, wherein at least one SSB burst in the first set of SSB bursts is identified as a first SSB burst in a second set of SSBs associated with the SCell for an activated time period associated with the activated state of the SCell for the UE, wherein the second set of SSBs is associated with a second periodicity. Regarding claim 17, He discloses as cited in claim 14. However, He does not disclose that the first set of SSBs is measured during a measurement window, and the configuration for the SSBs comprises an indication of a timing offset from an end of the measurement window for a first SSB in a second set of SSBs associated with the SCell for an activated time period associated with the activated state of the SCell for the UE. Regarding claim 18, He discloses as cited in claim 14. However, He does not disclose that the configuration for the SSBs comprises an indication of a timing offset from an activation time to a first SSB in a second set of SSBs associated with the SCell for an activated time period associated with the activated state of the SCell for the UE. Regarding claim 20, He discloses as cited in claim 14. However, He does not disclose that when cell discontinuous transmission (DTX) is configured, the at least one processor, individually or in any combination, is configured to: transmit aperiodic SSB transmissions and periodic SSB transmissions during a non-active period of the cell DTX, skip transmission of the aperiodic SSB transmissions and the periodic SSB transmissions during the non-active period of the cell DTX, or skip transmission of the periodic SSB transmissions and transmit the aperiodic SSB transmissions during the non-active period of the cell DTX. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See PTO-892 for a listing of cited prior arts of record. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to TUAN A TRAN whose telephone number is (571)272-7858. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri: 7:30 AM - 5:00 PM. 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, Wesley Kim can be reached at (571) 272-7867. 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. /TUAN A TRAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2648
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Feb 16, 2024
Application Filed
Jan 30, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

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

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
85%
Grant Probability
92%
With Interview (+7.3%)
2y 6m (~2m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 780 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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