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
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 1, 3-14, and 16-31 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over LI et al. (Patent No: US 2021/0337467 A1), hereinafter, LI, in view of WU et al. (Patent No: US 2024/0237135 A1), hereinafter, WU.
The primary reference is also used in European Opinion Report.
Regarding Claim 1, LI teaches,
A user equipment (UE) comprising: one or more memories storing processor-executable code; and one or more processors coupled with the one or more memories and individually or collectively operable to execute the code to cause the UE to: -Fig. 5; Paragraph [0051] [ ([0051] recites, “The communication device may comprise a transceiver and processing circuitry. The transceiver in turn may comprise and/or function as a receiver and a transmitter. The processing circuitry may be one or more pieces of hardware such as one or more processors or any LSIs” [0215] recites, “Further, the various embodiments may also be implemented by means of software modules, which are executed by a processor or directly in hardware. Also a combination of software modules and a hardware implementation may be possible. The software modules may be stored on any kind of computer readable storage media, for example RAM, EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory, registers, hard disks, CD-ROM, DVD, etc.”)
transmit a request to extend the active duration of the cell DRX cycle during one or more cycles of the cell DRX cycle, -Fig. 12; Paragraph [0122] ([0122] recites, “In order to extend an ongoing active time, the UE may transmit to its serving base station (gNB) an extension request,..”)
wherein transmitting the request is based at least in part on a performance parameter associated with an uplink transmission satisfying a threshold; -Paragraph [0082] ( [0082] recites, “ The UE might include a value suggestion for one or more of the DRX parameters within the assistance information, the suggested DRX parameter value being different from the value of the respective DRX parameter currently used by the UE to operate the DRX mechanism. The UE might determine to change one or more DRX parameters because UE may choose the preferred scheduling interval and active duration based on the estimation of the traffic arrival interval and latency requirement.” As explained above, based on the performance parameter like latency or traffic arrival rate etc. meets certain value or threshold, UE might transmit the request to change the DRX parameters.)
and transmit the uplink transmission during the active duration of a cycle that is extended based at least in part on transmitting the request. -Fig. 13; Paragraph [0127] ([0127] recites, ” This is exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 13, which illustrates that during the extended active time, the BSR is transmitted by the UE to the gNB, the PDCCH is transmitted from the gNB to the UE, and the uplink transmission is performed by the UE”)
Although implicit, LI does not explicitly teach,
receive control signaling that indicates a cell discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle for a cell communicating with the UE, the cell DRX cycle alternating between an active duration during which the cell is monitoring for communications and an inactive duration during which the cell refrains from monitoring for communications;
However, in an analogous invention, WU teaches,
receive control signaling that indicates a cell discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle for a cell communicating with the UE, -Fig. 4; Paragraph [0189] (Fig. 4 shows flowchart of a method executed at UE. [0189] recites, “step S101: receiving semi-static configuration information related to a cell DTX (Discontinuous Transmission) and/or a cell DRX (Discontinuous Reception), and/or, receiving dynamic adjustment signaling related to a cell DTX and/or a cell DRX;”)
the cell DRX cycle alternating between an active duration during which the cell is monitoring for communications and an inactive duration during which the cell refrains from monitoring for communications; -Fig. 6; Paragraph [0226] ([0226] recites, “as shown in FIG. 6, the cell DRX state has periodicity, each cell DRX cycle including a duration of the active time of the cell DRX and another duration of the inactive time of the cell DRX, the active time of the cell DRX is at the front of the cell DRX cycle and the inactive time of the cell DRX is at the back of the cell DRX cycle, the duration of the active time of the cell DRX and the duration of the inactive time of the cell DRX together constitute the size of the cell DRX cycle.”)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the “User Equipment Involved in Transmitting UE Assistance Information” proposed by LI to include the concept of “receive control signaling that indicates a cell discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle for a cell communicating with the UE, the cell DRX cycle alternating between an active duration during which the cell is monitoring for communications and an inactive duration during which the cell refrains from monitoring for communications; ” of WU . One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification in order to effectively reduce the power consumption of the communication base station by discontinuous transmission and/or reception [0115].
Regarding Claim 3, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 1.
LI further teaches,
The UE of claim 1, wherein, to transmit the request, the one or more processors are individually or collectively operable to execute the code to cause the UE to: transmit the request at or before a time that is a duration prior to an end time of a current active duration of the cell DRX cycle. -Fig. 13 (Fig. 13 shows, as new data arrives, UE sends extension request during the active time (before the end of current active duration) to base station)
Regarding Claim 4, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 2.
LI further teaches,
The UE of claim 3, wherein the request is a buffer status report comprising a quantity of non-zero values, and wherein transmitting the request is based at least in part on the quantity of non-zero values satisfying a quantity threshold. -Paragraph [0127] ([0127] recites, “ When exemplarily assuming that the arrival of new data triggered the active time extension, the UE, during the extended active time, may transmit the BSR (Buffer Status Report) to the gNB, so as to be scheduled according with uplink radio resources (via a PDCCH DCI) to be able to then perform an uplink transmission of the new data. This is exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 13, which illustrates that during the extended active time, the BSR is transmitted by the UE to the gNB, the PDCCH is transmitted from the gNB to the UE, and the uplink transmission is performed by the UE.” As explained above, upon arrival of new data (buffer status exceed a certain value/threshold) that triggers the active time extension, UE may transmit BSR to gNB as shown in Fig. 13)
Regarding Claim 5, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 1.
LI further teaches,
The UE of claim 1, wherein, the request comprises a value associated with a scheduling request codebook, the value being one of: a first value that indicates for the cell is to maintain the cell DRX cycle, or a second value that indicates for the cell is to extend the active duration. -Paragraph [0142] ([0142] recites, “..the UE may use a PUCCH resource, which is available before the end of the DRX_ON (Active time). Particularly, the extension request can be transmitted in any of the configured resources within a time instance before the end of the active time, e.g., a periodic resource of every 5 ms. One possible exemplary configuration is that the extension request is transmitted in the last opportunity/instance within configured time instances. Exemplarily, the UE can reuse the configured radio resource for transmitting a scheduling request, and/or extend the current scheduling request indication to also carry the active time extension request.” As explained above, the UE can send scheduling request within the configured time instances (active duration) and also can carry active time extension request)
Regarding Claim 6, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 1.
LI further teaches,
The UE of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the UE to: identify a duration of time that the active duration is to be extended based at least in part on transmitting the request. -Paragraph [0122] ([0122] recites, “In order to extend an ongoing active time, the UE may transmit to its serving base station (gNB) an extension request, and then may autonomously determine to extend the active time. For instance, the UE, after transmitting the extension request, does not wait for a response from the gNB, but extends the active time on its own.” Therefore, as explained above UE autonomously determine the extension time duration of the active duration of DRX cycle based on the transmitted extension request)
Regarding Claim 7, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 1.
LI further teaches,
The UE of claim 1, wherein, to transmit the request, the one or more processors are individually or collectively operable to execute the code to cause the UE to: transmit, as part of the request, an indication of a duration of time to extend the active duration. -Paragraph [0128] ([0128] recites, “According to a different option, the length of the extended active time could be determined unilaterally by the UE, e.g., based on the trigger event for extending the active time. Optionally, information on the determined length of the extended active time can be transmitted to the gNB, e.g., together with the extension request.”)
Regarding Claim 8, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 7.
LI further teaches,
The UE of claim 7, wherein the duration of time is based at least in part on a packet size of the uplink transmission, a reference signal receive power condition of a channel associated with the uplink transmission, or both -Paragraph [0069, 0126] ([0069] recites, “the UE may try to predict the future data traffic in the uplink, e.g., from traffic characteristics that are available at higher layers. In one exemplary solution, the number of information bits can be determined by the UE from the typical packet size of the uplink traffic, and/or the typical arrival time of the uplink traffic, and/or a latency requirement to be fulfilled for the uplink traffic.” [0126] recites, “Extending the active time according to any one of the solutions and variants discussed herein may be triggered by a variety of reasons, such as the arrival of new data (as mentioned in connection with FIGS. 9 and 10) or the need to transmit a power headroom report (PHR) or simply that the UE is already aware that new data will come in the short future even though no new data is available for transmission right now.” As explained above UE determines the extension time duration based on predicting the future uplink data traffic partly based on e.g., packet size of the uplink transmission.)
Regarding Claim 9, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 1.
LI does not explicitly teach
The UE of claim 1, wherein a duration of time the active duration is extended by is semi-statically configured by the cell.
However, in an analogous invention, WU further teaches,
The UE of claim 1, wherein a duration of time the active duration is extended by is semi-statically configured by the cell. -Fig. 12; Paragraph [0115] ([0115] recites, “receiving semi-static configuration information related to a cell DTX and/or a cell DRX, and/or, receiving dynamic adjustment signaling related to a cell DTX and/or a cell DRX; and determining a state of the cell DTX and/or the cell DRX based on the semi-static configuration information and/or the dynamic adjustment signaling, wherein the state includes an active time and an inactive time” Active time extension request comes from the UE and it based on the request, cell can configure semi-statically)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the “User Equipment Involved in Transmitting UE Assistance Information” proposed by LI to include the concept of “a duration of time the active duration is extended by is semi-statically configured by the cell.” of WU . One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification in order to effectively reduce the power consumption of the communication base station by discontinuous transmission and/or reception [0115].
Regarding Claim 10, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 1.
LI further teaches,
The UE of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the UE to: receive second control signaling enabling the UE to request for extensions of the active duration of the cell DRX cycle based at least in part on a type of data traffic associated with the UE. -Paragraph [0128][0057] (The extended active time might be communicated to the UE (UE receives second control signal using RRC) [0128] recites, “This extended active time length can be, e.g., configured in advance between the UE and the gNB, e.g., using RRC.” [0057] recites, “It is exemplarily assumed that the UE is exchanging data with its serving base station (e.g., gNB), e.g., uplink data traffic from a particular application. The UE is configured to assist the gNB in determining the optimum uplink scheduling for allocating radio resource to the UE for transmitting the uplink data traffic.” As explained above, depending on the UL data traffic associated with any particular application (e.g., low latency data traffic etc.) and request for extension of active duration to assist base station in determining optimum uplink scheduling)
Regarding Claim 11, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 1.
LI further teaches
The UE of claim 1, wherein the uplink transmission is a low latency uplink transmission comprising ultra-reliable low latency communication data or extended reality data, the performance parameter is a latency parameter, and the threshold is a latency threshold -Fig. 3, 4; Paragraph [0034][0037-0039] ([0034] recites, “Use cases/deployment scenarios for NR could include enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communications (URLLC), massive machine type communication (mMTC), which have diverse requirements in terms of data rates, latency, and coverage.” Fig. 3, 4 shows UE assistance to BS for optimizing uplink transmission scheduling based on latency requirement and achieve less UE power consumption. [0037] recites, “One goal is to achieve less UE power consumption. One option in said respect is to minimize the time duration of an uplink transmission, so as increase the sleep opportunities for the UE. This can be done, e.g., by aggregating data transmissions as much as possible in each transmission opportunity, taking into account the latency requirements to be fulfilled for the data transmission.”)
Claim 12 is not a new feature and just implementation detail. It is easily understandable to an ordinary person with the skill in the art that the communication protocols are request/acknowledgement based. It is easily conceivable that base station, after receiving request to extend the active duration will send acknowledgement message to the UE. Claim 12 is therefore rejected.
Regarding Claim 13, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 1.
LI further teaches,
The UE of claim 1, wherein the request is one of a scheduling request message, a buffer status report message, uplink control information, a medium access control-control element, or a physical uplink control channel comprising a negative-acknowledgment. -Paragraph [0142][0127] ([0142] recites, “the UE can reuse the configured radio resource for transmitting a scheduling request, and/or extend the current scheduling request indication to also carry the active time extension request.” [0127] recites, “assuming that the arrival of new data triggered the active time extension, the UE, during the extended active time, may transmit the BSR (Buffer Status Report) to the gNB”)
Regarding Claim 14, LI teaches,
A cell of a network entity, comprising: one or more memories storing processor-executable code; and one or more processors coupled with the one or more memories and individually or collectively operable to execute the code to cause the cell to: -Fig. 5; Paragraph [0050-0051] [0215]([0050-0051] recites, “ The UE and eNB/gNB are communicating with each other over a (wireless) physical channel respectively using the transceiver. The communication device may comprise a transceiver and processing circuitry. The transceiver in turn may comprise and/or function as a receiver and a transmitter. The processing circuitry may be one or more pieces of hardware such as one or more processors or any LSIs” [0215] recites,” Further, the various embodiments may also be implemented by means of software modules, which are executed by a processor or directly in hardware. Also, a combination of software modules and a hardware implementation may be possible. The software modules may be stored on any kind of computer readable storage media, for example RAM, EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory, registers, hard disks, CD-ROM, DVD, etc.”)
receive a request to extend the active duration of the cell DRX cycle during one or more cycles of the cell DRX cycle, -Fig. 12; Paragraph [0122] ([0122] recites, “In order to extend an ongoing active time, the UE may transmit to its serving base station (gNB) an extension request,..” base station receives request from UE to extend active duration)
wherein transmitting the request is based at least in part on a performance parameter associated with an uplink transmission satisfying a threshold; -Paragraph [0082] ( [0082] recites, “ The UE might include a value suggestion for one or more of the DRX parameters within the assistance information, the suggested DRX parameter value being different from the value of the respective DRX parameter currently used by the UE to operate the DRX mechanism. The UE might determine to change one or more DRX parameters because UE may choose the preferred scheduling interval and active duration based on the estimation of the traffic arrival interval and latency requirement.” As explained above, based on the performance parameter like latency or traffic arrival rate etc. meets certain value/threshold, UE might transmit the request to change the DRX parameters.)
and receive the uplink transmission during the active duration of a cycle that is extended based at least in part on transmitting the request. -Fig. 13; Paragraph [0127] ([0127] recites, ” This is exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 13, which illustrates that during the extended active time, the BSR is transmitted by the UE to the gNB, the PDCCH is transmitted from the gNB to the UE, and the uplink transmission is performed by the UE” gNB (base station) receives uplink transmission)
Although implicit, LI does not explicitly teach,
transmit control signaling that indicates a cell discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle for the cell communicating with a user equipment (UE), the cell DRX cycle alternating between an active duration during which the cell is monitoring for communications and an inactive duration during which the cell refrains from monitoring for communications;
However, in an analogous invention, WU teaches,
transmit control signaling that indicates a cell discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle for the cell communicating with a user equipment (UE), -Fig. 4; Paragraph [0189] (Fig. 4 shows flowchart of a method executed at UE. [0189] recites, “step S101: receiving semi-static configuration information related to a cell DTX (Discontinuous Transmission) and/or a cell DRX (Discontinuous Reception), and/or, receiving dynamic adjustment signaling related to a cell DTX and/or a cell DRX;” As shown in Fig. 4, base station transmit control (configuration) signaling and UE receives cell DRX information from base station)
the cell DRX cycle alternating between an active duration during which the cell is monitoring for communications and an inactive duration during which the cell refrains from monitoring for communications; -Fig. 6; Paragraph [0226] ([0226] recites, “as shown in FIG. 6, the cell DRX state has periodicity, each cell DRX cycle including a duration of the active time of the cell DRX and another duration of the inactive time of the cell DRX, the active time of the cell DRX is at the front of the cell DRX cycle and the inactive time of the cell DRX is at the back of the cell DRX cycle, the duration of the active time of the cell DRX and the duration of the inactive time of the cell DRX together constitute the size of the cell DRX cycle.”)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the “User Equipment Involved in Transmitting UE Assistance Information” proposed by LI to include the concept of “transmit control signaling that indicates a cell discontinuous reception (DRX) cycle for the cell communicating with a user equipment (UE), the cell DRX cycle alternating between an active duration during which the cell is monitoring for communications and an inactive duration during which the cell refrains from monitoring for communications; ” of WU . One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification in order to effectively reduce the power consumption of the communication base station by discontinuous transmission and/or reception [0115].
Claim 16 is essentially the same as Claim 3 viewed from network side (i.e., cell transmit instead of UE receive). The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 3 which is rejected above. Claim 16 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 3.
Claim 17 is essentially the same as Claim 4 viewed from network side (i.e., cell transmit instead of UE receive). The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 4 which is rejected above. Claim 17 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 4.
Claim 18 is essentially the same as Claim 5 viewed from network side. The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 5 which is rejected above. Claim 18 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 5.
Claim 19 is essentially the same as Claim 6 viewed from network side (i.e., cell transmit instead of UE receive). The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 6 which is rejected above. Claim 19 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 6.
Claim 20 is essentially the same as Claim 7 viewed from network side (i.e., cell transmit instead of UE receive). The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 7 which is rejected above. Claim 20 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 7.
Claim 21 is essentially the same as Claim 8 viewed from network side. The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 8 which is rejected above. Claim 21 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 8.
Claim 22 is essentially the same as Claim 9 viewed from network side. The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 9 which is rejected above. Claim 22 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 9.
Claim 23 is essentially the same as Claim 10 viewed from network side (i.e., cell transmit instead of UE receive). The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 10 which is rejected above. Claim 23 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 10.
Claim 24 is essentially the same as Claim 11 viewed from network side. The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 11 which is rejected above. Claim 24 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 11.
Claim 25 is essentially the same as Claim 12 viewed from network side (i.e., cell transmit instead of UE receive). The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 12 which is rejected above. Claim 25 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 12.
Claim 26 is essentially the same as Claim 13 viewed from network side. The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 13 which is rejected above. Claim 26 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 13.
Regarding Claim 27, LI and WU combination teach the limitations of Claim 14.
Although implicit, LI does not explicitly teach,
The cell of claim 14, wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the cell to: extend the active duration of the cell DRX cycle by a duration of time for the one or more cycles.
However, in an analogous invention, WU teaches,
The cell of claim 14, wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the cell to: extend the active duration of the cell DRX cycle by a duration of time for the one or more cycles. -Fig. 4; Paragraph [0189] ( [0189] recites, “step S101: receiving semi-static configuration information related to a cell DTX (Discontinuous Transmission) and/or a cell DRX (Discontinuous Reception), and/or, receiving dynamic adjustment signaling related to a cell DTX and/or a cell DRX;” cell (base station) extends the active duration and sends adjustment signaling. The amount can be semi-statically/dynamically configured for a certain amount of time (for one or more cycles))
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the “User Equipment Involved in Transmitting UE Assistance Information” proposed by LI to include the concept of “extend the active duration of the cell DRX cycle by a duration of time for the one or more cycles.” of WU . One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification in order to effectively reduce the power consumption of the communication base station by discontinuous transmission and/or reception [0115].
Regarding Claim 28, LI and WU combination teach the limitations of Claim 14.
Although implicit, LI does not explicitly teach,
The cell of claim 14, wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the cell to: generate an additional active duration relative to a current active duration of the cell DRX cycle for the one or more cycles, wherein a start of the additional active duration is relative to an end of the current active duration.
However, in an analogous invention, WU teaches,
The cell of claim 14, wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the cell to: generate an additional active duration relative to a current active duration of the cell DRX cycle for the one or more cycles, wherein a start of the additional active duration is relative to an end of the current active duration. -Fig. 4; Paragraph [0189] ( [0189] recites, “step S101: receiving semi-static configuration information related to a cell DTX (Discontinuous Transmission) and/or a cell DRX (Discontinuous Reception), and/or, receiving dynamic adjustment signaling related to a cell DTX and/or a cell DRX;” cell (base station) generate and sends adjustment signaling which is relative to the end of the active duration, i.e., the extension period of the active duration. The amount can be semi-statically/dynamically configured for a certain amount of time (for one or more cycles))
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the “User Equipment Involved in Transmitting UE Assistance Information” proposed by LI to include the concept of “generate an additional active duration relative to a current active duration of the cell DRX cycle for the one or more cycles, wherein a start of the additional active duration is relative to an end of the current active duration.” of WU . One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification in order to effectively reduce the power consumption of the communication base station by discontinuous transmission and/or reception [0115].
Claim 29 is the method claim corresponding to the apparatus claim 1 which is rejected above. The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 1. Claim 29 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 1.
Claim 30 is the method claim corresponding to the apparatus claim 14 which is rejected above. The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 14. Claim 30 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 14.
Regarding Claim 31, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 1.
LI further teaches,
The UE of claim 1, wherein the active duration of the cycle that is extended comprises an extended active duration during which the cell is refraining from entering a sleep mode and is monitoring for communications in response to the request. -Fig. 13, Paragraph [0127] (Fig. 13 shows that during the extended active time, UE is transmitting BSR and also monitoring PDCCH from BS and is not in sleep mode. [0127] recites, “This is exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 13, which illustrates that during the extended active time, the BSR is transmitted by the UE to the gNB, the PDCCH is transmitted from the gNB to the UE, and the uplink transmission is performed by the UE.”)
Claims 2 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over LI in view of WU, and further in view of Alireza Babaei (Patent No: US 2024/0267987 A1), hereinafter, Babaei.
Regarding Claim 2, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 1.
Although implicit, LI does not explicitly teach,
The UE of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the UE to: receive second control signaling that indicates a plurality of cell DRX modes associated with the cell, wherein receiving the control signaling comprises receiving an indication to activate a first cell DRX mode of the plurality of cell DRX modes, wherein the first cell DRX mode includes the DRX cycle.
However, in an analogous invention Babaei teaches,
The UE of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are individually or collectively further operable to execute the code to cause the UE to: receive second control signaling that indicates a plurality of cell DRX modes associated with the cell, -Paragraph [0188] ([0188] recites, “ In an example, Cell DTX and Cell DRX modes may be configured and operated separately (e.g., one RRC configuration set for DL and another for UL). Cell DTX/DRX may also be configured and operated together. At least the following parameters may be configured per Cell DTX/DRX configuration: periodicity, start slot/offset, on duration. In an example multiple Cell DTX/DRX configurations may be configured for a wireless device and/or for a cell configured for a wireless device.”)
wherein receiving the control signaling comprises receiving an indication to activate a first cell DRX mode of the plurality of cell DRX modes, wherein the first cell DRX mode includes the DRX cycle. -Fig. 39; [0331] ([0331] recites, “FIG. 39 shows an example flow diagram in accordance with several of various embodiments of the present disclosure. At 3910, a wireless device may receive configuration parameters of a first cell, wherein the configuration parameters comprise first configuration parameters of a cell discontinuous transmission (DTX) discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration for the first cell. At 3920, the wireless device may receive a downlink control information. A first value of a field of the downlink control information indicates activation of the first cell DTX DRX configuration for the first cell.”)
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the “User Equipment Involved in Transmitting UE Assistance Information” proposed by LI to include the concept of “receive second control signaling that indicates a plurality of cell DRX modes associated with the cell, wherein receiving the control signaling comprises receiving an indication to activate a first cell DRX mode of the plurality of cell DRX modes, wherein the first cell DRX mode includes the DRX cycle” of Babaei. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification in order to increase control plane capacity without affecting the user plane of the network [0057].
Claim 15 is essentially the same as Claim 2 viewed from network side (i.e., cell transmit instead of UE receive). The Applicant’s attention is directed towards Claim 2 which is rejected above. Claim 15 is rejected under the same rational as Claim 2.
Response to Argument(s)
Applicant's argument(s) filed on February 28, 2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Therefore, the Examiner regretfully maintains the rejection.
The Applicant argues, For Claim 1
a UE transmitting a request to extend an active time for the UE is not the same as "one or more processors ... operable to execute the code to cause the UE to: transmit a request to extend the active duration of the cell DRX cycle during one or more cycles of the cell DRX cycle," and "transmit the uplink transmission during the active duration of a cycle that is extended based at least in part on transmitting the request," as recited in independent claim 1. (Page. 10)
In response, the Examiner regretfully does not agree.
As Li recites, [0122] “In order to extend an ongoing active time, the UE may transmit to its serving base station (gNB) an extension request, and then may autonomously determine to extend the active time. For instance, the UE, after transmitting the extension request, does not wait for a response from the gNB, but extends the active time on its own. Thereby, the “normal” DRX operation is momentarily suspended, because the UE stays in extended active time rather than following the normal DRX operation to enter DRX off time. The UE correspondingly proceeds to operate according to the extended active time.” It is obvious that whenever the requirement to extend the active of the DRX cycle is determined by the processor in the UE (control unit) and transmits the request to extend the DRX cycle as recited. Therefore, the assertion of the applicant in Examiner’s opinion is not right and the examiner does not agree to it. Because of this extension, the DRX cycle will be different from what was assigned at first.
Also for, “transmit the uplink transmission during the active duration of a cycle that is extended based at least in part on transmitting the request” Li recites, [0127] “When exemplarily assuming that the arrival of new data triggered the active time extension, the UE, during the extended active time, may transmit the BSR (Buffer Status Report) to the gNB, so as to be scheduled according with uplink radio resources (via a PDCCH DCI) to be able to then perform an uplink transmission of the new data. This is exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 13, which illustrates that during the extended active time, the BSR is transmitted by the UE to the gNB, the PDCCH is transmitted from the gNB to the UE, and the uplink transmission is performed by the UE.” As explained above clearly, UE transmit BSR in the uplink to the BS in the extended active time. Therefore, the examiner does not agree with the applicant assertion without any valid reasoning on why they are different)
The Applicant argues,
Li also fails to teach or suggest "wherein transmitting the request is based at least in part on a performance parameter associated with an uplink transmission satisfying a threshold," (Page. 11)
The Examiner’s response is the following
Li teaches, “( [0082] recites, “ The UE might include a value suggestion for one or more of the DRX parameters within the assistance information, the suggested DRX parameter value being different from the value of the respective DRX parameter currently used by the UE to operate the DRX mechanism. The UE might determine to change one or more DRX parameters because UE may choose the preferred scheduling interval and active duration based on the estimation of the traffic arrival interval and latency requirement.” As explained above, Traffic Arrival rate, latency etc. are performance parameters associated with the uplink and it is easily understandable to an ordinary person with the skill in the art that when the parameters meet certain value or threshold, UE might transmit the request to change/extend the DRX parameters in order to satisfy the arrival rate or latency requirements. The examiner does not agree with the applicant’s assertion without any valid reasoning as to why they are different)
The Applicant argues,
Wu fails to teach or suggest "one or more processors ...operable to execute the code to cause the UE to: transmit a request to extend the active duration of the cell DRX cycle during one or more cycles of the cell DRX cycle," and "transmit the uplink transmission during the active duration of a cycle that is extended based at least in part on transmitting the request," much less "wherein transmitting the request is based at least in part on a performance parameter associated with an uplink transmission satisfying a threshold," as recited in independent claim 1. (Page 11)
The Examiner’s response is the following,
The Examiner does not understand why the Applicant is focusing the same thing for the Wu reference. This part is already addressed by Li in complete and explained above. Wu addresses the part that was not explicitly mentioned by Li (although implicit and for this reason the Wu reference is brought in). This part of the claim is already addressed by Li and therefore no need to be addressed again by Wu.
Similarly, Babaei reference does not need to address this limitation as it has been already addressed by Li.
Therefore, all the limitations (including the one for which the applicant has concern) are addressed by the prior-art combination, and as such the examiner retains the rejection status. Similarly, the examiner is also retaining the rejection status for claims 1, 14, 29, and 30.
For, dependent claim 10 and 23, the Applicant argues,
However, a UE configured to assist a gNB in determining optimum uplink scheduling, or an extended active time length configured in advance between a UE and a gNB, is not the same as "receive second control signaling enabling the UE to request for extensions of the active duration of the cell DRX cycle," much less "receive second control signaling enabling the UE to request for extensions . .. based at least in part on a type of data traffic associated with the UE," as recited in dependent claim 10. (Page. 12)
The Examiner’s response is the following.
The Applicant just made an assertion without any valid reasoning as to why they are different. In Examiner’s opinion they are not different at all. Li teaches, -Paragraph [0128][0057] (The extended active time might be communicated to the UE (UE receives second control signal using RRC) [0128] recites, “This extended active time length can be, e.g., configured in advance between the UE and the gNB, e.g., using RRC.” This is the second signaling configuration and applies e.g., for extension of active time. [0057] recites, “It is exemplarily assumed that the UE is exchanging data with its serving base station (e.g., gNB), e.g., uplink data traffic from a particular application. The UE is configured to assist the gNB in determining the optimum uplink scheduling for allocating radio resource to the UE for transmitting the uplink data traffic.” As explained above, depending on the UL data traffic associated with any particular application (e.g., low latency data traffic etc.) and request for extension of active duration to assist base station in determining optimum uplink scheduling. The latency requirement or traffic arrival rate as explained in Claim 1 depend on type of data traffic associated with the UE. For example, voice, video, or internet data all have different requirements and based on any particular requirement need to send extension request may arise. The Examiner maintains the rejection status.)
For dependent Claims 2-13 and 15-25, 27 and 28, the Applicant argues,
Dependent claims 2-13 and 15-25, 27, and 28 each depend from one of independent
claims 1 and 14 and are therefore allowable for at least the same reasons that independent claims. (Page. 13)
The Examiner’s response is the following,
The Examiner with reasoning and citation from prior-art explained why the limitations of independent claims 1, 14 are addressed by the combination of prior-arts and therefore are rejected. Under the same rational, the examiner maintains the rejection status for claims 2-13 and 15-25, 27, and 28.
The new claim 31 is rejected with reasoning above using the same prior-art. It is addressed below for convenience.
Regarding Claim 31, LI and WU teach the limitations of Claim 1.
LI further teaches,
The UE of claim 1, wherein the active duration of the cycle that is extended comprises an extended active duration during which the cell is refraining from entering a sleep mode and is monitoring for communications in response to the request. -Fig. 13, Paragraph [0127] (Fig. 13 shows that during the extended active time, UE is transmitting BSR and also monitoring PDCCH from BS and is not in sleep mode. [0127] recites, “This is exemplarily illustrated in FIG. 13, which illustrates that during the extended active time, the BSR is transmitted by the UE to the gNB, the PDCCH is transmitted from the gNB to the UE, and the uplink transmission is performed by the UE.”)
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to AHMED SAIFUDDIN whose telephone number is (703)756-4581. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:30am-6:00pm.
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/AHMED SAIFUDDIN/Examiner, Art Unit 2475
/ABDULLAHI AHMED/Examiner, Art Unit 2475