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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 09/12/2023, 01/02/2024 and 10/14/2024 are considered by the examiner. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97.
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.
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) 1-2, 4, 10-12, 14 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Qiu et al. (US 2020/0037380; hereinafter Qiu) in view of Gopal et al. (US 2022/0248206; hereinafter Gopal).
Regarding claim 1, Qiu shows an electronic device (Figure 5 shows a mobile phone/terminal performing in part the disclosed method of Figures 8 and 14.), comprising:
a radio frequency (RF) circuit including a plurality of radio frequency front ends (RFFEs) and a plurality of antennas connected to the plurality of RFFEs (Figure 5; Par. 0103-104; transceiver/RF circuit includes two radio frequency Rx channels and one radio frequency Tx channel and connected to one or more antennas.); and
at least one communication processor operatively connected to the RF circuit (Figure 5 shows the terminal includes a processor coupled to the transceiver.), wherein the at least one communication processor is configured to:
control the RF circuit to receive a paging signal from a second communication network in a radio resource control (RRC) idle (RRC_IDLE) state (Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0076, 0151, 0153, 0160; terminal receives a paging request for SIM card 2 in the idle time period (RRC IDLE) that is sent by the base station.),
identify whether the paging signal is a paging signal for a voice call (Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0140, 0163-0165; if the paging request carries the first identifier for a second service (i.e. voice call), the terminal 100 responds to the paging request.),
based on the paging signal being the paging signal for the voice call (Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0140, 0163-0165; the paging request for a second service (i.e. voice call).), select at least one RF path related to a second subscriber identity module (SIM) among a plurality of RF paths supportable by the electronic device (Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0105, 0166-0168; “communication data related to the SIM card 2 is routed to the secondary signal input end of the modem 580 through a secondary RF path, namely, Rx2 of the transceiver 590. Terminal sends RRC signaling to the base station in response to the paging request, to establish an RRC connection to the base station based on the SIM card 2), and
control the RF circuit to perform a random access procedure to the second communication network through the selected at least one RF path (Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0166-0168; terminal sends RRC signaling to the base station in response to the paging request, to establish an RRC connection to the base station based on the SIM card 2.), and
wherein the second SIM is for accessing the second communication network, and a first SIM is for accessing a first communication network (Figure 2; Par. 0076-0078, 0083; SIM card 2 is for accessing a second network and SIM card 1 is for accessing a first network.).
Qiu shows all of the elements as discussed above. Qiu does not specifically show a second subscriber identity module (SIM) which satisfies a first condition among a plurality of RF paths supportable by the electronic device.
However, the above-mentioned claim limitations are well-established in the art as evidenced by Gopal. Specifically, Gopal shows a second subscriber identity module (SIM) which satisfies a first condition among a plurality of RF paths supportable by the electronic device (Figures 7 and 8A-B; Par. 0097, 0101, 0117; the multi-SIM UE may operate in a maximized antenna switching capability (e.g., using all available antennas for the Asdiv technique and/or SRS antenna switching configuration). Operating using the maximized antenna switching capability improves the communication performance of the multi-SIM UE by enabling the multi-SIM UE to select a best antenna for transmitting communication (e.g., using the Asdiv technique and/or SRS antenna switching).).
In view of the above, having the system of Qiu, then given the well-established teaching of Gopal, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Qiu as taught by Gopal, in order to provide motivation for avoiding packet loss and disconnection of applications in a network (Par. 0142 of Gopal).
Regarding claim 2, modified Qiu shows wherein the at least one communication processor is further configured to: identify whether at least one of the selected at least one RF path is used as an RF path related to the first SIM (Gopal: Figure 7 and 8A-B; Par. 0126; the maximized antenna switching capability may indicate that available antennas for antenna switching on the first SIM (e.g., SIM1 Tx Asdiv antenna set as shown in FIG. 8A) may include all available antennas of the multi-SIM UE (e.g., Ant-1, Ant-2, Ant-3, and Ant-4).), and
based on the at least one of the selected at least one RF path being used as the RF path related to the first SIM, change the at least one RF path used as the RF path related to the first SIM to at least one of RF path among the plurality of RF paths other than the selected at least one RF path and RF paths used as a transmission RF path related to the first SIM (Gopal: Figure 7 and 8A-B; Par. 0118; if the multi-SIM UE identifies that there is not TDD synchronization between the first SIM and the second SIM, then the multi-SIM UE may operate in a reduced antenna switching capability. The reduced antenna switching capability may indicate that a subset of antennas from a set of antennas that are available for Tx activity (e.g., based at least in part on the first frequency band) on the first SIM are available for antenna switching. For example, reduced antenna switching capability may indicate that the multi-SIM UE may not transmit communications on the first SIM using an antenna and/or antenna switch that is associated with (e.g., selected for) Rx activity on the second SIM.).
Regarding claim 4, modified Qiu shows wherein the at least one communication processor is further configured to: identify whether the random access procedure is successful (Qiu: Figure 8B; at S811, terminal receives an invite (Invite) message for the SIM card 2 that is sent by the base station and further performs steps S812 and s813.), and
based on success of the random access procedure, maintain the at least one RF path related to the second SIM (Qiu: Figure 8B; Par. 0196; The terminal 100 maintains the voice communication between the SIM card 1 and the terminal 120, and performs the voice communication with the terminal 130 through the SIM card 2.).
Regarding claim 10, modified Qiu shows wherein the electronic device is in an RRC connected (RRC_CONNECTED) state in the first communication network (Gopal: Figure 4; Par. 0077; the UE 120 may communicate (e.g., in a connected mode, an idle mode, or an inactive mode) with a first base station 410a via a first cell 415a (shown as Cell 1) using the first SIM 405a.).
Regarding claim 11, Qiu shows an operating method of an electronic device (Figure 5 shows a mobile phone/terminal performing in part the disclosed method of Figures 8 and 14.), the operating method comprising:
receiving a paging signal from a second communication network in a radio resource control (RRC) idle (RRC_IDLE) state (Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0076, 0151, 0153, 0160; terminal receives a paging request for SIM card 2 in the idle time period (RRC IDLE) that is sent by the base station.);
identifying whether the paging signal is a paging signal for a voice call (Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0140, 0163-0165; if the paging request carries the first identifier for a second service (i.e. voice call), the terminal 100 responds to the paging request.);
based on the paging signal being the paging signal for the voice call (Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0140, 0163-0165; the paging request for a second service (i.e. voice call).), selecting at least one radio frequency (RF) path related to a second subscriber identity module (SIM) among a plurality of RF paths supportable by the electronic device (Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0105, 0166-0168; “communication data related to the SIM card 2 is routed to the secondary signal input end of the modem 580 through a secondary RF path, namely, Rx2 of the transceiver 590. Terminal sends RRC signaling to the base station in response to the paging request, to establish an RRC connection to the base station based on the SIM card 2); and
performing a random access procedure to the second communication network through the selected at least one RF path (Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0166-0168; terminal sends RRC signaling to the base station in response to the paging request, to establish an RRC connection to the base station based on the SIM card 2.),
wherein the second SIM is for accessing the second communication network, and a first SIM is for accessing a first communication network (Figure 2; Par. 0076-0078, 0083; SIM card 2 is for accessing a second network and SIM card 1 is for accessing a first network.).
Qiu shows all of the elements as discussed above. Qiu does not specifically show a second subscriber identity module (SIM) which satisfies a first condition among a plurality of RF paths supportable by the electronic device.
However, the above-mentioned claim limitations are well-established in the art as evidenced by Gopal. Specifically, Gopal shows a second subscriber identity module (SIM) which satisfies a first condition among a plurality of RF paths supportable by the electronic device (Figures 7 and 8A-B; Par. 0097, 0101, 0117; the multi-SIM UE may operate in a maximized antenna switching capability (e.g., using all available antennas for the Asdiv technique and/or SRS antenna switching configuration). Operating using the maximized antenna switching capability improves the communication performance of the multi-SIM UE by enabling the multi-SIM UE to select a best antenna for transmitting communication (e.g., using the Asdiv technique and/or SRS antenna switching).).
In view of the above, having the system of Qiu, then given the well-established teaching of Gopal, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Qiu as taught by Gopal, in order to provide motivation for avoiding packet loss and disconnection of applications in a network (Par. 0142 of Gopal).
Regarding claims 12, 14 and 20, these claims are rejected based on the same reasoning as presented in the rejection of claims 2, 4 and 10, respectively.
Claim(s) 5-7 and 15-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Qiu in view of Gopal and Kumar (US 2025/0280367; hereinafter Kumar).
Regarding claim 5, modified Qiu shows wherein the at least one communication processor is configured to: based on the paging signal being the paging signal for the voice call (Qiu: Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0140, 0163-0165; the paging request for a second service (i.e. voice call).), selecting the at least one RF path related to the second SIM (Qiu: Figures 8 and 14; Par. 0105, 0166-0168; “communication data related to the SIM card 2 is routed to the secondary signal input end of the modem 580 through a secondary RF path, namely, Rx2 of the transceiver 590. Terminal sends RRC signaling to the base station in response to the paging request, to establish an RRC connection to the base station based on the SIM card 2).
Modified Qiu does not specifically show identifying whether a second condition is satisfied before selecting the at least one RF path related to the second SIM, and based on satisfaction of the second condition, select the at least one RF path related to the second SIM.
However, the above-mentioned claim limitations are well-established in the art as evidenced by Kumar. Specifically, Kumar shows identifying whether a second condition is satisfied before selecting the at least one RF path related to the second SIM, and based on satisfaction of the second condition, select the at least one RF path related to the second SIM (Figure 5; Par. 0080-0083; wherein the UE estimates a potential uplink transmit power requirement for each subscription using current radio conditions. For example, the UE may measure downlink conditions such as signal level (e.g., measured reference signal received power (RSRP)), signal quality (e.g., reference signal received quality (RSRQ)), and/or path loss based on any suitable signaling (e.g., a path-loss reference signal (PLRS), a synchronization signal block (SSB), a physical broadcast channel (PBCH), etc.). The UE may determine a potential uplink transmit power requirement for communications over the subscription using the communication parameters described in FIG. 4 to determine whether to assign a PC3 or PC2/PC1.5 capable signal path to the subscription.).
In view of the above, having the system of Qiu, then given the well-established teaching of Kumar, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Qiu as taught by Kumar, in order to provide motivation for power management in a user device (Par. 0028 of Kumar).
Regarding claim 6, modified Qiu shows wherein the second condition includes at least one of a condition that received signal strength of the paging signal is less than a threshold received strength, or a condition that transmission power applied to the random access procedure is greater than or equal to a threshold transmission power (Kumar: Par. 0088; the UE may estimate an uplink transmit power for each subscription, then determine whether a delta between the estimations is greater or less than a threshold value.).
Regarding claim 7, modified Qiu shows all of the elements except wherein the first condition includes at least one of a condition that an average power limit is greater than an average power limit of other RF transmission paths, a condition that antenna loss is less than a threshold loss, a condition that RFEE internal path loss is less than a threshold path loss, or a condition that a specific absorption rate (SAR) margin is greater than or equal to a threshold SAR margin.
However, the above-mentioned claim limitations are well-established in the art as evidenced by Kumar. Specifically, Kumar shows wherein the first condition includes at least one of a condition that an average power limit is greater than an average power limit of other RF transmission paths, a condition that antenna loss is less than a threshold loss, a condition that RFEE internal path loss is less than a threshold path loss (Par. 0088; if the delta between the estimate uplink transmit power is less than a threshold value, then the UE may assign a PC2/PC1.5 capable signal path to both subscriptions, or the UE may assign the PC2/PC1.5 capable signal path to only the subscription that requires a higher uplink transmit power.), or a condition that a specific absorption rate (SAR) margin is greater than or equal to a threshold SAR margin.
In view of the above, having the system of Qiu, then given the well-established teaching of Kumar, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Qiu as taught by Kumar, in order to provide motivation for power management in a user device (Par. 0028 of Kumar).
Regarding claims 15, 16 and 17, these claims are rejected based on the same reasoning as presented in the rejection of claims 5, 6 and 7, respectively.
Claim(s) 8-9 and 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Qiu in view of Gopal and Paradkar et al. (US 2022/0303869; hereinafter Paradkar).
Regarding claim 8, modified Qiu shows wherein the at least one communication processor is further configured to:
based on success of the random access procedure (Qiu: Figure 8B; at S811, terminal receives an invite (Invite) message for the SIM card 2 that is sent by the base station and further performs steps S812 and s813.), control the RF circuit to provide the voice call through the selected at least one RF path in an RRC connected (RRC_CONNECTED) state in the second communication network (Qiu: Figure 8B; Par. 0196; The terminal 100 maintains the voice communication between the SIM card 1 and the terminal 120, and performs the voice communication with the terminal 130 through the SIM card 2.).
Modified Qiu does not specifically show additionally select at least one RF path related to the second SIM based on satisfaction of a third condition while the voice call is provided, and control the RF circuit to provide the voice call through the selected at least one RF path and the additionally selected at least one RF path.
However, the above-mentioned claim limitations are well-established in the art as evidenced by Paradkar. Specifically, Paradkar shows additionally select at least one RF path related to the second SIM based on satisfaction of a third condition while the voice call is provided, and control the RF circuit to provide the voice call through the selected at least one RF path and the additionally selected at least one RF path (Figure 6 and 9; Par. 0115, 0140; routing the data traffic packet to the second communication connection comprises determining (e.g., using determination component 912, depicted in FIG. 9) that a value of the measurement parameter satisfies a threshold, and routing (e.g., using traffic routing component 910, depicted in FIG. 9) the data traffic packet to the second communication connection based at least in part on the determination that the value of the measurement parameter satisfies the threshold. If the device 615 selects the second access point for establishing the tethering connection, then the request for establishing the tethering connection may be associated with the second access point. The UE 120 may establish the tethering connection with the device 615 using the second access point (e.g., and a WLAN or Wi-Fi network provided by the second access point). The UE 120 may route traffic associated with the device 615 to the second subscription and/or the second communication connection.).
In view of the above, having the system of Qiu, then given the well-established teaching of Paradkar, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Qiu as taught by Paradkar, in order to provide motivation for power management in a user device (Par. 0028 of Paradkar).
Regarding claim 9, modified Qiu shows wherein the third condition includes a condition that received signal strength of a signal in which the voice call is provided is less than a threshold received strength (Paradkar: Par. 0043, 0099; UE performs a measurement of a measurement parameter (RSSI) of the second communication connection.).
Regarding claims 18 and 19, these claims are rejected based on the same reasoning as presented in the rejection of claims 8 and 9, respectively.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3 and 13 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.
Examiner submits that none of the prior art references cited in this action teaches the claimed subject matter as specifically presented in the above dependent claims. Examiner submits that the allowance of this application is based on an examination wherein the claim limitations recited in the dependent claims were not taken alone but in view of the scope of the claim(s) as a whole including any proceeding and/or preceding claim limitation(s) present within the claims and by their respective dependencies on other claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
US 20250280367 A1 - Aspects of the disclosure provide methods and apparatus for dynamically assigning signal paths to multiple subscriptions in a user equipment (UE) that supports dual subscription dual active (DSDA) communications.
US 20240129711 A1 - A base station central unit sends, to a base station distributed unit, wireless device assistance information indicating a multi universal subscriber identity module (MUSIM) gap preference of the wireless device for a MUSIM gap of the wireless device.
US 20230345416 A1 - relate to wireless communication and to techniques and apparatuses for performing a connection setup based at least in part on a paging message.
US 20230276522 A1 - Various aspects of the present disclosure generally relate to wireless communication. In some aspects, a mobile station may detect that a voltage fails to satisfy a performance threshold while operating in a dual subscriber identity module (SIM)-dual active (DSDA) mode associated with maintaining a first network connection in a first active mode concurrently with maintaining a second network connection in a second active mode.
US 20220286994 A1 - relate to wireless communication and to techniques and apparatuses for tunneling for a multi-subscription user equipment.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to REDENTOR M PASIA whose telephone number is (571)272-9745. The examiner can normally be reached M (6am-1:30pm EST), T, W Th, and F (6:00am-2:30pm).
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, Un Cho can be reached at (571)272-7919. 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.
/REDENTOR PASIA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2413