DETAILED ACTION
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 7/7/2026 has been entered. In response to amendment filed on 7/7/2026, claims 2, 10, 12 and 20 are cancelled, claims 3- 4 and 13- 14 are amended. Claims 1, 3- 9, 11, 13- 19 are pending for examinations.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, filed in the remarks on 7/7/2026 regarding claim 3’s limitations have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Cheng et al. (WO 2022/016495 A1). Cheng teaches about wherein the determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation comprises: in a case that the first operation comprises executing the measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and executing the first sub-operation (see [0045] ...…. In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is the carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) utilized by a UE 104/182 and the cell in which the UE 104/182 either performs the initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates the RRC connection re-establishment procedure….; further see [0129- 0130] about cell ranking equation considering relay UE……additional offset to be used for cell selection and reselection when the RRC connection establishment fails on the cell; further see claim 3) and that at least one of the following has been met:
cell selection or re-selection condition and relay selection; or re-selection condition, determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs; see [0129- 0130] i.e. Qoffset_temp applicable for cell selection and reselection when RRC connection establishment fails…; no refer to [0132- 0134] fourth solution wherein, again in the case of cell (re) selection once the remote UE is connected to a relay UE, is similar to the third solution, except that the remote UE can rank a Uu cell according to the best relay UE that can be used to connect to that cell, and consider the signal quality of the relay UE as a proxy for the signal quality of that cell. For example, referring to FIG. 11, the remote UE 1104 would consider the relay UE 1106 as a proxy for the first base station 1102; see [0132]; now refer to [0133]; further see Fig. 12.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
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.
Claim(s) 1 and 11 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Xu et al. (US Pub. No. 2019/0313315 A1) in view of Cheng et al. (WO 2022/016495 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Xu teaches a measurement method, comprising:
executing, by a remote terminal, a first operation, wherein the first operation comprises executing measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and executing or skipping executing a first sub-operation; see [0122]… shown in FIG. 12A, before the remote UE satisfies the trigger event for the A3 event measurement report, the relay reselection event has been completed, and a new connection has been established with a new relay UE. FIG. 12B shows that the remote UE is still served by the current relay UE when the remote UE satisfies the trigger event for the A3 event measurement report. In the above case, the remote UE may be triggered to perform a link selection strategy, for example, comparing the PC5 link of the currently connected relay UE with the neighboring cell Uu link;
wherein the first sub-operation comprises measurement and evaluation related to cell selection or re-selection; see [0137, 0043, 0145, 0148- 0157].
wherein the first operation is executed in a first radio resource control (RRC) procedure, and the method further comprises:
determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation; already discussed above see [0145, 0148- 0157];
wherein the first RRC procedure comprises one of the following procedures:
RRC connection establishment procedure;
RRC connection resume procedure; Xu see [0137, 0043, 0145, 0148- 0157].
But fails to state about wherein the determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation comprises: in a case that the first operation comprises executing the measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and executing the first sub-operation and that at least one of the following has been met: cell selection or re-selection condition and relay selection; or re-selection condition, determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs.
However Cheng teaches wherein the determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation comprises: in a case that the first operation comprises executing the measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and executing the first sub-operation (see [0045] ...…. In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is the carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) utilized by a UE 104/182 and the cell in which the UE 104/182 either performs the initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates the RRC connection re-establishment procedure….; further see [0129- 0130] about cell ranking equation considering relay UE……additional offset to be used for cell selection and reselection when the RRC connection establishment fails on the cell; further see claim 3) and that at least one of the following has been met:
cell selection or re-selection condition and relay selection; or re-selection condition, determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs; see [0129- 0130] i.e. Qoffset_temp applicable for cell selection and reselection when RRC connection establishment fails…; no refer to [0132- 0134] fourth solution wherein, again in the case of cell (re) selection once the remote UE is connected to a relay UE, is similar to the third solution, except that the remote UE can rank a Uu cell according to the best relay UE that can be used to connect to that cell, and consider the signal quality of the relay UE as a proxy for the signal quality of that cell. For example, referring to FIG. 11, the remote UE 1104 would consider the relay UE 1106 as a proxy for the first base station 1102; see [0132]; now refer to [0133]; further see Fig. 12. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Chneg with the teachings of Xu to make system more effective. Having a mechanism wherein the determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation comprises: in a case that the first operation comprises executing the measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and executing the first sub-operation and that at least one of the following has been met: cell selection or re-selection condition and relay selection; or re-selection condition, determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs; greater way resources can be managed/utilized in the communication system.
Regarding claim 11, Xu teaches terminal comprising a processor, a memory, and a program or instructions stored in the memory and capable of running on the processor, wherein when the program or instructions are executed by the processor, following steps are implemented:
executing a first operation, wherein the first operation comprises executing measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and executing or skipping executing a first sub-operation; see [0122]… shown in FIG. 12A, before the remote UE(i.e. terminal) satisfies the trigger event for the A3 event measurement report, the relay reselection event has been completed, and a new connection has been established with a new relay UE. FIG. 12B shows that the remote UE is still served by the current relay UE when the remote UE satisfies the trigger event for the A3 event measurement report. In the above case, the remote UE may be triggered to perform a link selection strategy, for example, comparing the PC5 link of the currently connected relay UE with the neighboring cell Uu link;
wherein the first sub-operation comprises measurement and evaluation related to cell selection or re-selection; see [0137, 0043, 0145, 0148- 0157].
wherein the first operation is executed in a first radio resource control (RRC) procedure, and the method further comprises:
determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation; already discussed above see [0145, 0148- 0157];
wherein the first RRC procedure comprises one of the following procedures:
RRC connection establishment procedure;
RRC connection resume procedure; Xu see [0137, 0043, 0145, 0148- 0157].
But fails to state about wherein the determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation comprises: in a case that the first operation comprises executing the measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and executing the first sub-operation and that at least one of the following has been met: cell selection or re-selection condition and relay selection; or re-selection condition, determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs.
However Cheng teaches wherein the determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation comprises: in a case that the first operation comprises executing the measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and executing the first sub-operation (see [0045] ...…. In carrier aggregation, the anchor carrier is the carrier operating on the primary frequency (e.g., FR1) utilized by a UE 104/182 and the cell in which the UE 104/182 either performs the initial radio resource control (RRC) connection establishment procedure or initiates the RRC connection re-establishment procedure….; further see [0129- 0130] about cell ranking equation considering relay UE……additional offset to be used for cell selection and reselection when the RRC connection establishment fails on the cell; further see claim 3) and that at least one of the following has been met:
cell selection or re-selection condition and relay selection; or re-selection condition, determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs; see [0129- 0130] i.e. Qoffset_temp applicable for cell selection and reselection when RRC connection establishment fails…; no refer to [0132- 0134] fourth solution wherein, again in the case of cell (re) selection once the remote UE is connected to a relay UE, is similar to the third solution, except that the remote UE can rank a Uu cell according to the best relay UE that can be used to connect to that cell, and consider the signal quality of the relay UE as a proxy for the signal quality of that cell. For example, referring to FIG. 11, the remote UE 1104 would consider the relay UE 1106 as a proxy for the first base station 1102; see [0132]; now refer to [0133]; further see Fig. 12. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Chneg with the teachings of Xu to make system more effective. Having a mechanism wherein the determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation comprises: in a case that the first operation comprises executing the measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and executing the first sub-operation and that at least one of the following has been met: cell selection or re-selection condition and relay selection; or re-selection condition, determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs; greater way resources can be managed/utilized in the communication system.
Claim(s) 3 and 13 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Xu et al. (US Pub. No. 2019/0313315 A1) in view of Cheng et al. (WO 2022/016495 A1) and in further view of Cheng et al. (US Pub. No. 12538375 B2), hereafter Peng.
Regarding claim 3, Xu in view of Cheng teaches as per claim 1, but Xu is silent about wherein the determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation comprises: in a case that the first operation comprises executing the measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and skipping executing the first sub-operation and that a relay selection or re-selection condition has been met, determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs; however Peng teaches in col.10 lines 64- 67 and col. 11 lines 1- 13 about.. Mechanisms may also be provided for relay selection and reselection. Relay selection generally refers the procedure whereby a remote UE has not connected to any relay node, discovers relay nodes whose sidelink discovery reference signal receive power (SD-RSRP) is above a threshold level (possibly by some amount) and, from among them, selects the relay node with best SD-RSRP. Relay re-selection generally refers the procedure whereby the remote UE has connected to one relay node (e.g., already performed relay selection), when SD-RSRP of the current relay node falls below a threshold level (possibly by some amount), the remote UE discovers relay nodes whose SD-RSRP is above a threshold level (possibly by some amount) and, among them, (re-) selects the relay node with the best SD-RSRP; now refer to col. 16 lines 14- 30 about.. the remote UE first only triggers cell selection with one new timer (e.g., a new timer T392) and only triggers cell selection when the new timer T392 expires…. upon RLF detection (i.e. condition met), the remote UE starts T392, and performs only relay selection (i.e. skipping sub-operation related to cell selection)… If the T392 expires, the remote UE starts T311, and performs both cell selection and relay selection simultaneously, again reverting to the joint selection example described above; now see col. 14 lines 33- 48… In this cases, when an RLF is declared, the remote UE may start a timer (e.g., a T311 associated with a cell selection procedure), and may perform both cell selection and relay selection simultaneously. If the T311 expires, the remote UE may enter RRC IDLE (i.e. determining failure of the first RRC procedure occurs). It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Peng with the teachings of Xu in view of Cheng to make system more reliable. Having a mechanism wherein the determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation comprises: in a case that the first operation comprises executing the measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and skipping executing the first sub-operation and that a relay selection or re-selection condition has been met, determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs; greater way more reliable communication can be carried out in the communication system.
Regarding claim 13, Xu in view of Cheng teaches as per claim 11, but Xu is silent about wherein the determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation comprises: in a case that the first operation comprises executing the measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and skipping executing the first sub-operation and that a relay selection or re-selection condition has been met, determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs; however Peng teaches in col.10 lines 64- 67 and col. 11 lines 1- 13 about.. Mechanisms may also be provided for relay selection and reselection. Relay selection generally refers the procedure whereby a remote UE has not connected to any relay node, discovers relay nodes whose sidelink discovery reference signal receive power (SD-RSRP) is above a threshold level (possibly by some amount) and, from among them, selects the relay node with best SD-RSRP. Relay re-selection generally refers the procedure whereby the remote UE has connected to one relay node (e.g., already performed relay selection), when SD-RSRP of the current relay node falls below a threshold level (possibly by some amount), the remote UE discovers relay nodes whose SD-RSRP is above a threshold level (possibly by some amount) and, among them, (re-) selects the relay node with the best SD-RSRP; now refer to col. 16 lines 14- 30 about.. the remote UE first only triggers cell selection with one new timer (e.g., a new timer T392) and only triggers cell selection when the new timer T392 expires…. upon RLF detection (i.e. condition met), the remote UE starts T392, and performs only relay selection (i.e. skipping sub-operation related to cell selection)… If the T392 expires, the remote UE starts T311, and performs both cell selection and relay selection simultaneously, again reverting to the joint selection example described above; now see col. 14 lines 33- 48… In this cases, when an RLF is declared, the remote UE may start a timer (e.g., a T311 associated with a cell selection procedure), and may perform both cell selection and relay selection simultaneously. If the T311 expires, the remote UE may enter RRC IDLE (i.e. determining failure of the first RRC procedure occurs). It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Peng with the teachings of Xu in view of Cheng to make system more reliable. Having a mechanism wherein the determining a state of the first RRC procedure based on an execution result obtained from the first operation comprises: in a case that the first operation comprises executing the measurement and evaluation related to relay selection or re-selection and skipping executing the first sub-operation and that a relay selection or re-selection condition has been met, determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs; greater way more reliable communication can be carried out in the communication system.
Claim(s) 4- 9, 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Xu et al. (US Pub. No. 2019/0313315 A1) in view of Cheng et al. (WO 2022/016495 A1) and in further view of Xie et al. (CN 102349312 B).
Regarding claim 4, Xu in view of Cheng teaches as per claim 1, but Xu is silent about wherein in a case of determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs, the method further comprises:
indicating, by an RRC layer of the remote terminal, first information to a non-access stratum (NAS) layer, wherein content of the first information comprises at least one of the following: failure of the first RRC procedure; and reason for the failure of the first RRC procedure; however Xie teaches in [0002] about RRC connection re-establishment scenario… when an abnormality occurs, such as radio resource control (Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection re-establishment failure, the RRC layer of the UE sends non-access stratum (Non Access Stratum, NAS) layer failure and a reason of the failure and NAS layer can indicate the RRC layer to initiate an RRC connection request for establishing service….the RRC layer of the UE RRC connection failure occurs to NAS layer indicates " RRC connection failure ", NAS layer indicates the RRC layer. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Xie with the teachings of Xu in view of Cheng to make system more standardized. Having a mechanism wherein in a case of determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs, the method further comprises: indicating, by an RRC layer of the remote terminal, first information to a non-access stratum (NAS) layer, wherein content of the first information comprises at least one of the following: failure of the first RRC procedure; and reason for the failure of the first RRC procedure; greater way more standardized approach can be carried out in the communication system.
Regarding claim 5, Xu in view of Cheng and Xie teaches as per claim 4, wherein the method further comprises:
indicating, by the NAS layer, the RRC layer to trigger a resume operation corresponding to the failure of the first RRC procedure, wherein the resume operation comprises one of the following:
initiating a second RRC procedure with a cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition;
initiating a second RRC procedure with a relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition; and
determining, based on first measurement information, to initiate a second RRC procedure with a cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate a second RRC procedure with a relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition, wherein the first measurement information comprises at least one of the following: first measurement result of Uu link and second measurement result of sidelink; Xie states in [0002] about .. the UE to the target cell sends the establishment request Obtaining if the target cell because of some reason rejects the request of the UE, returning rejection response, UE receives the rejection response release releasing the RRC connection and enter an idle (IDLE) state to NAS setup procedure, the RRC layer of the UE RRC connection failure occurs to NAS layer indicates " RRC connection failure ", NAS layer indicates the RRC layer. then the RRC layer to initiate random access (Random Access (RA) procedure to establish a new RRC connection; now refer to [0050] After the UE sends the RRC connection-establishment request "message, if directly receiving the target cell sent by RRC connection Setup" message, then the re-establishment has been failed due to such as the cell has no UE context and other reasons, and may now start a new RRC establishment procedure. after the UE connection establishment flow, transmitting an RRC connection setup complete message namely RRC connection Setup Complete " message according to the normal RRC.
Regarding claim 6, Xu in view of Cheng and Xie teaches as per claim 5, further comprising:
remaining, by the remote terminal, in an RRC state before initiating the second RRC procedure, wherein the second RRC procedure is the same as the first RRC procedure; or
entering, by the remote terminal, an idle state before initiating the second RRC procedure, wherein the second RRC procedure is an RRC connection establishment procedure; Xie states in [0002] about .. the UE to the target cell sends the establishment request Obtaining if the target cell because of some reason rejects the request of the UE, returning rejection response, UE receives the rejection response release releasing the RRC connection and enter an idle (IDLE) state to NAS setup procedure, the RRC layer of the UE RRC connection failure occurs to NAS layer indicates " RRC connection failure ", NAS layer indicates the RRC layer. then the RRC layer to initiate random access (Random Access (RA) procedure to establish a new RRC connection; now refer to [0050] After the UE sends the RRC connection-establishment request "message, if directly receiving the target cell sent by RRC connection Setup" message, then the re-establishment has been failed due to such as the cell has no UE context and other reasons, and may now start a new RRC establishment procedure. after the UE connection establishment flow, transmitting an RRC connection setup complete message namely RRC connection Setup Complete " message according to the normal RRC.
Regarding claim 7, Xu in view of Cheng and Xie teaches as per claim 5, wherein the determining, based on first measurement information, to initiate a second RRC procedure with a cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate a second RRC procedure with a relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition comprises:
in a case that the first measurement result is greater than the second measurement result, initiating the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition; and
in a case that the first measurement result is less than the second measurement result, initiating the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition; see claim 5’s citations second measurement result is in “OR” limitations.
Regarding claim 8, Xu in view of Cheng and Xie teaches as per claim 5, wherein the determining, based on first measurement information, to initiate a second RRC procedure with a cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate a second RRC procedure with a relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition comprises:
determining, based on the first measurement information and second information, to initiate the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition; wherein
the second information comprises at least one of the following: first threshold related to Uu link and second threshold related to sidelink; Xu see [0043]... the remote UE is in the coverage of cell A and has established a PC5 link with a relay UE, while the remote UE is moving from cell A to cell B. At this time, the quality of the PC5 (sidelik) link between the remote UE and the current relay UE may be decreased (i.e. threshold should be there to compare about decreasing event), and the quality of the Uu link of the cell A may also decreased, and the quality of the Uu link of an adjacent cell B may be increased. The measurement result of the remote UE may satisfy a relay reselection condition (the relay reselection refers to a case that the remote UE needs to reselect the relay UE due to the radio link quality or other reasons after establishing a connection with a relay UE) and a cell handover condition….
Regarding claim 9, Xu in view of Cheng and Xie teaches as per claim 8, wherein
in a case that the second information comprises the first threshold, the determining, based on the first measurement information and second information, to initiate the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition comprises at least one of the following:
in a case that the first measurement result is greater than the first threshold, initiating the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition; and
in a case that the first measurement result is less than the first threshold, initiating the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition;
or
in a case that the second information comprises the second threshold, the determining, based on the first measurement information and second information, to initiate the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition comprises at least one of the following:
in a case that the second measurement result is greater than the second threshold, initiating the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition; and
in a case that the second measurement result is less than the second threshold, initiating the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition;
or
in a case that the second information comprises the first threshold and the second threshold, the determining, based on the first measurement information and second information, to initiate the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition comprises one of the following:
initiating the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition in a first case, and initiating the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition in a second case, wherein the first case comprises the first measurement result being greater than the first threshold and the second measurement result being less than the second threshold, and the second case is a case other than the first case; and
initiating the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition in a third case, and initiating the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition in a fourth case, wherein the third case comprises the first measurement result being less than the first threshold and the second measurement result being greater than the second threshold, and the fourth case is a case other than the third case; Xu see [0043]…. remote UE is in the coverage of cell A and has established a PC5 link with a relay UE, while the remote UE is moving from cell A to cell B. At this time, the quality of the PC5 link between the remote UE and the current relay UE may be decreased, and the quality of the Uu link of the cell A may also decreased, and the quality of the Uu link of an adjacent cell B may be increased. The measurement result of the remote UE may satisfy a relay reselection condition (the relay reselection refers to a case that the remote UE needs to reselect the relay UE due to the radio link quality or other reasons after establishing a connection with a relay UE) and a cell handover condition. A scheme for determining a path switching manner of the remote UE especially in this case is provided in this embodiment. For example, it is determined whether to switch from a PC5 link to another PC5 link of the cell A or the cell B, or to switch from the PC5 link to a Uu link of the cell B. In different situations, the remote UE performing different link switching may have different effects on service continuity. By performing communication link selection according to the present embodiment, for example, the remote UE can be better served in terms of service continuity, link switching power consumption, and delay. In the above example, the cell may be a macro cell or a small cell.
Regarding claim 14, Xu in view of Cheng teaches as per claim 11, but Xu is silent about wherein in a case of determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs, the method further comprises:
indicating, by an RRC layer of the remote terminal, first information to a non-access stratum (NAS) layer, wherein content of the first information comprises at least one of the following: failure of the first RRC procedure; and reason for the failure of the first RRC procedure; however Xie teaches in [0002] about RRC connection re-establishment scenario… when an abnormality occurs, such as radio resource control (Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection re-establishment failure, the RRC layer of the UE sends non-access stratum (Non Access Stratum, NAS) layer failure and a reason of the failure and NAS layer can indicate the RRC layer to initiate an RRC connection request for establishing service….the RRC layer of the UE RRC connection failure occurs to NAS layer indicates " RRC connection failure ", NAS layer indicates the RRC layer. It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill, in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention was made to consider the teachings of Xie with the teachings of Xu in view of Cheng to make system more standardized. Having a mechanism wherein in a case of determining that failure of the first RRC procedure occurs, the method further comprises: indicating, by an RRC layer of the remote terminal, first information to a non-access stratum (NAS) layer, wherein content of the first information comprises at least one of the following: failure of the first RRC procedure; and reason for the failure of the first RRC procedure; greater way more standardized approach can be carried out in the communication system.
Regarding claim 15, Xu in view of Cheng and Xie teaches as per claim 14, wherein the method further comprises:
indicating, by the NAS layer, the RRC layer to trigger a resume operation corresponding to the failure of the first RRC procedure, wherein the resume operation comprises one of the following:
initiating a second RRC procedure with a cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition;
initiating a second RRC procedure with a relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition; and
determining, based on first measurement information, to initiate a second RRC procedure with a cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate a second RRC procedure with a relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition, wherein the first measurement information comprises at least one of the following: first measurement result of Uu link and second measurement result of sidelink; Xie states in [0002] about .. the UE to the target cell sends the establishment request Obtaining if the target cell because of some reason rejects the request of the UE, returning rejection response, UE receives the rejection response release releasing the RRC connection and enter an idle (IDLE) state to NAS setup procedure, the RRC layer of the UE RRC connection failure occurs to NAS layer indicates " RRC connection failure ", NAS layer indicates the RRC layer. then the RRC layer to initiate random access (Random Access (RA) procedure to establish a new RRC connection; now refer to [0050] After the UE sends the RRC connection-establishment request "message, if directly receiving the target cell sent by RRC connection Setup" message, then the re-establishment has been failed due to such as the cell has no UE context and other reasons, and may now start a new RRC establishment procedure. after the UE connection establishment flow, transmitting an RRC connection setup complete message namely RRC connection Setup Complete " message according to the normal RRC.
Regarding claim 16, Xu in view of Cheng and Xie teaches as per claim 15, further comprising:
remaining, by the remote terminal, in an RRC state before initiating the second RRC procedure, wherein the second RRC procedure is the same as the first RRC procedure; or
entering, by the remote terminal, an idle state before initiating the second RRC procedure, wherein the second RRC procedure is an RRC connection establishment procedure; Xie states in [0002] about .. the UE to the target cell sends the establishment request Obtaining if the target cell because of some reason rejects the request of the UE, returning rejection response, UE receives the rejection response release releasing the RRC connection and enter an idle (IDLE) state to NAS setup procedure, the RRC layer of the UE RRC connection failure occurs to NAS layer indicates " RRC connection failure ", NAS layer indicates the RRC layer. then the RRC layer to initiate random access (Random Access (RA) procedure to establish a new RRC connection; now refer to [0050] After the UE sends the RRC connection-establishment request "message, if directly receiving the target cell sent by RRC connection Setup" message, then the re-establishment has been failed due to such as the cell has no UE context and other reasons, and may now start a new RRC establishment procedure. after the UE connection establishment flow, transmitting an RRC connection setup complete message namely RRC connection Setup Complete " message according to the normal RRC.
Regarding claim 17, Xu in view of Cheng and Xie teaches as per claim 15, wherein the determining, based on first measurement information, to initiate a second RRC procedure with a cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate a second RRC procedure with a relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition comprises:
in a case that the first measurement result is greater than the second measurement result, initiating the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition; and
in a case that the first measurement result is less than the second measurement result, initiating the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition; see claim 15’s citations second measurement result is in “OR” limitations.
Regarding claim 18, Xu in view of Cheng and Xie teaches as per claim 15, wherein the determining, based on first measurement information, to initiate a second RRC procedure with a cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate a second RRC procedure with a relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition comprises:
determining, based on the first measurement information and second information, to initiate the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition; wherein
the second information comprises at least one of the following: first threshold related to Uu link and second threshold related to sidelink; Xu see [0043]... the remote UE is in the coverage of cell A and has established a PC5 link with a relay UE, while the remote UE is moving from cell A to cell B. At this time, the quality of the PC5 (sidelik) link between the remote UE and the current relay UE may be decreased (i.e. threshold should be there to compare about decreasing event), and the quality of the Uu link of the cell A may also decreased, and the quality of the Uu link of an adjacent cell B may be increased. The measurement result of the remote UE may satisfy a relay reselection condition (the relay reselection refers to a case that the remote UE needs to reselect the relay UE due to the radio link quality or other reasons after establishing a connection with a relay UE) and a cell handover condition….
Regarding claim 19, Xu in view of Cheng and Xie teaches as per claim 18, wherein
in a case that the second information comprises the first threshold, the determining, based on the first measurement information and second information, to initiate the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition comprises at least one of the following:
in a case that the first measurement result is greater than the first threshold, initiating the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition; and
in a case that the first measurement result is less than the first threshold, initiating the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition;
or
in a case that the second information comprises the second threshold, the determining, based on the first measurement information and second information, to initiate the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition comprises at least one of the following:
in a case that the second measurement result is greater than the second threshold, initiating the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition; and
in a case that the second measurement result is less than the second threshold, initiating the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition;
or
in a case that the second information comprises the first threshold and the second threshold, the determining, based on the first measurement information and second information, to initiate the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition or initiate the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition comprises one of the following:
initiating the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition in a first case, and initiating the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition in a second case, wherein the first case comprises the first measurement result being greater than the first threshold and the second measurement result being less than the second threshold, and the second case is a case other than the first case; and
initiating the second RRC procedure with the relay terminal that meets the relay selection or re-selection condition in a third case, and initiating the second RRC procedure with the cell that meets the cell selection or re-selection condition in a fourth case, wherein the third case comprises the first measurement result being less than the first threshold and the second measurement result being greater than the second threshold, and the fourth case is a case other than the third case; Xu see [0043]…. remote UE is in the coverage of cell A and has established a PC5 link with a relay UE, while the remote UE is moving from cell A to cell B. At this time, the quality of the PC5 link between the remote UE and the current relay UE may be decreased, and the quality of the Uu link of the cell A may also decreased, and the quality of the Uu link of an adjacent cell B may be increased. The measurement result of the remote UE may satisfy a relay reselection condition (the relay reselection refers to a case that the remote UE needs to reselect the relay UE due to the radio link quality or other reasons after establishing a connection with a relay UE) and a cell handover condition. A scheme for determining a path switching manner of the remote UE especially in this case is provided in this embodiment. For example, it is determined whether to switch from a PC5 link to another PC5 link of the cell A or the cell B, or to switch from the PC5 link to a Uu link of the cell B. In different situations, the remote UE performing different link switching may have different effects on service continuity. By performing communication link selection according to the present embodiment, for example, the remote UE can be better served in terms of service continuity, link switching power consumption, and delay. In the above example, the cell may be a macro cell or a small cell.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Please see PTO-892 form for considered prior arts for record.
Reference Cheng et al. (2023/0269809 A1) teaches … disclosure provide techniques for RRC connection reestablishment by a remote UE. In some cases, a remote UE may be configured to detect, on at least one of a first link between a first relay UE and a first network entity or a second link between the remote UE and the first relay UE, a radio link failure (RLF) resulting in a loss of radio resource control (RRC) connection and attempt to reestablish RRC connection by performing at least one of relay selection or cell selection; see abstract.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PARTH PATEL whose telephone number is (571)270-1970. The examiner can normally be reached 7 a.m. -7 p.m. PST.
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, Jae Y. Lee can be reached at 5712703936. 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.
PARTH PATEL
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2479
/PARTH PATEL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2479
Prosecution Insights