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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Allowable Subject Matter
1a. Claims 7, 14-15, 17-18, 21, 23 and 25 are objected to as dependent upon rejected claims, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Response to Applicant’s Remarks
1a. Applicant’s arguments and remarks, filed on 3/19/2026 (hereinafter Remarks), are acknowledged, and have been fully considered.
Regarding Applicant’s claim amendments:
receiving, by a terminal device, first indication information, wherein the first indication information is indicative that at least one target slot is used for joint channel estimation for uplink transmission of a target channel;
the Examiner finds that Ly discloses each UE (per UE basis) in the communication system is configured (or indicated) for the capability of slot counting for joint channel estimation:
[0032] …. the UE is configured for providing an indication that the UE has the ability to count slots for PUSCH Msg3 repetition, and supports DMRS bundling and/or joint channel estimation (JCE).
[0109] In an aspect, it is noted that the third option discussed above may be utilized with first option also discussed earlier. That is, the configuration of the PRACH resource is used to indicate that the UE supports Msg3 PUSCH repetition as well as repetition counting on available uplink slots, whereas indication that the UE supports joint channel estimation is made via either the DMRS configuration for the initial Msg3 PUSCH transmission or the DMRS transmission port. Turning back to FIG. 10, for example, this additional means of indication is illustrated with block 1016.
[0128] Method 1300 may also include that the capability indication is signaled per UE; e.g., each UE in a communication system signals its own capability indication. In other aspects, method 1300 may include that the capability indication is signaled per a frequency band of the transmission of the physical channel. In examples, the frequency band is FR1 or FR2.
See also Fig 4.
Thus, Applicant’s claims have been disclosed by prior art Ly. The Examiner updates the rejections based on Applicant’s amendments. This office action is made final.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
2. 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.
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 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.
2a. Claims 1-6, 12-13, 19-20, 22 and 24 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ly (US 20220337368 A1) in view of Yi (US 20190082431 A1).
2b. Summary of the Cited Prior Art
Ly discloses a method for indication of message repetition and multi-slot transmission.
Yi discloses a method for transmitting downlink control information.
2c. Claim Analysis
Regarding Claim 1, Ly discloses:
A wireless communication method (see Figs 4 and 10), comprising:
Receiving (Fig 10, Step 1010, PDCCH/PDSCH(MSG2)), by a terminal device (Fig 10, UE 1004), first indication information, wherein the first indication information is indicative that at least one target slot is used for joint channel estimation
(Ly discloses that each UE (per UE basis) in the communication system is configured (or indicated) for the capability of slot counting for joint channel estimation:
[0032] …. the UE is configured for providing an indication that the UE has the ability to count slots for PUSCH Msg3 repetition, and supports DMRS bundling and/or joint channel estimation (JCE).
[0109] In an aspect, it is noted that the third option discussed above may be utilized with first option also discussed earlier. That is, the configuration of the PRACH resource is used to indicate that the UE supports Msg3 PUSCH repetition as well as repetition counting on available uplink slots, whereas indication that the UE supports joint channel estimation is made via either the DMRS configuration for the initial Msg3 PUSCH transmission or the DMRS transmission port. Turning back to FIG. 10, for example, this additional means of indication is illustrated with block 1016.
[0128] Method 1300 may also include that the capability indication is signaled per UE; e.g., each UE in a communication system signals its own capability indication. In other aspects, method 1300 may include that the capability indication is signaled per a frequency band of the transmission of the physical channel. In examples, the frequency band is FR1 or FR2.
Figs 4 and 10)
for uplink transmission of a target channel (Fig 4, PDCCH/PDSCH(MSG2) 408 and PUSCH(MSG3) 410; see: The Msg2 408 may include an uplink (UL) grant for target channel, in [0081-0082]); and
performing, by the terminal device (Fig 10, UE 1004), the uplink transmission according to the first indication information (Fig 10, Steps 1010-1012; see: In response to Msg2 408, the UE responds by sending a third message; i.e., Msg 3 410 over the PUSCH, Msg3 is repeated by transmission over the PUSCH. Moreover, for Msg3 repetition systems, in [0082]).
Ly does not use the term first.
However, Yi discloses:
receiving, by a terminal device, first indication information (see: monitoring first DCI having a first size and monitoring second DCI having a second size, in [0008]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to integrate Ly’s method for indication of message repetition and multi-slot transmission with Yi’s method for transmitting downlink control information with the motivation being to improve service quality and coverage (Yi, [0002]).
Regarding Claim 2, Ly discloses:
wherein the uplink transmission is uplink repetitions (Fig 10, Steps 1012; see: Msg 3 410 over the PUSCH, Msg3 is repeated by transmission over the PUSCH. Moreover, for Msg3 repetition systems, in [0082]), and the first indication information (see: The PDCCH may carry downlink control information (DCI), in [0075]) is carried in a first message (Fig 10, Step 1010, PDCCH/PDSCH(MSG2).
Regarding Claim 3, Ly discloses:
wherein one of: the target channel is a target physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) (Fig 10, PUSCH(MSG3) 1012; see: Msg 3 410 over the PUSCH, Msg3 is repeated by transmission over the PUSCH),
the first message (Fig 10, Step 1010, PDCCH/PDSCH(MSG2) is first downlink control information (DCI) (see: The PDCCH may carry downlink control information (DCI), in [0075]) for scheduling the uplink repetitions (Fig 10, PUSCH 1012; see: Msg 3 410 over the PUSCH, Msg3 is repeated by transmission over the PUSCH, in [0082]);
or the target channel is a target physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) (see: the uplink beam refinement request resources may include resources scheduled for transmission of a PUCCH, PUSCH, PRACH occasion or RRC message, in [0139]), and the first message is second DCI for scheduling a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) (Fig 5; see: with transmission of DCI with from a gNB to a UE for transmission of PDSCH that carries the RAR (e.g., Msg 2), in [0086]).
Regarding Claim 4, Ly discloses:
wherein the uplink repetitions are uplink repetitions of an initial transmission carrying message 3 (Msg3) (Fig 10, PUSCH (MSG3) 1012; see: Msg 3 410 over the PUSCH, Msg3 is repeated by transmission over the PUSCH. Moreover, for Msg3 repetition systems, in [0082]), and the first message is message 2 (Msg2) (Fig 10, PDCCH/PDSCH (MSG2) 1010).
Regarding Claim 5, Ly discloses:
wherein the uplink repetitions are uplink repetitions of a retransmission carrying Msg3 (see: Msg 3 410 over the PUSCH, Msg3 is repeated by transmission over the PUSCH. Moreover, for Msg3 repetition systems, in [0082]), and the first message is third DCI for scheduling the retransmission (see: The PDCCH may carry downlink control information (DCI) as an indication, in [0075]; Examiner’s Note: PDCCH may carry a plurality of DCIs).
Regarding Claim 6, Ly discloses:
wherein the uplink transmission is a multi-slot transmission of a transport block (TB) (Fig 8, see: the UE is configured to repeat a transport block (TB) across consecutive slots applying the same symbol allocation in each slot) the first indication information is carried in fourth DCI for scheduling the multi-slot transmission, and the at least one target slot is a slot in a second slot set (see Fig 8, multi-slot sequence, anyone can be a first, second of third slot).
Ly does not elaborate about scheduling the multi-slot transmission.
However, Yi discloses:
the first indication information is carried in fourth DCI (see: a fourth DCI group may include DCIs for UE-specific PUSCH scheduling (TM version), in [0185]) for scheduling the multi-slot transmission (Table 6, DCI for multi-slot scheduling; see: DCI for multi-slot transmission scheduling, in [0085]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to integrate Ly’s method for indication of message repetition and multi-slot transmission with Yi’s method for transmitting downlink control information with the motivation being to improve service quality and coverage (Yi, [0002]).
Regarding Claims 12-13, the claims disclose similar features as of Claims 1-2, and are rejected accordingly.
Regarding Claim 19, the terminal device claim discloses similar features as of Claim 1, and is rejected accordingly. Further, Ly discloses transceiver, memory processor in Figs 12 and 14.
Regarding Claim 20, the network device claim discloses similar features as of Claim 1, and is rejected accordingly. The claim discloses the same operations of claim 1, but are performed by a network device. Further, Ly discloses transceiver, memory processor in Figs 12 and 14.
Regarding Claim 22, Ly discloses:
wherein the uplink transmission is uplink repetitions (Fig 10, PUSCH(MSG3) 1012; see: Msg 3 410 over the PUSCH, Msg3 is repeated by transmission over the PUSCH), and the first indication information is carried in a first message (Fig 10. MSG 1, Step 1008).
Regarding Claim 24, the terminal device claim discloses similar features as of Claim 22, and is rejected accordingly.
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 extension fee 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 Jung-Jen Liu whose telephone number is 571-270-7643. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kwang B. Yao can be reached on 571-272-3182. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/JUNG LIU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2473
Prosecution Insights