DETAILED ACTION
This is in response to US 18/503,813. Claims 1-30 have been examined.
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 . 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.
Claim Objections
Claim 11 is objected to because of the following informalities: “the message” lacks antecedent basis and will be construed as “the configuration message.” Appropriate correction is required.
Claims 21 and 22 are objected to because of the following informalities: “the bandwidth part switching control message” lacks antecedent basis. Appropriate correction is required.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The actual filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/applying-online/eterminal-disclaimer.
Claims 1, 13, 16, and 28 are provisionally rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-2, 6-7, 11, 12, and 21-22 of copending Application No. 18/489,781 (reference application). Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because are an obvious variant of one another. For comparison, see the table below.
This is a provisional nonstatutory double patenting rejection because the patentably indistinct claims have not in fact been patented.
Instant Application
Reference Application
1. A user equipment (UE) for wireless communication, comprising: at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled to the at least one memory and configured to: provide at least one of a set of capabilities of the UE or UE assistance information (UAI) associated with at least a measurement relaxation associated with small data transmission (SDT); and receive a configuration message for the measurement relaxation associated with the SDT.
1. A user equipment (UE) for wireless communication, comprising: at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled to the at least one memory and configured to: obtain at least one of a first measurement of a first synchronization signal block (SSB) or a downlink (DL) reference signal that is quasi-colocated with the first SSB, or a second measurement of a second SSB or a DL reference signal that is quasi-colocated with the second SSB within a bandwidth of an initial DL bandwidth part configured by a serving cell of the UE, wherein the first SSB and the second SSB do not carry scheduling information for system information and wherein the first SSB is associated with a serving cell of the UE and the second SSB is associated with a non-serving cell; and perform a cell reselection operation based on at least one of the first measurement or the second measurement.
2. The UE of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: indicate a set of capabilities of the UE and UE assistance information (UAI) associated with at least one of a measurement relaxation, the cell reselection operation, a small data transmission, or a small data reception of the UE in an inactive mode or an idle mode; and receive a configuration message for the measurement relaxation associated with the cell reselection operation.
13. A method for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: providing at least one of a set of capabilities of the UE or UE assistance information (UAI) associated with at least a measurement relaxation associated with small data transmission (SDT); and receiving a configuration message for the measurement relaxation associated with the SDT.
6. A method for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: obtaining at least one of a first measurement of a first synchronization signal block (SSB) or a downlink (DL) reference signal that is quasi-colocated with the first SSB, or a second measurement of a second SSB or a DL reference signal that is quasi-colocated with the second SSB within a bandwidth of an initial DL bandwidth part configured by a serving cell of the UE, wherein the first SSB and the second SSB do not carry scheduling information for system information and wherein the first SSB is associated with a serving cell of the UE and the second SSB is associated with a non-serving cell; and performing a cell reselection operation based on at least one of the first measurement or the second measurement.
7. The method of claim 6, further comprising: indicating a set of capabilities of the UE and UE assistance information (UAI) associated with at least one of a measurement relaxation, the cell reselection operation, a small data transmission, or a small data reception of the UE in an inactive mode or an idle mode; and receiving a configuration message for the measurement relaxation associated with the cell reselection operation.
16. A network entity for wireless communication, comprising: at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled to the at least one memory and configured to: receive at least one of a set of capabilities of a user equipment (UE) or UE assistance information (UAI) associated with at least a measurement relaxation associated with small data transmission (SDT); and provide a configuration message associated with the measurement relaxation associated with the SDT.
11. A user equipment (UE) for wireless communication, comprising: at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled to the at least one memory and configured to: obtain, in response to an event trigger or a message received at the UE, at least one of a first measurement of a first synchronization signal block (SSB) or a downlink (DL) reference signal that is quasi-colocated with the first SSB, or a second measurement of a second SSB or a DL reference signal that is quasi-colocated with the second SSB in one or more bandwidth parts that is not an initial DL bandwidth part configured by a serving cell of the UE, wherein the first SSB is associated with the serving cell of the UE and the second SSB is associated with a non-serving cell; and perform a cell reselection operation based on at least one of the first measurement or the second measurement.
12. The UE of claim 11, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: indicate a set of capabilities of the UE and UE assistance information (UAI) associated with at least one of a measurement relaxation, a cell reselection operation, a small data transmission, or a small data reception of the apparatus in an inactive mode or an idle mode; and receive a configuration message for the measurement relaxation associated with the cell reselection operation.
28. A method for wireless communication at a radio access network (RAN) node, the method comprising: receiving at least one of a set of capabilities of a user equipment (UE) or UE assistance information (UAI) associated with at least a measurement relaxation associated with small data transmission (SDT); and providing a configuration message associated with the measurement relaxation associated with the SDT.
21. A method for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: obtaining, in response to an event trigger or a message received at the UE, at least one of a first measurement of a first synchronization signal block (SSB) or a downlink (DL) reference signal that is quasi-colocated with the first SSB, or a second measurement of a second SSB or a DL reference signal that is quasi-colocated with the second SSB in one or more bandwidth parts that is not an initial DL bandwidth part configured by a serving cell of the UE, wherein the first SSB is associated with the serving cell of the UE and the second SSB is associated with a non-serving cell; and performing a cell reselection operation based on at least one of the first measurement or the second measurement.
22. The method of claim 21, further comprising: indicating a set of capabilities of the UE and UE assistance information (UAI) associated with at least one of a measurement relaxation, a cell reselection operation, a small data transmission, or a small data reception of the UE in an inactive mode or an idle mode; and receiving a configuration message for the measurement relaxation associated with the cell reselection operation.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-4, 11, 13-14, 16-19, 26, and 28-29 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being unpatentable by Qualcomm, “Remaining Issues on Procedures of RedCap UE”, 3GPP TSG RAN WG1 Meeting #111, R1-2212086, Toulouse, France, Nov. 14-18, 2022 (hereafter 3GPP-2086).
Regarding Claim 1,
A user equipment (UE) for wireless communication, comprising: at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled to the at least one memory and configured to:
provide at least one of a set of capabilities of the UE or UE assistance information (UAI) associated with at least a measurement relaxation associated with small data transmission (SDT); and receive a configuration message for the measurement relaxation associated with the SDT [3GPP-2086: Sec. 4; according to [1], when a RedCap UE in RRC_INACTIVE state monitors Type1-PDCCH within an initial DL BWP) without CD-SSB, the RedCap UE is not required to monitor Type2-PDCCH CSS set outside its initial DL BWP; if the RedCap UE performs SDT in an initial DL BWP without CD-SSB, the UE does not expect the initial DL BWP to include CORESET#0 and Type0/0A/2-PDCCH CSS sets [1]; under such circumstances, the RedCap UE can either switch BWP to monitor Type2/0/0A-PDCCH CSS sets outside its initial DL BWP, or be provided with SI update by dedicated RRC sginalling scheduled with C-RNTI without BWP switching].
Note:
[1] incorporated by reference is 3GPP TS 38.213, V17.3.0 (Sept. 2022).
Regarding Claim 2,
wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a control message in an initial DL bandwidth part configured by a serving cell of the UE [3GPP-2086; under such circumstances, the RedCap UE can either switch BWP to monitor Type2/0/0A-PDCCH CSS sets outside its initial DL BWP, or be provided with SI update by dedicated RRC sginalling scheduled with C-RNTI without BWP switching],
the control message being associated with configuration, activation or ordering of a reference signal transmission of the UE; and transmit a reference signal in an initial uplink (UL) bandwidth part of the UE in response to the control message [3GPP-2086: Sec. 3; Proposal 3; for operation on a single carrier in unpaired spectrum, if a RedCap UE operates on an active DL BWP configured with NCD-SSB and on an active UL BWP configured with PRACH resources: the valid PRACH occasion(s) will not overlap with SSB symbols of NCD-SSB and CD-SSB; the UE does not expect to be configured with a SS/PBCH block by NonCellDefiningSSB (i.e. NCD-SSB), which ends within Ngap symbols of starting symbol of a valid PRACH occasion configured for RedCap UE or succeeds a valid PRACH occasion, configured for RedCap UE, in a slot; the valid PRACH occasion(s) and definition of Ngap for RedCap UE are determined by the rules in Clause 8.1 of TS 38.213],
wherein the initial UL bandwidth part supports a small data transmission of the UE in an inactive mode or an idle mode [3GPP-2086: Sec. 4; according to [1], when a RedCap UE in RRC_INACTIVE state monitors Type1-PDCCH within an initial DL BWP) without CD-SSB, the RedCap UE is not required to monitor Type2-PDCCH CSS set outside its initial DL BWP; if the RedCap UE performs SDT in an initial DL BWP without CD-SSB, the UE does not expect the initial DL BWP to include CORESET#0 and Type0/0A/2-PDCCH CSS sets [1]].
Regarding Claim 3,
wherein the control message includes at least one of a radio resource control (RRC) message, a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), or a medium access control-control element (MAC-CE) [3GPP-2086: Sec. 4; according to [1], when a RedCap UE in RRC_INACTIVE state monitors Type1-PDCCH within an initial DL BWP) without CD-SSB, the RedCap UE is not required to monitor Type2-PDCCH CSS set outside its initial DL BWP; if the RedCap UE performs SDT in an initial DL BWP without CD-SSB, the UE does not expect the initial DL BWP to include CORESET#0 and Type0/0A/2-PDCCH CSS sets [1]; under such circumstances, the RedCap UE can either switch BWP to monitor Type2/0/0A-PDCCH CSS sets outside its initial DL BWP, or be provided with SI update by dedicated RRC sginalling scheduled with C-RNTI without BWP switching],
Note:
[1] incorporated by reference is 3GPP TS 38.213, V17.3.0 (Sept. 2022).
wherein the control message commands the UE to transmit the reference signal in the initial UL bandwidth part configured by the serving cell [3GPP-2086: Sec. 3; Proposal 3; for operation on a single carrier in unpaired spectrum, if a RedCap UE operates on an active DL BWP configured with NCD-SSB and on an active UL BWP configured with PRACH resources: the valid PRACH occasion(s) will not overlap with SSB symbols of NCD-SSB and CD-SSB; the UE does not expect to be configured with a SS/PBCH block by NonCellDefiningSSB (i.e. NCD-SSB), which ends within Ngap symbols of starting symbol of a valid PRACH occasion configured for RedCap UE or succeeds a valid PRACH occasion, configured for RedCap UE, in a slot; the valid PRACH occasion(s) and definition of Ngap for RedCap UE are determined by the rules in Clause 8.1 of TS 38.213].
Regarding Claim 4,
wherein a payload, a demodulation reference signal, or cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits of the control message is scrambled with information associated with an identifier of the UE [3GPP-2086: Sec. 4; under such circumstances, the RedCap UE can either switch BWP to monitor Type2/0/0A-PDCCH CSS sets outside its initial DL BWP, or be provided with SI update by dedicated RRC sginalling scheduled with C-RNTI without BWP switching].
Regarding Claim 11,
wherein the message is received within a UE-specific search space set or a common search space set configured for the SDT [3GPP-2086: message == SI update; Sec. 4; according to [1], when a RedCap UE in RRC_INACTIVE state monitors Type1-PDCCH within an initial DL BWP) without CD-SSB, the RedCap UE is not required to monitor Type2-PDCCH CSS set outside its initial DL BWP; if the RedCap UE performs SDT in an initial DL BWP without CD-SSB, the UE does not expect the initial DL BWP to include CORESET#0 and Type0/0A/2-PDCCH CSS sets [1]; under such circumstances, the RedCap UE can either switch BWP to monitor Type2/0/0A-PDCCH CSS sets outside its initial DL BWP, or be provided with SI update by dedicated RRC sginalling scheduled with C-RNTI without BWP switching; TS 38.213 (incorporated by reference via [1]): Sec. 19.2; a UE can be provided by sdt-SearchSpace a CSS set to monitor, after contention resolution as described in clause 8.4, PDCCH for detection of a DCI format 0_0 or DCI format 1_0 with CRC scrambled by C-RNTI for scheduling respective PUSCH transmissions or PDSCH receptions; otherwise, if the UE is not provided sdt-SearchSpace, the UE monitors PDCCH according to a Type1-PDCCH CSS set as described in clause 10.1; Sec. 19.1; a UE can be provided a USS set by SearchSpace, or a CSS set by sdt-SearchSpace, to monitor PDCCH for detection of DCI format 0_0 with CRC scrambled by C-RNTI or CS-RNTI for scheduling PUSCH transmission ….].
Regarding Claims 13-14, which recite a method for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE) having the same claim limitations as those in claims 1-2 above, the same rationale of rejection as presented in claims 1-2 is applicable.
Regarding claims 16-19 and 26, which recite a network entity for wireless communication having the same claim limitations as those in claims 1-4 and 11, the same rationale of rejection as presented in claims 1-4 and 11 is applicable.
Regarding claims 28-29, which recite a method for wireless communication at a radio access network (RAN) node having the same claim limitations as those in claims 1-2 above, the same rationale of rejection as presented in claims 1-2 is applicable.
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.
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) 5-10, 15, 20-25, and 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over 3GPP-2086 in view of Lei et al. (CN 118805402, hereafter Lei).
Regarding Claim 5,
3GPP-2086 teaches:
wherein the one or more bandwidth parts includes at least a control resource set associated with system information or paging [3GPP-2086: Sec. 4; the RedCap UE can either switch BWP to monitor Type2/0/0A-PDCCH CSS sets outside its initial DL BWP, or be provided with SI update by dedicated RRC sginalling scheduled with C-RNTI without BWP switching].
However, 3GPP-2086 does not explicitly teach a bandwidth part switching control message.
Lei teaches:
wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a bandwidth part switching control message in an initial DL bandwidth part configured by a serving cell of the UE; and switch to the one or more bandwidth parts in response to the bandwidth part switching control message [Lei: p. 12; the RedCap UE may switch to a non-initial BWP by using the BWP switching mechanism described below in FIG. 8; p. 14; as shown in FIG. 8, RedCap initial DL BWP may include, for example, RACH CSS, but may not include SSB, CORESETs (e.g., CORESETO for CORESET for paging) and/or system information block (SIB); in other cases, RedCap UE may not include RACH CSS, but may include CORESET (e.g., CORESETO); p. 14; aspects of the present disclosure may allow RedCap UE to implement an extended timeline, thereby allowing RedCap UE to switch to a different BWP during the RACH procedure (e.g., to a non-RedCap initial DL BWP) to monitor the SSB; after detecting the SSB, RedCap UE may then return (e.g., return to RedCap Initial BWP) to recover the RACH procedure; p. 17; For example, according to the first option, RedCap UE may perform a BWP switch to a BWP including CORESET #0 to retrieve the SI update/PWS, and switch back to the RedCap-specific initial DL BWP after re-acquiring the SI update; for example, the option may be adapted to, for example, the DL BWP configuration shown in Figs. 14 and 15A; according to the second option, RedCap UE may not need to perform a BWP handover and may initiate RACH and request " on-demand broadcast/multicast of updated SI within RedCap specific initial DL BWP … for example, a PDCCH monitoring adaptation may be configured for the UE based on the UE capability and UE auxiliary information (UAI); p. 18; after sending a request or UAI, the UE may monitor an indication for PDCCH monitoring adaptation. In some cases, an indication for PDCCH monitoring adaptation may be sent in a DCI, MAC CE or RRC message].
It would have been obvious for POSITA before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the teachings of 3GPP-2086 and Lei in order to improve the technical performance of the wireless communication system [Lei: p. 2].
Regarding Claim 6,
3GPP-2086 teaches that the RedCap UE can either switch BWP to monitor Type2/0/0A-PDCCH CSS sets outside its initial DL BWP, or be provided with SI update by dedicated RRC sginalling scheduled with C-RNTI without BWP switching [3GPP-2086: Sec. 4].
However, 3GPP-2086 does not teach that the bandwidth part switching control message includes at least one of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) or a medium access control-control element (MAC-CE), wherein downlink control information of the PDCCH or the MAC-CE commands the UE to switch to the one or more bandwidth parts to acquire system information ….
Lei teaches:
wherein the bandwidth part switching control message includes at least one of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) or a medium access control-control element (MAC-CE), wherein downlink control information of the PDCCH or the MAC-CE commands the UE to switch to the one or more bandwidth parts to acquire system information, monitor paging information, or perform measurements for synchronization, channel state reporting, interference management, radio link monitoring, beam management, beam failure detection, power control, positioning, or radio resource management [Lei: p. 18; after sending a request or UAI, the UE may monitor an indication for PDCCH monitoring adaptation. In some cases, an indication for PDCCH monitoring adaptation may be sent in a DCI, MAC CE or RRC message; p. 17; as shown in Figs. 14 and 15, RedCap UE may switch to RedCap-specific initial DL/UL BWP to perform an idle/inactive mode procedure after a separate initial DL/UL BWP configuration is obtained; such processes may include for cell selection/reselection, random access (ra-SearchSpace-RedCap), paging (pagingSearchSpace-RedCap) or requesting measurements of SI on demand (based on msg1/msg3/msgA/CG-PUSCH/PUCCH/SRS); p. 23; configuration information for one or more downlink reference signals transmitted in a second downlink BWP includes transmission parameters and an indication of availability; the sending parameter can be obtained in one or more of the first DL BWP or the second DL BWP; and the availability indication is provided separately to the first type of UE via at least one of: the system information includes: system information, RRC message, MAC-CE or DCI].
It would have been obvious for POSITA before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the teachings of 3GPP-2086 and Lei in order to improve the technical performance of the wireless communication system [Lei: p. 2].
Regarding Claim 7,
wherein a payload, a demodulation reference signal, or cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits of the bandwidth part switching control message is scrambled with information associated with an identifier of the UE [3GPP-2086: Sec. 4; under such circumstances, the RedCap UE can either switch BWP to monitor Type2/0/0A-PDCCH CSS sets outside its initial DL BWP, or be provided with SI update by dedicated RRC sginalling scheduled with C-RNTI without BWP switching].
Regarding Claim 8,
3GPP-2086 teaches that the RedCap UE shall be ready to transmit PRACH based on its implementation, if the RedCap UE needs to measure SS/PBCH blocks outside its active DL BWP before transmitting PRACH and the active DL BWP does not include the SS/PBCH blocks that the UE used to obtain SIB1 or the SS/PBCH blocks provided by NonCellDefiningSSB [3GPP-2086: Sec. 2].
However, 3GPP-2086 does not teach that the at least one processor is further configured to … receive a channel state information (CSI) report request control message … and transmit a CSI report based on a synchronization signal block (SSB) received in the initial DL bandwidth part in response to the CSI report request control message.
Lei teaches:
wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: receive a channel state information (CSI) report request control message in an initial DL bandwidth part configured by a serving cell of the UE; and transmit a CSI report based on a synchronization signal block (SSB) received in the initial DL bandwidth part in response to the CSI report request control message [Lei: p. 15-16; depending on the UE capability and the initial DL BWP configuration, the inter-frequency/inter-frequency cell selection/reselection of RedCap UE may be based on measurements of one or more DL RSs received in an idle/inactive state; these DL RSs may include, for example, CD-SSB, NCD-SSB sent in RedCap-specific initial DL BWP. and one or combination of other broadcast/multicast DL RS (different from CD-SSB and NCD-SSB) transmitted in RedCap specific initial DL BWP and co-located with CD-SSB or NCD-SSB quasi-address (QCL); examples of these other broadcast/multicast DL RS include CSI-RS/TRS, DMRS for multicast/broadcast PDSCH and scheduled PDCCH; p. 17; in some cases, the UE may send a request for PDCCH monitoring adaptation when an idle mode or inactive mode procedure is performed in one or more of the first DL BWP or the second DL BWP; in some cases, the request for PDCCH monitoring adaptation may be multiplexed with UL transmission associated with a random access procedure (4 steps RA or 2 steps RA), a measurement report, MO-SDT or MT-SDT; p. 20; the configuration for the second downlink BWP indicates at least one of: the position, parameter set and bandwidth of the second downlink BWP; the second CORESET and the second SS set are configured for at least one of an idle mode or an inactive mode procedure in the second downlink BWP; DRX configuration; a standard for measuring relaxation; or configuration information for one or more downlink reference signals transmitted in the second downlink BWP].
It would have been obvious for POSITA before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the teachings of 3GPP-2086 and Lei in order to improve the technical performance of the wireless communication system [Lei: p. 2].
Regarding Claim 9,
3GPP-2086 teaches that the RedCap UE shall be ready to transmit PRACH based on its implementation, if the RedCap UE needs to measure SS/PBCH blocks outside its active DL BWP before transmitting PRACH and the active DL BWP does not include the SS/PBCH blocks that the UE used to obtain SIB1 or the SS/PBCH blocks provided by NonCellDefiningSSB [3GPP-2086: Sec. 2].
However, 3GPP-2086 does not teach that CSI report request control message includes at least one of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) or a medium access control-control element (MAC-CE), wherein downlink control information of the PDCCH or the MAC-CE commands the UE to transmit the CSI report.
Lei teaches:
wherein the CSI report request control message includes at least one of a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) or a medium access control-control element (MAC-CE), wherein downlink control information of the PDCCH or the MAC-CE commands the UE to transmit the CSI report [Lei: p. 15-16; depending on the UE capability and the initial DL BWP configuration, the inter-frequency/inter-frequency cell selection/reselection of RedCap UE may be based on measurements of one or more DL RSs received in an idle/inactive state; these DL RSs may include, for example, CD-SSB, NCD-SSB sent in RedCap-specific initial DL BWP. and one or combination of other broadcast/multicast DL RS (different from CD-SSB and NCD-SSB) transmitted in RedCap specific initial DL BWP and co-located with CD-SSB or NCD-SSB quasi-address (QCL); examples of these other broadcast/multicast DL RS include CSI-RS/TRS, DMRS for multicast/broadcast PDSCH and scheduled PDCCH; p. 17; in some cases, the UE may send a request for PDCCH monitoring adaptation when an idle mode or inactive mode procedure is performed in one or more of the first DL BWP or the second DL BWP; in some cases, the request for PDCCH monitoring adaptation may be multiplexed with UL transmission associated with a random access procedure (4 steps RA or 2 steps RA), a measurement report, MO-SDT or MT-SDT].
It would have been obvious for POSITA before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the teachings of 3GPP-2086 and Lei in order to improve the technical performance of the wireless communication system [Lei: p. 2].
Regarding Claim 10,
wherein a payload, a demodulation reference signal (DMRS), or cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits of the CSI report request control message is scrambled with information associated with an identifier of the UE [3GPP-2086: Sec. 4; under such circumstances, the RedCap UE can either switch BWP to monitor Type2/0/0A-PDCCH CSS sets outside its initial DL BWP, or be provided with SI update by dedicated RRC sginalling scheduled with C-RNTI without BWP switching].
Regarding Claim 15, which recites the same claim limitations as those in claim 5 above, the same rationale of rejection as presented in claim 5 is applicable.
Regarding Claims 20-22, which recite a method for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE) having the same claim limitations as those in claims 5-7 above, the same rationale of rejection as presented in claims 5-7 is applicable.
Regarding Claims 23-25, which recite a method for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE) having the same claim limitations as those in claims 8-10 above, the same rationale of rejection as presented in claims 8-10 is applicable.
Regarding Claim 30, which recites the same claim limitations as those in claim 5 above, the same rationale of rejection as presented in claim 5 is applicable.
Claim(s) 12 and 27 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over 3GPP-2086 in view of Xiong et al. (WO 2022/212122; hereafter Xiong).
Regarding Claim 12,
3GPP-2086 teaches that the RedCap UE can either switch BWP to monitor Type2/0/0A-PDCCH CSS sets outside its initial DL BWP, or be provided with SI update by dedicated RRC sginalling scheduled with C-RNTI without BWP switching [3GPP-2086: Sec. 4].
However, 3GPP-2086 does not teach that a first size of downlink control information carrying the message is aligned with a second size of a fallback DCI format or a compact DCI format.
Xiong teaches:
wherein a first size of downlink control information carrying the message is aligned with a second size of a fallback DCI format or a compact DCI format [Xiong: 0113; For RedCap UEs provided with a CORESET #0A at least for one of paging or random access, it is also necessary to monitor for DCI format 1 0 with its Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) scrambled with SI-RNTI for reception of System Information (SI) messages. In general, this can result in two sizes for DCI format 1 0 monitoring in a CSS if the sizes of CORESET #0 and CORESET #0A are different; 0114; CORESET #0A in the frequency domain may be constrained to be the same as that for CORESET #0; consequently, the size of the DCI format 1 0 may be determined according to either CORESET #0 or CORESET #0A size in the frequency domain; alternatively, the sizes of CORESET #0 and CORESET #0A may be different, and the size of DCI format 1 0 monitored in a CSS may be determined according to CORESET #0; 0233; In Example 3, the subject matter of Examples 1-2 includes subject matter where the processing circuitry is configured to determine a size of the DCI based on the CORESET].
It would have been obvious for POSITA before the effective filing date of the invention to combine the teachings of 3GPP-2086 and Xiong in order to limit device complexity and power consumption while minimizing any adverse impact to network resource utilization, system spectral efficiency, and operation efficiency [Xiong; 0104].
Regarding Claim 27, which recites the same claim limitations as those in claim 12 above, the same rationale of rejection as presented in claim 12 is applicable.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See [Sec. 19.1; 19.2], TS 38.213 v17.3.0 (Sept. 2022; incorporated by reference in IDS).
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SAAD A. WAQAS
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2468
/Saad A. Waqas/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2468