DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
This office action is in response to application filed 12/05/2023.
Claims 1, 8-10, 12, 14-16, 22, 25, 32-34, 36, 38-40, 46, and 51-52 are pending and presented for examination. Claims 2-7, 11, 13, 17-21, 23, 24, 26-31, 35, 37, 41-45, and 47-50 are cancelled.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 12/05/2023, 02/20/2024, 03/14/2025, 09/25/2025, 10/28/2025, 12/23/2025, and 02/20/2026 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 14 and 38 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 14 and 38 recite “a value obtained from X*N1; a value obtained from X *N1 and an offset; a value of a variable T1; or any one or more of P1 and P2.” The variables X, N1, an offset, T1, P1 and P2 are indefinite elements without further limitation.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 9, 10, 16, 25, 33, 34, 40, 51 and 52 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Yuan et al (US 20250317821 A1, hereinafter “Yuan”).
RE Claim 1, Yuan discloses a wireless communication method
comprising: receiving, by a communication device, a signaling that includes information (L1/L2 signaling for cell changes for L1/L2 inter-cell mobility for mobility latency reduction. ¶0107; Indication and information for cell changes signaled by PDCCH and received by the UE, a communication device. ¶¶0125-0126):
including any one or more of the following: a transmission configuration indication (TCI) state (TCI States with at least one for downlink and/or uplink configured for a new cell. ¶0125; TCI State IDs signaled for each new cell. ¶0126), a beam indication (Beam indication based cell switch command for indicated beams. ¶0125), a switching command (Beam indication based cell switch command for indicated beams. ¶0125), a cell identifier (ID) (The beam indication signaling may provide the cell ID for cell change and applying the indicated beams. ¶0125), a bandwidth part (BWP) ID (Signaling of cell change with TCI codepoint with corresponding BWP IDs. ¶0143), a cell radio network temporary identifier (C-RNTI) (Element is optional), a random access procedure related information (Some serving configurations for SpCell functions can be valid only when the candidate cell is selected as SpCell, e.g. RACH. ¶0138), a cell switching indication (L1/L2 signaling for cell changes for L1/L2 inter-cell mobility for mobility latency reduction. ¶0107; Indication and information for cell changes signaled by PDCCH and received by the UE, a communication device. ¶¶0125-0126), a timing advance (TA) (Cell switch command includes timing advance, TA, command. ¶¶0126, 0151, Fig. 29), a timing difference between a serving cell and a target cell (Slot boundary of application time determined by old, serving, cell and Tx/Rx of new, target, cell. ¶0128, Fig. 13, 14), an association between a reference signal and a cell (Signaling indicating a new cell may trigger or activate one or more reference signals that may include CSI-RS. ¶0129), a timer (The application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. ¶0127), an indication related to common information to be used for the target cell or a candidate cell (Unified TCI may be used to indicate a common TCI state for multiple channels, reference signals, or channel and RS. Different types of unified TCIs such as Type 1, Type 2, and/or Type 3 to indicated common beam information. ¶¶0106, 0143, 0153), a channel/signal transmission or reception (L1/L2 signaling for cell changes for L1/L2 inter-cell mobility for mobility latency reduction. ¶0107; Indication and information for cell changes signaled by PDCCH and received by the UE, a communication device. ¶¶0125-0126), reference signal (Signaling indicating a new cell may trigger or activate one or more reference signals that may include CSI-RS. ¶0129); and
performing, by the communication device, an operation using the information (L1/L2 signaling for cell changes for L1/L2 inter-cell mobility for mobility latency reduction. ¶0107; Indication and information for cell changes signaled by PDCCH and received by the UE, a communication device. ¶¶0125-0126; The application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. ¶0127), and
wherein the performing of the operation includes:
performing a transmission or a reception for the target cell or the candidate cell using the information (The application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. ¶0127; Slot boundary of application time determined by old, serving, cell and Tx/Rx of new, target, cell. ¶0128, Fig. 13, 14), or applying the information starting from a specific time (The application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. ¶0127) or simultaneously with applying of the cell switching indication (Simultaneous scheduling and cell switching. ¶0151, Fig. 29).
RE Claim 9 and 33, Yuan discloses a method,
wherein the signaling includes different information that has different reference points or a same reference point (Additionally or alternatively, in some other aspects, the application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. In one example, such as if the new cell is signaled via MAC-CE as the cell change signaling, the application time can be a number of X milliseconds (ms) from the end of UL slot carrying the feedback (e.g., ACK) for the MAC-CE. In one or more of the above examples, the X (e.g., X ms, X symbols, etc.) may be different depending on whether the new cell has been previously activated or not. In some examples, in the case of X symbols, the X may be configured per SCS and subject to UE capability. In some examples, in case of multiple new cells, a common application time may be defined (e.g., as the longest application time among all the multiple new cells). ¶0127).
RE Claim 10 and 34, Yuan discloses a method,
wherein the reference point includes any one or more of the following (The application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. ¶0127):
a start position or an end position at which the communication device receives the signaling that indicates or updates the information (In a second option (if the new cell is signaled via DCI), the application time may be the start of first slot after X ms or symbols from the DCI. ¶0127);
a start position or an end position at which the communication device receives the information indicated or updated by the signaling (In a second option (if the new cell is signaled via DCI), the application time may be the start of first slot after X ms or symbols from the DCI. ¶0127),
a start position or an end position at which the communication device transmits an acknowledge information corresponding to the signaling that indicates or updates the information (In another example, such as if the new cell is signaled via DCI as the cell change signaling, at least two options may be provided. In a first option (if the new cell is signaled via DCI), the application time may be the start of first slot after X ms or symbols from the end of feedback (e.g., ACK) for the DCI. ¶0127), or
a start position or an end position at which the communication device transmits the acknowledge information corresponding to the information indicated or updated by the signaling (In another example, such as if the new cell is signaled via DCI as the cell change signaling, at least two options may be provided. In a first option (if the new cell is signaled via DCI), the application time may be the start of first slot after X ms or symbols from the end of feedback (e.g., ACK) for the DCI. ¶0127).
RE Claim 16 and 40, Yuan discloses a method,
wherein the signaling includes a downlink control information (DCI) or a media access control-control element (MAC CE) (Additionally or alternatively, in some other aspects, the application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. In one example, such as if the new cell is signaled via MAC-CE as the cell change signaling, the application time can be a number of X milliseconds (ms) from the end of UL slot carrying the feedback (e.g., ACK) for the MAC-CE. In another example, such as if the new cell is signaled via DCI as the cell change signaling, at least two options may be provided. ¶0127).
RE Claim 51 and 52, Yuan discloses a method,
wherein the signaling includes different information that is applied starting from different specific times or a same specific time (Additionally or alternatively, in some other aspects, the application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. In one example, such as if the new cell is signaled via MAC-CE as the cell change signaling, the application time can be a number of X milliseconds (ms) from the end of UL slot carrying the feedback (e.g., ACK) for the MAC-CE. In one or more of the above examples, the X (e.g., X ms, X symbols, etc.) may be different depending on whether the new cell has been previously activated or not. In some examples, in the case of X symbols, the X may be configured per SCS and subject to UE capability. In some examples, in case of multiple new cells, a common application time may be defined (e.g., as the longest application time among all the multiple new cells). ¶0127).
RE Claim 25, Yuan discloses a wireless communication method,
comprising: transmitting, by a network device, a signaling that includes information (L1/L2 signaling for cell changes for L1/L2 inter-cell mobility for mobility latency reduction. ¶0107; Indication and information for cell changes signaled by PDCCH, transmitted by network device, and received by the UE, a communication device. ¶¶0125-0126):
including any one or more of the following: a transmission configuration indication (TCI) state (TCI States with at least one for downlink and/or uplink configured for a new cell. ¶0125; TCI State IDs signaled for each new cell. ¶0126), a beam indication (Beam indication based cell switch command for indicated beams. ¶0125), a switching command (Beam indication based cell switch command for indicated beams. ¶0125), a cell identifier (ID) (The beam indication signaling may provide the cell ID for cell change and applying the indicated beams. ¶0125), a bandwidth part (BWP) ID (Signaling of cell change with TCI codepoint with corresponding BWP IDs. ¶0143), a cell radio network temporary identifier (C-RNTI) (Element is optional), a random access procedure related information (Some serving configurations for SpCell functions can be valid only when the candidate cell is selected as SpCell, e.g. RACH. ¶0138), a cell switching indication (L1/L2 signaling for cell changes for L1/L2 inter-cell mobility for mobility latency reduction. ¶0107; Indication and information for cell changes signaled by PDCCH and received by the UE, a communication device. ¶¶0125-0126), a timing advance (TA) (Cell switch command includes timing advance, TA, command. ¶¶0126, 0151, Fig. 29), a timing difference between a serving cell and a target cell (Slot boundary of application time determined by old, serving, cell and Tx/Rx of new, target, cell. ¶0128, Fig. 13, 14), an association between a reference signal and a cell (Signaling indicating a new cell may trigger or activate one or more reference signals that may include CSI-RS. ¶0129), a timer(The application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. ¶0127), an indication related to common information to be used for the target cell or a candidate cell (Unified TCI may be used to indicate a common TCI state for multiple channels, reference signals, or channel and RS. Different types of unified TCIs such as Type 1, Type 2, and/or Type 3 to indicated common beam information. ¶¶0106, 0143, 0153), a channel/signal transmission or reception (L1/L2 signaling for cell changes for L1/L2 inter-cell mobility for mobility latency reduction. ¶0107; Indication and information for cell changes signaled by PDCCH and received by the UE, a communication device. ¶¶0125-0126), reference signal (Signaling indicating a new cell may trigger or activate one or more reference signals that may include CSI-RS. ¶0129),
wherein the signaling causes the communication device to perform an operation that includes (L1/L2 signaling for cell changes for L1/L2 inter-cell mobility for mobility latency reduction. ¶0107; Indication and information for cell changes signaled by PDCCH and received by the UE, a communication device. ¶¶0125-0126; The application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. ¶0127):
performing a transmission or a reception for the target cell or the candidate cell using the information (L1/L2 signaling for cell changes for L1/L2 inter-cell mobility for mobility latency reduction. ¶0107; Indication and information for cell changes signaled by PDCCH and received by the UE, a communication device. ¶¶0125-0126; The application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. ¶0127), or
applying the information starting from a specific time (The application time for each new cell may be specified. In some examples, the application time may refer to the time from which a UE receives an indication to switch or change cells and the time the UE implements cell switching or change. ¶0127) or simultaneously with applying of the cell switching indication (Simultaneous scheduling and cell switching. ¶0151, Fig. 29).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 8, 12, 22, 32, 36, and 46 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yuan et al (US 20250317821 A1, hereinafter “Yuan”), in view of Bai et al. (US 20240348403 A1, hereinafter “Bai”).
RE Claim 8 and 32, Yuan does not explicitly disclose, however Bai discloses a method,
wherein the specific time is determined by a time gap or a minimum value of the time gap relative to a reference point (In some examples, the update and/or activation may take effect after an application time. An application time may be a period allocated for a wireless communication device to activate and/or update a configuration (e.g., TCI state configuration), a specific time gap. ¶0071; A beam application time is configured by the base station based on the wireless communication device capability. For example, the wireless communication device may be supported for a minimum value of beam application time, a specific time gap. ¶0072; In some examples, an application time for a non-serving cell beam may be configured by a base station to be greater than or equal to a fixed minimum application time. For instance, a beam application time may be configured by the base station 226 (e.g., gNB), where a minimum value of beam application time is fixed and/or predefined. ¶0073).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings of Yuan, a cell switching command and an indication of a time difference between serving cell and a target cell for a beam application time, with the teachings of Bai, determination of a minimum beam application time supported by the communication device capabilities..
The motivation in doing so would be to enable L1/L2 inter-cell mobility by associating TCI states with a target cell with a beam application time to synchronize UE communications to enable fast handover of data or control channels to a target cell. (Yuan: Abstract, ¶¶0059, 0105-0108, 0116, 0125-0126, 0130-0132; Bai: Abstract, ¶¶0015-0016, 0018-0023, 0079-0080)
RE Claim 12 and 36, Yuan discloses a method,
further comprising any one or more of the following:
wherein the reference point is determined based on a first sub-carrier spacing (SCS) of a source cell or a second SCS of the target cell in response to the first SCS being different from the second SCS (In a second option (if the new cell is signaled via DCI), the application time may be the start of first slot after X ms or symbols from the DCI. According to the second option, in the case of X symbols, the SCS may be the SCS of the active DL BWP of the signaling cell, the SCS of the active DL or UL BWP of the new cell, the smallest (or largest SCS) of the active DL and UL BWPs of the new cell and the active DL and UL BWPs of the signaling cell, or other SCS. In a second option (if the new cell is signaled via DCI), the application time may be the start of first slot after X ms or symbols from the DCI. According to the second option, in the case of X symbols, the SCS may be the SCS of the active DL BWP of the signaling cell, the SCS of the active DL or UL BWP of the new cell, the smallest (or largest SCS) of the active DL and UL BWPs of the new cell and the active DL and UL BWPs of the signaling cell, or other SCS. ¶0127); or
wherein the reference point is determined considering any one or more of a timing difference between the source cell and the target cell (In a case that different TA value is applied for old and new cells, the slot boundary of the application may be determined using various options, first option is based on old cell and second option is based on new cell. ¶0128), a first timing advance (TA) of the source cell (According to a second option, the slot boundary of the application time may be determined by the slot boundary of the old cell, and any Tx/Rx on the new cell will be taken into account. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of the slot boundary of the application time being determined by the slot boundary of the old cell. ¶0128), or a second TA of the target cell in response to the source cell being non-synchronized with the target cell (According to a first option, the slot boundary of the application time may be determined by the slot boundary of the new cell, and any transmission and/or reception (Tx/Rx) on the old cell will be taken into account. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of the slot boundary of the application time being determined by the slot boundary of the new cell. ¶0128; TA may be measured and signaled to a UE for a configured serving cell that is not used for data and control communications (e.g., a deactivated SCell), which can be a candidate cell for selection as a new SpCell in L1/L2 based mobility (e.g., using L1/L2 based signaling described above). ¶0132).
RE Claim 22 and 46, Yuan discloses a method,
wherein the timing advance (TA) or the timing difference is obtained by any one or more of:
an indication from a network device (Cell switch command includes timing advance, TA, command. ¶¶0126, 0151, Fig. 29);
the timing difference is obtained based on a first TA value associated with a source cell minus a second TA value associated with the target cell (Slot boundary of application time determined by old, serving, cell and Tx/Rx of new, target, cell. ¶0128, Fig. 13, 14);
based on a random access channel (RACH) procedure (Some serving configurations for SpCell functions can be valid only when the candidate cell is selected as SpCell, e.g. RACH. ¶0138); or based on a pre-defined method (In some examples, the dedicated cell switch command (dedicated MAC-CE or DCI) may include other operation parameters for the new cell, such as including beam indication, timing Advance (TA) command, power control (PC) parameter indications, active DL and UL Bandwidth Parts (BWPs) indications. ¶0126).
Yuan does not explicitly disclose, however Bai discloses:
based on L1 measurement (In some examples, associating a TCI state with one or more non-serving cell reference signals may enable L1-based measurement and/or reporting for non-serving cells. ¶0022; For instance, an application time for serving cell(s) may be 3 milliseconds (ms), and/or an application time for non-serving cell(s) may be the same amount of time or longer (e.g., a 5 ms fixed time) or may be based on one or more SSB measurement timing configuration(s) (SMTC(s)). Other examples of application times (within a range, such as 0.5 ms to 20 ms, for instance) may be used in some configurations. In some examples, specifications (e.g., 3GPP specifications) may be modified to specify separate values of application times for non-serving cell(s) and serving cell(s). In some examples, application time of a TCI state associated with a non-serving cell may depend on an SMTC. For instance, an application time for non-serving cell(s) may vary with varying SMTCs. ¶0075);
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings of Yuan, a cell switching command and an indication of a time difference between serving cell and a target cell for a beam application time, with the teachings of Bai, determination of a beam application time based on L1 measurements.
The motivation in doing so would be to enable L1/L2 inter-cell mobility by associating TCI states with a target cell with a beam application time to synchronize UE communications to enable fast handover of data or control channels to a target cell. (Yuan: Abstract, ¶¶0059, 0105-0108, 0116, 0125-0126, 0130-0132; Bai: Abstract, ¶¶0015-0016, 0018-0023, 0079-0080)
Claim(s) 14, 15, 38 and 39 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yuan, in view of Bai, in view of Park et al (US 20220124782 A1, hereinafter “Park”).
RE Claim 14 and 38, Yuan does not explicitly disclose, however Bai discloses a method,
wherein the time gap or the minimum value of the time gap is determined based on any one or more of (In some examples, the update and/or activation may take effect after an application time. An application time may be a period allocated for a wireless communication device to activate and/or update a configuration (e.g., TCI state configuration), a specific time gap. ¶0071; A beam application time is configured by the base station based on the wireless communication device capability. For example, the wireless communication device may be supported for a minimum value of beam application time, a specific time gap. ¶0072; In some examples, an application time for a non-serving cell beam may be configured by a base station to be greater than or equal to a fixed minimum application time. For instance, a beam application time may be configured by the base station 226 (e.g., gNB), where a minimum value of beam application time is fixed and/or predefined. ¶0073):
at least one current value (In some examples, the update and/or activation may take effect after an application time. An application time may be a period allocated for a wireless communication device to activate and/or update a configuration (e.g., TCI state configuration), a specific time gap. ¶0071; For instance, an application time for serving cell(s) may be 3 milliseconds (ms), and/or an application time for non-serving cell(s) may be the same amount of time or longer (e.g., a 5 ms fixed time) or may be based on one or more SSB measurement timing configuration(s) (SMTC(s)). ¶0075); one or more additional values is added on top of at least one value from a current value set; at least one current value plus a specific value or a set of specific values (In some examples, the base station 226 (e.g., gNB) may indicate two separate application times (e.g., a first application time for non-serving cell(s) and a second application time for serving cell(s)) to the wireless communication device. For instance, an application time for serving cell(s) may be 3 milliseconds (ms), and/or an application time for non-serving cell(s) may be the same amount of time or longer (e.g., a 5 ms fixed time) or may be based on one or more SSB measurement timing configuration(s) (SMTC(s)). ¶0075); at least one current value scaled by a scaling factor; a radio resource control (RRC) signaling configuration; media access control-control element (MAC CE) signaling indication; a downlink control information (DCI) signaling indication (In some approaches for updating a TCI state for a non-serving cell, DCI and/or a MAC-CE may be utilized. Using DCI and/or a MAC-CE may reduce latency. As described herein, the base station 226 may send, and/or the wireless communication device 202 may receive, a message indicating a TCI state that may be associated with a non-serving cell. ¶0066; For instance, the base station 226 may send, and/or the wireless communication device 202 may receive, an RRC message to update and/or activate a TCI state associated with a non-serving cell. ¶0067; An application time may be a period allocated for a wireless communication device to activate and/or update a configuration (e.g., TCI state configuration). ¶0071;); a pre-defined value (In some examples, an application time for a non-serving cell beam may be configured by a base station to be greater than or equal to a fixed minimum application time. For instance, a beam application time may be configured by the base station 226 (e.g., gNB), where a minimum value of beam application time is fixed and/or predefined. ¶0073); a capability of the communication device (A beam application time is configured by the base station based on the wireless communication device capability. For example, the wireless communication device may be supported for a minimum value of beam application time, a specific time gap. ¶0072); a value obtained from X*N1; a value obtained from X*N1 and an offset; a value of a variable T1; or any one or more of P1 and P2.
Yuan and Bai do not explicitly disclose, however Park discloses:
a value obtained from X*N1; a value obtained from X*N1 and an offset; a value of a variable T1 (The wireless device may receive, at a second moment (T.sub.2), an indication of a (joint) TCI for the cell, e.g., via a DCI, where the (joint) TCI may be applied a second duration after the second moment (T.sub.2), e.g., at T.sub.3 (=T.sub.2+the second duration). The second duration may indicate (e.g., comprise, mean, imply, or be) a Y ms (millisecond), a Y us (microsecond), a Y slot(s), a Y symbol(s), a Y subframe(s), and/or the like. ¶0450, Fig. 25; Examiner interpreted X as ‘Y’, N1 as ‘slots’, and ‘T1’ as ‘Y milliseconds’.); or any one or more of P1 and P2 (element is optional).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings of Yuan, a cell switching command and an indication of a time difference between serving cell and a target cell for a beam application time, with the teachings of Bai, determination of a minimum beam application time supported by the communication device capabilities, with the teachings of Park, determination of a beam application time based on a variable number of milliseconds, slots, symbols, or subframes.
The motivation in doing so would be to enable L1/L2 inter-cell mobility by associating TCI states with a target cell with a configurable beam application time to synchronize UE communications to enable fast handover of data or control channels to a target cell. (Yuan: Abstract, ¶¶0059, 0105-0108, 0116, 0125-0126, 0130-0132; Bai: Abstract, ¶¶0015-0016, 0018-0023, 0079-0080; Park: Abstract, ¶¶0191, 0450, 0454-0455, 0461, Fig. 25)
RE Claim 15 and 39, Yuan discloses a method,
wherein a granularity of the time gap is a symbol, nanosecond, microsecond, millisecond, or second (In a first option (if the new cell is signaled via DCI), the application time may be the start of first slot after X ms or symbols from the end of feedback (e.g., ACK) for the DCI. According to the first option, in the case of X symbols, the subcarrier spacing (SCS) may be the SCS of the active DL or UL BWP of the new cell, the smallest (or largest SCS) of the active DL and UL BWPs of the new cell, or other SCS. In a second option (if the new cell is signaled via DCI), the application time may be the start of first slot after X ms or symbols from the DCI. ¶0127).
Yuan and Bai do not explicitly disclose, however Park discloses:
wherein a granularity of the time gap is a slot, a subframe, a frame, (The wireless device may receive, at a second moment (T.sub.2), an indication of a (joint) TCI for the cell, e.g., via a DCI, where the (joint) TCI may be applied a second duration after the second moment (T.sub.2), e.g., at T.sub.3 (=T.sub.2+the second duration). The second duration may indicate (e.g., comprise, mean, imply, or be) a Y ms (millisecond), a Y us (microsecond), a Y slot(s), a Y symbol(s), a Y subframe(s), and/or the like. ¶0450, Fig. 25).
It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings of Yuan, a cell switching command and an indication of a time difference between serving cell and a target cell for a beam application time, with the teachings of Bai, determination of a minimum beam application time supported by the communication device capabilities, with the teachings of Park, determination of a beam application time based on a variable number of milliseconds, slots, symbols, or subframes.
The motivation in doing so would be to enable L1/L2 inter-cell mobility by associating TCI states with a target cell with a configurable beam application time to synchronize UE communications to enable fast handover of data or control channels to a target cell. (Yuan: Abstract, ¶¶0059, 0105-0108, 0116, 0125-0126, 0130-0132; Bai: Abstract, ¶¶0015-0016, 0018-0023, 0079-0080; Park: Abstract, ¶¶0191, 0450, 0454-0455, 0461, Fig. 25)
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure.
US 20220030480 A1 Kung et al.
US 20240283616 A1 Gao et al.
US-20220394548-A1 Huang et al.
The above references disclose various aspects of L1/L2 inter-cell mobility with multiple TCI states and application time of changes for TCI state changes for reduction in latency and/or overhead in beam operations.
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/PAUL A. LANGER/Examiner, Art Unit 2419
/Nishant Divecha/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2419
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