CTNF 18/538,829 CTNF 98478 DETAILED ACTION This office action is a response to the application 18/538,829 filed on December 13 th , 2023. Claim Status This office action is based upon claims received on 05/06/2024, which replace all prior or other submitted versions of the claims. Claim 1 is canceled. Claims 2– 21 are pending. Claims 2 – 21 are rejected. Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Priority Applicant’s claim for the benefit of a prior-filed application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) or under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c) is acknowledged. Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 12/13/2023, 05/14/2024, and 04/28/2025 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner. Claim Objections 07-29-01 AIA Claim 2 is objected to because of the following informalities: Claim 2 has a repeated limitation. The limitation “ receiving one or more pre-grant transmissions, wherein each pre-grant transmission is associated with a beam of a plurality of beams, and wherein the plurality of beams are in a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range ” is repeated within the body of the claim and the repetition does not appear to provide a different meaning to the understanding of the entirety of the claim . Appropriate correction is required. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-20-02-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim s 2 – 6, 9 – 12, 17, and 19 – 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang et al. [US 20180167941 A1] hereinafter Zhang and further in view of Sun et al. [US 20180124820 A1] hereinafter Sun . Regarding claim 2, Zhang teaches a method of wireless communication at a user equipment (UE) (Zhang: Fig. 1, Fig. 13, ¶ 110; in view of UE 110 ) , comprising: receiving one or more pre-grant transmissions, wherein each pre-grant transmission is associated with a beam of a plurality of beams, and wherein the plurality of beams are in a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range; (repeated claim limitation) receiving one or more pre-grant transmissions (Zhang: ¶ 78, ¶ 79; wherein a UE 110 may monitor the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 for a pre-grant. The downlink portion 210 may contain a pre-grant 212 in the form of a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). If the UE 110 detects a pre-grant 212, the UE 110 may transmit an SRS transmission 248 using the resources of the uplink portion 240 of the MAS 200 specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212 ) , and wherein the beam is in a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range (Zhang: ¶ 54, ¶ 74-77; wherein one or more of base stations 105 and/or UEs 110 may operate according to a NR or 5G technology referred to as millimeter wave (mmW or mmwave) technology. For example, mmW technology includes transmissions in mmW frequencies and/or near mmW frequencies. As such, base stations 105 and/or UEs 110 operating according to the mmW technology may utilize beamforming in their transmissions to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short range ) ; receiving one or more reference signals based on the one or more pre-grant transmissions (Zhang: ¶ 78 – 79 , ¶ 81; wherein UE 110 may monitor the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 for a pre-grant. The downlink portion 210 may contain a pre-grant 212 in the form of a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) (i.e., the CRS is a type of reference signal),… the earlier base station may transmit a channel status information reference signal (CSI-RS) ( i.e., CSI-RS is another type of reference signal ) in the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 … and when the UE 110 detects a pre-grant 212, the UE 110 may transmit an SRS transmission 248 using the resources of the uplink portion 240 of the MAS 200 specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212. Therefore, the UE receives one or more reference signals that are based on the one or more pre-grant transmissions) ; decoding the one or more reference signals (Zhang: ¶ 78, ¶ 81; wherein all of the UEs 110 may receive and decode the transmission from their respective base stations 105. Therefore, the UE receives one or more reference signals, and decodes them) ; determining whether the one or more decoded reference signals satisfy one or more quality conditions (Zhang: ¶ 56, ¶ 63, ¶ 78, ¶ 81; wherein the UEs 110 may receive and decode the transmission from their respective base stations 105… The medium access component 150 of the UE 110 may include a monitoring component 152 for monitoring for a pre-grant transmitted by a serving base station or for other signals transmitted by other base stations… The monitoring component 152 may optionally include an interference component 154 for determining whether the UE 110 will cause interference to the other base stations or UEs, or whether the UE 110 will suffer from interference from other base stations or UEs when the other signals are detected before the pre-grant. For example, the interference component 154 may compare the strengths of downlink pre-grants and SRS signals to thresholds to determine whether the UE 110 will cause or suffer from interference… The UE 110, … transmit feedback 246 during the CTS portion 242 of the first MAS 200 in which the UE 110 participates… and the feedback 246 may include a channel quality indicator (CQI). Therefore, the UE determines whether the one or more decoded reference signals satisfies one or more quality conditions and sends the feedback with the channel quality indicator (CQI)) ; and transmitting a data transmission based on the one or more decoded reference signals satisfying the one or more quality conditions (Zhang: ¶ 56 – 57, ¶ 78 – 79; wherein the monitoring component 152 may optionally include an interference component 154… the interference component 154 may compare the strengths of downlink pre-grants and SRS signals to thresholds to determine whether the UE 110 will cause or suffer from interference… wherein (when) the UE 110 detects a pre-grant 212 (i.e., and decodes it to ensure it satisfies quality condition(s)) , the UE 110 may transmit an SRS transmission 248 using the resources of the uplink portion 240 of the MAS 200 specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212. The UE 110 may also transmit the CTS portion 242 including a retransmission of the TxOP length 216 and the remaining number of MASs 218. Therefore, the UE transmits a data transmission based on the one or more decoded reference signals satisfying the one or more quality conditions) . Zhang does not explicitly disclose wherein each pre-grant transmission is associated with a beam of a plurality of beams, and wherein the plurality of beams are in a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range . Referring to the invention of Sun, Sun teaches wherein each pre-grant transmission is associated with a beam of a plurality of beams, and wherein the plurality of beams are in a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range (Sun: Fig. 2, ¶ 4, ¶ 49, ¶ 61-62, ¶ 66, ¶ 69-79; wherein wireless communications system 100 may support mmW communications between UEs 115 and base stations 105, and the base station may use a first base station beam to transmit a first message to the UE. The first message may include a pre- grant (PG) communication and downlink BRRSs (D-BRRSs) . The UE may receive the first message using a first UE beam and use the D-BRRSs to select a second UE beam. The UE may transmit and the base station may receive a second message in response to the first message. The second message may include a pre-grant acknowledgement (PGA) and uplink BRRSs (U-BRRSs) ) . Thus, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Sun wherein a pre-grant is associated with a beam of a plurality of beams to the invention of Zhang in order to improve interference management, speed up grant processing, simplify beam selection, optimize resource use, enhance security, and support efficient multi - beam coordination . Regarding claim 3, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the method of claim 2, wherein the UE is operating in unlicensed or shared spectrum (Zhang: ¶ 53; wherein the wireless communication network 100 may further include base stations 105 operating according to Wi-Fi technology, e.g., Wi-Fi access points, in communication with UEs 110 operating according to Wi-Fi technology, e.g., Wi-Fi stations (STAs) via communication links in an unlicensed frequency spectrum (e.g., 5 GHz) ) , and further comprising refraining from performing a channel sensing operation corresponding to the data transmission (Zhang: ¶ 53; wherein when communicating in an unlicensed frequency spectrum, the STAs and AP may (i.e., or may not) perform a clear channel assessment (CCA) or listen before talk (LBT) procedure prior to communicating in order to determine whether the channel is available ) . Regarding claim 4, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the method of claim 2, wherein the UE is operating in a frame based operation mode, wherein frames of the UE are time aligned with corresponding frames of one or more network entities, and wherein frames of the frame based operation mode have a fixed duration for the one or more network entities (Zhang: Fig. 5, ¶ 38, ¶ 71; wherein disclosed medium access control techniques may be applicable to both load based equipment (LBE) and frame based equipment (FBE)… FBE devices are synchronized to a regular frame timing and only initiate transmissions at certain times within the frame ) . Regarding claim 5, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the method of claim 2, wherein receiving the one or more pre-grant transmissions includes: receiving a first set of pre-grant transmissions from a first network entity (Zhang: Fig. 7, Fig. 10, ¶ 36, ¶ 78, ¶ 80; wherein a first base station 105-a (e.g., eNB0) may obtain the transmission medium. The first base station 105-a may decide to schedule a first UE 110-a (e.g., UE0). During the first MAS 200-a, the first base station 105-s transmits a pre-grant for the first UE ) ; and receiving a second set of pre-grant transmissions from a second network entity (Zhang: Fig. 7, Fig. 11, ¶ 14, ¶ 36, ¶ 66 ¶ 78, ¶ 80, ¶ 96; wherein in block 1104,(i.e., of the second base station process) the method 1100 may include receiving, during a first medium access slot on the shared communication medium, a first response message from a first UE associated with the first base station. The first response message may optionally include a first SRS and/or a CTS message… and wherein UEs may also transmit a sounding reference signal (SRS) on resources assigned by the pre-grants during a portion of the MAS so that other devices may detect the UEs, and … the SRS transmission 248 may act as an acknowledgement of the pre-grant for the serving base station 105. Therefore since the second base station receives a SRS and/or a CTS message from the first UE which is associated with the first base station, a person of ordinary skill in the art would understand that the first UE must have received a second set of pre-grant transmission from the second base station) . Regarding claim 6, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the method of claim 5, wherein the first set of pre-grant transmission are received via corresponding downlink beams for the first network entity (Zhang: Fig. 7, Fig. 10, ¶ 36, ¶ 78, ¶ 80; wherein a first base station 105-a (e.g., eNB0) may obtain the transmission medium. The first base station 105-a may decide to schedule a first UE 110-a (e.g., UE0). During the first MAS 200-a, the first base station 105-s transmits a pre-grant for the first UE… and A UE 110 may monitor the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 for a pre-grant. Therefore the beams used for the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 are corresponding downlink beams for the first network entity) . Regarding claim 9, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the method of claim 2, wherein the one or more reference signals comprise channel state information (CSI) reference signals (CSI-RS) transmissions (Zhang: ¶ 79; wherein the base station 105-a transmits a channel status information reference signal (CSI-RS) in the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 ) . Regarding claim 10, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the method of claim 9, wherein each CSI-RS transmission is transmitted via a corresponding downlink beam of a plurality of downlink beams (Zhang: ¶ 79; wherein the base station 105-a transmits a channel status information reference signal (CSI-RS) in the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200. Therefore, when the CSI-RS is transmitted in the downlink portion of the MAS 200, it is transmitted via a corresponding downlink beam of the plurality of downlink beams used for MAS 200) . Regarding claim 11, Zhang teaches an apparatus for wireless communication (Zhang: Fig. 1, Fig. 13, ¶ 110; in view of UE 110 ) , comprising: at least one processor (Zhang: Fig. 13, ¶ 110; in view of one or more processors 1312 ) ; and a memory coupled to the at least one processor (Zhang: Fig. 13, ¶ 110; in view of memory 1316 coupled to the one or more processors via one or more buses 1344 ) , wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the apparatus to: receive one or more pre-grant transmissions (Zhang: ¶ 78; wherein a UE 110 may monitor the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 for a pre-grant. The downlink portion 210 may contain a pre-grant 212 in the form of a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). If the UE 110 detects a pre-grant 212, the UE 110 may transmit an SRS transmission 248 using the resources of the uplink portion 240 of the MAS 200 specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212 ) , and wherein the beam is in a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range (Zhang: ¶ 54, ¶ 74-77; wherein one or more of base stations 105 and/or UEs 110 may operate according to a NR or 5G technology referred to as millimeter wave (mmW or mmwave) technology. For example, mmW technology includes transmissions in mmW frequencies and/or near mmW frequencies. As such, base stations 105 and/or UEs 110 operating according to the mmW technology may utilize beamforming in their transmissions to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short range ) ; receive one or more reference signals based on the one or more pre-grant transmissions (Zhang: ¶ 78 – 79 , ¶ 81; wherein UE 110 may monitor the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 for a pre-grant. The downlink portion 210 may contain a pre-grant 212 in the form of a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) (i.e., the CRS is a type of reference signal),… the earlier base station may transmit a channel status information reference signal (CSI-RS) ( i.e., CSI-RS is another type of reference signal ) in the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 … and when the UE 110 detects a pre-grant 212, the UE 110 may transmit an SRS transmission 248 using the resources of the uplink portion 240 of the MAS 200 specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212. Therefore, the UE receives one or more reference signals that are based on the one or more pre-grant transmissions) ; decode the one or more reference signals (Zhang: ¶ 78, ¶ 81; wherein all of the UEs 110 may receive and decode the transmission from their respective base stations 105. Therefore, the UE receives one or more reference signals, and decodes them) ; determine whether the one or more decoded reference signals satisfy one or more quality conditions (Zhang: ¶ 56, ¶ 63, ¶ 78, ¶ 81; wherein the UEs 110 may receive and decode the transmission from their respective base stations 105… The medium access component 150 of the UE 110 may include a monitoring component 152 for monitoring for a pre-grant transmitted by a serving base station or for other signals transmitted by other base stations… The monitoring component 152 may optionally include an interference component 154 for determining whether the UE 110 will cause interference to the other base stations or UEs, or whether the UE 110 will suffer from interference from other base stations or UEs when the other signals are detected before the pre-grant. For example, the interference component 154 may compare the strengths of downlink pre-grants and SRS signals to thresholds to determine whether the UE 110 will cause or suffer from interference… The UE 110, … transmit feedback 246 during the CTS portion 242 of the first MAS 200 in which the UE 110 participates… and the feedback 246 may include a channel quality indicator (CQI). Therefore, the UE determines whether the one or more decoded reference signals satisfies one or more quality conditions and sends the feedback with the channel quality indicator (CQI)) ; and transmit a data transmission based on the one or more decoded reference signals satisfying the one or more quality conditions (Zhang: ¶ 56 – 57, ¶ 78 – 79; wherein the monitoring component 152 may optionally include an interference component 154… the interference component 154 may compare the strengths of downlink pre-grants and SRS signals to thresholds to determine whether the UE 110 will cause or suffer from interference… wherein (when) the UE 110 detects a pre-grant 212 (i.e., and decodes it to ensure it satisfies quality condition(s)) , the UE 110 may transmit an SRS transmission 248 using the resources of the uplink portion 240 of the MAS 200 specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212. The UE 110 may also transmit the CTS portion 242 including a retransmission of the TxOP length 216 and the remaining number of MASs 218. Therefore, the UE transmits a data transmission based on the one or more decoded reference signals satisfying the one or more quality conditions) . Zhang does not explicitly disclose wherein each pre-grant transmission is associated with a beam of a plurality of beams, and wherein the plurality of beams are in a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range . Referring to the invention of Sun, Sun teaches wherein each pre-grant transmission is associated with a beam of a plurality of beams, and wherein the plurality of beams are in a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range (Sun: Fig. 2, ¶ 4, ¶ 49, ¶ 61-62, ¶ 66, ¶ 69-79; wherein wireless communications system 100 may support mmW communications between UEs 115 and base stations 105, and the base station may use a first base station beam to transmit a first message to the UE. The first message may include a pre-grant (PG) communication and downlink BRRSs (D-BRRSs) . The UE may receive the first message using a first UE beam and use the D-BRRSs to select a second UE beam. The UE may transmit and the base station may receive a second message in response to the first message. The second message may include a pre-grant acknowledgement (PGA) and uplink BRRSs (U-BRRSs) ) . Thus, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Sun wherein a pre-grant is associated with a beam of a plurality of beams to the invention of Zhang in order to improve interference management, speed up grant processing, simplify beam selection, optimize resource use, enhance security, and support efficient multi - beam coordination . Regarding claim 12, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the apparatus of claim 11, wherein the one or more quality conditions comprise a signal-to-noise ratio (SINR) condition, a received signal reference power (RSRP) condition, an energy metric condition, or a combination thereof (Zhang: Fig. 13, ¶ 113; wherein the transceiver 1302 of the UE may include receiver 1306 which may receive signals transmitted by at least one base station 105. Additionally, receiver 1306 may process such received signals, and also may obtain measurements of the signals, such as, but not limited to, Ec/Io, SNR, RSRP, RSSI, etc. ) . Regarding claim 17, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the apparatus of claim 11, wherein the one or more pre-grant transmissions are received from a first network entity for a particular frame (Zhang: Fig. 5, ¶ 38, ¶ 71, ¶ 78; wherein disclosed medium access control techniques may be applicable to frame based equipment (FBE)… FBE devices are synchronized to a regular frame timing and only initiate transmissions at certain times within the frame… and MAS 200, specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212, is within a frame and the pre-grant is received by the UE in the downlink portion of MAS 200, from the network entity) , and wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the apparatus to: receive one or more second pre-grant transmissions from a second network entity for the particular frame (Zhang: ¶ 36, ¶ 71, ¶ 73, ¶ 78-82; in view of the process of the second base station transmitting another pre-grant transmission being repeated for a particular frame, the UE will receive, from the second network entity, another pre-grant transmissions since “ the second base station 105-b may transmit a pre-grant for the second UE 110-b... In the uplink portion of the second MAS 200-b, the first UE 110-a and the second UE 110-b transmit SRS and CTS” . Therefore, the UE (i.e., the first UE) may have received another pre-grant transmission from the second base station in order for it to also respond with its SRS and CTS just as the second UE to which the pre-grant was sent responds) ; transmit one or more second reference signals to the second network entity based on whether the one or more second pre-grant transmissions satisfy the one or more quality conditions (Zhang: ¶ 36, ¶ 71, ¶ 73, ¶ 78-82; in view of the process of the first UE 110-a and the second UE 110-b transmit SRS and CTS” . Therefore, the UE (i.e., the first UE) transmits reference signals SRS and CTS to the second base station when the one or more second pre-grant transmissions satisfy the one or more quality conditions) ; and monitor for a second data transmission from the second network entity during the particular frame, wherein no data is received from the second network entity during the particular frame (Zhang: ¶ 36, ¶ 71, ¶ 73, ¶ 78-82; wherein the UE 110 may monitor the downlink portion 210 (a.k.a. CRS portion) of each previous MAS 200. The monitoring of other downlink portions may be performed while monitoring for a grant from the UE's serving base station 105. Therefore while the UE monitors the downlink portion of each base station in the different MAS 200s, it only receives from its own serving base station) . Regarding claim 19, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the apparatus of claim 11, wherein the one or more pre-grant transmissions are received from a first network entity, wherein the one or more pre-grant transmissions include downlink pre-grant transmission and uplink pre-grant transmissions (Zhang: ¶ 78; wherein a UE 110 may monitor the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 for a pre-grant. The downlink portion 210 may contain a pre-grant 212 in the form of a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). If the UE 110 detects a pre-grant 212, the UE 110 may transmit an SRS transmission 248 using the resources of the uplink portion 240 of the MAS 200 specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212. Therefore the pre-grant transmission includes downlink pre-grant transmission and uplink pre-grant transmission) , and wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the apparatus to: decode the downlink pre-grant transmissions (Zhang: ¶ 78, ¶ 81; wherein all of the UEs 110 may receive and decode the transmission from their respective base stations 105. Therefore, the UE receives one or more reference signals, and decodes them) ; determine whether the decoded downlink pre-grant transmissions satisfy one or more second quality conditions (Zhang: ¶ 56, ¶ 63, ¶ 78, ¶ 80-81; wherein the UEs 110 may receive and decode the transmission from their respective base stations 105… For example, the interference component 154 may compare the strengths of downlink pre-grants and SRS signals to thresholds to determine whether the UE 110 will cause or suffer from interference… The UE 110 may transmit SRS and CTS, and may also transmit feedback 246 during the CTS portion 242 of the first MAS 200 in which the UE 110 participates… and the feedback 246 may include a channel quality indicator (CQI). Therefore, the UE determines whether the one or more decoded downlink pre-grant transmissions satisfies one or more second quality conditions (e.g., the CQI or interference condition) and sends the feedback with the channel quality indicator (CQI)) ; transmit one or more second reference signals based on determining that the decoded downlink pre-grant transmissions satisfy the one or more second quality conditions (Zhang: ¶ 56, ¶ 63, ¶ 78, ¶ 80-81; wherein The UE 110 may transmit SRS and CTS, and may also transmit feedback 246 during the CTS portion 242 of the first MAS 200 in which the UE 110 participates and the feedback 246 may include a channel quality indicator (CQI). Therefore, the UE transmits reference signals when the pre-grant satisfies one or more quality conditions) ; receive one or more grant transmissions responsive to the one or more second reference signals (Zhang: Fig. 8, ¶ 56, ¶ 63, ¶ 78, ¶ 81-83; wherein at the start of the TxOP, all of the base stations 105 may transmit a downlink control channel including data grants. The data grants may provide resource assignments for the UEs 110 to use for uplink transmissions ) ; and receive a second data transmission based on the one or more grant transmissions (Zhang: Fig. 8, ¶ 56, ¶ 63, ¶ 78, ¶ 81-83; wherein at the start of the TxOP, all of the base stations 105 may transmit a downlink control channel including data grants. The data grants may provide resource assignments for the UEs 110 to use for uplink transmissions ) . Regarding claim 20, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the apparatus of claim 19, wherein the one or more second reference signals comprise uplink reference signal transmissions, and wherein the uplink reference signal transmissions include sounding reference signal (SRS) transmissions, each SRS transmission including a UE-specific SRS (Zhang: Fig. 8, ¶ 56, ¶ 63, ¶ 78, ¶ 80-81; wherein The UE 110 may transmit SRS and CTS. Therefore, the UE transmits SRS reference signals that correspond to its particular SRS with its specific base station (i.e., a UE-specific SRS)) . Regarding claim 21, Zhang teaches an apparatus for wireless communication (Zhang: Fig. 1, Fig. 14, ¶ 120; in view of base station 105 ) , comprising: at least one processor (Zhang: Fig. 1, Fig. 14, ¶ 120; in view of one or more processors 1412 ) ; and a memory coupled to the at least one processor (Zhang: Fig. 1, Fig. 14, ¶ 120; in view of memory 1416 coupled to the one or more processors 1412 via one or more buses 1444 ) , wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the apparatus to: transmit one or more pre-grant transmissions (Zhang: ¶ 78; wherein a UE 110 may monitor the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 for a pre-grant. The downlink portion 210 may contain a pre-grant 212 in the form of a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH). If the UE 110 detects a pre-grant 212, the UE 110 may transmit an SRS transmission 248 using the resources of the uplink portion 240 of the MAS 200 specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212 ) , and wherein the beam is in a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range (Zhang: ¶ 54, ¶ 74-77; wherein one or more of base stations 105 and/or UEs 110 may operate according to a NR or 5G technology referred to as millimeter wave (mmW or mmwave) technology. For example, mmW technology includes transmissions in mmW frequencies and/or near mmW frequencies. As such, base stations 105 and/or UEs 110 operating according to the mmW technology may utilize beamforming in their transmissions to compensate for the extremely high path loss and short range ) ; transmit one or more reference signals based on the one or more pre-grant transmissions (Zhang: ¶ 78 – 79 , ¶ 81; wherein UE 110 may monitor the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 for a pre-grant. The downlink portion 210 may contain a pre-grant 212 in the form of a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) (i.e., the CRS is a type of reference signal),… the earlier base station 105-a may transmit a channel status information reference signal (CSI-RS) ( i.e., CSI-RS is another type of reference signal ) in the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 … and when the UE 110 detects a pre-grant 212, the UE 110 may transmit an SRS transmission 248 using the resources of the uplink portion 240 of the MAS 200 specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212. Therefore, the UE receives one or more reference signals that are based on the one or more pre-grant transmissions) ; and receive a data transmission via a particular beam of the plurality of beams responsive to the transmission of the one or more reference signals and based on the one or more pre-grant transmissions (Zhang: ¶ 56 – 57, ¶ 78 – 79; wherein the monitoring component 152 may optionally include an interference component 154… the interference component 154 may compare the strengths of downlink pre-grants and SRS signals to thresholds to determine whether the UE 110 will cause or suffer from interference… wherein (when) the UE 110 detects a pre-grant 212 (i.e., and decodes it to ensure it satisfies quality condition(s)) , the UE 110 may transmit an SRS transmission 248 using the resources of the uplink portion 240 of the MAS 200 specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212. The UE 110 may also transmit the CTS portion 242 including a retransmission of the TxOP length 216 and the remaining number of MASs 218. Therefore, the UE transmits a data transmission based on the one or more decoded reference signals (which is based on the pre-grant transmissions) satisfying the one or more quality conditions) . Zhang does not explicitly disclose wherein each pre-grant transmission is sent via a beam of a plurality of beams, and wherein the plurality of beams are in a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range . Referring to the invention of Sun, Sun teaches wherein each pre-grant transmission is sent via a beam of a plurality of beams, and wherein the plurality of beams are in a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency range (Sun: Fig. 2, ¶ 4, ¶ 49, ¶ 61-62, ¶ 66, ¶ 69-79; wherein wireless communications system 100 may support mmW communications between UEs 115 and base stations 105, and the base station may use a first base station beam to transmit a first message to the UE. The first message may include a pre-grant (PG) communication and downlink BRRSs (D-BRRSs) . The UE may receive the first message using a first UE beam and use the D-BRRSs to select a second UE beam. The UE may transmit and the base station may receive a second message in response to the first message. The second message may include a pre-grant acknowledgement (PGA) and uplink BRRSs (U-BRRSs) ) . Thus, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the teachings of Sun wherein a pre-grant is associated with a beam of a plurality of beams to the invention of Zhang in order to improve interference management, speed up grant processing, simplify beam selection, optimize resource use, enhance security, and support efficient multi - beam coordination . 07-22-aia AIA Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang et al. and Sun et al ., as applied to claim 2 above, and further in view of Choi et al. [US 20200322021 A1] hereinafter Choi . Regarding claim 7, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the method of claim 2, Zhang in view of Sun does not explicitly disclose wherein the one or more pre-grant transmissions include UE identifiers (UE-IDs), the UE-IDs configured to indicate an intended UE of the one or more pre-grant transmissions. Referring to the invention of Choi, Choi teaches that PDCCH can comprise the CRC that is masked with an identifier (ID) of a specific UE (Choi: ¶ 86; wherein An eNB determines a PDCCH format according to DCI transmitted to a UE and adds cyclic redundancy check (CRC) to control information. The CRC is masked with an identifier (ID) (e.g. a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI)) according to the owner or use of the PDCCH. For example, if the PDCCH is intended for a specific UE, the CRC may be masked with the ID (e.g., cell-RNTI (C-RNTI)) of the specific UE. Therefore, the PDCCH (i.e., the pre-grant transmission) includes the CRC that is masked with the UE identifier configured to indicate the intended UE of the PDCCH) . Thus, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to incorporate the ‘CRC masked with UE ID added to PDCCH’ teachings of Choi into the pre-grant transmission teachings of Zhang in view of Sun, in order to strengthen authentication and authorization and to improve security by ensuring only authorized, legitimate devices gain access before they are granted network resources . 07-22-aia AIA Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang et al. and Sun et al ., as applied to claim 2 above, and further in view of Parkvall et al. [US 20170331577 A1] hereinafter Parkvall . Regarding claim 8, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the method of claim 2, wherein the one or more pre-grant transmissions comprise Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) transmissions (Zhang: Fig. 7, ¶ 78; wherein a UE 110 may monitor the downlink portion 210 of the MAS 200 for a pre-grant. The downlink portion 210 may contain a pre-grant 212 in the form of a cell-specific reference signal (CRS) or a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) . Zhang in view of Sun does not explicitly disclose wherein each of the PDCCH transmissions include a demodulation reference signal (DMRS). Referring to the invention of Parkvall, Parkvall teaches that a PDCCH can use DMRS (Parkvall: Table 9, ¶ 558 – 559; wherein the PDCCH uses a different DMRS (than the DMRS for dPDCH/rPDCH)… PDCCH is primarily designed to be used when very accurate CSI information is not available in the base station… the PDCCH uses a DMRS that is typically shared by multiple UEs… and the DMRS is for PDCCH ) . Thus, it would have been obvious toa person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the PDCCH with DMRS teachings of Parkvall into the pre-grant PDCCH teachings of Zhang in view of Sun, in order to achieve improved channel estimation accuracy, beamforming capability, decoding reliability, and robustness especially in high-capacity, and low-latency control signaling in mmWave and multi-TRP deployments . 07-22-aia AIA Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang et al. and Sun et al ., as applied to claim 11 above, and further in view of Harada et al. [US 20170280468 A1] hereinafter Harada . Regarding claim 13, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the apparatus of claim 11, wherein the one or more quality conditions correspond to an interference received signal reference power (RSRP) condition (Zhang: Fig. 13, ¶ 113; wherein the transceiver 1302 of the UE may include receiver 1306 which may receive signals transmitted by at least one base station 105. Additionally, receiver 1306 may process such received signals, and also may obtain measurements of the signals, such as, but not limited to, Ec/Io, SNR, RSRP, RSSI, etc. Therefore, if the UE receives a transmission (i.e., an interference) from a second base station, the RSRP measurement of the signal received from the second base station will be the interference RSRP) . Zhang in view of Sun does not explicitly disclose and wherein a network entity does not transmit data when an interference RSRP is greater than or equal to a threshold. Referring to the invention of Harada, Harada teaches wherein a network entity does not transmit data when an interference RSRP is greater than or equal to a threshold (Harada: ¶ 102; wherein the radio base station uses the RSRP measurement result reported from the user terminal as a basis to determine whether a sum of RSRP (RSRP.sub.neighbor.sub._.sub.operator) of signals of another operator ( i.e., the interference RSRP of another base station ) is greater than a given threshold by expression 1, and if the sum exceeds the threshold, the radio base station may decide to stop the data transmission ) . Thus, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the stopping data transmission when interference RSRP exceeds a threshold teachings of Harada into the invention of Zhang in view of Sun, in order to prevent unreliable data delivery, improve throughput, and reduce retransmissions, thereby enhancing network efficiency . 07-22-aia AIA Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang et al. and Sun et al ., as applied to claim 11 above, and further in view of Novlan et al. [US 20160302230 A1] hereinafter Novlan, and Harada et al. [US 20170280468 A1] hereinafter Harada . Regarding claim 14, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the apparatus of claim 11. Zhang in view of Sun does not explicitly disclose wherein the one or more quality conditions correspond to a power adjusted interference strength received signal reference power (RSRP) condition, and wherein a network entity does not transmit data when a power adjusted interference RSRP is greater than or equal to a threshold. Referring to the invention of Novlan, Novlan teaches that a UE can use indicated reference signal power offset to adjust RSRP measured (Novlan: ¶ 125, ¶ 171 – 172; wherein, RSSI can serve as a metric for interference and it is possible to infer RSSI from RSRP and RSRQ reports… a parameter referenceSignalPower may be indicated for a unlicensed carrier in the U-DCI or by system information message… a reference power referenceSignalPowerUnlicensed may be provided by higher-layer signaling (e.g. RRC), while the RS power is dynamically indicated as an offset to the reference power via referenceSignalPowerUnlicensedOffset (such that the actual reference power is given by referenceSignalPowerUnlicensed (dBm)+referenceSignalPowerUnlicensedOffset (dB)). A UE can use the indicated reference signal power offset to adjust the RSRP measured when compared against a configured triggering condition because a triggering condition may have been configured based on zero power offset assumption. The UE can still report the unadjusted RSRP (RSRQ) result, and a network can perform adjustment to obtain the effective RSRP (RSRQ). Therefore, Novlan teaches that a quality condition can be a power adjusted interference strength received signal reference power (RSRP)) . Thus, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the power adjusted RSRP teachings of Novlan into the invention of Zhang in view of Sun, in order to achieve a more nuanced view of signal quality by combining coverage strength with interference context, which makes for accurate performance assessment, interference mitigation, and network optimization . Zhang in view of Sun and Novlan does not explicitly disclose wherein a network entity does not transmit data when a power adjusted interference RSRP is greater than or equal to a threshold. Referring to the invention of Harada, Harada teaches wherein a network entity does not transmit data when an interference RSRP is greater than or equal to a threshold (Harada: ¶ 102; wherein the radio base station uses the RSRP measurement result reported from the user terminal as a basis to determine whether a sum of RSRP (RSRP.sub.neighbor.sub._.sub.operator) of signals of another operator ( i.e., the interference RSRP of another base station ) is greater than a given threshold by expression 1, and if the sum exceeds the threshold, the radio base station may decide to stop the data transmission ). Therefore, a person having ordinary skill in the art would find it obvious that when the type of interference RSRP is a power adjusted interference RSRP, the same conditions can apply, wherein the network entity will not transmit data if the power adjusted interference RSRP is greater than or equal to a threshold . Thus, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the stopping data transmission when interference RSRP exceeds a threshold teachings of Harada into the combined invention of Zhang, Sun, and Novlan, in order to prevent unreliable data delivery, improve throughput, and reduce retransmissions, thereby enhancing network efficiency . 07-22-aia AIA Claim s 15, 16, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhang et al. and Sun et al ., as applied to claim 11 above, and further in view of Vos et al. [US 20150036476 A1] hereinafter Vos . Regarding claim 15, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the apparatus of claim 11, wherein the one or more pre-grant transmissions are received from a first network entity for a first frame (Zhang: Fig. 5, ¶ 38, ¶ 71, ¶ 78; wherein disclosed medium access control techniques may be applicable to frame based equipment (FBE)… FBE devices are synchronized to a regular frame timing and only initiate transmissions at certain times within the frame… and MAS 200, specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212, is within a frame and the pre-grant is received by the UE in the downlink portion of MAS 200, from the network entity) , and wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the apparatus to: receive one or more second pre-grant transmissions from the first network entity for a second frame (Zhang: ¶ 36, ¶ 71, ¶ 73, ¶ 78-82; in view of the process being repeated for a second frame, the UE will receive, from the first network entity, other pre-grant transmissions for the second frame) ; determine whether to transmit one or more second reference signals to the first network entity based on whether the one or more second pre-grant transmissions satisfy the one or more quality conditions (Zhang: ¶ 36, ¶ 63, ¶ 71, ¶ 73, ¶ 78-82; in view of the process being repeated for a second frame, the UE will determine if the pre-grant transmissions meet the threshold of the one or more quality conditions and determine whether to transmit the SRS (i.e., reference signal), the CTS, or the feedback in a CQI) . Zhang in view of Sun does not explicitly disclose refrain from transmitting the one or more second reference signals to the first network entity based on the one or more second pre-grant transmissions failing to satisfy the one or more quality conditions. Referring to the invention of Vos, Vos teaches refraining from transmitting reference signals or feedback when the transmission fails to be successfully received (i.e., fails to meet the quality conditions) (Vos: ¶ 29; wherein it is therefore to be understood that the method may comprise refraining from transmitting the acknowledgement message from the UE to the eNB when the DL grant message fails to be successfully received and decoded by the UE, and subsequently aborting transmission of the TTI bundle when successful receipt of the acknowledgement by the eNB fails to occur ) . Thus, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the refraining from transmitting reference signals or acknowledgement when the pre-grant/grant transmission fails to meet quality conditions teachings of Vos into the invention of Zhang in view of Sun, in order to reduce interference, conserve resources and power, avoid incorrect feedback, and to support more efficient throughput. Regarding claim 16, Zhang in view of Sun and Vos teaches the apparatus of claim 15, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the apparatus to: receive one or more third pre-grant transmissions from a second network entity for the second frame (Zhang: ¶ 36, ¶ 71, ¶ 73, ¶ 78-82; in view of the process being repeated for a second frame, the UE will receive, from the first network entity, other pre-grant transmissions for the second frame and the UE can also receive a pre-grant transmission from a second base station for the second frame since “ the second base station 105-b may transmit a pre-grant for the second UE 110-b and indicates one MAS remaining and the TxOP length. In the uplink portion of the second MAS 200-b, the first UE 110-a and the second UE 110-b transmit SRS and CTS” . Therefore, the UE (i.e., the first UE) must have received the pre-grant transmission from the second base station in order for it to also respond with its SRS and CTS just as the second UE to which the pre-grant was sent responds) ; determine whether to transmit one or more third reference signals to the second network entity based on whether the one or more third pre-grant transmissions satisfy the one or more quality conditions (Zhang: ¶ 36, ¶ 63, ¶ 71, ¶ 73, ¶ 78-82; in view of the process being repeated for a second frame, the UE will determine if the pre-grant transmissions meet the threshold of the one or more quality conditions and determine whether to transmit the SRS (i.e., reference signal), the CTS, or the feedback in a CQI) ; and transmit the one or more third reference signals to the second network entity based on the one or more third pre-grant transmissions satisfying the one or more quality conditions (Zhang: ¶ 36, ¶ 63, ¶ 71, ¶ 73, ¶ 78-82; in view of the UE transmitting the SRS (i.e., reference signal), the CTS, or the feedback in a CQI, it is obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art that the pre-grant transmission must have met the quality conditions in order for the UE to respond with the reference signals SRS and CTS) . Regarding claim 18, Zhang in view of Sun teaches the apparatus of claim 11, wherein the one or more pre-grant transmissions are received from a first network entity for a particular frame (Zhang: Fig. 5, ¶ 38, ¶ 71, ¶ 78; wherein disclosed medium access control techniques may be applicable to frame based equipment (FBE)… FBE devices are synchronized to a regular frame timing and only initiate transmissions at certain times within the frame… and MAS 200, specified or triggered by the pre-grant 212, is within a frame and the pre-grant is received by the UE in the downlink portion of MAS 200, from the network entity) , and wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the apparatus to: receive one or more second pre-grant transmissions from a second network entity for the particular frame (Zhang: ¶ 36, ¶ 71, ¶ 73, ¶ 78-82; in view of the process of the second base station transmitting another pre-grant transmission being repeated for a particular frame, the UE will receive, from the second network entity, another pre-grant transmissions since “ the second base station 105-b may transmit a pre-grant for the second UE 110-b... In the uplink portion of the second MAS 200-b, the first UE 110-a and the second UE 110-b transmit SRS and CTS” . Therefore, the UE (i.e., the first UE) may have received another pre-grant transmission from the second base station in order for it to also respond with its SRS and CTS just as the second UE to which the pre-grant was sent responds) . Zhang in view of Sun does not explicitly disclose refrain from transmitting second reference signals to the second network entity based on the one or more second pre-grant transmissions failing to satisfy the one or more quality conditions. Referring to the invention of Vos, Vos teaches refraining from transmitting reference signals or feedback when the transmission fails to be successfully received (i.e., fails to meet the quality conditions) (Vos: ¶ 29; wherein it is therefore to be understood that the method may comprise refraining from transmitting the acknowledgement message from the UE to the eNB when the DL grant message fails to be successfully received and decoded by the UE, and subsequently aborting transmission of the TTI bundle when successful receipt of the acknowledgement by the eNB fails to occur ) . Thus, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the refraining from transmitting reference signals or acknowledgement when the pre-grant/grant transmission fails to meet quality conditions teachings of Vos into the invention of Zhang in view of Sun in order to reduce interference, conserve resources and power, avoid incorrect feedback, and to support more efficient throughput . Conclusion 07-96 AIA The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. YE et al. [WO 2018064525 A1] : Frequency Hopping for Unlicensed Internet of Things; Ye discloses that a base station can refrain from transmitting of channel sensing operations. Kwak et al. [US 20180270803 A1] : Method for Transmitting Uplink Data in Wireless Communication System and Apparatus for Method; Kwak teaches contention-based uplink data transmission. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HIDAYAT DABIRI whose telephone number is (703)756-4541. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00 am - 4:00 pm. 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, Edan Orgad can be reached on 571-272-7884. 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. 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If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /HD/Examiner, Art Unit 2414 /EDAN ORGAD/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 2 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 3 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 4 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 5 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 6 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 7 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 8 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 9 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 10 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 11 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 12 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 13 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 14 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 15 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 16 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 17 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 18 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 19 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 20 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 21 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 22 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 23 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 24 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 25 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 26 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 27 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 28 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 29 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 30 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 31 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 32 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 33 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 34 Art Unit: 2414 Application/Control Number: 18/538,829 Page 35 Art Unit: 2414
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