DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Amendment filed 3/10/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 1, 3-5, 14, 27, and 30 have been amended.
Claims 2, 6, 15, 19, and 28 have been cancelled.
Claims 1, 3-5, 7-14, 16-18, 20-27, 29, and 30 remain pending.
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.
Claims 1, 3-5, 12-14, 16-18, 25-27, and 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Xiong et al. (US20200281011A1), hereafter Xiong, in view of Yi (US20200067676A1).
Regarding claims 1 and 27,
Xiong discloses a method for wireless communication (Fig. 15) of a user equipment (UE) (Fig. 1, 7; UE 101; Fig. 2, device 200) comprising a memory (Fig. 2, memory 204G; paragraph 47-49) and one or more processors (Fig. 2-3, CPU 204E; paragraph 48-49) coupled to the memory, configured to transmit a first uplink control information (UCI) (Fig. 7-14; Fig. 15, step 1502; UCI for multiple TRPs) that is multiplexed in a first physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) occasion on a first beam of multi-panel simultaneous transmission (Fig. 15, step 1506; paragraph 98, 101, 108, 142; schedule multiple uplink channels/PUSCHs to carry the UCI) and transmit a second UCI (Fig. 15, step 1502; UCI for multiple TRPs) that is multiplexed in a second PUSCH occasion on a second beam of the multi-panel simultaneous transmission (Fig. 15, step 1506; paragraph 98, 101, 108, 111, 142-151; schedule multiple uplink channels/PUSCHs to carry the UCI simultaneously on multiple transmit beams).
Xiong discloses the first UCI and the second UCI are split portions of a same UCI (Fig. 10; paragraph 118-119; combined UCI comprising bit subsets per TRP) and further discloses rate matching of the first and second PUSCH as well as the scheduling single or multiple channels to carry the UCI (Fig. 10; paragraphs 74, 111; rate-matching and single beam/channel/port to transmit UCI) but fails to expressly disclose single rate matching.
Yi discloses analogous art (Title: Allocating Resources in Wireless Communication System) including CSI transmission on the PUSCH (paragraphs 169-175) and single rate matching (paragraphs 367; single rate matching pattern rather than different rate matching patterns).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the time of effective filing to modify Xiong by performing single rate matching among the first and second PUSCH, as suggested by Xiong and expressly shown by Yi, thereby providing more efficient mini-slot scheduling.
Regarding claims 14 and 30,
Xiong discloses a method for wireless communication of a base station (Fig. 1, RAN 110; paragraph 36) comprising a memory (Fig. 2, memory 204G; paragraph 47-49) and one or more processors (Fig. 2-3, CPU 204E; paragraph 48-49) coupled to the memory, configured to receive a first uplink control information (UCI) that is multiplexed in a first physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) occasion on a first beam of multi-panel simultaneous transmission (Fig. 15, step 1502-1506; paragraph 98, 101, 108, 142; UCI for multiple TRPs scheduled on multiple uplink channels/PUSCHs to carry the UCI) and receive a second UCI that is multiplexed in a second PUSCH occasion on a second beam of the multi-panel simultaneous transmission (Fig. 15, step 1506; paragraph 98, 101, 108, 111, 142-151; schedule multiple uplink channels/PUSCHs to carry the UCI simultaneously on multiple transmit beams).
Xiong discloses the first UCI and the second UCI are split portions of a same UCI (Fig. 10; paragraph 118-119; combined UCI comprising bit subsets per TRP) and further discloses rate matching of the first and second PUSCH as well as the scheduling single or multiple channels to carry the UCI (Fig. 10; paragraphs 74, 111; rate-matching and single beam/channel/port to transmit UCI) but fails to expressly disclose single rate matching.
Yi discloses analogous art (Title: Allocating Resources in Wireless Communication System) including CSI transmission on the PUSCH (paragraphs 169-175) and single rate matching (paragraphs 367; single rate matching pattern rather than different rate matching patterns).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the time of effective filing to modify Xiong by performing single rate matching among the first and second PUSCH, as suggested by Xiong and expressly shown by Yi, thereby providing more efficient mini-slot scheduling.
Regarding claims 3 and 16,
The combination of Xiong and Yi discloses the same UCI includes a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) acknowledgement (ACK), and wherein the first UCI includes modulation symbols of a first part of the HARQ-ACK and the second UCI includes modulation symbols of a second part of the HARQ-ACK (paragraph 104-112, 121, 124, 128; combined UCI comprising HARQ feedback per multiple TRPs).
Regarding claims 4, 5, 17, and 18,
The combination of Xiong and Yi discloses the same UCI comprising CSI part 1/part 2 wherein the first UCI includes modulation symbols of a first part of the CSI part 1/part 2 and the second UCI includes modulation symbols of a second part of the CSI part 1/part 2 (paragraphs 104-111, 122; combined CSI report for different TRPs).
Regarding claims 12, 13, 25, and 26,
The combination of Xiong and Yi discloses the first PUSCH occasion and the second PUSCH occasion are frequency division multiplexed (Fig. 9; paragraph 108-113, 131; FDM multiplexing of multiple uplink channels/PUSCH) or time division multiplexed (Fig. 8; paragraph 106-111, 131; TDM multiplexing of PUSCHs).
Claims 7-11, 20-24, and 29 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Xiong and Yi and further in view of Yang et al. (US20210068140A1).
Regarding claims 7, 20, and 29,
The combination of Xiong and Yi does not expressly disclose the first UCI and the second UCI are repetitions of the same UCI. However, Yang discloses analogous art (Title) including the first UCI and the second UCI are repetitions of the same UCI (paragraphs 4, 41; employ PUSCH repetition for breaking transmission of UCI into multiple transmissions).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the time of effective filing to modify Xiong and Yi by providing the first UCI and the second UCI as repetitions of the same UCI, as shown by Yang, thereby enabling dynamic rate-matching and coding schemes between the UE and RAN over multiple uplink channels.
Regarding claims 8 and 21,
The combination of Xiong, Yi, and Yang discloses the same UCI includes a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) acknowledgement (ACK), and wherein the first UCI includes modulation symbols of a first part of the HARQ-ACK and the second UCI includes modulation symbols of a second part of the HARQ-ACK (Xiong: paragraph 104-112, 121, 124, 128; combined UCI comprising HARQ feedback per multiple TRPs; Yang: paragraph 73). See motivation above.
Regarding claims 9, 10, 22, and 23,
The combination of Xiong, Yi, and Yang discloses the same UCI comprising CSI part 1/part 2 the first UCI includes modulation symbols of a first part of the CSI part 1/part 2 and the second UCI includes modulation symbols of a second part of the CSI part 1/part 2 (Xiong: paragraphs 104-111, 122; combined CSI report for different TRPs; Yang: paragraph 82, 102). See motivation above.
Regarding claims 11 and 24,
The combination of Xiong, Yi, and Yang discloses the first UCI and the second UCI are repetitions of the same UCI based at least in part on a rate matching used to transmit the first PUSCH occasion being different than a rate matching used to transmit the second PUSCH occasion (Xiong: paragraph 74, 92-100; Yang: paragraph 83-85). See motivation above.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to the pending claims, as amended, have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection relies on newly-cited Yi reference for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
5. The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/GREGORY B SEFCHECK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2477
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