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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 26 May 2026 AD has been entered.
Response to Argument and Amendments
Applicant’s arguments, see Remark’s, filed 26 May 2026, with respect to the rejections of claims 1, 2, 4-10, 12-16, 18, 22, 24, and 26 under 35 U.S.C. 103 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn.
However, upon further consideration, a new ground of rejection is made in view of Zhou et al. (US 20220104036 A1) or Zhou for claims 9, 10, 12, 13, and 16.
However, upon further consideration, a new ground of rejection is made in view of Zhou et al. (US 20220104036 A1) or Zhou in further view of Huang et al. (WO 2020151554 A1) or Huang for claims 1-5, 7, 18, 22, 24, and 26.
However, upon further consideration, a new ground of rejection is made in view of Zhou et al. (US 20220104036 A1) or Zhou in further view of Huang et al. (WO 2020151554 A1) or Huang in further view of Jia et al. (US 20230353224 A1) or Jia for claims 6, 8, and 14.
However, upon further consideration, a new ground of rejection is made in view of Zhou et al. (US 20220104036 A1) or Zhou in further view of Huang et al. (WO 2020151554 A1) or Huang in further view of Jia et al. (US 20230353224 A1) or Jia in further view of Li et al. (US 20240073710 A1) or Li for claim 15.
Jia et al. (US 20230353224 A1) or Jia
Jia teaches a first indication field containing a first and second indication with the first indication indicating a type of beam failure event and the second indication indicating a TRP of a beam failure if the beam failure type consists of TRP-level. Jia also teaches a field occupying a number of bits and a first indication indicating a type of beam failure occurring in a second cell being a cell-level beam failure. In addition to disclosing a field occupying a number of bits and a first indication indicating a type of beam failure occurring in a second cell being a cell-level beam failure, Jia discloses a number of cells with a TRP-level beam failure being larger than or equal to a number of cells for a cell-level beam failure and the smallest index of the cell in the cells of TRP-level beam failure and an index of the cell of cells of the cell-level beam failure.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(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.
Claims 9, 10, 12, 13, and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Zhou et al. (US 20220104036 A1) or Zhou.
Claim 9
A method for information transmission, comprising:
determining, by a terminal device, a type of each of beam failure events that occur in a plurality of cells,
(See Zhou paragraph 0038, ...the UE may determine to declare a beam failure for one or more beams, and may initiate a beam failure recovery (BFR) in response. In some cases, a BFR MAC-CE containing information regarding the beam group and beam failure,...)
Shows a user equipment or UE or terminal determining beam failure for multiple beams
(See Zhou paragraph 0039, ...the UE in the serving cell may operate with per-beam group beam failure detection and/or recovery parameters, cell-level beam failure detection and/or recovery parameters, or a combination of per-beam group and cell-level beam failure detection and/or recovery parameters.)
Shows a type of beam failure according to per-beam group or cell-level
(See Zhou paragraph 0126, a TRP specific BFR may be referred to as beam group specific BFR.)
Shows a TRP specific BFR may be called a beam group specific BFR
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, …candidate RS IDs (e.g., beam IDs) for failed beam groups or cells is listed sequentially in the rows of block 604 based on the order of failed beam group or cell indicators in the SP/C.sub.i fields.)
Shows beam group type or cell type beam failure for multiple cells in a BFR MAC-CE
wherein types of beam failure events comprising a transmission and reception point (TRP)-level beam failure event and a cell-level beam failure event; and
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, ...a beam group specific (or TRP specific) BFR MAC-CE may also include a joint TRP specific BFR and cell level BFR MAC-CE as discussed.)
Shows the BFR MAC-CE may include both a TRP specific BFR and a cell level BFR MAC-CE
reporting, by the terminal device, first information or second information to a network device
(See Zhou paragraph 0126, Upon detecting a beam failure at one or more of the multiple TRPs, the UE may initiate a BFR procedure with the network, for example, by transmitting a BFR MAC-CE as discussed above in relation to FIGS. 2B, and 3A-3C. )
Shows the UE transmitting a BFR MAC-CE to the network if the UE detects a beam failure
according to the type of each of the beam failure events that occur in the plurality of cells;
(See Zhou paragraph 0139, ...the BFR MAC-CE can combine a beam specific BFR MAC-CE with a cell (SpCell or SCell) BFR MAC-CE into a joint BFR MAC-CE when a cell BFR is triggered with the beam group specific BFR. )
Shows the BFR MAC-CE may combine cell BFR MAC-CE and TRP BFR MAC-CE
(See Zhou paragraph 0142, ...the joint BFR MAC-CE may have a fixed format to include information from the beam group specific BFR MAC-CE and/or the cell BFR MAC-CE depending on which type(s) of BFR is configured at the UE for that cell.)
Shows the join BFR MAC-CE indicates the type of beam failure event
(See Zhou paragraph 0131, In the example beam group specific BFR MAC-CE 600 illustrated in FIG. 6A, SP/C.sub.i field in block 602 includes an SP field and fields C.sub.1 through C.sub.31 that provide indications of Scells. In this example, the illustrated MAC-CE 600 may include information for up to 32 Scells (using SP and all C.sub.i 610 in block 602).)
Shows the BFR MAC-CE includes indications fields for 32 Scells
wherein the first information corresponds to the TRP-level beam failure event, and the second information corresponds to the cell-level beam failure event.
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, For example, using the format of FIG. 6A as an example, as discussed above each SP/C.sub.i fields in block 602 indicates one CC and uses X bits with X depending on which BFR type is configured for that CC. For example, if the CC is configured for a cell BFR then X=1 and each SP/C.sub.i indicates whether the cell associated with that field fails or not. If the CC is configured with beam group specific BFR, then X bits can map to X beam groups (or TRPs) for that CC to indicate whether each beam group has failed or has not failed.)
Shows the MAC-CE with the indication fields in block of FIG. 6 [602] indicate a BFR type of cell or a BFR type of TRP
Shows type of beam failure event for multiple cells
Claim 10 (Original)
The method of claim 9, wherein the first information is first medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) signaling or a first scheduling request (SR), and
the second information is second MAC CE signaling, a second SR, or a preamble sequence that is carried in a random access channel (RACH) resource.
(See Zhou paragraph 0139, ...the BFR MAC-CE can combine a beam specific BFR MAC-CE with a cell (SpCell or SCell) BFR MAC-CE into a joint BFR MAC-CE when a cell BFR is triggered with the beam group specific BFR. )
Shows the BFR MAC-CE may combine cell BFR MAC-CE and TRP BFR MAC-CE
Claim 12
The method of claim 9, wherein the terminal device reports the first information in response to the type of each of the beam failure events that occur being a TRP-level beam failure event;
(See Zhou paragraph 0096, …the UE 372 may transmit a beam failure report indicating a BFD at the Scell 376 in a BFR MAC-CE (a BFRQ).)
Shows the UE transmitting a beam failure report in a BFR MAC-CE
(See Zhou paragraph 0129, The BFR MAC-CE 600 may include information such as a MAC subheader (not shown) associated with the BFR MAC-CE 600 that indicates a logical channel ID (LCD), indices of component carriers (CC) with failed TRPs, the failed beam group ID, candidate RS ID per failed beam group, and corresponding presence flags. Such an arrangement is provided for MAC-CE based TRP-specific BFRQ transmissions.)
Shows the MAC-CE contains information concerning the failed TRPs for TRP level beam failure
or the terminal device reports the second information in response to the type of each of the beam failure events that occur being a cell-level beam failure event.
(See Zhou paragraph 0141, In some aspects, a cell level BFR MAC-CE may include failed cell ID(s) (identifying cell(s) with a beam failure) and new candidate beam ID(s) to replace the failed beam(s).)
Shows the BFR MAC-CE include information concerning failed cells for cell level beam failure
Claim 13
The method of claim 9, wherein, the terminal device reports the first information in response to the type of each of the beam failure events that occur comprising not only a TRP-level beam failure event but also a cell-level beam failure event; or,
the terminal device reports the second information in response to the type of each of the beam failure events that occur comprising not only a TRP-level beam failure event but also a cell-level beam failure event.
(See Zhou paragraph 0096, …the UE 372 may transmit a beam failure report indicating a BFD at the Scell 376 in a BFR MAC-CE (a BFRQ).)
Shows the UE transmitting a beam failure report in a BFR MAC-CE
(See Zhou paragraph 0141, …the joint BFR MAC-CE may have a flexible format that can be either a cell BFR MAC-CE format or a beam group specific BFR MAC-CE format. In either of those cases, formats information for both the beam group specific BFR MAC-CE and the cell BFR MAC-CE is included.)
Shows the joint BFR MAC-CE includes both information for TRP-level and cell-level failure
Claim 16
The method of claim 9, wherein the terminal device reports the second information,
in response to the type of each of the beam failure events that occur comprising not only a TRP-level beam failure event but also a cell-level beam failure event,…
(See Zhou paragraph 0096, …the UE 372 may transmit a beam failure report indicating a BFD at the Scell 376 in a BFR MAC-CE (a BFRQ).)
Shows the UE transmitting a beam failure report in a BFR MAC-CE
(See Zhou paragraph 0141, …the joint BFR MAC-CE may have a flexible format that can be either a cell BFR MAC-CE format or a beam group specific BFR MAC-CE format. In either of those cases, formats information for both the beam group specific BFR MAC-CE and the cell BFR MAC-CE is included.)
Shows the joint BFR MAC-CE includes both information for TRP-level and cell-level failure
…and a beam failure event also occurring in a primary cell.
(See Zhou paragraph 0005, Changes in the radio environment between the UE and the base station may degrade the quality of the beam used by the UE and the base station, which may result in communication failures between the UE and a serving cell (e.g., primary cell (Pcell), secondary cell (Scell), or both).)
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 1-5, 7, 18, 22, 24, and 26 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou et al. (US 20220104036 A1) or Zhou in view of Huang et al. (WO 2020151554 A1) or Huang.
Claim 1
Zhou teaches,
A method for information transmission, comprising:
determining whether a first cell in which a beam failure event occurs exists,…
(See Zhou paragraph 0068, At message 315, the Pcell 305 may transmit, and UE 310 may receive, one or more BFD reference signals of a set of BFD reference signals. In this regard, the UE 310 may be monitoring for the BFD reference signals based on a beam group BFD parameter or a cell-level BFD parameter.)
Shows the UE receiving beam failure detection reference signals from the Pcell
(See Zhou paragraph 0069, At step 320, the UE 310 may determine that a beam failure is detected (e.g., as discussed above in FIG. 2B). In some cases, the detection of the BFD may be based on a channel metric of the reference signal being below a threshold value (e.g., Q.sub.out).)
Shows the UE determining a beam failure occurrence in the Pcell
…reporting first indication information to a network device in response to existence of the first cell in which the beam failure event occurs,
(See Zhou paragraph 0126, Upon detecting a beam failure at one or more of the multiple TRPs, the UE may initiate a BFR procedure with the network, for example, by transmitting a BFR MAC-CE as discussed above in relation to FIGS. 2B, and 3A-3C. )
Shows the UE transmitting a BFR MAC-CE to the network if the UE detects a beam failure
(See Zhou paragraph 0127, ...transmission of beam group specific BFR MAC-CEs to a beam failure detection (BFD) process that detects failure of at least one beam of a beam group operating on a serving cell (e.g., SpCell or SCell).)
Shows the beam failure for a serving cell
the first indication information indicating a type of a beam failure event that occurs in…
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, ...assuming each service cell can be configured for either a cell BFR (a SpCell/SCell BFR) or a beam group specific or TRP specific BFR, the joint BFR MAC-CE can have a fixed format carrying BFR information for every cell based on its configured BFR type.)
Shows each service cell with a joint BFR MAC-CE including BFR information based on BFR type
…types of beam failure events comprising a transmission and reception point (TRP)-level beam failure event and a cell-level beam failure event,
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, ...a beam group specific (or TRP specific) BFR MAC-CE may also include a joint TRP specific BFR and cell level BFR MAC-CE as discussed.)
Shows the BFR MAC-CE may include both a TRP specific BFR and a cell level BFR MAC-CE
wherein the first indication information contains a plurality of indication fields,
the plurality of indication fields correspond to the plurality of cells in the first cell in one- to-one correspondence, and
(See Zhou paragraph 0131, In the example beam group specific BFR MAC-CE 600 illustrated in FIG. 6A, SP/C.sub.i field in block 602 includes an SP field and fields C.sub.1 through C.sub.31 that provide indications of Scells. In this example, the illustrated MAC-CE 600 may include information for up to 32 Scells (using SP and all C.sub.i 610 in block 602).)
Shows the BFR MAC-CE includes indications fields for 32 Scells
each of the plurality of indication fields indicates a type of a beam failure event that occurs in a corresponding cell.
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, For example, using the format of FIG. 6A as an example, as discussed above each SP/C.sub.i fields in block 602 indicates one CC and uses X bits with X depending on which BFR type is configured for that CC. For example, if the CC is configured for a cell BFR then X=1 and each SP/C.sub.i indicates whether the cell associated with that field fails or not. If the CC is configured with beam group specific BFR, then X bits can map to X beam groups (or TRPs) for that CC to indicate whether each beam group has failed or has not failed.)
Shows the MAC-CE with the indication fields in block of FIG. 6 [602] indicate a BFR type of cell or a BFR type of TRP
However, Zhou fails to explicitly teach,
…wherein the first cell comprises a plurality of cells; and…
…each cell in the first cell, and…
Nevertheless, Huang, in the same field of endeavor, teaches,
…wherein the first cell comprises a plurality of cells; and…
(See Huang page 3 paragraph 10, When the first cell includes multiple cells...)
…each cell in the first cell, and…
(See Huang page 3 paragraph 6, Sending the beam failure recovery response of the first cell on the target cell corresponding to the first cell includes: using the same sending beam to send the beam failure recovery response of the at least two cells on the target cell corresponding to the first cell.)
Shows transmitting beam failure recovery using the same beam for the first cell with at least two cells
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling data of the claimed invention to combine determining a beam failure in a first cell, reporting a first indication to a network device if a beam failure occurs in the first cell, the first indication indicating a type of beam failure, the types of beam failure comprising a transmission and reception point or TRP level beam failure and a cell-level with the first indication containing multiple indication field corresponding to multiple cell in a one-to-one mapping and the multiple fields indicating a type of beam failure in each cell as disclosed by Zhou with the first cell comprising multiple cells as disclosed by Huang to increase the efficiency of the system (i.e. to reduce the number of beam failure indications transmitted by a user equipment).
Claim 2
Zhou teaches,
The method of claim 1, wherein the first indication information is reported through medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) signaling and contains at least one indication field, a first indication field in the at least one indication field corresponds to a second cell,…
(See Zhou paragraph 0131, In the example beam group specific BFR MAC-CE 600 illustrated in FIG. 6A, SP/C.sub.i field in block 602 includes an SP field and fields C.sub.1 through C.sub.31 that provide indications of Scells. In this example, the illustrated MAC-CE 600 may include information for up to 32 Scells (using SP and all C.sub.i 610 in block 602).)
However, Zhou fails to explicitly teach,
…and the second cell is any one cell in the first cell.
Nevertheless, Huang, in the same field of endeavor, teaches,
…and the second cell is any one cell in the first cell.
(See Huang page 3 paragraph 10, When the first cell includes multiple cells...)
The motivation to combine Zhou and Huang in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 1.
Claim 3 (Currently Amended)
Zhou teaches,
The method of claim 1, wherein the first indication information indicates the type of a beam failure event that occurs in each cell…
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, …assuming each service cell can be configured for either a cell BFR (a SpCell/SCell BFR) or a beam group specific or TRP specific BFR, the joint BFR MAC-CE can have a fixed format carrying BFR information for every cell based on its configured BFR type. For example, using the format of FIG. 6A as an example, as discussed above each SP/C.sub.i fields in block 602 indicates one CC and uses X bits with X depending on which BFR type is configured for that CC. For example, if the CC is configured for a cell BFR then X=1 and each SP/C.sub.i indicates whether the cell associated with that field fails or not. If the CC is configured with beam group specific BFR, then X bits can map to X beam groups (or TRPs) for that CC to indicate whether each beam group has failed or has not failed. )
Shows the type of beam failure for each cell
However, Zhou fails to explicitly teach,
…in the first cell.
Nevertheless, Huang, in the same field of endeavor, teaches,
…in the first cell.
(See Huang page 3 paragraph 10, When the first cell includes multiple cells...)
The motivation to combine Zhou and Huang in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 1.
Claim 4 (Previously Presented)
Zhou teaches,
The method of claim 1, wherein a first indication field in the first indication information contains a first indication, wherein the first indication explicitly indicates a type of a beam failure event that occurs in a second cell.
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, assuming each service cell can be configured for either a cell BFR (a SpCell/SCell BFR) or a beam group specific or TRP specific BFR, the joint BFR MAC-CE can have a fixed format carrying BFR information for every cell based on its configured BFR type. For example, using the format of FIG. 6A as an example, as discussed above each SP/C.sub.i fields in block 602 indicates one CC and uses X bits with X depending on which BFR type is configured for that CC. For example, if the CC is configured for a cell BFR then X=1 and each SP/C.sub.i indicates whether the cell associated with that field fails or not. If the CC is configured with beam group specific BFR, then X bits can map to X beam groups (or TRPs) for that CC to indicate whether each beam group has failed or has not failed. )
Shows the type of beam failure for each cell including a second cell
The motivation to combine Zhou and Huang in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 1.
Claim 5 (Previously Presented)
Zhou teaches,
The method of claim 1, wherein a first indication field in the first indication information indicates a type of a beam failure event that occurs,
and a TRP in which a beam failure event occurs in response to the type is a TRP-level beam failure event, wherein the TRP belongs to a second cell.
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, assuming each service cell can be configured for either a cell BFR (a SpCell/SCell BFR) or a beam group specific or TRP specific BFR, the joint BFR MAC-CE can have a fixed format carrying BFR information for every cell based on its configured BFR type. For example, using the format of FIG. 6A as an example, as discussed above each SP/C.sub.i fields in block 602 indicates one CC and uses X bits with X depending on which BFR type is configured for that CC. For example, if the CC is configured for a cell BFR then X=1 and each SP/C.sub.i indicates whether the cell associated with that field fails or not. If the CC is configured with beam group specific BFR, then X bits can map to X beam groups (or TRPs) for that CC to indicate whether each beam group has failed or has not failed. )
Shows the type of beam failure for each cell including a second cell consists of a TRP-level beam failure or cell-level beam failure
The motivation to combine Zhou and Huang in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 1.
Claim 7 (Original)
Zhou teaches,
The method of claim 5, wherein the first indication field in the first indication information comprises a field occupying X bits,
(See Zhou paragraph 0137, Fields 606 in octet blocks 602 and 604 may be single bit fields or multiple bit fields.)
Shows the MAC-CE indication comprising a field of single or multiple bits
wherein each of the X bits corresponds to one TRP; and a value of each of the X bits indicates whether a beam failure event occurs in a corresponding TRP.
(See Zhou paragraph 0137, …there is one SP/C.sub.i field per CC with X bits indicating per-TRP failure status for the X TRPs configured that that CC. For example, the SP field and C.sub.i field (fields 606) may each have two bits indicating failure per TRP for the two TRPS in SpCell and ith S-Cell in the cell group, respectively.)
The motivation to combine Zhou and Huang in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 1.
Claim 18
Zhou teaches,
An apparatus for information transmission, comprising a processor and a memory,
(See Zhou paragraph 0008, …a UE can include a memory; a processor coupled to the memory and configured to:…)
wherein the memory is configured to store a computer program, the computer program comprises program instructions, and the processor is configured to invoke the program instructions to perform:
(See Zhou paragraph 0106, The memory 404 may store, or have recorded thereon, instructions 406. The instructions 406 may include instructions that, when executed by the processor 402, cause the processor 402 to perform the operations described herein with reference to the UEs 115…)
Shows the memory storing instructions and the processor executing the instructions
(See Zhou paragraph 0106, Instructions 406 may also be referred to as program code.)
Shows instructions may be considered program code
determining whether a first cell in which a beam failure event occurs exists,…
(See Zhou paragraph 0068, At message 315, the Pcell 305 may transmit, and UE 310 may receive, one or more BFD reference signals of a set of BFD reference signals. In this regard, the UE 310 may be monitoring for the BFD reference signals based on a beam group BFD parameter or a cell-level BFD parameter.)
Shows the UE receiving beam failure detection reference signals from the Pcell
(See Zhou paragraph 0069, At step 320, the UE 310 may determine that a beam failure is detected (e.g., as discussed above in FIG. 2B). In some cases, the detection of the BFD may be based on a channel metric of the reference signal being below a threshold value (e.g., Q.sub.out).)
Shows the UE determining a beam failure occurrence in the Pcell
…reporting first indication information to a network device in response to existence of the first cell in which the beam failure event occurs,
(See Zhou paragraph 0126, Upon detecting a beam failure at one or more of the multiple TRPs, the UE may initiate a BFR procedure with the network, for example, by transmitting a BFR MAC-CE as discussed above in relation to FIGS. 2B, and 3A-3C. )
Shows the UE transmitting a BFR MAC-CE to the network if the UE detects a beam failure
(See Zhou paragraph 0127, ...transmission of beam group specific BFR MAC-CEs to a beam failure detection (BFD) process that detects failure of at least one beam of a beam group operating on a serving cell (e.g., SpCell or SCell).)
Shows the beam failure for a serving cell
the first indication information indicating a type of a beam failure event that occurs in each cell…
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, ...assuming each service cell can be configured for either a cell BFR (a SpCell/SCell BFR) or a beam group specific or TRP specific BFR, the joint BFR MAC-CE can have a fixed format carrying BFR information for every cell based on its configured BFR type.)
Shows each service cell with a joint BFR MAC-CE including BFR information based on BFR type
…types of beam failure events comprising a transmission and reception point (TRP)-level beam failure event and a cell-level beam failure event,
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, ...a beam group specific (or TRP specific) BFR MAC-CE may also include a joint TRP specific BFR and cell level BFR MAC-CE as discussed.)
Shows the BFR MAC-CE may include both a TRP specific BFR and a cell level BFR MAC-CE
wherein the first indication information contains a plurality of indication fields,
the plurality of indication fields correspond to the plurality of cells in the first cell in one- to-one correspondence, and
(See Zhou paragraph 0131, In the example beam group specific BFR MAC-CE 600 illustrated in FIG. 6A, SP/C.sub.i field in block 602 includes an SP field and fields C.sub.1 through C.sub.31 that provide indications of Scells. In this example, the illustrated MAC-CE 600 may include information for up to 32 Scells (using SP and all C.sub.i 610 in block 602).)
Shows the BFR MAC-CE includes indications fields for 32 Scells
each of the plurality of indication fields indicates a type of a beam failure event that occurs in a corresponding cell.
(See Zhou paragraph 0143, For example, using the format of FIG. 6A as an example, as discussed above each SP/C.sub.i fields in block 602 indicates one CC and uses X bits with X depending on which BFR type is configured for that CC. For example, if the CC is configured for a cell BFR then X=1 and each SP/C.sub.i indicates whether the cell associated with that field fails or not. If the CC is configured with beam group specific BFR, then X bits can map to X beam groups (or TRPs) for that CC to indicate whether each beam group has failed or has not failed.)
Shows the MAC-CE with the indication fields in block of FIG. 6 [602] indicate a BFR type of cell or a BFR type of TRP
However, Zhou fails to explicitly teach,
…wherein the first cell comprises a plurality of cells; and…
…in the first cell, and…
Nevertheless, Huang, in the same field of endeavor, teaches,
…wherein the first cell comprises a plurality of cells; and…
(See Huang page 3 paragraph 10, When the first cell includes multiple cells...)
…in the first cell, and…
(See Huang page 3 paragraph 6, Sending the beam failure recovery response of the first cell on the target cell corresponding to the first cell includes: using the same sending beam to send the beam failure recovery response of the at least two cells on the target cell corresponding to the first cell.)
Shows transmitting beam failure recovery using the same beam for the first cell with at least two cells
The motivation to combine Zhou and Huang in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 1.
Claim 22
Zhou teaches limitations of claim 22 as stated in claim 4. The motivation to combine Zhou and Huang in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 1.
Claim 24
Zhou teaches limitations of claim 24 as stated in claim 2. However, Zhou fails to explicitly teach limitations of claim 24 as stated in claim 2. Nevertheless, Huang, in the same field of endeavor, teaches limitations of claim 24 as stated in claim 2. The motivation to combine Zhou and Huang in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 1.
Claim 26
Zhou teaches limitations of claim 26 as stated in claim 5. The motivation to combine Zhou and Huang in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 1.
Claims 6, 8, and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou et al. (US 20220104036 A1) or Zhou in view of Huang et al. (WO 2020151554 A1) or Huang in further view of Jia et al. (US 20230353224 A1) or Jia.
Claim 6 (Original)
Zhou fails to explicitly teach limitations of claim 6. However, Jia, in the same field of endeavor, teaches,
The method of claim 5, wherein the first indication field in the first indication information contains a first indication and a second indication; the first indication indicates a type of a beam failure event that occurs; and the second indication indicates a TRP in which a beam failure event occurs in response to the type is a TRP-level beam failure event.
(See Jia paragraph 0147, …a value of the 1 bit in the MAC CE indicates that cell-specific beam failures or beam failures of all beams are detected or cell-specific beam failure recovery or beam failure recovery of all beams is triggered, and another value of the 1 bit indicates that transmission reception point (TRP)-specific beam failures)
Shows the MAC CE or first indication information contains an indication of a type of beam failure for cell-specific or TRP-specific
(See Jia paragraph 0113, R bit(s) in the beam failure recovery (BFR) MAC CE or the truncated beam failure recovery (truncated BFR) MAC CE is(are) used to carry/indicate/represent an index of the transmission reception point in which beam failure is detected or for which beam failure recovery is triggered.)
Shows the R bit(s) or second indication represent the TRP in the BFR MAC CE
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling data of the claimed invention to combine determining a beam failure in a first cell, reporting a first indication to a network device if a beam failure occurs in the first cell, the first indication indicating a type of beam failure, the types of beam failure comprising a transmission and reception point or TRP level beam failure and a cell-level with the first indication containing multiple indication field corresponding to multiple cell in a one-to-one mapping and the multiple fields indicating a type of beam failure in each cell as disclosed by Zhou with a first indication field containing a first and second indication with the first indicating a type of beam failure and the second indication indicating a TRP of a beam failure if the beam failure type consists of a TRP level as disclosed by Jia to increase the efficiency of the system (i.e. to reduce the amount of energy required by the UE to report beam failure types to a base station).
Claim 8
Zhou fails to explicitly teach limitations of claim 8. However, Jia, in the same field of endeavor, teaches,
The method of claim 7, wherein in response to the field occupying the X bits being a preset bit value, the first indication information indicates that a type of a beam failure event that occurs in the second cell is a cell-level beam failure event.
(See Jia paragraph 0149, …a value of the 1 bit in the MAC CE indicates that cell-specific beam failures or beam failures of all beams are detected or cell-specific beam failure recovery or beam failure recovery of all beams is triggered,…)
The motivation to combine Zhou, Huang, and Jia in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 6.
Claim 14
Zhou teaches,
The method of claim 9, wherein, the terminal device reports the first information, in response to the type of each of the beam failure events that occur comprising not only a TRP-level beam failure event but also a cell-level beam failure event, and…
(See Zhou paragraph 0096, …the UE 372 may transmit a beam failure report indicating a BFD at the Scell 376 in a BFR MAC-CE (a BFRQ).)
Shows the UE transmitting a beam failure report in a BFR MAC-CE
(See Zhou paragraph 0141, …the joint BFR MAC-CE may have a flexible format that can be either a cell BFR MAC-CE format or a beam group specific BFR MAC-CE format. In either of those cases, formats information for both the beam group specific BFR MAC-CE and the cell BFR MAC-CE is included.)
Shows the joint BFR MAC-CE includes both information for TRP-level and cell-level failure
However, Zhou fails to explicitly teach,
…a number of cells in which TRP-level beam failure events occur being greater than or equal to a number of cells in which cell-level beam failure events occur; or
Nevertheless, Jia, in the same field of endeavor, teaches,
…a number of cells in which TRP-level beam failure events occur being greater than or equal to a number of cells in which cell-level beam failure events occur; or
(See Jia paragraph 0083, For the BFR MAC CE, a Ci field indicates beam failure detection of a secondary cell with ServCellIndex i,…)
Shows the BFR MAC CE contains a ServCellIndex i field for one secondary cell
(See Jia paragraph 0104, In some embodiments, the MAC CE may be a TRP-specific MAC CE, for example may be different from a Rel-16 BFR MAC CE or a Rel-16 Truncated BFR MAC CE; may also be a cell-specific MAC CE, for example reuse a Rel-16 BFR MAC CE or a Rel-16 Truncated BFR MAC CE.)
Shows the BFR MAC CE may be for a cell-specific BFR or TRP-specific BFR
Shows if each of the BFR MAC CE for the cell-specific BFR and TRP-specific BFR contain a field for one secondary cell, then the number of cells for a TRP-specific BFR equals the number of cells for a cell-specific BFR
The motivation to combine Zhou, Huang, and Jia in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 6.
Claims 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhou et al. (US 20220104036 A1) or Zhou in view of Huang et al. (WO 2020151554 A1) or Huang in further view of Jia et al. (US 20230353224 A1) or Jia in further view of Li et al. (US 20240073710 A1) or Li.
Claim 15
Zhou teaches,
The method of claim 9, wherein, the terminal device reports the first information, in response to the type of each of the beam failure events that occur comprising not only a TRP-level beam failure event but also a cell-level beam failure event, and…
(See Zhou paragraph 0096, …the UE 372 may transmit a beam failure report indicating a BFD at the Scell 376 in a BFR MAC-CE (a BFRQ).)
Shows the UE transmitting a beam failure report in a BFR MAC-CE
(See Zhou paragraph 0141, …the joint BFR MAC-CE may have a flexible format that can be either a cell BFR MAC-CE format or a beam group specific BFR MAC-CE format. In either of those cases, formats information for both the beam group specific BFR MAC-CE and the cell BFR MAC-CE is included.)
Shows the joint BFR MAC-CE includes both information for TRP-level and cell-level failure
However, Zhou fails to explicitly teach,
…the smallest index of the cell in the cells in which the TRP- level beam failure events occur being… …index of the cell in the cells in which the cell-level beam failure events occur.
Nevertheless, Jia, in the same field of endeavor, teaches,
…the smallest index of the cell in the cells in which the TRP- level beam failure events occur being… …index of the cell in the cells in which the cell-level beam failure events occur.
(See Jia paragraph 0083, For the BFR MAC CE, a Ci field indicates beam failure detection of a secondary cell with ServCellIndex i,…)
Shows the BFR MAC CE contains a ServCellIndex i field for one secondary cell
(See Jia paragraph 0104, …the MAC CE may be a TRP-specific MAC CE, for example may be different from a Rel-16 BFR MAC CE or a Rel-16 Truncated BFR MAC CE; may also be a cell-specific MAC CE,… )
Shows the MAC CE may be for both TRP-specific and cell-specific
The motivation to combine Zhou, Huang, and Jia in the dependent claim consists of the same motivation as stated in claim 6.
Zhou also fails to explicitly teach,
…greater than or equal to the smallest…
Nevertheless, Li, in the same field of endeavor, teaches,
…greater than or equal to the smallest…
(See Li paragraph 0179, If a beam failure event occurs in both TRPs in the SCell and the Cell-level beam recovery mechanism is used, all TRPs in the cell use the same new beam, and the spatial characteristics cannot be fully utilized to configure different beams for the downlink control channels of different TRPs. If it is detected that both TRPs in the SCell have beam failures and the corresponding new candidate beams are found, a MAC CE can be designed to report the BFRQ information of the two TRPs to the base station at one time on the PUSCH.)
Shows a transmission of a MAC CE for beam failure recovery for TRPs on the same SCell
Shows a terminal may report the TRP-level and cell-level beam failure on the same cell or smallest index of a cell for the TRP-level equals the smallest index of a cell for cell-level using the same MAC CE
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling data of the claimed invention to combine determining a beam failure in a first cell, reporting a first indication to a network device if a beam failure occurs in the first cell, the first indication indicating a type of beam failure, the types of beam failure comprising a transmission and reception point or TRP level beam failure and a cell-level with the smallest index of the cell in the cells with TRP-level beam failure being equal to the smallest index of the cell for the cell-level beam failure as disclosed by Li to increase the efficiency of the system (i.e. to reduce the amount of energy required to detect TRP-level beam failures by the UE).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Huang et al. (US 20220094416 A1) or Huang teaches an association relationship between a first and second serving cell and transmitting a beam failure recovery for the first serving cell.
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/SAMUEL ROBERGE BETTENDORF/Examiner, Art Unit 2414
/EDAN ORGAD/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2414
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