DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 16-35 have been considered but are moot in view of new grounds of rejection based on a new reference Tseng (US 2021/0051757 A1).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 16, 21, 26, and 31 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over S2-1911145 ("Solution for KI#3: Receiving Paging Occasions in Other Networks", SA WG2 Meeting #136, Sony, November 18 - 22, 2019, Reno, US, S2-1911145) in view of Tseng (US 2021/0051757 A1).
Regarding claim 16, S2-1911145 teaches a method performed by a User Equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system (pg. 3, Fig. 6.x.3-1, “0. UE is in connected mode with RAN A”),
wherein the method comprising:
transmitting, to a first network, first UE assistance information message including first information on gap preference of the UE associated with a multi-universal subscriber identity module (MUSIM) (pg. 3, sect. 6.X.3, “0. A multi-USIM device with two USIM has the following states; UE A (USIM A) is in connected mode ... 1. UE A requests (~transmitting) RAN A (~first base station) to configure periodic sequence of "gaps" (~first assistance information including a preferred gap configuration) which matches the timing of the sequence of paging occasions (POs) (~first configuration information) received from RAN B. UE A includes timing information about when the periodic gaps is requested (~first assistance information including a preferred gap configuration)”; Figure 6.x.3-1, “1. Request periodic gaps”); and
receiving, from the first network, a radio resource control (RRC) message including second information on gap configuration associated with the MUSIM based on the first information (pg. 3, sect. 6.X.3, “2. RAN A (~first base station) responds to UE A with a configuration of the "gaps"; Figure 6.x.3-1, “2. Configuration of gaps”; pg. 3, sect. 6.X.4, RAN (RRC) configures the gaps for the UE”).
S2-1911145 does not explicitly teach wherein the first UE assistance information message further includes third information on a preferred RRC state of the UE for leaving RRC connected state.
However, Tseng teaches wherein a first UE assistance information message further includes information on a preferred RRC state of a UE for leaving RRC connected state ([0007], “UE comprising a wireless transceiver and a controller is provided ... The controller is configured to transmit a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message comprising assistance information to indicate the UE's preference of transition out of an RRC_CONNECTED state to the service network via the wireless transceiver, receive an RRC Release message from the service network via the wireless transceiver in response to transmitting the RRC message comprising the assistance information to indicate the UE's preference of transition out of the RRC_CONNECTED state, and configure the UE to enter an RRC_IDLE state or an RRC_INACTIVE state from the RRC_CONNECTED state in response to receiving the RRC Release message”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Tseng with the teaching of S2-1911145 in order to allow a UE to transition to a lower-power state such as RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE, preventing unnecessary power drain.
Regarding claim 21, S2-1911145 teaches a method performed by a first base station of a first network in a wireless communication system (pg. 3, Fig. 6.x.3-1, “0. UE is in connected mode with RAN A (~first base station)”),
wherein the method comprising: receiving, from a user equipment (UE), a first UE assistance information message including first information on gap preference of the UE associated with a multi-universal subscriber identity module (MUSIM) (pg. 3, sect. 6.X.3, “0. A multi-USIM device with two USIM has the following states; UE A (USIM A) is in connected mode ... 1. UE A requests (~transmitting) RAN A (~first base station) to configure periodic sequence of "gaps" (~first assistance information including a preferred gap configuration) which matches the timing of the sequence of paging occasions (POs) (~first configuration information) received from RAN B. UE A includes timing information about when the periodic gaps is requested (~first assistance information including a preferred gap configuration)”; Figure 6.x.3-1, “1. Request periodic gaps”);
transmitting, to the UE, a radio resource control (RRC) message including second information on gap configuration associated with the MUSIM based on the first information (pg. 3, sect. 6.X.3, “2. RAN A (~first base station) responds to UE A with a configuration of the "gaps"; Figure 6.x.3-1, “2. Configuration of gaps”; pg. 3, sect. 6.X.4, RAN (RRC) configures the gaps for the UE”).
S2-1911145 does not explicitly teach wherein the first UE assistance information message further includes third information on a preferred RRC state of the UE for leaving RRC connected state.
However, Tseng teaches wherein a first UE assistance information message further includes information on a preferred RRC state of a UE for leaving RRC connected state ([0007], “UE comprising a wireless transceiver and a controller is provided ... The controller is configured to transmit a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message comprising assistance information to indicate the UE's preference of transition out of an RRC_CONNECTED state to the service network via the wireless transceiver, receive an RRC Release message from the service network via the wireless transceiver in response to transmitting the RRC message comprising the assistance information to indicate the UE's preference of transition out of the RRC_CONNECTED state, and configure the UE to enter an RRC_IDLE state or an RRC_INACTIVE state from the RRC_CONNECTED state in response to receiving the RRC Release message”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Tseng with the teaching of S2-1911145 in order to allow a UE to transition to a lower-power state such as RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE, preventing unnecessary power drain.
Regarding claim 26, S2-1911145 teaches a user equipment (UE) (pg. 3, Fig. 6.x.3-1, “0. UE is in connected mode with RAN A”) comprising:
at least one transceiver (pg. 3, Fig. 6.x.3-1, UE comprises a transceiver to communicate with RAN A);
at least one processor communicatively coupled to the at least one transceiver; and at least one memory, communicatively coupled to the at least one processor, storing instructions executable by the at least one processor individually or in any combination to cause the UE (pg. 3, Fig. 6.x.3-1, UE comprises at least one processor communicatively coupled to the at least one transceiver; and at least one memory, communicatively coupled to the at least one processor, storing instructions executable by the at least one processor individually or in any combination to cause the UE) to:
transmit, to a first network, a first UE assistance information message including first information on gap preference of the UE associated with a multi-universal subscriber identity module (MUSIM) (pg. 3, sect. 6.X.3, “0. A multi-USIM device with two USIM has the following states; UE A (USIM A) is in connected mode ... 1. UE A requests (~transmitting) RAN A (~first base station) to configure periodic sequence of "gaps" (~first assistance information including a preferred gap configuration) which matches the timing of the sequence of paging occasions (POs) (~first configuration information) received from RAN B. UE A includes timing information about when the periodic gaps is requested (~first assistance information including a preferred gap configuration)”; Figure 6.x.3-1, “1. Request periodic gaps”);
receive, from the first network, a radio resource control (RRC) message including second information on gap configuration associated with the MUSIM based on the first information (pg. 3, sect. 6.X.3, “2. RAN A (~first base station) responds to UE A with a configuration of the "gaps"; Figure 6.x.3-1, “2. Configuration of gaps”; pg. 3, sect. 6.X.4, RAN (RRC) configures the gaps for the UE”).
S2-1911145 does not explicitly teach wherein the first UE assistance information message further includes third information on a preferred RRC state of the UE for leaving RRC connected state.
However, Tseng teaches wherein a first UE assistance information message further includes information on a preferred RRC state of a UE for leaving RRC connected state ([0007], “UE comprising a wireless transceiver and a controller is provided ... The controller is configured to transmit a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message comprising assistance information to indicate the UE's preference of transition out of an RRC_CONNECTED state to the service network via the wireless transceiver, receive an RRC Release message from the service network via the wireless transceiver in response to transmitting the RRC message comprising the assistance information to indicate the UE's preference of transition out of the RRC_CONNECTED state, and configure the UE to enter an RRC_IDLE state or an RRC_INACTIVE state from the RRC_CONNECTED state in response to receiving the RRC Release message”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Tseng with the teaching of S2-1911145 in order to allow a UE to transition to a lower-power state such as RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE, preventing unnecessary power drain.
Regarding claim 31, S2-1911145 teaches a first network comprising:
at least one transceiver (pg. 3, Fig. 6.x.3-1, RAN A comprises a base station which comprises a transceiver to communicate with UE);
at least one processor communicatively coupled to the at least one transceiver (pg. 3, Fig. 6.x.3-1, RAN A comprises at least one processor communicatively coupled to the at least one transceiver); and at least one memory, communicatively coupled to the at least one processor, storing instructions executable by the at least one processor individually or in any combination to cause the first network (pg. 3, Fig. 6.x.3-1, RAN A comprises at least one processor communicatively coupled to the at least one transceiver) to:
receive, from a user equipment (UE), a first UE assistance information message including first information on gap preference of the UE associated with a multi-universal subscriber identity module (MUSIM) (pg. 3, sect. 6.X.3, “0. A multi-USIM (~MUSIM) device with two USIM has the following states; UE A (USIM A) is in connected mode ... 1. UE A requests (~receives) RAN A (~first base station) to configure periodic sequence of "gaps" (~first assistance information including a preferred gap configuration) which matches the timing of the sequence of paging occasions (POs) (~first configuration information) received from RAN B. UE A includes timing information about when the periodic gaps is requested (~first assistance information including a preferred gap configuration)”; Figure 6.x.3-1, “1. Request periodic gaps”);
transmit, to the UE, a radio resource control (RRC) message including second information on gap configuration associated with the MUSIM based on the first information (pg. 3, sect. 6.X.3, “2. RAN A (~first base station) responds to UE A with a configuration of the "gaps"; Figure 6.x.3-1, “2. Configuration of gaps”; pg. 3, sect. 6.X.4, RAN (RRC) configures the gaps for the UE”).
S2-1911145 does not explicitly teach wherein the first UE assistance information message further includes third information on a preferred RRC state of the UE for leaving RRC connected state.
However, Tseng teaches wherein a first UE assistance information message further includes information on a preferred RRC state of a UE for leaving RRC connected state ([0007], “UE comprising a wireless transceiver and a controller is provided ... The controller is configured to transmit a Radio Resource Control (RRC) message comprising assistance information to indicate the UE's preference of transition out of an RRC_CONNECTED state to the service network via the wireless transceiver, receive an RRC Release message from the service network via the wireless transceiver in response to transmitting the RRC message comprising the assistance information to indicate the UE's preference of transition out of the RRC_CONNECTED state, and configure the UE to enter an RRC_IDLE state or an RRC_INACTIVE state from the RRC_CONNECTED state in response to receiving the RRC Release message”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of Tseng with the teaching of S2-1911145 in order to allow a UE to transition to a lower-power state such as RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE, preventing unnecessary power drain.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 17, 22, 27, and 32 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over S2-1911145 in view Tseng, and further in view of He (US 2021/0266800 A1).
Regarding claim 17, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng teaches the method of claim 16.
The combination does not explicitly teach wherein the first UE assistance information message further includes fourth information on a preference of the UE for a release of a secondary cell group, SCG.
However, He teaches wherein a first UE assistance information message further includes information on a preference of a UE for a release of a secondary cell group, SCG ([0120], “UE indicates a request for SCG release by specifying a value of zero, in the UAI (~user assistance information)”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of He with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to allow the UE to request the network to release an SCG (Secondary Cell Group) in a dual connectivity for battery power saving and thermal/overheating mitigation.
Regarding claim 22, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng teaches the method of claim 21.
The combination does not explicitly teach wherein the first UE assistance information message further includes fourth information on a preference of the UE for a release of a secondary cell group, SCG.
However, He teaches wherein a first UE assistance information message further includes information on a preference of a UE for a release of a secondary cell group, SCG ([0120], “UE indicates a request for SCG release by specifying a value of zero, in the UAI (~user assistance information)”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of He with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to allow the UE to request the network to release an SCG (Secondary Cell Group) in a dual connectivity for battery power saving and thermal/overheating mitigation.
Regarding claim 27, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng teaches the UE of claim 26.
The combination does not explicitly teach wherein the first UE assistance information message further includes fourth information on a preference of the UE for a release of a secondary cell group, SCG
However, He teaches wherein a first UE assistance information message further includes information on a preference of a UE for a release of a secondary cell group, SCG ([0120], “UE indicates a request for SCG release by specifying a value of zero, in the UAI (~user assistance information)”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of He with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to allow the UE to request the network to release an SCG (Secondary Cell Group) in a dual connectivity for battery power saving and thermal/overheating mitigation.
Regarding claim 32, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng teaches the first network of claim 31.
The combination does not explicitly teach wherein the first UE assistance information message further includes fourth information on a preference of the UE for a release of a secondary cell group, SCG.
However, He teaches wherein a first UE assistance information message further includes information on a preference of a UE for a release of a secondary cell group, SCG ([0120], “UE indicates a request for SCG release by specifying a value of zero, in the UAI (~user assistance information)”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of He with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to allow the UE to request the network to release an SCG (Secondary Cell Group) in a dual connectivity for battery power saving and thermal/overheating mitigation.
Claims 18-19, 23-24, 28-29, and 33-34 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over S2-1911145 in view Tseng, and further in view of R2-2100475 ("Discussion on Switching Notification Procedure", 3GPP TSG-RAN WG2 Meeting #113-e E-Meeting, Vivo, 25th January - 5th February 2021, R2-2100475).
.
Regarding claim 18, S2-1911145 in view Tseng teaches the method of claim 16.
The combination does not explicitly teach wherein the first information includes at least one of information on a preferred gap length associated with the MUSIM, information on a preferred gap repetition, information on a preferred gap offset, or information on a preferred gap start.
However, R2-2100475 further teaches wherein the first information includes at least one of information on a preferred gap length associated with the MUSIM, information on a preferred gap repetition, information on a preferred gap offset, or information on preferred gap start (sect. 2.1.1, “UE is needed to provide necessary gap requirement information to network A, such as - Indication of Need for Gap (e.g. UE may need for gap or disable the need for gap (e.g. if the other SIM is disabled) - The gap pattern request, e.g. gap start time, gap repetition period, etc”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2100475 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to allow the UE to inform the network about its preferences for power saving and mobility management by suggesting optimal timing for measurement or other activities, allowing the network to schedule gaps efficiently, minimizing data loss and latency while avoiding unnecessary power consumption and interruptions for the UE.
Regarding claim 19, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng, and further in view of R2-2100475 teaches the method of claim 18.
The combination of S2-1911145 and Tseng does not explicitly teach that wherein the second information includes at least one of information on a gap length associated with the MUSIM, information on a gap repetition, information on a gap offset, or information on a gap start.
However, R2-2100475 further teaches that wherein second information includes at least one of information on a gap length associated with a MUSIM, information on a gap repetition (sect. 2.1.2, Table I, “Multi-SIM gap pattern ... Gap repetition period”; Sect. 2.1.2, “The network provides the gap configuration via RRCReconfiguration message ... Multi-SIM gap can be separately configured in the same RRCReconfiguration message together with existing gaps”), information on a gap offset, or information on a gap start.
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2100475 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng and R2-2100475 in order to provide the UE with predictable, scheduled time slots to perform measurements on a second network without interrupting its communication with a serving first network.
Regarding claim 23, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng teaches the method of claim 21.
The combination does not explicitly teach wherein the first information includes at least one of information on a preferred gap length associated with the MUSIM, information on a preferred gap repetition, information on a preferred gap offset of the gap, or information on a preferred gap start.
However, R2-2100475 teaches wherein the first information includes at least one of information on a preferred gap length associated with a MUSIM, information on a preferred gap repetition, information on a preferred gap offset, or information on a preferred gap start (sect. 2.1.1, “UE is needed to provide necessary gap requirement information to network A, such as - Indication of Need for Gap (e.g. UE may need for gap or disable the need for gap (e.g. if the other SIM is disabled) - The gap pattern request, e.g. gap start time, gap repetition period, etc”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2100475 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to allow the UE to inform the network about its preferences for power saving and mobility management by suggesting optimal timing for measurement or other activities, allowing the network to schedule gaps efficiently, minimizing data loss and latency while avoiding unnecessary power consumption and interruptions for the UE.
Regarding claim 24, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng, and further in view of R2-2100475 teaches the method of claim 23.
The combination of S2-1911145 and Tseng does not explicitly teach wherein the second information includes at least one of information on a gap length associated with the MUSIM, information on a gap repetition, information on a gap offset, or information on a gap start.
However, R2-2100475 further teaches wherein second information includes at least one of information on a gap length associated with a MUSIM, information on a gap repetition (sect. 2.1.2, Table I, “Multi-SIM gap pattern ... Gap repetition period”; Sect. 2.1.2, “The network provides the gap configuration via RRCReconfiguration message ... Multi-SIM gap can be separately configured in the same RRCReconfiguration message together with existing gaps”), information on a gap offset, or information on a gap start.
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2100475 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng and R2-2100475 in order to provide the UE with predictable, scheduled time slots to perform measurements on a second network without interrupting its communication with a serving first network.
Regarding claim 28, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng teaches the UE of claim 26.
The combination does not explicitly teach wherein the first information includes at least one of information on preferred gap length associated with the MUSIM, information on a preferred gap repetition, information on a preferred gap offset , or information on a preferred gap start.
However, R2-2100475 teaches wherein first information includes at least one of information on preferred gap length associated with a MUSIM, information on preferred gap repetition , information on a preferred gap offset, or information on preferred gap start (sect. 2.1.1, “UE is needed to provide necessary gap requirement information to network A, such as - Indication of Need for Gap (e.g. UE may need for gap or disable the need for gap (e.g. if the other SIM is disabled) - The gap pattern request, e.g. gap start time, gap repetition period, etc”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2100475 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to allow the UE to inform the network about its preferences for power saving and mobility management by suggesting optimal timing for measurement or other activities, allowing the network to schedule gaps efficiently, minimizing data loss and latency while avoiding unnecessary power consumption and interruptions for the UE.
Regarding claim 29, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng, and further in view of R2-2100475 teaches the UE of claim 28.
The combination of S2-1911145 and Tseng does not explicitly teach wherein the second information includes at least one of information on a gap length associated with the MUSIM, information on a gap repetition, information on a gap offset, or information on a gap start.
However, R2-2100475 further teaches wherein second information includes at least one of information on a gap length associated with a MUSIM, information on a gap repetition (sect. 2.1.2, Table I, “Multi-SIM gap pattern ... Gap repetition period”; Sect. 2.1.2, “The network provides the gap configuration via RRCReconfiguration message ... Multi-SIM gap can be separately configured in the same RRCReconfiguration message together with existing gaps”), information on a gap offset, or information on a gap start.
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2100475 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to provide the UE with predictable, scheduled time slots to perform measurements on a second network without interrupting its communication with a serving first network.
Regarding claim 33, S2-1911145 in view Tseng teaches the first network of claim 31.
The combination does not explicitly teach wherein the first information includes at least one of information on a preferred gap length associated with the MUSIM, information on a preferred gap repetition, information on a preferred gap offset, or information on a preferred gap start.
However, R2-2100475 teaches wherein a first information includes at least one of information on preferred gap length associated with a MUSIM, information on a preferred gap repetition, information on a preferred gap offset, or information on a preferred gap start (sect. 2.1.1, “UE is needed to provide necessary gap requirement information to network A, such as - Indication of Need for Gap (e.g. UE may need for gap or disable the need for gap (e.g. if the other SIM is disabled) - The gap pattern request, e.g. gap start time, gap repetition period, etc”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2100475 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to allow the UE to inform the network about its preferences for power saving and mobility management by suggesting optimal timing for measurement or other activities, allowing the network to schedule gaps efficiently, minimizing data loss and latency while avoiding unnecessary power consumption and interruptions for the UE.
Regarding claim 34, S2-1911145 in view Tseng, and further in view of R2-2100475 teaches the first network of claim 33.
The combination of S2-1911145 and Tseng does not explicitly teach wherein the second information includes at least one of information on a gap length associated with the MUSIM, information on a gap repetition, information on a gap offset, or information on a gap start.
However, R2-2100475 further teaches that wherein second information includes at least one of information on a gap length associated with a MUSIM, information on a gap repetition (sect. 2.1.2, Table I, “Multi-SIM gap pattern ... Gap repetition period”; Sect. 2.1.2, “The network provides the gap configuration via RRCReconfiguration message ... Multi-SIM gap can be separately configured in the same RRCReconfiguration message together with existing gaps”), information on a gap offset, or information on a gap start.
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2100475 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng and R2-2100475 in order to provide the UE with predictable, scheduled time slots to perform measurements on a second network without interrupting its communication with a serving first network.
Claims 20, 25, 30, and 35 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over S2-1911145 in view of Tseng, and further in view of R2-2101981 ("[AT113-e][242][NR][Multi-SIM] NAS vs. RRC Signalling for Paging Collision and Network Switching (Vivo)", 3GPP TSG-RAN WG2 Meeting #113-e Online, Jan 25th - Feb 05th 2021).
Regarding claim 20, S2-1911145 in view of in view of Tseng teaches the method of claim 16.
The combination does not explicitly teach further comprising: identifying a change of the gap preference of the UE associated with the MUSIM; and transmitting, to the first network , a second UE assistance information message based on the change of the gap preference.
However, R2-2101981 teaches comprising: identifying a change of a gap preference of the UE associated with the MUSIM; and transmitting, to a first network, a second UE assistance information message based on the change of the gap preference (sect. 2.2.1, “When UE wants to perform some short time activities in network B, e.g. paging reception, measurements, UE has a preference to be kept in RRC_CONNECTED state in network A while temporarily switching to network B. These activities in network B are periodical and have deterministic upper bounds, and consequently can be regarded as some sort of short-term switching [3]. UE may use the existing gaps configured by network A (~configuration based on first assistance information) to perform the activities. If the existing gaps cannot meet the Multi-SIM network switching requirement, a switching procedure is needed for UE to request gaps (~transmitting, to a first base station, second assistance information which is changed from the first assistance information). Considering the gap scheduling is invisible at CN while has been widely utilized at RAN, and SA2 has not concluded any NAS solution related to gap, thus AS level signalling is needed and feasible for requesting gap”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2101981 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to optimize network performance and user experience by ensuring that a UE uses the most current and efficient settings for performing measurements.
Regarding claim 25, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng teaches the method of claim 21.
The combination does not explicitly teach further comprising: in case that the gap preference of the UE associated with the MUSIM is changed, receiving from the UE, a second UE assistance information message based on the change of the gap preference.
However, R2-2101981 teaches further comprising: in case that a gap preference of a UE associated with a MUSIM is changed, receiving from the UE, a second UE assistance information message based on the change of the gap preference (sect. 2.2.1, “When UE wants to perform some short time activities in network B, e.g. paging reception, measurements, UE has a preference to be kept in RRC_CONNECTED state in network A while temporarily switching to network B. These activities in network B are periodical and have deterministic upper bounds, and consequently can be regarded as some sort of short-term switching [3]. UE may use the existing gaps configured by network A (~configuration based on first assistance information) to perform the activities. If the existing gaps cannot meet the Multi-SIM network switching requirement, a switching procedure is needed for UE to request gaps (~receiving from a UE, second assistance information which is changed from the first assistance information based on the change of the gap preference). Considering the gap scheduling is invisible at CN while has been widely utilized at RAN, and SA2 has not concluded any NAS solution related to gap, thus AS level signalling is needed and feasible for requesting gap”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2101981 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to optimize network performance and user experience by ensuring that a UE uses the most current and efficient settings for performing measurements.
Regarding claim 30, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng teaches the UE of claim 26.
The combination does not explicitly teach that the instructions further cause the UE to: identify a charge of the gap preference of the UE associated with the MUSIM; and transmit, to the first network, a second UE assistance information message based on the change of the gap preference.
However, R2-2101981 teaches an instructions further cause the UE to: identify a charge of a gap preference of the UE associated with the MUSIM; and transmit, to a first network, a second UE assistance information message based on the change of the gap preference (sect. 2.2.1, “When UE (~comprises a controller) wants to perform some short time activities in network B, e.g. paging reception, measurements, UE has a preference to be kept in RRC_CONNECTED state in network A while temporarily switching to network B. These activities in network B are periodical and have deterministic upper bounds, and consequently can be regarded as some sort of short-term switching [3]. UE may use the existing gaps configured by network A (~configuration based on first assistance information) to perform the activities. If the existing gaps cannot meet the Multi-SIM network switching requirement, a switching procedure is needed for UE to request gaps (~transmitting, to a first base station, second assistance information which is changed from the first assistance information). Considering the gap scheduling is invisible at CN while has been widely utilized at RAN, and SA2 has not concluded any NAS solution related to gap, thus AS level signalling is needed and feasible for requesting gap”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2101981 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to optimize network performance and user experience by ensuring that a UE uses the most current and efficient settings for performing measurements.
Regarding claim 35, S2-1911145 in view of Tseng teaches the first network of claim 31.
The combination does not explicitly teach that the instructions further cause the first network to: in case that the gap preference of the UE associated with the MUSIM is changed, receive from a UE, a second UE assistance information message based on the change of the gap preference.
However, R2-2101981 teaches further comprising: in case that a gap preference of a UE associated with a MUSIM is changed, receiving from the UE, a second UE assistance information message based on the change of the gap preference (sect. 2.2.1, “When UE wants to perform some short time activities in network B, e.g. paging reception, measurements, UE has a preference to be kept in RRC_CONNECTED state in network A while temporarily switching to network B. These activities in network B are periodical and have deterministic upper bounds, and consequently can be regarded as some sort of short-term switching [3]. UE may use the existing gaps configured by network A (~configuration based on first assistance information) to perform the activities. If the existing gaps cannot meet the Multi-SIM network switching requirement, a switching procedure is needed for UE to request gaps (~receiving from a UE, second assistance information which is changed from the first assistance information based on the change of the gap preference). Considering the gap scheduling is invisible at CN while has been widely utilized at RAN, and SA2 has not concluded any NAS solution related to gap, thus AS level signalling is needed and feasible for requesting gap”).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teaching of R2-2101981 with the teaching of S2-1911145 as modified by Tseng in order to optimize network performance and user experience by ensuring that a UE uses the most current and efficient settings for performing measurements.
Conclusion
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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/ALEXANDER J YI/Examiner, Art Unit 2643
/JINSONG HU/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2643
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