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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-5,11-13,16-21,26-29 and 39-40 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Shin (US 20210022139 A1) hereafter Shin.
Regarding Claim 1:
A method ([¶0013] , a method )of enhanced retransmission in sidelink communications comprising the steps of: determining, by a user equipment (UE) based on a first number of blind retransmissions in a blind retransmission mode, a plurality of resources for an initial transmission and a blind retransmission of a first transport block (TB) via a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH);([¶0013] The method comprises determining a plurality of granted transmission resources for a sidelink communication, performing a transmission or a retransmission using at least one transmission resource among the plurality of granted transmission resources, receiving an acknowledgement (ACK) for the transmission or the retransmission, in response to the ACK, releasing one or more transmission resources among the plurality of granted transmission resources, measuring a channel occupancy ratio (CR) from transmission resources other than the released one or more transmission resources from the plurality of granted transmission resources, and transmitting a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) to satisfy a condition that the measured CR does not exceed a configured CR limit so that a congestion control is performed.) transmitting the first TB and the first number of blind retransmissions of the first TB; and in response to not receiving a positive acknowledgement after the first number of the blind retransmissions, switching from the blind retransmission mode to a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ)-based retransmission mode. ([¶0173] blind retransmission and HARQ feedback-based retransmission may be simultaneously configured and used. For example, when a maximum of 4 retransmissions is granted, blind retransmission is used until 2 retransmissions, and whether additional retransmissions are performed may be determined based on HARQ feedback.)
Regarding Claim 2:
The method of claim 1, wherein the first number indicates a maximum number of blind retransmissions. ([¶0173] For example, blind retransmission is performed until the first 2 retransmissions, and when NACK is continuously received, additional HARQ feedback-based retransmission may be performed or 2 blind retransmissions may be performed. In general, by considering the above method, when the number of blind retransmissions is configured as A, the number of HARQ feedback-based retransmissions is configured as B, and up to four retransmissions are granted, examples in which A and B are configured as follows can be considered. [0174] Example 1: A=0, B=4 [¶0175] Example 2: A=1, B=1 [¶0176] Example 3: A=1, B=2 [¶0177] Example 4: A=2, B=0)
Regarding Claim 3:
The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving one or more messages comprising a first configuration parameter indicating the first number. ([¶0219] Case 1 may be limited to mode 2. In mode 1, the base station may indicate resource scheduling information via DCI, and transmit parameter information other than resource scheduling via Uu-RRC or DCI. At this time, the transmitting terminal follows transmission parameters other than resource scheduling indicated by the base station. In the case that the transmission parameter is not indicated via the Uu-RRC in mode 1, the case 1 may be applied or the transmission parameter may be selected by the terminal implementation. Referring to Table 4, among the parameters included in the SL-PSSCH-TxParameters, the subchannel allocation range (minSubChannel-NumberPSSCH, maxSubchannel-NumberPSSCH) and the number of retransmissions (allowedRetxNumberPSSCH) may be included in resource scheduling information.)
Regarding Claim 4:
The method of claim 3,wherein the one or more messages comprise one or more radio resource control (RRC) messages. ([¶0219] Case 1 may be limited to mode 2. In mode 1, the base station may indicate resource scheduling information via DCI, and transmit parameter information other than resource scheduling via Uu-RRC or DCI. At this time, the transmitting terminal follows transmission parameters other than resource scheduling indicated by the base station. In the case that the transmission parameter is not indicated via the Uu-RRC in mode 1, the case 1 may be applied or the transmission parameter may be selected by the terminal implementation. Referring to Table 4, among the parameters included in the SL-PSSCH-TxParameters, the subchannel allocation range (minSubChannel-NumberPSSCH, maxSubchannel-NumberPSSCH) and the number of retransmissions (allowedRetxNumberPSSCH) may be included in resource scheduling information.)
Regarding Claim 5:
The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving a downlink control information (DCI) indicating the first number. ([¶0219] Case 1 may be limited to mode 2. In mode 1, the base station may indicate resource scheduling information via DCI, and transmit parameter information other than resource scheduling via Uu-RRC or DCI. At this time, the transmitting terminal follows transmission parameters other than resource scheduling indicated by the base station. In the case that the transmission parameter is not indicated via the Uu-RRC in mode 1, the case 1 may be applied or the transmission parameter may be selected by the terminal implementation. Referring to Table 4, among the parameters included in the SL-PSSCH-TxParameters, the subchannel allocation range (minSubChannel-NumberPSSCH, maxSubchannel-NumberPSSCH) and the number of retransmissions (allowedRetxNumberPSSCH) may be included in resource scheduling information.)
Regarding Claim 11:
The method of claim 1, further comprising: receiving a positive acknowledgement; and transmitting the first transport block (TB) in the hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ)-based retransmission mode. ([¶0153] Specifically, in the NR sidelink, as a retransmission method, HARQ feedback-based retransmission for performing retransmission based on HARQ-ACK/NACK feedback may be supported as well as blind retransmission that performs retransmission instead of HARQ-ACK feedback information. In the case of the blind retransmission method, retransmission is necessarily performed regardless of whether the initial transmission and reception of the retransmission are successful. However, in the case of the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method, whether to retransmit may be determined based on the ACK/NACK feedback result. In addition, in mode 2 of the NR sidelink, the terminal may reserve transmission resources via sensing for blind retransmission and HARQ feedback-based retransmission methods. In addition, in the case of the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method, a reserved transmission resource may be released based on the HARQ ACK/NACK feedback. For example, when the transmitting terminal receives the ACK for the previous transmission, resources reserved for the next retransmission may be released.)
Regarding Claim 12:
A method of enhanced retransmission in sidelink communications, comprising the steps of: receiving, by a first user equipment (UE) from a second UE, an initial transmission and one or more blind retransmission of a first transport block (TB) via a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH); ([¶0013] The method comprises determining a plurality of granted transmission resources for a sidelink communication, performing a transmission or a retransmission using at least one transmission resource among the plurality of granted transmission resources, receiving an acknowledgement (ACK) for the transmission or the retransmission, in response to the ACK, releasing one or more transmission resources among the plurality of granted transmission resources, measuring a channel occupancy ratio (CR) from transmission resources other than the released one or more transmission resources from the plurality of granted transmission resources, and transmitting a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) to satisfy a condition that the measured CR does not exceed a configured CR limit so that a congestion control is performed.) determining, by the first UE and based on the initial transmission and the one or more blind retransmissions of the first TB, that the first TB is received correctly; and transmitting, by the first UE, an indication to release first radio resources of a plurality of resources used for the blind retransmission of the first TB that occur after correct reception of the first TB. ([¶0173] blind retransmission and HARQ feedback-based retransmission may be simultaneously configured and used. For example, when a maximum of 4 retransmissions is granted, blind retransmission is used until 2 retransmissions, and whether additional retransmissions are performed may be determined based on HARQ feedback. [¶0208] When the terminal performs HARQ ACK/NACK feedback via PSFCH via Equation 3, the performance of congestion control using CBR and CR has been described. The above-described embodiment is for the operation in which, even when the HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is enabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, the receiving terminal does not feedback HARQ ACK/NACK to the transmitting terminal when the condition of Equation 3 is not satisfied)
Regarding Claim 13:
The method of claim 12, wherein transmitting the indication is via a scheduling request. ([¶0077] the transmitting terminal 401 may request a sidelink resource via a bit of a scheduling request (SR) transmitted via an uplink physical control channel.)
Regarding Claim 16:
The method of claim 12, wherein the indication is a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback. ([¶0173] blind retransmission and HARQ feedback-based retransmission may be simultaneously configured and used. For example, when a maximum of 4 retransmissions is granted, blind retransmission is used until 2 retransmissions, and whether additional retransmissions are performed may be determined based on HARQ feedback.)
Regarding Claim 17:
The method of claim 12, wherein the indication is transmitted via one or more radio resource control (RRC) messages. ([¶0219] Case 1 may be limited to mode 2. In mode 1, the base station may indicate resource scheduling information via DCI, and transmit parameter information other than resource scheduling via Uu-RRC or DCI. At this time, the transmitting terminal follows transmission parameters other than resource scheduling indicated by the base station. In the case that the transmission parameter is not indicated via the Uu-RRC in mode 1, the case 1 may be applied or the transmission parameter may be selected by the terminal implementation. Referring to Table 4, among the parameters included in the SL-PSSCH-TxParameters, the subchannel allocation range (minSubChannel-NumberPSSCH, maxSubchannel-NumberPSSCH) and the number of retransmissions (allowedRetxNumberPSSCH) may be included in resource scheduling information.)
Regarding Claim 18:
The method of claim 12, wherein the indication is transmitted via a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH). ([¶0077] transmit resources for the sidelink using at least one of an uplink physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), an RRC message, or a media access controller (MAC) control element (CE).)
Regarding Claim 19:
The method of claim 12, wherein the indication is transmitted via a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH). ([¶0077] In operation 415, the transmitting terminal 401 may request the base station 403 to transmit resources for performing side link communication with the receiving terminal 402. In this case, the transmitting terminal 401 may request the base station 403 to transmit resources for the sidelink using at least one of an uplink physical uplink control channel (PUCCH), an RRC message, or a media access controller (MAC) control element (CE). For example, when MAC CE is used, MAC CE may be a MAC CE for a buffer status report (BSR) having a new format including at least one of an indicator for indicating that it is a buffer status report for sidelink communication and information about the size of data buffered for device-to-device (D2D) communication. In addition, when PUCCH is used, the transmitting terminal 401 may request a sidelink resource via a bit of a scheduling request (SR) transmitted via an uplink physical control channel.)
Regarding Claim 20:
A method of enhanced retransmission in sidelink communications, comprising the steps of: receiving, by a first user equipment (UE) from a second UE, sidelink control information (SCI) comprising scheduling information for a first transport block (TB), wherein the first UE is in a groupcast set; ([¶0013] The method comprises determining a plurality of granted transmission resources for a sidelink communication, performing a transmission or a retransmission using at least one transmission resource among the plurality of granted transmission resources, receiving an acknowledgement (ACK) for the transmission or the retransmission, in response to the ACK, releasing one or more transmission resources among the plurality of granted transmission resources, measuring a channel occupancy ratio (CR) from transmission resources other than the released one or more transmission resources from the plurality of granted transmission resources, and transmitting a physical sidelink shared channel (PSSCH) to satisfy a condition that the measured CR does not exceed a configured CR limit so that a congestion control is performed. [¶0063] Referring to FIG. 2B, the transmitting terminal 230 or 245 and the receiving terminals 235, 240, 250, 255, or 260 may perform one-to-many communication 270, 272, 274, 276, and 278. The transmission scheme shown in FIG. 2B may be referred to as groupcast or multicast. Referring to FIG. 2B, the first terminal 230, the second terminal 235, and the third terminal 240 form one group and perform groupcast communication, and the fourth terminal 245, the fifth terminal 250, the sixth terminal 255, and the seventh terminal 260 form another group and perform groupcast communication. The terminals may perform groupcast communication within a group to which they belong, and perform unicast, groupcast, or broadcast communication with at least one other terminal belonging to different groups. Referring to FIG. 2B, two groups are illustrated, but the disclosure is not limited thereto, and can be applied even when a larger number of groups are formed. [¶0094] the transmitting terminal 501 may transmit the SCI to the receiving terminal 502 via the PSCCH in unicast or groupcast) receiving, by the first UE from the second UE, the first TB; and transmitting, by the first UE, a first negative acknowledgement where the first TB is received incorrectly by the first UE. ([¶0173] blind retransmission and HARQ feedback-based retransmission may be simultaneously configured and used. For example, when a maximum of 4 retransmissions is granted, blind retransmission is used until 2 retransmissions, and whether additional retransmissions are performed may be determined based on HARQ feedback. [¶0208] When the terminal performs HARQ ACK/NACK feedback via PSFCH via Equation 3, the performance of congestion control using CBR and CR has been described. The above-described embodiment is for the operation in which, even when the HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is enabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, the receiving terminal does not feedback HARQ ACK/NACK to the transmitting terminal when the condition of Equation 3 is not satisfied)
Regarding Claim 21:
The method of claim 20, wherein the receiving includes receiving one or more repetitions of the first transport block (TB), and the transmitting includes transmitting second or more negative acknowledgments, where the first TB is received incorrectly until the first TB is received correctly through the one or more repetitions, and wherein the one or more repetitions of the first TB are based on blind retransmissions by the second user equipment (UE). ([¶0173] blind retransmission and HARQ feedback-based retransmission may be simultaneously configured and used. For example, when a maximum of 4 retransmissions is granted, blind retransmission is used until 2 retransmissions, and whether additional retransmissions are performed may be determined based on HARQ feedback. [¶0208] When the terminal performs HARQ ACK/NACK feedback via PSFCH via Equation 3, the performance of congestion control using CBR and CR has been described. The above-described embodiment is for the operation in which, even when the HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is enabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, the receiving terminal does not feedback HARQ ACK/NACK to the transmitting terminal when the condition of Equation 3 is not satisfied)
Regarding Claim 26:
The method of claim 21, wherein: the groupcast set comprises a plurality of user equipments (UEs) comprising the first UE; and the first transport block (TB) is received by the plurality of UEs. ([¶0063] Referring to FIG. 2B, the transmitting terminal 230 or 245 and the receiving terminals 235, 240, 250, 255, or 260 may perform one-to-many communication 270, 272, 274, 276, and 278. The transmission scheme shown in FIG. 2B may be referred to as groupcast or multicast. Referring to FIG. 2B, the first terminal 230, the second terminal 235, and the third terminal 240 form one group and perform groupcast communication, and the fourth terminal 245, the fifth terminal 250, the sixth terminal 255, and the seventh terminal 260 form another group and perform groupcast communication. The terminals may perform groupcast communication within a group to which they belong, and perform unicast, groupcast, or broadcast communication with at least one other terminal belonging to different groups. Referring to FIG. 2B, two groups are illustrated, but the disclosure is not limited thereto, and can be applied even when a larger number of groups are formed.)
Regarding Claim 27:
The method of claim 26 wherein the plurality of user equipments (UEs), in the groupcast set, share physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH) resources for transmission of the second or more negative acknowledgements. ([¶0208] When the terminal performs HARQ ACK/NACK feedback via PSFCH via Equation 3, the performance of congestion control using CBR and CR has been described. The above-described embodiment is for the operation in which, even when the HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is enabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, the receiving terminal does not feedback HARQ ACK/NACK to the transmitting terminal when the condition of Equation 3 is not satisfied for congestion control. In addition, other congestion control methods may be considered for HARQ ACK/NACK feedback. For example, the CBR measurement value for the PSFCH channel may be used without using the CR measurement in Equation 3. In this case, the CBR measurement value for the PSFCH channel may be used by both the transmitting terminal and the receiving terminal. When the HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is disabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, the transmitting terminal may measure the CBR for the PSFCH channel, and when the measured value is greater than the configured threshold, the transmitting terminal may cancel the request for HARQ ACK/NACK feedback from the receiving terminal. Specifically, the transmitting terminal may indicate HARQ ACK/NACK feedback cancellation information by including 1 bit of information in the SCI. Alternatively, when HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is disabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, if the receiving terminal measures the CBR for the PSFCH channel and the measured value is greater than the configured threshold, a method of not HARQ ACK/NACK feedback to the receiving terminal may be used. Here, the threshold may be included in the resource pool configuration information. Before the terminal is RRC connected to the base station, the corresponding values may be pre-configured in the terminal and may be configured via SIB from the base station. After the terminal is RRC connected to the base station, the threshold value may be configured terminal-specifically. In addition, the threshold value may be configured via PC5-RRC connection between a terminal and a terminal.)
Regarding Claim 28:
The method of claim 20, wherein transmitting the first negative acknowledgement is further based on one or more criteria. ([¶0208] When the terminal performs HARQ ACK/NACK feedback via PSFCH via Equation 3, the performance of congestion control using CBR and CR has been described. The above-described embodiment is for the operation in which, even when the HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is enabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, the receiving terminal does not feedback HARQ ACK/NACK to the transmitting terminal when the condition of Equation 3 is not satisfied for congestion control. In addition, other congestion control methods may be considered for HARQ ACK/NACK feedback. For example, the CBR measurement value for the PSFCH channel may be used without using the CR measurement in Equation 3. In this case, the CBR measurement value for the PSFCH channel may be used by both the transmitting terminal and the receiving terminal. When the HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is disabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, the transmitting terminal may measure the CBR for the PSFCH channel, and when the measured value is greater than the configured threshold, the transmitting terminal may cancel the request for HARQ ACK/NACK feedback from the receiving terminal. Specifically, the transmitting terminal may indicate HARQ ACK/NACK feedback cancellation information by including 1 bit of information in the SCI. Alternatively, when HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is disabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, if the receiving terminal measures the CBR for the PSFCH channel and the measured value is greater than the configured threshold, a method of not HARQ ACK/NACK feedback to the receiving terminal may be used. Here, the threshold may be included in the resource pool configuration information. Before the terminal is RRC connected to the base station, the corresponding values may be pre-configured in the terminal and may be configured via SIB from the base station. After the terminal is RRC connected to the base station, the threshold value may be configured terminal-specifically. In addition, the threshold value may be configured via PC5-RRC connection between a terminal and a terminal.)
Regarding Claim 29:
The method of claim 28, wherein a criterion in the one or more criteria is based on a parameter. ([¶0208] When the terminal performs HARQ ACK/NACK feedback via PSFCH via Equation 3, the performance of congestion control using CBR and CR has been described. The above-described embodiment is for the operation in which, even when the HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is enabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, the receiving terminal does not feedback HARQ ACK/NACK to the transmitting terminal when the condition of Equation 3 is not satisfied for congestion control. In addition, other congestion control methods may be considered for HARQ ACK/NACK feedback. For example, the CBR measurement value for the PSFCH channel may be used without using the CR measurement in Equation 3. In this case, the CBR measurement value for the PSFCH channel may be used by both the transmitting terminal and the receiving terminal. When the HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is disabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, the transmitting terminal may measure the CBR for the PSFCH channel, and when the measured value is greater than the configured threshold, the transmitting terminal may cancel the request for HARQ ACK/NACK feedback from the receiving terminal. Specifically, the transmitting terminal may indicate HARQ ACK/NACK feedback cancellation information by including 1 bit of information in the SCI. Alternatively, when HARQ ACK/NACK feedback is disabled and the HARQ feedback-based retransmission method is used, if the receiving terminal measures the CBR for the PSFCH channel and the measured value is greater than the configured threshold, a method of not HARQ ACK/NACK feedback to the receiving terminal may be used. Here, the threshold may be included in the resource pool configuration information. Before the terminal is RRC connected to the base station, the corresponding values may be pre-configured in the terminal and may be configured via SIB from the base station. After the terminal is RRC connected to the base station, the threshold value may be configured terminal-specifically. In addition, the threshold value may be configured via PC5-RRC connection between a terminal and a terminal.)
Regarding Claim 39:
The method of claim 20, wherein the sidelink control information (SCI) comprises a field with a value indicating whether negative acknowledgement only feedback is enabled or disabled. ([¶0208] Specifically, the transmitting terminal may indicate HARQ ACK/NACK feedback cancellation information by including 1 bit of information in the SCI.)
Regarding Claim 40:
The method of claim 20, wherein the sidelink control information (SCI) comprises a field with a value indicating one of a plurality of feedback modes.([¶0234] Hereinafter, an operation after the transmission terminal selects transmission parameters from the transmission parameter set (SL-PSSCH-TxParameters) of Table 4 is described. [¶0235] The transmitting terminal may transmit based on the selected MCS and deliver the information to the receiving terminal via SCI.)
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HUGH MARK ASHLEY whose telephone number is (571)272-0199. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8-430.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Asad Nawaz can be reached at (571) 272-3988. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/HUGH MARK ASHLEY/Examiner, Art Unit 2463
/ASAD M NAWAZ/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2463