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 .
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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 09/02/2026 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 21-34 have been considered but are moot due to the introduction of new references necessitated by amendments to the claims.
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.
Claim(s) 21-22, 27-28, and 33-34 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kundu et al. (US 2021/0029731 A1; cited in Applicant’s IDS submitted 11/10/2023; “Kundu”) in view of Blankenship et al. (US 2023/0397213 A1; “Blankenship”) in view of NTT Domoco, Inc., “PUCCH format 0/1/4 enhancements for NR from 52.6 to 71 GHz”, 3GPP TSG RAN WG1 Meeting #104bis-e, R1-2103569, Electronic Meeting, April 12-20, 2021 (“NTT”).
Regarding claim 21, Kundu teaches a method performed by a user equipment (UE), the method comprising:
determining a first set of parameters or a second set of parameters, wherein the first set of parameters and the second set of parameters are based on a connection status of the UE [Kundu ¶ 0256: a UE 502 determines time and frequency resources to be used for transmission of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) in an unlicensed spectrum before receipt of a dedicated PUCCH resource configuration based on different PUCCH formats (i.e. parameters), wherein receipt of the dedicated PUCCH resource configuration is to take place during an initial access before a radio resource control (RRC) connection setup procedure (here, the configured parameters are for a RRC non-connected UE); see also ¶ 0258: when a UE 502 does not have a dedicated Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) resource configuration provided by a PUCCH-ResourceSet information element (IE) in PUCCH-Config IE of Radio Resource Control (RRC) configuration (i.e. when UE is in a non-connected state), the UE 502 determines a PUCCH resource set provided by a pucch-ResourceCommon parameter through an index to a row of a preconfigured PUCCH resource configuration table],
wherein the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks and a first format for a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) transmission, and wherein the second set of parameters indicates a second number of resource blocks and a second format for the PUCCH transmission [Kundu ¶ 0098: format 0 and format 1, which are inherently single-PRB, each PRB consisting of 12 sub-carriers, PUCCH formats, wherein both these single-PRB PUCCH formats can be enhanced to multiple PRBs, e.g., n PRBs, n≥2 (here, PUCCH formats 0 and 1 indicate n PRB, respectively, i.e., first number RB or second number RB)]; and
transmit the PUCCH transmission based on the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters [Kundu ¶ 0256: the UE 502 transmits the PUCCH using the determined time and frequency resources; Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative (e.g., us of “the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters), therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
However, Kundu does not explicitly disclose the first set of parameters is determined in response to a first connection status, and the second set of parameters is determined in response to a second connection status different from the first connection status.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Blankenship teaches the first set of parameters is determined in response to a first connection status, and the second set of parameters is determined in response to a second connection status different from the first connection status [Blankenship ¶ 0142: When a UE is in RRC idle/inactive mode, the default PUCCH resource sets will be used, which are mainly defined for HARQ-ACK information transmission (here, default PUCCH resources analogous to first set of parameters are used when UE is in RRC ACTIVE/IDLE state, i.e., a first connection status); ¶ 0147: UE uses default PUCCH resources until it is provided with a dedicated PUCCH-Config (e.g., during initial access) on the initial uplink BWP (here, the dedicated PUCCH resources analogous to second set of parameters is determined in response to an initial access, i.e., a second, different connection status)].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of utilizing different PUCCH resource configurations for operation in an RRC Inactive/Idle state and after RRC initial access as taught by Blankenship. The motivation to combine these references would be to improve PUCCH resource selection to support aperiodic CSI [Blankenship ¶¶ 0071-0073].
However, Kundu in view of Blankenship does not explicitly the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks based on a subcarrier spacing (SCS) with a SCS range comprising at least 120 kiloHertz (kHz), 480 kHz, and 960 kHz.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, NTT teaches the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks based on a subcarrier spacing (SCS) with a SCS range comprising at least 120 kiloHertz (kHz), 480 kHz, and 960 kHz [NTT p. 8, proposals 2 & 4: for PUCCH format 0 at least the following numbers of RBs can be considered as the maximum number of RBs for each SCS, e.g., 120 kHz SCS: 10RBs, 480 kHz SCS: 4 RBs, and 960 kHz SCS: 2 RBs; for PUCCH format 1 at least the following numbers of RBs can be considered as the maximum number of RBs for each SCS, e.g., 120 kHz SCS: 10RBs, 480 kHz SCS: 4 RBs, and 960 kHz SCS: 2 RBs].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of determining a number of resource blocks used for PUCCH transmission based on a PUCCH format type and subcarrier spacing of 120KHz, 480KHz, or 960KHz. The motivation to combine these references would be to improve coverage in a NR communication system [NTT p. 8, proposals 2 & 4].
Regarding claim 22, Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT teaches the method of claim 21, further comprising: receiving a system information block 1 (SIB 1); and identifying the first number of resource blocks or the second number of resource blocks based on the received SIB 1 [Kundu ¶ 0027: a PUCCH resource set is provided by higher layer parameter pucch-ResourceCommon in SysteminformationBlockType1 through an index to a row of Table 1 (see ¶ 0059: showing index referencing format type 0 or 1, analogous to first and second format, and indicating associated PRB)].
Regarding claim 27, Kundu teaches a user equipment (UE), comprising:
at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled with the at least one memory [Kundu ¶¶ 0225-0026, Fig. 8: system 800, i.e., UE, includes application circuitry 805, baseband circuitry 810 (i.e. processors) memory circuitry 820 (i.e. memory)] and configured to cause the UE to:
determining a first set of parameters or a second set of parameters, wherein the first set of parameters and the second set of parameters are based on a connection status of the UE [Kundu ¶ 0256: a UE 502 determines time and frequency resources to be used for transmission of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) in an unlicensed spectrum before receipt of a dedicated PUCCH resource configuration based on different PUCCH formats (i.e. parameters), wherein receipt of the dedicated PUCCH resource configuration is to take place during an initial access before a radio resource control (RRC) connection setup procedure (here, the configured parameters are for a RRC non-connected UE); see also ¶ 0258: when a UE 502 does not have a dedicated Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) resource configuration provided by a PUCCH-ResourceSet information element (IE) in PUCCH-Config IE of Radio Resource Control (RRC) configuration (i.e. when UE is in a non-connected state), the UE 502 determines a PUCCH resource set provided by a pucch-ResourceCommon parameter through an index to a row of a preconfigured PUCCH resource configuration table],
wherein the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks and a first format for a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) transmission, and wherein the second set of parameters indicates a second number of resource blocks and a second format for the PUCCH transmission [Kundu ¶ 0098: format 0 and format 1, which are inherently single-PRB, each PRB consisting of 12 sub-carriers, PUCCH formats, wherein both these single-PRB PUCCH formats can be enhanced to multiple PRBs, e.g., n PRBs, n≥2 (here, PUCCH formats 0 and 1 indicate n PRB, respectively, i.e., first number RB or second number RB)]; and
performing the PUCCH transmission based on the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters [Kundu ¶ 0256: the UE 502 transmits the PUCCH using the determined time and frequency resources; Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative (e.g., us of “the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters), therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
However, Kundu does not explicitly disclose the first set of parameters is determined in response to a first connection status, and the second set of parameters is determined in response to a second connection status different from the first connection status.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Blankenship teaches the first set of parameters is determined in response to a first connection status, and the second set of parameters is determined in response to a second connection status different from the first connection status [Blankenship ¶ 0142: When a UE is in RRC idle/inactive mode, the default PUCCH resource sets will be used, which are mainly defined for HARQ-ACK information transmission (here, default PUCCH resources analogous to first set of parameters are used when UE is in RRC ACTIVE/IDLE state, i.e., a first connection status); ¶ 0147: UE uses default PUCCH resources until it is provided with a dedicated PUCCH-Config (e.g., during initial access) on the initial uplink BWP (here, the dedicated PUCCH resources analogous to second set of parameters is determined in response to an initial access, i.e., a second, different connection status)].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of utilizing different PUCCH resource configurations for operation in an RRC Inactive/Idle state and after RRC initial access as taught by Blankenship. The motivation to combine these references would be to improve PUCCH resource selection to support aperiodic CSI [Blankenship ¶¶ 0071-0073].
However, Kundu in view of Blankenship does not explicitly the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks based on a subcarrier spacing (SCS) with a SCS range comprising at least 120 kiloHertz (kHz), 480 kHz, and 960 kHz.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, NTT teaches the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks based on a subcarrier spacing (SCS) with a SCS range comprising at least 120 kiloHertz (kHz), 480 kHz, and 960 kHz [NTT p. 8, proposals 2 & 4: for PUCCH format 0 at least the following numbers of RBs can be considered as the maximum number of RBs for each SCS, e.g., 120 kHz SCS: 10RBs, 480 kHz SCS: 4 RBs, and 960 kHz SCS: 2 RBs; for PUCCH format 1 at least the following numbers of RBs can be considered as the maximum number of RBs for each SCS, e.g., 120 kHz SCS: 10RBs, 480 kHz SCS: 4 RBs, and 960 kHz SCS: 2 RBs].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of determining a number of resource blocks used for PUCCH transmission based on a PUCCH format type and subcarrier spacing of 120KHz, 480KHz, or 960KHz. The motivation to combine these references would be to improve coverage in a NR communication system [NTT p. 8, proposals 2 & 4].
Regarding claim 28, Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT teaches the UE of claim 27, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the UE to: receive a system information block 1 (SIB1); and identify the first number of resource blocks or the second number of resource blocks based on the received SIB 1 [Kundu ¶ 0027: a PUCCH resource set is provided by higher layer parameter pucch-ResourceCommon in SysteminformationBlockType1 through an index to a row of Table 1 (see ¶ 0059: showing index referencing format type 0 or 1, analogous to first and second format, and indicating associated PRB)].
Regarding claim 33, Kundu teaches a base station comprising:
at least one memory; and at least one processor coupled with the at least one memory [Kundu ¶¶ 0225-0026, Fig. 8: system 800, i.e., UE, includes application circuitry 805, baseband circuitry 810 (i.e. processors) memory circuitry 820 (i.e. memory); ¶ 0247: components of AN 908 are similar to those of UE 902] and configured to cause the base station to:
receive, from a user equipment (UE), a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) transmission based on a first set of parameters or a second set of parameters [Kundu ¶ 0256: the UE 502 transmits the PUCCH, to AN 508 (see ¶ 0182: AN may be base station), using the determined time and frequency resources; Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative (e.g., us of “the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters), therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references],
wherein the first set of parameters and the second set of parameters are based on a connection status of the UE [Kundu ¶ 0256: a UE 502 determines time and frequency resources to be used for transmission of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) in an unlicensed spectrum before receipt of a dedicated PUCCH resource configuration based on different PUCCH formats (i.e. parameters), wherein receipt of the dedicated PUCCH resource configuration is to take place during an initial access before a radio resource control (RRC) connection setup procedure (here, the configured parameters are for a RRC non-connected UE); see also ¶ 0258: when a UE 502 does not have a dedicated Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) resource configuration provided by a PUCCH-ResourceSet information element (IE) in PUCCH-Config IE of Radio Resource Control (RRC) configuration (i.e. when UE is in a non-connected state), the UE 502 determines a PUCCH resource set provided by a pucch-ResourceCommon parameter through an index to a row of a preconfigured PUCCH resource configuration table],
wherein the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks and a first format for the PUCCH transmission, and wherein the second set of parameters indicates a second number of resource blocks and a second format for the PUCCH transmission [Kundu ¶ 0098: format 0 and format 1, which are inherently single-PRB, each PRB consisting of 12 sub-carriers, PUCCH formats, wherein both these single-PRB PUCCH formats can be enhanced to multiple PRBs, e.g., n PRBs, n≥2 (here, PUCCH formats 0 and 1 indicate n PRB, respectively, i.e., first number RB or second number RB)].
However, Kundu does not explicitly disclose the first set of parameters is determined in response to a first connection status, and the second set of parameters is determined in response to a second connection status different from the first connection status.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Blankenship teaches the first set of parameters is determined in response to a first connection status, and the second set of parameters is determined in response to a second connection status different from the first connection status [Blankenship ¶ 0142: When a UE is in RRC idle/inactive mode, the default PUCCH resource sets will be used, which are mainly defined for HARQ-ACK information transmission (here, default PUCCH resources analogous to first set of parameters are used when UE is in RRC ACTIVE/IDLE state, i.e., a first connection status); ¶ 0147: UE uses default PUCCH resources until it is provided with a dedicated PUCCH-Config (e.g., during initial access) on the initial uplink BWP (here, the dedicated PUCCH resources analogous to second set of parameters is determined in response to an initial access, i.e., a second, different connection status)].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of utilizing different PUCCH resource configurations for operation in an RRC Inactive/Idle state and after RRC initial access as taught by Blankenship. The motivation to combine these references would be to improve PUCCH resource selection to support aperiodic CSI [Blankenship ¶¶ 0071-0073].
However, Kundu in view of Blankenship does not explicitly the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks based on a subcarrier spacing (SCS) with a SCS range comprising at least 120 kiloHertz (kHz), 480 kHz, and 960 kHz.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, NTT teaches the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks based on a subcarrier spacing (SCS) with a SCS range comprising at least 120 kiloHertz (kHz), 480 kHz, and 960 kHz [NTT p. 8, proposals 2 & 4: for PUCCH format 0 at least the following numbers of RBs can be considered as the maximum number of RBs for each SCS, e.g., 120 kHz SCS: 10RBs, 480 kHz SCS: 4 RBs, and 960 kHz SCS: 2 RBs; for PUCCH format 1 at least the following numbers of RBs can be considered as the maximum number of RBs for each SCS, e.g., 120 kHz SCS: 10RBs, 480 kHz SCS: 4 RBs, and 960 kHz SCS: 2 RBs].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of determining a number of resource blocks used for PUCCH transmission based on a PUCCH format type and subcarrier spacing of 120KHz, 480KHz, or 960KHz. The motivation to combine these references would be to improve coverage in a NR communication system [NTT p. 8, proposals 2 & 4].
Regarding claim 34, Kundu teaches a method performed by a base station, the method comprising:
receiving, from a user equipment (UE), a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) transmission based on a first set of parameters or a second set of parameters [Kundu ¶ 0256: the UE 502 transmits the PUCCH using the determined time and frequency resources; Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative (e.g., us of “the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters), therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references],
wherein the first set of parameters and the second set of parameters are based on a connection status of the UE [Kundu ¶ 0256: a UE 502 determines time and frequency resources to be used for transmission of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) in an unlicensed spectrum before receipt of a dedicated PUCCH resource configuration based on different PUCCH formats (i.e. parameters), wherein receipt of the dedicated PUCCH resource configuration is to take place during an initial access before a radio resource control (RRC) connection setup procedure (here, the configured parameters are for a RRC non-connected UE); see also ¶ 0258: when a UE 502 does not have a dedicated Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) resource configuration provided by a PUCCH-ResourceSet information element (IE) in PUCCH-Config IE of Radio Resource Control (RRC) configuration (i.e. when UE is in a non-connected state), the UE 502 determines a PUCCH resource set provided by a pucch-ResourceCommon parameter through an index to a row of a preconfigured PUCCH resource configuration table],
wherein the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks and a first format for the PUCCH transmission, and wherein the second set of parameters indicates a second number of resource blocks and a second format for the PUCCH transmission [Kundu ¶ 0098: format 0 and format 1, which are inherently single-PRB, each PRB consisting of 12 sub-carriers, PUCCH formats, wherein both these single-PRB PUCCH formats can be enhanced to multiple PRBs, e.g., n PRBs, n≥2 (here, PUCCH formats 0 and 1 indicate n PRB, respectively, i.e., first number RB or second number RB)].
However, Kundu does not explicitly disclose the first set of parameters is determined in response to a first connection status, and the second set of parameters is determined in response to a second connection status different from the first connection status.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Blankenship teaches the first set of parameters is determined in response to a first connection status, and the second set of parameters is determined in response to a second connection status different from the first connection status [Blankenship ¶ 0142: When a UE is in RRC idle/inactive mode, the default PUCCH resource sets will be used, which are mainly defined for HARQ-ACK information transmission (here, default PUCCH resources analogous to first set of parameters are used when UE is in RRC ACTIVE/IDLE state, i.e., a first connection status); ¶ 0147: UE uses default PUCCH resources until it is provided with a dedicated PUCCH-Config (e.g., during initial access) on the initial uplink BWP (here, the dedicated PUCCH resources analogous to second set of parameters is determined in response to an initial access, i.e., a second, different connection status)].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of utilizing different PUCCH resource configurations for operation in an RRC Inactive/Idle state and after RRC initial access as taught by Blankenship. The motivation to combine these references would be to improve PUCCH resource selection to support aperiodic CSI [Blankenship ¶¶ 0071-0073].
However, Kundu in view of Blankenship does not explicitly the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks based on a subcarrier spacing (SCS) with a SCS range comprising at least 120 kiloHertz (kHz), 480 kHz, and 960 kHz.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, NTT teaches the first set of parameters indicates a first number of resource blocks based on a subcarrier spacing (SCS) with a SCS range comprising at least 120 kiloHertz (kHz), 480 kHz, and 960 kHz [NTT p. 8, proposals 2 & 4: for PUCCH format 0 at least the following numbers of RBs can be considered as the maximum number of RBs for each SCS, e.g., 120 kHz SCS: 10RBs, 480 kHz SCS: 4 RBs, and 960 kHz SCS: 2 RBs; for PUCCH format 1 at least the following numbers of RBs can be considered as the maximum number of RBs for each SCS, e.g., 120 kHz SCS: 10RBs, 480 kHz SCS: 4 RBs, and 960 kHz SCS: 2 RBs].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of determining a number of resource blocks used for PUCCH transmission based on a PUCCH format type and subcarrier spacing of 120KHz, 480KHz, or 960KHz. The motivation to combine these references would be to improve coverage in a NR communication system [NTT p. 8, proposals 2 & 4].
Claim(s) 23 and 29 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT in view of 3GPP TS 38.104 v16.2.0, 3rd Generation Partnership Project; Technical Specification Group Radio Access Network; NR; Base Station (BS) radio transmission and reception; Release 16, 2019-12 (“TS 38.104”).
Regarding claim 23, Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT teaches the method of claim 21, further comprising selecting the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters based on a subcarrier spacing [Kundu ¶ 0113: different tables can be defined for different numerologies, e.g., two different tables can be defined for 15 KHz and 30 KHz SCS (i.e. table corresponding to subcarrier spacing is selected/used)].
However, Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT does not explicitly disclose the subcarrier spacing associated with synchronization raster.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, TS 38.104 teaches the subcarrier spacing associated with synchronization raster [TS 38.104 pp. 44-45, sec. 5.4.3.3: specification provides configuration of synchronization raster per SS block SCS for FR1 and FR2].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the 3GPP standard mapping of SCS to synchronization raster as taught by TS 38.104. The motivation to combine these references would be to operate in a NR communication system according to the minimum RF characteristics and minimum performance requirements of NR operation [TS 38.104 p. 13, sec. 1, Scope].
Regarding claim 29, Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT teaches the UE of claim 27, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the UE to select the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters based on a subcarrier spacing [Kundu ¶ 0113: different tables can be defined for different numerologies, e.g., two different tables can be defined for 15 KHz and 30 KHz SCS (i.e. table corresponding to subcarrier spacing is selected/used)].
However, Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT does not explicitly disclose the subcarrier spacing associated with synchronization raster.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, TS 38.104 teaches the subcarrier spacing associated with synchronization raster [TS 38.104 pp. 44-45, sec. 5.4.3.3: specification provides configuration of synchronization raster per SS block SCS for FR1 and FR2].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the 3GPP standard mapping of SCS to synchronization raster as taught by TS 38.104. The motivation to combine these references would be to operate in a NR communication system according to the minimum RF characteristics and minimum performance requirements of NR operation [TS 38.104 p. 13, sec. 1, Scope].
Claim(s) 24 and 30 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT in view of El Hamss et al. (US 2021/0377912 A1; “El Hamss”).
Regarding claim 24, Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT teaches the method of claim 21, however, does not explicitly disclose further comprising selecting the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters based a reference signal received power (RSRP).
However, in a similar field of endeavor, El Hamss teaches selecting the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters based a reference signal received power (RSRP) [El Hamss ¶¶ 0114-0115: a WTRU may be configured to autonomously select the PUCCH resource from the PUCCH resource set which may be configured by the network, e.g., using RRC signaling or a SIB, wherein based on the RSRP measured from the serving cell, a WTRU with high RSRP may select a short PUCCH format (i.e. first set of parameters)].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of determining PUCCH format based on measured RSRP on a serving cell as taught by El Hamss. The motivation to combine these references would be support both autonomous and network controlled PUCCH feedback resources selection in an unlicensed spectrum while reducing load on sidelink channels [El Hamss ¶ 0092].
Regarding claim 30, Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT teaches the UE of claim 27, however, does not explicitly disclose wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the UE to select the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters based on a reference signal received power (RSRP).
However, in a similar field of endeavor, El Hamss teaches select the first set of parameters or the second set of parameters based a reference signal received power (RSRP) [El Hamss ¶¶ 0114-0115: a WTRU may be configured to autonomously select the PUCCH resource from the PUCCH resource set which may be configured by the network, e.g., using RRC signaling or a SIB, wherein based on the RSRP measured from the serving cell, a WTRU with high RSRP may select a short PUCCH format (i.e. first set of parameters)].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of determining PUCCH format based on measured RSRP on a serving cell as taught by El Hamss. The motivation to combine these references would be support both autonomous and network controlled PUCCH feedback resources selection in an unlicensed spectrum while reducing load on sidelink channels [El Hamss ¶ 0092].
Claim(s) 26 and 32 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT in view of Kittichokechai et al. (US 2023/0171778; “Kittichokechai”).
Regarding claim 26, Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT teaches the method of claim 21, however, does not explicitly disclose further comprising receiving an indication to enable or disable a format for the PUCCH transmission, wherein the indication is received in downlink control information (DCI).
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Kittichokechai teaches receiving an indication to enable or disable a format for the PUCCH transmission [Kittichokechai ¶ 0116: base station 402 also sends a DCI message to the UE 412 that schedules a PDSCH transmission and includes an indication of a particular PUCCH format (i.e. enables a PUCCH format) to be used for transmission for the associated HARQ ACK-NACK (step 602A)].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of selecting a PUCCH format for determining PUCCH resources based on an indication in a DCI as taught by Kittichokechai. The motivation to combine these references would be to support dynamic indication of PUCCH resources to support PUCCH repetition [Kittichokechai ¶ 0102].
Regarding claim 32, Kundu in view of Blankenship in view of NTT teaches the UE of claim 27, however, does not explicitly disclose wherein the at least one processor is further configured to cause the UE to receive an indication to enable or disable a format for the PUCCH transmission, wherein the indication is received in downlink control information (DCI).
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Kittichokechai teaches receive an indication to enable or disable a format for the PUCCH transmission [Kittichokechai ¶ 0116: base station 402 also sends a DCI message to the UE 412 that schedules a PDSCH transmission and includes an indication of a particular PUCCH format (i.e. enables a PUCCH format) to be used for transmission for the associated HARQ ACK-NACK (step 602A)].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the method of determining a number of PRB for PUCCH transmission based on a subcarrier spacing and associated parameters as taught by Kundu, with the method of selecting a PUCCH format for determining PUCCH resources based on an indication in a DCI as taught by Kittichokechai. The motivation to combine these references would be to support dynamic indication of PUCCH resources to support PUCCH repetition [Kittichokechai ¶ 0102].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 25 and 31 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
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/BRIAN P COX/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2474
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