DETAILED ACTION
This Office action is in response to the amendment filed 16 March 2026. Claims 1-20 are pending in this application.
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 Objections
Claims 3, 5, 11, 13, 17, and 19 are objected to because of the following informalities. Appropriate correction is required.
For Claim 3 (last line), Claim 17 (last line), “whether that” should be corrected to ---that---.
For Claim 5 (line 4), Claim 19 (line 3), “a last a previous” should be corrected to ---a previous---.
For Claim 11 (line 8), “a third fourth” should be corrected to ---a fourth---.
For Claim 13, “the grant the second grant” should be corrected to ---the second grant---.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 3, 6-8, and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
For Claims 3 and 17, “in accordance with the determination that the enablement information indicates that skipping of the at least one grant is enabled for the first device and a determination that the data is unavailable” should probably be corrected to --- in accordance with [[the]] a determination that the enablement information indicates that skipping of the at least one grant is enabled for the first device and [[a]] the determination that the data is unavailable---.
For Claims 6-8, “the first period threshold” lacks antecedent basis in the claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim(s) 1-3, 9-11, 15-17, and 20, as understood in light of any rejections under 35 USC 112, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lin et al. (US 2017/0289995) in view of Mo (US 2023/0156814).
For Claims 1 and 16, Lin teaches a method and a first device comprising:
at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code (see paragraph 53: hardware); wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the first device to:
determine whether data is available for transmission on a grant, the grant being allocated for a data transmission procedure established between the first device and a second device (see paragraphs 69, 331, 344-345);
in accordance with a determination that the data is unavailable, determine whether the transmission on the grant is to be skipped (see paragraphs 344-345); and
in accordance with a determination that the transmission on the grant is not to be skipped, perform the transmission on the grant to the second device, the transmission conveying a predetermined type of information without conveying the unavailable data (see paragraphs 344-345).
Lin as applied above is not explicit as to, but Mo teaches the grant being allocated for small data transmission (see paragraphs 20, 27).
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to implement the SDT grant skipping process of Mo as known and shown in Li. One of ordinary skill would have been able to do so with the reasonably predictable result of allowing a device to retain transmission resources even when the resources are not immediately in use.
For Claim 10, Lin teaches a second device comprising:
at least one processor; and at least one memory including computer program code (see paragraph 53: hardware); wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the second device to:
establish a data transmission procedure with a first device (see paragraph 351);
receive, from the first device on a grant allocated for the data transmission procedure, a transmission conveying a predetermined type of information without conveying data (see paragraphs 69, 344-345); and
cause the data transmission procedure to be maintained based on the reception of the transmission on the grant (see paragraph 69: skipping is allowed, grant is maintained even if skipped).
Lin as applied above is not explicit as to, but Mo teaches establish and maintain a small data transmission procedure with a first device (see paragraphs 20, 26-27, 41). Mo also teaches maintaining the small data transmission procedure based on the reception of the transmission on the grant (see paragraphs 172, 181)
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to implement the SDT grant skipping process of Mo as known and shown in Li. One of ordinary skill would have been able to do so with the reasonably predictable result of allowing a device to retain transmission resources even when the resources are not immediately in use.
For Claim 2, Lin further teaches the first device, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, further cause the first device to: in accordance with a determination that the transmission on the grant is to be skipped, cause the transmission on the grant to be skipped (see paragraphs 344-345).
For Claims 3, 15, and 17, Lin as modified by Mo above further teaches the first device, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the first device to determine whether the transmission on the grant is to be skipped by:
receiving, from the second device, enablement information indicating whether skipping of at least one grant is enabled for the first device during the small data transmission procedure (see paragraph 69); and
in accordance with the determination that the enablement information indicates that skipping of the at least one grant is enabled for the first device and a determination that the data is unavailable, determining whether that the transmission on the grant is to be skipped (see paragraphs 344-345).
For Claims 9, 11, and 20, Lin further teaches the first device, wherein the predetermined type of information conveyed in the transmission on the grant comprises at least one of the following:
a first indication indicating that subsequent data is expected to be communicated during the small data transmission procedure,
a second indication of at least one radio bearer or at least one logical channel on which the subsequent data is expected to be communicated,
a third indication of an amount of the subsequent data expected to be communicated,
a fourth indication of a time when the subsequent data is expected to be communicated,
a buffer status report (see paragraph 69),
a power headroom report, and
a transport block with dummy bits.
Claim(s) 4, 14, and 18, as understood in light of any rejections under 35 USC 112, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lin et al. (US 2017/0289995) and Mo (US 2023/0156814) as applied to claims 1 and 16 above, and further in view of Li et al. (WO2017/134578).
For Claims 4 and 18, the references as applied above are not explicit as to, but Li teaches the first device, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the first device to determine whether the transmission on the grant is to be skipped by:
determining that subsequent data is expected to be communicated after a first time period during the small data transmission procedure (see p. 12 line 20 to p. 13 line 6);
determining whether the first time period exceeds a first period threshold for grant skipping (see p. 12 line 20 to p. 13 line 6); and
in accordance with a determination that the first time period exceeds the first period threshold, determining that the transmission on the grant is to be skipped (see p. 12 line 20 to p. 13 line 6).
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to use a timer as in Li when determining the length of validity of a grant as in Lin and Mo (see Mo, paragraphs 195-196: threshold number of failures or skips). One of ordinary skill in the art would have been able to do so with the reasonably predictable result of using a measure that may be more appropriate for the mobility of the device.
Claim(s) 5, 12-14, and 19, as understood in light of any rejections under 35 USC 112, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lin et al. (US 2017/0289995) and Mo (US 2023/0156814) as applied to claims 1, 10, and 16 above, and further in view of Shukair et al. (US 2019/0320491).
For Claims 5, 12, and 19, the references as applied above are not explicit as to, but Shukair teaches the first device, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the first device to determine whether the transmission on the grant is to be skipped by:
determining whether a second time period from a previous grant on which a last transmission was performed during the small data transmission procedure to the grant exceeds a second period threshold for grant skipping (see paragraphs 83, 88, 102, 101-1-2, 111: max delay, known at network side); and
in accordance with a determination that the second time period exceeds the second period threshold, determining that the transmission on the grant is not to be skipped (see paragraphs 9, 7, 102, 111, 114: transmission prior to exceeding delay threshold; delay threshold known at network side).
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to avoid exceeding the threshold as in Shukair when managing resources as in Lin and Mo. The motivation would be to avoid releasing resources at either end of the connection.
For Claim 13, the references as applied above are not explicit as to, but Shukair teaches the second device, wherein a time period from the first grant to the grant the second grant exceeds the second period threshold (see paragraphs 102, 111, 114).
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to avoid exceeding the threshold as in Shukair when managing resources as in Lin and Mo. The motivation would be to avoid releasing resources at either end of the connection.
For Claim 14, Lin as applied above is not explicit as to, but Mo teaches the second device, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, further cause the second device to: transmit, to the first device, configuration information indicating at least the second period threshold (see paragraphs 136-155: various thresholds including threshold number of skips).
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to provide thresholds as in Mo when implementing the method of Lin and Mo. The motivation would be to provide a way to release resources that have been determined to be unused.
Claim(s) 6 and 8, as understood in light of any rejections under 35 USC 112, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lin et al. (US 2017/0289995), Mo (US 2023/0156814), Shukair et al. (US 2019/0320491) as applied to claims 1 and 5 above, and further in view of Li et al. (WO2017/134578).
For Claim 6, Lin as applied above is not explicit as to, but Mo teaches the first device, wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, with the at least one processor, further cause the first device to: receive, from the second device, configuration information indicating at least one of a first threshold and a second threshold (see paragraphs 136-155: various thresholds including threshold number of skips).
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to provide thresholds as in Mo when implementing the method of Lin and Mo. The motivation would be to provide a way to release resources that have been determined to be unused.
The references as applied above are not explicit as to, but Li teaches the first period threshold or the second period threshold (see p. 12 line 20 to p. 13 line 6).
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to use a timer as in Li when determining the length of validity of a grant as in Lin and Mo (see Mo, paragraphs 195-196: threshold number of failures or skips). One of ordinary skill in the art would have been able to do so with the reasonably predictable result of using a measure that may be more appropriate for the mobility of the device.
For Claim 8, the references as applied above are not explicit as to, but Li teaches the first device, wherein at least one of the first period threshold and the second period threshold is defined as a threshold number of time units or a threshold number of grant occasions (see p. 12 line 20 to p. 13 line 6).
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to use a timer as in Li when determining the length of validity of a grant as in Lin and Mo (see Mo, paragraphs 195-196: threshold number of failures or skips). One of ordinary skill in the art would have been able to do so with the reasonably predictable result of using a measure that may be more appropriate for the mobility of the device.
Claim(s) 7, as understood in light of any rejections under 35 USC 112, is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lin et al. (US 2017/0289995), Mo (US 2023/0156814), Shukair et al. (US 2019/0320491) as applied to claims 1 and 5 above, and further in view of Lin et al. (US 2024/0023097, hereinafter Lin ‘237).
For Clam 7, the references as applied above are not explicit as to, but Lin ‘237 teaches the first device, wherein at least one of the first period threshold and the second period threshold is set to be specific to the first device or specific to a radio bearer or a logical channel on which the small data transmission procedure is established (see paragraphs 40, 43: radio bearer on which SDT is allowed, threshold amount of SDT data).
Thus it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art that the thresholds are specific to the radio bearer as in Lin ‘237 when using thresholds to manage a small data transmission resources as in Lin and Mo. One of ordinary skill in the art would have been able to set thresholds accordingly with the reasonably predictable result of adjusting parameters to match the channel conditions.
Response to Arguments
The amendment filed 16 March 2026 has been entered.
Some previous rejections under 35 USC 112 are withdrawn in light of the amendments. However, the amendments have resulted in new objections and some new rejections under 35 USC 112.
Applicant’s arguments with respect to rejections under 35 USC 103 have been fully considered, but are not persuasive. The claims remain rejected under 35 USC 103.
With regards to teachings of Lin, Lin clearly teaches the two determinations used to make the decision about skipping a grant. In paragraphs 69 and 331, Lin teaches that skipping is allowed if no data are available. Then in paragraphs 344-345, Lin teaches determining if control information are present and if so, using the grant for the control information, else skipping the grant. Accordingly, Lin does teach the claimed process.
Other references are not relied on for matter taught in Lin.
As to a motivation to combine Lin and Mo, please note that the applicability of a grant utilization process known for one type of data transmission to another type of data transmission would certainly be within the routine skill in the art. Moreover, it would also be clearly advantageous to repurpose unused resources and thereby improve throughput.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Ying et al. (US 2019/0082450) and Babaei et al. (US 2026/0046882) both teach methods in which it is determined whether to skip a grant based whether data are available.
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CASSANDRA L DECKER whose telephone number is (571)270-3946. The examiner can normally be reached 7:30 am - 4:00 pm.
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/CASSANDRA L DECKER/Examiner, Art Unit 2466 4/14/2026
/FARUK HAMZA/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2466
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