DETAILED ACTION
This communication is responsive to Application No. #18/611,017 filed on March 20, 2024. Claims 1-20 are subject to examination.
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 .
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP §§ 706.02(l)(1) - 706.02(l)(3) for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/process/file/efs/guidance/eTD-info-I.jsp.
Claim 1 is rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1 and 2 of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 20260133307A1. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because they are obvious variants of each other.
Independent claims 19 and 20 recite similar features to independent claim 1; the compared table below (i.e. underlined claim elements) shows only example (sample) of how claim 1 is anticipated and mapped by claims such as claim 1 and 2 of the U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 20260133307A1.
Instant Application No. 18611017
U.S. Application Publication No. US 20260133307A1
A receiver sensing node, comprising:
one or more memories;
one or more transceivers; and
one or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more memories and the one or more transceivers, the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to:
receive, via the one or more transceivers, from a sensing entity, assistance data for sensing a set of target objects, wherein the assistance data includes data association (DA) information for each target object of the set of target objects;
obtain a plurality of sensing measurements of one or more sensing reference signals transmitted by a transmitter sensing node and reflected from at least a subset of target objects of the set of target objects; and
assign one or more sensing measurements of the plurality of sensing measurements to each target object in the subset of target objects.
A receiver sensing node, comprising:
one or more memories;
one or more transceivers; and
one or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more memories and the one or more transceivers, the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, being configured to:
receive, via the one or more transceivers, from a sensing entity, assistance data for sensing a set of target objects, wherein the assistance data comprises target modeling information for each target object of the set of target objects;
obtain a plurality of sensing measurements of one or more sensing reference signals transmitted by a transmitter sensing node and reflected from at least a subset of target objects of the set of target objects; and
assign one or more sensing measurements of the plurality of sensing measurements to each target object in the subset of target objects based at least in part on the target modeling information for each target object of the set of target objects.
A receiver sensing node, comprising:
one or more memories;
one or more transceivers; and
one or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more memories and the one or more transceivers, the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to:
receive, via the one or more transceivers, from a sensing entity, assistance data for sensing a set of target objects, wherein the assistance data includes data association (DA) information for each target object of the set of target objects;
obtain a plurality of sensing measurements of one or more sensing reference signals transmitted by a transmitter sensing node and reflected from at least a subset of target objects of the set of target objects; and
assign one or more sensing measurements of the plurality of sensing measurements to each target object in the subset of target objects.
2. The receiver sensing node of claim 1, wherein the target modeling information for at least one target object of the set of target objects comprises scattering point characteristics of the target object, an expected channel impulse response (CIR) of sensing signal reflections from the target object, or a combination thereof.
[Interpreted as association information for the object(s)]
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 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 1-2, 4-7, 9, 12-13, and 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Duan et.al. (US Patent Application Publication, 20230400549, hereinafter, “Duan”) in view of Dai et.al. (US Patent Application Publication, 20240345219, hereinafter, “Dai”).
Regarding claim 1, Duan teaches:
A receiver sensing node, comprising (Duan: [0168] ... The sensing entity 500 [i.e., claimed receiver sensing node] in flow 1000 may be a UE or base station ... Fig. 10):
one or more memories;
one or more transceivers; and
one or more processors communicatively coupled to the one or more memories and the one or more transceivers, the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, configured to (Duan: [0133] ... The sensing entity 500 includes a processor 510, a transceiver 520, and a memory 530 communicatively coupled to each other by a bus 540 … the processor 510 may include one or more of the components of the processor 310, the transceiver 520 may include one or more of the components of the transceiver 315, and the memory 530 may be configured similarly to the memory 311, e.g., including software with processor-readable instructions configured to cause the processor 510 to perform functions. Fig. 5):
receive, via the one or more transceivers, from a sensing entity (Duan: [0168] ... the network entity 600 may be a sensing server [i.e., claimed sensing entity], e.g., server 150 shown in FIG. 1 ... Fig. 10), assistance data for sensing a target (Duan: [0175] A Provide Assistance Data message 1016 is sent by the network entity (e.g., by the sensing procedure unit 650 via the transceiver 620) to the sensing entity 500 (e.g., via the transceiver 520 to the sensing procedure unit 550) to provide the sensing assistance data generated in stage 1014. The sensing assistance data is received by the sensing entity 500 and may be processed by the sensing entity 500 (e.g., the sensing assistance data unit 560) to assist in acquisition and measurement of reference signals for RF sensing … [0171] … the sensing assistance data may include the position of one or more transmitters, with which the sensing entity 500 can determine a position of a target via multilateration. Fig. 10);
obtain a plurality of sensing measurements of one or more sensing reference signals transmitted by a transmitter sensing node and reflected from a target (Duan: [0168] ... The transmitting entity 1004 [i.e., claimed transmitter sensing node] may be a base station or in some implementation may be a UE … [0178] At stage 1022, the sensing entity 500 (e.g., the sensing measurement unit 570) may process and measure the received reference signals for RF sensing. The sensing measurements may be performed with the received reference signals that were reflected from the target based on the sensing assistance data received from the network entity 600 in message 1016.... Fig. 10) at least a subset of target objects of the set of target objects (Dai: [0089] The UE 602 may process (at 612) data for at least one target object in the set of objects ... Fig. 6).
Although Duan teaches a sensing entity receiving assistance data from a sensing server/network entity, and measuring received reference signals (transmitted from a transmitting entity) that were reflected from the target based on the sensing assistance data received, Duan does not explicitly teach:
receive … assistance data … for sensing a set of target objects, wherein the assistance data includes data association (DA) information for each target object of the set of target objects;
… reflected from … at least a subset of target objects of the set of target objects; and
assign one or more sensing measurements of the plurality of sensing measurements to each target object in the subset of target objects.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Dai teaches:
receive … assistance data … for sensing a set of target objects, wherein the assistance data includes data association (DA) information for each target object of the set of target objects (Dai: [0086] … The request 606 may be for environmental information 608, and may be provided/transmitted via at least one of first RRC signaling (e.g., UE assistance information, an LTE positioning protocol (LPP) message, etc.) … [0089] ... The environmental information 608 may indicate at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects in the sensing environment. In aspects, the at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects may include at least one of a location, a shape, a material, material information, or an expected signaling path power of at least one signaling path of one or more objects [i.e., data association information] of the set of objects... Fig. 6);
… reflected from … at least a subset of target objects of the set of target objects (Dai: [0089] The UE 602 may process (at 612) data for at least one target object in the set of objects ... Fig. 6); and
assign one or more sensing measurements of the plurality of sensing measurements to each target object in the subset of target objects (Dai: [0089] The UE 602 may process (at 612) data for at least one target object in the set of objects … based on the environmental information 608. The environmental information 608 may indicate at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects in the sensing environment. In aspects, the at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects may include at least one of a location, a shape, a material, material information, or an expected signaling path power of at least one signaling path of one or more objects of the set of objects. When the UE 602 processes (at 612) the at least one target object based on the sensing operation, the UE 602 may observe, calculate, and/or generate data and/or information for a sensing indication 614 that includes sensing information associated with the at least one target object based on the processed (e.g., at 612) at least one target object. Fig. 6).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Duan to include the features as taught by Dai above in order to improve detection and locking of target objects for sensing. (Dai, ¶ [0027]).
Regarding claim 2, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Dai further teaches:
wherein the DA information for each target object of the set of target objects includes:
an estimated path receive power associated with the target object (Dai: [0089] ... The environmental information 608 may indicate at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects in the sensing environment. In aspects, the at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects may include at least one of a location, a shape, a material, material information, or an expected signaling path power of at least one signaling path of one or more objects of the set of objects... Fig. 6).
The rationale and motivation for adding this teaching of Dai is the same as the rationale and motivation for Claim 1.
Regarding claim 4, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Duan further teaches:
wherein the one or more processors, either alone or in combination, are further configured to:
report, via the one or more transceivers, to the sensing entity, the plurality of sensing measurements (Duan: [0182] A Provide Sensing Information message 1026 is sent by the sensing entity 500 (e.g., by the sensing procedure unit 550 via the transceiver 520) to the network entity 600 (e.g., via the transceiver 620 to the sensing procedure unit 650) to provide sensing information, such as the reference signal measurements obtained at stage 1022 and/or the sensing estimate(s) obtained at stage 1024. Fig. 10).
Regarding claim 5, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Dai further teaches:
wherein the assistance data further includes:
one or more data association parameters to use to assign the plurality of sensing measurements to the subset of target objects (Dai: [0089] ... The environmental information 608 may indicate at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects in the sensing environment. In aspects, the at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects may include at least one of a location, a shape, a material, material information, or an expected signaling path power of at least one signaling path of one or more objects [i.e., data association information] of the set of objects... Fig. 6).
The rationale and motivation for adding this teaching of Dai is the same as the rationale and motivation for Claim 1.
Regarding claim 6, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Dai further teaches:
determine a value of a metric for each sensing measurement of the plurality of sensing measurements, wherein the one or more sensing measurements are assigned to each target object of the subset of target objects based on the value of the metric determined for each of the one or more sensing measurements assigned to each target object of the subset of target objects (Dai: [0090] The UE 602 may provide/transmit, for a network node (e.g., the base station 604), the sensing indication 614. The sensing indication 614 may include sensing information associated with the at least one target object based on the processed (at 612) at least one target object. In aspects, the sensing indication 614 may be based on a sensing configuration (e.g., provided for the UE 602 from the base station 604). The sensing indication 614 may further include at least one of a signaling path that (1) is within a delay range, (2) is within the delay range or an AoA range, (3) has a Doppler shift, (4) has a signaling path power that meets a power threshold, or (5) has a reflector unidentified in the environmental information.).
The rationale and motivation for adding this teaching of Dai is the same as the rationale and motivation for Claim 1.
Regarding claim 7, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 6 as outlined above.
Dai further teaches:
wherein the metric is received from the sensing entity (Dai: [0090] The UE 602 may provide/transmit, for a network node (e.g., the base station 604), the sensing indication 614 … [0085] … RF sensing, by a UE (e.g., a UE 602) that may communicate with a network node ...).
The rationale and motivation for adding this teaching of Dai is the same as the rationale and motivation for Claim 1.
Regarding claim 9, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Dai further teaches:
wherein the assistance data further includes:
an indication that a sensing measurement is permitted to be assigned to more than one target object (Dai: [0088] The UE 602 may detect (at 610), during a sensing operation, a set of objects in the sensing environment …).
The rationale and motivation for adding this teaching of Dai is the same as the rationale and motivation for Claim 1.
Regarding claim 12, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Dai further teaches:
wherein the assistance data further includes indications of the subset of target objects (Dai: [0089] The UE 602 may process (at 612) data for at least one target object in the set of objects … based on the environmental information 608 …).
The rationale and motivation for adding this teaching of Dai is the same as the rationale and motivation for Claim 1.
Regarding claim 13, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Duan further teaches:
report, via the one or more transceivers, to the sensing entity, for each of the one or more sensing measurements assigned to each target object of the subset of target objects, an identifier of the target object Duan: [0160] The assistance data may include an association of PRS to RPOs, which may be one-to-many or many-to-one. By way of example, the assistance data may include an identifier (ID) and location of each of the RPOs [reference point objects] that is associated with a PRS. For example, each PRS may be associated with a list of RPOs, each RPO in the list being associated with an RPO-ID and a RPO location. Table 1 illustrates an example of the association of PRS with RPS in one implementation.).
Regarding claim 16, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Duan further teaches:
the receiver sensing node and the transmitter sensing node are different sensing nodes (Duan: [0168] ... The sensing entity [i.e., claimed receiver sensing node] 500 in flow 1000 may be a UE ... The transmitting entity [i.e., claimed transmitter sensing node] 1004 may be a base station ... Figs. 1, 10).
Regarding claim 17, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Duan further teaches:
wherein the assistance data is received via:
Long-Term Evolution (LPP) signaling Duan: [0082] Information provided by the gNBs 110a, 110b, and/or the ng-eNB 114 to the LMF 120 using NRPPa may include timing and configuration information for directional SS or PRS transmissions and location coordinates. The LMF 120 may provide some or all of this information to the UE 105 as assistance data in an LPP and/or NPP message via the NG-RAN 135 and the 5GC 140.).
Regarding claim 18, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Duan further teaches:
wherein the sensing entity is:
a base station (Duan: … [0185] … a network node, such as network entity [i.e., claimed sensing entity] 600 illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 10, which may be, e.g., a sensing server 150 shown in FIG. 1 or a base station 110 shown in FIG. 1…).
Regarding claim 19, Duan teaches:
A method of wireless sensing performed by a receiver sensing node, comprising (Duan: [0168] ... The sensing entity 500 [i.e., claimed receiver sensing node] in flow 1000 may be a UE or base station ... Fig. 10):
receiving, from a sensing entity (Duan: [0168] ... the network entity 600 may be a sensing server [i.e., claimed sensing entity], e.g., server 150 shown in FIG. 1 ... Fig. 10), assistance data for sensing a target (Duan: [0175] A Provide Assistance Data message 1016 is sent by the network entity (e.g., by the sensing procedure unit 650 via the transceiver 620) to the sensing entity 500 (e.g., via the transceiver 520 to the sensing procedure unit 550) to provide the sensing assistance data generated in stage 1014. The sensing assistance data is received by the sensing entity 500 and may be processed by the sensing entity 500 (e.g., the sensing assistance data unit 560) to assist in acquisition and measurement of reference signals for RF sensing … [0171] … the sensing assistance data may include the position of one or more transmitters, with which the sensing entity 500 can determine a position of a target via multilateration. Fig. 10);
obtaining a plurality of sensing measurements of one or more sensing reference signals transmitted by a transmitter sensing node and reflected from a target (Duan: [0168] ... The transmitting entity 1004 [i.e., claimed transmitter sensing node] may be a base station or in some implementation may be a UE … [0178] At stage 1022, the sensing entity 500 (e.g., the sensing measurement unit 570) may process and measure the received reference signals for RF sensing. The sensing measurements may be performed with the received reference signals that were reflected from the target based on the sensing assistance data received from the network entity 600 in message 1016.... Fig. 10).
Although Duan teaches a sensing entity receiving assistance data from a sensing server/network entity, and measuring received reference signals (transmitted from a transmitting entity) that were reflected from the target based on the sensing assistance data received, Duan does not explicitly teach:
receiving … assistance data … for sensing a set of target objects, wherein the assistance data includes data association (DA) information for each target object of the set of target objects;
… reflected from … at least a subset of target objects of the set of target objects; and
assigning one or more sensing measurements of the plurality of sensing measurements to each target object in the subset of target objects.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Dai teaches:
receiving … assistance data … for sensing a set of target objects, wherein the assistance data includes data association (DA) information for each target object of the set of target objects (Dai: [0086] … The request 606 may be for environmental information 608, and may be provided/transmitted via at least one of first RRC signaling (e.g., UE assistance information, an LTE positioning protocol (LPP) message, etc.) … [0089] ... The environmental information 608 may indicate at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects in the sensing environment. In aspects, the at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects may include at least one of a location, a shape, a material, material information, or an expected signaling path power of at least one signaling path of one or more objects [i.e., data association information] of the set of objects... Fig. 6);
… reflected from … at least a subset of target objects of the set of target objects (Dai: [0089] The UE 602 may process (at 612) data for at least one target object in the set of objects ... Fig. 6); and
assigning one or more sensing measurements of the plurality of sensing measurements to each target object in the subset of target objects (Dai: [0089] The UE 602 may process (at 612) data for at least one target object in the set of objects … based on the environmental information 608. The environmental information 608 may indicate at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects in the sensing environment. In aspects, the at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects may include at least one of a location, a shape, a material, material information, or an expected signaling path power of at least one signaling path of one or more objects of the set of objects. When the UE 602 processes (at 612) the at least one target object based on the sensing operation, the UE 602 may observe, calculate, and/or generate data and/or information for a sensing indication 614 that includes sensing information associated with the at least one target object based on the processed (e.g., at 612) at least one target object. Fig. 6).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Duan to include the features as taught by Dai above in order to improve detection and locking of target objects for sensing. (Dai, ¶ [0027]).
Regarding claim 20, Duan teaches:
A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a receiver sensing node, cause the receiver sensing node to (Duan: [0168] ... The sensing entity 500 [i.e., claimed receiver sensing node] in flow 1000 may be a UE or base station ... [0133] ... The sensing entity 500 includes a processor 510, a transceiver 520, and a memory 530 communicatively coupled to each other by a bus 540 … the processor 510 may include one or more of the components of the processor 310, the transceiver 520 may include one or more of the components of the transceiver 315, and the memory 530 may be configured similarly to the memory 311, e.g., including software with processor-readable instructions configured to cause the processor 510 to perform functions. Figs. 5, 10):
receive, from a sensing entity (Duan: [0168] ... the network entity 600 may be a sensing server [i.e., claimed sensing entity], e.g., server 150 shown in FIG. 1 ... Fig. 10), assistance data for sensing a target (Duan: [0175] A Provide Assistance Data message 1016 is sent by the network entity (e.g., by the sensing procedure unit 650 via the transceiver 620) to the sensing entity 500 (e.g., via the transceiver 520 to the sensing procedure unit 550) to provide the sensing assistance data generated in stage 1014. The sensing assistance data is received by the sensing entity 500 and may be processed by the sensing entity 500 (e.g., the sensing assistance data unit 560) to assist in acquisition and measurement of reference signals for RF sensing … [0171] … the sensing assistance data may include the position of one or more transmitters, with which the sensing entity 500 can determine a position of a target via multilateration. Fig. 10);
obtain a plurality of sensing measurements of one or more sensing reference signals transmitted by a transmitter sensing node and reflected from a target (Duan: [0168] ... The transmitting entity 1004 [i.e., claimed transmitter sensing node] may be a base station or in some implementation may be a UE … [0178] At stage 1022, the sensing entity 500 (e.g., the sensing measurement unit 570) may process and measure the received reference signals for RF sensing. The sensing measurements may be performed with the received reference signals that were reflected from the target based on the sensing assistance data received from the network entity 600 in message 1016.... Fig. 10).
Although Duan teaches a sensing entity receiving assistance data from a sensing server/network entity, and measuring received reference signals (transmitted from a transmitting entity) that were reflected from the target based on the sensing assistance data received, Duan does not explicitly teach:
receive … assistance data … for sensing a set of target objects, wherein the assistance data includes data association (DA) information for each target object of the set of target objects;
… reflected from … at least a subset of target objects of the set of target objects; and
assign one or more sensing measurements of the plurality of sensing measurements to each target object in the subset of target objects.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Dai teaches:
receive … assistance data … for sensing a set of target objects, wherein the assistance data includes data association (DA) information for each target object of the set of target objects (Dai: [0086] … The request 606 may be for environmental information 608, and may be provided/transmitted via at least one of first RRC signaling (e.g., UE assistance information, an LTE positioning protocol (LPP) message, etc.) … [0089] ... The environmental information 608 may indicate at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects in the sensing environment. In aspects, the at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects may include at least one of a location, a shape, a material, material information, or an expected signaling path power of at least one signaling path of one or more objects [i.e., data association information] of the set of objects... Fig. 6);
… reflected from … at least a subset of target objects of the set of target objects (Dai: [0089] The UE 602 may process (at 612) data for at least one target object in the set of objects ... Fig. 6); and
assign one or more sensing measurements of the plurality of sensing measurements to each target object in the subset of target objects (Dai: [0089] The UE 602 may process (at 612) data for at least one target object in the set of objects … based on the environmental information 608. The environmental information 608 may indicate at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects in the sensing environment. In aspects, the at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects may include at least one of a location, a shape, a material, material information, or an expected signaling path power of at least one signaling path of one or more objects of the set of objects. When the UE 602 processes (at 612) the at least one target object based on the sensing operation, the UE 602 may observe, calculate, and/or generate data and/or information for a sensing indication 614 that includes sensing information associated with the at least one target object based on the processed (e.g., at 612) at least one target object. Fig. 6).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Duan to include the features as taught by Dai above in order to improve detection and locking of target objects for sensing. (Dai, ¶ [0027]).
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Duan-Dai in view of Nam et.al. (US Patent Application Publication, 20250035735, hereinafter, “Nam”).
Regarding claim 3, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Duan-Dai does not explicitly teach:
wherein the assistance data is received periodically based on a length of a sensing frame used to obtain the plurality of sensing measurements.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Nam teaches:
wherein the assistance data is received periodically based on a length of a sensing frame used to obtain the plurality of sensing measurements (Nam: [0136] To assist positioning operations, a location server (e.g., location server 230, LMF 270, SLP 272) may provide assistance data to the UE. For example, the assistance data may include identifiers of the base stations (or the cells/TRPs of the base stations) from which to measure reference signals, the reference signal configuration parameters (e.g., the number of consecutive slots including PRS, periodicity of the consecutive slots including PRS, muting sequence, frequency hopping sequence, reference signal identifier, reference signal bandwidth, etc.), and/or other parameters applicable to the particular positioning method. Alternatively, the assistance data may originate directly from the base stations themselves (e.g., in periodically broadcasted overhead messages, etc.) …).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Duan-Dai to include the features as taught by Nam above in order to reduce latency and overhead. (Nam, ¶ [0230]).
Claims 8 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Duan-Dai in view of Park et.al. (US Patent Application Publication, 20220038864, hereinafter, “Park”).
Regarding claim 8, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 6 as outlined above.
Duan-Dai does not explicitly teach:
wherein the metric quantifies a difference between a measured value of the sensing measurement and an expected value of the sensing measurement.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Park teaches:
wherein the metric quantifies a difference between a measured value of the sensing measurement and an expected value of the sensing measurement (Park: [0167] Referring to FIG. 10A, an example use case 1000 for target group detection with bistatic radio frequency sensing is shown. In contrast to the examples in FIGS. 8A-8C, where each target may be identified with a single reference signal, and the use case in FIG. 9A, where each target may be identified by different receive beams, the use case 1000 highlights scenarios when multiple targets are detected with a single reference signal and a single receive beam. For example, a base station 1002 is an example of the base station 304 and is configured to transmit a plurality of beamformed reference signals at varying angles, elevations and/or beam widths. A first reference signal 1004 may be configured as a SSRS and/or a STRS and is received by a UE 1010 via multiple paths. For example, the first reference signal 1004 may be reflected from a first target 1020a and from a second target 1020b and received by a first receive beam 1012. The first reference signal 1004 may also be received via a LOS path by a second receive beam 1014. Since the first and second targets 1020a-b are associated with the same reference signal and the same receive beam, the combination of first reference signal 1004 and the first receive beam 1012 is insufficient to uniquely identify each of the targets 1020a-b. In this use case, the UE 1010 may be configured to assign an target group identification to identify the first and second targets 1020a-b as a target group. The RSRP for the first reference signal 1004 may exceed a threshold when received on the first receive beam 1012. In an example, the UE 1010 may be configured to resolve a target group into separate targets based on the clusters and channel taps. The UE 1010 may assign a target group identification for the first target 1020a and the second target 1020b (e.g., target group 1). The target group identifications and the corresponding reference signal identification information may be reported to the base station 1002.. Fig. 10A).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Duan-Dai to include the features as taught by Park above in order to improve target tracking efficiency. (Park, ¶ [0184]).
Regarding claim 15, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Dai further teaches:
receive, via the one or more transceivers, from the sensing entity, updated assistance data for sensing the set of target objects, wherein the updated assistance data includes updated DA information for each target object of the set of target objects, wherein the updated DA information is based at least in part on the one or more sensing measurements assigned to each target object of the subset of target objects (Dai: [0086] … The request 606 may be for environmental information 608, and may be provided/transmitted via at least one of first RRC signaling (e.g., UE assistance information, an LTE positioning protocol (LPP) message, etc.) … [0089] ... The environmental information 608 may indicate at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects in the sensing environment. In aspects, the at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects may include at least one of a location, a shape, a material, material information, or an expected signaling path power of at least one signaling path of one or more objects [i.e., data association information] of the set of objects... Fig. 6); and
assign one or more second sensing measurements of the second plurality of sensing measurements to each target object in the subset of target objects (Dai: [0089] The UE 602 may process (at 612) data for at least one target object in the set of objects … based on the environmental information 608. The environmental information 608 may indicate at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects in the sensing environment. In aspects, the at least one characteristic associated with the set of objects may include at least one of a location, a shape, a material, material information, or an expected signaling path power of at least one signaling path of one or more objects of the set of objects. When the UE 602 processes (at 612) the at least one target object based on the sensing operation, the UE 602 may observe, calculate, and/or generate data and/or information for a sensing indication 614 that includes sensing information associated with the at least one target object based on the processed (e.g., at 612) at least one target object. Fig. 6).
Duan-Dai does not explicitly teach:
obtain a second plurality of sensing measurements of one or more second sensing reference signals transmitted by the transmitter sensing node and reflected from at least the subset of target objects.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Park teaches:
obtain a second plurality of sensing measurements of one or more second sensing reference signals transmitted by the transmitter sensing node and reflected from at least the subset of target objects (Park: [0167] ... A first reference signal 1004 may be configured as a SSRS and/or a STRS and is received by a UE 1010 via multiple paths. For example, the first reference signal 1004 may be reflected from a first target 1020a and from a second target 1020b and received by a first receive beam 1012. The first reference signal 1004 may also be received via a LOS path by a second receive beam 1014. Since the first and second targets 1020a-b are associated with the same reference signal and the same receive beam, the combination of first reference signal 1004 and the first receive beam 1012 is insufficient to uniquely identify each of the targets 1020a-b. In this use case, the UE 1010 may be configured to assign an target group identification to identify the first and second targets 1020a-b as a target group. The RSRP for the first reference signal 1004 may exceed a threshold when received on the first receive beam 1012. In an example, the UE 1010 may be configured to resolve a target group into separate targets based on the clusters and channel taps. The UE 1010 may assign a target group identification for the first target 1020a and the second target 1020b (e.g., target group 1). The target group identifications and the corresponding reference signal identification information may be reported to the base station 1002.. Fig. 10A).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Duan-Dai to include the features as taught by Park above in order to improve target tracking efficiency. (Park, ¶ [0184]).
Claims 10-11 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Duan-Dai in view of Dai ‘758 et.al. (US Patent Application Publication, 20230319758, hereinafter, “Dai ‘758”).
Regarding claim 10, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Duan-Dai does not explicitly teach:
a compatibility criterion indicating a permissible difference between an observed value of a sensing measurement and an expected value of the sensing measurement.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Dai ‘758 teaches:
a compatibility criterion indicating a permissible difference between an observed value of a sensing measurement and an expected value of the sensing measurement (Dai ‘758: [0137] At 1010, the UE receives, from a network entity (e.g., a location server, a sensing server, a serving base station), volume-related information associated with at least one target object, the volume-related information including an estimated position of the at least one target object, an estimated size of the at least one target object, an estimated volume of the at least one target object, an estimated orientation of the at least one target object, an estimated shape of the at least one target object, or any combination thereof [i.e., compatibility criteria]. In an aspect, operation 1010 may be performed by the one or more WWAN transceivers 310, the one or more short-range wireless transceivers 320, the one or more processors 332, memory 340, and/or sensing component 342, any or all of which may be considered means for performing this operation. [0138] At 1020, the UE performs a sensing procedure with the network entity to determine one or more characteristics of the at least one target object based on at least the volume-related information.).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Duan-Dai to include the features as taught by Dai ‘758 above in order to improve sensing performance. (Dai ‘758, ¶ [0142]).
Regarding claim 11, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Duan-Dai does not explicitly teach:
report, via the one or more transceivers, to the sensing entity, sensing measurements of the plurality of sensing measurements not assigned to any of the subset of target objects.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Dai ‘758 teaches:
report, via the one or more transceivers, to the sensing entity, sensing measurements of the plurality of sensing measurements not assigned to any of the subset of target objects (Dai ‘758: [0114] ... At stage 525, the sensing server 570 sends assistance data to the UE 504 indicating the configuration of the reference signals (RS) that will be transmitted for sensing. At stage 530, the serving and/or neighboring cells identified at stage 510 transmit the reference signals for sensing that the UE 504 was configured to measure at stage 525. At stage 535, the sensing server 570 sends a request for sensing information to the UE 504. The UE 504 then measures the transmitted reference signals and, at stage 540, sends the measurements, or any sensing results determined from the measurements, to the sensing server 570. Note that the order of stages 530 and 535 may be reversed or occur substantially simultaneously..).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Duan-Dai to include the features as taught by Dai ‘758 above in order to improve sensing performance. (Dai ‘758, ¶ [0142]).
Regarding claim 14, Duan-Dai discloses on the features with respect to claim 1 as outlined above.
Duan-Dai does not explicitly teach:
report, via the one or more transceivers, to the sensing entity, for each sensing measurement of the one or more sensing measurements assigned to each target object of the subset of target objects, a score indicating a probability that the sensing measurement is associated with the target object.
However, in the same field of endeavor, Dai ‘758 teaches:
report, via the one or more transceivers, to the sensing entity, for each sensing measurement of the one or more sensing measurements assigned to each target object of the subset of target objects, a score indicating a probability that the sensing measurement is associated with the target object (Dai ‘758: [0114] ... At stage 535, the sensing server 570 sends a request for sensing information to the UE 504. The UE 504 then measures the transmitted reference signals and, at stage 540, sends the measurements, or any sensing results determined from the measurements, to the sensing server 570. Note that the order of stages 530 and 535 may be reversed or occur substantially simultaneously..).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the invention of Duan-Dai to include the features as taught by Dai ‘758 above in order to improve sensing performance. (Dai ‘758, ¶ [0142]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LIEM H NGUYEN whose telephone number is (408) 918-7636. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday, 8:30AM-5:00PM PT.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Noel Beharry can be reached on (571) 270-5630. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/LIEM H. NGUYEN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2416
Prosecution Insights