DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Amendment
The amendment filed June 8, 2026 has been accepted and entered. Accordingly, claims 1, 2, 8-10 and 16-18 are amended. Claims 4, 6, 12, 14 and 20 are cancelled. Claims 21-23 are added.
Claims 1-3, 5, 7-11, 13, 15-19 and 21-23 are pending in this application.
In view of the amendment, the rejections to claims 1-8 under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) have been withdrawn.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed June 8, 2026, with respect to the rejections of claims 1-3, 5, 9-11, 13 and 17-19 under 35 USC § 102 have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejections have been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground of rejection is made in view of another reference. The newly amended claim limitations are addressed, as below.
Applicant argues that “First, Apple discloses that: when HP CSI is present, UCI part 1 includes: HP HARQ-ACK, HP SR, and HP CSI part 1; UCI part 2 includes: HP CSI part 2, LP-HARQ-ACK, and LP-SR. When LP CSI is present, UCI part 1 includes: HP HARQ-ACK, HP SR, and LP CSI part 1; UCI part 2 includes: LP-HARQ-ACK, (LP-SR), and LP CSI part 2. Therefore, when HP CSI is present, UCI part 2 includes HP CSI part 2, which has the same high priority as the UCI in UCI part 1, that is, UCI part 2 includes high-priority UCI; when LP CSI is present, UCI part 1 includes LP CSI part 1, which has the same low priority as the UCI in UCI part 2, that is, UCI part 1 includes low-priority UCI” (Response filed June 8, 2026, Page 16) and “Therefore, the UCI part 1 and the UCI part 2 in Apple are different from the first UCI and the second UCI in amended claim 1” (Response filed June 8, 2026, Page 16).
Applicant incorrectly mixes Section 7 of Apple (Apple [Page 25]) into Section 5 of Apple (Apple [Para. 22]) in citation of Apple to support the arguments. Applicant cites from Apple under section subsection 5.1.1 such as the following:
“Here we consider CSI reporting is for either HP or LP. The order of UCI in a UCI part defines the order by which UCIs are omitted.
For the case where HP CSI is present:
On UCI part 1:HP HARO-ACK (including potentially more than one HARO codebook), HP SR, HP CSI- Part I
On UCI part 2:HP CSI-part II LP-HARO-ACK, (LP-SR)
Hence on UCI Part 2, (LP-SR) if supported by specification and present, is omitted first, LP-HARQ-ACK (including potentially more than one HARQ codebook) is omitted second (if more than one HARQ codebook is present, then the last placed HARQ codebook is omitted/compacted first for example), then HP CSI-part II can be omitted in a similar way as CSI part II in Rel-16.
For the case LP CSI is present:
On UCI part 1:HP HARQ-ACK (including potentially more than one HARQ codebook), HP SR, LP CSI- Part I
On UCI part 2:LP-HARO-ACK, (LP-SR), LP CSI-part II” (Response filed June 8, 2026, Pages 14-15).
However, the description above is from Section 7 of Apple to introduce HP and LP CSI. Section 5 is on different subject. Section 5 proposes considering two code rates for PRB number calculation when interlace is configured (Apple [Page 24], Proposal 5-1: considering coding rates of UCI parts in the PRB number adjustment/interlace number adjustment).
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
and
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
in the first target condition below from Section 5 are independent of the HP CSI and LP CSI introduced in section 7, and not specified with partition of CSI related to the PUCCH priority
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part2
total
O
UCI-part2
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI
-part1
total
O
UCI-part1
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
Interlace,0
PUCCH
⋅
N
sc,ctrl
RB
⋅
N
symb-UCI
PUCCH
,
Apple also teaches “Proposal 9-2: Consider for PUCCH format 2 to support multiplexing of HP UCI(s) and LP UCI(s): generating two encoded sequences for HP-ACK (with r1) and LP-ACK (with r2) separately” (Apple [Page 32-33]). Based on the index convention in Apple,
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
represents high priority UCI and
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
low priority UCI.
Yin teaches “A high priority UCI may be a high priority HARQ-ACK or a high priority SR” (Yin [Para. 0047]) and “A low priority UCI may be a low-priority HARQ-ACK, a low priority SR, or a low priority CSI report” (Yin [Para. 0048]). According to Yin,
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
includes a high priority HARQ-ACK or a high priority SR and
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
includes a low-priority HARQ-ACK, a low priority SR, or a low priority CSI report.
Therefore, combined with Yin, the first target condition that Apple teaches in Section 5 is consistent with the target condition of claim 1,
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part2
total
O
UCI-part2
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI
-part1
total
O
UCI-part1
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
Interlace,0
PUCCH
⋅
N
sc,ctrl
RB
⋅
N
symb-UCI
PUCCH
,
Applicant argues that “the formula of the first target condition
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI
-part1
total
O
UCI-part1
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
involves a ceiling function” (Response filed June 8, 2026, Page 16) and “the formula (10) employs floating-point arithmetic and does not perform a ceiling operation. Therefore, the formula of the first target condition in Apple is different from the formula (10) in the subject matter of amended claim 1” (Response filed June 8, 2026, Page 16).
Apple teaches that “We propose to consider different coding rates for UCI Part I and UCI Part II in Rel-17 for PRB number adjustment. Then for Rel-17 design, the condition to trigger PRB number adjustment can be given by
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
(
Q
m
⋅
r
2
)
+
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
(Forumla without ceiling function applied)
The condition for PRB number adjustment, can be tightened a little bit by taking the ceiled value of the second item:
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
(
r
2
)
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
r
1
⌉
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
Q
m
(Forumla with ceiling function applied)” (Apple [Page 23, Subsection 5.1]). According to Apple, the second term in PRB number calculation can be in floating point and ceiling function is optionally applied to the second term to take an integer value. It is obvious to the person skilled in the art that, in the corresponding PBR number calcalation when interlaces are configured, the second term can be in floating point, and by the same reason, the ceiling function can be optionally to the second term to take an integer value. Therefore, Apply also teaches in a manner of obviousness the first target condition where the second term is in floating point such as
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-part1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
≤
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
Applicant argues that “Furthermore, in Apple, UCI part 1 includes low-priority UCI, and UCI part 2 includes high-priority UCI. Consequently, in the formula of the first target condition, UCI part 1 includes low-priority UCI, and UCI part 2 includes high-priority UCI. In contrast, in Formula (10) of amended Claim 1, the second UCI has a high priority, and the first UCI has a low priority.” (Response filed June 8, 2026, Page 17).
The naming style and the order of the two terms in an addition operation in the first target condition in Apple does not render the semantics of the first target condition in Apple different from the target condition of claims 1, 9 and 17.
Therefore, in combination, Apple and Yin teach the target condition of claims 1, 9 and 17.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1-3, 5, 9-11, 13, 17-19 and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yin et al. (US20230284225A1, hereinafter Yin) in view Apple (3GPP TSG RAN WG1 #106-eR1-2107735, hereinafter Apple).
For claim 1, Yin teaches a resource determining method ([Para. 0007], a method by a user equipment (UE), comprising: determining a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource), comprising: first uplink control information (UCI) and second UCI being multiplexed on a same physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource ([Para. 0096], When multiplexing of HARQ-ACK with different priorities is supported, two different maximum code rates will be applied for the HARQ-ACK with or without SR with different priorities. To determine the PUCCH resource for the HARQ-ACK multiplexing, the payload calculation should be specified based on the payload size of the high priority HARQ-ACK and the payload size of the low priority HARQ-ACK. The low priority UCI is configured with a higher maximum code rate than that of high priority UCI), determining a number of target physical resource blocks (PRBs) on the PUCCH resource for transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI ([Para. 0007], a user equipment (UE) determining a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource for multiplexing hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) with different priorities on PUCCH; multiplexing the HARQ-ACK with different priorities based on the determined PUCCH resource; and transmitting the multiplexed HARQ-ACK on the PUCCH. [Para. 0099], the UE may determine a minimum number of PRBs
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
for the UCI with the given priority (e.g.,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
and
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
) for UCI with priority index 1 and priority index 0 respectively), based on a number of bits of the first UCI, a number of bits of the second UCI, a code rate of the first UCI, and a code rate of the second UCI ([Para. 0099], the UE may determine a minimum number of PRBs
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
for the UCI with the given priority (e.g.,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
and
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
) for UCI with priority index 1 and priority index 0 respectively. [Para. 0101], For a PUCCH with OACK _1 with high priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_1 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_1 CRC bits using PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image1.png
200
400
media_image1.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image2.png
200
400
media_image2.png
Greyscale
[Para. 0102], Similarly, for the low priority HARQ-ACK [Para. 0103], For a PUCCH to multiplex with OACK _0 low priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_0 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_0 CRC bits using PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image3.png
200
400
media_image3.png
Greyscale
[Para. 0087], Qm is the modulation scheme. [Para. 0097], where r1 is the maximum code rate determined by the maxCodeRate parameter for high priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 1), and r0 is the maximum code rate determined by the above-mentioned methods for low priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 0). [Para. 0105], if
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
+
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
, the PUCCH resource can carry all multiplexed UCI while satisfying the desired maximum code rate of UCI with different priorities. The UE may transmit the PUCCH over the
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
+
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
PRBs [Examiner’s Note: The number of PRBs for transmission of HARQ ACKs of high and low priorities is determined based on OACK _1, OACK _0, r1 and r0]), wherein a priority index of the first UCI is different from a priority index of the second UCI ([Para. 0097], where r1 is the maximum code rate determined by the maxCodeRate parameter for high priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 1), and r0 is the maximum code rate determined by the above-mentioned methods for low priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 0)); wherein the first UCI has a low priority ([Para. 0048], A low priority UCI may be a low-priority HARQ-ACK, a low priority SR, or a low priority CSI report), and the second UCI has a high priority ([Para. 0047], A high priority UCI may be a high priority HARQ-ACK or a high priority SR);
Although teaching target condition for transmitting first and second UCI on the first and second interlaces, Yin does not explicitly disclose wherein the method further comprises: in response to the first interlace and the second interlace being configured on the PUCCH resource and a number of PRBs comprised in the first interlace not meeting a target condition, transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI on the first interlace and the second interlace; wherein the target condition comprises: the number of PRBs
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
included in the first interlace meets formula (10):
PNG
media_image4.png
200
400
media_image4.png
Greyscale
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
represents the number of PRBs included in the first interlace; the
O
U
C
I
L
P
represents the number of bits of the first UCI; the
O
C
R
C
L
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the first UCI; the
O
U
C
I
H
P
represents the number of bits of the second UCI; the
O
C
R
C
H
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the second UCI; the
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
represents a number of equivalent subcarriers occupied by control information in each RB; the
N
s
y
m
b
,
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
represents a number of symbols occupied by the target PUCCH format or a number of symbols occupied by UCI in the target PUCCH format; the Qm represents a modulation and coding order; the rLP represents the code rate of the first UCI; the
O
U
C
I
H
P
represents the number of bits of the second UCI; the
O
C
R
C
H
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the second UCI; and the rHP represents the code rate of the second UCI.
Apple more specifically teaches wherein the method further comprises: in response to the first interlace and the second interlace being configured on the PUCCH resource and a number of PRBs comprised in the first interlace not meeting a target condition, transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI on the first interlace and the second interlace ([Page 24, Sect. 5.2 Interlace number adjustment], If
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-part1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
the UE transmits the HARQ-ACK, SR, and CSI reports bits in a PUCCH over the first interlace,
else if the UE is provided a second interlace of
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
1
P
U
C
C
H
PRBs by interlace1and if
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part2
total
O
UCI-part2
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part1
total
O
UCI-part1
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
Interlace,0
PUCCH
+
M
Interlace,1
PUCCH
⋅
N
sc,ctrl
RB
⋅
N
symb-UCI
PUCCH
,
); wherein the target condition comprises: the number of PRBs
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
included in the first interlace meets formula (10):
PNG
media_image4.png
200
400
media_image4.png
Greyscale
([Page 24, Sect. 5.2 Interlace number adjustment], If
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-part1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
the UE transmits the HARQ-ACK, SR, and CSI reports bits in a PUCCH over the first interlace, else if the UE is provided a second interlace of
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
1
P
U
C
C
H
PRBs by interlace1and if
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part2
total
O
UCI-part2
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part1
total
O
UCI-part1
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
Interlace,0
PUCCH
+
M
Interlace,1
PUCCH
⋅
N
sc,ctrl
RB
⋅
N
symb-UCI
PUCCH
,
[Page 23, Sect. 5.1 PRB number adjustment], We propose to consider different coding rates for UCI Part I and UCI Part II in Rel-17 for PRB number adjustment. Then for Rel-17 design, the condition to trigger PRB number adjustment can be given by
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
(
Q
m
⋅
r
2
)
+
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
(Forumla without ceiling function applied)
[Examiner’s Note: Ceiling function is not applied in PRB number calculation]. The condition for PRB number adjustment, can be tightened a little bit by taking the ceiled value of the second item:
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
(
r
2
)
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
r
1
⌉
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
Q
m
(Forumla with ceiling function applied)
[Examiner’s Note: The second term in PRB number calculation can be in floating point and ceiling function is optionally applied to the second term to take an integer value. It is obvious that, in the corresponding PBR number calcalation when interlaces are configured, the second term can be in floating point, and by the same reason, the ceiling function can be optionally to the second term to take an integer value. Therefore, Apply also teaches in a manner of obviousness the target condition where the second term is in floating point]),
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
represents the number of PRBs included in the first interlace (
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
in the formular of Apple) the
O
U
C
I
L
P
represents the number of bits of the first UCI (
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
in the formula of Apple); the
O
C
R
C
L
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the first UCI (
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
in the formula of Apple); the
O
U
C
I
H
P
represents the number of bits of the second UCI (
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
in the formula of Apple); the
O
C
R
C
H
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the second UCI (
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
in the formula of Apple); the
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
represents a number of equivalent subcarriers occupied by control information in each RB (
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
in the formulas of Apple); the
N
s
y
m
b
,
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
represents a number of symbols occupied by the target PUCCH format or a number of symbols occupied by UCI in the target PUCCH format (
N
s
y
m
b
,
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
in the formulas of Apple); the Qm represents a modulation and coding order (Qm in the formulas of Apple); the rLP represents the code rate of the first UCI (r1 in the formulas in the reference); and the rHP represents the code rate of the second UCI (r2 in the formulas in the reference).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method of Yin, so that the UE transmits the PUCCH on the first interlace or both first and second interlaces depending on the available resources, as taught by Apple. The modification would have provided multiplexing a high-priority (HP) HARQ-ACK and a low-priority (LP) HARQ-ACK into a PUCCH in R17 (Apple [Page 2, Sect. 1 Introduction]).
For claim 2, Yin and Apple teach the resource determining method according to claim 1. The references further teach wherein the determining a number of target PRBs on the PUCCH resource for transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI, based on a number of bits of the first UCI, a number of bits of the second UCI, a code rate of the first UCI, and a code rate of the second UCI comprises: in a case that the first UCI and the second UCI are transmitted using a target PUCCH format (Yin [Para. 0096], When multiplexing of HARQ-ACK with different priorities is supported, two different maximum code rates will be applied for the HARQ-ACK with or without SR with different priorities. To determine the PUCCH resource for the HARQ-ACK multiplexing, the payload calculation should be specified based on the payload size of the high priority HARQ-ACK and the payload size of the low priority HARQ-ACK. The low priority UCI is configured with a higher maximum code rate than that of high priority UCI. Yin [Para. 0101], For a PUCCH using PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource. Yin [Para. 0007], multiplexing the HARQ-ACK with different priorities based on the determined PUCCH resource; and transmitting the multiplexed HARQ-ACK on the PUCCH), calculating the number of target PRBs
M
R
B
m
i
n
P
U
C
C
H
on the PUCCH resource for transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI using formulas (5) and (6)
PNG
media_image5.png
200
400
media_image5.png
Greyscale
(Yin [Para. 0099], the UE may determine a minimum number of PRBs
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
for the UCI with the given priority (e.g.,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
and
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
) for UCI with priority index 1 and priority index 0 respectively. Yin [Para. 0101], For a PUCCH with OACK _1 with high priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_1 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_1 CRC bits using PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image1.png
200
400
media_image1.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image2.png
200
400
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Yin [Para. 0102], Similarly, for the low priority HARQ-ACK. Yin [Para. 0103], For a PUCCH to multiplex with OACK _0 low priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_0 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_0 CRC bits using PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image3.png
200
400
media_image3.png
Greyscale
Yin [Para. 0105], if
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
+
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
, the PUCCH resource can carry all multiplexed UCI while satisfying the desired maximum code rate of UCI with different priorities. The UE may transmit the PUCCH over the
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
+
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
PRBs [Examiner’s Note: The exact expressions of formulas (5) and (6) are obtained by algebra operations on formulas corresponding to high priority and low priority UCI in Yin in the case without SR]. Yin [Para. 0085],
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
is a number of subcarriers per resource block. Yin [Para. 0086],
N
s
y
m
b
,
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
is a number of PUCCH symbols. Yin [Para. 0087], Qm is the modulation scheme. Yin [Para. 0097], where r1 is the maximum code rate determined by the maxCodeRate parameter for high priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 1), and r0 is the maximum code rate determined by the above-mentioned methods for low priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 0)).
For claim 3, Yin and Apple teach the resource determining method according to claim 2. The references further teach wherein in a case that the target PUCCH format is PUCCH format 3 (Yin [Para. 0101], For a PUCCH with OACK _1 with high priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_1 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_1 CRC bits using PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image1.png
200
400
media_image1.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image2.png
200
400
media_image2.png
Greyscale
For PUCCH format 3, if
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
is not equal to 2α2 · 3α3 ·5α5 according to TS 38.21,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
is increased to the nearest allowed value of nrofPRBs for PUCCH-format3.
Yin [Para. 0102], Similarly, for the low priority HARQ-ACK. Yin [Para. 0103], For a PUCCH to multiplex with OACK _0 low priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_0 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_0 CRC bits using PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image3.png
200
400
media_image3.png
Greyscale
For PUCCH format 3, if
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
is not equal to 2α2 · 3α3 ·5α5 according to TS 38.21,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
is increased to the nearest allowed value of nrofPRBs for PUCCH-format3), the number of target PRBs on the PUCCH resource for transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI is an integer multiple of 2, 3, or 5 (Yin [Para. 0101], For PUCCH format 3, if
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
is not equal to 2α2 · 3α3 ·5α5 according to TS 38.21,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
is increased to the nearest allowed value of nrofPRBs for PUCCH-format3. Yin [Para. 0103], For PUCCH format 3, if
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
is not equal to 2α2 · 3α3 ·5α5 according to TS 38.21,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
is increased to the nearest allowed value of nrofPRBs for PUCCH-format3 [Examiner’s note:
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
and
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
referred to above are an integer multiple of 2, 3 and 5]).
For claim 5, Yin and Apple teach the resource determining method according to claim 2. The references further teach wherein the target PUCCH format comprises PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 (Yin [Para. 0101], For a PUCCH with OACK _1 with high priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_1 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_1 CRC bits using PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image1.png
200
400
media_image1.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image2.png
200
400
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Yin [Para. 0102], Similarly, for the low priority HARQ-ACK. Yin [Para. 0103], For a PUCCH to multiplex with OACK _0 low priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_0 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_0 CRC bits using PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image3.png
200
400
media_image3.png
Greyscale
).
For claim 9, Yin teaches a terminal ([Para. 180] and [FIG. 4], UE 402), comprising a processor (The UE 402 includes a processor 403), a memory ([Para. 180], Memory 405 provides instructions), and a program or instructions stored in the memory and executable on the processor ([Para. 180], Instructions 407 b and/or data 409 b loaded into the processor 403 may also include instructions 407 a and/or data 409 a from memory 405 that were loaded for execution or processing by the processor 403), wherein the program or the instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the terminal to perform ([Para. 180], Instructions 407 b and/or data 409 b loaded into the processor 403 may also include instructions 407 a and/or data 409 a from memory 405 that were loaded for execution or processing by the processor 403. The instructions 407 b may be executed by the processor 403 to implement the methods described above): first uplink control information (UCI) and second UCI being multiplexed on a same physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource ([Para. 0096], When multiplexing of HARQ-ACK with different priorities is supported, two different maximum code rates will be applied for the HARQ-ACK with or without SR with different priorities. To determine the PUCCH resource for the HARQ-ACK multiplexing, the payload calculation should be specified based on the payload size of the high priority HARQ-ACK and the payload size of the low priority HARQ-ACK. The low priority UCI is configured with a higher maximum code rate than that of high priority UCI), determining a number of target physical resource blocks (PRBs) on the PUCCH resource for transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI ([Para. 0007], a user equipment (UE) determining a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource for multiplexing hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) with different priorities on PUCCH; multiplexing the HARQ-ACK with different priorities based on the determined PUCCH resource; and transmitting the multiplexed HARQ-ACK on the PUCCH. [Para. 0099], the UE may determine a minimum number of PRBs
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
for the UCI with the given priority (e.g.,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
and
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
) for UCI with priority index 1 and priority index 0 respectively), based on a number of bits of the first UCI, a number of bits of the second UCI, a code rate of the first UCI, and a code rate of the second UCI ([Para. 0099], the UE may determine a minimum number of PRBs
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
for the UCI with the given priority (e.g.,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
and
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
) for UCI with priority index 1 and priority index 0 respectively. [Para. 0101], For a PUCCH with OACK _1 with high priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_1 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_1 CRC bits using PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image1.png
200
400
media_image1.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image2.png
200
400
media_image2.png
Greyscale
[Para. 0102], Similarly, for the low priority HARQ-ACK [Para. 0103], For a PUCCH to multiplex with OACK _0 low priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_0 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_0 CRC bits using PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image3.png
200
400
media_image3.png
Greyscale
[Para. 0087], Qm is the modulation scheme. [Para. 0097], where r1 is the maximum code rate determined by the maxCodeRate parameter for high priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 1), and r0 is the maximum code rate determined by the above-mentioned methods for low priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 0). [Para. 0105], if
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
+
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
, the PUCCH resource can carry all multiplexed UCI while satisfying the desired maximum code rate of UCI with different priorities. The UE may transmit the PUCCH over the
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
+
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
PRBs [Examiner’s Note: The number of PRBs for transmission of HARQ ACKs of high and low priorities is determined based on OACK _1, OACK _0, r1 and r0]), wherein a priority index of the first UCI is different from a priority index of the second UCI ([Para. 0097], where r1 is the maximum code rate determined by the maxCodeRate parameter for high priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 1), and r0 is the maximum code rate determined by the above-mentioned methods for low priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 0)); wherein the first UCI has a low priority ([Para. 0048], A low priority UCI may be a low-priority HARQ-ACK, a low priority SR, or a low priority CSI report), and the second UCI has a high priority ([Para. 0047], A high priority UCI may be a high priority HARQ-ACK or a high priority SR);
Although teaching target condition for transmitting first and second UCI on the first and second interlaces, Yin does not explicitly disclose wherein the program or the instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the terminal to further perform: in response to the first interlace and the second interlace being configured on the PUCCH resource and a number of PRBs comprised in the first interlace not meeting a target condition, transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI on the first interlace and the second interlace; wherein the target condition comprises: the number of PRBs
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
included in the first interlace meets formula (10):
PNG
media_image4.png
200
400
media_image4.png
Greyscale
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
represents the number of PRBs included in the first interlace; the
O
U
C
I
L
P
represents the number of bits of the first UCI; the
O
C
R
C
L
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the first UCI; the
O
U
C
I
H
P
represents the number of bits of the second UCI; the
O
C
R
C
H
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the second UCI; the
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
represents a number of equivalent subcarriers occupied by control information in each RB; the
N
s
y
m
b
,
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
represents a number of symbols occupied by the target PUCCH format or a number of symbols occupied by UCI in the target PUCCH format; the Qm represents a modulation and coding order; the rLP represents the code rate of the first UCI; the
O
U
C
I
H
P
represents the number of bits of the second UCI; the
O
C
R
C
H
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the second UCI; and the rHP represents the code rate of the second UCI.
Apple more specifically teaches wherein the the program or the instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the terminal to further perform: in response to the first interlace and the second interlace being configured on the PUCCH resource and a number of PRBs comprised in the first interlace not meeting a target condition, transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI on the first interlace and the second interlace ([Page 24, Sect. 5.2 Interlace number adjustment], If
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-part1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
the UE transmits the HARQ-ACK, SR, and CSI reports bits in a PUCCH over the first interlace,
else if the UE is provided a second interlace of
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
1
P
U
C
C
H
PRBs by interlace1and if
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part2
total
O
UCI-part2
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part1
total
O
UCI-part1
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
Interlace,0
PUCCH
+
M
Interlace,1
PUCCH
⋅
N
sc,ctrl
RB
⋅
N
symb-UCI
PUCCH
,
); wherein the target condition comprises: the number of PRBs
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
included in the first interlace meets formula (10):
PNG
media_image4.png
200
400
media_image4.png
Greyscale
([Page 24, Sect. 5.2 Interlace number adjustment], If
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-part1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
the UE transmits the HARQ-ACK, SR, and CSI reports bits in a PUCCH over the first interlace, else if the UE is provided a second interlace of
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
1
P
U
C
C
H
PRBs by interlace1and if
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part2
total
O
UCI-part2
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part1
total
O
UCI-part1
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
Interlace,0
PUCCH
+
M
Interlace,1
PUCCH
⋅
N
sc,ctrl
RB
⋅
N
symb-UCI
PUCCH
,
[Page 23, Sect. 5.1 PRB number adjustment], We propose to consider different coding rates for UCI Part I and UCI Part II in Rel-17 for PRB number adjustment. Then for Rel-17 design, the condition to trigger PRB number adjustment can be given by
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
(
Q
m
⋅
r
2
)
+
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
(Forumla without ceiling function applied)
[Examiner’s Note: Ceiling function is not applied in PRB number calculation]. The condition for PRB number adjustment, can be tightened a little bit by taking the ceiled value of the second item:
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
(
r
2
)
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
r
1
⌉
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
Q
m
(Forumla with ceiling function applied)
[Examiner’s Note: The second term in PRB number calculation can be in floating point and ceiling function is optionally applied to the second term to take an integer value. It is obvious that, in the corresponding PBR number calcalation when interlaces are configured, the second term can be in floating point, and by the same reason, the ceiling function can be optionally to the second term to take an integer value. Therefore, Apply also teaches in a manner of obviousness the target condition where the second term is in floating point]),
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
represents the number of PRBs included in the first interlace (
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
in the formular of Apple) the
O
U
C
I
L
P
represents the number of bits of the first UCI (
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
in the formula of Apple); the
O
C
R
C
L
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the first UCI (
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
in the formula of Apple); the
O
U
C
I
H
P
represents the number of bits of the second UCI (
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
in the formula of Apple); the
O
C
R
C
H
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the second UCI (
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
in the formula of Apple); the
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
represents a number of equivalent subcarriers occupied by control information in each RB (
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
in the formulas of Apple); the
N
s
y
m
b
,
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
represents a number of symbols occupied by the target PUCCH format or a number of symbols occupied by UCI in the target PUCCH format (
N
s
y
m
b
,
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
in the formulas of Apple); the Qm represents a modulation and coding order (Qm in the formulas of Apple); the rLP represents the code rate of the first UCI (r1 in the formulas in the reference); and the rHP represents the code rate of the second UCI (r2 in the formulas in the reference).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus of Yin, so that the UE transmits the PUCCH on the first interlace or both first and second interlaces depending on the available resources, as taught by Apple. The modification would have provided multiplexing a high-priority (HP) HARQ-ACK and a low-priority (LP) HARQ-ACK into a PUCCH in R17 (Apple [Page 2, Sect. 1 Introduction]).
Claims 10-11 are apparatus claims and they do not teach or further define over the limitations recited in claims 2-3. Therefore, claims 10-11 are also rejected for similar reasons set forth in claims 2-3.
Claim 13 is apparatus claim and it does not teach or further define over the limitations recited in claim 5. Therefore, claim 13 is also rejected for similar reasons set forth in claim 5.
For claim 17, Yin teaches a non-transitory readable storage medium ([Para. 180], Memory 405, which may include read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), a combination of the two or any type of device that may store information, provides instruction), wherein the non-transitory readable storage medium stores a program or instructions ([Para. 180], Memory 405 provides instructions), and the program or instructions, when executed by a processor of a terminal, cause the terminal to perform ([Para. 180], Instructions 407 b and/or data 409 b loaded into the processor 403 may also include instructions 407 a and/or data 409 a from memory 405 that were loaded for execution or processing by the processor 403. The instructions 407 b may be executed by the processor 403 to implement the methods described above): first uplink control information (UCI) and second UCI being multiplexed on a same physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource ([Para. 0096], When multiplexing of HARQ-ACK with different priorities is supported, two different maximum code rates will be applied for the HARQ-ACK with or without SR with different priorities. To determine the PUCCH resource for the HARQ-ACK multiplexing, the payload calculation should be specified based on the payload size of the high priority HARQ-ACK and the payload size of the low priority HARQ-ACK. The low priority UCI is configured with a higher maximum code rate than that of high priority UCI), determining a number of target physical resource blocks (PRBs) on the PUCCH resource for transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI ([Para. 0007], a user equipment (UE) determining a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource for multiplexing hybrid automatic repeat request-acknowledgement (HARQ-ACK) with different priorities on PUCCH; multiplexing the HARQ-ACK with different priorities based on the determined PUCCH resource; and transmitting the multiplexed HARQ-ACK on the PUCCH. [Para. 0099], the UE may determine a minimum number of PRBs
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
for the UCI with the given priority (e.g.,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
and
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
) for UCI with priority index 1 and priority index 0 respectively), based on a number of bits of the first UCI, a number of bits of the second UCI, a code rate of the first UCI, and a code rate of the second UCI ([Para. 0099], the UE may determine a minimum number of PRBs
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
for the UCI with the given priority (e.g.,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
and
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
) for UCI with priority index 1 and priority index 0 respectively. [Para. 0101], For a PUCCH with OACK _1 with high priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_1 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_1 CRC bits using PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image1.png
200
400
media_image1.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image2.png
200
400
media_image2.png
Greyscale
[Para. 0102], Similarly, for the low priority HARQ-ACK [Para. 0103], For a PUCCH to multiplex with OACK _0 low priority HARQ-ACK information bits, OSR_0 high priority SR bits, and OCRC_0 CRC bits using PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 in a PUCCH resource, the UE determines a number of PRBs to be the minimum number of PRBs :
PNG
media_image3.png
200
400
media_image3.png
Greyscale
[Para. 0087], Qm is the modulation scheme. [Para. 0097], where r1 is the maximum code rate determined by the maxCodeRate parameter for high priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 1), and r0 is the maximum code rate determined by the above-mentioned methods for low priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 0). [Para. 0105], if
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
+
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
, the PUCCH resource can carry all multiplexed UCI while satisfying the desired maximum code rate of UCI with different priorities. The UE may transmit the PUCCH over the
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
+
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
PRBs [Examiner’s Note: The number of PRBs for transmission of HARQ ACKs of high and low priorities is determined based on OACK _1, OACK _0, r1 and r0]), wherein a priority index of the first UCI is different from a priority index of the second UCI ([Para. 0097], where r1 is the maximum code rate determined by the maxCodeRate parameter for high priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 1), and r0 is the maximum code rate determined by the above-mentioned methods for low priority UCI (e.g., UCI with priority index 0)); wherein the first UCI has a low priority ([Para. 0048], A low priority UCI may be a low-priority HARQ-ACK, a low priority SR, or a low priority CSI report), and the second UCI has a high priority ([Para. 0047], A high priority UCI may be a high priority HARQ-ACK or a high priority SR);
Although teaching target condition for transmitting first and second UCI on the first and second interlaces, Yin does not explicitly disclose wherein the program or the instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the terminal to further perform: in response to the first interlace and the second interlace being configured on the PUCCH resource and a number of PRBs comprised in the first interlace not meeting a target condition, transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI on the first interlace and the second interlace; wherein the target condition comprises: the number of PRBs
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
included in the first interlace meets formula (10):
PNG
media_image4.png
200
400
media_image4.png
Greyscale
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
represents the number of PRBs included in the first interlace; the
O
U
C
I
L
P
represents the number of bits of the first UCI; the
O
C
R
C
L
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the first UCI; the
O
U
C
I
H
P
represents the number of bits of the second UCI; the
O
C
R
C
H
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the second UCI; the
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
represents a number of equivalent subcarriers occupied by control information in each RB; the
N
s
y
m
b
,
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
represents a number of symbols occupied by the target PUCCH format or a number of symbols occupied by UCI in the target PUCCH format; the Qm represents a modulation and coding order; the rLP represents the code rate of the first UCI; the
O
U
C
I
H
P
represents the number of bits of the second UCI; the
O
C
R
C
H
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the second UCI; and the rHP represents the code rate of the second UCI.
Apple more specifically teaches wherein the program or the instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the terminal to further perform: in response to the first interlace and the second interlace being configured on the PUCCH resource and a number of PRBs comprised in the first interlace not meeting a target condition, transmitting the first UCI and the second UCI on the first interlace and the second interlace ([Page 24, Sect. 5.2 Interlace number adjustment], If
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-part1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
the UE transmits the HARQ-ACK, SR, and CSI reports bits in a PUCCH over the first interlace,
else if the UE is provided a second interlace of
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
1
P
U
C
C
H
PRBs by interlace1and if
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part2
total
O
UCI-part2
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part1
total
O
UCI-part1
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
Interlace,0
PUCCH
+
M
Interlace,1
PUCCH
⋅
N
sc,ctrl
RB
⋅
N
symb-UCI
PUCCH
,
); wherein the target condition comprises: the number of PRBs
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
included in the first interlace meets formula (10):
PNG
media_image4.png
200
400
media_image4.png
Greyscale
([Page 24, Sect. 5.2 Interlace number adjustment], If
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-part1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
the UE transmits the HARQ-ACK, SR, and CSI reports bits in a PUCCH over the first interlace, else if the UE is provided a second interlace of
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
1
P
U
C
C
H
PRBs by interlace1and if
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part2
total
O
UCI-part2
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part2
/
Q
m
⋅
r
2
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
UCI-part1
total
O
UCI-part1
,
n
+
O
CRC,UCI-part1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
⌉
≤
M
Interlace,0
PUCCH
+
M
Interlace,1
PUCCH
⋅
N
sc,ctrl
RB
⋅
N
symb-UCI
PUCCH
,
[Page 23, Sect. 5.1 PRB number adjustment], We propose to consider different coding rates for UCI Part I and UCI Part II in Rel-17 for PRB number adjustment. Then for Rel-17 design, the condition to trigger PRB number adjustment can be given by
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
(
Q
m
⋅
r
2
)
+
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
Q
m
⋅
r
1
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
(Forumla without ceiling function applied)
[Examiner’s Note: Ceiling function is not applied in PRB number calculation]. The condition for PRB number adjustment, can be tightened a little bit by taking the ceiled value of the second item:
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
/
(
r
2
)
+
⌈
∑
n
=
1
N
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
t
o
t
a
l
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
+
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
/
r
1
⌉
≤
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
⋅
N
s
y
m
b
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
⋅
Q
m
(Forumla with ceiling function applied)
[Examiner’s Note: The second term in PRB number calculation can be in floating point and ceiling function is optionally applied to the second term to take an integer value. It is obvious that, in the corresponding PBR number calcalation when interlaces are configured, the second term can be in floating point, and by the same reason, the ceiling function can be optionally to the second term to take an integer value. Therefore, Apply also teaches in a manner of obviousness the target condition where the second term is in floating point]),
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
represents the number of PRBs included in the first interlace (
M
I
n
t
e
r
l
a
c
e
,
0
P
U
C
C
H
in the formular of Apple) the
O
U
C
I
L
P
represents the number of bits of the first UCI (
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
,
n
in the formula of Apple); the
O
C
R
C
L
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the first UCI (
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
1
in the formula of Apple); the
O
U
C
I
H
P
represents the number of bits of the second UCI (
O
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
,
n
in the formula of Apple); the
O
C
R
C
H
P
represents a number of cyclic redundancy check bits corresponding to the second UCI (
O
C
R
C
,
U
C
I
-
p
a
r
t
2
in the formula of Apple); the
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
represents a number of equivalent subcarriers occupied by control information in each RB (
N
s
c
,
c
t
r
l
R
B
in the formulas of Apple); the
N
s
y
m
b
,
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
represents a number of symbols occupied by the target PUCCH format or a number of symbols occupied by UCI in the target PUCCH format (
N
s
y
m
b
,
-
U
C
I
P
U
C
C
H
in the formulas of Apple); the Qm represents a modulation and coding order (Qm in the formulas of Apple); the rLP represents the code rate of the first UCI (r1 in the formulas in the reference); and the rHP represents the code rate of the second UCI (r2 in the formulas in the reference).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the apparatus of Yin, so that the UE transmits the PUCCH on the first interlace or both first and second interlaces depending on the available resources, as taught by Apple. The modification would have provided multiplexing a high-priority (HP) HARQ-ACK and a low-priority (LP) HARQ-ACK into a PUCCH in R17 (Apple [Page 2, Sect. 1 Introduction]).
Claims 18-19 are apparatus claims and they do not teach or further define over the limitations recited in claims 2-3. Therefore, claims 18-19 are also rejected for similar reasons set forth in claims 2-3.
Claim 21 is apparatus claim and it does not teach or further define over the limitations recited in claim 5. Therefore, claim 21 is also rejected for similar reasons set forth in claim 5.
Claims 7, 15 and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yin et al. (US20230284225A1, hereinafter Yin) in view of Apple (3GPP TSG RAN WG1 #106-eR1-2107735, hereinafter Apple), and further in view of Li et al. (WO2016204585A1, hereinafter Li).
For claim 7, Yin and Apple teach the resource determining method according to claim 1. The references further teach performing rate matching and resource mapping for both the first UCI and the second UCI within PRBs of the number of target PRBs (Yin [Para. 0099], the multiplexing of HARQ-ACK with or without SR with different priorities may be performed with different maximum code rates on the selected PUCCH resource. the UE may determine a minimum number of PRBs
M
R
B
P
U
C
C
H
for the UCI with the given priority (e.g.,
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
1
P
U
C
C
H
and
M
R
B
m
i
n
_
0
P
U
C
C
H
) for UCI with priority index 1 and priority index 0 respectively)
Although teaching determining the number of PBRs for multiplexing UCIs on different code rates on PUCCH, the references do not explicitly disclose performing rate matching and resource mapping for both the first UCI and the second UCI within PRBs of the number of target PRBs.
Li is directed to providing method for transmitting uplink control information. More specifically, Li teaches performing rate matching and resource mapping for both the first UCI and the second UCI within PRBs of the number of target PRBs ([Para. 75], For the PUCCH using format Y, if it is required to transmit multiple kinds of UCI, the UCI may be firstly classified into different categories. Then coding, rate matching and modulation are respectively performed for different categories of UCI before mapping to the PUCCH using format Y. Herein, each category of UCI is mapped to some modulation symbols of the PUCCH using format Y, and the sum of the modulation symbols of respective category of UCI equals to the total number of modulation symbols of the PUCCH using format Y. For example, the HARQ-ACK and the SR are a first category, the firs type CSI is a second category, and the second type CSI is the third category).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method of Yin and Apple, so that rate matching and resource mapping is performed on the different UCIs, as taught by Li. The modification would have optimized the transmit power for the transmission of the UCI on the PUCCH, and increased the uplink resource utilization ratio (Li [Para. 15]).
Claims 15 and 22 are apparatus claims and they do not teach or further define over the limitations recited in claim 7. Therefore, claims 15 and 22 are also rejected for similar reasons set forth in claim 7.
Claims 8, 16 and 23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yin et al. (US20230284225A1, hereinafter Yin) in view of Apple (3GPP TSG RAN WG1 #106-eR1-2107735, hereinafter Apple) and Li et al. (WO2016204585A1, hereinafter Li), and further in view of Zhang et al. (US20220039088A1, hereinafter Zhang).
For claim 8, Yin, Apple and Li teach the resource determining method according to claim 7. The references further teach wherein the performing rate matching and resource mapping for both the first UCI and the second UCI within PRBs of the number of target PRBs comprises: determining a number of second resource elements (REs) meeting the code rate of the second UCI within PRBs of the number of target PRBs, based on the number of bits of the second UCI and the code rate of the second UCI; perform rate matching and resource mapping for the second UCI on the second REs (Li [Para. 75], For the PUCCH using format Y, if it is required to transmit multiple kinds of UCI, the UCI may be firstly classified into different categories. Then coding, rate matching and modulation are respectively performed for different categories of UCI before mapping to the PUCCH using format Y. Herein, each category of UCI is mapped to some modulation symbols of the PUCCH using format Y, and the sum of the modulation symbols of respective category of UCI equals to the total number of modulation symbols of the PUCCH using format Y. Li [0076], the coding, rate matching, modulation and channel mapping are respectively performed for each category of UCI, the two categories of UCI respectively occupies
N
R
E
(
1
)
and
N
R
E
(
2
)
modulation symbols, wherein the sum of
N
R
E
(
1
)
and
N
R
E
(
2
)
equals to the total number of modulation symbols of the PUCCH format Y); and perform rate matching and resource mapping for the first UCI on REs (Li [Para. 75], For the PUCCH using format Y, if it is required to transmit multiple kinds of UCI, the UCI may be firstly classified into different categories. Then coding, rate matching and modulation are respectively performed for different categories of UCI before mapping to the PUCCH using format Y. Herein, each category of UCI is mapped to some modulation symbols of the PUCCH using format Y, and the sum of the modulation symbols of respective category of UCI equals to the total number of modulation symbols of the PUCCH using format Y. Li [0076], the coding, rate matching, modulation and channel mapping are respectively performed for each category of UCI, the two categories of UCI respectively occupies
N
R
E
(
1
)
and
N
R
E
(
2
)
modulation symbols, wherein the sum of
N
R
E
(
1
)
and
N
R
E
(
2
)
equals to the total number of modulation symbols of the PUCCH format Y), except for the second REs and REs used by a demodulation reference signal (DMRS) (Li [Para. 75], For the PUCCH using format Y, if it is required to transmit multiple kinds of UCI, the UCI may be firstly classified into different categories. Then coding, rate matching and modulation are respectively performed for different categories of UCI before mapping to the PUCCH using format Y. Herein, each category of UCI is mapped to some modulation symbols of the PUCCH using format Y, and the sum of the modulation symbols of respective category of UCI equals to the total number of modulation symbols of the PUCCH using format Y [Examiner’s Note: Rate matching and RE mapping are performed separately on different UCIs]. Apple [Page 45, Agreement],
N
R
E
(i) = MPUCCH,c(i) x number of subcarriers per PRB x number of DFT-s-OFDM/CP-OFDM symbols excluding DMRS symbols), within PRBs of the number of target PRBs (Li [Para. 62], MPUSCH,c(i) denotes the number of PRBs occupied by the PUCCH using format Y. If multiple kinds of UCI need to be fed back in the subframe and multiple PUCCHs using format Y are correspondingly configured, one of the PUCCH using format Y may be used for transmitting the multiple kinds of UCI, thus the MPUSCH,c(i) denotes the number of PRBs occupied by this PUCCH using format Y. [Para. 43], the number of modulation symbols occupied by the HARQ-ACK and SR is
N
R
E
H
A
R
Q
-
A
C
K
S
R
).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method of Yin and Apple, so that rate matching and resource mapping is performed on the different UCIs, as taught by Li. The modification would have optimized the transmit power for the transmission of the UCI on the PUCCH, and increased the uplink resource utilization ratio (Li [Para. 15]).
Although teach rate matching and resource mapping performed on first and second UCI separately, the references do not explicitly disclose determining a number of second resource elements (REs) meeting the code rate of the second UCI within PRBs of the number of target PRBs, based on the number of bits of the second UCI and the code rate of the second UCI.
Zhang is directed to providing transmitting method and receiving method for control information, user equipment and base station. More specifically, Zhang teaches determining a number of second resource elements (REs) meeting the code rate of the second UCI within PRBs of the number of target PRBs, based on the number of bits of the second UCI and the code rate of the second UCI ([Para. 0103], The two levels of priorities may be indicated by priority numbers or priority indexes (e.g., priority index 1 and priority index 0). A larger priority index may correspond to a higher priority, i.e., a priority corresponding to priority index 1 may be higher than a priority corresponding to priority index 0. [Para. 0216], UCI include first HARQ-ACK information (e.g., with the high priority (e.g., priority index 1) and second HARQ-ACK information (e.g., with the lower priority (e.g., priority index 0)). [Para. 0236], When PUCCH format 2 or PUCCH format 3 is used, the UE may determine the number of PRBs,
M
R
B
,
m
i
n
P
U
C
C
H
. [Para. 0241], The UCI with the higher may be mapped to REs with higher reliability. For example, the UCI with the higher priority may be mapped to symbols closer to a demodulation reference signal (DMRS), and then the UCI with the lower priority may be mapped. [Para. 0242], For example, the number of REs to which the UCI with the lower is mapped may be determined according to
O
A
C
K
0
+
O
C
R
C
0
Q
m
r
0
[Para. 0246], the rate matching output sequence length E1 of the first HARQ-ACK may be determined according to Qm 1, r1, OCRC 1 and OACK 1, e.g.,
E
1
=
C
e
i
l
i
n
g
O
A
C
K
1
+
O
C
R
C
1
Q
1
r
1
Q
1
[Examiner’s Note:
E
1
/
Q
1
is the number of second REs.
E
1
/
Q
1
is within
M
R
B
,
m
i
n
P
U
C
C
H
]
).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the method of Yin, Apple and Li, so that the numbers of resource elements for high priority UCI is determined based on the number of bits and code rate, as taught by Zhang. The modification would have expanded expanding the bits of UCI depending on the number of bits of the UCI when a plurality of UCI with different priorities are multiplexed in a PUCCH format and separately encoded, improving reliability of UCI TX, reduce retransmission probability of downlink data and improve spectrum efficiency of the system (Zhang [Para. 0256]).
Claims 16 and 23 are apparatus claims and they do not teach or further define over the limitations recited in claim 8. Therefore, claims 16 and 23 are also rejected for similar reasons set forth in claim 8.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/S.L./Examiner, Art Unit 2417
/REBECCA E SONG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2417
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