Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/620,219

COMMUNICATION METHOD AND APPARATUS

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Mar 28, 2024
Priority
Sep 30, 2021 — CN 202111162862.0 +1 more
Examiner
KAUR, PAMIT
Art Unit
2416
Tech Center
2400 — Computer Networks
Assignee
Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
80%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
1y 0m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 80% — above average
80%
Career Allowance Rate
508 granted / 633 resolved
+22.3% vs TC avg
Strong +20% interview lift
Without
With
+20.0%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 3m
Avg Prosecution
10 currently pending
Career history
655
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.0%
-39.0% vs TC avg
§103
86.7%
+46.7% vs TC avg
§102
4.9%
-35.1% vs TC avg
§112
4.0%
-36.0% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 633 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
CTNF 18/620,219 CTNF 85340 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Claims 19-36 are subject under examination. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 07-07-aia AIA 07-07 The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action: A person shall be entitled to a patent unless – 07-12-aia AIA (a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. 07-15-03-aia AIA Claim(s) 19, 20, 24 27, 28, 23, 31, 32, 35, 36 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(2) as being anticipated by Qin (US 2022/0209908 A1) Regarding claim 19, 27, 35, Qin (US 2022/0209908 A1) teaches a method comprising / a device/ an apparatus, comprising: at least one processor; and a memory coupled to the at least one processor with instructions stored thereon, wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor see para 0292 “device 800 includes: one or more processors 801, one or more memories 802, and one or more transceivers 803. The processor 801 is configured to control the transceiver 803 to receive and send a signal. The memory 802 is configured to store a computer program. The processor 801 is configured to invoke the computer program from the memory 802” , enable the apparatus to: determining a frequency hopping periodicity index of a terminal based on a first time unit, wherein the first time unit is associated with a time unit corresponding to a sounding reference signal (SRS) (see para 0111 “A UE may be configured with Nst=Ns=2 or 4 or 8 symbol periodic SRS with intra-subframe and inter-subframe hopping, and a repetition R larger than 1”) ; determining a first frequency hopping parameter based on the frequency hopping periodicity index of the terminal and a frequency hopping pattern ( see para 0089 “he UE performs group hopping or sequence hopping according to a hopping pattern determined at least based on the number of configured SRS symbols N.sub.symb.sup.SRS and lϵ{0,1, . . . , N.sub.symb.sup.SRS−1} being the symbol number occupied by the corresponding SRS transmission.”) , wherein the first frequency hopping parameter indicates a subband-level offset of the SRS within a range of a configured bandwidth of the SRS ( see para 0097 “at symbol#0, SRS is transmitted in subband#2, and at symbol#1, SRS is transmitted in subband#1.” ; see para 0098 “The change from one subband (e.g. subband#2) to another subband (e.g. subband#1) means a frequency hop. The number of subbands (e.g. 2 subbands represented by subband#2 and subband#1) denotes the hops of frequency hopping ”), and the frequency hopping pattern is associated with the first frequency hopping parameter ( see para 0089 “UE performs group hopping or sequence hopping according to a hopping pattern determined at least based on the number of configured SRS symbols N.sub.symb.sup.SRS and lϵ{0,1, . . . , N.sub.symb.sup.SRS−1} being the symbol number occupied by the corresponding SRS transmission”) ; and sending the SRS to a network device based on the first frequency hopping parameter. ( see para 0158 “n.sub.SRS represents a count of positions that can be used for transmitting an SRS on a same subcarrier in continuous symbols in a radio frame period. n.sub.SRS can be determined through calculation based on the following parameters: a system frame number, a slot number, a symbol number (namely, a symbol index), a starting symbol of the SRS resource, a quantity of symbols of the SRS resource, and a repetition factor of the SRS resource.”) Regarding claim 23, 31, 36, Qin (US 2022/0209908 A1) teaches a method comprising / a device/ an apparatus, comprising: at least one processor; and a memory coupled to the at least one processor with instructions stored thereon, wherein the instructions ( see para 0291 “terminal device 700 includes: one or more processors 701, one or more memories 702, and one or more transceivers 703. The processor 701 is configured to control the transceiver 703 to receive and send a signal. The memory 702 is configured to store a computer program. The processor 701 is configured to invoke the computer program from the memory 702 and run the computer program” ), when executed by the processor, enable the apparatus to: determining a frequency hopping periodicity index of a terminal based on a first time unit, wherein the first time unit is associated with a time unit corresponding to a sounding reference signal (SRS) (see para 0111 “A UE may be configured with Nst=Ns=2 or 4 or 8 symbol periodic SRS with intra-subframe and inter-subframe hopping, and a repetition R larger than 1”) ; determining a first frequency hopping parameter based on the frequency hopping periodicity index of the terminal and a frequency hopping pattern ( see para 0089 “he UE performs group hopping or sequence hopping according to a hopping pattern determined at least based on the number of configured SRS symbols N.sub.symb.sup.SRS and lϵ{0,1, . . . , N.sub.symb.sup.SRS−1} being the symbol number occupied by the corresponding SRS transmission.”) , wherein the first frequency hopping parameter indicates a subband-level offset of the SRS within a range of a configured bandwidth of the SRS ( see para 0097 “at symbol#0, SRS is transmitted in subband#2, and at symbol#1, SRS is transmitted in subband#1.” ; see para 0098 “The change from one subband (e.g. subband#2) to another subband (e.g. subband#1) means a frequency hop. The number of subbands (e.g. 2 subbands represented by subband#2 and subband#1) denotes the hops of frequency hopping ”), and the frequency hopping pattern is associated with the first frequency hopping parameter ( see para 0089 “UE performs group hopping or sequence hopping according to a hopping pattern determined at least based on the number of configured SRS symbols N.sub.symb.sup.SRS and lϵ{0,1, . . . , N.sub.symb.sup.SRS−1} being the symbol number occupied by the corresponding SRS transmission”) ; and receiving, based on the first frequency hopping parameter, the SRS corresponding to the terminal. ( see para 0158 “n.sub.SRS represents a count of positions that can be used for transmitting an SRS on a same subcarrier in continuous symbols in a radio frame period. n.sub.SRS can be determined through calculation based on the following parameters: a system frame number, a slot number, a symbol number (namely, a symbol index), a starting symbol of the SRS resource, a quantity of symbols of the SRS resource, and a repetition factor of the SRS resource.”) Regarding claim 20, 24, 28, 32, Qin teaches determining the frequency hopping periodicity index of the terminal based on an SRS counter and a frequency hopping periodicity, wherein the SRS counter is associated with the first time unit. ( see para 0155 “the terminal device determines, based on the first configuration information of the SRS resource and a current slot, a count n.sub.SRS of for SRS sending”; see para 0158 “n.sub.SRS represents a count of positions that can be used for transmitting an SRS on a same subcarrier in continuous symbols in a radio frame period.”) Allowable Subject Matter 12-151-08 AIA 07-43 12-51-08 Claim s 21-22,25-26,29-30 and 33-34 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PAMIT KAUR whose telephone number is (571)270-5665. The examiner can normally be reached 9AM-5PM. 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 at 5712705630. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /PAMIT KAUR/Examiner, Art Unit 2416 Application/Control Number: 18/620,219 Page 2 Art Unit: 2416 Application/Control Number: 18/620,219 Page 3 Art Unit: 2416 Application/Control Number: 18/620,219 Page 4 Art Unit: 2416 Application/Control Number: 18/620,219 Page 5 Art Unit: 2416 Application/Control Number: 18/620,219 Page 6 Art Unit: 2416
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Mar 28, 2024
Application Filed
Jun 24, 2024
Response after Non-Final Action
Jun 17, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102 (current)

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
80%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+20.0%)
3y 3m (~1y 0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 633 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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