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 .
Claims 1, 5, 7-9, 13, 15-17 and 20-30 are pending in this office action.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 06/09/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. See rejection below based on the amendments.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 –
(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.
Claims 1, 5, 7-9, 13, 15-17 and 20, 21, 25 and 29 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Elkotby et al (US 2024/0215067 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Elkotby teaches an uplink data transmission method of a zero-power-consumption terminal, comprising:
selecting a first uplink resource from uplink resources configured by a network device, in response to the zero-power-consumption terminal meeting a trigger condition (Elkotby: Figs. 9 and 11; [0135]-[0136]; [0393]-[0395], WTRU/zero-power consumption terminal receives interrogation signal/trigger condition and select PRACH occasion/uplink resource); and
transmitting uplink data to the network device through the first uplink resource (Elkotby: Figs. 9 and 11; [0393]-[0395], WTRU transmits PRACH preamble),
wherein the trigger condition comprises: a terminal attribute of the zero-power-consumption terminal matching a trigger instruction transmitted by the network device; wherein the terminal attribute comprises group information (Elkotby: Fig. 4; [0155], [0171], [0177] based on the interrogation signal configuration/trigger condition corresponding/matching the WTRU backscattering coverage ring/terminal attribute, the WTRU determines PRACH occasion for transmission).
Regarding claim 9, Elkotby teaches a communication device, comprising a processor and a memory; wherein the memory stores at least one program, and the processor is configured to execute the at least one program to cause the communication device to implement a method, and the method comprises:
selecting a first uplink resource from uplink resources configured by a network device, in response to the zero-power-consumption terminal meeting a trigger condition (Elkotby: Figs. 9 and 11; [0135]-[0136]; [0393]-[0395], WTRU/zero-power consumption terminal receives interrogation signal/trigger condition and select PRACH occasion/uplink resource); and
transmitting uplink data to the network device through the first uplink resource (Elkotby: Figs. 9 and 11; [0393]-[0395], WTRU transmits PRACH preamble),
wherein the trigger condition comprises: a terminal attribute of the zero-power-consumption terminal matching a trigger instruction transmitted by the network device; wherein the terminal attribute comprises group information (Elkotby: Fig. 4; [0155], [0171], [0177] based on the interrogation signal configuration/trigger condition corresponding/matching the WTRU backscattering coverage ring/terminal attribute, the WTRU determines PRACH occasion for transmission).
Regarding claim 17, Elkotby teaches a communication device, comprising a processor and a memory; wherein the memory stores at least one program, and the processor is configured to execute the at least one program to cause the communication device to implement a method, and the method comprises:
receiving, by a network device, uplink data transmitted by the zero-power-consumption terminal through a first uplink resource; wherein the first uplink resource is selected from the uplink resources configured by the network device, in response to the zero-power-consumption terminal meeting a trigger condition (Elkotby: Figs. 9 and 11; [0135]-[0136]; [0393]-[0395], WTRU/zero-power consumption terminal receives interrogation signal/trigger condition and select PRACH occasion/uplink resource; WTRU transmits PRACH preamble),
wherein the trigger condition comprises: a terminal attribute of the zero-power-consumption terminal matching a trigger instruction transmitted by the network device; wherein the terminal attribute comprises group information (Elkotby: Fig. 4; [0155], [0171], [0177] based on the interrogation signal configuration/trigger condition corresponding/matching the WTRU backscattering coverage ring/terminal attribute, the WTRU determines PRACH occasion for transmission).
Regarding claims 5, 13 and 20, Elkotby teaches receiving a broadcast message periodically transmitted by the network device; wherein the broadcast message is configured to configure the uplink resources (Elkotby: Figs. 11-13, [0160]-[0164], WTRU receiving system information configuring the PRACH resources for the WTRU; see also [0214]-[0220]); or receiving a trigger message transmitted by the network device; wherein the trigger message is configured to configure the uplink resources; or receiving a configuration message transmitted by the network device; wherein the configuration message is configured to configure the uplink resources, a time domain position corresponding to the configuration message is later than a time domain position corresponding to the trigger message.
Regarding claims 7 and 15, Elkotby teaches wherein selecting the first uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device, comprises: selecting the first uplink resource based on a terminal identifier of the zero-power-consumption terminal and the number of the uplink resources; or selecting the first uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device based on a first timer; or randomly selecting the first uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device (Elkotby: Fig. 12; [0203]-[0204] randomly selecting resources).
Regarding claims 8 and 16, Elkotby teaches wherein a resource serial number of the first uplink resource is equal to a remainder obtained by the terminal identifier divided by the number of the uplink resources; or the selecting the first uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device based on a first timer, comprises: starting a first timer, in response to the trigger condition being met; and in response to timeout of the first timer, selecting an uplink resource, closest to a timeout time in a time domain, from the uplink resources configured by the network device, and determining the uplink resource closest to the timeout time as the first uplink resource (This limitation has no patentable weight as it depends on the alternatives of claims 7 and 15 that are not selected for examination).
Regarding claims 21, 25 and 29, Elkotby teaches selecting a second uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device again, in response to not receiving a response to the uplink data; and transmitting the uplink data to the network device through the second uplink resource (Elkotby: [0196], For example, in a case where the absence of the interrogation signal is not detected till the end of the GF transmission window and a group NACK is received at the end of the window, a new frequency resource may be selected, and the GF access procedure may be repeated).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 22-24, 26-28 and 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Elkotby et al (US 2024/0215067 A1) in view of Roy et al (US 2023/0254899 A1).
Regarding claims 22 and 26, Elkotby does not explicitly disclose wherein the selecting the second uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device again, in response to not receiving the response to the uplink data, comprises: starting a second timer, in response to not receiving the response to the uplink data; and selecting the second uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device again, in response to timeout of the second timer.
Roy teaches wherein the selecting the second uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device again, in response to not receiving the response to the uplink data, comprises: starting a second timer, in response to not receiving the response to the uplink data; and selecting the second uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device again, in response to timeout of the second time (Roy: Fig. 7; [0185], if the WTRU 702 does not receive a response before the RAR window timer expires 715, the WTRU 702 may send a RACH preamble chosen from the special pool associated with the preferred beam pair (SSB Index 1), in the RACH occasion associated with the alternate beam pair (SSB Index 2)).
It would have been obvious to a person having an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Elkotby wherein the selecting the second uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device again, in response to not receiving the response to the uplink data, comprises: starting a second timer, in response to not receiving the response to the uplink data; and selecting the second uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device again, in response to timeout of the second time as disclosed by Roy to provide a system for sensing aided random access channel (Roy: Abstract).
Regarding claims 23 and 27, Elkotby in view of Roy teaches wherein a case of not receiving the response to the uplink data comprises the zero-power-consumption terminal not receiving a downlink feedback transmitted by the network device (Roy: Fig. 7; [0185], if the WTRU 702 does not receive a response before the RAR window timer expires 715, the WTRU 702 may send a RACH preamble chosen from the special pool associated with the preferred beam pair (SSB Index 1), in the RACH occasion associated with the alternate beam pair (SSB Index 2)); or the zero-power-consumption terminal receiving the downlink feedback transmitted by the network device, and the downlink feedback not comprising receiving information, wherein the receiving information is configured to indicate that the network device has successfully received the uplink data transmitted by the zero-power-consumption terminal.
Regarding claims 24, 28 and 30, Elkotby in view of Roy teaches wherein the selecting the second uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device again, comprises: selecting the second uplink resource based on a terminal identifier of the zero-power- consumption terminal and the number of the uplink resources; or selecting the second uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device based on a second timer (Roy: Fig. 7; [0185], if the WTRU 702 does not receive a response before the RAR window timer expires 715, the WTRU 702 may send a RACH preamble chosen from the special pool associated with the preferred beam pair (SSB Index 1), in the RACH occasion associated with the alternate beam pair (SSB Index 2)); or randomly selecting the second uplink resource from the uplink resources configured by the network device.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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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/KODZOVI ACOLATSE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2478
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