Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(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 1-3, 10 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(2) as being anticipated by Jiang et al. (US 20220123986 A1).
Regarding claim 1,
Jiang discloses “An apparatus for wireless communications, comprising: at least one memory comprising computer-executable instructions; and one or more processors configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to” (See Fig. 4A, [0077] The base band unit 41, includes at least one processor and memory): “apply a frequency domain function to a first copy of a first reference signal (RS) sequence to obtain a modified first copy of the first RS sequence” (See Fig. 4A, [0071] The phase ramping block 45 can apply phase ramping to the first symbol to generate a second symbol that is cyclically shifted relative to the first symbol); “and output frequency domain samples of the modified first copy of the first RS sequence and frequency domain samples of a second copy of the first RS sequence” (See Fig. 4A, [0071] The frequency domain sampling block 46 can sample the first and second symbols. The sampling can involve in-phase (I) samples and quadrature (Q) samples. The frequency domain sampling block 46 can buffer and queue samples for sending to radio frequency processing unit 42).
Regarding claim 2,
Jiang discloses “The apparatus of claim 1, wherein: the frequency domain samples are output to a radio unit (RU)” (See Fig. 4A, [0067] The system 40 includes a base band unit 41, a radio frequency processing unit 42, and at least one antenna 43. The radio frequency processing unit 42 can include a remote radio unit and/or fronthaul processing circuitry. [0071] The frequency domain sampling block 46 can sample the first and second symbols. The sampling can involve in-phase (I) samples and quadrature (Q) samples. The frequency domain sampling block 46 can buffer and queue samples for sending to radio frequency processing unit 42).
Regarding claim 3,
Jiang discloses “The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the frequency domain function comprises a phase ramp” (See Fig. 4A, [0071] The phase ramping block 45 can apply phase ramping to the first symbol to generate a second symbol that is cyclically shifted relative to the first symbol).
Regarding claim 10,
Jiang discloses “The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising at least one transceiver configured to transmit the frequency domain samples, wherein the apparatus is configured to operate as a distributed unit (DU)” (See Fig. 9, [0095] The base band unit 902 can be coupled with at least one remote radio unit 920. The base band unit 902 can be coupled with a plurality of remote radio units 920 as illustrated. Such remote radio units 920 can be distributed).
Regarding claim 20,
Jiang discloses “A method for wireless communications at a first network entity, comprising: applying a frequency domain function to a first copy of a first reference signal (RS) sequence to obtain a modified first copy of the first RS sequence” (See Fig. 4A, BBU 41, [0071] The phase ramping block 45 can apply phase ramping to the first symbol to generate a second symbol that is cyclically shifted relative to the first symbol); “and outputting, to a second network entity, frequency domain samples of the modified first copy of the first RS sequence and frequency domain samples of a second copy of the first RS sequence” (See Fig. 4A, [0071] The frequency domain sampling block 46 can sample the first and second symbols. The sampling can involve in-phase (I) samples and quadrature (Q) samples. The frequency domain sampling block 46 can buffer and queue samples for sending to radio frequency processing unit 42).
Claims 1, 4-9, 11 and 14-18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(2) as being anticipated by IWASAKI (US 20250358824 A1).
Regarding claim 1,
IWASAKI discloses “An apparatus for wireless communications, comprising: at least one memory comprising computer-executable instructions; and one or more processors configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to” (See Fig. 2): “apply a frequency domain function to a first copy of a first reference signal (RS) sequence to obtain a modified first copy of the first RS sequence” (See [0038] the control unit 12 phase-rotates an original RIM-RS signal on the frequency axis according to the length of the cyclic prefix (CP) of the RIM-RS signal for wireless transmission); “and output frequency domain samples of the modified first copy of the first RS sequence and frequency domain samples of a second copy of the first RS sequence” (See [0039] the control unit 12 multiplexes the RIM-RS signal which is phase-rotated in the first symbol of the DL signal on the frequency axis (step S3). Here, as illustrated in FIG. 4, a signal 412 is generated in which the phase-rotated RIM-RS signal 403 is multiplexed in the first symbol 411 of the DL signal on the frequency axis. [0043] the control unit 12 multiplexes the original RIM-RS signal which is not phase-rotated as it is (without performing phase rotation) in the second symbol of the DL signal on the frequency axis (step S5). Here, as illustrated in FIG. 5, a signal 512 is generated in which the RIM-RS signal 501 which is not phase-rotated is multiplexed in the first symbol 511 of the DL signal on the frequency axis). Note: The phase-rotated RIM-RS sequence is derived from the original RIM-RS sequence and therefore represents a modified copy, while the original non-phase rotated RIM-RS represents another copy of the same sequence.
Regarding claim 4,
IWASAKI discloses “The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the frequency domain function is designed to achieve a circularly time-shifted RS signal in the time domain after an inverse Fourier transform (IFT) is performed on the modified first copy of the first RS sequence” (See [0038] the control unit 12 phase-rotates an original RIM-RS signal on the frequency axis according to the length of the cyclic prefix (CP) of the RIM-RS signal for wireless transmission. [0057] the control unit 12 performs processing, which is equivalent to cyclic shift on the time axis after IFFT, on the original RIM-RS signal on the frequency axis. More specifically, the control unit 12 phase-rotates the original RIM-RS signal).
Regarding claim 5,
IWASAKI discloses “The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the circularly time-shifted RS signal has a time circular shift length that is based on a length of cyclic prefix (CP) of an interference management RS” (See [0038] the control unit 12 phase-rotates an original RIM-RS signal on the frequency axis according to the length of the cyclic prefix (CP) of the RIM-RS signal for wireless transmission. See [0057] the control unit 12 performs processing, which is equivalent to cyclic shift on the time axis after IFFT, on the original RIM-RS signal on the frequency axis. More specifically, the control unit 12 phase-rotates the original RIM-RS signal. [0055] the signal obtained by cyclically shifting the original RIM-RS signal by the length of the CP2 is multiplexed in the DL signal on the frequency axis).
Regarding claim 6,
IWASAKI discloses “The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the length of the CP of the interference management RS is based on a reference CP length and a length of another CP” (See [0052] In the RIM-RS signal 651, compared to the normal DL signal 601, the IFFT signal 662 is shifted back in time by the length of the portion 621 of CP2, and a portion 661 of CP is also shifted back by the same length. See Fig. 6, [0053-0055] showing generation of the RIM-RS signal 651 using the CP portion and a cyclic shift based on CP2).
Regarding claim 7,
IWASAKI discloses “The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the reference CP length is equal to the length of the other CP” (See Fig. 6, [0052] In the RIM-RS signal 651, compared to the normal DL signal 601, the IFFT signal 662 is shifted back in time by the length of the portion 621 of CP2, and a portion 661 of CP is also shifted back by the same length).
Regarding claim 8,
IWASAKI discloses “The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the CP of the interference management RS comprises: a first CP portion corresponding to the other CP; and a second CP portion corresponding to a circularly shifted portion of the first copy of the first RS sequence” (See Fig. 6, [0052] the IFFT signal 662 is shifted back in time by the length of the portion 621 of CP2, and a portion 661 of CP is also shifted back by the same length. [0053] a portion 672 of the RIM-RS signal at the time of an IFFT signal 612 of a first symbol 601A of the normal DL signal 601 can be regarded as a signal obtained by cyclically shifting the IFFT signal 662 back by the length of the CP2. [0054] the portion 671 of the RIM-RS signal can be regarded as a rear end portion 673 of the signal 672, in which the IFFT signal 662 is cyclically shifted.
Regarding claim 9,
IWASAKI discloses “The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the interference management RS comprises: the CP of the interference management RS and two copies of the first RS sequence” (See Fig. 4, [0039] the control unit 12 multiplexes the RIM-RS signal which is phase-rotated in the first symbol of the DL signal on the frequency axis (step S3). Here, as illustrated in FIG. 4, a signal 412 is generated in which the phase-rotated RIM-RS signal 403 is multiplexed in the first symbol 411. See Fig. 5, [0043] the control unit 12 multiplexes the original RIM-RS signal which is not phase-rotated as it is, a signal 512 is generated in which the RIM-RS signal 501 which is not phase-rotated is multiplexed in the first symbol 511. [0041] By modifying the RIM-RS signal on the frequency axis, the subsequent processing (for example, IFFT and CP addition) can be made identical to the processing for the normal DL signal. Note: The RIM-RS includes the CP along with the phase rotated/ modified copy and the non-phase rotated/ non-modified copies.
Regarding claim 11,
IWASAKI discloses “An apparatus for wireless communications, comprising: at least one memory comprising computer-executable instructions; and one or more processors configured to execute the computer-executable instructions and cause the apparatus to” (See Fig. 2): “obtain frequency domain samples of a first copy of a first reference signal (RS) sequence and frequency domain samples of a second copy of the first RS sequence” (See [0037] In step S1, the control unit 12 acquires a DL signal included in two symbols to be transmitted simultaneously. See Fig. 4, item 401, 411, 412 and Fig. 5, item 501, 511, 512); “apply a frequency domain function to the first copy of a first reference signal (RS) sequence to obtain a modified first copy of the first RS sequence” (See [0038] the control unit 12 phase-rotates an original RIM-RS signal on the frequency axis according to the length of the cyclic prefix (CP) of the RIM-RS signal for wireless transmission); “perform an inverse Fourier transform (IFT) on the modified first copy of the first RS sequence to obtain a circularly time-shifted RS signal in the time domain that forms a first part of an interference management RS” (See [0042] Here, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the signal 412 may be converted into a time-axis signal (IFFT signal) 421 by IFFT, and CP, which is data obtained by copying a part 422 of the signal at the rear end of the IFFT signal 421, may be added to the head of the IFFT signal 421, thereby generating one symbol 431. See Fig. 6, [0055] for the first symbol 651A of the RIM-RS signal 651 for wireless transmission, if the signal obtained by cyclically shifting the original RIM-RS signal by the length of the CP2 is multiplexed in the DL signal on the frequency axis, a desired RIM-RS signal (for wireless transmission) can be obtained by the subsequent processing applied to the normal DL signal); “perform the IFT on the second copy of the first RS sequence to obtain a second part of the interference management RS” (See [0045] Here, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the signal 512 may be converted into an IFFT signal 521, and CP, which is data obtained by copying a part 522 of the signal at the rear end of the IFFT signal 521 may be added to the head of the IFFT signal 521, thereby generating one symbol 531. [0051] for the second symbol 651B of the RIM-RS signal 651 for wireless transmission, if the original RIM-RS signal is multiplexed in the DL signal on the frequency axis as it is (without phase rotation), a desired RIM-RS signal (for wireless transmission) can be obtained by the subsequent processing applied to the normal DL signal); “and output the first and second parts of the interference management RS for transmission” (See FIG. 7, [0063] a RIM-RS signal having a length equivalent to two symbols is transmitted at the end of a DL slot).
Regarding claim 14, these limitations are rejected on the same ground as claim 5.
Regarding claim 15, these limitations are rejected on the same ground as claim 6.
Regarding claim 16, these limitations are rejected on the same ground as claim 7.
Regarding claim 17, these limitations are rejected on the same ground as claim 8.
Regarding claim 18, these limitations are rejected on the same ground as claim 9.
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.
Claims 12 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over IWASAKI (US 20250358824 A1) in view of Jiang et al. (US 20220123986 A1).
Regarding claim 12,
IWASAKI discloses “The apparatus of claim 11”, but does not explicitly disclose that the frequency domain samples are obtained from a distributed unit.
However, Jiang discloses “wherein: the frequency domain samples are obtained from a distributed unit (DU)” (See Fig. 4A, [0067] The system 40 includes a base band unit 41, a radio frequency processing unit 42, and at least one antenna 43. The radio frequency processing unit 42 can include a remote radio unit and/or fronthaul processing circuitry. [0071] The frequency domain sampling block 46 can sample the first and second symbols. The sampling can involve in-phase (I) samples and quadrature (Q) samples. The frequency domain sampling block 46 can buffer and queue samples for sending to radio frequency processing unit 42. See Fig. 9, [0095] The base band unit 902 can be coupled with at least one remote radio unit 920. The base band unit 902 can be coupled with a plurality of remote radio units 920 as illustrated. Such remote radio units 920 can be distributed).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of IWASAKI with the teachings of Jiang, and the motivation to do so would have been in order to distribute processing responsibilities between network elements (a BBU/ DU and an RU), thereby providing implementation flexibility and supporting a distributed radio access network architecture.
Regarding claim 19,
IWASAKI discloses “The apparatus of claim 11, further comprising at least one transceiver configured to receive the frequency domain samples and transmit first and second parts of the interference management RS” (See [0037] In step S1, the control unit 12 acquires a DL signal included in two symbols to be transmitted simultaneously. See Fig. 4, item 401, 411, 412 and Fig. 5, item 501, 511, 512. See FIG. 7, [0063] a RIM-RS signal having a length equivalent to two symbols is transmitted at the end of a DL slot).
IWASAKI does not explicitly disclose that the apparatus is configured to operate as a radio unit.
However, Jiang discloses “wherein the apparatus is configured to operate as a radio unit (RU)” (See Fig. 4A, [0067] The system 40 includes a base band unit 41, a radio frequency processing unit 42, and at least one antenna 43. The radio frequency processing unit 42 can include a remote radio unit and/or fronthaul processing circuitry. [0071] The frequency domain sampling block 46 can sample the first and second symbols. The sampling can involve in-phase (I) samples and quadrature (Q) samples. The frequency domain sampling block 46 can buffer and queue samples for sending to radio frequency processing unit 42).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of IWASAKI with the teachings of Jiang, and the motivation to do so would have been in order to distribute processing responsibilities between network elements (a BBU/ DU and an RU), thereby providing implementation flexibility and supporting a distributed radio access network architecture.
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over IWASAKI (US 20250358824 A1) in view of Black et al. (US 20210328838 A1).
Regarding claim 13,
IWASAKI discloses “The apparatus of claim 11”, but does not explicitly disclose the frequency domain function comprising a phase ramp.
However, Black discloses “wherein the frequency domain function comprises a phase ramp” (See Fig. 2, [0077] The phase ramping block 22 can apply a cyclic shift to the base sequence generated by the base sequence generator 21. The cyclic shift can be applied in the frequency domain).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the teachings of IWASAKI by utilizing the phase ramping technique of Black, in order to facilitate mapping the cyclically shifted reference signal to an allocated comb of resource elements for transmission (Black [0077]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to SALMA A AYAD whose telephone number is (571)270-0285. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00 to 5:30 ET.
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/SALMA AYAD/Examiner, Art Unit 2462
/KEVIN C. HARPER/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2462
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