Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/681,780

METHODS FOR RESOURCE MAPPING AROUND POSITIONING REFERENCE SIGNALS

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Feb 06, 2024
Examiner
TRAN, CONGVAN
Art Unit
2647
Tech Center
2600 — Communications
Assignee
Telefonaktiebolaget Lm Ericsson (Publ)
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
89%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 7m
To Grant
94%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 89% — above average
89%
Career Allow Rate
1033 granted / 1156 resolved
+27.4% vs TC avg
Minimal +5% lift
Without
With
+4.6%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 7m
Avg Prosecution
34 currently pending
Career history
1190
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
3.8%
-36.2% vs TC avg
§103
24.0%
-16.0% vs TC avg
§102
60.0%
+20.0% vs TC avg
§112
5.4%
-34.6% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 1156 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 . This office action is in response to Pre-Amendment filed on Oct. 10, 2024. Claims 3, 7, 12, 16, 21 and 25 have been amended. Claims 4, 8, 13, 17, 22, 26 and 31-40 have been canceled. 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 1-3, 5-7, 9-12, 14-16, 18-21, 23-25 and 27-30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Rao et al. (2024/0015686). Regarding claim 10, Rao discloses a wireless device comprising a radio interface and processing circuitry (see abstract, fig.1A-B, elements 120/102, 118/102, paragraphs [0004-0005], [0030-0032] and its description) configured to: receive a configuration message indicating one or more reserved resources, wherein the wireless device can receive downlink data and perform positioning reference signal (PRS) measurements in a reserved resource without a configured measurement gap (see abstract, fig.2, element 202, step 212, paragraphs [0002], [0008], [0077] and its description); determine that PRS measurement is prioritized in the reserved resource (see abstract, fig.2, element 202, step 214, paragraphs [0002], [0008], [0077] and its description); and measure at least one PRS in the reserved resource (see abstract, fig.2, element 202, step 214, paragraphs [0002], [0008], [0077], [0085] and its description). Regarding claim 11, Rao further discloses wherein the configuration message is a radio resource configuration (RRC) message (see abstract, fig.2, element 202, step 212, paragraphs [0002], [0008], [0077] and its description). Regarding claim 12, Rao further discloses wherein the configuration message indicates at least one of: a starting frame number, a starting subframe number, a starting slot number, a starting symbol number, a length, and a periodicity of the reserved resource (see paragraphs [0219-0221]) Regarding claim 14, Rao further discloses wherein the configuration message indicates a priority between the downlink data reception and the PRS measurement in the reserved resource (see abstract, fig.2, elements 202, 204 step 212, paragraphs [0002], [0008], [0077] and its description). Regarding claim 15, Rao further discloses wherein the downlink data is one of a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), and/or a Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) (see paragraphs [0112-0113]). Regarding claim 16, Rao further discloses wherein the activation message is one of a Medium Access Control (MAC) control element (CE) and a Downlink Control Information (DCI) (see paragraph [0085]). Regarding claim 18, Rao further discloses further configured to receive downlink channels/signals in resources outside of the activated reserved resource (see fig.1A, element 102c, 114b and its description). Regarding claim 19, Rao discloses a method performed by an access node (see abstract, fig.2, element 204, paragraphs [0008] and its description) the method comprising: generating configuration information including one or more reserved resources, wherein a wireless device can receive downlink data and perform positioning reference signal (PRS) measurements in a reserved resource without a configured measurement gap (see abstract, fig.2, elements 202, 204, paragraphs [0002], [0008], [0077] and its description); transmitting, to the wireless device, a configuration message indicating the one or more reserved resources (see abstract, fig.2, elements 202, 204, step 208, paragraphs [0002], [0008], [0077] and its description); transmitting, to the wireless device, an activation message indicating to activate at least one of reserved resources (see abstract, fig.2, elements 202, 204, steps 212-214, paragraphs [0002], [0008], [0077] and its description); and transmitting, to the wireless device, at least one PRS in the reserved resource (see abstract, fig.2, elements 202, 204, step 218, paragraphs [0002], [0008], [0077-0078] and its description). Regarding claim 20, Rao further discloses wherein the configuration message is a radio resource configuration (RRC) message (see abstract, fig.2, element 202, step 212, paragraphs [0002], [0008], [0077] and its description). Regarding claim 21, Rao further discloses wherein the configuration message indicates at least one of: a starting frame number, a starting subframe number, a starting slot number, a starting symbol number, a length ana a periodicity of the reversed resource (see paragraphs [0219-0221]). Regarding claim 23, Rao further discloses wherein the configuration message indicates a priority between the downlink data reception and the PRS measurement in the reserved resource (see abstract, fig.2, elements 202, 204 step 212, paragraphs [0002], [0008], [0077] and its description). Regarding claim 24, Rao further discloses wherein the downlink data is one of a physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH), a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH), and/or a Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) (see paragraphs [0101], [0112-0113], [0226]). Regarding claim 25, Rao further discloses wherein the activation message is a Medium Access Control (MAC) control element (CE) and a Downlink Control Information (DCI) (see paragraph [0085]. Regarding claim 27, Rao further comprising, transmitting downlink channels/signals in resources outside of the reserved resource (see fig.1A, element 102c, 114b and its description). Regarding claim 28, Rao further comprising, receiving, from a network node, a request to configure the one or more reserved resources (see paragraph [0077]). Regarding claim 29, Rao further discloses wherein the request is received via NRPP a signaling (see paragraphs [0073], [0077]). Regarding claims 1-3, 5-7, 9 and 30,recite limitations substantially similar to the claims 10-12, 14-16, 18-21, 23-25, 27-29. Therefore, these claims were rejected for similar reasons as stated above. Examiner's Note: Examiner has cited particular columns and line numbers in the references applied to the claims above for the convenience of the applicant. Although the specified citations are representative of the teachings of the art and are applied to specific limitations within the individual claim, other passages and figures may apply as well. It is respectfully requested from the applicant in preparing responses, to fully consider the references in entirety as potentially teaching all or part of the claimed invention, as well as the context of the passage as taught by the prior art or disclosed by the Examiner. When responding to this Office Action, Applicant is advised to clearly point out the patentable novelty which he or she thinks the claims present, in view of the state of the art disclosed by the references cited or the objections made. He or she must also show how the amendments avoid such references or objections See 37 CFR 1.111(c). Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure US-20240205869-A1 US-20240340145-A1 US-20240171340-A1 US-20240430722-A1. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CongVan Tran whose telephone number is (571) 272-7871. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Th. 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, Alison Slater can be reached on (571) 270-0375. 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. PNG media_image1.png 125 125 media_image1.png Greyscale UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE /CONGVAN TRAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2647
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Prosecution Timeline

Feb 06, 2024
Application Filed
Jan 23, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §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
89%
Grant Probability
94%
With Interview (+4.6%)
2y 7m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 1156 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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