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 .
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.
Claim(s) 1 – 4, 6 – 9, 15, 31 – 35 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Prakash et al. (US 2021/0329584).
Regarding Claim 1, Prakash teaches a positioning method, performed by a terminal, comprising: sending first indication information to an access network device, wherein the first indication information is configured to indicate at least one of: a type of the terminal, and positioning reference signaling measurement information (Section 0082, positioning reference signals (PRS), PLEASE NOTE: Section 0066 of Applicants’ specification indicate that the “at least one of” limitation can be disjunctive therefore Examiner has interpreted said limitation as disjunctive).
Regarding Claim 4, Prakash teaches a positioning method, performed by an access network device, comprising: receiving first indication information from a terminal, wherein the first indication information is configured to indicate at least one of: a type of the terminal, and positioning reference signaling measurement information (Section 0082, positioning reference signals (PRS), PLEASE NOTE: Section 0066 of Applicants’ specification indicate that the “at least one of” limitation can be disjunctive therefore Examiner has interpreted said limitation as disjunctive); and sending second indication information to a core network device, wherein the second indication information is generated according to the first indication information (Section 0083, UE can assist core network entity in calculating an estimate of its position thus there will be a transmission or connection to said core network entity that enables the transmission of positioning information to said core network entity).
Regarding Claim 9, Prakash teaches a positioning method, performed by a core network device, comprising: receiving second indication information from an access network device (Section 0083, UE can assist core network entity in calculating an estimate of its position thus there will be a transmission or connection to said core network entity that enables the transmission of positioning information to said core network entity), wherein the second indication information is configured to indicate at least one of the followings: a type of a terminal, and positioning reference signaling measurement information (Section 0082, positioning reference signals (PRS), PLEASE NOTE: Section 0066 of Applicants’ specification indicate that the “at least one of” limitation can be disjunctive therefore Examiner has interpreted said limitation as disjunctive).
Regarding Claims 2, 15, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claims 1, 9. Prakash further teaches wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement information is at least one of: a measured strength value of positioning reference signaling; a measured time difference of arrival of the positioning reference signaling; a calibrated strength value of the positioning reference signaling; and a calibrated time difference of the arrival of the positioning reference signaling (Section 0082, time difference of arrival (TDOA), PLEASE NOTE: Section 0070 of Applicants’ specification indicate that the “at least one of” limitation can be disjunctive therefore Examiner has interpreted said limitation as disjunctive).
Regarding Claim 3, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 2. Prakash further teaches determining the calibrated strength value of the positioning reference signaling by calibrating the measured strength value of the positioning reference signaling according to the type of the terminal; or determining the calibrated time difference of the arrival of the positioning reference signaling by calibrating the time difference of the arrival of the positioning reference signaling according to the type of the terminal (Section 0082, TDOA, UE can be different types such as mobile phone, tablet computer or smartwatch for example (Section 0040)).
Regarding Claim 6, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 4. Prakash further teaches wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement information is a measured time difference of arrival of positioning reference signaling (Section 0082, TDOA), and the method further comprises: determining a calibrated time difference of the arrival of the positioning reference signaling by calibrating the measured time difference of the arrival of the positioning reference signaling according to the type of the terminal (Section 0082, TDOA, UE can be different types such as mobile phone, tablet computer or smartwatch for example (Section 0040)); and generating the second indication information according to the calibrated time difference of the arrival of the positioning reference signaling, wherein the second indication information comprises the calibrated time difference of the arrival of the positioning reference signaling (Section 0082, TDOA).
Regarding Claim 7, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 4. Prakash further teaches wherein the second indication information is configured to indicate at least one of: the type of the terminal, and the positioning reference signaling measurement information (Section 0082, positioning reference signals (PRS), PLEASE NOTE: Section 0066 of Applicants’ specification indicate that the “at least one of” limitation can be disjunctive therefore Examiner has interpreted said limitation as disjunctive).
Regarding Claim 8, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 4. Prakash further teaches wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement information is at least one of: a measured strength value of positioning reference signaling; a measured time difference of arrival of the positioning reference signaling; a calibrated strength value of the positioning reference signaling; and a calibrated time difference of the arrival of the positioning reference signaling (Section 0082, time difference of arrival (TDOA), PLEASE NOTE: Section 0070 of Applicants’ specification indicate that the “at least one of” limitation can be disjunctive therefore Examiner has interpreted said limitation as disjunctive).
Regarding Claim 31, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 1. Prakash further teaches a terminal, comprising: a processor, and a memory storing a computer program that, when executed by the processor, causes the method of claim 1 (Figure 3, Section 0066)
Regarding Claim 32, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 1. Prakash further teaches a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored therein instructions that, when executed, cause the method of claim 1 to be implemented (Figure 3, Section 0066, memory (382)).
Regarding Claim 33, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 4. Prakash further teaches an access network device, comprising: a processor, and a memory storing a computer program that, when executed by the processor, causes the method of claim 4 to be implemented (Figure 3, Section 0066).
Regarding Claim 34, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 9. Prakash further teaches a core network device, comprising: a processor, and a memory storing a computer program that, when executed by the processor, causes the method of claim 9 to be implemented (Figure 1, EPC (160), 5GCN (190), serving gateways such as serving gateway (166) comprise processors and memory storing executable code run by said processors).
Regarding Claim 35, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 4. Prakash further teaches a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored therein instructions that, when executed, cause the method of claim 4 to be implemented (Figure 3, Section 0066, memory (342)).
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.
Claim(s) 5, 13, 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Prakash et al. (US 2021/0329584) in view of Zhang et al. (US 2021/0410103).
Regarding Claim 5, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 4. Prakash does not teach wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement information is a measured strength value of positioning reference signaling, and the method further comprises: determining a calibrated strength value of the positioning reference signaling by calibrating the measured strength value of the positioning reference signaling according to the type of the terminal; and generating the second indication information according to the calibrated strength value of the positioning reference signaling, wherein the second indication information comprises the calibrated strength value of the positioning reference signaling.
Zhang, which also teaches positioning, teaches wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement information is a measured strength value of positioning reference signaling (Section 0112, signal strengths of PRS transmissions), and the method further comprises: determining a calibrated strength value of the positioning reference signaling by calibrating the measured strength value of the positioning reference signaling according to the type of the terminal (Section 0112, signal strengths of PRS transmissions, UE can different types such as cellphones, smartphones, or laptops for example (Section 0039)); and generating the second indication information according to the calibrated strength value of the positioning reference signaling, wherein the second indication information comprises the calibrated strength value of the positioning reference signaling (Section 0112, signal strengths of PRS transmissions).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Prakash with the above features of Zhang for the purpose of improving positioning estimates as taught by Zhang.
Regarding Claim 13, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 9. Prakash does not teach wherein the second indication information is configured to indicate positioning reference signaling measurement information, wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement information is a calibrated positioning reference signaling measurement value, and the method further comprises: determining a position of the terminal according to the calibrated positioning reference signaling measurement value.
Zhang, which also teaches positioning, teaches wherein the second indication information is configured to indicate positioning reference signaling measurement information, wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement information is a calibrated positioning reference signaling measurement value (Section 0112, signal strengths of PRS transmissions), and the method further comprises: determining a position of the terminal according to the calibrated positioning reference signaling measurement value (Section 0112, signal strengths of PRS transmissions which enable the determination of the position).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Prakash with the above features of Zhang for the purpose of improving positioning estimates as taught by Zhang.
Regarding Claim 14, Prakash combination teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 13. Prakash further teaches wherein the calibrated positioning reference signaling measurement value comprises: a calibrated strength value of positioning reference signaling, or a calibrated time difference of arrival of the positioning reference signaling (Section 0082, TDOA).
Claim(s) 10 – 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Prakash et al. (US 2021/0329584) in view of Zhang et al. (US 2021/0410103), as applied to Claim 9 set forth above, and further in view of Choi et al. (US 2019/0349881)
Regarding Claim 10, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 9. Prakash further teaches wherein the second indication information is configured to indicate the positioning reference signaling measurement information (Section 0082, positioning reference signals (PRS)).
Prakash does not teach wherein the second indication information is configured to indicate the type of the terminal and, wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement information is a positioning reference signaling measurement value, and the method further comprises: determining a positioning algorithm according to the type of the terminal; and determining a position of the terminal by processing the positioning reference signaling measurement value with the positioning algorithm.
Zhang, which also teaches positioning, teaches wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement information is a positioning reference signaling measurement value (Section 0112, signal strengths of PRS transmissions), and the method further comprises: determining a positioning algorithm according to the type of the terminal (Section 0112, signal strengths of PRS transmissions, UE can different types such as cellphones, smartphones, or laptops for example (Section 0039)); and determining a position of the terminal by processing the positioning reference signaling measurement value with the positioning algorithm (Section 0112, signal strengths of PRS transmissions which enable the determination of the position).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Prakash with the above features of Zhang for the purpose of improving positioning estimates as taught by Zhang.
Prakash combination does not teach wherein the second indication information is configured to indicate the type of the terminal.
Choi, which also teaches positioning, teaches wherein the indication information is configured to indicate the type of the terminal (Section 0125).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Prakash combination with the above features of Choi for the purpose of providing narrowband internet of things (NB IoT) capability which provides long battery life and high connection density, which are benefits of NB IoT.
Regarding Claim 11, Prakash teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 9. Prakash further teaches wherein the second indication information is configured to indicate the positioning reference signaling measurement information (Section 0082, positioning reference signals (PRS)).
Prakash does not teach wherein the second indication information is configured to indicate the type of the terminal and, wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement information is a positioning reference signaling measurement value, and the method further comprises: calibrating the positioning reference signaling measurement value according to the type of the terminal; and determining a position of the terminal according to a calibrated positioning reference signaling measurement value.
Zhang, which also teaches positioning, teaches wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement information is a positioning reference signaling measurement value (Section 0112, signal strengths of PRS transmissions), and the method further comprises: calibrating the positioning reference signaling measurement value according to the type of the terminal (Section 0112, signal strengths of PRS transmissions, UE can different types such as cellphones, smartphones, or laptops for example (Section 0039)); and determining a position of the terminal according to a calibrated positioning reference signaling measurement value (Section 0112, signal strengths of PRS transmissions which enable the determination of the position).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Prakash with the above features of Zhang for the purpose of improving positioning estimates as taught by Zhang.
Prakash combination does not teach wherein the second indication information is configured to indicate the type of the terminal.
Choi, which also teaches positioning, teaches wherein the indication information is configured to indicate the type of the terminal (Section 0125).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Prakash combination with the above features of Choi for the purpose of providing narrowband internet of things (NB IoT) capability which provides long battery life and high connection density, which are benefits of NB IoT.
Regarding Claim 12, Prakash combination teaches all of the claimed limitations recited in Claim 10. Prakash further teaches wherein the positioning reference signaling measurement value comprises: a measured strength value of positioning reference signaling, or a measured time difference of arrival of the positioning reference signal (Section 0082, TDOA).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RAYMOND S DEAN whose telephone number is (571)272-7877. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday, 6:00-2:30, EST.
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/RAYMOND S DEAN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2645 Raymond S. Dean
January 23, 2026
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