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 .
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, the subject matter of “receiving, from an upper layer, a service data unit, SDU, wherein a discard timer is started upon receiving the SDU; and based on the discard timer expiring, discarding the received SDU, wherein, based on the received SDU belonging to a set, all SDUs belonging to the set to which the received SDU belongs are discarded.” must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 14 and 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 14 recites the subject matter “submitting the received SDU to a lower layer during the discard timer is running”. It is however unclear on exactly what is meant by such limitation. Examiner suggests clarifying such subject matter with such term as “while”. Similar rationale is applied to claim 20 reciting similar subject matter.
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 13-16, 18-22, 24-26 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chun et al. (US 2016/0286426), in view of Sammour et al. (US 2009/0103478).
Regarding claim 13, 19, 25, 26, Chun discloses a method for performing operations of a user equipment, UE, in a wireless communication system (A method in which a user equipment processes data in a wireless mobile communication system is provided and the present invention is implemented by firmware or software, the embodiments of the present invention may be implemented in the form of modules, processes, functions, or the like which perform the features or operations described above. Software code can be stored in a memory unit so that it can be executed by a processor, abstract and [0066]-[0068] and [0102]-[0103] and page 8 claim 28 and [0013]-[0015] and [0082]), the method comprising:
receiving, from an upper layer, a service data unit, SDU, wherein a discard timer is started upon receiving the SDU (the PDCP entity starts (in other terms, activates, runs or operates) a timer for a PDCP SDU when the PDCP SDU is received from an upper layer…the timer can also run commonly for a specific number of PDCP SDUs or a specific group of PDCP SDUs. For example, when a specific number of related PDCP SDUs or a specific group of PDCP SDUs is present and the timer can be referred to as a “discard_timer” since it is associated with discarding data, [0066]-[0068] and page 8 claim 28 and [0013]-[0015] and [0088] and [0082]); and
based on the discard timer expiring, discarding the received SDU (When the timer expires while the PDCP entity has not received any notification of whether or not the PDCP PDU has been successfully transmitted from the RLC entity, the PDCP entity can decide to discard a PDCP SDU associated with the timer, [0068] and page 8 claim 28 and [0013]-[0015] and [0082]),
Chun however fails to disclose wherein, based on the received SDU belonging to a set, all SDUs belonging to the set to which the received SDU belongs are discarded. Chun however discloses the timer can also run commonly for a specific number of PDCP SDUs or a specific group of PDCP SDUs. For example, when a specific number of related PDCP SDUs or a specific group of PDCP SDUs is present ([0066] and [0088]). In a similar field of endeavor, Sammour discloses based on the received SDU belonging to a set, all SDUs belonging to the set to which the received SDU belongs are discarded (When the discard timer (DTP1) expires, the transmitting PDCP entity discards the associated SDU/PDU (or SDUs/PDUs, in case more than one SDU/PDU are associated with the same timer (correlating to a group/set of SDUs)), [0068] and [0071] and [0084]). It 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 to incorporate the concept of discarding all or a group of SDUs associated with a timer as disclosed by Sammour into the method in which a UE processes data comprising a discard timer that runs commonly for a specific group/set of SDUs as disclosed by Chun in order to improve the system and efficiently discard the proper SDUs associated with a timer, such as all SDUs belonging to a group in which is associated with a discard timer.
Regarding claim 14, 20, Chun discloses submitting the received SDU to a lower layer during the discard timer is running (transferring a second data block including the first data block to a lower layer and the RLC entity has notified the PDCP entity that the RLC SDU (i.e., PDCP PDU) has been successfully transmitted while the timer is running , [0013]-[0014] and [0066]-[0068] and [0082] and [0066] and [0049]-[0050]).
Regarding claim 15, 21, Chun discloses wherein the discard timer is configured per SDU (the PDCP entity starts (in other terms, activates, runs or operates) a timer for a PDCP SDU when the PDCP SDU is received from an upper layer. Preferably, the upper layer is a Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer. The timer can run individually for each PDCP SDU. The timer can also run commonly for a specific number of PDCP SDUs or a specific group of PDCP SDUs. For example, when a specific number of related PDCP SDUs or a specific group of PDCP SDUs is present, [0066] and [0013]-[0015] and [0088] and [0082]).
Regarding claim 16, 22, Chun discloses wherein the discard timer is configured based on a type of the set (The predetermined time can be set flexibly taking into consideration the type of data to be transmitted and the timer expiration time can be set flexibly according to data type since not all IP packets or PDCP PDUs have the same importance…Accordingly, a different timer value can be set according to the characteristics or attributes of packets. A timer may not be activated or the expiration time thereof may be set to infinity for a specified packet or PDCP PDU/SDU, [0065]-[0066] and [0070]).
Regarding claim 18, 24, Chun discloses wherein based on the received SDU belonging to the set, the received SDU is a start SDU of the set (when a specific number of related PDCP SDUs or a specific group of PDCP SDUs is present, the timer can run only for the first PDCP SDU, [0066] and [0013]-[0014]).
Claim(s) 17, 23 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chun et al, in view of Sammour et al., in further view of Turtinen et al. (US 2020/0045582).
Regarding claim 17, 23, Chun and Sammour fails to disclose based on the received SDU belonging to the set, receiving information related to at least one of a start of the set and an end of the set from the upper layer. Chun however discloses the timer can also run commonly for a specific number of PDCP SDUs or a specific group of PDCP SDUs. For example, when a specific number of related PDCP SDUs or a specific group of PDCP SDUs is present ([0066] and [0088]). In a similar field of endeavor, Turtinen discloses based on the received SDU belonging to the set, receiving information related to at least one of a start of the set and an end of the set from the upper layer (after at least some grouping has been executed, a first SDU is identified at 420 for a first group. Because it is the first SDU, it is prepended with a sub-header comprising its corresponding LCID and length field size and it is checked whether this next sub-header is the last SDU sub-header in the group, where if this is not the case, the process repeats through 451, 460 and 440 until the sub-header being constructed is the last SDU sub-header for the group, at which point the process moves to 452 where it is indicated in the sub-header being constructed that it is the last sub-header in the group. While not shown for brevity, the sub-header being constructed is then completed and associated with the SDU, [0024]-[0025] and [0014] and [0019] and [0021 and figure 2). It 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 to incorporate the concept of receiving sub-headers indicating to at least one of a start and an end of a set/group as disclosed by Turtinen into the method in which a UE processes data comprising a discard timer that runs commonly for a specific group of SDUs as disclosed by Chun and Sammour in order to improve the system and efficiently indicate a specific group of SDUs such that proper discarding may be accomplished.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Sharma et al. (US 2021/0227422) disclosing if any discard timers are found to have expired, then control passes to step 708 in which each PDCP SDU associated with an expired timer is discarded, such that it will not be passed to the RLC/MAC entity 454 for transmission on the wireless access interface 456 ([0141]).
Xiao et al. (US 2017/0085492) disclosing discarding one or more PDCP Service Data Units (SDUs) each having an associated discard timer expired; and transmitting to a PDCP entity at a receiving side a PDCP control Protocol Data Unit (PDU) indicating all or part of the expired PDCP SDUs ([0012]).
Lee et al. (US 2020/0205224) disclosing when the discard timer expires, if not all segments of the RLC SDU are received to be reassembled, the receiving AM RLC entity may discard RLC SDU segments belonging to the RLC SDU ([0180]).
Lee et al. (US 2004/0184437) disclosing if a particular SDU fails to be properly transmitted upon expiration of time period set by the timer, that SDU is discarded and all SDUs between the beginning of a transmitting window and the corresponding SDU are discarded as well ([0030]).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NGUYEN HOANG NGO whose telephone number is (571)272-8398. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9am-5pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kwang Yao can be reached at 571-272-3182. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/NGUYEN H NGO/Examiner, Art Unit 2473