DETAILED ACTION
Specification
The lengthy specification has not been checked to the extent necessary to determine the presence of all possible minor errors. Applicant’s cooperation is requested in correcting any errors of which applicant may become aware in the specification.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
Claim 30 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. The claim does not fall within at least one of the four categories of patent eligible subject matter because a computer readable medium typically covers forms of non-transitory tangible media and transitory propagating signals per se, particularly when the specification is silent. When the broadest reasonable interpretation of a claim covers a signal per se, the claims are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 101 as covering non-statutory subject matter. It is suggested that the claims be amended to narrow the claim to cover only statutory embodiments to avoid a rejection under 35 U.S.C. § 101 by adding the limitation “non-transitory” to the claim. Such an amendment would typically not raise the issue of new matter, even when the specification is silent because the broadest reasonable interpretation relies on the ordinary and customary meaning that includes signals per se.
The specification defines a “computer readable medium” as “a random-access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, combinations of the types of computer-readable media, or any other medium that can be used to store computer executable code in the form of instructions or data structures that can be accessed by a computer”, which are only examples of computer readable media and is therefore non-limiting. In the broadest reasonable interpretation of the claim, there is a possibility that the computer readable medium can include a transitory signal, which is non-statutory subject matter.
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)(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.
Claims 1-3, 9, 18-20, 29 and 30 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Huawei, HiSilicon, “Discussion on remaining issues for UE Rx-Tx time difference measurement requirements”, 3GPP TSG-RAN WG4 Meeting #98-bis-e, R4-2107001.
Regarding claim 1, R4-2107001 teaches an apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), comprising: a memory; at least one transceiver; and at least one processor, communicatively connected to the memory and the at least one transceiver, the at least one processor configured to: determine a reception (RX) reference signals (RS) (RX-RS) - transmission (TX) reference signals (RS) (TX-RS) proximity parameter defining a proximity window around the RX-RS resource for receiving the RX-RS [Section 2.1 and 2.2, proximity between RX-RS and TX-RS is determined]; identify a TX-RS resource of at least one TX-RS resource for transmitting TX-RS within the proximity window around a RX-RS resource for receiving RX-RS, an identified TX-RS resource being used by the UE for determining a UE RX-TX time difference associated with a time difference between reception of the RX-RS and transmission of the TX-RS [Section 2.2, resource which is period for transmission is determined based on difference between RX-RS and TX-RS]; and measure the UE RX-TX time difference based on received RX-RS in the RX-RS resource and transmitted TX-RS in the identified TX-RS resource when TX-RS is transmitted in the identified TX-RS resource [Section 2.2, difference between RX-RS and TX-RS is determined based on TX-RS transmission ad RX-RS reception].
Regarding claims 2 and 19, R4-2107001 teaches the UE RX-TX time difference is measured based on the identified TX-RS resource corresponding to the proximity window [Section 2.2].
Regarding claims 3 and 20, R4-2107001 teaches receiving a configuration comprising the RX-RS-TX-RS proximity parameter [Section 2.2].
Regarding claim 9, R4-2107001 teaches one TX-RS resource, and wherein the one TX-RS resource is identified for determining the UE RX-TX time difference [Section 2.2].
Regarding claim 18, R4-2107001 teaches a method of wireless communication of a user equipment (UE), comprising: determining a reception (RX) reference signals (RS) (RX-RS) - transmission (TX) reference signals (RS) (TX-RS) proximity parameter defining a proximity window around the RX-RS resource for receiving the RX-RS [Section 2.1 and 2.2, proximity between RX-RS and TX-RS is determined]; identifying a TX-RS resource of at least one TX-RS resource for transmitting TX-RS within the proximity window around a RX-RS resource for receiving RX-RS, an identified TX-RS resource being used by the UE for determining a UE RX-TX time difference associated with a time difference between reception of the RX-RS and transmission of the TX-RS [Section 2.2, resource which is period for transmission is determined based on difference between RX-RS and TX-RS]; and measuring the UE RX-TX time difference based on received RX-RS in the RX-RS resource and transmitted TX-RS in the identified TX-RS resource when TX-RS is transmitted in the identified TX-RS resource [Section 2.2, difference between RX-RS and TX-RS is determined based on TX-RS transmission ad RX-RS reception].
Regarding claim 29 R4-2107001 teaches and apparatus for wireless communication at a user equipment (UE), comprising: means for determining a reception (RX) reference signals (RS) (RX-RS) - transmission (TX) reference signals (RS) (TX-RS) proximity parameter defining a proximity window around the RX-RS resource for receiving the RX-RS [Section 2.1 and 2.2, proximity between RX-RS and TX-RS is determined]; means for identifying a TX-RS resource of at least one TX-RS resource for transmitting TX-RS within the proximity window around a RX-RS resource for receiving RX-RS, an identified TX-RS resource being used by the UE for determining a UE RX-TX time difference associated with a time difference between reception of the RX-RS and transmission of the TX-RS [Section 2.2, resource which is period for transmission is determined based on difference between RX-RS and TX-RS]; and means for measuring the UE RX-TX time difference based on received RX-RS in the RX-RS resource and transmitted TX-RS in the identified TX-RS resource when TX-RS is transmitted in the identified TX-RS resource [Section 2.2, difference between RX-RS and TX-RS is determined based on TX-RS transmission ad RX-RS reception].
Regarding claim 30, R4-2107001 teaches a computer-readable medium storing computer executable code at a user equipment (UE), the code when executed by a processor causes the processor to: determine a reception (RX) reference signals (RS) (RX-RS) - transmission (TX) reference signals (RS) (TX-RS) proximity parameter defining a proximity window around the RX-RS resource for receiving the RX-RS [Section 2.1 and 2.2, proximity between RX-RS and TX-RS is determined]; identify a TX-RS resource of at least one TX-RS resource for transmitting TX-RS within the proximity window around a RX-RS resource for receiving RX-RS, an identified TX-RS resource being used by the UE for determining a UE RX-TX time difference associated with a time difference between reception of the RX-RS and transmission of the TX-RS [Section 2.2, resource which is period for transmission is determined based on difference between RX-RS and TX-RS]; and measure the UE RX-TX time difference based on received RX-RS in the RX-RS resource and transmitted TX-RS in the identified TX-RS resource when TX-RS is transmitted in the identified TX-RS resource [Section 2.2, difference between RX-RS and TX-RS is determined based on TX-RS transmission ad RX-RS reception].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 4-8, 10-17 and 21-28 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure is cited on the form PTO-892.
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/Chandrahas B Patel/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2464