Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/693,490

MEASUREMENT GAP SCHEDULING METHOD AND APPARATUS THEREFOR

Final Rejection §103§112
Filed
Mar 19, 2024
Priority
Sep 22, 2021 — nonprovisional of PCTCN2021119714
Examiner
CHOUDHURY, FAISAL
Art Unit
2478
Tech Center
2400 — Computer Networks
Assignee
Beijing Xiaomi Mobile Software Co., Ltd.
OA Round
2 (Final)
85%
Grant Probability
Favorable
3-4
OA Rounds
3m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 85% — above average
85%
Career Allowance Rate
681 granted / 802 resolved
+26.9% vs TC avg
Strong +16% interview lift
Without
With
+15.6%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 7m
Avg Prosecution
24 currently pending
Career history
832
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
1.3%
-38.7% vs TC avg
§103
83.0%
+43.0% vs TC avg
§102
9.8%
-30.2% vs TC avg
§112
3.2%
-36.8% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 802 resolved cases

Office Action

§103 §112
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 . REMARKS 1. On pages 7-8 of the remark Applicant argued prior art Wang does not mention the number of serving cells In response: The examiner respectfully disagrees. Prior art Wang at [0071]; [0110] discloses the network device configures 4 serving cell configurations for the terminal device through the RRC dedicated signaling, and each serving cell configuration includes 4 dedicated BWP configurations. Here RRC dedicated signaling corresponding to first indication and 4 serving cells corresponding to number of serving cells. Prior art Wang at [0115]-[01116] discloses there are four activated BWPs, of which BWP1 is associated with gap1, BWP2 is associated with gap2, BWP3 is associated with gap3, and BWP4 has no associated gap. Then, a gap with the highest priority is selected from gap1, gap2 and gap3 as the final activated or enabled measurement gap. Here priority of the gap associated with a particular cell corresponding to a state of the measurement gap. 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. Claim 4 recites the limitation "….the measurement gap…." at line 2 in claim 4. It is not clear from the claim language if the claimed measurement gap is the measurement gap as claimed at line 1 in claim 1 or the measurement gap as claimed at line 5 in claim 1 and therefore scope of the claim is not clear Claim 9 recites the limitation "….the measurement gap…." at line 2 in claim 9. It is not clear from the claim language if the claimed measurement gap is the measurement gap as claimed at line 1 in claim 6 or the measurement gap as claimed at line 5 in claim 6 and therefore scope of the claim is not clear Claim 14 recites the limitation "….the measurement gap…." at line 3 in claim 14. It is not clear from the claim language if the claimed measurement gap is the measurement gap as claimed at lines 3-4 in claim 11 or the measurement gap as claimed at line 6 in claim 11 and therefore scope of the claim is not clear Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 1. 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 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. 2. 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 of this title, 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 1, 3-6, 8-15 and 21-23 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over U.S. Pre-Grant Publication No US 2017/0064576 to Kusashima et al. (hereinafter Kusashima) in view of U.S. Publication No US 2023/0328571 to Wang et al. (hereinafter Wang) As to claims 1, 6, 11, 15, 21 and 22, Kusashima discloses a method for scheduling a measurement gap, performed by a terminal device, comprising: receiving first indication information for indicating a state of the measurement gap (Kusashima; [0317]; discloses the base station device transmits a measurement configuration message to the terminal device by using an RRC connection reconfiguration message of RRC signaling (radio resource control signal) and [0319] discloses the measurement configuration message includes a measurement gap. [0321] discloses the measurement gap configuration (meas Gap Config) is utilized for controlling a configuration of a measurement gap pattern and activation/deactivation of a measurement gap. In the measurement gap configuration (meas Gap Config), a gap pattern, a start system frame number (start SFN), and a start subframe number are notified as information in the case of activating the measurement gap). Kusashima discloses a terminal device receiving indication that indicates measurement gap configuration, but fails to disclose wherein the first indication information indicates a state of a measurement gap of each of the serving cell. However, Wang discloses wherein the first indication information is able to indicate a number of serving cells and a state of a measurement gap on each of the serving cells (Wang; [0071]; [0110] discloses the network device configures 4 serving cell configurations for the terminal device through the RRC dedicated signaling, and each serving cell configuration includes 4 dedicated BWP configurations. Here RRC dedicated signaling corresponding to first indication and 4 serving cells corresponding to number of serving cells. [0115]-[01116] discloses there are four activated BWPs, of which BWP1 is associated with gap1, BWP2 is associated with gap2, BWP3 is associated with gap3, and BWP4 has no associated gap. Then, a gap with the highest priority is selected from gap1, gap2 and gap3 as the final activated or enabled measurement gap. Here priority of the gap associated with a particular cell corresponding to a state of the measurement gap). It is obvious for a person of ordinary skilled in the art to combine the teachings before the effective filing date of the invention. One would be motivated to combine the teachings in order to select a measurement gap based on the priority and thus use the limited resources in an effective way As to claims 3, 8 and 13, the rejection of claim 1 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Kusashima-Wang discloses wherein receiving the first indication information comprises: receiving the first indication information based on a measurement gap configuration signaling (Kusashima; [0321] discloses the measurement gap configuration (meas Gap Config) is utilized for controlling a configuration of a measurement gap pattern and activation/deactivation of a measurement gap. In the measurement gap configuration (meas Gap Config), a gap pattern, a start system frame number (start SFN), and a start subframe number are notified as information in the case of activating the measurement gap) As to claims 4, 9 and 14, the rejection of claim 1 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Kusashima-Wang discloses further comprising: activating or deactivating the measurement gap based on the state of the measurement gap in the first indication information (Kusashima; [0321] discloses the measurement gap configuration (meas Gap Config) is utilized for controlling a configuration of a measurement gap pattern and activation/deactivation of a measurement gap. In the measurement gap configuration (meas Gap Config), a gap pattern, a start system frame number (start SFN), and a start subframe number are notified as information in the case of activating the measurement gap) As to claims 5 and 23, the rejection of claim 1 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Kusashima-Wang discloses further comprising: receiving second indication information for indicating a switched BWP (Wang; [0057] discloses a terminal device in an RRC connected state, the terminal device may be configured with up to 4 uplink BWPs and up to 4 downlink BWPs through RRC dedicated signaling, but only one uplink BWP and one downlink BWP may be activated at a time. The first activated BWP of the configured BWPs may be indicated in the RRC dedicated signaling. Meanwhile, the terminal device, when being in the RRC connected state, may switch among different BWPs through Downlink Control Information (DCI)); and activating or deactivating a measurement gap corresponding to the switched BWP based on a state of the measurement gap corresponding to the switched BWP in the second indication information (Wang; [0075] discloses when the terminal device is switched to a dedicated BWP, if the dedicated BWP is configured with an associated pre-configured measurement gap, the terminal device takes the pre-configured measurement gap as a measurement gap associated with the dedicated BWP and ignores a measurement gap configured in the MeasConfig. If the dedicated BWP is not configured with the associated pre-configured measurement gap, the terminal device takes the measurement gap configured in the MeasConfig as the measurement gap associated with the dedicated BWP) As to claim 10, the rejection of claim 1 as listed above is incorporated herein. In addition, Kusashima-Wang discloses further comprising: transmitting second indication information for indicating a switched BWP (Wang; [0057] discloses a terminal device in an RRC connected state, the terminal device may be configured with up to 4 uplink BWPs and up to 4 downlink BWPs through RRC dedicated signaling, but only one uplink BWP and one downlink BWP may be activated at a time. The first activated BWP of the configured BWPs may be indicated in the RRC dedicated signaling. Meanwhile, the terminal device, when being in the RRC connected state, may switch among different BWPs through Downlink Control Information (DCI)) Conclusion THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a). A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FAISAL CHOUDHURY whose telephone number is (571)270-3001. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8AM-6P.M. 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, Joseph Avellino can be reached at 5712723905. 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. /FAISAL CHOUDHURY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2478
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Mar 19, 2024
Application Filed
Feb 25, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103, §112
May 21, 2026
Response Filed
Jun 10, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §103, §112 (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

3-4
Expected OA Rounds
85%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+15.6%)
2y 7m (~3m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Moderate
PTA Risk
Based on 802 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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