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 .
Applicant amended claims 7-10 in the amendment filed on 07/09/2026.
The claims 7-10 are pending.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 7 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
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) 7-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yuan et al (US Patent application No. 2023/0422180 A1) in view of Deghel et al (US Patent Publication No. 2024/0023026 A1).
With respect to claim 7, Yuan teaches a terminal comprising: a receiver that receives a single frequency network (SFN) physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) for triggering a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) to be repetitively transmitted (paragraph 0082 discloses the base station may transmit the multiple PDCCH repetitions according to a single frequency network (SFN) configuration. For example, when the PDCCH is associated with an SFN repetition configuration, the base station transmits the DCI message in one CORESET using multiple TCI states (e.g., using different downlink beams that are associated with different antenna panels and/or different TRPs, among other examples; a PDCCH scheduling the uplink transmission is associated with a repetition configuration with multiple CORESETs and/or a CORESET associated with multiple TCI states).
Yuan does not explicitly disclose a processor that determines a spatial relation or a pathloss reference signal used for the PUCCH, by using a quasi-co-location (QCL) assumption of a control resource set (CORESET) associated with two linked search spaces for the PDCCH.
However, Deghel teaches a processor that determines a spatial relation or a pathloss reference signal used for the PUCCH, by using a quasi-co-location (QCL) assumption of a control resource set (CORESET) associated with two linked search spaces for the PDCCH (paragraph 0055; 0056 disclose the UE may detect the need to determine two RS resources to use for the calculation of two pathloss values to be used for PUCCH; The first RS resource may be the RS of the first TCI or QCL assumption of the CORESET with the lest index having two TCI states or QCL assumptions, and the second RS resource may be the RS of the second TCI or QCL assumption of this same CORESET) in order to efficiently perform transmission repetitions (Abstract). Therefore, based on Yuan in view of Deghel, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Deghel to the system of Yuan in order to efficiently perform transmission repetitions.
The limitations of claim 8 are rejected in the analysis of claim 7 above, and the claim
is rejected on that basis.
The limitations of claim 9 are rejected in the analysis of claim 7 above, and the claim
is rejected on that basis.
With respect to claim 10, Yuan teaches a system comprising a base station and a terminal ((base station 110 and terminal 120, Figs.3 and 7A), wherein the base station comprises: a transmitter that transmits a single frequency network (SFN) physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) for triggering a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) to be repetitively transmitted (paragraph 0082 disclose the base station transmitting the multiple PDCCH repetitions according to a single frequency network (SFN) configuration. For example, when the PDCCH is associated with an SFN repetition configuration, the base station transmits the DCI message in one CORESET using multiple TCI states (e.g., using different downlink beams that are associated with different antenna panels and/or different TRPs, among other examples; a PDCCH scheduling the uplink transmission is associated with a repetition configuration with multiple CORESETs and/or a CORESET associated with multiple TCI states);
and the terminal (UE 120) comprises: a receiver that receives the PDCCH (paragraph 0081-0083 disclose a UE receiving multiple repetitions of a PDCCH from a base station).
Yuan does not explicitly disclose a processor that determines a spatial relation or a pathloss reference signal used for the PUCCH, by using a quasi-co-location (QCL) assumption of a control resource set (CORESET) associated with two linked search spaces for the PDCCH.
However, Deghel teaches a processor that determines a spatial relation or a pathloss reference signal used for the PUCCH, by using a quasi-co-location (QCL) assumption of a control resource set (CORESET) associated with two linked search spaces for the PDCCH (paragraph 0055; 0056 disclose the UE may detect the need to determine two RS resources to use for the calculation of two pathloss values to be used for PUCCH; The first RS resource may be the RS of the first TCI or QCL assumption of the CORESET with the lest index having two TCI states or QCL assumptions, and the second RS resource may be the RS of the second TCI or QCL assumption of this same CORESET) in order to efficiently perform transmission repetitions (Abstract). Therefore, based on Yuan in view of Deghel, it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Deghel to the system of Yuan in order to efficiently perform transmission repetitions.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 CHEIKH T NDIAYE whose telephone number is (571)270-3914. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8:00am-5:30pm.
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/CHEIKH T NDIAYE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2447
9/14/2026
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