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 .
Response to Amendment
Applicant’s amendment filed on July 10, 2026 has been entered. Claims 1-2, 13 and 16 have been amended. No claims are canceled. No claims have been added. Claims 1-20 are still pending in this application, with claims 1, 2, 13 and 16 being independent.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claims 1-3, 6, 8, 10, 12-14, 16-17 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Matsumura et al. (Int. Pub. No. WO 2022/153540 A1), hereinafter referred to as ‘540.
Regarding claim 1, ‘540 discloses a method at a user equipment(UE) (terminal See Fig. 13, #20), the method comprising:
receiving radio resource configuration messages to configure a transmission configuration indicator state pool in a physical downlink shared channel-configuration (The TCI pool (set) may be a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter, or may be a plurality of TCI states (active TCI states, active TCI pools, sets) activated by a MAC CE among a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter. Each TCI state is QCL type A/D RS may be used. QCL TYPE A/The SSB, the CSI-RS, or the SRS may be set as the D RS. In the example of FIG. 1A, the RRC parameter (information element) sets multiple TCI states for both DL and UL; See [0070]-[0071]) in a bandwidth part, a component carrier, or a combination thereof (A single TCI state pool set by RRC for the set of multiple CCs (cells) is shared. For example, the cell group TCI state may be defined, or the PDSCH TCI state pool in the reference cell may be reused. In the TCI state, the CC (cell) ID for the QCL type A RS may be determined according to the target CC (cell) in the TCI state without the CC (cell) ID for the QCL type A RS.; See [0089]), wherein the transmission configuration indicator state pool comprises a plurality of transmission configuration indicator states (The TCI pool (set) may be a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter, or may be a plurality of TCI states (active TCI states, active TCI pools, sets) activated by a MAC CE among a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter; See [0070]), the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states are configured for use in a list of carriers that comprises a list of QCL-TypeA resources (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4); See Fig. 5 and [0139]), wherein a transmission configuration indicator state of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states is associated with the list of QCL-TypeA resources (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4). In the example shown in FIG. 5, TCI # N -2 is applied to CC # N, and TCI # N -2 indicates QCL type A RS # N -2 and QCL type D RS # N -2 (N is an integer of 1 to 4), respectively; See Fig. 5 and [0139]), and each QCL-TypeA resource in the list of QCL-TypeA resources comprises a reference signal defined in a different carrier of the list of carriers (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4). In the example shown in FIG. 5, TCI # N -2 is applied to CC # N, and TCI # N -2 indicates QCL type A RS # N -2 and QCL type D RS # N -2 (N is an integer of 1 to 4), respectively; See Fig. 5 and [0139]);
receiving a medium access control control element message that activates a subset of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states for use (The MAC CE may activate a plurality of TCI states among a plurality of set TCI states; See [0071]); and
receiving a downlink control information signal that indicates a transmission configuration indicator state of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states for a physical downlink shared channel, a physical downlink control channel, a physical uplink shared channel, a physical uplink control channel, or a combination thereof (The DCI may indicate one of the plurality of TCI states activated. The DCI is UL／ The DL DCI may be the DL DCI. The indicated TCI state is UL／ DL CHANNEL／ At least one (or all) of the RS may be applied. One DCI may indicate both the UL TCI and the DL TCI; See [0071]) in a selected bandwidth part, a selected component carrier, or a combination thereof (The UE is one CC／ In the DL BWP, or CC／ In one set of BWPs, an activation command to map up to eight TCI states is received at a code point of a DCI field (TCI field). CC／ If one set of TCI state IDs is activated for one set of DL BWPs, then the applicable list of CCs is determined by the CC indicated in the activation command, and the same set of TCI states is applied to all DL BWPs in the indicated CC; See [0059]).
Regarding claim 2, ‘540 discloses a user equipment (UE) (user terminal See Fig. 13, #20), comprising:
at least one memory (memory; See Fig. 14, #1002); and
at least one processor (control unit; See Fig. 13, #210) coupled with the at least one memory and configured to cause the UE to:
receive radio resource configuration messages to configure a transmission configuration indicator state pool in a physical downlink shared channel-configuration (The TCI pool (set) may be a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter, or may be a plurality of TCI states (active TCI states, active TCI pools, sets) activated by a MAC CE among a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter. Each TCI state is QCL type A/D RS may be used. QCL TYPE A/The SSB, the CSI-RS, or the SRS may be set as the D RS. In the example of FIG. 1A, the RRC parameter (information element) sets multiple TCI states for both DL and UL; See [0070]-[0071]) in a bandwidth part, a component carrier, or a combination thereof (A single TCI state pool set by RRC for the set of multiple CCs (cells) is shared. For example, the cell group TCI state may be defined, or the PDSCH TCI state pool in the reference cell may be reused. In the TCI state, the CC (cell) ID for the QCL type A RS may be determined according to the target CC (cell) in the TCI state without the CC (cell) ID for the QCL type A RS.; See [0089]), wherein the transmission configuration indicator state pool comprises a plurality of transmission configuration indicator states (The TCI pool (set) may be a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter, or may be a plurality of TCI states (active TCI states, active TCI pools, sets) activated by a MAC CE among a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter; See [0070]), the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states are configured for use in a list of carriers that comprises a list of QCL-TypeA resources (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4); See Fig. 5 and [0139]), wherein a transmission configuration indicator state of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states is associated with the list of QCL-TypeA resources (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4). In the example shown in FIG. 5, TCI # N -2 is applied to CC # N, and TCI # N -2 indicates QCL type A RS # N -2 and QCL type D RS # N -2 (N is an integer of 1 to 4), respectively; See Fig. 5 and [0139]), and each QCL-TypeA resource in the list of QCL-TypeA resources comprises a reference signal defined in a different carrier of the list of carriers (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4). In the example shown in FIG. 5, TCI # N -2 is applied to CC # N, and TCI # N -2 indicates QCL type A RS # N -2 and QCL type D RS # N -2 (N is an integer of 1 to 4), respectively; See Fig. 5 and [0139]);
receive a medium access control control element message that activates a subset of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states for use (The MAC CE may activate a plurality of TCI states among a plurality of set TCI states; See [0071]); and
receive a downlink control information signal that indicates a transmission configuration indicator state (The DCI may indicate one of the plurality of TCI states activated. The DCI is UL／ The DL DCI may be the DL DCI. The indicated TCI state is UL／ DL CHANNEL／ At least one (or all) of the RS may be applied. One DCI may indicate both the UL TCI and the DL TCI; See [0071]) in a selected bandwidth part, a selected component carrier, or a combination thereof (The UE is one CC／ In the DL BWP, or CC／ In one set of BWPs, an activation command to map up to eight TCI states is received at a code point of a DCI field (TCI field). CC／ If one set of TCI state IDs is activated for one set of DL BWPs, then the applicable list of CCs is determined by the CC indicated in the activation command, and the same set of TCI states is applied to all DL BWPs in the indicated CC; See [0059]).
Regarding claim 3, ‘540 further discloses the UE of claim 2, wherein the transmission configuration indicator state comprises:
a QCL-TypeD resource applied to the physical downlink shared channel, the physical downlink control channel, or the combination thereof (Each TCI state is QCL type A/D RS may be used. QCL TYPE A/The SSB, the CSI-RS, or the SRS may be set as the D RS. In the example of FIG. 1A, the RRC parameter (information element) sets multiple TCI states for both DL and UL; See [0070]-[0071]); or
a first quasi-co-location type resource applied to the physical downlink shared channel, the physical downlink control channel, the physical uplink shared channel, the physical uplink control channel, or some combination thereof.
Regarding claim 6, ‘540 further discloses the UE of claim 3, wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the UE to in response to the transmission configuration indicator being applied for the component carrier, apply the QCL-TypeD resource or the first quasi-co-location type resource defined in the component carrier as spatial receive information for downlink reception in the component carrier (The TCI state is information regarding a quasi-co-location (QCL) of the signal/channel, and may also be referred to as a spatial Rx parameter, spatial relation information, etc. The TCI state may be configured in the UE for each channel or each signal. An activation MAC CE of a spatial relation of A-SRS/SP-SRS activates the spatial relation associated with the same SRS resource ID on all BWPs/CCs in the applicable CC list; See [0014] and [0056]).
Regarding claim 8, ‘540 further discloses the UE of claim 3, wherein the transmission configuration indicator state comprises a second quasi-co-location type resource (QCL type A and type D; See Fig. 5).
Regarding claim 10, ‘540 further discloses the UE of claim 2, wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the UE to, in response to the transmission configuration indicator being applied for the component carrier, apply the QCL-TypeA resource (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4); See Fig. 5 and [0139]) that has a reference signal defined in the component carrier as a reference for Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, delay spread, or some combination thereof (QCL type A (QCL-A): Doppler shift, Doppler spread, average delay, and delay spread; See [0017]).
Regarding claim 12, ‘540 further discloses the UE of claim 2, wherein the list of carriers is defined by radio resource configuration (The TCI pool (set) may be a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter, or may be a plurality of TCI states (active TCI states, active TCI pools, sets) activated by a MAC CE among a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter; See [0070]-[0071]).
Regarding claim 13, ‘540 discloses a base station (base station; See Fig. 12, #10), comprising:
at least one memory (memory; See Fig. 14, #1002); and
at least one processor (control unit; See Fig. 12, #110) coupled with the at least one memory and configured to cause the base station to:
transmit radio resource configuration messages to configure a transmission configuration indicator state pool in a physical downlink shared channel-configuration in a bandwidth part, a component carrier, or a combination thereof (A single TCI state pool set by RRC for the set of multiple CCs (cells) is shared. For example, the cell group TCI state may be defined, or the PDSCH TCI state pool in the reference cell may be reused. In the TCI state, the CC (cell) ID for the QCL type A RS may be determined according to the target CC (cell) in the TCI state without the CC (cell) ID for the QCL type A RS.; See [0089]), wherein the transmission configuration indicator state pool comprises a plurality of transmission configuration indicator states (The TCI pool (set) may be a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter, or may be a plurality of TCI states (active TCI states, active TCI pools, sets) activated by a MAC CE among a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter; See [0070]), the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states are configured for use in a list of carriers that comprises a list of QCL-TypeA resources (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4); See Fig. 5 and [0139]), wherein a transmission configuration indicator state of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states is associated with the list of QCL-TypeA resources (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4). In the example shown in FIG. 5, TCI # N -2 is applied to CC # N, and TCI # N -2 indicates QCL type A RS # N -2 and QCL type D RS # N -2 (N is an integer of 1 to 4), respectively; See Fig. 5 and [0139]), and each QCL-TypeA resource in the list of QCL-TypeA resources comprises a reference signal defined in a different carrier of the list of carriers (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4). In the example shown in FIG. 5, TCI # N -2 is applied to CC # N, and TCI # N -2 indicates QCL type A RS # N -2 and QCL type D RS # N -2 (N is an integer of 1 to 4), respectively; See Fig. 5 and [0139]);
transmit a medium access control control element message that activates a subset of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states for use (The MAC CE may activate a plurality of TCI states among a plurality of set TCI states; See [0071]); and
transmit a downlink control information signal that indicates a transmission configuration indicator state (The DCI may indicate one of the plurality of TCI states activated. The DCI is UL／ The DL DCI may be the DL DCI. The indicated TCI state is UL／ DL CHANNEL／ At least one (or all) of the RS may be applied. One DCI may indicate both the UL TCI and the DL TCI; See [0071]) of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states for a physical downlink shared channel, a physical downlink control channel, a physical uplink shared channel, a physical uplink control channel, or a combination thereof (The DCI may indicate one of the plurality of TCI states activated. The DCI is UL／ The DL DCI may be the DL DCI. The indicated TCI state is UL／ DL CHANNEL／ At least one (or all) of the RS may be applied. One DCI may indicate both the UL TCI and the DL TCI; See [0071]) in a selected bandwidth part, a selected component carrier, or a combination thereof (The UE is one CC／ In the DL BWP, or CC／ In one set of BWPs, an activation command to map up to eight TCI states is received at a code point of a DCI field (TCI field). CC／ If one set of TCI state IDs is activated for one set of DL BWPs, then the applicable list of CCs is determined by the CC indicated in the activation command, and the same set of TCI states is applied to all DL BWPs in the indicated CC; See [0059]).
Regarding claim 14, ‘540 further discloses the base station of claim 13, wherein the transmission configuration indicator state comprises:
a QCL-TypeD resource applied to the physical downlink shared channel, the physical downlink control channel, or the combination thereof (Each TCI state is QCL type A/D RS may be used. QCL TYPE A/The SSB, the CSI-RS, or the SRS may be set as the D RS. In the example of FIG. 1A, the RRC parameter (information element) sets multiple TCI states for both DL and UL; See [0070]-[0071]); or
a first quasi-co-location type resource applied to the physical downlink shared channel, the physical downlink control channel, the physical uplink shared channel, the physical uplink control channel, or some combination thereof.
Regarding claim 16, ‘540 teaches a processor (user terminal See Fig. 13, #20) for wireless communication, comprising:
at least one controller (control unit; See Fig. 13, #210) coupled with at least one memory (memory; See Fig. 14, #1002) and configured to cause the processor to:
receive radio resource configuration messages to configure a transmission configuration indicator state pool in a physical downlink shared channel-configuration (The TCI pool (set) may be a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter, or may be a plurality of TCI states (active TCI states, active TCI pools, sets) activated by a MAC CE among a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter. Each TCI state is QCL type A/D RS may be used. QCL TYPE A/The SSB, the CSI-RS, or the SRS may be set as the D RS. In the example of FIG. 1A, the RRC parameter (information element) sets multiple TCI states for both DL and UL; See [0070]-[0071]) in a bandwidth part, a component carrier, or a combination thereof (A single TCI state pool set by RRC for the set of multiple CCs (cells) is shared. For example, the cell group TCI state may be defined, or the PDSCH TCI state pool in the reference cell may be reused. In the TCI state, the CC (cell) ID for the QCL type A RS may be determined according to the target CC (cell) in the TCI state without the CC (cell) ID for the QCL type A RS.; See [0089]), wherein the transmission configuration indicator state pool comprises a plurality of transmission configuration indicator states (The TCI pool (set) may be a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter, or may be a plurality of TCI states (active TCI states, active TCI pools, sets) activated by a MAC CE among a plurality of TCI states set by an RRC parameter; See [0070]), the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states are configured for use in a list of carriers that comprises a list of QCL-TypeA resources (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4); See Fig. 5 and [0139]), wherein a transmission configuration indicator state of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states is associated with the list of QCL-TypeA resources (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4). In the example shown in FIG. 5, TCI # N -2 is applied to CC # N, and TCI # N -2 indicates QCL type A RS # N -2 and QCL type D RS # N -2 (N is an integer of 1 to 4), respectively; See Fig. 5 and [0139]), and each QCL-TypeA resource in the list of QCL-TypeA resources comprises a reference signal defined in a different carrier of the list of carriers (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4). In the example shown in FIG. 5, TCI # N -2 is applied to CC # N, and TCI # N -2 indicates QCL type A RS # N -2 and QCL type D RS # N -2 (N is an integer of 1 to 4), respectively; See Fig. 5 and [0139]);
receive a medium access control control element message that activates a subset of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states for use (The MAC CE may activate a plurality of TCI states among a plurality of set TCI states; See [0071]); and
receive a downlink control information signal that indicates a transmission configuration indicator state of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states (The DCI may indicate one of the plurality of TCI states activated. The DCI is UL／ The DL DCI may be the DL DCI. The indicated TCI state is UL／ DL CHANNEL／ At least one (or all) of the RS may be applied. One DCI may indicate both the UL TCI and the DL TCI; See [0071]) for a physical downlink shared channel, a physical downlink control channel, a physical uplink shared channel, a physical uplink control channel, or a combination thereof (The DCI may indicate one of the plurality of TCI states activated. The DCI is UL／ The DL DCI may be the DL DCI. The indicated TCI state is UL／ DL CHANNEL／ At least one (or all) of the RS may be applied. One DCI may indicate both the UL TCI and the DL TCI; See [0071]) in a selected bandwidth part, a selected component carrier, or a combination thereof (The UE is one CC／ In the DL BWP, or CC／ In one set of BWPs, an activation command to map up to eight TCI states is received at a code point of a DCI field (TCI field). CC／ If one set of TCI state IDs is activated for one set of DL BWPs, then the applicable list of CCs is determined by the CC indicated in the activation command, and the same set of TCI states is applied to all DL BWPs in the indicated CC; See [0059]).
Regarding claim 17, ‘540 further discloses the processor of claim 16, wherein the transmission configuration indicator state comprises:
a QCL-TypeD resource applied to the physical downlink shared channel, the physical downlink control channel, or the combination thereof (Each TCI state is QCL type A/D RS may be used. QCL TYPE A/The SSB, the CSI-RS, or the SRS may be set as the D RS. In the example of FIG. 1A, the RRC parameter (information element) sets multiple TCI states for both DL and UL; See [0070]-[0071]); or
a first quasi-co-location type resource applied to the physical downlink shared channel, the physical downlink control channel, the physical uplink shared channel, the physical uplink control channel, or some combination thereof.
Regarding claim 20, ‘540 further discloses the processor of claim 17, wherein the at least one controller is configured to cause the processor to, in response to the transmission configuration indicator being applied for the component carrier, apply the QCL-TypeD resource or the first quasi-co- location type resource defined in the component carrier as spatial receive information for downlink reception in the component carrier (The TCI state is information regarding a quasi-co-location (QCL) of the signal/channel, and may also be referred to as a spatial Rx parameter, spatial relation information, etc. The TCI state may be configured in the UE for each channel or each signal. An activation MAC CE of a spatial relation of A-SRS/SP-SRS activates the spatial relation associated with the same SRS resource ID on all BWPs/CCs in the applicable CC list; See [0014] and [0056]).
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.
Claims 4-5, 11, 15 and 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over ‘540 as applied to claims 2, 3, 14 and 17 above, and further in view of Farag et al. (U.S. PGPub 2022/0263616), hereinafter referred to as Farag.
Regarding claim 4, ‘540 fails to teach the UE of claim 3, wherein the QCL-TypeA resource comprises a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource.
Farag teaches wherein the QCL-TypeA resource comprises a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource (non-zero power (NZP) channel state information—reference signal (CSI-RS), with trs-info enabled; See Table 1 and [0178]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the apparatus of ‘540 to include wherein the QCL-TypeA resource comprises a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource taught by Farag in order to optimize inter-cell beam management.
Regarding claim 5, ‘540 still fails to teach the UE of claim 4, wherein the non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource is in a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource set configured by a high layer parameter trs-info.
Farag teaches wherein the non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource is in a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource set configured by a high layer parameter trs-info (non-zero power (NZP) channel state information—reference signal (CSI-RS), with trs-info enabled; See Table 1 and [0178]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the apparatus of ‘540 to include wherein the non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource is in a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource set configured by a high layer parameter trs-info taught by Farag in order to optimize inter-cell beam management.
Regarding claim 11, ‘540 fails to teach the UE of claim 2, wherein the list of QCL-TypeA resources comprises a list of non-zero power channel state information reference signal resources with the same non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource identifier in the list of carriers.
Farag teaches wherein the list of QCL-TypeA resources comprises a list of non-zero power channel state information reference signal resources with the same non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource identifier in the list of carriers (non-zero power (NZP) channel state information—reference signal (CSI-RS), with trs-info enabled; See Table 1 and [0178]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the apparatus of ‘540 to include wherein the list of QCL-TypeA resources comprises a list of non-zero power channel state information reference signal resources with the same non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource identifier in the list of carriers taught by Farag in order to optimize inter-cell beam management.
Regarding claim 15, ‘540 fails to teach the base station of claim 14, wherein the QCL-TypeA resource comprises a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource.
Farag teaches wherein the QCL-TypeA resource comprises a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource (non-zero power (NZP) channel state information—reference signal (CSI-RS), with trs-info enabled; See Table 1 and [0178]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the apparatus of ‘540 to include wherein the QCL-TypeA resource comprises a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource taught by Farag in order to optimize inter-cell beam management.
Regarding claim 18, ‘540 fails to teach the processor of claim 17, wherein the QCL-TypeA resource comprises a non- zero power channel state information reference signal resource.
Farag teaches wherein the QCL-TypeA resource comprises a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource (non-zero power (NZP) channel state information—reference signal (CSI-RS), with trs-info enabled; See Table 1 and [0178]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the apparatus of ‘540 to include wherein the QCL-TypeA resource comprises a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource taught by Farag in order to optimize inter-cell beam management.
Regarding claim 19, ‘540 fails to teach the processor of claim 18, wherein the non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource is in a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource set configured by a high layer parameter trs-info.
Farag teaches wherein the non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource is in a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource set configured by a high layer parameter trs-info (non-zero power (NZP) channel state information—reference signal (CSI-RS), with trs-info enabled; See Table 1 and [0178]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the apparatus of ‘540 to include wherein the non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource is in a non-zero power channel state information reference signal resource set configured by a high layer parameter trs-info taught by Farag in order to optimize inter-cell beam management.
Claims 7 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over ‘540 as applied to claims 3 and 8 above, and further in view of Matsumura et al. (U.S. PGPub 2025/0007676), hereinafter referred to as ‘676.
Regarding claim 7, ‘540 fails to teach the UE of claim 3, wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the UE to apply the QCL- TypeD resource or the first quasi-co-location type resource as a spatial receive parameter in the component carrier even if the QCL-TypeD resource or the first quasi-co-location type resource is not defined in the component carrier.
‘676 teaches wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the UE to apply the QCL- TypeD resource or the first quasi-co-location type resource as a spatial receive parameter in the component carrier even if the QCL-TypeD resource or the first quasi-co-location type resource is not defined in the component carrier (When no BWP/CC ID (bwp-Id/cell) is present for a source RS of QCL type A/D in QCL information (QCL-Info) in a TCI state, the UE assume that a source 1-RS of QCL type A/D is present in a BWP/CC to which the TCI state is to be applied; See [0088]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the apparatus of ‘540 to include wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the UE to apply the QCL- TypeD resource or the first quasi-co-location type resource as a spatial receive parameter in the component carrier even if the QCL-TypeD resource or the first quasi-co-location type resource is not defined in the component carrier taught by ‘676 in order to let the network signal one or more TCI states for one cell, then have the terminal extend or apply those states to a part or all of the carrier-aggregated cells according to a defined rule set.
Regarding claim 9, ‘540 fails to teach the UE of claim 8, wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the UE to, in response to the transmission configuration indicator being applied for the component carrier, apply the second quasi-co-location type resource to the physical uplink shared channel, the physical uplink control channel, or a combination thereof as a spatial transmit transmission parameter even if the second quasi-co-location type resource is not defined in the component carrier it is applied to.
‘676 teaches wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the UE to, in response to the transmission configuration indicator being applied for the component carrier, apply the second quasi-co-location type resource to the physical uplink shared channel, the physical uplink control channel, or a combination thereof as a spatial transmit transmission parameter even if the second quasi-co-location type resource is not defined in the component carrier it is applied to (For a target CC, a source RS determined from a common TCI state ID indicated for provision of a QCL type D indication and determination of a UL TX spatial filter may be configured in the target CC or another CC; See [0091]).
Therefore it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time before the effective filing date of the invention, to modify the apparatus of ‘540 to include wherein the at least one processor is configured to cause the UE to, in response to the transmission configuration indicator being applied for the component carrier, apply the second quasi-co-location type resource to the physical uplink shared channel, the physical uplink control channel, or a combination thereof as a spatial transmit transmission parameter even if the second quasi-co-location type resource is not defined in the component carrier it is applied to taught by ‘676 in order to let the network signal one or more TCI states for one cell, then have the terminal extend or apply those states to a part or all of the carrier-aggregated cells according to a defined rule set.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1-2, 13 and 16 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.
On pages 11-12 of the Applicants’ Response, Applicants state that Matsumura et al. (U.S. PGPub 2025/0007676) fails to teach a single TCI state that is associated with a list of QCL-TypeA resources, each QCL-TypeA resource being defined in a different carrier of the list.
Examiner agrees and has thus introduced Matsumura et al. (Int. Pub. No. WO 2022/153540 A1) which teaches the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states are configured for use in a list of carriers that comprises a list of QCL-TypeA resources (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4); See Fig. 5 and [0139]), wherein a transmission configuration indicator state of the plurality of transmission configuration indicator states is associated with the list of QCL-TypeA resources (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4). In the example shown in FIG. 5, TCI # N -2 is applied to CC # N, and TCI # N -2 indicates QCL type A RS # N -2 and QCL type D RS # N -2 (N is an integer of 1 to 4), respectively; See Fig. 5 and [0139]), and each QCL-TypeA resource in the list of QCL-TypeA resources comprises a reference signal defined in a different carrier of the list of carriers (The UE determines the QCL type A RS and the QCL type D RS for each of the TCI states applied to each CC (here, CC # 1 to CC # 4). In the example shown in FIG. 5, TCI # N -2 is applied to CC # N, and TCI # N -2 indicates QCL type A RS # N -2 and QCL type D RS # N -2 (N is an integer of 1 to 4), respectively; See Fig. 5 and [0139]).
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.
Conclusion
Additional prior art made of record and not relied upon but considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure can be found on the PTO-892 (Notice of References Cited) form.
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/ASHLEY SHIVERS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2477 9/10/2026
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