DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . The instant First Office Action on the merits is in response to preliminary claims filed on 4/26/2024.
Claims 1-10 and 13-20 are pending. Claims 1 and 10 are the base independent claims.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted was filed before the mailing of a first Office action on the merits. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97(b). Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Priority
Applicant’s claim for the benefit of a prior-filed application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) or under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, or 365(c) is acknowledged.
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). The certified copies of papers required under 35 U.S.C. 119(a)-(d) have been filed.
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)(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 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by LI et al (US 2024/0178973, at least supported by provisional application 63/168,848).
Regarding claim 1, LI discloses a method of monitoring a control signal by a user equipment (UE) in a wireless communication system (fig. 19 & par 122; wireless network), the method comprising:
determining a combination of X and Y for monitoring a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) (fig. 2 & par 36; e.g. the start of the first slot group in a subframe is aligned with the subframe boundary. This capability can be expressed as a combination of (X, Y) with X being the fixed size of slot group); and
monitoring the PDCCH based on the combination of X and Y, wherein X is a number of consecutive slots included in a first slot group (par 36; in a first option, a multi-slot PDCCH monitoring capability may support the configuration of PDCCH monitoring in Y consecutive slots, e.g. the first up to Y consecutive slots within every group of X consecutive slots), wherein a plurality of first slot groups are repeated continuously without overlapping (fig. 2 & par 36; e.g. the slot groups are consecutive and non-overlapping), wherein Y is a number of consecutive slots included in a second slot group (par 36; the configuration of PDCCH monitoring in Y consecutive slots), and wherein the second slot group consists of consecutive slots to which wrap-around is applied within the first slot group (fig. 2, fig. 5 or par 36, par 59; e.g. PDCCH MOs can be configured in the Y slots in a X-slot group. For the third option of multi-slot PDCCH monitoring capability, a valid pattern means X consecutive slots with a span of up to Y slots in the beginning of the X slots).
Regarding claim 10, LI discloses a user equipment (UE) configured to monitor a signal in a wireless communication system (fig. 19 & par 122; wireless network), the UE comprising:
at least one transceiver (par 124; modem platform); at least one processor (par 124; processing circuitry); and at least one memory (par 132; memory) operably connected to the at least one processor and configured to store instructions that, when executed, cause the at least one processor to perform specific operations comprising:
determining a combination of X and Y for monitoring a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) (fig. 2 & par 36; e.g. the start of the first slot group in a subframe is aligned with the subframe boundary. This capability can be expressed as a combination of (X, Y) with X being the fixed size of slot group); and
monitoring the PDCCH based on the combination of X and Y, wherein X is a number of consecutive slots included in a first slot group (par 36; in a first option, a multi-slot PDCCH monitoring capability may support the configuration of PDCCH monitoring in Y consecutive slots, e.g. the first up to Y consecutive slots within every group of X consecutive slots), wherein a plurality of first slot groups are repeated continuously without overlapping (fig. 2 & par 36; e.g. the slot groups are consecutive and non-overlapping), wherein Y is a number of consecutive slots included in a second slot group (par 36; the configuration of PDCCH monitoring in Y consecutive slots), and wherein the second slot group consists of consecutive slots to which wrap-around is applied within the first slot group (fig. 2, fig. 5 or par 36, par 59; e.g. PDCCH MOs can be configured in the Y slots in a X-slot group. For the third option of multi-slot PDCCH monitoring capability, a valid pattern means X consecutive slots with a span of up to Y slots in the beginning of the X slots).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-9 and 13-20 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: JANG et al (US 2022/0131672, see example of fig. 5B), LIU et al (US 2022/0345920, see example of fig. 7), WANG et al (US 2023/0276457, see example of Abstract), or Chatterjee et al (US 2024/0155636, see example of fig. 4).
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to YAOTANG WANG whose telephone number is (571)272-4023. The examiner can normally be reached 10:00-18:00 ET (M, W, TH & alternate F).
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, HADI ARMOUCHE can be reached at 571-270-3618. 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.
/YAOTANG WANG/SCE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2409
Prosecution Insights