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 .
DETAILED ACTION
The amendment filed 01/21/2026 has been entered. Claims 1, 3-7, 9-13, and 15-18 are pending. Claims 1-4, 6-7, 9-10, 12-13,15-16, and 18 have been amended. Claims 2, 8, and 14 are cancelled. No new claim is added
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 01/21/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In that remark, the applicant argued in substance:
That: ZHANG fails to disclose or teach “specify a transmission time of the downlink packet with a minimum RTT among downlink packets already transmitted by the transceiver”
In response to the applicant’s argument ZHANG in [0073] teaches the initiator may combine multiple RTTs for the process flow 300 into a combined RTT. For example, the initiator may combine the RTTs by computing the average of the RTTs, taking the minimum one of the RTTs.
In addition, in [0115], the initiator may combine the RTTs by selecting the minimum RTT and reporting the minimum RTT in the RTT field of the RTT Feedback frame and in [0176], transmits a responder NDP frame 2110 (known also as a downlink (DL) NDP frame) to the initiator.
Therefore, ZHANG clearly teaches an initiator selects and reports a minimum RTT and the minimum RTT time selected is associated with downlink frames.
That: Babaei fails to disclose or teach “control transmission timing of the downlink packet by the transceiver based on the specified transmission time and a scheduling interval of the network”
However, ZHANG does not explicitly disclose control transmission timing of the downlink packet by the transceiver based on the specified transmission time and a scheduling interval of the network.
However, Babaei in [0179], teaches a downlink control information comprising transmission parameters of a transport block. A transmission time of the transport block may be based on the time domain resource assignment, and in [0112], a HARQ feedback timing may be indicated in a DCI scheduling a downlink transmission (e.g., a PDSCH). In an example, DCI may comprise a field with a value/number/integer that indicates the time between the downlink transmission and HARQ feedback corresponding to the downlink transmission (e.g., ACK or NACK), and in [0130], a DCI scheduling a transmission in downlink, uplink, etc., may indicate numerology/TTI corresponding to the scheduled transmission. In an example, a DCI indicating a downlink assignment may indicate a cell/numerology/TTI corresponding to the scheduled downlink assignment).
In addition, in [0184], a minimum RTT timing is described in associated with downlink transmission.
Therefore, Babaei clearly teaches controlling downlink transmission based on a transmission time assignment and a cell/numerology/TTI for the scheduled downlink assignment (corresponding to scheduling interval of the network).
Based on ZHANG in view of Babaei, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Babaei to the system of ZHANG in order to improve transfer efficiency at the time of transmitting data.
Therefore, the combination of ZHANG and Babaei makes the argued limitations obvious.
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) 1, 3-7, 9-13, and 15-18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over ZHANG et al. (US 20190349280) hereinafter ZHANG in view of Babaei et al. (US 20190053206) hereinafter Babaei.
Regarding claim 1, ZHANG teaches a communication apparatus (i.e. an apparatus for wireless communications, [0006]) comprising: a transceiver configured to transmit a downlink packet via a network and receive an acknowledge (ACK) packet for the downlink packet via the network; (i.e. The transmit processor processes the frame for transmission on the downlink, [0050] and the responder starts transmitting FTM frames to the initiator. For each received FTM frame, the initiator transmits a corresponding acknowledgement (“ACK”) to the responder in which the acknowledgement acknowledges reception of the FTM frame at the initiator, [0069]); at least one memory storing instructions; and at least one processor configured to execute the instructions to: (i.e. a memory coupled to the controller. The memory may store instructions that, when executed by the controller, [0066]); acquire a round trip time (RTT) for the downlink packet already transmitted by the transceiver, the RTT being a time from when the transceiver transmits the downlink packet to when the transceiver receives the ACK packet (i.e. receiving, from a wireless node, at least one timing measurement that includes at least one round trip time (RTT) between an apparatus and the wireless node based on the received or ranging frame may include at least one of the receive processor, the transceivers [0166]) and a transmission time of the downlink packet already transmitted (i.e. A first FTM frame (“FTM_1”) is transmitted by the responder at time 0_1 and received by the initiator at time t2_1, and an acknowledgement (“ACK”) of the first FTM frame is transmitted by the initiator at time t3_1 and received by the responder at time t4_1, [0069]); specify a transmission time of a downlink packet with a minimum RTT among downlink packets already transmitted by the transceiver (i.e. the initiator may combine multiple RTTs for the process flow 300 into a combined RTT. For example, the initiator may combine the RTTs by computing the average of the RTTs, taking the minimum one of the RTTs, [0073]).
However, ZHANG does not explicitly disclose a transmission time of the downlink packet already transmitted by the transceiver, and control transmission timing of the downlink packet by the transceiver based on the RTT of the downlink packet already transmitted by the transceiver and the transmission time of the downlink packet already transmitted by the transceiver.
However, Babaei teaches a transmission time of the downlink packet already transmitted by the transceiver (i.e. a downlink control information may be received. The downlink control information may indicate transmission parameters of the transport block that includes a transmission time of the transport block, [0212]), control transmission timing of the downlink packet by the transceiver based on the RTT of the downlink packet already transmitted by the transceiver, and the transmission time of the downlink packet already transmitted by the transceiver (i.e. the downlink control information may indicate a time domain resource assignment and a transmission time of the transport block, [0181] and a transmission time of the transport block may be based on the time domain resource assignment, [0218]); control transmission timing of the downlink packet by the transceiver based on the specified transmission time and a scheduling interval of the network (i.e. a downlink control information comprising transmission parameters of a transport block. A transmission time of the transport block may be based on the time domain resource assignment, [0179] and a HARQ feedback timing may be indicated in a DCI scheduling a downlink transmission (e.g., a PDSCH). In an example, DCI may comprise a field with a value/number/integer that indicates the time between the downlink transmission and HARQ feedback corresponding to the downlink transmission (e.g., ACK or NACK), [0112] a DCI scheduling a transmission in downlink, uplink, etc., may indicate numerology/TTI corresponding to the scheduled transmission. In an example, a DCI indicating a downlink assignment may indicate a cell/numerology/TTI corresponding to the scheduled downlink assignment, [0130]).
Based on ZHANG in view of Babaei, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to utilize the teaching of Babaei to the system of ZHANG in order to improve transfer efficiency at the time of transmitting data.
Regarding claim 3, ZHANG does not explicitly disclose the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to control the transmission timing of the downlink packet by the transceiver so that the downlink packet is transmitted when a time corresponding to the scheduling interval of the network has elapsed from the specified transmission time.
However, Babaei teaches the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to control the transmission timing of the downlink packet by the transceiver so that the downlink packet is transmitted when a time corresponding to the scheduling interval of the network has elapsed from the specified transmission time (i.e. the number of running HARQ RTT timers may be equal to the first HARQ process number (e.g., maximum number of HARQ processes in downlink) in response to as many as the maximum number of HARQ processes in downlink being scheduled and RTT time corresponding to neither of the HARQ processes being elapsed. In an example embodiment, the wireless device may stop monitoring bit PDCCH/EPDCCH candidates for the first RNTI in response to as many as the maximum number of HARQ processes in downlink being scheduled and HARQ RTT time corresponding to neither of the HARQ processes being elapsed, [0188]). Therefore, the limitations of Claim 3 are rejected in the analysis of claim 1 above, and the claim is rejected on that basis.
Regarding claim 4, ZHANG teaches wherein the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to acquire a state of the network (i.e. channel conditions of the downlink, [0049]) and control a transmission bit rate of the downlink packet by the transceiver based on the acquired state of the network (i.e. the transmit data processor 260 receives data (e.g., data bits) from a data source 255, and processes (e.g., encodes and modulates) the data for transmission. The transmit data processor 260 may support different MCSs. For example, the transmit data processor 260 may encode the data (e.g., using LDPC encoding) at any one of a plurality of different coding rates, and modulate the encoded data using any one of a plurality of different modulation schemes, [0053]).
Regarding claim 5, ZHANG does not explicitly disclose the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to acquire an increase/decrease status of the RTT in the network as a state of the network.
However, Babaei teaches the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to acquire an increase/decrease status of the RTT in the network as a state of the network (i.e. for cross-carrier scheduling for carriers with different numerology, there may be an impact on minimum HARQ RTT timing. In an example, the impact may be related to the timing relationship including DCI-to-data and data-to-ACK timing. In an example, if the gNB and UE processing timing is not changed, the minimum HARQ RTT timing may be increased in response to numerology of PDCCH/DCI and/or HARQ-ACK (e.g., in PUCCH or PUSCH) being different from numerology of data (e.g., PDSCH or PUSCH). In an example, the HARQ RTT may increase in response to slot duration of DCI/HARQ-ACK being larger than the slot duration of data, [0184]). Therefore, the limitations of Claim 5 are rejected in the analysis of claim 1 above, and the claim is rejected on that basis.
Regarding claim 6, ZHANG does not explicitly disclose the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to control the transmission timing of the downlink packet by the transceiver based on the specified transmission time, the scheduling interval of the network, and the transmission bit rate of the downlink packet by the transceiver.
However, Babaei teaches the at least one processor is further configured to execute the instructions to control the transmission timing of the downlink packet by the transceiver based on the specified transmission time, the scheduling interval of the network, and the transmission bit rate of the downlink packet by the transceiver (i.e. a downlink control information comprising transmission parameters of a transport block. A transmission time of the transport block may be based on the time domain resource assignment, [0179] and a HARQ feedback timing may be indicated in a DCI scheduling a downlink transmission (e.g., a PDSCH). In an example, DCI may comprise a field with a value/number/integer that indicates the time between the downlink transmission and HARQ feedback corresponding to the downlink transmission (e.g., ACK or NACK), [0112] a DCI scheduling a transmission in downlink, uplink, etc., may indicate numerology/TTI corresponding to the scheduled transmission. In an example, a DCI indicating a downlink assignment may indicate a cell/numerology/TTI corresponding to the scheduled downlink assignment, [0130] and The amount of data from a logical channel included in a MAC PDU may depend on the QoS parameters of a bearer and/or service associated with the logical channel, priority of the logical channel on the numerology/TTI indicated in the grant, [0111]). Therefore, the limitations of Claim 6 are rejected in the analysis of claim 1 above, and the claim is rejected on that basis.
Regarding claims 7, 9-13 and 15-18, the limitations of claims 7, 9-13 and 15-18 are similar to the limitations of claims 1 and 3-6. ZHANG further teaches communication system (i.e. wireless communication system, [0044]). Therefore, the limitations of Claims 7, 9-13 and 15-18 are rejected in the analysis of claims 1 and 3-6 above, and the claims are rejected on that basis.
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 AYELE F WOLDEMARIAM whose telephone number is (571)270-5196. The examiner can normally be reached M_F 8:30AM-5:00PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Joon H Hwang can be reached at 571-272-4036. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/AW/
AYELE F. WOLDEMARIAM
Examiner
Art Unit 2447
2/24/2026
/SURAJ M JOSHI/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2447