CTNF 18/722,638 CTNF 99664 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Priority The instant application PCT/EP2021/087531, International Filing Date: 12/23/2021. Information Disclosure Statement 06-52 The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted, IDS - 06/21/2024. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-07 AIA 07-07-aia 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)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention. (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. 07-15 AIA Claim s 43-48, 54-57 and 60-63 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102( a)(1 ) as being anticipated by Thomas et al. (US-20200092685-A1) hereinafter “Thomas” . Regarding Claim 43, ‘A method at a first communication device for sharing resources with a second communication device, the method comprising: determining, in response to having determined that the two communication devices are electronically connected to each other, that the two communication devices are capable of sharing at least one physical resource with each other’ (The two communication device, a first and a second are actively RRC-group-connected D2D/SL [0719] and in Fig. 22; SL-control channel assigned resources [0719].); And discloses, ‘initiating, in response to having determined that there is a need to share available resources between the communication devices, an exchange of device specific data relevant for the needed at least one physical resource sharing between the two communication devices’ (the second device configured to receive from the first device and assign channel/resource UE-to-UE [0328, 0333]; the shared channel UE-specific [0412]; uses cell-id and group-member-ID [0163].); And discloses, ‘and sharing, at least partly based on the activated functionality, the at least one physical resource between the communication devices.’ (sidelink resources/channel assign resources and actively connected [0719];) Regarding Claim 44, Identical to Claim 43 disclosed above, ‘A method at a second communication device for sharing resources with a first communication device, the method comprising: determining, in response to having determined that the two communication devices have been electronically connected to each other, that the two communication devices are capable of sharing at least one available physical resource with each other; exchanging, in response to having been notified that there is a need to share available resources between the communication devices, device specific data relevant for the needed resource sharing between the two communication devices, and sharing at least one resource between the communication devices.’ (two communication devices are RRC-group-connected; provide a pre-assigned pool/resources [0719]. ) Regarding Claim 45, Identical to Claim 43 disclosed above, ‘A first communication device for sharing resources with a second communication device, the first communication device being configured to: determine, in response to having determined that the two communication devices are electronically connected to each other, that the two communication devices are capable of sharing at least one physical resource with each other’; ‘initiate, in response to having determined that there is a need to share available resources between the communication devices, an exchange of device specific data relevant for the needed at least one physical resource sharing between the two communication devices’; ‘and share, at least partly based on the activated functionality, the at least one physical resource between the communication devices.’ Regarding Claim 46, ‘The first communication device according to claim 45’ (disclosed above), Thomas disclose, ‘wherein the first communication device is acting as a master communication device, based on instructions to act as a master communication device, wherein the instructions comprise one of: instructions acquired from a communication device other than the first communication device’ ( group manager between UE-to-UE [0041-0042]); And Thomas discloses, ‘preconfigured instructions accessible to the first communication device, and instructions generated by the first communication device.’ (receive required configuration [0040].) Regarding Claim 47, ‘The first communication device according to claim 46’ (disclosed above), Thomas disclose, ‘wherein the instructions are instructing the first communication device to act as a master device based on at least one of: at least parts of the exchanged device specific data; hard coded data of the first communication device; an application executed by the first communication device, and content stored in a data storage accessible to the first communication device.’ (Configuration of the group-manager is executed [0666]; UE-specific [0412]; uses cell-id and group-member-ID [0163].) Regarding Claim 48, ‘The first communication device according to claim 45’ (disclosed above), Thomas disclose, ‘comprising the further step of: the first communication device going into power saving mode, or instructing the second communication device to go into power saving mode.’ (power saving [0706].) Regarding Claim 54, ‘The first communication device according to claim 45’ (disclosed above), Thomas disclose, ‘being further configured to, when determining, to determine that the communication devices are capable of sharing at least one resource based on at least one of: determined availability of the at least one resource; predicted availability of the at least one resource; type of communication devices to share resources, the result of a capability signaling procedure between the communication devices, and the result of a compatibility signaling procedure between the communication devices.’ (Uses Mac-CE signaling for SL [0180]. The SL-resources are indicated to monitor the SL-reception-pool between UE-to-UE by a dedicated RRC-signaling [0324-0326].) Regarding Claim 55, ‘The first communication device according to claim 45’ (disclosed above), Thomas discloses, ‘configured to exchange device specific data comprising at least one of: information on antenna placement; instructions appointing one of said communication devices to a master device; information on CPU resources available for sharing; time related information on when the one or more available resources can be shared or are estimated to be sharable; information on the capacity of the one or more available resources that can be shared; information on further information exchange that need to be executed before a sharing of resources can be initiated; information on parameter settings that need to be executed before a sharing of resources can be initiated, and information on at least one security related procedure that need to be executed before a sharing of resources can be initiated;’ (beam forming within the group between UE-to-UE and SL-channel [0410, 0600]. Act as a master device [0041-0042]. The capacity to share resources in the SL includes SL-bandwidth and the SL-shared channel [0189]. UE-specific [0412]; uses cell-specific and group-member-specific-information [0163]. Uses the dedicated RRC-signaling and measures a threshold for SL-RS before sharing the resource [0325-0326].) Regarding Claim 56, ‘The first communication device according to claim 45’ (disclosed above), Thomas discloses, ‘configured to activate functionality, comprising comprises at least one of: scheduling resource utilization of the at least one resource to be shared between said communication devices, and adaptation of the mode of at least one resource which is dependent on the resource to be shared.’ (schedule request for the resources for the SL [0468]. Uses link adaptation for SL-shared channel [0605].) Regarding Claim 57, Identical to Claim 44 disclosed above, ‘A second communication device for sharing resources with a first communication device, the second communication device being configured to: determine, in response to having determined that the two communication devices have been electronically connected to each other, that the two communication devices are capable of sharing at least one available physical resource with each other’ (); exchange, in response to having been notified that there is a need to share available resources between the communication devices, device specific data relevant for the needed resource sharing between the two communication devices, and share, at least partly based on the activated functionality, at least one resource between the communication devices.’ Regarding Claim 60, Identical to Claim 53 disclosed above, ‘The second communication device according to claim 57, configured to repeat the mentioned executions, in response to determining that an attempt to share the at least one resource between at least the first communication device and the second communication device has failed.’ Regarding Claim 61, Identical to Claim 54 disclosed above, ‘The second communication device according to claim 57, configured to determine that the communication devices are capable of sharing at least one resource is based on at least one of: determined availability of the at least one resource; predicted availability of the at least one resource; type of communication devices to share resources, the result of a capability signaling procedure between the communication devices, and the result of a compatibility signaling procedure between the communication devices.’ Regarding Claim 62, Identical to Claim 55 disclosed above, ‘The second communication device according to claim 57, configured to exchange device specific data comprising at least one of: information on antenna placement; instructions appointing one of said communication devices to a master device; information on CPU resources available for sharing; time related information on when the one or more available resources can be shared or are estimated to be sharable; information on the capacity of the one or more available resources that can be shared; information on further information exchange that need to be executed before a sharing of resources can be initiated; information on parameter settings that need to be executed before a sharing of resources can be initiated, and information on at least one security related procedure that need to be executed before a sharing of resources can be initiated;’ Regarding Claim 63, Identical to Claim 56 disclosed above, ‘The second communication device according to claim 57, configured to activate functionality comprising as least one of: scheduling resource utilization of the at least one resource to be shared between said communication devices, and adaptation of the mode of at least one resource which is dependent on the resource to be shared.’ Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-20-aia AIA 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 he claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made. 07-23-aia AIA The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows: • Determining the scope and contents of the prior art. • Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue. • Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art. • Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating • obviousness or nonobviousness. 07-20-02-aia AIA This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention. 07-21-aia AIA Claim s 49, 50 and 53 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Thomas et al. in view of Chae et al. (US-20240224234-A1) hereinafter “Chae” . Regarding Claim 49, ‘The first communication device according to claim 45’ (disclosed above), Thomas disclose, ‘and in response to determining from the exchanged device specific data’ (disclosed above in Claim 43), And didn’t disclose, ‘further configured to repeat the mentioned steps in response to the first communication device interacting with a third communication device, relevant for the needed resource sharing, that the resources available for sharing between the first communication device and the second communication devices are insufficient for meeting with the determined need of resource sharing.’ Chae in the relevant art discloses, for outside coverage, SL resource pool/slot format configuration preconfigured for a wireless device or configured from another wireless device [0252]. The scaling for resource reservation period for the resource pool configuration preconfigured for outside coverage and the scaling value of the resource pool Table in Fig. 24 and [0243]. And, resource pool shared in SL-operation among wireless devices in SL-shared-channel [0226, 0231]. Therefore, a person in the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claim invention would have recognized that the disclosure of Thomas and to include with that of Chae to come up with the claim invention, Thomas motive to provide SL-bandwidth and high bandwidth transmission [0189, 0208]. And, uses SL-resource pool configuration [0388, 0588]. And, Chae includes SL-resource pool configuration and scaling per resource pool/BWP/carrier per UE. That increase the resource availability and reliability. Regarding Claim 50, ‘The first communication device according to claim 45’ (disclosed above), Chae disclose, ‘further being configured to activate functionality of at least one of the communication devices which is required for sharing the at least one physical resource between the communication devices.’ (Mac-CE activation [0081] and the Mac-CE for the SL-resource pool configuration and the wireless device transmits a TB via the selected one or more resources [0252]. Motive would be identical disclosed above in Claim 49. In addition, Chae motive to adaptively adjust resource reservation period to adapt the resource-pool or slot format and TDD configuration when there are changes to address excessive delay [0250].) Regarding Claim 53, ‘The first communication device according to claim 45’ (disclosed above), Thomas didn’t disclose, ‘further configured to repeat the mentioned executions, in response to determining that an attempt to share the at least one resource between at least the first communication device and the second communication device has failed.’ Chae in the relevant art discloses, resource pool configuration and reservation time duration more than one. Uses scaling [0311]. The wireless determine a number SL-resources; determination of the second reservation period when some UL-resources not configured for the SL-resources [0239-0240]; SL-control channel converted to a second reservation period uses scaling factor [0252]. Attempt to sharing resource is determined based on the threshold within the reservation period and switch from a first to a second reservation period [0264]. And, motive would be identical to Claim 49 and 50 disclosed as part of SL-resource pool configuration. Thomas discloses the threshold to identify the size of packets required can switch group-connected to RRC-connected when require to transmit larger packet for efficient link adaptation [0422-0424] . 07-21-aia AIA Claim s 51-52 and 58-59 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Thomas et al. in view of Nguyen et al. (US-10045191-B2) hereinafter “Nguyen” . Regarding Claim 51, ‘The first communication device according to claim 45’ (disclosed above), Thomas disclose, ‘further configured to’, SL-inactive and ‘upon determining that said communication devices, are no longer electronically connected.’ (within a group a member UE can be temporarily inactive/lightly connected [0723] and in Fig. 24. The configuration includes discontinuous reception cycle, disclosure claim 11.) And didn’t disclose, ‘further configured to terminate the sharing of the at least one physical resource’, Nguyen in the relevant art discloses, in Fig. 12 D2D-termination when completed the sharing Col. 23 [0063-0065]. Therefore, a person in the ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claim invention would have recognized that the disclosure of Thomas and to include with that of Nguyen to come up with the claim invention, Thomas motive to save power in UE-to-UE communication when there is no data to transmit/receive to optimize the resource usage [0255]. That is complemented by Nguyen to terminate the connection to conserve power Col. 23 [0065]. Regarding Claim 52, ‘The first communication device according to claim 45’ (disclosed above), Thomas disclose, ‘further configured to’ switch inactive ‘upon determining that said communication devices are no longer physically connected.’ ([0723].) And didn’t disclose, ‘terminate the sharing of the at least one physical resource’, Nguyen in the relevant art discloses, in Fig. 12 D2D-termination when completed the sharing and release allocated resources, Col. 23 [0063-0065]. Motive would be identical disclosed above in Claim 52. Regarding Claim 58, Identical to Claim 51 disclosed above, ‘The second communication device according to claim 57, further configured to terminate the sharing of the at least one physical resource, upon determining that said communication devices are no longer electronically connected.’ Regarding Claim 59, Identical to Claim 52 disclosed above, ‘The second communication device according to claim 57, further configured to terminate the sharing of the at least one physical resource, upon determining that said communication devices are no longer physically connected.’ Conclusion 07-96 The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure: Lin, Xingqin, Dongsheng Yu, and Henning Wiemann. "A primer on bandwidth parts in 5G new radio." 5G and beyond: Fundamentals and Standards. Cham: Springer International Publishing, 2021. 357-370. (Year: 2021) ; An activation of the BWP and the connected-mode the BWP/resource used for scheduled transmission/any data available for transmission. The active BWP time used for wide bandwidth when a large amount of data is scheduled and being active and remaining time used narrow-bandwidth, page-1, Col. 2 [0005], page 3 Col. 12 [0005] and in Fig. 2. The NW configure the UE with a BWP inactivity timer to indicate whether there is any scheduled transmission. If no scheduled then switch to default-BWP, page-3, Col. 1 [0008-0011]. The resource shared BWP for connectivity includes parameters UE-specific page-3, Col. 2 [0024] and in Fig. 3. The BWP configuration and UE-specific parameter for the shared-resource, page-4, Col. 1 [0008], page 4 Col. 1 [0023]; The NW sets the large DL/UL BWP #1 as the first active BWP, and the small BWP #2 as the default BWP, page-3. Col. 2 [0001-0002]. the UE can switch to power saving active to default-BWP when there is no scheduled data and inactivity time page. 3 Col. 1 [0013] and in Fig. 2. And, the BWP adaptation from idle to connected-mode dedicated signaling the NW configures resources BWP#1 and BWP#2 RBs used for scheduled data, page-3, Col. 1 [0030], Col. 2 [0005]. The NW configure a UE with additional BWPs #2, #3, and #4 consecutively in Fig. 3. The NW support up to four RRC-configured BWPs page-4, Col. 2 [0015-0016]. In Fig. 4. Interpretation of BWP-indicator-field in DCI-based activation. In Fig. 2 BWP adaptation from idle to connected-mode dedicated signaling the NW configures resources BWP#1 and BWP#2 RBs used for scheduled data, page-3, Col. 1 [0030], Col. 2 [0005]. ) Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. 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If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /S.A./Examiner, Art Unit 2466 /CHRISTOPHER M CRUTCHFIELD/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 2 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 3 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 4 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 5 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 6 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 7 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 8 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 9 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 10 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 11 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 12 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 13 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 14 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 15 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 16 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 17 Art Unit: 2466 Application/Control Number: 18/722,638 Page 18 Art Unit: 2466
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