Prosecution Insights
Last updated: August 17, 2026
Application No. 18/723,781

HARQ-ACK BASED PDSCH TRANSMISSION SCHEDULED BY MULTIPLE DL ASSIGNMENTS

Non-Final OA §101§102§112§Other
Filed
Jun 24, 2024
Priority
Feb 18, 2022 — provisional 63/311,816 +4 more
Examiner
GHOWRWAL, OMAR J
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Intel Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
85%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
5m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 85% — above average
85%
Career Allowance Rate
701 granted / 828 resolved
+24.7% vs TC avg
Strong +31% interview lift
Without
With
+30.6%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 7m
Avg Prosecution
33 currently pending
Career history
854
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
7.8%
-32.2% vs TC avg
§103
48.3%
+8.3% vs TC avg
§102
25.0%
-15.0% vs TC avg
§112
13.2%
-26.8% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 828 resolved cases

Office Action

§101 §102 §112 §Other
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 . Specification The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed. The following title is suggested: DETERMINATION OF PUCCH RESOURCE The use of the term WiFi, which is a trade name or a mark used in commerce, has been noted in this application. The term should be accompanied by the generic terminology; furthermore the term should be capitalized entirely wherever it appears or, where appropriate, include a proper symbol indicating use in commerce such as ™, SM , or ® following the term. Although the use of trade names and marks used in commerce (i.e., trademarks, service marks, certification marks, and collective marks) are permissible in patent applications, the proprietary nature of the marks should be respected and every effort made to prevent their use in any manner which might adversely affect their validity as commercial marks. 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, 365(c), or 386(c) is acknowledged. Applicant has not complied with one or more conditions for receiving the benefit of an earlier filing date under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) as follows: The later-filed application must be an application for a patent for an invention which is also disclosed in the prior application (the parent or original nonprovisional application or provisional application). The disclosure of the invention in the parent application and in the later-filed application must be sufficient to comply with the requirements of 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, except for the best mode requirement. See Transco Products, Inc. v. Performance Contracting, Inc., 38 F.3d 551, 32 USPQ2d 1077 (Fed. Cir. 1994). The disclosure of the prior-filed application, Application No. 63/311,816, fails to provide adequate support or enablement in the manner provided by 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph for one or more claims of this application. The prior-filed application does not disclose at least “SPS PDSCH receptions in a prior slot,” “deferral time,” and “maximum number of slots or sub-slots” as claimed. Claims 1 and 38 recite “memory is configured to store the first HARQ-ACK information bits” which cannot be found in the prior-filed application. The disclosure of the prior-filed application, Application No. 63/314,932, fails to provide adequate support or enablement in the manner provided by 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph for one or more claims of this application. The prior-filed application does not disclose at least “SPS PDSCH receptions in a prior slot,” “deferral time,” and “maximum number of slots or sub-slots” as claimed. Claims 1 and 38 recite “memory is configured to store the first HARQ-ACK information bits” which cannot be found in the prior-filed application. The disclosure of the prior-filed application, Application No. 63/315,366, fails to provide adequate support or enablement in the manner provided by 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph for one or more claims of this application. The prior-filed application does not disclose at least “SPS PDSCH receptions in a prior slot,” “deferral time,” and “maximum number of slots or sub-slots” as claimed. Claims 1 and 38 recite “memory is configured to store the first HARQ-ACK information bits” which cannot be found in the prior-filed application. The disclosure of the prior-filed application, Application No. 63/333,462, fails to provide adequate support or enablement in the manner provided by 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, first paragraph for one or more claims of this application. The prior-filed application does not disclose at least “SPS PDSCH receptions in a prior slot,” “deferral time,” and “maximum number of slots or sub-slots” as claimed. Claims 1 and 38 recite “memory is configured to store the first HARQ-ACK information bits” which cannot be found in the prior-filed application. Claim Objections Claim 31 is objected to because of the following informalities: “circuitry a user” should be “circuitry in a user” therefor. Appropriate correction is required. Claim Interpretation The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(f): (f) Element in Claim for a Combination. – An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof. The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph: An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof. The claims in this application are given their broadest reasonable interpretation using the plain meaning of the claim language in light of the specification as it would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. The broadest reasonable interpretation of a claim element (also commonly referred to as a claim limitation) is limited by the description in the specification when 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is invoked. As explained in MPEP § 2181, subsection I, claim limitations that meet the following three-prong test will be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph: (A) the claim limitation uses the term “means” or “step” or a term used as a substitute for “means” that is a generic placeholder (also called a nonce term or a non-structural term having no specific structural meaning) for performing the claimed function; (B) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is modified by functional language, typically, but not always linked by the transition word “for” (e.g., “means for”) or another linking word or phrase, such as “configured to” or “so that”; and (C) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is not modified by sufficient structure, material, or acts for performing the claimed function. Use of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim with functional language creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites sufficient structure, material, or acts to entirely perform the recited function. Absence of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is not to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is not interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites function without reciting sufficient structure, material or acts to entirely perform the recited function. Claim limitations in this application that use the word “means” (or “step”) are being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. Conversely, claim limitations in this application that do not use the word “means” (or “step”) are not being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. None of the instant claims invoke U.S.C. 112(f). With respect to the apparatus claims, “processing circuitry” is a structural modifier prior to “configured to.” Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a): (a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention. The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112: The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention. Claims 21-40 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. Applicant on 09/10/2024 filed a preliminary amendment. Upon analysis of the preliminary amendment, Examiner determined many amended limitations do not have support in the 06/24/2024 filed instant specification, given priority to 02/15/2023 via 371 of PCT/US2023/013105. For example, the independent claims recite “SPS PDSCH receptions of the first PDSCH.” However, the instant specification only has support for a single first PDSCH reception which is SPS. See para. 0066 which discloses “at least the first PDSCH 511 configured for downlink semi-persistent scheduling (SPS). The UE may also generate first HARQ-ACK information bits based on the first PDSCH 511 and second HARQ-ACK information bits based on the second PDSCH 513.” There is no support for multiple SPS PDSCH receptions of the first PDSCH as claimed. Additionally, the independent claims recite “when a deferral time is less than a maximum number of slots or sub-slots.” However, the instant specification makes no mention of “deferral time” or “maximum number of slots or sub-slots.” Claims 24 and 34 recite “an sps-HARQ-Deferral information element” which cannot be found in the instant specification. The dependent claims are rejected by virtue of their dependencies. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b): (b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention. The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph: The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention. Claims 23 and 40 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. Both claims 23 and 40 are individually dependent from claim 22, however they are identical in terms of their claimed subject matter, i.e. they are multiplied. Per MPEP 2173.05(n), “More than one claim may be presented provided they differ substantially from each other and are not unduly multiplied. Where, in view of the nature and scope of applicant’s invention, applicant presents an unreasonable number of claims which are repetitious and multiplied, the net result of which is to confuse rather than to clarify, a rejection on undue multiplicity based on 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, second paragraph, may be appropriate.” Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 101 35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows: Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title. Claims 31-37 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 101 because the claimed invention is directed to non-statutory subject matter. The claim(s) does/do not fall within at least one of the four categories of patent eligible subject matter because the broadest reasonable interpretation of a “computer-readable storage medium” includes transitory signaling, which is non-statutory subject matter. Para. 0050 of the instant specification mentions: “The memory 208 may include any type of memory, including non-transitory memory, for storing information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., a computer). For example, the memory 208 may include a computer-readable storage device, read-only memory (ROM), random- access memory (RAM), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, flash-memory devices and other storage devices and media.” However, the use of the word “may” does not limit the memory to be non-transitory. 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)(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. Claim(s) 21-28, 31-40 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by MODERATOR (NOKIA), "Moderator summary #2 on HARQ-ACK feedback enhancements for NR Rel-17 URLLC/Ilo", R1-2200729, 3GPP TSG-RAN WG1 Meeting #107bis-e, e- Meeting, (19 January 2022), 132 pgs (provided by Applicant), hereinafter “NOKIA.” As to claim 21, NOKIA discloses an apparatus of a user equipment (UE) (page 108, UE) configured for operation in a fifth-generation (5G) new radio (NR) network (page 1, NR), the apparatus comprising: processing circuitry (page 93, UE processing); and memory (page 49, buffer), wherein the processing circuitry is configured to: decode a first physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) received from a generation Node B (gNB), the first PDSCH configured for downlink semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) (page 61, SPS operation…PDSCH receptions; page 71, gNB; page 72, transmit HARQ-ACK of later SPS PDSCHs and HARQ-ACK of the first PDSCH); generate first hybrid automatic repeat request acknowledge (HARQ-ACK) information bits based on SPS PDSCH receptions of the first PDSCH (page 108, the UE determines a PUCCH resource for a PUCCH transmission with first HARQ-ACK information bits for SPS PDSCH receptions that the UE would report for a first time); when the UE is configured for deferring the HARQ-ACK information bits for the SPS PDSCH receptions of the first PDSCH (SPS HARQ-Deferral) (page 107, The motivation for Alt 3 of joint operation of SPS HARQ-ACK deferral and PUCCH repetitions on allowing a repetition factor larger than the actual SPS periodicity is unclear, as this is not possible in FDD operation but only in TDD due to the drop of SPS PDSCH occasions that collide with the UL symbols), the processing circuitry is configured to: determine a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource in a first slot for an expected PUCCH transmission of the first HARQ-ACK information bits for the SPS PDSCH receptions that the UE would report for a first time (page 108, UE determines a PUCCH resource for a PUCCH transmission with first HARQ-ACK information bits for SPS PDSCH receptions that the UE would report for a first time); determine a PUCCH resource in an earliest second slot, after the first slot, that is available for a PUCCH transmission when the PUCCH resource in the first slot overlaps with a symbol indicated as downlink (page 113, UE determines a PUCCH resource for a PUCCH transmission with first HARQ-ACK information bits for SPS PDSCH receptions that the UE would report for a first time, and the PUCCH resource - is provided by SPS-PUCCH-AN-List as described in clause 9.2.1, or by nIPUCCH-AN if SPS-PUCCHAN- List is not provided - overlaps with a symbol indicated as downlink by tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon or tdd-UL-DLConfigDedicated,or indicated for a SS/PBCH block by ssb-PositionsInBurst, or belonging to a CORESET associated with a Type0-PDCCH CSS set the UE - determines an earliest second slot and, after performing the procedures in clauses 9 and 9.2.5 to resolve overlapping among PUCCHs and PUSCHs if any, a PUSCH or a PUCCH in the earliest second slot to multiplex transmit HARQ-ACK information bits that include second HARQ-ACK information bits from the first HARQ-ACK information bits); and multiplex HARQ-ACK information bits for transmission in the PUCCH resource determined for the earliest second slot, wherein the multiplexed HARQ-ACK information bits include deferred HARQ-ACK information bits from the first HARQ-ACK information bits from to the SPS PDSCH receptions of the first PDSCH (page 128, UE determines an earliest second slot and, after performing the procedures in clauses 9 and 9.2.5 to resolve overlapping among PUCCHs and PUSCHs, a PUSCH or a PUCCH in the earliest second slot to multiplex HARQ-ACK information bits that include second HARQ-ACK information bits from the first HARQ-ACK information bits), and wherein the deferred HARQ-ACK information bits for the second slot are multiplexed when a deferral time is less than a maximum number of slots or sub-slots between the PUCCH transmission in the second slot and the SPS PDSCH receptions in a prior slot (page 4, For SPS HARQ-ACK deferral, only SPS HARQ-ACK bits subject to deferral from one or more initial slots which have not reached the maximum deferral value are jointly deferred to the next available PUCCH (other SPS HARQ-ACK is dropped); page 73, multiplexing deferred SPS HARQ-ACK), and wherein the memory is configured to store the first HARQ-ACK information bits (page 49, HARQ-ACK information contents are stored in a special buffer). As to claim 22, NOKIA further discloses the apparatus of claim 21, wherein when the UE is configured for SPS HARQ-Deferral for the first PDSCH, the processing circuitry is configured to determine that the first slot is unavailable when the PUCCH resource in the first slot for the expected PUCCH transmission overlaps with a symbol indicated as downlink by tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon or tdd-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated (page 108, If a UE is provided spsHARQdeferral and, after performing the procedures in clauses 9 and 9.2.5 to resolve overlapping among PUCCHs and PUSCHs in a first slot, the UE determines a PUCCH resource for a PUCCH transmission with first HARQ-ACK information bits for SPS PDSCH receptions that the UE would report for a first time, and the PUCCH resource - is provided by SPS-PUCCII-AN-List as described in clause 9.2.1, or by nIPUCCII-AN if SPS-PUCCIIAN- List is not provided - overlaps with a symbol indicated as downlink by tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon or tdd-UL-DLConfigDedicated, or indicated for a SS/PBCH block by ssb-PositionsInBurst, or belonging to a CORESET associated with a Type0-PDCCH CSS set ). As to claim 23, NOKIA further discloses the apparatus of claim 22, wherein when the UE is configured for SPS HARQ-Deferral for the first PDSCH, the processing circuitry is further configured to determine that the first slot is unavailable when the PUCCH resource in the first slot for the expected PUCCH transmission overlaps with a symbol indicated for a synchronization signal/physical broadcast channel (PBCH) block (SSB) (page 108, If a UE is provided spsHARQdeferral and, after performing the procedures in clauses 9 and 9.2.5 to resolve overlapping among PUCCHs and PUSCHs in a first slot, the UE determines a PUCCH resource for a PUCCH transmission with first HARQ-ACK information bits for SPS PDSCH receptions that the UE would report for a first time, and the PUCCH resource - is provided by SPS-PUCCII-AN-List as described in clause 9.2.1, or by nIPUCCII-AN if SPS-PUCCIIAN- List is not provided - overlaps with a symbol indicated as downlink by tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon or tdd-UL-DLConfigDedicated, or indicated for a SS/PBCH block by ssb-PositionsInBurst, or belonging to a CORESET associated with a Type0-PDCCH CSS set). As to claim 24, NOKIA further discloses the apparatus of claim 23, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to decode signalling received from the gNB comprising an sps-HARQ-Deferral information element to configure the UE for deferring the HARQ-ACK information bits for the SPS PDSCH receptions of the first PDSCH (page 93, the deferral from the initial slot/sub-slot determined by k1 in the activation DCI ). As to claim 25, NOKIA further discloses the apparatus of claim 24, wherein signalling includes a maximum number of slots for deferring the HARQ-ACK information bits for the SPS PDSCH receptions of the first PDSCH (page 97, DCI…nrofSlots). As to claim 26, NOKIA further discloses the apparatus of claim 25, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to refrain from multiplexing the HARQ-ACK information bits from the first HARQ-ACK information bits when the deferral time is not less than a maximum number of slots or sub-slots between the PUCCH transmission in the second slot and the SPS PDSCH receptions in the prior slot (page 129, if the UE detects a DCI format in a PDCCH reception that triggers a PUCCH transmission with a Type-3 HARQ-ACK codebook in a slot as described in clause 9.1.4, the UE stops the procedure to determine the earliest second slot; the second HARQ-ACK information bits correspond to SPS PDSCH configurations with spsHARQdeferral values that are larger than or equal to a time difference, with reference to slots for PUCCH transmissions on the primary cell, between the second slot and the slot of the SPS PDSCH reception). As to claim 27, NOKIA further discloses the apparatus of claim 25, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to: decode a second PDSCH received from the gNB (page 108, UE…SPS PDSCH receptions); generate second HARQ-ACK information bits based receptions of the second PDSCH (page 108, UE…second HARQ-ACK information bits); multiplex the second HARQ-ACK information bits for transmission in the PUCCH resource determined for the earliest second slot (page 108, determines an earliest second slot and, after performing the procedures in clauses 9 and 9.2.5 to resolve overlapping among PUCCHs and PUSCHs, a PUSCH or a PUCCH in the earliest second slot to multiplex HARQ-ACK information bits that include second HARQ-ACK information bits from the first HARQ-ACK information bits). As to claim 28, NOKIA further discloses the apparatus of claim 27, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to multiplex the second HARQ-ACK information bits for transmission in the PUCCH resource determined for the earliest second slot when the first and second PDSCHs are scheduled by a same downlink control information (DCI) (page 45, he UE does not expect more than one triggering DCI for Rel-17 one-shot feedback indicating the same PUCCH slot for the re-transmission of HARQ-ACK CBs of different PUCCH slots to be re-transmitted). As to claim 31, see similar rejection to claim 20. A computer-readable storage medium that stores instructions for execution by processing circuitry is implicit in NOKIA (page 93, UE processing, i.e. it is known to one in ordinary skill in the art that there is processing code stored in a UE executed to perform functions). As to claim 32, see similar rejection to claim 22. As to claim 33, see similar rejection to claim 23. As to claim 34, see similar rejection to claim 24. As to claim 35, see similar rejection to claim 25. As to claim 36, see similar rejection to claim 26. As to claim 37, see similar rejection to claim 27. As to claim 38, NOKIA discloses an apparatus of a generation Node B (gNB) (page 46, gNB) configured for operation in a fifth-generation (5G) new radio (NR) network (page 1, NR), the apparatus comprising: processing circuitry (page 40, processing at the gNB); and memory (implicit, one of ordinary skill in the art knows a base station stores programming to be executed to perform functions), wherein the processing circuitry is configured to: encode a first physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) for transmission to a user equipment (UE), the first PDSCH configured for downlink semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) (page 61, SPS operation…PDSCH receptions; page 72, UE…transmit HARQ-ACK of later SPS PDSCHs and HARQ-ACK of the first PDSCH); when the UE is configured for deferring hybrid automatic repeat request acknowledge (HARQ-ACK) information bits for the SPS PDSCH receptions of the first PDSCH (SPS HARQ-Deferral) (page 107, The motivation for Alt 3 of joint operation of SPS HARQ-ACK deferral and PUCCH repetitions on allowing a repetition factor larger than the actual SPS periodicity is unclear, as this is not possible in FDD operation but only in TDD due to the drop of SPS PDSCH occasions that collide with the UL symbols), the processing circuitry is configured to: determine a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource in a first slot for an expected PUCCH transmission of first HARQ-ACK information bits for the SPS PDSCH receptions that the UE would report for a first time, the first HARQ-ACK information bits generated by the UE based on SPS PDSCH receptions of the first PDSCH (page 108, UE determines a PUCCH resource for a PUCCH transmission with first HARQ-ACK information bits for SPS PDSCH receptions that the UE would report for a first time); determine a PUCCH resource in an earliest second slot, after the first slot, that is available for a PUCCH transmission when the PUCCH resource in the first slot overlaps with a symbol indicated as downlink (page 113, UE determines a PUCCH resource for a PUCCH transmission with first HARQ-ACK information bits for SPS PDSCH receptions that the UE would report for a first time, and the PUCCH resource - is provided by SPS-PUCCH-AN-List as described in clause 9.2.1, or by nIPUCCH-AN if SPS-PUCCHAN- List is not provided - overlaps with a symbol indicated as downlink by tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon or tdd-UL-DLConfigDedicated,or indicated for a SS/PBCH block by ssb-PositionsInBurst, or belonging to a CORESET associated with a Type0-PDCCH CSS set the UE - determines an earliest second slot and, after performing the procedures in clauses 9 and 9.2.5 to resolve overlapping among PUCCHs and PUSCHs if any, a PUSCH or a PUCCH in the earliest second slot to multiplex transmit HARQ-ACK information bits that include second HARQ-ACK information bits from the first HARQ-ACK information bits); and decode a transmission comprising multiplexed HARQ-ACK information bits received in the PUCCH resource determined for the earliest second slot, wherein the multiplexed HARQ-ACK information bits include deferred HARQ-ACK information bits from the first HARQ-ACK information bits from to the SPS PDSCH receptions of the first PDSCH (page 128, UE determines an earliest second slot and, after performing the procedures in clauses 9 and 9.2.5 to resolve overlapping among PUCCHs and PUSCHs, a PUSCH or a PUCCH in the earliest second slot to multiplex HARQ-ACK information bits that include second HARQ-ACK information bits from the first HARQ-ACK information bits), and wherein the deferred HARQ-ACK information bits for the second slot are multiplexed when a deferral time is less than a maximum number of slots or sub-slots between the PUCCH transmission in the second slot and the SPS PDSCH receptions in a prior slot (page 4, For SPS HARQ-ACK deferral, only SPS HARQ-ACK bits subject to deferral from one or more initial slots which have not reached the maximum deferral value are jointly deferred to the next available PUCCH (other SPS HARQ-ACK is dropped); page 73, multiplexing deferred SPS HARQ-ACK), and wherein the memory is configured to store the first HARQ-ACK information bits (page 105, HARQ-ACK codebook is RRC, i.e. gNB, configured, i.e. while configured and before transmission it is stored). As to claim 39, NOKIA further discloses the apparatus of claim 38, wherein when the UE is configured for SPS HARQ-Deferral for the first PDSCH, the first slot is unavailable when the PUCCH resource in the first slot for the expected PUCCH transmission overlaps with a symbol indicated as downlink by tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon or tdd-UL-DL-ConfigDedicated (page 108, If a UE is provided spsHARQdeferral and, after performing the procedures in clauses 9 and 9.2.5 to resolve overlapping among PUCCHs and PUSCHs in a first slot, the UE determines a PUCCH resource for a PUCCH transmission with first HARQ-ACK information bits for SPS PDSCH receptions that the UE would report for a first time, and the PUCCH resource - is provided by SPS-PUCCII-AN-List as described in clause 9.2.1, or by nIPUCCII-AN if SPS-PUCCIIAN- List is not provided - overlaps with a symbol indicated as downlink by tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon or tdd-UL-DLConfigDedicated, or indicated for a SS/PBCH block by ssb-PositionsInBurst, or belonging to a CORESET associated with a Type0-PDCCH CSS set ). As to claim 40, NOKIA further discloses the apparatus of claim 22, wherein when the UE is configured for SPS HARQ-Deferral for the first PDSCH, the first slot is unavailable when the PUCCH resource in the first slot for the expected PUCCH transmission overlaps with a symbol indicated for a synchronization signal/physical broadcast channel (PBCH) block (SSB) (page 108, If a UE is provided spsHARQdeferral and, after performing the procedures in clauses 9 and 9.2.5 to resolve overlapping among PUCCHs and PUSCHs in a first slot, the UE determines a PUCCH resource for a PUCCH transmission with first HARQ-ACK information bits for SPS PDSCH receptions that the UE would report for a first time, and the PUCCH resource - is provided by SPS-PUCCII-AN-List as described in clause 9.2.1, or by nIPUCCII-AN if SPS-PUCCIIAN- List is not provided - overlaps with a symbol indicated as downlink by tdd-UL-DL-ConfigurationCommon or tdd-UL-DLConfigDedicated, or indicated for a SS/PBCH block by ssb-PositionsInBurst, or belonging to a CORESET associated with a Type0-PDCCH CSS set ). Conclusion The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. US 20240154731 A1 discloses DCI sent from NG node to UE, followed by HARQ-ACK codebook from UE (fig. 3). US 20240413951 A1 discloses receiving an SPS configuration for a HARQ-ACK deferral, for deferring sub-slot T to sub-slot X (fig. 11). US 20230232394 A1 discloses at para. 0119: for example, based on the indication in the T-DAI field of the DCI, if the T-DAI field indicates 4, the UE 115-a may multiplex UCI in the PUCCH transmission, and may also simultaneously transmit the PUSCH which overlaps with the PUCCH in time. The UE 115-a and may generate HARQ feedback of ACK/NACK information which may be transmitted on the PUCCH. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to OMAR J GHOWRWAL whose telephone number is (571)270-5691. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 9:00am-6:00pm. 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, ASAD NAWAZ can be reached at 571-272-3988. 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. /OMAR J GHOWRWAL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2463
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Prosecution Timeline

Jun 24, 2024
Application Filed
Jul 16, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §101, §102, §112 (current)

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
85%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+30.6%)
2y 7m (~5m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
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