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
The amendments to the claims filed on 2026-08-28, have been entered.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1-2, 4, 7, 9-11, 15, 17, 21, 23, 27, 30-32, and 36 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.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(d):
(d) REFERENCE IN DEPENDENT FORMS.—Subject to subsection (e), a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, fourth paragraph:
Subject to the following paragraph [i.e., the fifth paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112], a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
Claim 33 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(d) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 4th paragraph, as being of improper dependent form for failing to further limit the subject matter of the claim upon which it depends, or for failing to include all the limitations of the claim upon which it depends. Regarding claim 33, the claim is dependent upon a previously cancelled claim, for examination purposes, the examiner has interpreted the claim to be dependent on claim 1. Applicant may cancel the claim(s), amend the claim(s) to place the claim(s) in proper dependent form, rewrite the claim(s) in independent form, or present a sufficient showing that the dependent claim(s) complies with the statutory requirements.
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.
Claim 17 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.
Claim 17 recites the limitation "restoring the disabled configured downlink assignments" in the last claim limitation. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
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, 9, 11, 17, 21, 23, 27, 30-33, 36 and 41 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being clearly anticipated by Khan et al. (US-20260153630-A1, EFD: 2021-08-05) hereinafter Khan.
For examination purposes, apparatus, non-transitory mediums and method claims sharing the same limitations or which disclose analogous art to the invention as claimed will be grouped together and rejected under the same grounds.
Regarding Claims 1, 36 and 41 Khan discloses a method, apparatus (Khan, figs. 3-5) and non-transitory medium (Khan, figs. 4-5, components: 210 and 304) for processing global navigation satellite system (GNSS) validity, performed by a terminal device, comprising: sending a GNSS validity duration to a network device, wherein the GNSS validity duration is carried in a connection establishment complete message, a connection restoration complete message, or a connection reestablishment complete message (Khan, par. 140; the UE determines whether the GNSS data will remain valid during a connection. This can be determined either prior to accessing the network, during the connection establishment procedure, or after establishing connection. To this end, the UE needs to know the anticipated connection duration and compare it with the remaining duration until the GNSS will remain valid) see also figs. 9-12: and for a GNSS position fix of the terminal device having become out-of-date, returning to an idle state and setting a release cause of a radio resource control (RRC) connection to other (Khan, par. 160-167; a UE in RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE state acquires GNSS position fix when [0161] the validity timer expires; [0162] UE needs to access the cell and the validity timer is expired; [0163] UE needs to access the cell, the validity timer has not expired but the time until the timer expires is shorter than the minimum time required to complete the task which requires valid GNSS information (e.g., long UL transmission); [0164] UE wakes up from power saving mode; [0165] the network sends a command; [0166] the UE needs to perform cell (re-)selection and the validity timer is expired; or [0167] any of the other events described herein) see also fig. 12.
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Regarding claim 2, Kahn discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein for the GNSS position fix of the terminal device having become out-of-date, the method further comprises: declaring a master cell group (MCG) RLF and recording the target parameter in a RLF variable report (Khan, pars. 153-159; if the network has information about the remaining time until the GNSS data validity expires for a UE and/or the time-to-fix for a UE, the network may choose to perform one or more of the following actions … account for the additional delay due to reacquisition of GNSS data by the UE before timing out the connection or a radio link failure is declared) see also fig. 10 step 802. Examiner notes, although a master cell group is not explicitly mentioned by Khan, it is understood that the network consists of master nodes and secondary nodes as presented by Khan in par. 91 and fig. 3, element 106 “core network”, which by definition is a master cell group.
Regarding claim 3, Kahn discloses the method according to claim 2, wherein recording the target parameter in the RLF variable report comprises at least one of: setting a connection failure type to RLF (Khan, pars. 153-159; if the network has information about the remaining time until the GNSS data validity expires for a UE and/or the time-to-fix for a UE, the network may choose to perform one or more of the following actions … account for the additional delay due to reacquisition of GNSS data by the UE before timing out the connection or a radio link failure is declared); or setting an RLF cause to GNSS outdated (Khan, fig. 8, par. 256; the network node maintains the at least one validity timer at the network node. When transmitting the information, the network node transmits information indicating at least one of: whether the at least one validity timer is expired; and an amount of time associated with the at least one validity timer).
Regarding claim 9, Kahn discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein for the GNSS position fix of the terminal device having become out-of-date, the method further comprises: prohibiting uplink transmission, wherein the method further comprises: obtaining a latest GNSS position fix and restoring the uplink transmission (Khan, par. 150; Option 4: The UE remains in RRC_CONNECTED state, refrains from UL transmissions and immediately (or as soon as possible) acquires GNSS position fix and then resumes normal RRC_CONNECTED state operation (i.e. stops refraining from UL transmissions)).
Regarding claim 11, Kahn discloses the method according to claim 9, wherein the terminal device comprises a media access control (MAC) layer (Khan, par. 106; The network may send refined information to the UEs in connected mode, e.g. using dedicated RRC or MAC signaling); and prohibiting the uplink transmission comprises: determining that a time alignment timer is outdated (Khan, par. 146; Option 4: The UE remains in RRC_CONNECTED state, refrains from UL transmissions and immediately (or as soon as possible) acquires GNSS position fix and then resumes normal RRC_CONNECTED state operation (i.e. stops refraining from UL transmissions)); and performing a time alignment timer outdated processing procedure, wherein determining that the time alignment timer is outdated comprises at least one of (khan, fig. 9, par. 246; the at least one validity timer comprises a GNSS validity timer and a time alignment timer) : determining that both time alignment timers of a primary timing advance group (pTAG) and a secondary timing advance group (sTAG) are outdated; or determining that a time alignment timer of a pTAG is outdated, wherein the method further comprises: prohibiting initiating random access (Khan, par. 122; As an example, a threshold value can be defined in SIB1 and broadcast to the UEs in the cell so that UE knows that once the absolute pre-compensation time change is larger than or no less than the threshold, an RA procedure should be triggered and the TAT should be reset when a TA Command is received in a RAR message for a serving cell belonging to a Timing Advance Group (TAG) if 4-step RACH is selected or in a MsgB for an SpCell if a 2-step RACH is selected.) see also pars. 109-123.
Regarding claim 17, Kahn discloses the method according to claim 9, The method according to claim 9, wherein the terminal device comprises a MAC layer (Khan, par. 106; The network may send refined information to the UEs in connected mode, e.g. using dedicated RRC or MAC signaling.); and prohibiting the uplink transmission comprises at least one of: clearing a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) buffer of a serving cell; notifying a radio resource control (RRC) layer to release or disable a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) resource of a serving cell (Khan, par. 95; The UE is configured with information about SSB on cells of certain carrier frequency by one or more SS/PBCH block measurement timing configuration (SMTC) configurations. The SMTC configuration comprising parameters such as SMTC periodicity, SMTC occasion length in time or duration, SMTC time offset with regard to reference time (e.g. serving cell's SFN), etc. Therefore, SMTC occasion may also occur with certain periodicity such as, for example, 5 ms, 10 ms, 20 ms, 40 ms, 80 ms and 160 ms. Examples of UL physical signals are reference signal such as SRS, DMRS, etc. The term physical channel refers to any channel carrying higher layer information such as, for example, data, control, etc. Examples of physical channels are physical broadcast channel (PBCH), Narrowband PBCH (NPBCH), Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), Short PDSCH (sPDSCH), Short PUCCH (sPUCCH), Short Physical Uplink Shared Channel (sPUSCH), MTC PDCCH (MPDCCH), NPDCCH, NPDSCH, E-PDCCH, Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), NPUSCH, etc); notifying an RRC layer to release or disable a sounding reference signal (SRS) resource of a serving cell; clearing or disabling configured downlink assignments and uplink grants; clearing or disabling a physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) resource reported by semi- persistent channel state information (CSI); or prohibiting the uplink transmission, wherein the method further comprises: obtaining a latest GNSS position fix and restoring the disabled configured downlink assignments and uplink grants (Khan, par. 146; Option 4: The UE remains in RRC_CONNECTED state, refrains from UL transmissions and immediately (or as soon as possible) acquires GNSS position fix and then resumes normal RRC_CONNECTED state operation (i.e. stops refraining from UL transmissions)) see also pars. 160- 167 for idle/inactive state modes.
Regarding claim 21, Khan discloses the method according to claim 1, further comprising: position fix; or obtaining a latest GNSS position fix and reporting an MCG RLF to the network device (Khan, pars. 153-159; if the network has information about the remaining time until the GNSS data validity expires for a UE and/or the time-to-fix for a UE, the network may choose to perform one or more of the following actions … account for the additional delay due to reacquisition of GNSS data by the UE before timing out the connection or a radio link failure is declared) see also fig. 10 step 802. Examiner notes, although a master cell group is not explicitly mentioned by Khan, it is understood that the network consists of master nodes and secondary nodes as presented by Khan in par. 91 and fig. 3, element 106 “core network”, which by definition is a master cell group.
Regarding claim 23, Khan discloses the method according to claim 1, further comprising: obtaining a latest GNSS position fix within a time window, wherein the method further comprises: not performing uplink transmission (Khan, par. 150; The UE remains in RRC_CONNECTED state, refrains from UL transmissions and immediately (or as soon as possible) acquires GNSS position fix and then resumes normal RRC_CONNECTED state operation (i.e. stops refraining from UL transmissions)) or downlink reception within the time window, or the method further comprises: receiving configuration information of the time window sent by the network device (khan, fig. 12, par. 296; The method begins at step 1002 when the network node receives, during connection reestablishment, and from a UE 112, first information about a validity duration of the GNSS data).
Regarding claim 27, khan discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein sending the GNSS validity duration to the network device comprises: sending a random access message to the network device, wherein the random access message comprises the GNSS validity duration (Khan, par. 168-169; If a UE has outdated GNSS data, the calculated time and frequency pre-compensation values will be erroneous. [0169] In a particular embodiment, on top of the GNSS validity timer expiration, when SS-RSRP of all the SSBs measured are below a threshold, cell reselection is needed. This is the case since the link quality is also bad in DL and a PRACH resource may also be randomly selected if UE tries to access this cell.), or sending a dedicated radio resource control (RRC) message to the network device, wherein the dedicated RRC message comprises the GNSS validity duration (Khan, fig. 12, par. 296; The method begins at step 1002 when the network node receives, during connection reestablishment, and from a UE 112, first information about a validity duration of the GNSS data and/or a time-to-first fix. At step 1004, the network node 110 performs at least one action based on the first information) see also pars. 146-170, wherein the method further comprises: receiving a terminal device information request sent by the network device, wherein the terminal device information request is configured to request the terminal device to report the GNSS validity duration (Khan fig. 12, par. 296; the first information indicates at least one of: an amount of time remaining on the at least one validity timer, and a connection duration of the connection with the UE); wherein sending the dedicated radio resource control (RRC) message to the network device comprises: sending a terminal device information response to the network device, wherein the terminal device information response comprises the GNSS validity duration (Khan, fig. 12, par. 298; performing the at least one action comprises transmitting, to the UE, second information that: indicates whether or not the GNSS data is expected to remain valid during a connection duration, or is used to determine whether or not the GNSS data is expected to remain valid during the connection duration).
Regarding claim 30, khan discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein sending the GNSS validity duration to the network device comprises: determining that the GNSS validity duration is less than a first validity duration (Khan, par. 251; In a particular embodiment, the wireless device determines, based on the at least one validity timer, whether the GNSS data will be valid during a connection duration by comparing the connection duration to an amount of time remaining on the at least one validity timer.) see also pars. 109-, and sending the GNSS validity duration to the network device (Khan, fig. 12, par. 296; The method begins at step 1002 when the network node receives, during connection reestablishment, and from a UE 112, first information about a validity duration of the GNSS data and/or a time-to-first fix. At step 1004, the network node 110 performs at least one action based on the first information); wherein the first validity duration is a validity duration of ephemeris information or common time alignment (Khan, par. 109; According to certain embodiments, when both GNSS validity timer(s) and TAT are configured, the TAT is assumed to be expired and should be reset when the GNSS validity timer expires and is reset. In this case, a RA for UL synchronization may be triggered with a PRACH preamble transmitted with the updated timing compensation. UL synchronization is needed as the TA calculated may be not reliable anymore due to the pre-compensation time being updated.) see also par. 267.
Regarding claim 31, khan discloses the method according to claim 1, further comprising: sending a second validity duration to the network device, wherein the second validity duration is a smaller value of the GNSS validity duration and a first validity duration; wherein the first validity duration is a validity duration of ephemeris information or common time alignment (Khan, fig. 12, par. 298; performing the at least one action comprises transmitting, to the UE, second information that: indicates whether or not the GNSS data is expected to remain valid during a connection duration, or is used to determine whether or not the GNSS data is expected to remain valid during the connection duration) see also pars. 313-317.
Regarding claim 32, khan discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein sending the GNSS validity duration to the network device comprises: obtaining a GNSS position fix (khan, fig. 12, par. 296; The method begins at step 1002 when the network node receives, during connection reestablishment, and from a UE 112, first information about a validity duration of the GNSS data and/or a time-to-first fix. At step 1004, the network node 110 performs at least one action based on the first information) and sending the GNSS validity duration to the network device (Khan, par. 297; In a particular embodiment, the first information indicates at least one of: an amount of time remaining on the at least one validity timer, and a connection duration of the connection with the UE).
Regarding claim 33, khan discloses the method according to claim 1, further comprising at least one of: receiving a first instruction sent by the network device via a system message (khan, fig. 12, par. 296; The method begins at step 1002 when the network node receives, during connection reestablishment, and from a UE 112, first information about a validity duration of the GNSS data and/or a time-to-first fix. At step 1004, the network node 110 performs at least one action based on the first information); or receiving a first instruction sent by the network device via a radio resource control (RRC) dedicated message (Khan, par. 153; In another embodiment, if the network has information about the remaining time until the GNSS data validity expires for a UE and/or the time-to-fix for a UE, the network may choose to perform one or more of the following actions:); wherein the first instruction is configured to instruct the terminal device to report the GNSS validity duration (Khan, par. 155; indicate it to the UE that its validity timer may expire during the ongoing connection) see also par. 156, or, the first instruction is configured to instruct the terminal device not to report the GNSS validity duration (Khan, par. 146; Option 4: The UE remains in RRC_CONNECTED state, refrains from UL transmissions and immediately (or as soon as possible) acquires GNSS position fix and then resumes normal RRC_CONNECTED state operation (i.e. stops refraining from UL transmissions)).
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 4 and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Khan et al. (US-20260153630-A1, EFD: 2021-08-05) hereinafter Khan in view of 3GPP publication (3GPP TSG RAN WG2 #114-e, Electronic Meeting, 19-27 May 2021, R2-2105663, Huawei, HiSilicon) Hereinafter, Huawei.
For examination purposes, apparatus, non-transitory mediums and method claims sharing the same limitations or which disclose analogous art to the invention as claimed will be grouped together and rejected under the same grounds.
Regarding claim 4, Kahn discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein returning to the idle state comprises for access stratum security not activated, returning to the idle state or for access stratum security activated, returning to the idle state (Khan, par. 160-167; a UE in RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE state acquires GNSS position fix when [0161] the validity timer expires; [0162] UE needs to access the cell and the validity timer is expired; [0163] UE needs to access the cell, the validity timer has not expired but the time until the timer expires is shorter than the minimum time required to complete the task which requires valid GNSS information (e.g., long UL transmission); [0164] UE wakes up from power saving mode; [0165] the network sends a command; [0166] the UE needs to perform cell (re-)selection and the validity timer is expired; or [0167] any of the other events described herein.).
Khan does not explicitly disclose the idle state transition comprises a stratum security not activated. However, in analogous art, Huawei discloses the RRC_IDLE logic to be based on security activation (Huawei, pg. 2, section 2.1.2, RLF determination; T310 expiry, In NB-IoT, T310 starts after N310 consecutive out-of-sync and stops after N311 consecutive in-sync. Upon expiry, the RRC Connection Re-establishment procedure is triggered or the UE goes to RRC_IDLE).
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Therefore a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to combine Khan’s techniques for GNSS data validity in NTN with Huawei’s teachings for detecting radio link failure to enhance methods for declaring radio link failure in a UE to GNSS communication system.
Regarding Claim 7, the combination of Khan and Huawei teach the method according to claim 4, further comprising: receiving a configuration message sent by the network device, wherein the configuration message is configured to configure the terminal device to return to the idle state in a case that the GNSS position fix has become out-of-date, wherein the method further comprises: sending a first message to the network device, wherein the first message is configured to indicate that the terminal device supports staying in the connected state in a case that the GNSS position fix of the terminal device has become out-of- date (Khan, par. 150; Option 4: The UE remains in RRC_CONNECTED state, refrains from UL transmissions and immediately (or as soon as possible) acquires GNSS position fix and then resumes normal RRC_CONNECTED state operation (i.e. stops refraining from UL transmissions)); or the first message is configured to indicate that the terminal device does not support staying in the connected state in a case that the GNSS position fix of the terminal device has become out-of-date (Khan, par. 149; The UE is allowed to complete DL reception. In this case, if the UE would like to initiate UL transmission, the UE would need to leave RRC Connected state and enters RRC Idle state to restart the procedure) see also pars 160-166.
Claims 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Khan et al. (US-20260153630-A1, EFD: 2021-08-05) hereinafter Khan in view of Sengupta et al. (US-20220322477-A1, EFD: 2021-04-01) Hereinafter, Sengupta.
For examination purposes, apparatus, non-transitory mediums and method claims sharing the same limitations or which disclose analogous art to the invention as claimed will be grouped together and rejected under the same grounds.
Regarding claim 10, Kahn discloses the method according to claim 1, wherein for the GNSS position fix of the terminal device having become out-of-date, the method further comprises at least one of: not monitoring a physical downlink control channel (PDCCH); or not performing downlink reception, wherein the method further comprises: obtaining a latest GNSS position fix and restoring the downlink reception (Khan par. 252; In a particular embodiment, upon determination that the at least one validity is expired, the wireless device performs at least one of: completing an uplink transmission and a downlink reception; completing a downlink reception but not an uplink transmission unless GNSS data is refreshed during a measurement and/or transmission gap; completing a downlink reception and transitioning to an RRC Idle state to initiate an uplink transmission; remaining in a RRC connected state, refraining from uplink transmissions while acquiring new GNSS data, and resuming uplink transmissions after new GNSS data is acquired) see also fig. 12.
Khan does not explicitly disclose not performing downlink reception, obtaining a position fix and restoring the downlink reception. However, in analogous art Sengupta discloses a method for NTN and user equipment in case of failures in location tracking, in which it discloses the cease of downlink and uplink communication between the UE and NTN and it is resumed after synchronization is reestablished (Sengupta, par. 95; When the NTN device determines that the synchronization is invalid or likely to be invalid, the NTN device may take one or more actions to maintain or restore the synchronization. In some cases, the NTN device may cease communications associated with the connection between UE 115-a and network node 120-a (e.g., UE 115-a may cease uplink transmissions to network node 120-a, network node 120-a may cease downlink transmissions to UE 115-a, etc.). In some cases, the communications (e.g., the scheduling of resources associated with the communications) may resume when the UE 115-a sends a message indicating the synchronization is maintained or restored (e.g., a message indicating the synchronization timer is reset)).
Therefore a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have been motivated to combine the teachings of Khan for GNSS data validity in NTN networks with Sengupta’s teachings for NTN and UE behavior in case of failures in location tracking to enhance connection reestablishment once a connection failure is detected.
Claims 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Khan et al. (US-20260153630-A1, EFD: 2021-08-05) hereinafter Khan in view of Wang et al. (US-20230156540 -A1, EFD: 2021-04-09) Hereinafter, Wang.
Regarding claim 15, Kahn discloses the method according to claim 9, wherein the terminal device comprises a radio resource control (RRC) layer (Khan, par. 106; The network may send refined information to the UEs in connected mode, e.g. using dedicated RRC or MAC signaling), and prohibiting the uplink transmission comprises at least one of: releasing or disabling at least one of a physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) or a short physical uplink control channel (SPUCCH) of a serving cell (Khan, par. 95; The UE is configured with information about SSB on cells of certain carrier frequency by one or more SS/PBCH block measurement timing configuration (SMTC) configurations. The SMTC configuration comprising parameters such as SMTC periodicity, SMTC occasion length in time or duration, SMTC time offset with regard to reference time (e.g. serving cell's SFN), etc. Therefore, SMTC occasion may also occur with certain periodicity such as, for example, 5 ms, 10 ms, 20 ms, 40 ms, 80 ms and 160 ms. Examples of UL physical signals are reference signal such as SRS, DMRS, etc. The term physical channel refers to any channel carrying higher layer information such as, for example, data, control, etc. Examples of physical channels are physical broadcast channel (PBCH), Narrowband PBCH (NPBCH), Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), Short PDSCH (sPDSCH), Short PUCCH (sPUCCH), Short Physical Uplink Shared Channel (sPUSCH), MTC PDCCH (MPDCCH), NPDCCH, NPDSCH, E-PDCCH, Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), NPUSCH, etc.); releasing or disabling a semi-persistent scheduling (SPS) of a serving cell (Khan, par. 31; ) he K.sub.offset parameter may potentially be used in various timing related mechanisms, but the main focus is to use it in the scheduling of UL transmissions on the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) see also pars. 179 and 181; or for the terminal device being a narrow band internet of things (NB-IOT) device, releasing or disabling a dedicated scheduling request (SR) resource, wherein the method further comprising at least one of: obtaining a latest GNSS position fix and restoring the PUCCH or the SPUCCH of the disabled serving cell; obtaining a latest GNSS position fix and restoring the SPS of the disabled serving cell; or for the terminal device being an NB-IOT device, obtaining a latest GNSS position fix and restoring the disabled dedicated SR resource.
Khan does not explicitly disclose releasing or disabling a semi-persistent schedule and rather states the UL transmissions follow a constant/persistent schedule. However, in analogous art Wang discloses a method for handling radio link failures in RRC connection where it is discloses procedures for using RRC release to release the RRC connection with all radio resources to assist handover procedures (Wang par. 42; As specified in the RRC spec 38.331-f80 clause 5.3.8, the purpose of the RRC release procedure is to release the RRC connection, which includes the release of the established radio bearers as well as all radio resources, or to suspend the RRC connection only if SRB2 and at least one DRB are set up, which includes the suspension of the established radio bearers) see also fig. 7.
Therefore it would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine Khan teachings for RLF and data validity in an NTN with Wangs teachings for RLF and RRC release methods to enhance node handover when a link fails or expires.
It is noted that any citations to specific pages, columns, lines or figures in the prior art
references and any interpretation of the reference should not be considered limiting in any way. A
reference is relevant for all it contains and may be relied upon for all that it would have reasonably
suggested to a person of ordinary skill in the art. See MPEP 2123
Conclusion
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.
Other Pertinent Prior Art
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Kim et al. (US-20230239751-A1), METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR HANDLING MASTER CELL GROUP FAILURE IN WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, 2023. The present disclosure relates to handling a master cell group (MCG) failure in wireless communications. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a method performed by a wireless device in a wireless communication system comprises: receiving, from a source primary cell (PCell), a conditional mobility command including a mobility condition for a target PCell; starting a timer for a master cell group (MCG) failure recovery and transmitting MCG failure information related to the MCG failure recovery to a primary secondary cell (PSCell), based on detecting a radio link failure (RLF) on the source PCell; and based on that the mobility condition for the target PCell is satisfied while the timer is running: transmitting, to the PSCell, a new PCell indication informing a mobility from the source PCell to the target PCell; and performing a random access to the target PCell for the mobility.
Teyeb et al. (US-20230086398-A1), MASTER CELL GROUP (MCG) FAILURE AND RADIO LINK FAILURE (RLF) REPORTING, 2023. A method (400) for providing radio link failure (RLF) information. The method includes a UE (302) detecting (s402) an RLF with respect to a master cell group (MCG). The method also includes, in response to detecting the RLF with respect to the MCG, the UE either storing an RLF report and initiating a fast MCG link recovery procedure (s404) or transmitting an enhanced MCG failure information message as part of the fast MCG link recovery procedure.
Lieberg et al. (US-20220104084-A1), UE, NETWORK NODE AND METHOD FOR ENABLING GNSS MEASUREMENTS, 2022. The present disclosure relates to a method performed by a UE for enabling GNSS measurements. The UE and a network node are included in a NR communications network, and the NR communications network includes a NTN component. The UE performs a GNSS measurement according to a rule and using a GNSS receiver included in the UE. At least one of a UE position and an absolute time is an output of the GNSS measurement or is derivable from the GNSS measurement.
Shin et al. (US-20230164722-A1), METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PERFORMING COMMUNICATION IN WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEM, 2023. Methods and apparatuses for performing communication in a wireless communication system. A user equipment (UE) receives first satellite ephemeris information related to a first satellite and information related to a first validity duration corresponding to the first satellite from a base station; and restarts a first validity timer, based on second satellite ephemeris information related to the first satellite being received from the base station while the first validity timer having the first validity duration is running. The UE obtains a first TA for the first satellite based on the first satellite ephemeris information before the first validity timer restarts, expires, or stops after starting based on the first validity duration, and the UE obtains a second TA for the first satellite based on the second satellite ephemeris information before the first validity timer expires or stops after restarting based on a second validity duration.
Shrestha et al. (US-12302440-B2), Transmission, Retransmission, And Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request Process Using Preconfigured Uplink Resources In Idle Mode, 2025. Some embodiments of this disclosure include apparatuses and methods for facilitating a transmission, retransmission, and hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) process using preconfigured uplink resources (PUR) in IDLE mode. In some embodiments, user equipment (UE) may establish a first PUR and a second PUR to use in IDLE mode. The UE may transmit uplink data using the first PUR using a HARQ process. The UE may start a PUR retransmission timer and monitor a control channel for an acknowledgement message. The UE may identify an expiration of the PUR retransmission timer prior to receiving the acknowledgement message, and in response, may retransmit the uplink data using the second PUR.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MARIO R CAMPERO MIRAMONTES whose telephone number is (571)272-5792. The examiner can normally be reached Monday -Thursday 0600 - 1600.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Yuwen (Kevin) Pan can be reached at (571) 272-7855. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MARIO R CAMPERO MIRAMONTES/ Examiner, Art Unit 2649
/YUWEN PAN/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2649
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