Detailed Action
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
This is a Non-final action for application number 18/726,313 in response to an original application filed on 07/02/2024.
Claims 1-20 are currently pending and have been considered below.
Claims 1, 10 and 19 are independent claims.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS), submitted on 07/02/2024, 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 § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hwang et al. (US 2020/0367168 A1) in view of Iwamura et al. (US 2017/0048918 A1).
Regarding claims 1 and 10, a method, comprising:
receiving, by a processor of an apparatus, a system information and a timing information for waking up a non-anchor cell from an anchor cell, [Figure 10, Ref # S1002, a UE may receive configuration information related to WUS enabling/disabling. In case of applying Method 1 according to the present disclosure, the configuration information related to the WUS enabling/disabling may be configured in cell unit (and/or cell-commonly), (Hwang et al., Paragraphs 224-229)],
and transmitting, by the processor, a wake-up-signal (WUS) based on the system information and the timing information to wake up the non-anchor cell, [Figure 10, Ref # S1004, if the WUS is enabled, the UE may monitor the WUS and/or a channel corresponding to the WUS. If Method 1 according to the present disclosure is applied, the configuration information may include a resource part list for a UE, (Hwang et al., Paragraphs 230-235)],
wherein the anchor cell comprises a cell where the apparatus is capable of receiving the system information and the timing information, [in case that a plurality of resource parts are operated in a single cell, a UE may need information on a resource part list and a reference for selecting a resource part. In a situation of applying Method 1 according to the present disclosure, if presence or non-presence of applicability of WUS is defined as capability from the perspective of a UE and a WUS capable UE and a WUS incapable UE exist in the same cell, (Hwang et al., Paragraph 127)],
and performing a timing and frequency synchronization, [the UE synchronizes its timing to the base station and acquires information such as a cell identifier (ID) by receiving a primary synchronization signal (PSS) and a secondary synchronization signal (SSS) from the base station, (Hwang et al., Paragraph 49)],
wherein the non-anchor cell comprises a cell where the apparatus cannot receive the system information and the timing information, [in case of NB-IoT, transmission of a synchronization signal and system information should be performed on an anchor carrier and the density of UEs expecting a paging may be different per carrier (e.g., anchor carrier and non-anchor carrier), (Hwang et al., Paragraph 150)],
Hwang et al. fails to explicitly teach receiving timing information,
Iwamura et al. teaches that the wake up signal configuration may indicate to the user equipment when the user equipment should send the wake up signal, for example directly upon receipt of the wake up signal configuration, after a certain fixed time or at the beginning or the end of a radio frame/subframe, (Iwamura et al., Paragraph 72),
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention was made to modify Hwang et al. by receiving timing information, (Iwamura et al., Paragraph 72), in order to wake up one or more sleeping small cell base stations in a wireless communication system, (Iwamura et al., Paragraph 17).
Regarding claims 2 and 11, the method wherein the receiving comprises receiving the timing information from at least one Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) satellite, [TDMA may be embodied through wireless (or radio) technology such as global system for mobile communication (GSM)/general packet radio service (GPRS)/enhanced data rates for GSM evolution (EDGE), (Hwang et al., Paragraph 34)].
Regarding claims 3 and 12, the method further comprising: performing, by the processor, a cell selection, a cell re-selection or a random access procedure with the non-anchor cell based on the system information and the timing information, [To complete access to the base station, the UE may perform a random access procedure such as steps S203 to S206 with the base station, (Hwang et al., Paragraph 51)].
Regarding claims 4 and 13, the method wherein the system information comprises a configuration for at least one of carrier information, physical random access channel (PRACH) transmission, a preamble index, a preamble sub-carrier spacing (SCS) and a PRACH resource, [The UE determines a level in each operation ode and transmits the determined level to the BS. Particularly, an MTC UE determines a level in an operation mode based on a measured channel quality (e.g., RSRP, RSRQ, SINR, etc.), and may be then able to inform a BS of the determined level using a PRACH resource, (Hwang et al., Paragraph 95)].
Regarding claims 5 and 14, the method wherein the WUS comprises a base station (BS)-WUS sequence, and wherein the WUS is used to request a transition from no or reduced transmission or reception activity to activate transmission or reception activity of a channel or a signal, or is used to trigger a synchronization signal block (SSB) or system information block (SIB) transmission, [the small cell, however, retains the capability to receive a signal transmission from the UE indicating that the small cell should be activated so that in receipt of the this signal the small cell transitions to the active state, (Iwamura et al., Paragraph 67)].
Regarding claims 6 and 15, the method wherein the transmitting comprises transmitting the WUS through a wake-up transceiver of the apparatus, [a technical task of the present disclosure is to provide a method of transceiving a Wake-Up Signal (WUS) efficiently in a wireless communication system and apparatus therefor, (Hwang et al., Paragraph 3)].
Regarding claims 7 and 16, the method wherein the WUS comprises at least one of a wake-up preamble, an address identification (ID), a sender ID and a sub-carrier spacing (SCS), [the UE synchronizes its timing to the base station and acquires information such as a cell identifier (ID) by receiving a primary synchronization signal (PSS) and a secondary synchronization signal (SSS) from the base station, (Hwang et al., Paragraph 49)].
Regarding claims 8 and 17, the method further comprising:
starting, by the processor, a prohibit timer in an event that the WUS is transmitted to the non- anchor cell, [starting a discovery timer in the user equipment, wherein the discovery timer is started upon reception of the wake up signal configuration, or upon transmission of the wake up signal by the user equipment, (Iwamura et al., Paragraph 30)],
and stopping, by the processor, transmitting another WUS when the prohibit timer is running, [The small cell will return to sleep after the sleep timer expired if no user equipment established a connection or if no additional wake up signal is received. The timer may be configured by a macro base station 100 or may be specified in the small cell, (Iwamura et al., Paragraph 76)].
Regarding claims 9 and 18, the method further comprising: receiving, by the processor, a master information block (MIB) or a system information block 1 (SIB1) to determine whether wake up the non-anchor cell, [Master Information Block (MIB) is transceived through PBCH, (Hwang et al., Paragraph 92)].
Regarding claim 19, a method, comprising:
receiving, by a first transceiver of an apparatus, a wake-up-signal (WUS) from a user equipment (UE), [Figure 10, Ref # S1002, a UE may receive configuration information related to WUS enabling/disabling. In case of applying Method 1 according to the present disclosure, the configuration information related to the WUS enabling/disabling may be configured in cell unit (and/or cell-commonly), (Hwang et al., Paragraphs 224-229)],
and waking up, by the first transceiver, a second transceiver of the apparatus based on the WUS from the UE, [Figure 10, Ref # S1004, if the WUS is enabled, the UE may monitor the WUS and/or a channel corresponding to the WUS. If Method 1 according to the present disclosure is applied, the configuration information may include a resource part list for a UE, (Hwang et al., Paragraphs 230-235)],
Hwang et al. fails to explicitly teach transiting, by a processor of an apparatus, from no or reduced transmission or reception activity to activate transmission or reception activity for a channel or a signal,
Iwamura et al. teaches that the small cell, however, retains the capability to receive a signal transmission from the UE indicating that the small cell should be activated so that in receipt of the this signal the small cell transitions to the active state, (Iwamura et al., Paragraph 67),
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention was made to modify Hwang et al. by transiting, by a processor of an apparatus, from no or reduced transmission or reception activity to activate transmission or reception activity for a channel or a signal, (Iwamura et al., Paragraph 67), in order to wake up one or more sleeping small cell base stations in a wireless communication system, (Iwamura et al., Paragraph 17).
Regarding claim 20, the method of Claim 19, wherein the second transceiver is in a power saving mode in an event that the processor is in no or reduced transmission or reception activity, [A WUS may be used for the purpose of reducing power consumption due to monitoring of a corresponding channel from the perspective of a receiving end, for the purpose of providing information for monitoring of a corresponding channel, (Hwang et al., Paragraph 117)].
Conclusion
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/SHUKRI TAHA/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2478
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