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 .
Information Disclosure Statement (IDS)
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 09 July 202416 May 2025 06 January 2026 is being considered by the examiner.
Claims 1-14, 16-19 and 39-40 are pending. The Applicant elects Invention I, encompass (claims 1-14 and 39) for examination without traverse. Claims 16-19 and 40 have been withdrawn from consideration.
Figure 2 of the application illustrates the claimed invention.
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Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
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 1 and 39 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.
Claim 1, line 5 and claim 39, line 8, respectively, it is not clear what is meant by “an access result for the first cell”. For conduct an examination, the Examiner assumed the limitation “determining an access result for the first cell based on the bandwidth of the initial BWP and a supported bandwidth of the first type of terminal” means determining an amount of bandwidth for accessing the first cell based on the bandwidth of the initial BWP and a bandwidth supported by the first type of the terminal.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 1-2, 6 and 39 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by MU et al. (US 2024/0276476 A1).
Regarding claims 1 and 39, MU et al. discloses a cell access method, performed by a first type of terminal (“Method for determining initial bandwidth part, and terminal”), comprising:
obtaining a bandwidth of an initial bandwidth part (BWP) configured by a first cell ([0038]: “At step S11, an initial BWP to be monitored in a cell the terminal camping on is determined. The initial BWP to be monitored in the cell the terminal camping on includes a first initial BWP or a second initial BWP.”); ([0041]: “the plurality of initial BWPs may have different bandwidths, so that terminals applicable to different capability types communicate based on initial BWPs applicable to their own bandwidth capabilities.”); and
determining an access result for the first cell based on the bandwidth of the initial BWP and a supported bandwidth of the first type of terminal ([0041]: “For example, an initial BWP capable of supporting the bandwidth capability of the Redcap UE may be determined from the plurality of initial BWPs, so that the Redcap UE may communicate in the initial BWP applicable to the Redcap UE.”)
The Examiner assumed “an access result or the first cell” is an amount of bandwidth determined by the first type of terminal for accessing the first cell.
Regarding claim 2, MU et al. teaches wherein obtaining the bandwidth of the initial BWP configured by the first cell comprises:
obtaining the bandwidth of the initial BWP configured of an uplink initial BWP configured by the first cell. ([0032]: “The initial BWP referred in embodiments of the disclosure includes an initial downlink BWP (initial DL BWP) or an initial uplink BWP (initial UP BWP).
Regarding claim 6, MU et al. teaches wherein obtaining the bandwidth of the initial BWP configured by the first cell comprises:
obtaining a bandwidth of a downlink initial BWP configured by the first cell.
([0032]: “The initial BWP referred in embodiments of the disclosure includes an initial downlink BWP (initial DL BWP) or an initial uplink BWP (initial UP BWP).
Claims 1 and 39 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by JAN et al. (US 2024/0080821 A1).
Regarding claims 1 and 39, JAN et al. discloses a cell access method, performed by a first type of terminal, comprising:
obtaining a bandwidth of an initial bandwidth part (BWP) configured by a first cell (“a base station side includes configuring an initial downlink bandwidth (BWP) of a reduced capability (REDCAP) user equipment through an information element, wherein the initial downlink BWP of the REDCAP user equipment is independent from an initial downlink BWP of a conventional user equipment, and time-frequency resources of the initial downlink BWP of the conventional UE”, See abstract); and
determining an access result for the first cell based on the bandwidth of the initial BWP and a supported bandwidth of the first type of terminal. (“using the initial downlink BWP of the REDCAP user equipment to transmit initial access-related signals that is configured for the REDCAP user equipment.”).
The Examiner assumed “an access result for the first cell” is an amount
bandwidth determined by the first type of terminal for accessing the first cell.
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Claim(s) 1, 2 and 39 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by NEC: “Initial BWP for RedCap”, 3GPP DRAFT; R2-2108137, 3RD GENERATION PARTNERSHIP PROJECT (3GPP), MOBILE COMPETENCE CENTRE; 650, ROUTE DES LUCIOLES; F-06921 SOPHIA-ANTIPOLIS CEDEX; FRANCE, vol. RAN WG2, no. Electronic meeting; 20210816-20210827 6 August 2021 (2021-08-06), XP052034640, Retrieved from the Internet: URL:https://ftp.3gpp.org/tsg_ran/WG2_RL2/TSGR2_115-e/Docs/R2-2108137, zip R2-2108137_initial BWP.docx [retrieved on 2021-08-06], herein after referred as D1.
Regarding claim 1, D1 discloses a cell access method (section 2, noting that as D1 is a 3GPP RAN2 contribution, missing details of the described high level methods are implicitly incorporated from the 3GPP technical specifications valid at publication time; a specific example is Fig.1), performed by a first type of terminal (any of the RedCap UEs or not-RedCap UEs mentioned through section 2; for the specific example of Fig. 1, the implementing RedCap UE), comprising:
obtaining a bandwidth of an initial bandwidth part (BWP) configured by a first cell (uplink or downlink channel bandwidth of the legacy initial BWP disclosed in section 2, or of the “separated initial BWP specific to RedCap UEs” proposed in “Proposal 1”; for the specific example of Fig. 1, the uplink or downlink bandwidth of the “Legacy initial BWP”); and
determining an access result for the first cell based on the bandwidth of the initial BWP and a supported bandwidth of the first type of terminal (the determination of if the cell is barred or not based on the bandwidth initial BWP; for the specific example of Fig. 1, the lowest to arrows pointing to “cell barred” or Camp on cell”).
Regarding claim 2, D1 discloses wherein the obtaining the bandwidth of the initial BWP configured by the first cell comprises:
obtaining a bandwidth of an uplink initial BWP configured by the first cell.
(uplink or downlink channel bandwidth of the legacy initial BWP disclosed in section 2, or of the “separated initial BWP specific to RedCap UEs” proposed in “Proposal 1”; for the specific example of Fig. 1, the uplink or downlink bandwidth of the “Legacy initial BWP”).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRENDA H PHAM whose telephone number is (571)272-3135. The examiner can normally be reached 571-272-3135.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Charles Jiang can be reached at 571-270-7191. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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BRENDA H. PHAM
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 2412
/BRENDA H PHAM/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2412
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