DETAILED ACTION
Response to Remark
This communication is considered fully responsive to the amendment filed on 08/26/26.
Independent claims have been amended.
Claims 2-4, 11-13, and 18-34 have been canceled.
Rejection to claim under 35 USC § 112 is withdrawn since it has been amended accordingly.
The previous 102 rejection by Takeda has been replaced with a new 103 rejection over Takeda in view of Xuan.
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 of this title, 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, 5, 6, 10, 14, 15, and 35-37 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Takeda et al. (US 2022/0322331, “Takeda”) in view of Xuan et al. (US 2023/0262673, “Xuan”).
Regarding claim 1, Takeda discloses a method for processing information, performed by a terminal, and comprising:
- determining whether simultaneous downlink reception and uplink transmission are supported by the terminal (See 402 & 404 Fig.4, ‘Simultaneous Rx-Tx not supported; See 606 Fig.6, determine that UE is not capable of simultaneous Rx/Tx in first and second frequency bands; See ¶.84, the UE may transmit, for each of multiple BCs, an indication to the base station about whether the UE supports simultaneous Rx/Tx of data in a particular band pair) by determining whether an uplink bandwidth part (UL BWP) and a downlink bandwidth part (DL BWP) monitored by the terminal on an operating band meet a separation requirement for uplink transmission and downlink reception (See 612 & 617 Fig.6, determine that data transmission in the first frequency band and data reception in second frequency band overlap in time after sending a second indication that UE not supporting simultaneous Rx/Tx in first and second frequency bands; See ¶.5, determine that the UE is not capable of simultaneous reception (Rx) and transmission (Tx) (Rx/Tx) in a first frequency band of a first band group and a second frequency band of a second band group for the NR-CA or the NR-DC; See ¶.10, the UE may determine that data transmission in the first frequency band of the first band group and data reception in the second frequency band of the second band group overlap in time, and cancel at least a part of the data transmission in the first frequency band of the first band group or the data reception in the second frequency band of the second band group based on the overlap in time; See ¶.46, the frequencies between FR1 and FR2 are often referred to as mid-band frequencies. Recent 5G NR studies have identified an operating band for these mid-band frequencies as frequency range designation FR3 (7.125 GHz-24.25 GHz). Frequency bands falling within FR3 may inherit FR1 characteristics and/or FR2 characteristics, and thus may effectively extend features of FR1 and/or FR2 into mid-band frequencies. In addition, higher frequency bands are currently being explored to extend 5G NR operation beyond 52.6 GHz. For example, three higher operating bands have been identified as frequency range designations FR4a or FR4-1 (52.6 GHz-71 GHz), FR4 (52.6 GHz-114.25 GHz), and FR5 (114.25 GHz-300 GHz). Each of these higher frequency bands falls within the EHF band; See ¶.81, the UE may indicate that is does not support simultaneous Rx/Tx for a pair of frequency bands. As used herein, “simultaneous” means that the reception and transmission in the pair of frequency bands overlaps, at least partially, in time. FIG. 6 illustrates an example of the UE transmitting an indication informing the base station that the UE does not support simultaneous transmission and reception in a pair of frequency bands. As an example, the UE may transmit the indication in UE capability signaling in an RRC message. The indication may indicate that the UE does not support a capability parameter, which may be referred to as “simultaneousRxTxInterBandCA”; Examiner’s Note: Xuan further discloses the limitation “the separation requirement“ in the cited paragraphs of Xuan below); and
- determining a Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) mode in which the terminal operates according to a result of determining whether the simultaneous downlink reception and uplink transmission are supported by the terminal (See ¶.84, the UE may transmit, for each of multiple BCs, an indication to the base station about whether the UE supports simultaneous Rx/Tx of data in a particular band pair. via the first band of the first cell-group in the FR1 licensed FDD band and the second band of the second cell-group in one of the FR1 licensed TDD band, the FR1 unlicensed TDD band, or the FR2 band. In one aspect, the UE may transmit, to the base station, a radio resource control (RRC) message including a set of UE radio access capability parameters indicating whether the UE supports simultaneous Tx/Rx in TDD-TDD and TDD-FDD inter-band NR-DC).
- wherein determining whether the simultaneous downlink reception and uplink transmission are supported by the terminal by determining whether the UL BWP and the DL BWP monitored by the terminal on the operating band meet the separation requirement for the uplink transmission and downlink reception (Takeda, as rejected above; Xuan, See ¶.9, a frequency domain spacing between the first uplink frequency domain resource and the first downlink frequency domain resource is equal to a frequency domain spacing between the second uplink frequency domain resource and the first downlink frequency domain resource) comprises;
Takeda and Xuan disclose (Examiner’s Note: the amended claim shows a plurality of alternative options and therefore, the examiner provides teachings and/or suggestions by Takeda and/or Xuan to meet the amended claim limitations),
- in a case where the UL BWP and the DL BWP meet the separation requirement, determining that the simultaneous downlink reception and uplink transmission are supported by the terminal (Xuan, See ¶.6, the terminal device can determine uplink and downlink resources on a same carrier at the same time in a full-duplex FDD scenario, so that the terminal device can perform uplink and downlink communication on the same carrier at the same time in the full-duplex FDD scenario; See ¶.7, It should be understood that the first indication information may indicate a frequency domain resource configuration of a carrier in a time period, a frequency domain of the carrier may be preset, and the first time period may include one or more slots. The first uplink frequency domain resource may include a frequency domain resource block with a lowest frequency or a smallest sequence number on the carrier, and the second uplink frequency domain resource may include a frequency domain resource block with a highest frequency or a largest sequence number on the carrier; See ¶.13, the network device may indicate the terminal device by using two fields. In other words, the first indication information may include the first field and the second field. Because the quantity of frequency domain resource blocks in the first uplink frequency domain resource is equal to the quantity of frequency domain resource blocks in the second uplink frequency domain resource, the first field needs to indicate the quantity of frequency domain resource blocks in only the first uplink frequency domain resource or the second uplink frequency domain resource, and the terminal device can determine the quantity of frequency domain resource blocks in the first uplink frequency domain resource and the quantity of frequency domain resource blocks in the second uplink frequency domain resource based on the first field. The second field may indicate the quantity of frequency domain resource blocks in the first downlink frequency domain resource. The terminal device can determine the quantity of frequency domain resource blocks in the first downlink frequency domain resource based on the second field, so that signaling overheads can be reduced; See ¶.15, the network device may use the first indication information to indicate a frequency domain resource configuration in only a half pattern, and the terminal device can determine configuration of all uplink and downlink resources on the carrier, so that signaling overheads can be reduced; See ¶.147, the first terminal device 301 and the second terminal device 302 support full-duplex FDD. A terminal device that supports in-band full-duplex FDD may simultaneously receive a downlink signal sent by a network device and send an uplink signal to the network device), or
- in a case where the UL BWP and the DL BWP do not meet the separation requirement, determining that the simultaneous downlink reception and uplink transmission are not supported by the terminal (Takeda, See 612 & 617 Fig.6, determine that data transmission in the first frequency band and data reception in second frequency band overlap in time after sending a second indication that UE not supporting simultaneous Rx/Tx in first and second frequency bands; See ¶.53, In certain aspects, the base station may include a multicarrier simultaneous Rx/Tx component configured to receive, from the UE, a first indication that the UE supports NR-CA with multiple PUCCH groups or NR-DC with multiple cell groups, receive, from the UE, a second indication that the UE does not support simultaneous Rx/Tx in a first frequency band and a second frequency band, and schedule communication with the UE to avoid scheduling the simultaneous Rx/Tx based on the NR-CA or the NR-DC in at least the first frequency band of a first band group and the second frequency band of a second band group based on the second indication that the UE is not capable of the simultaneous Rx/Tx in the first frequency band and the second frequency band; See ¶.81, the UE may indicate that is does not support simultaneous Rx/Tx for a pair of frequency bands. As used herein, “simultaneous” means that the reception and transmission in the pair of frequency bands overlaps, at least partially, in time. FIG. 6 illustrates an example of the UE transmitting an indication informing the base station that the UE does not support simultaneous transmission and reception in a pair of frequency bands. As an example, the UE may transmit the indication in UE capability signaling in an RRC message. The indication may indicate that the UE does not support a capability parameter, which may be referred to as “simultaneousRxTxInterBandCA; Xuan, See ¶.142, in a full-duplex FDD scenario, a terminal device performs uplink and downlink communication on a same carrier at the same time. If a network device configures uplink and downlink resources for the terminal device in slots and symbols, uplink and downlink configuration requirements for different frequency domain resources on a same carrier at the same time cannot be met);
- wherein determining whether the UL BWP and the DL BWP monitored by the terminal on the operating band meet the separation requirement for the uplink transmission and downlink reception comprises at least one of:
- determining whether a frequency difference between a center frequency of the DL BWP and a center frequency of the UL BWP meets the separation requirement for the uplink transmission and the downlink reception (Xuan, See ¶.3, In a full-duplex FDD scenario, if uplink and downlink resources are configured in slots and symbols, a requirement for configuring uplink and downlink resources on a same carrier at the same time cannot be met, that is, a requirement for performing uplink and downlink communication on a same carrier at the same time cannot be met; See ¶.179, the first uplink frequency domain resource and the second uplink frequency domain resource are symmetric with respect to the center frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource, and the center frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource is a median between a frequency of a subcarrier with a lowest frequency in the first uplink frequency domain resource and a frequency of a subcarrier with a highest frequency in the second uplink frequency domain resource. Optionally, the center frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource may be a center frequency of the carrier; See ¶.180, the first indication information may directly indicate the frequency domain resource configuration pattern. The first indication information may directly indicate the first uplink frequency domain resource, the second uplink frequency domain resource, and the first downlink frequency domain resource. A manner in which the first indication information directly indicates the first uplink frequency domain resource, the first downlink frequency domain resource, and the second uplink frequency domain resource includes: The first indication information separately indicates sequence numbers of resource blocks included in the first uplink frequency domain resource, the first downlink frequency domain resource, and the second uplink frequency domain resource on the carrier; or the first indication information separately indicates resource blocks with smallest sequence numbers and resource blocks with largest sequence numbers in the first uplink frequency domain resource, the first downlink frequency domain resource, and the second uplink frequency domain resource on the carrier; or the first indication information separately indicates resource blocks with smallest sequence numbers and quantities of included resource blocks in the first downlink frequency domain resource, the first uplink frequency domain resource, and the second uplink frequency domain resource on the carrier; or the like);
- determining whether a frequency difference between a lowest frequency of the DL BWP and a highest frequency of the UL BWP meets the separation requirement for the uplink transmission and the downlink reception (Xuan, See See ¶.9, a maximum frequency of a frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a highest frequency in the frequency domain resource. A minimum frequency of a frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a lowest frequency in the frequency domain resource. The maximum frequency of the first uplink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a highest frequency in the first uplink frequency domain resource, the minimum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a lowest frequency in the first downlink frequency domain resource, the maximum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a highest frequency in the first downlink frequency domain resource, and the minimum frequency of the second uplink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a lowest frequency in the second uplink frequency domain resource. A subcarrier spacing used for measurement may be a predefined subcarrier spacing. That the difference between the maximum frequency of the first uplink frequency domain resource and the minimum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource is equal to the difference between the maximum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource and the minimum frequency of the second uplink frequency domain resource may be understood as that a frequency domain spacing between the first uplink frequency domain resource and the first downlink frequency domain resource is equal to a frequency domain spacing between the second uplink frequency domain resource and the first downlink frequency domain resource); or
- determining whether a frequency difference between a lowest frequency of the UL BWP and a highest frequency of the DL BWP meets the separation requirement for the uplink transmission and the downlink reception (Xuan, See ¶.9, a maximum frequency of a frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a highest frequency in the frequency domain resource. A minimum frequency of a frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a lowest frequency in the frequency domain resource. The maximum frequency of the first uplink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a highest frequency in the first uplink frequency domain resource, the minimum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a lowest frequency in the first downlink frequency domain resource, the maximum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a highest frequency in the first downlink frequency domain resource, and the minimum frequency of the second uplink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a lowest frequency in the second uplink frequency domain resource. A subcarrier spacing used for measurement may be a predefined subcarrier spacing. That the difference between the maximum frequency of the first uplink frequency domain resource and the minimum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource is equal to the difference between the maximum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource and the minimum frequency of the second uplink frequency domain resource may be understood as that a frequency domain spacing between the first uplink frequency domain resource and the first downlink frequency domain resource is equal to a frequency domain spacing between the second uplink frequency domain resource and the first downlink frequency domain resource).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to apply the method of “determining whether a frequency difference between a center frequency of the DL BWP and a center frequency of the UL BWP meets the separation requirement for the uplink transmission and the downlink reception; determining whether a frequency difference between a lowest frequency of the DL BWP and a highest frequency of the UL BWP meets the separation requirement for the uplink transmission and the downlink reception; or determining whether a frequency difference between a lowest frequency of the UL BWP and a highest frequency of the DL BWP meets the separation requirement for the uplink transmission and the downlink reception” as taught by Xuan into the system of Takeda, so that it provides a way of performing uplink and downlink communication on a same carrier at the same time in a full-duplex FDD scenario (Xuan, See ¶.4).
Regarding claim 5, Takeda does not explicitly disclose what Xuan discloses “determining whether the frequency difference between the lowest frequency of the DL BWP and the highest frequency of the UL BWP monitored by the terminal (Xuan, See ¶.9, a maximum frequency of a frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a highest frequency in the frequency domain resource. A minimum frequency of a frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a lowest frequency in the frequency domain resource. The maximum frequency of the first uplink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a highest frequency in the first uplink frequency domain resource, the minimum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a lowest frequency in the first downlink frequency domain resource, the maximum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a highest frequency in the first downlink frequency domain resource, and the minimum frequency of the second uplink frequency domain resource may be understood as a frequency corresponding to a subcarrier with a lowest frequency in the second uplink frequency domain resource. A subcarrier spacing used for measurement may be a predefined subcarrier spacing. That the difference between the maximum frequency of the first uplink frequency domain resource and the minimum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource is equal to the difference between the maximum frequency of the first downlink frequency domain resource and the minimum frequency of the second uplink frequency domain resource may be understood as that a frequency domain spacing between the first uplink frequency domain resource and the first downlink frequency domain resource is equal to a frequency domain spacing between the second uplink frequency domain resource and the first downlink frequency domain resource).”
Therefore, this claim is rejected with the similar reasons and motivation set forth in the rejection of claim 1.
Regarding claim 6, Takeda does not explicitly what Xuan discloses “wherein the determining whether the frequency difference between the lowest frequency of the UL BWP and the highest frequency of the DL BWP monitored by the terminal on the operating band meets the separation requirement for the uplink transmission and the downlink reception comprises: determining whether the frequency difference between the lowest frequency of the UL BWP and the highest frequency of the DL BWP monitored by the terminal (Xuan, See ¶.9). Therefore, this claim is rejected with the similar reasons and motivation set forth in the rejection of claim 1.
Regarding claim 10, it is a method claim performed by a network device corresponding to the method claim 1 performed by a terminal and is therefore rejected for the similar reasons set forth in the rejection of the claim.
Regarding claims 14 and 15, they are claims corresponding to claims 5 & 6, respectively and are therefore rejected for the similar reasons set forth in the rejection of the claims.
Regarding claim 35, it is a terminal claim corresponding to the method claim 1, except the limitations “a processor a transceiver, and a memory (See Fig.16)” and is therefore rejected for the similar reasons set forth in the rejection of the claim.
Regarding claim 36, it is a non-transitory computer storage medium claim corresponding to the method claim 1 and is therefore rejected for the similar reasons set forth in the rejection of the claim.
Regarding claim 37, it is a non-transitory computer storage medium claim corresponding to the method claim 10 and is therefore rejected for the similar reasons set forth in the rejection of the claim.
Claims 7, 16, and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Takeda in view of Xuan and further in view of Takeda et al. (US 2016/0218853, hereinafter “Takeda’853”).
Regarding claim 7, Takeda and Xuan do not explicitly disclose what Takeda’853 discloses “determining that the terminal operates in a full-duplex FDD mode when the simultaneous downlink reception and uplink transmission are supported by the terminal; and determining that the terminal operates in a half-duplex FDD mode when the simultaneous downlink reception and uplink transmission are not supported by the terminal (Takeda’853, See Fig.4A and ¶.41, as shown in FIG. 4A, cases may occur where full-duplex in FDD is not possible in TDD-FDD CA. In this case, a user terminal cannot transmit and receive UL signals and DL signals at the same time in the FDD cell, and therefore has to employ half-duplex).”
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to apply the method of “determining that the terminal operates in a full-duplex FDD mode when the simultaneous downlink reception and uplink transmission are supported by the terminal; and determining that the terminal operates in a half-duplex FDD mode when the simultaneous downlink reception and uplink transmission are not supported by the terminal” as taught by Takeda’853 into the system of Takeda and Xuan, so that it provides a way for the UE to employ half-duplex when full-duplex in FDD is not possible (Takeda’853, See ¶.41).
Regarding claim 16, it is a claim corresponding to the claim 7 and is therefore rejected for the similar reasons set forth in the rejection of the claim.
Regarding claim 17, Takeda and Xuan do not explicitly disclose what Takeda’853 discloses “when the terminal operates in the half-duplex FDD mode, configuring semi-statically configured uplink transmission and downlink reception of the terminal at different time domain positions (Takeda’853, See ¶.4, half-duplex FDD); and when it is not expected by the terminal that the semi-statically configured uplink transmission and downlink reception are located at the same time domain position, configuring the semi-statically configured uplink transmission and downlink reception of the terminal at the different time domain positions (See ¶.7, not same time; See ¶.64, semi-static coordination with other base stations is possible; See ¶.85, establish semi-static coordination with other base stations, via the communication path interface, based on capability information). Therefore, this claim is rejected with the similar reasons and motivation set forth in the rejection of claim 7.
Claims 8 and 9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Takeda in view of Xuan and further in view of Kishiyama (US 2016/0173263, “Kishiyama”).
Regarding claim 8, Takeda and Xuan do not explicitly disclose what Kishiyama discloses “performing a downlink reception or an uplink transmission according to a preset priority, when the terminal operates in the half-duplex FDD mode (Kishiyama, See ¶.9-10 and abstract, selectively perform transmission of the uplink signal and reception of the downlink signal, based on a priority relationship defined between the uplink signal and the downlink signal in half-duplex FDD scheme; See further ¶.28-30 for given priority).” Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date to apply the method of “performing a downlink reception or an uplink transmission according to a preset priority, when the terminal operates in the half-duplex FDD mode” as taught by Kishiyama into the system of Takeda and Xuan, so that it provides a way of enabling the half-duplex FDD scheme to be optimized (Kishiyama, See ¶.9).
Regarding claim 9, Takeda and Xuan do not explicitly disclose what Kishiyama discloses “wherein the performing the downlink reception or the uplink transmission according to the preset priority, when the terminal operates in the half-duplex FDD mode comprises at least one of: performing reception of a Synchronization Signal Block (SSB) according to the preset priority, when the uplink transmission of the terminal is in conflict with a downlink reception of the SSB of the terminal; performing a dynamically scheduled uplink transmission according to the preset priority, when the dynamically scheduled uplink transmission of the terminal is in conflict with a semi-statically configured downlink reception of the terminal; or performing a dynamically scheduled downlink reception according to the preset priority, when the dynamically scheduled downlink reception of the terminal is in conflict with a semi-statically configured uplink transmission of the terminal (Kishiyama, See ¶.39, the particular subframe may be notified semi-statically from the base station apparatus to the mobile terminal apparatus by RRC signaling or the like, or may be notified dynamically from the base station apparatus to the mobile terminal apparatus by adding a control bit of the PDCCH signal; See ¶.10, selectively perform transmission of the uplink signal and reception of the downlink signal, based on a priority relationship defined between the uplink signal and the downlink signal, when transmission timing of the uplink signal and reception timing of the downlink signal overlaps each other).” Therefore, this claim is rejected with the similar reasons and motivation set forth in the rejection of claim 8.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed have been considered. But, in view of the applicant’s amendment to the claims, examiner has clarified and remapped the rejection to the argued claim limitations, using the prior art of record in the current prosecution of the claims. The previous 102 rejection by Takeda has been replaced with a new 103 rejection over Takeda in view of Xuan.
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 date of this final action.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Jung H Park whose telephone number is 571-272-8565. The examiner can normally be reached M-F: 7:00 AM-3:00 PM.
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, Derrick Ferris can be reached on 571-272-3123. 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.
/JUNG H PARK/
Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2411
Prosecution Insights