Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application is being examined under the pre-AIA first to invent provisions.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 3rd June 2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
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Claim Objections
Claims 1, 6, 11 and 16 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Should the term “at least one of” in the limitation “at least one of a transmission time interval (TTI) length” be removed because there is only one option?
Appropriate correction is required.
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Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The actual filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/applying-online/eterminal-disclaimer.
Claims 1 – 20 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1 – 20 of U.S. Patent No. 10,826,663 B2 (663 patent); claims 1 – 22 of U.S. Patent No. 11,018,829 B2 (829 patent); and, claims 1 – 20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,041,005 B2 (005 patent). Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because of the following explanation.
The current application independent claim 11 (similarly claim 1) cites:
a base station comprising: at least one processor; and a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing programming, the programming including instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the base station to perform operations including: transmitting a pilot configuration indicating a pilot signal arrangement, the pilot signal arrangement having been selected from a set of pre-defined pilot signal arrangements according to at least one of a transmission time interval (TTI) length, the pilot signal arrangement having a time domain pilot density defined by a number of pilot symbols of the pilot signal arrangement used within the TTI length, and the time domain pilot density depending on the TTI length; and communicating, with a user equipment (UE), using a pilot signal according to the pilot signal arrangement.
The current application independent claim 16 (similarly claim 6) cites:
a user equipment (UE) comprising: at least one processor; and a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing programming, the programming including instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the UE to perform operations including: receiving a pilot configuration indicating a pilot signal arrangement, the pilot signal arrangement having been selected from a set of pre-defined pilot signal arrangements according to at least one of a transmission time interval (TTI) length, the pilot signal arrangement having a time domain pilot density defined by a number of pilot symbols of the pilot signal arrangement used within the TTI length, and the time domain pilot density depending on the TTI length; and communicating, with a base station, using a pilot signal according to the pilot signal arrangement.
The 663 patent independent claim 11 (similarly claim 1) cites:
a base station comprising: a processor; and a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing programming for execution by the processor, the programming including instructions to: transmit a pilot configuration indicating a pilot signal arrangement, the pilot signal arrangement having been selected from a set of pre-defined pilot signal arrangements according to at least one of a transmission time interval (TTI) length, a mobility of a user equipment (UE), or a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) level over which the UE transmits or receives wireless signals, the pilot signal arrangement having a time domain pilot density defined by a number of pilot symbols of the pilot signal arrangement used within the TTI length, and the time domain pilot density depending on the MCS level; and communicate, with the UE, using a pilot signal according to the pilot signal arrangement, wherein the time domain pilot density of the pilot signal arrangement is a function of the TTI length.
The 663 patent independent claim 16 (similarly claim 6) cites:
a User Equipment (UE) comprising: a processor; and a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing programming for execution by the processor, the programming including instructions to: receive, from a base station, a pilot configuration indicating a pilot signal arrangement, the pilot signal arrangement having been selected from a set of pre-defined pilot signal arrangements according to at least one of a transmission time interval (TTI) length, a mobility of the UE, or a modulation and coding scheme (MCS) level over which the UE transmits or receives wireless signals, the pilot signal arrangement having a time domain pilot density defined by a number of pilot symbols of the pilot signal arrangement used within the TTI length, and the time domain pilot density depending on the MCS level; and communicate, with the base station, using a pilot signal according to the pilot signal arrangement, wherein the time domain pilot density of the pilot signal arrangement is a function of the TTI length.
The 829 patent independent claim 19 (similarly claim 1) cites:
a transmitter comprising: a memory storage comprising instructions; and a processor in communication with the memory storage, wherein the processor executes the instructions to: transmit a signal indicating a first time domain pilot density arrangement of multiple time domain pilot density arrangements, the multiple time domain pilot density arrangements further including a second time domain pilot density arrangement different from the first time domain pilot density arrangement, the first time domain pilot density arrangement associated with a first transmission time interval (TTI) length, the second time domain pilot density arrangement associated with a second TTI length, and the first TTI length and the second TTI length being different from each other.
The 829 patent independent claim 21 (similarly claim 10) cites:
an apparatus comprising: a memory storage comprising instructions; and a processor in communication with the memory storage, wherein the processor executes the instructions to: receive a signal indicating a first time domain pilot density arrangement of multiple time domain pilot density arrangements in a time domain, the multiple time domain pilot density arrangements further including a second time domain pilot density arrangement different from the first time domain pilot density arrangement, the first time domain pilot density arrangement associated with a first transmission time interval (TTI) length, the second time domain pilot density arrangement associated with a second TTI length, and the first TTI length and the second TTI length being different from each other.
The 005 patent independent claim 11 (similarly claim 1) cites:
a base station comprising: at least one processor; and a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing programming for execution by the at least one processor, the programming including instructions to cause the base station to: transmit a pilot configuration indicating a pilot signal arrangement, the pilot signal arrangement having been selected from a set of pre-defined pilot signal arrangements according to at least one of a transmission time interval (TTI) length or a mobility of a user equipment (UE), the pilot signal arrangement having a time domain pilot density defined by a number of pilot symbols of the pilot signal arrangement used within the TTI length, and the time domain pilot density depending on the TTI length or the mobility of the UE; communicate, with the UE, using a pilot signal according to the pilot signal arrangement; and transmit a second pilot configuration indicating a second pilot signal arrangement having a second time domain pilot density defined by a second number of pilot symbols of the second pilot signal arrangement used within a second TTI length, the second pilot signal arrangement having been selected from the set of pre-defined pilot signal arrangements according to the second TTI length, and the second time domain pilot density depending on the second TTI length.
The 005 patent independent claim 16 (similarly claim 6) cites:
an apparatus comprising: at least one processor; and a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing programming for execution by the at least one processor, the programming including instructions to cause the apparatus to: receive, from a base station, a pilot configuration indicating a pilot signal arrangement, the pilot signal arrangement having been selected from a set of pre-defined pilot signal arrangements according to at least one of a transmission time interval (TTI) length or a mobility of the apparatus, the pilot signal arrangement having a time domain pilot density defined by a number of pilot symbols of the pilot signal arrangement used within the TTI length, and the time domain pilot density depending on the TTI length or the mobility of the apparatus; communicate, with the base station, using a pilot signal according to the pilot signal arrangement; and receive, from the base station, a second pilot configuration indicating a second pilot signal arrangement having a second time domain pilot density defined by a second number of pilot symbols of the second pilot signal arrangement used within a second TTI length, the second pilot signal arrangement having been selected from the set of pre-defined pilot signal arrangements according to the second TTI length, and the second time domain pilot density depending on the second TTI length.
From the underlined portions above, it is evident that the current application limitations reflect broadened versions of the 663 patent, the 829 patent and the 005 patent claim limitations.
Therefore, a proper terminal disclaimer is required.
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Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of pre-AIA 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 –
(b) the invention was patented or described in a printed publication in this or a foreign country or in public use or on sale in this country, more than one year prior to the date of application for patent in the United States.
Claims 1, 6, 11 and 16 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102(b) as being anticipated by Higuchi et al (US 2010/0009718 A1).
Claim 11 (similarly Claim 1). Higuchi shows a base station (figs. 4, 8 and 10) comprising: at least one processor (fig. 4/8/10: element 102/104; base station must have processor(s) to run); and a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing programming, the programming including instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor (processor(s) must have program to run), cause the base station to perform operations including: transmitting a pilot configuration indicating a pilot signal arrangement ([0052]: a base station transmits two fixed-value unitary pre-encoded common pilot channels at intervals at which the common control channels are transmitted), the pilot signal arrangement having been selected from a set of pre-defined pilot signal arrangements according to at least one of a transmission time interval (TTI) length ([0052]: transmission time intervals (TTIs) wherein unitary pre-encoding means multiplying two orthogonal weights, two orthogonal weight-multiplied common pilot channels are transmitted; [0072]: a base station transmits two fixed-value unitary pre-encoded common pilot channels at intervals at which L1/L2 control channels are transmitted (e.g. transmission time intervals (TTIs)); [0085]-[0086]: the L1/L2 control channels are divided into two encoding blocks 1 and 2 to encode the divided blocks wherein the encoding block 1 includes the allocated resource block information (1) and the encoding block 2 includes pre-encoding information, MCS information, hybrid ARQ (HARQ) information, and a convolution of the CRC bit and the UE ID ((2)+(3)+(4)+(5) x CRC), wherein the encoding block 2 varies in length according to the number of streams… for decoding the L1/L2 control channels at the mobile station, the encoding block 1 is decoded, and, next, (2) through (5) are decoded based on such information wherein the information lengths of (2) through (5) vary in length according to the number of streams... as the number-of-streams information is decoded in advance, there is no need to assume the multiple information lengths to attempt decoding the information items (2) through (5)), the pilot signal arrangement having a time domain pilot density defined by a number of pilot symbols of the pilot signal arrangement used within the TTI length ([0112]: the L1/L2 control channels are mapped into two symbols in the time domain wherein in the domain in which the L1/L2 control channels are mapped, the fixed value “a” pre-encoded common pilot channel and the fixed value “b” pre-encoded common pilot channel are mapped at intervals in the frequency domain; [0116]: the base station apparatus transmits the remaining unitary pre-encoded common pilot channels only at intervals at which a CQI is measured… two common pilot channels are added as the second pilot channel are formed of the number of symbols, which number is a minimum required for the CQI measurement… the density is set to be smaller than that of the two basic (first) common pilot channels), and the time domain pilot density depending on the TTI length ([0072]: a base station transmits two fixed-value unitary pre-encoded common pilot channels at intervals at which L1/L2 control channels are transmitted (e.g. transmission time intervals (TTIs)); [0112]: the L1/L2 control channels are mapped into two symbols in the time domain wherein in the domain in which the L1/L2 control channels are mapped, the fixed value “a” pre-encoded common pilot channel and the fixed value “b” pre-encoded common pilot channel are mapped at intervals in the frequency domain; [0134]: the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “a,” the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “b,” the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “c,” and the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “d” are mapped at intervals in the frequency domain wherein the density of the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “c,” and the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “d” become smaller than that of the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “a,” and the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “b”); and communicating, with a user equipment (UE), using a pilot signal according to the pilot signal arrangement ([0150]-[0151] : the dedicated pilot channels are mapped to resource blocks in which the data channels and/or the L1/L2 control channels are transmitted).
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Claim 16 (similarly Claim 6). Higuchi shows a user equipment (UE) (fig. 12: mobile station) comprising: at least one processor (fig. 12: any processing element 231 – 238, 242 and 243); and a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing programming, the programming including instructions (the processing element(s) must have program to run) that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the UE to perform operations including: receiving a pilot configuration indicating a pilot signal arrangement ([0052]: a base station transmits two fixed-value unitary pre-encoded common pilot channels at intervals at which the common control channels are transmitted (to the mobile station)), the pilot signal arrangement having been selected from a set of pre-defined pilot signal arrangements according to at least one of a transmission time interval (TTI) length ([0052]: transmission time intervals (TTIs) wherein unitary pre-encoding means multiplying two orthogonal weights, two orthogonal weight-multiplied common pilot channels are transmitted; [0072]: a base station transmits two fixed-value unitary pre-encoded common pilot channels at intervals at which L1/L2 control channels are transmitted (e.g. transmission time intervals (TTIs)); [0085]-[0086]: the L1/L2 control channels are divided into two encoding blocks 1 and 2 to encode the divided blocks wherein the encoding block 1 includes the allocated resource block information (1) and the encoding block 2 includes pre-encoding information, MCS information, hybrid ARQ (HARQ) information, and a convolution of the CRC bit and the UE ID ((2)+(3)+(4)+(5) x CRC), wherein the encoding block 2 varies in length according to the number of streams… for decoding the L1/L2 control channels at the mobile station, the encoding block 1 is decoded, and, next, (2) through (5) are decoded based on such information wherein the information lengths of (2) through (5) vary in length according to the number of streams... as the number-of-streams information is decoded in advance, there is no need to assume the multiple information lengths to attempt decoding the information items (2) through (5)), the pilot signal arrangement having a time domain pilot density defined by a number of pilot symbols of the pilot signal arrangement used within the TTI length ([0072]: a base station transmits two fixed-value unitary pre-encoded common pilot channels at intervals at which L1/L2 control channels are transmitted (e.g. transmission time intervals (TTIs)); [0112]: the L1/L2 control channels are mapped into two symbols in the time domain wherein in the domain in which the L1/L2 control channels are mapped, the fixed value “a” pre-encoded common pilot channel and the fixed value “b” pre-encoded common pilot channel are mapped at intervals in the frequency domain; [0134]: the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “a,” the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “b,” the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “c,” and the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “d” are mapped at intervals in the frequency domain wherein the density of the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “c,” and the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “d” become smaller than that of the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “a,” and the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “b”), and the time domain pilot density depending on the TTI length ([0112]: the L1/L2 control channels are mapped into two symbols in the time domain wherein in the domain in which the L1/L2 control channels are mapped, the fixed value “a” pre-encoded common pilot channel and the fixed value “b” pre-encoded common pilot channel are mapped at intervals in the frequency domain; [0134]: the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “a,” the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “b,” the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “c,” and the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “d” are mapped at intervals in the frequency domain wherein the density of the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “c,” and the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “d” become smaller than that of the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “a,” and the common pilot channels which have been pre-encoded with the fixed value “b”); and communicating, with a base station, using a pilot signal according to the pilot signal arrangement ([0150]-[0151] : the dedicated pilot channels are mapped to resource blocks in which the data channels and/or the L1/L2 control channels are transmitted (to the mobile station)).
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Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
(a) A patent may not be obtained though the invention is not identically disclosed or described as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the subject matter sought to be patented and the prior art are such that the subject matter as a whole would have been obvious at the time the invention was made to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which said subject matter 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 pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) 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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a), the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned at the time any inventions covered therein were made absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and invention dates of each claim that was not commonly owned at the time a later invention was made in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(c) and potential pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102(e), (f) or (g) prior art under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a).
Claims 2, 3, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17 and 18 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Higuchi et al in view of Suo et al (US 2010/0177669 A1).
Claim 12 (similarly claim 2). Higuchi shows the base station of claim 11; Higuchi does not expressly describe wherein a first relative time domain position of a first pilot signal indicated by the pilot signal arrangement depends on the TTI length.Suo teaches feature of a relative time domain position of a pilot signal indicated by a pilot signal arrangement depends on a TTI length (figs. 3 and 4; [0006]: the length of TTI of LTE TDD is a length of a service time slot, viz. 0.675 ms wherein a service time slot is consisted of 9 or 8 orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, which respectively correspond to cyclic prefixes (CP) of different lengths… a service time slot is consisted of 2 short blocks (SB) and 8 long blocks (LB), SB is usually used for transmitting a reference symbol (or called “pilot symbol”), such assignation can reduce the resource used by the reference symbol wherein each service time slot can be used for uplink or downlink data transmission, generally a structure in which each half-frame has only one UL/DL switch-point is adopted, and the uplink-to-downlink data transmission ratio can be adjusted flexibly by adjusting the position of the UL/DL switch-point, in order to meet different application requirements).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the same time the claimed invention was made to implement the feature as taught by Suo in the first pilot signal of Higuchi to facilitate utilizing resource repeatedly and utilizing time domain and frequency domain diversity simultaneously.
Claim 13 (similarly claim 3). Higuchi shows the base station of claim 12; Higuchi does not expressly describe wherein a second relative time domain position of a second pilot signal indicated by the pilot signal arrangement depends on the TTI length.Suo teaches feature of a relative time domain position of a pilot signal indicated by a pilot signal arrangement depends on a TTI length (figs. 3 and 4; [0006]: the length of TTI of LTE TDD is a length of a service time slot, viz. 0.675 ms wherein a service time slot is consisted of 9 or 8 orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, which respectively correspond to cyclic prefixes (CP) of different lengths… a service time slot is consisted of 2 short blocks (SB) and 8 long blocks (LB), SB is usually used for transmitting a reference symbol (or called “pilot symbol”), such assignation can reduce the resource used by the reference symbol wherein each service time slot can be used for uplink or downlink data transmission, generally a structure in which each half-frame has only one UL/DL switch-point is adopted, and the uplink-to-downlink data transmission ratio can be adjusted flexibly by adjusting the position of the UL/DL switch-point, in order to meet different application requirements).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the same time the claimed invention was made to implement the feature as taught by Suo in the second pilot signal of Higuchi to facilitate utilizing resource repeatedly and utilizing time domain and frequency domain diversity simultaneously.
Claim 17 (similarly claim 7). Higuchi shows the UE of claim 16; Higuchi does not expressly describe wherein a first relative time domain position of a first pilot signal indicated by the pilot signal arrangement depends on the TTI length.Suo teaches feature of a relative time domain position of a pilot signal indicated by a pilot signal arrangement depends on a TTI length (figs. 3 and 4; [0006]: the length of TTI of LTE TDD is a length of a service time slot, viz. 0.675 ms wherein a service time slot is consisted of 9 or 8 orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, which respectively correspond to cyclic prefixes (CP) of different lengths… a service time slot is consisted of 2 short blocks (SB) and 8 long blocks (LB), SB is usually used for transmitting a reference symbol (or called “pilot symbol”), such assignation can reduce the resource used by the reference symbol wherein each service time slot can be used for uplink or downlink data transmission, generally a structure in which each half-frame has only one UL/DL switch-point is adopted, and the uplink-to-downlink data transmission ratio can be adjusted flexibly by adjusting the position of the UL/DL switch-point, in order to meet different application requirements).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the same time the claimed invention was made to implement the feature as taught by Suo in the first pilot signal of Higuchi to facilitate utilizing resource repeatedly and utilizing time domain and frequency domain diversity simultaneously.
Claim 18 (similarly claim 8). Higuchi shows the UE of claim 17; Higuchi does not expressly describe wherein a second relative time domain position of a second pilot signal indicated by the pilot signal arrangement depends on the TTI length.Suo teaches feature of a relative time domain position of a pilot signal indicated by a pilot signal arrangement depends on a TTI length (figs. 3 and 4; [0006]: the length of TTI of LTE TDD is a length of a service time slot, viz. 0.675 ms wherein a service time slot is consisted of 9 or 8 orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbols, which respectively correspond to cyclic prefixes (CP) of different lengths… a service time slot is consisted of 2 short blocks (SB) and 8 long blocks (LB), SB is usually used for transmitting a reference symbol (or called “pilot symbol”), such assignation can reduce the resource used by the reference symbol wherein each service time slot can be used for uplink or downlink data transmission, generally a structure in which each half-frame has only one UL/DL switch-point is adopted, and the uplink-to-downlink data transmission ratio can be adjusted flexibly by adjusting the position of the UL/DL switch-point, in order to meet different application requirements).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the same time the claimed invention was made to implement the feature as taught by Suo in the second pilot signal of Higuchi to facilitate utilizing resource repeatedly and utilizing time domain and frequency domain diversity simultaneously.
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Claims 4, 9, 14 and 19 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Higuchi et al in view of Park et al (US 2011/0038324 A1).
Claim 14 (similarly claim 4). Higuchi shows the base station of claim 11; Higuchi does not expressly describe wherein the TTI length comprises 14 symbols, and the time domain pilot density is 2/7.Park teaches TTI length with 14 symbols and time domain pilot density of 2/7 (fig. 5; [0038]: a cluster structure 500 that defines the cluster as 14 sub-carriers within an OFDMA symbol… the exemplary cluster structure 500 has a pilot sub-carrier density of 2/7).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the same time the invention was made to adopt the TTI length and pilot density structures as taught by Park in the pilot signals in Higuchi to offer superior channel estimation and equalization performance.
Claim 19 (similarly claim 9). Higuchi shows the UE of claim 16; Higuchi does not expressly describe wherein the TTI length comprises 14 symbols, and the time domain pilot density is 2/7.Park teaches TTI length with 14 symbols and time domain pilot density of 2/7 (fig. 5; [0038]: a cluster structure 500 that defines the cluster as 14 sub-carriers within an OFDMA symbol… the exemplary cluster structure 500 has a pilot sub-carrier density of 2/7).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the same time the invention was made to adopt the TTI length and pilot density structures as taught by Park in the pilot signals in Higuchi to offer superior channel estimation and equalization performance.
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Claims 5, 10, 15 and 20 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Higuchi et al in view of Shen et al (US 2013/0021964 A1).
Claim 15 (similarly claim 5). Higuchi shows the base station of claim 11; Higuchi does not expressly describe wherein the pilot signal comprises a demodulation reference signal (DMRS).Shen teaches a base station that carries a DMRS as a pilot signal over a carrier over which a data signal and/or a control signal is transmitted to another node (fig. 5; [0044]).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the same time of the claimed invention to adopt the DMRS as taught by Shen as the pilot signal in Higuchi as DMRS provides highly flexibility, efficiency and reliability in channel estimations.
Claim 20 (similarly claim 10). Higuchi shows the UE of claim 16; Higuchi does not expressly describe wherein the pilot signal comprises a demodulation reference signal (DMRS).Shen teaches a base station that carries a DMRS as a pilot signal over a carrier over which a data signal and/or a control signal is transmitted to another node (fig. 5; [0044]).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the same time of the claimed invention to adopt the DMRS as taught by Shen as the pilot signal in Higuchi as DMRS provides highly flexibility, efficiency and reliability in channel estimations.
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Conclusion
The prior art made of record is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure.
1. Tsuboi et al, US 2009/0232243 A1: a method to enable shared control information to be demodulated without requiring advance information on a MIMO block or non-MIMO block prior to demodulation of the shared control information of the block, and further enable the shared control information to be demodulated early.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Xavier Szewai Wong whose telephone number is 571.270.1780. The examiner can normally be reached on 11:30 am - 8:30 pm Mon to Fri.
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, Jeffrey Rutkowski can be reached on 571.270.1215. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/XAVIER S WONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2415 28th September 2025