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
The information disclosure statements (IDSs) submitted on June 4, 2026, are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
Applicant should note that the large number of references in the attached IDSs have been considered by the examiner in the same manner as other documents in Office search files are considered by the examiner while conducting a search of the prior art in a proper field of search. See MPEP 609.05(b). Applicant is invited to point out any particular reference(s) in the IDS that they believe may be of particular relevance to the instant claimed invention in response to this Office Action. It is desirable to avoid the submission of long lists of documents if it can be avoided. If a long list is submitted, highlight those documents which have been specifically brought to applicant’s attention and/or are known to be of most significance. See Penn Yan Boats, Inc. v. Sea Lark Boats, Inc., 359 F. Supp. 948, 175 USPQ 260 (S.D. Fla. 1972), aff ’d, 479 F.2d 1338, 178 USPQ 577 (5th Cir. 1973), cert. denied, 414 U.S. 874 (1974). But cf. Molins PLC v. Textron Inc., 48 F.3d 1172, 33 USPQ2d 1823 (Fed. Cir. 1995).
Response to Arguments
Applicants’ arguments with respect to claims 1, 6, 11, and 16 filed on 07/17/2026 have been considered but are moot because the arguments related solely to newly added limitations addressed in the instant Office Action with newly identified prior art, thus rendering applicant’s arguments moot.
Kwak et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20190215086, hereinafter “Kwak”), in analogous art, teaches generating CSI reporting (including channel quality indicator (CQI)) based on a measured channel (e.g., using CSI-RS) (see para [0094] of Kwak). Furthermore, Kwak teaches utilizing a power offset parameter, Pc, which indicates a power ratio between a PDSCH and a CSI-RS resource element, to allow the UE to calculate a correct CQI even when the transmission power varies (see paragraphs [0090], [0093]). This power offset Pc corresponds directly to the claimed “penalty factor” used to adjust the CQI calculation conditioned on the measured channel.
Thus, Kwak explicitly teaches the add limitation “wherein the channel report includes a channel quality indicator (CQI) that is calculated conditioned on a recovered channel or a measured channel, and wherein, a penalty factor is used when the CQI is calculated conditioned on the measured channel”.
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to modify the CSI reporting method of Han by incorporating the power offset parameter (Pc) taught by Kwak. The motivation to do so would be to improve channel estimation accuracy and ensure the UE calculates and reports a correct CQI by compensating for transmission power discrepancies between data and reference signals, yielding predictable scheduling performance.
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.
Claims 1, 6, 11, and 16 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Han et al. (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20190334601, hereinafter “Han”) in view of Kwak et al (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20190215086, hereinafter “Kwak”).
Examiner’s note: in what follows, references are drawn to Han unless otherwise mentioned.
With respect to independent claims:
Regarding claim 1, A method of wireless communication (Fig. 3: User Equipment and para [0038]: FIG. 3 is a method for setting channel state information measurement and reporting …), comprising:
receiving, by a wireless communication device, from a network device, a report configuration (para [0016]: The method includes: generating, by a network device, at least one CSI measurement setting, where each of the at least one CSI measurement setting includes at least one CSI reporting setting, at least one CSI-reference signal setting, and at least one CSI interference measurement setting (interpreted as “report configuration”), the at least one CSI interference measurement setting is used by user equipment to measure interference information of one or more network devices in a coordinated transmission scheme, and the at least one CSI-reference signal setting and the interference information are used by the user equipment to measure CSI of the one or more network devices in at least one interference assumption; …) (para [0064]: The network device sends the at least one CSI measurement setting to user equipment by using first signaling.) (para [0065]: Operation S303: The user equipment receives the at least one CSI measurement setting that is sent by the network device by using the first signaling, and the user equipment measures, based on the at least one CSI-reference signal setting, CSI respectively corresponding to the one or more transmission schemes.); and
transmitting, by the wireless communication device, to the network device, a channel report according to the report configuration (para [0066]: After receiving the at least one CSI measurement setting sent by the network device, the user equipment measures, on a reference signal resource indicated by a corresponding CSI-reference signal setting,) (para [0069]: Operation S305: The user equipment receives the second signaling sent by the network device, and reports the CSI corresponding to the one or more of the at least one transmission scheme to the network device according to the second signaling.),
wherein the report configuration is a channel information report configuration and the channel report is a channel information report (para [0065]: Operation S303: The user equipment receives the at least one CSI measurement setting that is sent by the network device by using the first signaling, and the user equipment measures, based on the at least one CSI-reference signal setting, CSI respectively corresponding to the one or more transmission schemes.),
wherein the channel report includes a channel resource indicator (CRI), a rank indicator (RI), and a channel measurement (para [0069]: Operation S305: The user equipment receives the second signaling sent by the network device, and reports the CSI corresponding to the one or more of the at least one transmission scheme to the network device according to the second signaling.) (para [0066]: As described above, the content includes content (for example, a CQI, a PMI, an RI, and a CRI that are required in a particular transmission scheme in a particular transmission mode), a frequency domain granularity (for example, broadband or narrowband), and the like of CSI measurement and reporting, and may further include at least one of a period attribute (for example, periodicity and a period, or aperiodicity) and a subframe offset for CSI reporting.) (para [0162]: In this embodiment of the present invention, the CSI reporting setting includes at least one of content and a frequency domain granularity of CSI measurement and reporting and a period attribute and a subframe offset for CSI reporting; and the content of CSI measurement and reporting includes at least one of a channel quality indicator CQI, a precoding matrix indicator PMI, a rank indicator RI, and a reference signal resource indicator CRI.) (Examiner’s note: Han explicitly discloses in para [0069] (Operation S305) that the “The user equipment r… reports the CSI corresponding to the one or more of the at least one transmission scheme to the network device according to the second signaling.” While para [0066] describes the CSI reporting settings, Han further clarifies in para [0162] that the “content of CSI measurement and reporting includes at least one of a channel quality indicator CQI, a precoding matrix indicator PMI, a rank indicator RI, and a reference signal resource indicator CRI.” Para [0066] states that the UE “measures content specified in CSI reporting setting,” which includes CQI, RI, and CRI. When read in conjunction with the actual reporting step in para [0069], it is clear that the “CSI” being reported contains the specific elements (CRI, RI, and channel measurement/CQI) previously measured based on those settings.), and
wherein the channel report includes a plurality of interference measurement results (para [0096]: After receiving the CSI measurement setting, the user equipment completes channel estimation or interference measurement on a corresponding resource.) (para [0097]: Then the network device (assumed to be the TRP 1) instructs, by using DCI signaling, the UE to perform CSI/interference measurement and reporting. For example, CSI/interference required in a non-coherent joint transmission (NC-JT) scheme is measured. The network device instructs the user equipment to report CSI corresponding to one or more of the following four interference assumptions : 1. A PMI, an RI, and a CQI (interpreted as “a plurality of interference measurement results”) when the TRP 1 transmits a signal, the TRP 2 transmits no signal, and another TRP causes interference. In this case, the UE calculates the PMI/RI based on channel estimation on the resource A, and calculates the CQI by using measurement on the resource A as a signal part and using measurement on the resource C as an interference part. ….),
Han fails to teach:
wherein the channel report includes a channel quality indicator (CQI) that is calculated conditioned on a recovered channel or a measured channel, and
wherein, a penalty factor is used when the CQI is calculated conditioned on the measured channel; or
wherein the channel report includes a layer indicator (LI) that is calculated conditioned on a recovered channel or a measured channel, and
wherein, a penalty factor is used when the LI is calculated conditioned on the measured channel.
In analogous art, Kwak teaches wherein the channel report includes a channel quality indicator (CQI) that is calculated conditioned on a recovered channel or a measured channel (para [0094] of Kwak: … In an LTE-A system, a UE measures a channel state between an eNB and the UE using a CRS or a CSI-RS transmitted by the eNB. The channel state may consider several factors, including an amount of interference in a DL... For example, when a signal is transmitted from an eNB having one transmission antenna to a UE having one reception antenna, the UE uses the reference signal received from the eNB to identify energy per symbol that can be received in the DL and an amount of interference to be simultaneously received in an interval in which a corresponding symbol is received, thereby determining an energy ratio per symbol (Es) to amount of interference (Io), i.e., Es/Io. The determined Es/Io is converted into a data transmission rate or a value corresponding thereto, and is notified to the eNB in the form of a CQI (interpreted as “a channel quality indicator (CQI) that is calculated conditioned on a recovered channel or a measured channel”), so that the eNB can determine whether to transmit data to the UE at a certain data transmission rate in the DL.) wherein, a penalty factor is used when the CQI is calculated conditioned on the measured channel (para [0090] of Kwak: In addition, Pc indicates a power ratio between a PDSCH and a CSI-RS RE for a UE to generate a CSI reporting (interpreted as “a penalty factor is used when the CQI is calculated conditioned on the measured channel”), and a codebook subset restriction for setting which codebook a corresponding subset is to be used for. The Pc and codebook subset restriction are set by a p-C-AndCBSRList field in Table 6, which includes two P-C-AndCBSR fields of Table 7 in the form of a list, and each P-C-AndCBSR field indicates a setting for each subframe subset.) (para [0093] of Kwak: … An eNB may variably adjust CSI-RS transmission power for various purposes, such as improving the channel estimation accuracy, and a UE may know how much lower or higher the transmission power to be used for data transmission than the transmission power used for channel estimation, through the notified Pc. Accordingly, even when the eNB varies the CSI-RS transmission power, the UE can calculate a correct CQI and report the calculated CQI to the eNB.)
Examiner’s note: As noted above, Kwak teaches generating CSI reporting (including channel quality indicator (CQI)) based on a measured channel (e.g., using CSI-RS) (see para [0094] of Kwak). Furthermore, Kwak teaches utilizing a power offset parameter, Pc, which indicates a power ratio between a PDSCH and a CSI-RS resource element, to allow the UE to calculate a correct CQI even when the transmission power varies (see paragraphs [0090], [0093]). This power offset Pc corresponds directly to the claimed “penalty factor” used to adjust the CQI calculation conditioned on the measured channel.
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to modify the CSI reporting method of Han by incorporating the power offset parameter (Pc) taught by Kwak. The motivation to do so would be to improve channel estimation accuracy and ensure the UE calculates and reports a correct CQI by compensating for transmission power discrepancies between data and reference signals, yielding predictable scheduling performance.
Regarding claim 6, A method of wireless communication (Fig. 3: Network device and para [0038]: FIG. 3 is a method for setting channel state information measurement and reporting…), comprising:
transmitting, by a network device, to a wireless network device, a report configuration (para [0016]: The method includes: generating, by a network device, at least one CSI measurement setting, where each of the at least one CSI measurement setting includes at least one CSI reporting setting, at least one CSI-reference signal setting, and at least one CSI interference measurement setting (interpreted as “report configuration”), the at least one CSI interference measurement setting is used by user equipment to measure interference information of one or more network devices in a coordinated transmission scheme, and the at least one CSI-reference signal setting and the interference information are used by the user equipment to measure CSI of the one or more network devices in at least one interference assumption; …) (para [0064]: The network device sends the at least one CSI measurement setting to user equipment by using first signaling.) (para [0065]: Operation S303: The user equipment receives the at least one CSI measurement setting that is sent by the network device by using the first signaling, and the user equipment measures, based on the at least one CSI-reference signal setting, CSI respectively corresponding to the one or more transmission schemes.);
receiving, by the network device, from a wireless network device, a channel report according to the report configuration (para [0066]: After receiving the at least one CSI measurement setting sent by the network device, the user equipment measures, on a reference signal resource indicated by a corresponding CSI-reference signal setting,) (para [0069]: Operation S305: The user equipment receives the second signaling sent by the network device, and reports the CSI corresponding to the one or more of the at least one transmission scheme to the network device according to the second signaling.),
wherein the report configuration is a channel information report configuration and the channel report is a channel information report (para [0065]: Operation S303: The user equipment receives the at least one CSI measurement setting that is sent by the network device by using the first signaling, and the user equipment measures, based on the at least one CSI-reference signal setting, CSI respectively corresponding to the one or more transmission schemes.),
wherein the channel report includes a channel resource indicator (CRI), a rank indicator (RI), and a channel measurement (para [0069]: Operation S305: The user equipment receives the second signaling sent by the network device, and reports the CSI corresponding to the one or more of the at least one transmission scheme to the network device according to the second signaling.) (para [0066]: As described above, the content includes content (for example, a CQI, a PMI, an RI, and a CRI that are required in a particular transmission scheme in a particular transmission mode), a frequency domain granularity (for example, broadband or narrowband), and the like of CSI measurement and reporting, and may further include at least one of a period attribute (for example, periodicity and a period, or aperiodicity) and a subframe offset for CSI reporting.) (para [0162]: In this embodiment of the present invention, the CSI reporting setting includes at least one of content and a frequency domain granularity of CSI measurement and reporting and a period attribute and a subframe offset for CSI reporting; and the content of CSI measurement and reporting includes at least one of a channel quality indicator CQI, a precoding matrix indicator PMI, a rank indicator RI, and a reference signal resource indicator CRI.) (Examiner’s note: Han explicitly discloses in para [0069] (Operation S305) that the “The user equipment r… reports the CSI corresponding to the one or more of the at least one transmission scheme to the network device according to the second signaling.” While para [0066] describes the CSI reporting settings, Han further clarifies in para [0162] that the “content of CSI measurement and reporting includes at least one of a channel quality indicator CQI, a precoding matrix indicator PMI, a rank indicator RI, and a reference signal resource indicator CRI.” Para [0066] states that the UE “measures content specified in CSI reporting setting,” which includes CQI, RI, and CRI. When read in conjunction with the actual reporting step in para [0069], it is clear that the “CSI” being reported contains the specific elements (CRI, RI, and channel measurement/CQI) previously measured based on those settings.),
wherein the channel report includes a plurality of interference measurement results (para [0096]: After receiving the CSI measurement setting, the user equipment completes channel estimation or interference measurement on a corresponding resource.) (para [0097]: Then the network device (assumed to be the TRP 1) instructs, by using DCI signaling, the UE to perform CSI/interference measurement and reporting. For example, CSI/interference required in a non-coherent joint transmission (NC-JT) scheme is measured. The network device instructs the user equipment to report CSI corresponding to one or more of the following four interference assumptions : 1. A PMI, an RI, and a CQI (interpreted as “a plurality of interference measurement results”) when the TRP 1 transmits a signal, the TRP 2 transmits no signal, and another TRP causes interference. In this case, the UE calculates the PMI/RI based on channel estimation on the resource A, and calculates the CQI by using measurement on the resource A as a signal part and using measurement on the resource C as an interference part. ….).
Han fails to teach:
wherein the channel report includes a channel quality indicator (CQI) that is calculated conditioned on a recovered channel or a measured channel, and
wherein, a penalty factor is used when the CQI is calculated conditioned on the measured channel; or
wherein the channel report includes a layer indicator (LI) that is calculated conditioned on a recovered channel or a measured channel, and
wherein, a penalty factor is used when the LI is calculated conditioned on the measured channel.
In analogous art, Kwak teaches wherein the channel report includes a channel quality indicator (CQI) that is calculated conditioned on a recovered channel or a measured channel (para [0094] of Kwak: … In an LTE-A system, a UE measures a channel state between an eNB and the UE using a CRS or a CSI-RS transmitted by the eNB. The channel state may consider several factors, including an amount of interference in a DL... For example, when a signal is transmitted from an eNB having one transmission antenna to a UE having one reception antenna, the UE uses the reference signal received from the eNB to identify energy per symbol that can be received in the DL and an amount of interference to be simultaneously received in an interval in which a corresponding symbol is received, thereby determining an energy ratio per symbol (Es) to amount of interference (Io), i.e., Es/Io. The determined Es/Io is converted into a data transmission rate or a value corresponding thereto, and is notified to the eNB in the form of a CQI (interpreted as “a channel quality indicator (CQI) that is calculated conditioned on a recovered channel or a measured channel”), so that the eNB can determine whether to transmit data to the UE at a certain data transmission rate in the DL.) wherein, a penalty factor is used when the CQI is calculated conditioned on the measured channel (para [0090] of Kwak: In addition, Pc indicates a power ratio between a PDSCH and a CSI-RS RE for a UE to generate a CSI reporting (interpreted as “a penalty factor is used when the CQI is calculated conditioned on the measured channel”), and a codebook subset restriction for setting which codebook a corresponding subset is to be used for. The Pc and codebook subset restriction are set by a p-C-AndCBSRList field in Table 6, which includes two P-C-AndCBSR fields of Table 7 in the form of a list, and each P-C-AndCBSR field indicates a setting for each subframe subset.) (para [0093] of Kwak: … An eNB may variably adjust CSI-RS transmission power for various purposes, such as improving the channel estimation accuracy, and a UE may know how much lower or higher the transmission power to be used for data transmission than the transmission power used for channel estimation, through the notified Pc. Accordingly, even when the eNB varies the CSI-RS transmission power, the UE can calculate a correct CQI and report the calculated CQI to the eNB.)
Examiner’s note: As noted above, Kwak teaches generating CSI reporting (including channel quality indicator (CQI)) based on a measured channel (e.g., using CSI-RS) (see para [0094] of Kwak). Furthermore, Kwak teaches utilizing a power offset parameter, Pc, which indicates a power ratio between a PDSCH and a CSI-RS resource element, to allow the UE to calculate a correct CQI even when the transmission power varies (see paragraphs [0090], [0093]). This power offset Pc corresponds directly to the claimed “penalty factor” used to adjust the CQI calculation conditioned on the measured channel.
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention to modify the CSI reporting method of Han by incorporating the power offset parameter (Pc) taught by Kwak. The motivation to do so would be to improve channel estimation accuracy and ensure the UE calculates and reports a correct CQI by compensating for transmission power discrepancies between data and reference signals, yielding predictable scheduling performance.
Regarding claim 11, it is a device claim corresponding to the method claim 1, except the limitations “a processor” (Fig. 11, Processor 204 of User equipment 200) and is therefore rejected for the similar reasons set forth in the rejection of claim 1.
Regarding claim 16, it is a device claim corresponding to the method claim 6, except the limitations “a processor” (Fig. 10, Processor 104 of Network device 100) and is therefore rejected for the similar reasons set forth in the rejection of claim 1.
Claims 2-5, 7-10, 12-15, and 17-20 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103(a) as being unpatentable over Han in view of Kwak, and further in view of Yokomakura et al (U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20210067304, hereinafter “Yokomakura”).
Regarding claim 2, Han and Kwak teach The method of claim 1, Han and Kwak fail to teach:
wherein the plurality of interference measurement results comprises wideband interference measurement results.
Yokomakura, in analogous art, teaches wherein the plurality of interference measurement results comprises wideband interference measurement results (para [0129] of Yokomakura: Each of the configurations related to the CSI reports is associated with one downlink BWP (the BWP identity of a higher layer), and each of the configurations related to the CSI reports includes the following parameters to be reported.) (para [0133] of Yokomakura: Configuration in the frequency domain (including each of the information to configure the broadband CQI or the subband CQI, and information to configure the wideband PMI or the subband PMI) (para [0138] of Yokomakura : Each of the configurations related to the CSI resources includes information related to S (S is equal to or greater than 1) CSI-RS resource sets, and each CSI-RS resource set includes multiple CSI-RS resources (a NZPCSI-RS for channel measurement or interference measurement, and a CSI-Interference Measurement (IM) resource for interference measurement), and a configuration related to resources of the SS/PBCH block used for L1-RSRP calculation.).
Han, Kwak, and Yokomakura are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of Method for reporting Channel State Information. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of instant application to modify the system of Han and Kwak by using the feature (report configuration information of the wideband PMI or the subband PMI) of Yokomakura to provide CSI report configuration information and report the wideband interference measurement results based on the CSI report configuration information. Doing so would reduce signaling overheads while switching the user equipment between different transmission schemes and supporting CSI measurement and reporting that are required in multi-network device coordinated transmission.
Regarding claim 3, Han, Kwak, and Yokomakura teach The method of claim 2, Yokomakura further teaches wherein each wideband interference measurement result is associated with RI values, each corresponding to a layer, or is associated with one or more codewords, each corresponding to multiple layers (para [0129] of Yokomakura: Each of the configurations related to the CSI reports is associated with one downlink BWP (the BWP identity of a higher layer), and each of the configurations related to the CSI reports includes the following parameters to be reported.) (para [0132] of Yokomakura: CSI parameters to be reported (for example, CRI, RI, PMI, CQI, or the like) (para [0139] of Yokomakura: Next, the channel measurement and interference measurement described above will be described. … the interference measurement is to measure the amount of interference in each layer or codeword in a case that the downlink interference signal or channel or spatial multiplexing is assumed for the CSI measurement. Here, “layer” refers to the number of PDSCHs to be spatially multiplexed.).
Regarding claim 4, Han and Kwak teach The method of claim 1, Han and Kwak fail to teach wherein the plurality of interference measurement results comprises sub-band interference measurement results.
Yokomakura, in analogous art, teaches the wherein the plurality of interference measurement results comprises sub-band interference measurement results (para [0129] of Yokomakura (US20210067304A1): Each of the configurations related to the CSI reports is associated with one downlink BWP (the BWP identity of a higher layer), and each of the configurations related to the CSI reports includes the following parameters to be reported.) (para [0133] of Yokomakura: Configuration in the frequency domain (including each of the information to configure the broadband CQI or the subband CQI, and information to configure the wideband PMI or the subband PMI) (para [0138] of Yokomakura : Each of the configurations related to the CSI resources includes information related to S (S is equal to or greater than 1) CSI-RS resource sets, and each CSI-RS resource set includes multiple CSI-RS resources (a NZPCSI-RS for channel measurement or interference measurement, and a CSI-Interference Measurement (IM) resource for interference measurement), and a configuration related to resources of the SS/PBCH block used for L1-RSRP calculation.).
Han, Kwak, and Yokomakura are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because they are in the same field of Method for reporting Channel State Information. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of instant application to modify the combination of Han and Kwak by using the feature (report configuration information of the wideband PMI or the subband PMI) of Yokomakura to provide CSI report configuration information and report the sub-band interference measurement results based on the CSI report configuration information. Doing so would reduce signaling overheads while switching the user equipment between different transmission schemes and supporting CSI measurement and reporting that are required in multi-network device coordinated transmission.
Regarding claim 5, Han, Kwak, and Yokomakura teach The method of claim 4, Yokomakura further teaches wherein each sub-band interference measurement result is associated with RI values, each corresponding to a layer, or is associated with one or more codewords, each corresponding to multiple layers (para [0132] of Yokomakura: CSI parameters to be reported (for example, CRI, RI, PMI, CQI, or the like) (para [0139] of Yokomakura: Next, the channel measurement and interference measurement described above will be described. … the interference measurement is to measure the amount of interference in each layer or codeword in a case that the downlink interference signal or channel or spatial multiplexing is assumed for the CSI measurement. Here, “layer” refers to the number of PDSCHs to be spatially multiplexed.).
Regarding claims 7, 12, 17, Claims 7, 12, and 17 have similar limitations as of Claim(s) 2, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim(s) 2.
Regarding claims 8, 13, 18, Claims 8, 13, and 18 have similar limitation as of Claim(s) 3, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim(s) 3.
Regarding claims 9, 14, 19, Claims 9, 14, and 19 have similar limitation as of Claim(s) 4, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim(s) 4.
Regarding claims 10, 15, 20, Claims 10, 15, and 20 have similar limitation as of Claim(s) 5, therefore it is rejected under the same reasons as Claim(s) 5.
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.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WON JUN CHOI whose telephone number is (703)756-1695. The examiner can normally be reached MON-FRI 08:00 - 17:00.
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/WON JUN CHOI/Examiner, Art Unit 2411
/DERRICK W FERRIS/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2411
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