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 .
Response to Amendment
Amendments filed on 07/29/2026 are entered for prosecution. Claims 1, 4-8 and 11-17 remain pending in the application. The amendments change the scopes of the previously presented claims. New grounds of rejections are applied to the amended claims and the current Office Action is made FINAL as necessitated by the claim amendments.
Applicant’s amendments to the specification have overcome each and every objection in the specification previously set forth in the Non-Final Office Action.
Applicant’s amendments to the claims have overcome each and every rejection based on 35 USC § 112 to the claims previously set forth in the Non-Final Office Action.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1, 4-8 and 11-17 in a reply filed 07/29/2026 (hereinafter, Remarks) regarding newly added limitations have been considered but are moot because the arguments do not apply to the references being used in the current rejection.
Claim Interpretation
Regarding claims 1, 8 and 15:
The broadest reasonable interpretation (BRI) of “a number of consecutive retransmissions of the transport block” recited in claims 1, 8 and 15 includes a number of consecutive retransmissions of a transport block is K = 1 for the multiple transmission of the same TB on different carriers, wherein the same TB has a different RV for each of the carriers according to specification (Fig. 10; [0382] As shown in FIG. 10, the number of carriers constituting a logical cell is 3, i.e., N=3, and these 3 carriers are carrier 0, carrier 1 and carrier 2, respectively. The number of consecutive retransmissions of a transport block is K=1, and the redundancy version identifier of the first carrier in DCI scheduling a PDSCH is rv.sub.id=3).
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Therefore, multiple transmission of the same TB on different carriers, wherein the same TB has a different RV for each of the carriers of LI (LI - Fig. 8(2); [0135] a cell combination includes more than two carriers, and TB #1 may be encoded by using different redundancy versions, and separately sent on the carriers) is considered “a number of consecutive retransmissions of the transport block” and K=1.
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Regarding claims 4 and 11:
The BRI of “acquiring the number of consecutive retransmissions K according to the second radio resource control signaling” recited in claim 4 and “the second radio resource control signaling is used for indicating the number of consecutive retransmissions K” recited in claim 8 includes K=1 when a radio resource control signaling does not include an aggregation factor according to specification ([0372] Let the number of carriers constituting a logical cell be N, and N is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2. When the number of consecutive retransmissions is 1 (i.e., when the second radio resource control signaling includes an aggregation factor, and the aggregation factor pdsch-AggregationFactor=1, or when the second radio resource control signaling does not include an aggregation factor)).
Therefore, K=1 of LI (LI - Fig. 8; Fig. 10;) when a radio resource control signaling does not include an aggregation factor (LI - [0147] (2) PDSCH time domain resource allocation table (an RRC configuration parameter associated with a downlink carrier). Main components of the time domain allocation table are shown in Table 2 below. In the table, a parameter set for PDSCH time domain allocation is defined. Parameters in each row include a slot offset value K0 between a PDCCH and a PDSCH, a PDSCH start symbol, a symbol length, and a PDSCH mapping type; [0154] In some embodiments, the first message is an RRC message. Specifically, the terminal device determines a PDSCH of a first cell and/or a PDSCH of a second cell based on the RRC message) is considered “acquiring the number of consecutive retransmissions K according to the second radio resource control signaling” and “the second radio resource control signaling is used for indicating the number of consecutive retransmissions K”.
Contingent limitations: The broadest reasonable interpretation of a method (or process) claim having contingent limitations requires only those steps that must be performed and does not include steps that are not required to be performed because the condition(s) precedent are not met. For example, assume a method claim requires step A if a first condition happens and step B if a second condition happens. If the claimed invention may be practiced without either the first or second condition happening, then neither step A or B is required by the broadest reasonable interpretation of the claim (See MPEP 2111.04).
Therefore, the BRI of method claims 6 and 13 containing contingent limitations “wherein when the transport block is completely transmitted... and the number of the carriers N is less than K, the redundancy versions of the transport block.. and a transmission slot i satisfy a third preset condition” are not required to be performed because the condition(s) precedent are not met.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 6 and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claims 6 and 13 recite “the redundancy versions of the transport block for transmission on each carrier of the at least two carriers” is indefinite because it is unclear whether “transmitting the transport block according to the redundancy versions of the transport block for transmission on each carrier of the at least two carriers” recited in claim 1 lines 7-8 and claim 8 lines 6-7, or “performing K transmissions... according to redundancy versions of the transport block in R transmission slots” recited in claim 1 lines 11-12 and claim 8 lines 10-11 is the one being referred to “the redundancy versions of the transport block” recited in claims 6 and 13 because “performing... redundancy versions of the transport block” recited in claim 1 lines 11-12 and claim 8 lines 10-11 lacks antecedent basis and it is not clear whether the “redundancy versions of the transport block” recited in claim 1 lines 11-12 and claim 8 lines 10-11 is introducing a different RV of the TB. For the purpose of examination, “the redundancy versions of the transport block for transmission on each carrier of the at least two carriers” recited in claims 6 and 13 will be interpreted as “transmitting... the redundancy versions of the transport block” recited in claim 1 lines 7-8 and claim 8 lines 6-7.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claims 1, 4-8 and 11-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by LI et al. (WO2022040964 A1 filed Aug. 26, 2020, which has an English publication, US 20230199766 A1, for ease of reference, the passages cited below refer to the English publication, hereinafter, LI).
Regarding claim 1, LI discloses:
A transmission method (Fig. 6-8; [0005] This application provides a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ codebook generation method and an apparatus, which can be applied to a serving cell extended to a plurality of cells or a cell having a plurality of carriers. The plurality of carriers may be located in one cell, or may be located in different cells. A manner of generating a HARQ codebook is provided), comprising steps of:
receiving (Fig. 6 – 210: First Message; Fig. 8 – DCI) second downlink resource control information on at least one of N carriers ([0111] 210: Receive a first message from a network device, where the first message is for scheduling downlink data in a plurality of cells (e.g., DCI); [0011] With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first message indicates downlink control information DCI. The receiving the downlink data from the network device includes: receiving the PDSCHs of the first cell and the second cell based on the DCI. The generating a HARQ codebook based on the first message includes: determining the HARQ codebook based on the DCI), wherein N is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2 (Fig. 8 (carrier 1 and carrier 2); [0118] Optionally, a plurality of carriers in the cell combination are located on different carriers of the cell);
determining (Fig. 6 – 220: Generate a HARQ codebook based on the first message), according to the second downlink resource control information (Fig. 6 – 210: First Message (e.g., DCI); Fig. 8 – DCI; [0136] one piece of DCI simultaneously schedules a plurality of pieces of RV data of the TB, and data of one RV version is sent on each carrier. In this case, the data on each carrier may have separate HARQ information or same HARQ information), redundancy versions of a transport block (Fig. 8 (TB#1 RV1 and TB#1 RV2); [0133] For details, refer to (2) in FIG. 8. It is assumed that TB #1 is sent on carrier #1 and carrier #2. Data #1 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 1, and data #1 is sent on carrier #1. Data #2 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 2, and data #2 is sent on carrier #2) for transmission on each carrier of at least two carriers of the N carriers (Fig. 7-8; [0120] The following describes in detail the HARQ codebook generation method according to embodiments of this application with reference to the cell combination; [0133] For details, refer to (2) in FIG. 8. It is assumed that TB #1 is sent on carrier #1 and carrier #2; [0151] For a terminal that is configured with CA, a quantity of serving cells is greater than or equal to 2);
transmitting (Fig. 8 (TB#1 RV1 and TB#1 RV2)) the transport block according to the redundancy versions of the transport block for transmission on each carrier of the at least two carriers ([0133] For details, refer to (2) in FIG. 8. It is assumed that TB #1 is sent on carrier #1 and carrier #2 (e.g., transmitting TB#1 on both carrier 1 and carrier 2). Data #1 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 1, and data #1 is sent on carrier #1. Data #2 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 2, and data #2 is sent on carrier #2);
wherein transmitting the transport block according to the redundancy versions of the transport block for transmission on each carrier of the at least two carriers (Fig. 8; [0133];) comprises:
performing (Fig. 8; Fig. 10) K transmissions of the transport block on each carrier of the at least two carriers ([0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers; [0136] one piece of DCI simultaneously schedules a plurality of pieces of RV data of the TB, and data of one RV version is sent on each carrier. In this case, the data on each carrier may have separate HARQ information or same HARQ information) according to redundancy versions of the transport block in R transmission slots on each carrier of the at least two carriers (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0191] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, a primary cell and secondary cell 1 perform joint scheduling, and secondary cell 2 performs single-carrier scheduling... the PDSCH in the primary cell corresponds to one piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 of cell 1), the PDSCH in secondary cell 1 corresponds to another piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV2 on carrier 2 of cell 2), where at least one piece of HARQ-ACK information is valid), wherein R is determined based on K (Fig. 10 – Primary cell DL Slot (e.g., TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 of cell 1), Secondary cell 1 DL Slot (e.g., TB#1 RV2 on carrier 2 of cell 2)), and K is a number of consecutive retransmissions of the transport block (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers (the same TB#1 is transmitted separately on the plurality of carriers (e.g., TB#1 on carrier 1 of cell 1 and TB#1 on carrier 2 of cell 2 according to Fig. 8(2)); hence the number of consecutive retransmissions of TB is K=1 according to BRI)).
Regarding claim 4, LI further discloses:
receiving (Fig. 6 – 210: First Message) second radio resource control signaling ([0147] (2) PDSCH time domain resource allocation table (an RRC configuration parameter associated with a downlink carrier). Main components of the time domain allocation table are shown in Table 2 below. In the table, a parameter set for PDSCH time domain allocation is defined. Parameters in each row include a slot offset value K0 between a PDCCH and a PDSCH, a PDSCH start symbol, a symbol length, and a PDSCH mapping type; [0154] In some embodiments, the first message is an RRC message. Specifically, the terminal device determines a PDSCH of a first cell and/or a PDSCH of a second cell based on the RRC message);
acquiring the number of consecutive retransmissions K (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers (the same TB#1 is transmitted separately on the plurality of carriers (e.g., TB#1 on carrier 1 of cell 1 and TB#1 on carrier 2 of cell 2 according to Fig. 8(2)); hence the number of consecutive retransmissions of TB is K=1 according to BRI)) according to the second radio resource control signaling ([0147] RRC configuration parameter; [0154]; (e.g., K=1 since RRC does not include an aggregation factor according to BRI)).
Regarding claim 5, LI further discloses:
wherein if the second radio resource control signaling comprises an aggregation factor, the number of consecutive retransmissions K is a number of times indicated by the aggregation factor; and/or
if the second radio resource control signaling does not comprise an aggregation factor ([0147] RRC configuration parameter; [0154]; (e.g., K=1 since RRC does not include an aggregation factor according to BRI)), the number of consecutive retransmissions K is 1 (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers (the same TB#1 is transmitted separately on the plurality of carriers (e.g., TB#1 on carrier 1 of cell 1 and TB#1 on carrier 2 of cell 2 according to Fig. 8(2)); hence the number of consecutive retransmissions of TB is K=1 according to BRI)).
Regarding claim 6, LI further discloses:
wherein when the transport block is completely transmitted on each of the N carriers (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0133] For details, refer to (2) in FIG. 8. It is assumed that TB #1 is sent on carrier #1 and carrier #2 (e.g., transmitting TB#1 on both carrier 1 and carrier 2). Data #1 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 1, and data #1 is sent on carrier #1. Data #2 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 2, and data #2 is sent on carrier #2; [0151] HARQ information of each serving cell is determined in sequence based on a serving cell sequence, and a final HARQ codebook is generated when HARQ information of all serving cells is determined. For a terminal that is configured with CA, a quantity of serving cells is greater than or equal to 2), the number of consecutive retransmissions K is greater than 1 (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers (the same TB#1 is transmitted separately on the plurality of carriers (e.g., TB#1 on carrier 1 of cell 1 and TB#1 on carrier 2 of cell 2 according to Fig. 8(2)); hence the number of consecutive retransmissions of TB is K=1 according to BRI)), and the number of the carriers N is less than K, the redundancy versions of the transport block for transmission on each carrier of the at least two carriers and a transmission slot i satisfy a third preset condition.
Regarding claim 7, LI further discloses:
wherein a redundancy version of the transport block (Fig. 8 – TB#1 RV2 on carrier 2 cell 2) in remaining R-1 transmission slots of the R transmission slots (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0191] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, a primary cell and secondary cell 1 perform joint scheduling, and secondary cell 2 performs single-carrier scheduling... the PDSCH in the primary cell corresponds to one piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 of cell 1), the PDSCH in secondary cell 1 corresponds to another piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV2 on carrier 2 of cell 2), where at least one piece of HARQ-ACK information is valid) is determined by a redundancy version of the transport block (Fig. 8 – TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 cell 1) in a first transmission slot among the R transmission slots (Fig. 10; [0191] the PDSCH in the primary cell corresponds to one piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 of cell 1); [0151] HARQ information of each serving cell is determined in sequence based on a serving cell sequence, and a final HARQ codebook is generated when HARQ information of all serving cells is determined. For a terminal that is configured with CA, a quantity of serving cells is greater than or equal to 2).
Regarding claim 8, LI discloses:
A transmission method (Fig. 6-8; [0005] This application provides a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ codebook generation method and an apparatus, which can be applied to a serving cell extended to a plurality of cells or a cell having a plurality of carriers. The plurality of carriers may be located in one cell, or may be located in different cells. A manner of generating a HARQ codebook is provided), comprising:
sending (Fig. 6 – 210: First Message; Fig. 8 – DCI;) second downlink resource control information on at least one of N carriers ([0111] 210: Receive a first message from a network device, where the first message is for scheduling downlink data in a plurality of cells (e.g., DCI); [0011] With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first message indicates downlink control information DCI. The receiving the downlink data from the network device includes: receiving the PDSCHs of the first cell and the second cell based on the DCI. The generating a HARQ codebook based on the first message includes: determining the HARQ codebook based on the DCI), wherein N is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2 (Fig. 8 (carrier 1 and carrier 2); [0118] Optionally, a plurality of carriers in the cell combination are located on different carriers of the cell; [0151] For a terminal that is configured with CA, a quantity of serving cells is greater than or equal to 2)), and
the second downlink resource control information (Fig. 8 – DCI) is used for determining redundancy versions of a transport block for transmission ([0136] one piece of DCI simultaneously schedules a plurality of pieces of RV data of the TB, and data of one RV version is sent on each carrier. In this case, the data on each carrier may have separate HARQ information or same HARQ information) on each carrier of at least two carriers of the N carriers ([0133] For details, refer to (2) in FIG. 8. It is assumed that TB #1 is sent on carrier #1 and carrier #2 (e.g., transmitting TB#1 on both carrier 1 and carrier 2). Data #1 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 1, and data #1 is sent on carrier #1. Data #2 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 2, and data #2 is sent on carrier #2; 0118] Optionally, a plurality of carriers in the cell combination are located on different carriers of the cell; [0151] For a terminal that is configured with CA, a quantity of serving cells is greater than or equal to 2));
transmitting (Fig. 8 (TB#1 RV1 and TB#1 RV2)) the transport block according to the redundancy versions of the transport block for transmission on each carrier of the at least two carriers ([0133] For details, refer to (2) in FIG. 8. It is assumed that TB #1 is sent on carrier #1 and carrier #2 (e.g., transmitting TB#1 on both carrier 1 and carrier 2). Data #1 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 1, and data #1 is sent on carrier #1. Data #2 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 2, and data #2 is sent on carrier #2);
wherein transmitting the transport block according to the redundancy versions of the transport block for transmission on each carrier of the at least two carriers (Fig. 8; [0133];) comprises:
performing (Fig. 8; Fig. 10) K transmissions of the transport block on each carrier of the at least two carriers ([0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers; [0136] one piece of DCI simultaneously schedules a plurality of pieces of RV data of the TB, and data of one RV version is sent on each carrier. In this case, the data on each carrier may have separate HARQ information or same HARQ information) according to redundancy versions of the transport block in R transmission slots on each carrier of the at least two carriers (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0191] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, a primary cell and secondary cell 1 perform joint scheduling, and secondary cell 2 performs single-carrier scheduling... the PDSCH in the primary cell corresponds to one piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 of cell 1), the PDSCH in secondary cell 1 corresponds to another piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV2 on carrier 2 of cell 2), where at least one piece of HARQ-ACK information is valid), wherein R is determined based on K (Fig. 10 – Primary cell DL Slot (e.g., TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 of cell 1), Secondary cell 1 DL Slot (e.g., TB#1 RV2 on carrier 2 of cell 2)), and K is a number of consecutive retransmissions of the transport block (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers (the same TB#1 is transmitted separately on the plurality of carriers (e.g., TB#1 on carrier 1 of cell 1 and TB#1 on carrier 2 of cell 2 according to Fig. 8(2)); hence the number of consecutive retransmissions of TB is K=1 according to BRI)).
Regarding claim 11, LI further discloses:
transmitting (Fig. 6 – 210: First Message) second radio resource control signaling ([0147] (2) PDSCH time domain resource allocation table (an RRC configuration parameter associated with a downlink carrier). Main components of the time domain allocation table are shown in Table 2 below. In the table, a parameter set for PDSCH time domain allocation is defined. Parameters in each row include a slot offset value K0 between a PDCCH and a PDSCH, a PDSCH start symbol, a symbol length, and a PDSCH mapping type; [0154] In some embodiments, the first message is an RRC message. Specifically, the terminal device determines a PDSCH of a first cell and/or a PDSCH of a second cell based on the RRC message), wherein the second radio resource control signaling ([0147] RRC configuration parameter; [0154]; (e.g., K=1 since RRC does not include an aggregation factor according to BRI)) is used for indicating the number of consecutive retransmissions K (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers (the same TB#1 is transmitted separately on the plurality of carriers (e.g., TB#1 on carrier 1 of cell 1 and TB#1 on carrier 2 of cell 2 according to Fig. 8(2)); hence the number of consecutive retransmissions of TB is K=1 according to BRI)).
Regarding claim 12, LI further discloses:
wherein if the second radio resource control signaling comprises an aggregation factor, the number of consecutive retransmissions K is a number of times indicated by the aggregation factor; and/or,
if the second radio resource control signaling does not comprise an aggregation factor ([0147] RRC configuration parameter; [0154]; (e.g., K=1 since RRC does not include an aggregation factor according to BRI)), the number of consecutive retransmissions K is 1 (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers (the same TB#1 is transmitted separately on the plurality of carriers (e.g., TB#1 on carrier 1 of cell 1 and TB#1 on carrier 2 of cell 2 according to Fig. 8(2)); hence the number of consecutive retransmissions of TB is K=1 according to BRI)).
Regarding claim 13, LI further discloses:
wherein when the transport block is completely transmitted on each of the N carriers (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0133] For details, refer to (2) in FIG. 8. It is assumed that TB #1 is sent on carrier #1 and carrier #2 (e.g., transmitting TB#1 on both carrier 1 and carrier 2). Data #1 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 1, and data #1 is sent on carrier #1. Data #2 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 2, and data #2 is sent on carrier #2; [0151] HARQ information of each serving cell is determined in sequence based on a serving cell sequence, and a final HARQ codebook is generated when HARQ information of all serving cells is determined. For a terminal that is configured with CA, a quantity of serving cells is greater than or equal to 2), the number of consecutive retransmissions K is greater than 1 (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers (the same TB#1 is transmitted separately on the plurality of carriers (e.g., TB#1 on carrier 1 of cell 1 and TB#1 on carrier 2 of cell 2 according to Fig. 8(2)); hence the number of consecutive retransmissions of TB is K=1 according to BRI)), and the number of the carriers N is less than K, the redundancy versions of the transport block for transmission on each carrier of the at least two carriers and a transmission slot i satisfy a third preset condition.
Regarding claim 14, LI further discloses:
wherein a redundancy version of the transport block (Fig. 8 – TB#1 RV2 on carrier 2 cell 2) in remaining R-1 transmission slots of the R transmission slots (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0191] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, a primary cell and secondary cell 1 perform joint scheduling, and secondary cell 2 performs single-carrier scheduling... the PDSCH in the primary cell corresponds to one piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 of cell 1), the PDSCH in secondary cell 1 corresponds to another piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV2 on carrier 2 of cell 2), where at least one piece of HARQ-ACK information is valid) is determined by a redundancy version of the transport block (Fig. 8 – TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 cell 1) in a first transmission slot among the R transmission slots (Fig. 10; [0191] the PDSCH in the primary cell corresponds to one piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 of cell 1); [0151] HARQ information of each serving cell is determined in sequence based on a serving cell sequence, and a final HARQ codebook is generated when HARQ information of all serving cells is determined. For a terminal that is configured with CA, a quantity of serving cells is greater than or equal to 2).
Regarding claim 15, LI discloses:
A communication device (Fig. 16 – terminal device; Fig. 8; Fig. 15-16; [0005] This application provides a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ codebook generation method and an apparatus, which can be applied to a serving cell extended to a plurality of cells or a cell having a plurality of carriers. The plurality of carriers may be located in one cell, or may be located in different cells. A manner of generating a HARQ codebook is provided), comprising:
a memory and a processor;
wherein the memory is configured to store program instructions; and
the processor is configured to call the program instructions in the memory ([0301] FIG. 16, the terminal device 600... The processor 601, the transceiver 602, and the memory 603 communicate with each other through an internal connection path, to transfer a control signal and/or a data signal. The memory 603 is configured to store a computer program. The processor 601 is configured to invoke the computer program from the memory 603 and run the computer program, to control the transceiver 602 to receive and send a signal; [0304] Specifically, the terminal device 600 may correspond to the terminal device in the method 200 according to embodiments of this application) to:
control an input interface ([0302] Optionally, the transceiver 602 may alternatively be a communication interface, configured to receive or send information, a signal, data, and the like that are for communication... that has receiving and sending functions may be implemented by using an antenna and/or a radio frequency apparatus) to receive (Fig. 6 – 210: First Message; Fig. 8 – DCI) second downlink resource control information on at least one of N carriers ([0111] 210: Receive a first message from a network device, where the first message is for scheduling downlink data in a plurality of cells (e.g., DCI); [0011] With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first message indicates downlink control information DCI. The receiving the downlink data from the network device includes: receiving the PDSCHs of the first cell and the second cell based on the DCI. The generating a HARQ codebook based on the first message includes: determining the HARQ codebook based on the DCI), wherein N is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2 (Fig. 8 (carrier 1 and carrier 2); [0118] Optionally, a plurality of carriers in the cell combination are located on different carriers of the cell);
determine (Fig. 6 – 220: Generate a HARQ codebook based on the first message) redundancy versions of a transport block for transmission (Fig. 8 (TB#1 RV1 and TB#1 RV2); [0136] one piece of DCI simultaneously schedules a plurality of pieces of RV data of the TB, and data of one RV version is sent on each carrier. In this case, the data on each carrier may have separate HARQ information or same HARQ information; [0133] For details, refer to (2) in FIG. 8. It is assumed that TB #1 is sent on carrier #1 and carrier #2. Data #1 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 1, and data #1 is sent on carrier #1. Data #2 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 2, and data #2 is sent on carrier #2) on each carrier of the at least two carriers of the N carriers (Fig. 7-8; [0120] The following describes in detail the HARQ codebook generation method according to embodiments of this application with reference to the cell combination;[0133] For details, refer to (2) in FIG. 8. It is assumed that TB #1 is sent on carrier #1 and carrier #2; [0151] For a terminal that is configured with CA, a quantity of serving cells is greater than or equal to 2) according to the second downlink resource control information (Fig. 6 – 210: First Message (e.g., DCI); Fig. 8 – DCI);
transmit (Fig. 8 (TB#1 RV1 and TB#1 RV2)) the transport block according to the redundancy versions of the transport block for transmission on each carrier of the at least two carriers ([0133] For details, refer to (2) in FIG. 8. It is assumed that TB #1 is sent on carrier #1 and carrier #2 (e.g., transmitting TB#1 on both carrier 1 and carrier 2). Data #1 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 1, and data #1 is sent on carrier #1. Data #2 is obtained through encoding performed on TB #1 by using RV 2, and data #2 is sent on carrier #2);
wherein when the processor calls (Fig. 16 – processor 601; [0301] The memory 603 is configured to store a computer program. The processor 601 is configured to invoke the computer program from the memory 603 and run the computer program, to control the transceiver 602 to receive and send a signal; [0304] the terminal device 600 may correspond to the terminal device in the method 200 according to embodiments of this application) the program instructions to transmit the transport block according to the redundancy versions of the transport block for transmission on each carrier of the at least two carriers (Fig. 8; [0133];), the processor is further configured (Fig. 16; [0301-0304];) to:
perform (Fig. 8; Fig. 10) K transmissions of the transport block on each carrier of the at least two carriers ([0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers; [0136] one piece of DCI simultaneously schedules a plurality of pieces of RV data of the TB, and data of one RV version is sent on each carrier. In this case, the data on each carrier may have separate HARQ information or same HARQ information) according to redundancy versions of the transport block in R transmission slots on each carrier of the at least two carriers (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0191] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, a primary cell and secondary cell 1 perform joint scheduling, and secondary cell 2 performs single-carrier scheduling... the PDSCH in the primary cell corresponds to one piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 of cell 1), the PDSCH in secondary cell 1 corresponds to another piece of HARQ-ACK information (e.g., TB#1 RV2 on carrier 2 of cell 2), where at least one piece of HARQ-ACK information is valid), wherein R is determined based on K (Fig. 10 – Primary cell DL Slot (e.g., TB#1 RV1 on carrier 1 of cell 1), Secondary cell 1 DL Slot (e.g., TB#1 RV2 on carrier 2 of cell 2)), and K is a number of consecutive retransmissions of the transport block (Fig. 8; Fig. 10; [0132] TB #1 is encoded by using different RVs, and is separately sent on a plurality of configured carriers (the same TB#1 is transmitted separately on the plurality of carriers (e.g., TB#1 on carrier 1 of cell 1 and TB#1 on carrier 2 of cell 2 according to Fig. 8(2)); hence the number of consecutive retransmissions of TB is K=1 according to BRI)).
Regarding claim 16, LI further discloses:
A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium (Fig. 16 – terminal device 600, memory 603) having a computer program stored thereon, wherein when the computer program is executed ([0317] According to the method provided in embodiments of this application... The computer-readable medium stores program code. When the program code is run on a computer, the computer performs the methods in the foregoing embodiments; [0301] FIG. 16, the terminal device 600... The memory 603 is configured to store a computer program. The processor 601 is configured to invoke the computer program from the memory 603 and run the computer program, to control the transceiver 602 to receive and send a signal; [0304] Specifically, the terminal device 600 may correspond to the terminal device in the method 200 according to embodiments of this application), the method according to claim 1 is implemented (Fig. 6-8; [0005] This application provides a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ codebook generation method and an apparatus, which can be applied to a serving cell extended to a plurality of cells or a cell having a plurality of carriers. The plurality of carriers may be located in one cell, or may be located in different cells. A manner of generating a HARQ codebook is provided).
Regarding claim 17, LI further discloses:
A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium (Fig. 17 – network device 700, memory 730) having a computer program stored thereon ([0317] According to the method provided in embodiments of this application... The computer-readable medium stores program code. When the program code is run on a computer, the computer performs the methods in the foregoing embodiments), wherein when the computer program is executed ([0309] FIG. 17, the network device 700 includes... The memory 730 is configured to store a computer program. The processor 710 is configured to invoke the computer program from the memory 730 and run the computer program, to control the transceiver 720 to receive and send a signal; [0313] the network device 700 may correspond to the network device in the method 200 for generating HARQ information according to embodiments of this application), the method according to claim 8 is implemented (Fig. 6 – Network Device; Fig. 8-10; [0005] This application provides a hybrid automatic repeat request HARQ codebook generation method and an apparatus, which can be applied to a serving cell extended to a plurality of cells or a cell having a plurality of carriers. The plurality of carriers may be located in one cell, or may be located in different cells. A manner of generating a HARQ codebook is provided).
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.
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/THERESA NGUYEN/Examiner, Art Unit 2418
/Moo Jeong/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2418
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