DETAILED ACTION
The Office Action is in response to Response to Election 06/12/2026. Application 18753321 filed on 06/25/2024. Claims 1-17 are elected and claims 18-20 are withdrawn.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant's election with traverse of restriction request (filed in 05/12/2025) reply filed on 06/12/2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that “claims 1-17 and claims 18-20 are not directed to independent or distinct inventions. Rather, claim 18 recites receiver-side processing that is the complementary to the transmitter-side processing recited in claim 1, and both groups are directed to the same probabilistic-shaping QAM framework, including the same constellation architecture, symbol-type structure, probability-distribution information, and bit-allocation logic….as the claimed demodulation subject matter substantially overlaps in search and examination with the elected modulation claims and does not define a separate inventive concept”.
Examiner’s Response:
This is not found persuasive because, although examiner agreed partially with the applicants remark that modulation and demodulation are complementary processes, however, in this special case, the modulation process in group I and demodulation process in ground II are distinguished. For example, Group II claim 18-20 is about demodulation, however, it is performed by a second communication apparatus and: “a second quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) symbol stream; demodulating, by the second communication apparatus, the second QAM symbol stream to obtain a third bit stream; parsing, by the second communication apparatus, the third bit stream to obtain a system bit stream and a second check bit stream… mapping, by the second communication apparatus, the fourth bit stream into a second symbol stream according to a second mapping rule, wherein the second mapping rule is a mapping relationship between a bit and a second symbol, a bit quantity corresponding to each second symbol in the second symbol stream is a bit quantity required by each second symbol that are represented by using a bit, a symbol type quantity of second symbols included in the second symbol stream and a probability distribution corresponding to a second symbol of each symbol type indicate a probability distribution and a signal amplitude of a quadrature signal of a constellation point in a target probabilistic shaping constellation diagram and a probability distribution and a signal amplitude of the constellation point” which could not been found anywhere in Group I, claim 1-17;
in addition to that, some limitation recited in Group I, like: “generating a first symbol stream based on a symbol type quantity, a probability distribution corresponding to a first symbol of each symbol type, a bit quantity corresponding to each first symbol, and a first original bit stream” could not be found anywhere in Group II; and so on.
Since Invention Group I claim 1-17 and Invention II claim 18-20 are independent distinct and classified in different classes; It is obvious that there would be a serious search and/or examination burden if restriction were not required because one or more of the following reasons apply:
i. The inventions have acquired a separate status in the art in view of their different classification.
ii. The inventions have acquired a separate status in the art due to their recognized divergent subject matter.
iii. The inventions require a different field of search (for example, searching different classes/subclasses or electronic resources, or employing different search queries).
iv. The prior art applicable to one invention would not likely be applicable to another invention.
v. The inventions are likely to raise different non-prior art issues under 35 U.S.C. 101 and/or 35 U.S.C 112, first paragraph. .
(Examiner noticed that applicant does not argued that Group III is distinguished from Group I and Group II.)
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed in Application 18753321 filed on 06/25/2024.
Priority # Filling Data Country
CN202111620116.1 12/27/2021 CN
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
11. 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.
12. Claim 1 and its dependent claims 2-17 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
For claim 1, it recites limitations of “the symbol type quantity” in “wherein the symbol type quantity and the probability distribution corresponding to the first symbol of each symbol type indicate a probability distribution and a signal amplitude of a quadrature signal of a constellation point in a target probabilistic shaping constellation diagram and a probability distribution and a signal amplitude of an in phase signal of the constellation point” However, it is not clear is the symbol type quantify corresponding to the first symbol of each symbol type indicate a probability distribution and a signal amplitude of a quadrature signal of a constellation point in a target probabilistic shaping constellation diagram and a probability distribution and a signal amplitude of an in phase signal of the constellation point; or the probability distribution corresponding to the first symbol of each symbol type indicate a probability distribution and a signal amplitude of a quadrature signal of a constellation point in a target probabilistic shaping constellation diagram and a probability distribution and a signal amplitude of an in phase signal of the constellation point; or both of them corresponding to the first symbol of each symbol type indicate a probability distribution and a signal amplitude of a quadrature signal of a constellation point in a target probabilistic shaping constellation diagram and a probability distribution and a signal amplitude of an in phase signal of the constellation point?
it recites limitations of “generating a first symbol stream” in “generating a first symbol stream based on a symbol type quantity, a probability distribution corresponding to a first symbol of each symbol type, a bit quantity corresponding to each first symbol, and a first original bit stream”; However, it is not clear if there is only one symbol type quantity, one probability distribution and one bit quantity or multiple symbol type quantity/ probability distribution/ bit quantity? Since as it recites, “the bit quantity corresponding to each first symbol” and there are more than one first symbol, therefore, there are more than one bit quantity; and it also recites that: “first symbols of different symbol types correspond to different probability distributions and/or different signal amplitudes”, which means there are more than one probability distribution.
it recites limitations of “the bit quantity” in “the bit quantity corresponding to each first symbol is a bit quantity required by each first symbol that is represented by using a bit”; However, it is not clear if there are many first symbols, which first symbol the bit quantity corresponding to since each first symbol may have different bit quantity? .
Thus the scope of the claim and its dependent claim 2-17 are unclear.
13. Claim 4 and its dependent claims 5-9 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 pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
For claim 4, it recites limitations of “encoding based on the first bit stream and the second original bit stream to obtain a first check bit stream” first, then it recites limitations of “determining, by the first communication apparatus, a second bit stream based on the first check bit stream and the second original bit stream”; at last, it recites limitations of “and generating, by the first communication apparatus, the first QAM symbol stream based on the first symbol stream and the second bit stream”; However, it is not clear if the second bit stream is the second original bit steam or something else;
it is not clear since the first check bit stream is generated based on the second original bit stream, then how can the second bit stream is generated based on both the first check bit stream and the second original bit stream (since the first check bit stream is already based on the second original bit stream);
it recites limitations of: “wherein the first mapping rule is a mapping relationship between a first symbol and a bit, and a quantity of bits to which each first symbol is mapped is the bit quantity corresponding to each first symbol”; it is not clear what the mapping relationship is about: it is a mapping relationship between a first symbol and a bit? Or it is a quantity of bits to which each first symbol is mapped? How many bits a first symbol is mapped? A bit or multiple bits?
Thus the scope of the claim and its dependent claim 5-9 are unclear.
15. Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See form 892.
16. Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ZAIHAN JIANG whose telephone number is (571)272-1399. The examiner can normally be reached on flexible.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Sath Perungavoor can be reached on (571)272-7455. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-270-0655.
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/ZAIHAN JIANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2488
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