Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/757,509

APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR POSITIONING USING SEVERAL FREQUENCY COMPONENTS FOR UPLINK, DOWNLINK AND SIDELINK

Non-Final OA §102§112
Filed
Jun 28, 2024
Examiner
JOSEPH, JAISON
Art Unit
2633
Tech Center
2600 — Communications
Assignee
Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
82%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
2y 5m
To Grant
95%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 82% — above average
82%
Career Allow Rate
538 granted / 652 resolved
+20.5% vs TC avg
Moderate +12% lift
Without
With
+12.5%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 5m
Avg Prosecution
17 currently pending
Career history
669
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
6.0%
-34.0% vs TC avg
§103
46.6%
+6.6% vs TC avg
§102
32.0%
-8.0% vs TC avg
§112
10.3%
-29.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 652 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §112
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 . Status of the claims Claims 1 – 93 were originally filed in the application. With preliminary amendment filed on October 14, 2024, Applicant have: Amended claims 2, 5, 9, 18, 25, 29, 31, 39, 42, 45, 49, 53, 59, 85, 92, and 93. Cancelled claims 3, 4, 6, 7, 10 – 17, 19 – 24, 26, 27, 30, 32 – 38, 40, 43, 44, 46, 47, 50 – 52, 54 – 58, 60 – 84, and 86 – 89. Added new claim 94. Claims 1, 2, 5, 8, 9, 18, 25, 28, 29, 31, 39, 41, 42, 45, 48, 49, 53, 59, 85, and 90 – 94 are pending in the application. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a): (a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention. The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112: The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention. Claims 1, 2, 5, 8, 9, 18, 25, 28, 29, 31, 39, 41, 42, 45, 85, 90, 92, and 94 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. Regarding claim 1, claim recite the limitation “ wherein the apparatus is configured to receive and/or to process and/or to transmit phase relationship information, wherein the phase relationship information comprises information on a transmitter-specific phase relationship between the two or more frequency components and/or comprises information on a receiver-specific phase relationship between the two or more frequency components, and wherein the apparatus is configured to use the phase-relationship information for determining positioning information, or is configured to report the phase-relationship information or information derived from the phase-relationship information to another apparatus of the wireless communication system for determining the positioning information; wherein the positioning information comprises information on a distance and/or a distance change between the transmitter and the receiver and/or a position of the transmitter and/or a position of the receiver.” The claim recite multiple embodiment of the apparatus being a transmitter, receiver, or a transceiver in alternative form. The claim additionally recite the limitations that further limit each embodiments in alternative form. These limitations in alternative form are not supported in the specification. Further, according to the present specification, the functions of the apparatus being a transmitter (spec page 27, line 10 – page 29 – line 10), receiver page 30, line 34 - , or a transceiver are different from each other. The specification does not disclose that transmitter embodiments perform the functions of the receiver embodiments or receiver embodiments perform the functions of the transmitter embodiments. Thus the claims contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. Further, It is not clear what applicant trying to claim. Is the apparatus a transmitter, receiver, or a processor? Examiner suggests to the Applicant that to recite each embodiments separately into different claims than combine different embodiments in the alternative forms. Similar scenario exists in claims 85, 90, and 92. Claims 2, 5, 8, 9, 18, 25, 28, 29, 31, 39, 41, 42, 45, and 94 are inherently rejected as being depended on above rejected claim. 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 1, 2, 5, 8, 9, 18, 25, 28, 29, 31, 39, 41, 42, 45, 49, 53, 59, 85, 90, 92, and 94 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. Regarding claim 1, claim recite the limitation “ wherein the apparatus is configured to receive and/or to process and/or to transmit phase relationship information, wherein the phase relationship information comprises information on a transmitter-specific phase relationship between the two or more frequency components and/or comprises information on a receiver-specific phase relationship between the two or more frequency components, and wherein the apparatus is configured to use the phase-relationship information for determining positioning information, or is configured to report the phase-relationship information or information derived from the phase-relationship information to another apparatus of the wireless communication system for determining the positioning information; wherein the positioning information comprises information on a distance and/or a distance change between the transmitter and the receiver and/or a position of the transmitter and/or a position of the receiver.” It is not clear what applicant trying to claim. Is the apparatus a transmitter, receiver, or a processor? Further, the claim recite multiple embodiment in alternative form. The specification does not disclose that transmitter embodiments perform the functions of the receiver embodiments or receiver embodiments perform the functions of the transmitter embodiments. Thus the claims contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to enable one skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and/or use the invention. Examiner suggests that to recite each embodiments separately into different claims rather than combine different embodiments in the alternative forms. Regarding dependent claims 2, 5, 8, 9, 18, 25, 28, 29, 31, 39, 41, 42, 45, 49, 53, 59, and 94, the dependent claims recite the limitations from different embodiments in alternate form. Due to the numerous alternatives recited in the claims, It is not clear which of the alternative limitation corresponds to which of the embodiments. Therefore, the claims contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to enable one skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and/or use the invention. Examiner suggests that to recite each embodiments separately into different claims rather than combine different embodiments in the alternative forms. Similar scenario exists in claims 85, 90, and 92. Claim 28 recites the limitation "the combined information" in line 13. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Claims 2, 5, 8, 9, 18, 25, 28, 29, 31, 39, 41, 42, 45, and 94 are inherently rejected as being depended on above rejected claim. 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. Claim(s) 1, 2, 5, 25, 29, 31, 39, 41, 42, 45, 48, 49, 53, 59, 85, and 90 – 94 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Akkarakaran et al (US 2020/0351047). Regarding claim 1, Akkarakaran et al teach an apparatus of a wireless communication system (see figure 8 – 12), wherein, for each frequency component of two or more frequency components (see paragraph 0120 “communications system 100 may operate using one or more frequency bands”), a transmitter of the wireless communication system is configured to transmit, within said frequency component, a transmit signal of said frequency component, wherein the transmit signal is a reference signal or is a control signal or is a data signal or is a portion of the reference signal or of the control signal or of the data signal (see paragraph 0006 “ PRS that spans multiple component carriers” and figure 6 “transmitting PRS”), and wherein a receiver of the wireless communication system is configured to receive, within said frequency component, the transmit signal of said frequency component, which has been transmitted by the transmitter, as a received signal of said frequency component (see figure 6, receiving PRS), wherein each frequency component of the two or more frequency components represents a bandwidth limited signal (see paragraph 0102 “ the carrier bandwidth may be one of a number of predetermined bandwidths for carriers of a particular radio access technology” paragraph 0176), which comprises one or more signal portions, and which exhibits a center frequency, wherein the center frequency of each of the two or more frequency components is different from the center frequency of any other one of the two or more frequency components (see paragraph 0175 – 0183), wherein the apparatus is configured to receive and/or to process and/or to transmit phase relationship information, wherein the phase relationship information comprises information on a transmitter-specific phase relationship between the two or more frequency components and/or comprises information on a receiver-specific phase relationship between the two or more frequency components (see paragraph 0177 “ UE 115-c may determine a phase offset between the first and second symbol for part or all of the PRS, resulting in loss of phase coherence” and paragraph 0181 “base station 105-e may transmit coherence information”) and , and wherein the apparatus is configured to use the phase-relationship information for determining positioning information (see paragraph 0086) , or is configured to report the phase-relationship information or information derived from the phase-relationship information to another apparatus of the wireless communication system for determining the positioning information (see paragraph 0086); wherein the positioning information comprises information on a distance and/or a distance change between the transmitter and the receiver and/or a position of the transmitter and/or a position of the receiver (see paragraph 0086 and 0170 “determine a location”). Regarding claim 2, which inherits the limitations of claim 1, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein the one or more signal portions of the frequency component of each of the two or more frequency components are a plurality of orthogonal signal portions of said frequency component, which exhibit the center frequency of said frequency component (see paragraph 0103, 0148 “OFDM”); or wherein the receiver is configured to receive the information on the transmitter-specific phase relationship from the transmitter (see figure 6, component 610 “coherence information” and paragraph 0181, 0187); or wherein the receiver is configured to receive the information on the transmitter-specific phase relationship from the transmitter; and the receiver comprises a first receiver unit for receiving the received signal of each of the two or more frequency components, and a second receiver unit for receiving the information on the transmitter-specific phase relationship. Regarding claim 5, which inherits the limitations of claim 1, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein the information on the transmitter-specific phase relationship comprises transmitter status information (see paragraph 0090), wherein the transmitter status information comprises at least one of: information that the transmitter-specific phase relationship is not known and may change (see paragraph 0090), information that a phase difference between the two or more frequency components is not known, but is constant, information that the phase difference between the two or more frequency components is known and constant and can be reported, information that the phase difference between the two or more frequency components is known and may change versus time and can be reported, information that the phase between the two or more frequency components is known and compensated before the transmit signal of the two or more frequency components leaves the transmitter, information which indicates that the transmitter-specific phase relationship is defined by a transmit signal specification, if no compensation of the transmitter-specific phase relationship is needed; or wherein the information on the receiver-specific phase relationship comprises receiver status information (see paragraph 0090), wherein the receiver status information comprises at least one of: information that the receiver-specific phase relationship is not known and may change, information that a phase between the two or more frequency components is not known, but is constant, information that the phase between the two or more frequency components is known and constant and can be reported, information that the phase difference between the two or more frequency components is known and may change versus time and can be reported, information that the phase difference between the two or more frequency components is known and is taken into account for further processing (see paragraph 0090). Regarding claim 25, which inherits the limitations of claim 1, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein, to determine the positioning information, the apparatus is configured to determine a time of arrival for each frequency component of the plurality of frequency components depending on the transmit signal (paragraph 0133, 0140 determining the timing based on the PRS spanning multiple component carrier) or a phase-offset-corrected version of the transmit signal and depending on the received signal or a phase-offset-corrected version of the received signal of each of the two or more frequency components; or wherein the apparatus is configured determine the positioning information using the phase-relationship information (see paragraph 0086 and 0170 “determine a location”); or wherein the apparatus is configured to determine the distance and/or the distance change between the transmitter and the receiver and/or the position of the transmitter and/or the position of the receiver, by determining a first estimation thereof depending on a round trip time concept and by determining the distance and/or the distance change between the transmitter and the receiver and/or the position of the transmitter and/or the position of the receiver by using one or several frequency components or by using a combined version thereof. Regarding claim 29, which inherits the limitations of claim 1, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein the transmitter is configured to use several component carriers or parts thereof and is configured to provide a synchronization status to an entity or to another apparatus, wherein the apparatus comprises the receiver, wherein the receiver is configured to apply the synchronization information to perform a measurement; or wherein the apparatus comprises the receiver, wherein the receiver is configured to assume a full synchronization if the receiver is configured with multiple component carrier resources and does not receive the synchronization status (see paragraph 0113 “communication system 100 support synchronous operation). Regarding claim 31, which inherits the limitations of claim 1, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein the phase relationship information depends on building blocks of the transmitter and/or receiver (see paragraph 0125, 0177); or wherein information on a transmitter-specific phase relationship or on a receiver-specific information is transmitted as additional information; or wherein the transmitter-specific phase relationship and/or the receiver-specific phase relationship is constant; or wherein the transmitter-specific phase relationship and/or the receiver-specific phase relationship changes over time; or wherein the two or more frequency components are transmitted by the transmitter by different RF chains or different antennas; or wherein a frequency relationship between the two or more frequency components depends on frequency offsets and/or an angle-of-arrival, and/or an angle-of-departure of the transmit signal; or wherein the phase relationship information is encoded as: one phase value per frequency component, wherein the phase value represents the mean value of the frequency response of the bandwidth limited signal, or several phase values per frequency component, or one or more phase difference values between frequency components, or one or several group delay values per frequency component, or a group delay relative to a reference point, wherein the reference point is a group delay of another frequency component; or wherein a phase or a group delay is represented as a distance or distance offset depending the wavelength of the signal. Regarding claim 39, which inherits the limitations of claim 1, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein the apparatus comprises the receiver and does not comprise the transmitter (see figure 6, UE and figure 8 and 12); or wherein the apparatus comprises the receiver and does not comprise the transmitter, wherein the receiver comprises two or more oscillators, wherein the phase relationship information comprises information on a receiver-specific phase relationship between the two or more oscillators of the receiver used to demodulate the two or more frequency components Regarding claim 41, which inherits the limitations of claim 39, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein the apparatus is a user equipment (see figure 6 and 8). Regarding claim 42, which inherits the limitations of claim 41, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein the apparatus comprises a transceiver (see figure 8 and 12), which comprises the receiver and another transmitter being different from said transmitter (see figure 6, 8, and 12), wherein the other transmitter is configured for a plurality of transmission purposes (see figure 6); or wherein the other transmitter is configured to transmit the phase-relationship information (see figure 6)or the information derived from the phase-relationship information to another apparatus of the wireless communication system (see figure 6, transmitting timing information); or wherein the other transmitter is configured to transmit another transmit signal to the receiver to allow or support positioning, wherein the other transmit signal is a reference signal or is a control signal or is a data signal. Regarding claim 45, which inherits the limitations of claim 1, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein the apparatus is a location management server (see figure 2, LMF) or is configured to implement a location management function; or wherein the apparatus is a base station (see figure 1 and 2); or wherein the apparatus implements a subset of a base station, wherein the apparatus implements one or more location measurement functions (see figure 1 and 2). Regarding claim 48, Akkarakaran et al teach an apparatus of a wireless communication system (see figure 1 and 2), wherein the apparatus comprises a transmitter, wherein, in each frequency component of two or more frequency components (see paragraph 0120 “communications system 100 may operate using one or more frequency bands”), the transmitter is configured to transmit a transmit signal in said frequency component (see paragraph 0006 “ PRS that spans multiple component carriers” and figure 6 “transmitting PRS”), such that a receiver of the wireless communication system receives a signal as a received signal in said frequency component (see figure 6, receiving PRS)), wherein the received signal comprises signal portions originating from the transmitting of the transmit signal in said frequency component by the transmitter (see paragraph 0006 “ PRS that spans multiple component carriers” and figure 6 “transmitting PRS”), wherein each of the two or more frequency components is a bandwidth limited signal comprising a center frequency (see paragraph 0102 “ the carrier bandwidth may be one of a number of predetermined bandwidths for carriers of a particular radio access technology” paragraph 0176), wherein the center frequency of each of the two or more frequency components is different from the center frequency of any other one of the two or more frequency components(see paragraph 0102 “ the carrier bandwidth may be one of a number of predetermined bandwidths for carriers of a particular radio access technology” paragraph 0176), wherein the transmit signal is a reference signal or a control signal or a data signal (see paragraph 0006 PRS), wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit phase-relationship information or information derived from the phase-relationship information to the receiver or to another apparatus of the wireless communication system for supporting to determine, at the other apparatus, information on a distance and/or a distance change between the transmitter and the receiver and/or a position of the transmitter and/or a position of the receiver (see paragraph 0177 “ UE 115-c may determine a phase offset between the first and second symbol for part or all of the PRS, resulting in loss of phase coherence” and paragraph 0181 “base station 105-e may transmit coherence information”); wherein the phase relationship information comprises information on a transmitter-specific phase relationship between the two or more frequency components (see paragraph 181 “coherence information”); or, if the phase-relationship information is not known, the phase relationship information comprises one or more default values to indicate a default phase relationship or comprises an indication that the phase-relationship information is not known (see paragraph 0181 “coherence information”). Regarding claim 49, which inherits the limitations of claim 48, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein, if the apparatus does not provide information on a synchronization status, the apparatus is expected to comprise a single transmission antenna for the two or more frequencies; or wherein, if the apparatus does not provide information on a synchronization status, the apparatus is expected to comprise a single transmission antenna for the two or more frequencies, wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit the information on the transmitter-specific phase relationship to the receiver; or wherein the information on the transmitter-specific phase relationship comprises transmitter status information (see paragraph 0090), wherein the transmitter status information comprises at least one of: information that the transmitter-specific phase relationship is not known and may change (see paragraph 0090), information that a phase difference for the two or more frequency components is not known, but is constant, information that the phase difference for the two or more frequency components is known and constant and can be reported, information that the phase difference for the two or more frequency components is known and may change versus time and the phase relationship versus time may be reported, information that the phase difference for the two or more frequency components is known and considered as nearly ideal and/or compensated before the transmit signal of the two or more frequency components leaves the transmitter; or wherein, if the transmitter-specific phase relationship is known or can be measured, the apparatus is configured to transmit phase information on the transmitter-specific phase relationship for at least one frequency component of the two or more frequency components to the receiver (see paragraph 0090 and 0177, figure 6, component 610, coherence information). Regarding claim 53, which inherits the limitations of claim 48, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein the transmitter is configured to use several component carriers or parts thereof and is configured to provide a synchronization status to an entity or to another apparatus; or wherein the transmitter is configured to use several component carriers or parts thereof and is configured to provide a synchronization status to an entity or to another apparatus, wherein the synchronization status comprises information on group delay; or wherein the apparatus is a base station, wherein the apparatus comprises a transceiver, which comprises the transmitter and another receiver being different from the receiver (see figure 1, 2 9, and 10); or wherein the apparatus implements a subset of a base station, wherein the apparatus implements one or more location measurement functions, wherein the apparatus comprises a transceiver, which comprises the transmitter and another receiver being different from the receiver (see figure 1, 2 9, and 10). Regarding claim 59, which inherits the limitations of claim 48, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein the apparatus comprises a transceiver, which comprises the transmitter and another receiver being different from said receiver, wherein the other receiver is configured for a plurality of receiving purposes (see figure 1, 2 9, and 10); or wherein the apparatus comprises a transceiver, which comprises the transmitter and another receiver being different from said receiver, wherein the other receiver is configured for a plurality of receiving purposes, wherein the other receiver is configured to receive another transmit signal from the transmitter for positioning, wherein the other transmit signal is a reference signal or is a control signal or is a data signal (see figure 1, 2 9, and 10); or wherein the transmitter comprises two or more oscillators, the transmitter is configured to report the transmitter-specific phase relationship between the two or more oscillators of the transmitter used to modulate the two or more frequency components to the receiver or to another apparatus of the wireless communication system; or wherein the transmit signal and the received signal of at least one of the two or more frequency components is a sounding reference signal or is a downlink positioning reference signal or is a channel state information reference signal (see paragraph 0006 “PRS that spans multiple component carriers”); or wherein the transmit signal of each of the two or more transmit signals is to be modulated by an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing modulator of the transmitter, wherein the received signal of each of the two or more received signals is to be demodulated by an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing demodulator (see paragraph 0103, 0148 and implicit); or wherein at least two of the two or more frequency components are at least two bandwidth parts of a wideband carrier; or wherein at least two frequency components of the two or more frequency components are assigned to at least two adjacent component carriers and each of the at least two adjacent component carriers comprises one or more of the at least two frequency components (see paragraph 0103, “multiple subcarriers”); or wherein at least one frequency component of the two or more frequency components is related to a not adjacent component carrier; or wherein the two or more frequency components are transmitted fully synchronized in frequency and phase; or wherein the two or more frequency components are not synchronized, or wherein the two or more frequency components are partially synchronized; or wherein a gap between the frequency components is assigned to other component carrier. Regarding claim 85, Akkarakaran et al teach a system (see figure 1 and 2) comprising, a first apparatus (see figure 2 and 6, basestation), wherein, for each frequency component of two or more frequency components (see paragraph 0006, “PRS that spans multiple component carriers”), a transmitter of the wireless communication system is configured to transmit, within said frequency component, a transmit signal of said frequency component, wherein the transmit signal is a reference signal or is a control signal or is a data signal or is a portion of the reference signal or of the control signal or of the data signal (see figure 6, paragraph 0006, “PRS that spans multiple component carriers”), and wherein a receiver (see figure 6, UE) of the wireless communication system is configured to receive, within said frequency component, the transmit signal of said frequency component, which has been transmitted by the transmitter (see figure 6), as a received signal of said frequency component, wherein each frequency component of the two or more frequency components represents a bandwidth limited signal, which comprises one or more signal portions (see paragraph 0102 “ the carrier bandwidth may be one of a number of predetermined bandwidths for carriers of a particular radio access technology” paragraph 0176), and which exhibits a center frequency, wherein the center frequency of each of the two or more frequency components is different from the center frequency of any other one of the two or more frequency components (see paragraph 0175 – 0183), wherein the first apparatus is configured to receive and/or to process and/or to transmit phase relationship information (paragraph 0090, 0181, 0187 and figure 6, “phase coherence information”), wherein the phase relationship information comprises information on a transmitter-specific phase relationship between the two or more frequency components (see paragraph 0090) and/or comprises information on a receiver-specific phase relationship between the two or more frequency components, and wherein the first apparatus is configured to use the phase-relationship information for determining positioning information (see paragraph 0086 “determining position”), or is configured to report the phase-relationship information or information derived from the phase-relationship information to another apparatus of the wireless communication system for determining the positioning information (see paragraph 0090, transmitting timing information); wherein the positioning information comprises information on a distance and/or a distance change between the transmitter and the receiver and/or a position of the transmitter and/or a position of the receiver (see paragraph 0086, 0090); and a second apparatus, wherein the second apparatus comprises a transmitter, (see figure 2, 8 – 10) wherein, in each frequency component of two or more frequency components, the transmitter is configured to transmit a transmit signal in said frequency component (see paragraph 0006 “ PRS that spans multiple component carriers” and figure 6 “transmitting PRS”) , such that a receiver of the wireless communication system receives a signal as a received signal in said frequency component (see figure 6, receiving PRS), wherein the received signal comprises signal portions originating from the transmitting of the transmit signal in said frequency component by the transmitter (see figure 6), wherein each of the two or more frequency components is a bandwidth limited signal comprising a center frequency (see paragraph 0102 “ the carrier bandwidth may be one of a number of predetermined bandwidths for carriers of a particular radio access technology” paragraph 0176), wherein the center frequency of each of the two or more frequency components is different from the center frequency of any other one of the two or more frequency components (see paragraph 0102 “ the carrier bandwidth may be one of a number of predetermined bandwidths for carriers of a particular radio access technology” paragraph 0176), wherein the transmit signal is a reference signal or a control signal or a data signal (see paragraph 0006 PRS and figure 6), wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit phase-relationship information (see figure 6, coherent information and paragraph 0181) or information derived from the phase-relationship information to the receiver or to another apparatus of the wireless communication system for supporting to determine, at the other apparatus, information on a distance and/or a distance change between the transmitter and the receiver and/or a position of the transmitter and/or a position of the receiver (see paragraph 0086 0090 figure 6, timing information), wherein the phase relationship information comprises information on a transmitter-specific phase relationship between the two or more frequency components (see paragraph 0090, 0181); or, if the phase-relationship information is not known, the phase relationship information comprises one or more default values to indicate a default phase relationship or comprises an indication that the phase-relationship information is not known; wherein, in each frequency component of two or more frequency components, the second apparatus is configured to transmit a transmit signal in said frequency component (see figure 6), and the first apparatus is configured to receive a signal as a received signal in said frequency component, wherein the received signal comprises signal portions originating from the transmitting of the transmit signal in said frequency component by the transmitter (see figure 6). Regarding claim 90, the claimed method inducing the features corresponds to subject matter mentioned above in the rejection of claim 1 is applicable hereto. Regarding claim 91, the claimed method inducing the features corresponds to subject matter mentioned above in the rejection of claim 48 is applicable hereto. Regarding claim 92, the claimed non-transitory computer readable medium inducing the features corresponds to subject matter mentioned above in the rejection of claim 1 is applicable hereto. Regarding claim 93, the claimed non-transitory computer readable medium inducing the features corresponds to subject matter mentioned above in the rejection of claim 48 is applicable hereto. Regarding claim 94, which inherits the limitations of claim 1, Akkarakaran et al further teach wherein the transmit signal and the received signal of at least one of the two or more frequency components is a sounding reference signal or is a downlink positioning reference signal or is a channel state information reference signal (see paragraph 0148 figure 6, transmitting PRS); or wherein the transmit signal of each of the two or more transmit signals is to be modulated by an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing modulator of the transmitter, wherein the received signal of each of the two or more received signals is to be demodulated by an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing demodulator (see paragraph 0103 OFDM); or wherein at least two of the two or more frequency components are at least two bandwidth parts of a wideband carrier; or wherein at least two frequency components of the two or more frequency components are assigned to at least two adjacent component carriers and each of the at least two adjacent component carriers comprises one or more of the at least two frequency components (see paragraph 0103, “multiple subcarriers”); or wherein at least one frequency component of the two or more frequency components is related to a not adjacent component carrier (see paragraph 0120 “operate using one or more frequency bands”); or wherein a gap between the frequency components is assigned to other component carrier; or wherein the two or more frequency components are transmitted fully synchronized in frequency and phase; or wherein the two or more frequency components are not synchronized; or wherein the two or more frequency components are partially synchronized. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JAISON JOSEPH whose telephone number is (571)272-6041. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8 - 4. 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, Sam K Ahn can be reached at 571 272 3044. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. JAISON . JOSEPH Primary Examiner Art Unit 2633 /JAISON JOSEPH/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2633
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Jun 28, 2024
Application Filed
Jan 08, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102, §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12603657
REDUCING NON-LINEARITY IN A DIGITAL-TO-TIME CONVERTER (DTC) DUE TO UNEQUAL SUCCESSIVE INPUT CODES SPECIFYING RESPECTIVE DELAYS
2y 5m to grant Granted Apr 14, 2026
Patent 12592814
MAINTAINING A VIRTUAL TIME OF DAY
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 31, 2026
Patent 12580624
DYNAMIC SPLIT COMPUTING FOR BEAMFORMING
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Patent 12580720
METHODS AND APPARATUS TO REDUCE RETIMER LATENCY AND JITTER
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Patent 12580617
SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR EFFICIENT TIME MULTIPLEXED DIGITAL BEAMFORMING
2y 5m to grant Granted Mar 17, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

AI Strategy Recommendation

Get an AI-powered prosecution strategy using examiner precedents, rejection analysis, and claim mapping.
Powered by AI — typically takes 5-10 seconds

Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
82%
Grant Probability
95%
With Interview (+12.5%)
2y 5m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 652 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

Sign in with your work email

Enter your email to receive a magic link. No password needed.

Personal email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) are not accepted.

Free tier: 3 strategy analyses per month