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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) were submitted on 29 July 2024 and 6 March 2025. The submissions are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
The parent application is now a published patent. Therefore, it is recommended to change “17/431,440, filed August” in line 5 of page 1 to “17/431,440, now U.S. Patent No. 12,052,747, filed August”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP §§ 706.02(l)(1) - 706.02(l)(3) for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/process/file/efs/guidance/eTD-info-I.jsp.
Claims 4-23 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-20 of U.S. Patent No. 12,052,747. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because claims 4-23 of the instant application merely broadens the scope of claims 1-20 of US 12,052,747.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 4 and 7-23 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shaheen et al. US 2018/0324768 A1 (hereinafter referred to as “Shaheen”) in view of 3GPP R2-167575 “LCP with Multiple Numerologies” (hereinafter referred to as “3GPP”). Note: Shaheen and 3GPP were cited by the applicant in the IDSs received 29 July 2024 and 6 March 2025 respectively.
As to claim 4, Shaheen teaches a communications device for use in a wireless communications network (¶¶54, 306, and 387; figures 1, 7, and 22), the communications device comprising:
circuitry (¶¶54, 306, and 387; figures 1, 7, and 22) configured to receive an allocation message comprising an indication of first communications resources for the transmission of data (¶¶132, 306, and 368-370; figure 7: receive UL grant indicating numerology, primary logical channel group and secondary logical channel group);
select, in response to receiving the allocation message, a logical channel prioritization (LCP) scheme for selecting data for transmission using the first communications resources (¶¶306-321; figure 7: after receiving UL grant, select logical channel prioritization procedure for selecting data to send on particular logical channels); and
select data from the plurality of logical channels to be transmitted using the first communications resources in accordance with the selected logical channel prioritization scheme (¶310; figure 7: send data on each LCH using respective numerologies according to the selecting logical channel prioritization procedure).
Although Shaheen teaches “A communications device…first communications resources; and select data…channel prioritization scheme,” Shaheen does not explicitly disclose “the LCP scheme…of logical channels”.
However, 3GPP teaches the LCP scheme being selected from a plurality of LCP schemes, each of the plurality of LCP schemes determining a different allocation of available capacity provided by the first communications resources for transmitting data from a plurality of logical channels (§2.2; figure 2: select LCP procedure from LCP procedures varying how many resources to allocated to higher priority LCHs before moving to lower priority ones based at least on numerology as shown in figures 2a and 2b).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to improve upon the apparatus described in Shaheen by including “the LCP scheme…of logical channels” as taught by 3GPP because it provides Shaheen’s apparatus with the enhanced capability of appropriate and efficient channel allocation based on priority, numerology, and data type (3GPP, §2.2; figure 2).
As to claim 7, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches the communications device of claim 4. Shaheen further teaches wherein according to the selected LCP, each of two or more of the plurality of logical channels is associated with a priority level, and data associated with a logical channel having a first priority level is selected for transmission in preference to data associated with a logical channel having a second priority level lower than the first priority level, and
the selected LCP scheme is selected from the plurality of LCP schemes based on the allocation message (¶¶306-321 and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 8, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 4. Shaheen further teaches wherein according to the selected LCP scheme, data associated with one or more logical channels is excluded from selection; and
selecting the LCP scheme for selecting the data for transmission using the first communications resources comprises determining the one or more logical channels excluded from selection (¶¶306-321 and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 9, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 4. Shaheen further teaches wherein
selecting the LCP scheme for selecting the data for transmission using the first communications resources comprises determining that an error detection portion of the allocation message was generated based on a predetermined temporary identifier (¶¶129, 246, 306-321, and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 10, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 4. Shaheen further teaches wherein
selecting the LCP scheme for selecting the data for transmission using the first communications resources comprises determining that the allocation message conforms to a predetermined format (¶¶306-321 and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 11, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 10. Shaheen further teaches wherein
the wireless communications network provides a wireless access interface comprising communications resources divided in time into timeslots and further divided into orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) symbol periods, and
in accordance with the predetermined format, the first communications resources begin on a first OFDM symbol period of a timeslot (¶¶60, 130, 261-267, 271, 306-321 and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 12, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 4. Shaheen further teaches wherein
selecting the LCP scheme for selecting the data for transmission using the first communications resources comprises determining that the allocation message was transmitted using predetermined communications resources associated with the selected LCP scheme (¶¶276-278, 288, 306-321, and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 13, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 12. Shaheen further teaches wherein
the predetermined communications resources comprise communications resources of a physical downlink control channel (¶¶276-278, 288, 306-321, and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 14, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 13. Shaheen further teaches wherein
selecting the LCP scheme for selecting the data for transmission using the first communications resources comprises determining that the allocation message was transmitted using a predetermined number and location of frequency resources (¶¶276-278, 288, 306-321, and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 15, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 4. Shaheen further teaches wherein
the allocation message comprises an indication of modulation and coding scheme parameters for the transmission of the data using the first communications resources, and
selecting the LCP scheme for selecting the data for transmission using the first communications resources comprises determining that the modulation and coding scheme parameters indicated by the allocation message satisfy predetermined conditions associated with the selected LCP scheme (¶¶166, 182, 201, 218, 232, 306-321, and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 16, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 15. Shaheen further teaches wherein
the circuitry is configured to determine an average modulation and coding scheme based on modulation and coding scheme parameters used for a plurality of previous transmissions of data by the communications device, wherein
the modulation and coding scheme parameters indicated by the allocation message satisfy predetermined conditions associated with the selected LCP scheme if they provide a reliability which is greater than a reliability provided by the determined average modulation and coding scheme (¶¶166, 182, 201, 218, 232, 236, 306-321, and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 17, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 4. Shaheen further teaches wherein
the allocation message comprises an indication of power control parameters for the transmission of the data using the first communications resources, and
selecting the LCP scheme for selecting the data for transmission using the first communications resources comprises determining that the power control parameters for the transmission of the data using the first communications resources are associated with one or more logical channels of the plurality of logical channels (¶¶166, 186, 205, 223, 232, 237, 306-321, and and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 18, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 4. Shaheen further teaches wherein
the allocation message comprises an indication of a number of repetitions to be used for the transmission of the data using the first communications resources, and
selecting the logical LCP scheme for selecting the data for transmission using the first communications resources comprises determining that the number of repetitions to be used for the transmission of the data using the first communications resources is associated with one or more logical channels of the plurality of logical channels (¶¶128, 130-131, 219, 306-321 and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 19, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 4. Shaheen further teaches wherein
each of one or more of the plurality of logical channels is associated with one of one or more scheduling request groups, and
each scheduling request group of the one or more scheduling request groups is associated with predetermined communications resources for transmitting, by the communications device, a scheduling request indicating that the communications device has available data associated with one or more of the logical channels associated with the scheduling request group (¶¶306-321 and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 20, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 19. Shaheen further teaches wherein
selecting the LCP scheme for selecting the data for transmission using the first communications resources comprises determining that the allocation message is associated with a first scheduling request group (¶¶306-321 and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 21, Shaheen in view of 3GPP teaches communications device of claim 4. Shaheen further teaches wherein
the allocation message comprises an indication of a first group of one or more of the plurality of logical channels for the transmission of data, and
the allocation message is received in response to a second scheduling request message requesting the first communications resources for transmitting the data from the first group of the one or more logical channels which was transmitted after a first scheduling request message requesting second communications resources for transmitting data from a second group of the one or more of the plurality of logical channels (¶¶306-321 and 368-370; figure 7).
As to claim 22, claim 22 is rejected the same way as claim 4.
As to claim 23, claim 23 is rejected the same way as claim 4.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JUSTIN T VAN ROIE whose telephone number is (571)270-0308. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm.
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/JUSTIN T VAN ROIE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2469
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