DETAILED ACTION
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The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
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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) 1-7, 10-15, 17 and 20 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Damnjanovic et al. (US 2024/0349144, “Damnjanovic”) in view of Lim et al. (US 2024/0406710, “Lim”).
Examiner’s note: in what follows, references are drawn to Damnjanovic unless otherwise mentioned.
Damnjanovic comprises the following features:
With respect to independent claims:
Regarding claim 1, a method of wireless communication of a user equipment (UE), comprising:
transmitting, to a base station, a received timing difference (RTD) capability of the UE ([0119 and Fig. 3] “based on a capability of the UE 115-b (e.g., indicated to the DU 165-b, the DU 165-c, or both).” Note that actual transmission of UE capability on RTD will be discussed in view of Lim.),
wherein the RTD capability indicates a RTD supported by the UE between a first cell and a timing reference cell ([0119 and Fig. 3] “the UE 115-b may perform the intra-frequency L1 measurement of the set of reference signals 315-a when the RTD between the reference signal transmissions from the cell 305-a and the set of reference signals 315-a transmitted via cell 305-b (e.g., on a same carrier) exceeds the threshold (e.g., is larger than the length of the CP of the corresponding SCS)”); and
performing data reception or measurement according to the RTD capability of the UE (See aforesaid [0119] for “the UE 115-b may perform the intra-frequency L1 measurement”).
It is noted that while disclosing RTD, Damnjanovic does not specifically teach about actual transmission of RTD capability. It, however, had been known in the art before the effective date of the instant application as shown by Lim as follows;
transmitting …. RTD capability ([Lim, 0011] “transmitting, to a base station, UE capability information indicating that the UE supports a receiving (Rx) timing difference”).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of instant application to modify Damnjanovic by using the features of Lim in order to enhance performance of mobile communication technologies such that “the UE may need to report an additional UE capability (optional UE capability) to the BS. The BS may configure a higher-layer parameter for supporting a multi-DCI-based multi-TRP and a higher-layer parameter for supporting multiple TAs in the UE” [Lim, 0591].
Regarding claim 11, it is an apparatus claim corresponding to the method claim 1, except the limitations, “a memory; and at least one processor coupled to the memory”, and is therefore rejected for the similar reasons set forth in the rejection of claim 1.
Regarding claim 12, a method of wireless communication of a base station, comprising: receiving, from a user equipment (UE), a received timing difference (RTD) capability of the UE ([0119 and Fig. 3] “based on a capability of the UE 115-b (e.g., indicated to the DU 165-b, the DU 165-c, or both).” Note that actual transmission of UE capability on RTD will be discussed in view of Lim.), wherein the RTD capability indicates a RTD supported by the UE between a first cell and a timing reference cell ([0119 and Fig. 3] “the UE 115-b may perform the intra-frequency L1 measurement of the set of reference signals 315-a when the RTD between the reference signal transmissions from the cell 305-a and the set of reference signals 315-a transmitted via cell 305-b (e.g., on a same carrier) exceeds the threshold (e.g., is larger than the length of the CP of the corresponding SCS)”); determining, according to the RTD capability of the UE, a configuration for the UE ([0060] “the source DU may select a set of candidate TCI states from the at least one TCI states based on the measurement report and may transmit, to the target DU, an indication of the set of candidate TCI states for an LTM cell switch of the UE from a source cell of the source DU to the target cell of the target DU.”); and transmitting, to the UE, an instruction of the configuration ([0060] “the source DU may transmit, to the UE, an LTM cell switch command instructing the UE to perform the LTM cell switch, where the LTM cell switch command indicates a first TCI state from the set of candidate TCI states to be used by the UE.”).
It is noted that while disclosing RTD, Damnjanovic does not specifically teach about actual transmission of RTD capability. It, however, had been known in the art before the effective date of the instant application as shown by Lim as follows;
RTD capability ([Lim, 0011] “UE capability information indicating that the UE supports a receiving (Rx) timing difference”).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of instant application to modify Damnjanovic by using the features of Lim in order to enhance performance of mobile communication technologies such that “the UE may need to report an additional UE capability (optional UE capability) to the BS. The BS may configure a higher-layer parameter for supporting a multi-DCI-based multi-TRP and a higher-layer parameter for supporting multiple TAs in the UE” [Lim, 0591].
With respect to dependent claims:
Regarding claim 2, the method of claim 1, further comprising:
receiving, from the base station, an instruction of a configuration ([Lim, 0596] “when the Rx timing difference between two TRPs is larger than the CP length, the BS may support the UE through a method of receiving a downlink signal, based on DL reference timing for each TRP and a method of controlling uplink transmission timing’, and [0119] “the UE 115-b may perform the intra-frequency L1 measurement of the set of reference signals 315-a when the RTD between the reference signal transmissions from the cell 305-a and the set of reference signals 315-a transmitted via cell 305-b (e.g., on a same carrier) exceeds the threshold (e.g., is larger than the length of the CP of the corresponding SCS) based on a capability of the UE 115-b (e.g., indicated to the DU 165-b, the DU 165-c, or both).” Note that the Du/gNB here acts as the base station that determines a configuration (whether to allow the UE to perform L1 intra-frequency measurements) based on the UE’s RTD capability, and the UE performs that configuration by executing (or refraining from) the L1 measurement.),
wherein the configuration is determined according to the RTD capability of the UE (See aforesaid [0119].); and
performing the configuration according to the instruction (See aforesaid [0119]),
wherein the RTD capability of the UE includes a parameter indicating the UE supporting advanced RTD capability or limited RTD capability ([Lim, 0594] “the UE may additionally support the separate additional UE capability according to the Rx timing difference unlike the above case. The “predetermined value” for determining a need of the support of the additional UE capability may be defined as a common value shared in advance between the BS and the UE.”).
Regarding claims 3 and 14, the method of claim 2 and the method of claim 13, respectively, wherein the parameter indicating the UE supporting the advanced RTD capability includes an indication of: RTD > cyclic prefix (CP) length ([Lim, 0595] “the Rx timing difference is larger than the CP length”), or RTD > 3 µs (This alternative is not examined.).
Regarding claims 4 and 15, the method of claim 2 and the method of claim 13, respectively, wherein the parameter indicating the UE supporting the limited RTD capability includes an indication of: RTD ≤ 3 µs (This alternative is not examined.), RTD < cyclic prefix (CP) length (See aforesaid [0119].), 260 ns < RTD < min(CP, 3 µs), or RTD ≤ 260 ns (These alternatives are not examined.).
Regarding claim 5, the method of claim 2, wherein the configuration is for configuring the UE to perform lower layer triggered mobility (LTM) with a corresponding measurement delay requirement (See aforesaid [0119]. The UE may only perform the L1 measurement with its associated timing requirements when the RTD exceeds the threshold or when it has a specific capability. This is the exact measurement delay framework.).
Regarding claims 6 and 17, the method of claim 5 and the method of claim 13, respectively, wherein the corresponding measurement delay requirement includes:
a shorter measurement delay requirement when the UE supports the advanced RTD capability, or when the UE supports the limited RTD capability (See aforesaid [0119]. Note that when the UE has the capability, the UE can perform the L1 measurement even when RTD exceeds the CP threshold. This means the UE is not subject to the same timing constraints can complete measurements faster, directly implying a shorter measurement delay requirement.); and
a longer measurement delay requirement when the UE supports the limited RTD capability (Note that when the UE lacks the capability (i.e., limited RTD capability – cannot handle RTD longer than CP length), the UE cannot perform the intra-frequency L1 measurement at all or can only do so under the more restrictive baseline conditions. This directly implies a longer or additional measurement delay requirement because the UE must wait for normal channel conditions – i.e., RTD within CP – before measurement can be performed).
Regarding claim 7, the method of claim 2, wherein the configuration is for configuring multiple transmit-receiving points (multi-TRP) with a corresponding measurement/scheduling restriction/gap requirement ([Lim, 0595] “when the Rx timing difference is smaller than the CP length, the UE may decode each PDSCH through one processing process (or processing module or processing capability) according to a characteristic of an OFDM signal. However, when the Rx timing difference is larger than the CP length, interference by difference PDSCHs may be larger than the CP length, and thus the UE may not decode all of the two PDSCHs through one processing process due to the interference. That is, in order to decode each PDSCH, a separate processing process (or parallel processing) may be required for each PDSCH.”).
Regarding claims 10 and 20, the method of claim 1 and the method of claim 12, respectively, wherein the RTD capability of the UE is a per-UE capability, a per-band capability for a band, a per-band combination (BC) capability for a plurality of bands (These alternatives are not examined.), or a per-band per-BC capability ([Lim, 0441] “The BS may transmit a UE capability enquiry message that makes a request for a capability report to the UE in the connected state. The UE capability enquiry message may include a request for each radio access technology (RAT) type. The request for each RAT type may include supported frequency band combination information supported by the UE.”).
Regarding claim 13, the method of claim 11, wherein the RTD capability of the UE includes a parameter indicating the UE supporting advanced RTD capability or limited RTD capability ([Lim, 0594] “the UE may additionally support the separate additional UE capability according to the Rx timing difference unlike the above case. The “predetermined value” for determining a need of the support of the additional UE capability may be defined as a common value shared in advance between the BS and the UE.”).
Claim(s) 9 and 19 rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Damnjanovic et al. (US 2024/0349144, “Damnjanovic”) in view of Lim et al. (US 2024/0406710, “Lim”) and further in view of Dimou et al. (US 2024/0121626, “Dimou”).
Examiner’s note: in what follows, references are drawn to Damnjanovic unless otherwise mentioned.
Regarding claims 9 and 19, it is noted that while disclosing RTD, Damnjanovic does not specifically teach about SSBless SCell. It, however, had been known in the art before the effective date of the instant application as shown by Dimou as follows;
the method of claim 2 and the method of claim 13, respectively, wherein the first cell is a Synchronization Signal Block (SSB)-less secondary cell (SCell) ([Dimou, 0031] “to save power in a wireless communication system is to forego a separate SSB in a secondary cell in carrier aggregation. Such a secondary cell may be referred to as an SSB-less SCell.”), the timing reference cell is a primary cell (PCell) ([Dimou, 0031] “in SSB-less carrier aggregation, a UE may synchronize to the SSB-less SCell based on the SSB on the primary cell (PCell).”), and the configuration is for configuring the SSB-less SCell when the UE supports the advanced RTD capability, or when the UE supports the limited RTD capability and the RTD capability of the UE is greater than a RTD capability of the base station ([Dimou, 0042] “one or more of the base stations 102 may include a carrier aggregation component 120 configured to activate a SCell for carrier aggregation with a PCell. The SCell may be an SSB-less cell. The carrier aggregation component 120 may include a capability receiving (Rx) component 122 configured to receive, from a user equipment (UE), an indication of a capability to synchronize with a secondary cell based on measurements of a primary cell co-located with the secondary cell at the base station. The carrier aggregation component 120 may include a PCell component 124 configured to transmit a synchronization signal block (SSB) or a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) from the primary cell.”).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of instant application to modify Damnjanovic by using the features of Dimou in order to effectively estimate a propagation delay and AoA such that “an indication of a capability to synchronize with a secondary cell based on measurements of the primary cell.” [Dimou, 0006].
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim(s) 8, 16 and 18 objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The claims contain the following underlined features which, when combined with other features of the claim, prior art of record failed to anticipate or render obvious before the effective filing date of the instant application was filed:
8. The method of claim 7, wherein the configuring multi-TRP with the corresponding measurement/scheduling restriction/gap requirement includes:
configuring multi-TRP without a measurement/scheduling restriction/gap when the UE supports the advanced RTD capability, or when the UE supports the limited RTD capability and the RTD capability of the UE is greater than a RTD capability of the base station; and
configuring multi-TRP with the measurement/scheduling restriction/gap when the UE supports the limited RTD capability and the RTD capability of the UE is not greater than a RTD capability of the base station.
16. The method of claim 13, comprising: determining the configuration according to a comparison of the RTD capability of the UE with a RTD capability of the base station when the parameter indicates the UE supporting limited RTD capability.
Regarding claim 18, the claim contains similar features as recited in claim 8, thus is objected for the same reason as stated above.
Conclusion
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/HARRY H KIM/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2411
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