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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 7-9 and 18-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhao et al. (US 20220110074 A1; hereinafter “ZHAO”) in view of Hafeez (US 20230276417 A1; hereinafter “HAFEEZ”).
Regarding claim 1, ZHAO teaches a method for determining power, applied to a first terminal device (ZHAO describing a "third terminal device" (which acts as a head terminal in a communication group) that determines the power adjustment value, para. 0104-109. Note: the claim's "first terminal device" maps to ZHAO's "third terminal device" / head terminal), wherein the method comprises:
receiving first reporting information from a second terminal device through a sidelink (ZHAO teaches the head terminal receiving "third indication information" directly or indirectly from the "second terminal device" (the receiving terminal), para. 0110-118), wherein the first reporting information comprises first interference information (ZHAO teaches that the indication information includes parameters like the Signal to Interference plus Noise Ratio (SINR) and Sidelink Received Signal Strength Indicator (SL-RSSI) which incorporate interference); and
determining a transmit power of the third terminal device based on the first reporting information (ZHAO teaches that the head terminal determines the power adjustment value (transmit power) of the sending terminal (mapped to the claim's "third terminal device") according to the indication information received, para. 0104-118).
ZHAO is silent to teaching that wherein the first interference information indicates adjacent-channel interference generated for information receiving by the second terminal device when at least one of a third terminal device or a fourth terminal device sends first sidelink information.
In the same field of endeavor, HAFEEZ a method wherein the first interference information indicates adjacent-channel interference generated for information receiving by the second terminal device when at least one of a third terminal device or a fourth terminal device sends first sidelink information (see HAFEEZ, fig. 12, 1220, determining adj channel interference value, para. 0099,121).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teaching of ZHAO with the teaching of HAFEEZ in order to control interference and increase spectrum use (HAFEEZ, para. 0005).
Regarding claim 2, the combination of ZHAO and HAFEEZ teaches the method according to claim 1, wherein the first interference information comprises an adjacent-channel interference power or an adjacent-channel interference coefficient generated for the information receiving by the second terminal device when at least one of the third terminal device or the fourth terminal device sends the first sidelink information, wherein the adjacent-channel interference coefficient is determined based on a transmit power of the first sidelink information and the adjacent-channel interference power (HAFEEZ, para. 0087-91)
Regarding claim 7, the combination of ZHAO and HAFEEZ teaches the method according to claim 1, wherein the first reporting information further comprises first path loss information, and the first path loss information indicates a path loss between the third terminal device and the second terminal device, wherein the transmit power of the third terminal device is used to send information to the second terminal device (ZHAO teaching that the system determines "the path loss of the sidelink according to its transmission power and the SL-RSRP feedback from the receiving terminal, and performs power control based on the path loss". It further explicitly states that configuring transmission power relies on the "sidelink path loss" reported).
Regarding claim 8, ZHAO teaches a method for determining power, applied to a second terminal device, wherein the method comprises:
determining first interference information (ZHAO teaches the head terminal receiving "third indication information" directly or indirectly from the "second terminal device" (the receiving terminal), para. 0110-118, ZHAO teaches that the indication information includes parameters like the Signal to Interference plus Noise Ratio (SINR) and Sidelink Received Signal Strength Indicator (SL-RSSI) which incorporate interference); and
sending first reporting information through a sidelink, wherein the first reporting information comprises the first interference information, and the first reporting information is used to determine a transmit power of one or more sending devices (ZHAO teaches that the head terminal determines the power adjustment value (transmit power) of the sending terminal (mapped to the claim's "third terminal device") according to the indication information received, para. 0104-118).
ZHAO is silent to teaching that wherein the first interference information indicates adjacent-channel interference generated for information receiving by the second terminal device when at least one of a third terminal device or a fourth terminal device sends first sidelink information.
In the same field of endeavor, HAFEEZ a method wherein the first interference information indicates adjacent-channel interference generated for information receiving by the second terminal device when at least one of a third terminal device or a fourth terminal device sends first sidelink information (see HAFEEZ, fig. 12, 1220, determining adj channel interference value, para. 0099,121).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teaching of ZHAO with the teaching of HAFEEZ in order to control interference and increase spectrum use (HAFEEZ, para. 0005).
Regarding claims 9 and 18, the dependent claims are interpreted and rejected for the same reasons as set forth above in claims 2 and 7, respectively.
Regarding claim 20, the combination of ZHAO and HAFEEZ teaches a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, wherein the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium is configured to store a computer program; and when the computer program is run on a computer, the computer is enabled to perform the method according to claim 1 (ZHAO, para. 0224).
Regarding claim 19, ZHAO teaches a communication device, comprising:
one or more processors; and one or more memories; wherein the one or more memories store programming instructions for execution by the one or more processors to:
receive first reporting information from a second terminal device through a sidelink (ZHAO teaches the head terminal receiving "third indication information" directly or indirectly from the "second terminal device" (the receiving terminal), para. 0110-118), wherein the first reporting information comprises first interference information (ZHAO teaches that the indication information includes parameters like the Signal to Interference plus Noise Ratio (SINR) and Sidelink Received Signal Strength Indicator (SL-RSSI) which incorporate interference); and
determine a transmit power of the third terminal device based on the first reporting information (ZHAO teaches that the head terminal determines the power adjustment value (transmit power) of the sending terminal (mapped to the claim's "third terminal device") according to the indication information received, para. 0104-118).
ZHAO is silent to teaching that wherein the first interference information indicates adjacent-channel interference generated for information receiving by the second terminal device when at least one of a third terminal device or a fourth terminal device sends first sidelink information.
In the same field of endeavor, HAFEEZ an apparatus wherein the first interference information indicates adjacent-channel interference generated for information receiving by the second terminal device when at least one of a third terminal device or a fourth terminal device sends first sidelink information (see HAFEEZ, fig. 12, 1220, determining adj channel interference value, para. 0099,121).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teaching of ZHAO with the teaching of HAFEEZ in order to control interference and increase spectrum use (HAFEEZ, para. 0005).
Claim(s) 3, 4, and 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over ZHAO and HAFEEZ as applied to claims 1 and 8 above, and further in view of Ryu et al. (US 20220225335 A1; hereinafter “RYU”).
Regarding claim 3, the combination of ZHAO and HAFEEZ teaches the method according to claim 1.
The combination of ZHAO and HAFEEZ is silent to teaching that wherein the first sidelink information comprises transmit power information of the first sidelink information.
In the same field of endeavor, RYU teaches a method wherein the first sidelink information comprises transmit power information of the first sidelink information (RYU teaches sidelink communication utilizing a physical sidelink feedback channel (PSFCH) that communicates transmit power control (TPC) information alongside a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) carrying sidelink control information (SCI), para. 0050-55).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teaching of ZHAO and HAFEEZ with the teaching of RYU in order to improve spectrum efficiency with various protocols (RYU, para. 00034).
Regarding claim 4, the combination of ZHAO and HAFEEZ teaches the method according to claim 1.
The combination of ZHAO and HAFEEZ is silent to teaching that comprising determining, based on first resource reservation information, that the third terminal device and the fourth terminal device send information simultaneously, wherein the first resource reservation information comprises resource reservation information of the third terminal device and resource reservation information of the fourth terminal device.
In the same field of endeavor, RYU teaches a method comprising determining, based on first resource reservation information, that the third terminal device and the fourth terminal device send information simultaneously, wherein the first resource reservation information comprises resource reservation information of the third terminal device and resource reservation information of the fourth terminal device (RYU teaches receiving a transmission or reception announcement indicating a "future resource reservation" in order to select resources for future communications and minimize simultaneous interference, para. 0077-81).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teaching of ZHAO and HAFEEZ with the teaching of RYU in order to improve spectrum efficiency with various protocols (RYU, para. 00034).
Regarding claim 12, the dependent claim is interpreted and rejected for the same reasons as set forth above in claim 3.
Claim(s) 5, 6, 10, 11, 13-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over ZHAO and HAFEEZ as applied to claims 1, 8 and 9 above, and further in view of Gutman et al. (US 20230141998 A1; hereinafter “GUTMAN”)
Regarding claim 5, the combination of ZHAO and HAFEEZ teaches the method according to claim 1.
The combination of ZHAO and HAFEEZ is silent to teaching that wherein the first reporting information further comprises second interference information, and the second interference information indicates self- interference generated for the second terminal device when the second terminal device sends second sidelink information.
In the same field of endeavor, GUTMAN teaches a method wherein the first reporting information further comprises second interference information, and the second interference information indicates self- interference generated for the second terminal device when the second terminal device sends second sidelink information (GUTMAN teaches this limitation by describing a second wireless device (second terminal device) that measures self-interference at the second device and transmits an interference report (first reporting information comprising second interference information) that includes a measure of this self-interference to a first wireless device. GUTMAN specifies that this self-interference is generated for the second device when it transmits a signal over a transmission resource and receives at least a portion of the energy of that transmitted signal over a measurement resource. Furthermore, Gutman explicitly contemplates these wireless devices communicating directly over device-to-device (D2D) and sidelink communication channels, reading on the signal transmission being "sidelink information", para. 0086-90,112-114).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teaching of ZHAO and HAFEEZ with the teaching of GUTMAN in order to reduce self-interference and improve communication quality (GUTMAN, para. 0003).
Regarding claim 6, the combination of ZHAO, HAFEEZ and GUTMAN teaches the method according to claim 5, wherein the second interference information comprises a self-interference power or a self-interference coefficient generated for the information receiving by the second terminal device when the second terminal device sends the second sidelink information, wherein the self-interference coefficient is determined based on a transmit power of the second sidelink information and the self-interference power (GUTMAN teaches that the second wireless device measures self-interference by receiving "at least a portion of the energy of the signal" over a measurement resource while concurrently transmitting the signal over a transmission resource. GUTMAN further explicitly describes calculating a "post-cancelation self-interference power" to evaluate the self-interference at the receiving device. Thus, under BRI, the transmitted interference report indicating the measured value of the self-interference comprises a "self-interference power" generated for the information receiving by the second terminal device when it sends its transmission, para. 0109-114).
Regarding claim 10, the combination of ZHAO and HAFEEZ teaches the method according to claim 9.
The combination of ZHAO and HAFEEZ is silent to teaching that wherein the method further comprises: measuring the first sidelink information from a first subband on a first resource to obtain the adjacent-channel interference power, wherein the first subband is a subband on which at least one of the third terminal device or the fourth terminal device sends the first sidelink information.
In the same field of endeavor, GUTMAN teaches a method wherein the method further comprises: measuring the first sidelink information from a first subband on a first resource to obtain the adjacent-channel interference power, wherein the first subband is a subband on which at least one of the third terminal device or the fourth terminal device sends the first sidelink information (GUTMAN teaches that this interference can be caused by "out-of-band emissions" from transmissions over a second carrier that "occupy adjacent frequency resources" (i.e., adjacent-channel interference), para. 0112-114. GUTMAN contemplates device-to-device (D2D) sidelink communications among multiple user equipments (UEs) and teaches the general concept of measuring interference leaking from adjacent frequency resources).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the teaching of ZHAO and HAFEEZ with the teaching of GUTMAN in order to reduce self-interference and improve communication quality (GUTMAN, para. 0003).
Regarding claim 11, the combination of ZHAO, HAFEEZ and GUTMAN teaches the method according to claim 10, wherein the first subband comprises at least one of the following: an adjacent subband of an operating subband of the second terminal device, or a subband that is not used to perform information transmission with an operating subband of the second terminal device (GUTMAN describes carriers that are "adjacent carriers in a spectrum band, and may thus occupy adjacent frequency resources (e.g., with a guardband), para. 0112-114).
Regarding claims 13-16, the dependent claims are interpreted and rejected for the same reasons as set forth above in claims 5, 6, 10 and 11, respectively.
Regarding claim 17, the combination of ZHAO, HAFEEZ and GUTMAN teaches the method according to claim 11, wherein the method further comprises: receiving configuration information, wherein the configuration information is used to configure the first resource, and the first resource is used to measure interference from another subband to the operating subband of the second terminal device (GUTMAN describes that a first wireless device "may configure the second wireless device" to measure interference during specific resources. Specifically, GUTMAN states that a device may receive configuration information to "measure CLI (e.g., received signal strength indicator (RSSI) CLI) over time-frequency resources" to capture the interference (such as out-of-band emissions) generated concurrently against its receiving resources, para. 0112-114).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Huang (US 20220400492), Wu (US 20230180188) teach sidelink power control systems.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WEN WU HUANG whose telephone number is (571)272-7852. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 10-6.
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/WEN W HUANG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2648
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