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) submitted on 8/15/2024 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
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 § 2146 et seq. 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 filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The actual 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/apply/applying-online/eterminal-disclaimer.
Claims 1-20 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent No. 12069539 B2 (hereinafter Patent1). Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other.
Regarding claim 1, Patent1 teaches A method, performed by a wireless communications device,
for uplink-based positioning, comprising (Patent1, claim 1, A method, performed by a wireless communications device, for uplink-based positioning, comprising:):
receiving configuration information for uplink-based positioning, wherein the configuration information enables coordination between the wireless communications device and a set of participating radio access network (RAN) nodes (Patent1, claim 1, receiving configuration information for uplink-based positioning from a positioning computation node, wherein the configuration information enables coordination between transmit beams at the wireless communications device and respective receive beams at a set of participating radio access network (RAN) nodes; and ); and
transmitting an uplink reference signal to the set of participating RAN nodes in accordance with the configuration information (Patent1, claim 1, transmitting an uplink reference signal to the set of participating RAN nodes in accordance with the configuration information.).
Regarding claim 2, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 1, further comprising (Patent1, claim
2, The method of claim 1, further comprising:):
receiving a request for positioning from the positioning computation node (Patent1, claim 2,
receiving a request for positioning from the positioning computation node;);
measuring downlink reference signals received from a plurality of RAN nodes (Patent1, claim 2,
measuring downlink reference signals received from a plurality of RAN nodes; and); and
transmitting a channel quality measurement report, associated with the downlink reference
signals received, to the positioning computation node (Patent1, claim 2, transmitting a channel quality measurement report, associated with the downlink reference signals received, to the positioning computation node.).
Regarding claim 3, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 2, wherein the request for positioning
further indicates a desired accuracy (Patent1, claim 3, The method of claim 2, wherein the request for positioning further indicates a desired accuracy.).
Regarding claim 4, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 2, wherein transmitting the uplink
reference signal occurs within a predetermined time period from the measuring of the downlink reference signals or the transmitting of the channel quality measurement report (Patent1, claim 4, The method of claim 2, wherein transmitting the uplink reference signal occurs within a predetermined time period from the measuring of the downlink reference signals or the transmitting of the channel quality measurement report.).
Regarding claim 5, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 2, further comprising selecting a set of
RAN nodes from the plurality of RAN nodes for inclusion in the channel quality measurement report (Patent1, claim 5, The method of claim 2, further comprising selecting a set of RAN nodes from the plurality of RAN nodes for inclusion in the channel quality measurement report,),
wherein the selecting of the set of RAN nodes is based on the desired accuracy and/or respective measurements associated with the plurality of RAN nodes (Patent1, claim 5, wherein the selecting of the set of RAN nodes is based on the desired accuracy and/or respective measurements associated with the plurality of RAN nodes.).
Regarding claim 6, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 2, wherein the channel quality
measurement report includes a measurement value with associated beam information for downlink reference signals received (Patent1, claim 6, The method of claim 2, wherein the channel quality measurement report includes a measurement value with associated beam information for downlink reference signals received,),
wherein the beam information includes transmit beam information associated with the downlink reference signals included in the channel quality measurement report and/or receive beam information of the wireless communications device (Patent1, claim 6, wherein the beam information includes transmit beam information associated with the downlink reference signals included in the channel quality measurement report and/or receive beam information of the wireless communications device.).
Regarding claim 7, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving
resource allocation information from a serving RAN node for transmitting the uplink reference signal to the set of participating RAN nodes (Patent1, claim 7, The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving resource allocation information from a serving RAN node for transmitting the uplink reference signal to the set of participating RAN nodes.).
Regarding claim 8, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 1, wherein the configuration
information indicates a beam pattern for transmitting uplink reference signals to the set of participating RAN nodes (Patent1, claim 8, The method of claim 1, wherein the configuration information indicates a beam pattern for transmitting uplink reference signals to the set of participating RAN nodes, and), and
the method further comprising sending a transmit beam configuration of the wireless communications device to the positioning computation node (Patent1, claim 8, the method further comprising sending a transmit beam configuration of the wireless communications device to the positioning computation node.).
Regarding claim 9, Patent1 teaches A method for uplink-based positioning performed by a radio
access network (RAN) node, comprising (Patent1, claim 9, A method for uplink-based positioning performed by a radio access network (RAN) node, comprising:):
receiving configuration information for uplink-based positioning, wherein the configuration information enables coordination between a wireless communications device and the RAN node (Patent1, claim 9, receiving configuration information for uplink-based positioning from a positioning computation node, wherein the configuration information enables coordination between a transmit beam of an uplink reference signal from a wireless communications device and a receive beam at the RAN node;);
configuring a receive beam at the RAN node to receive the uplink reference signal from the wireless communications device in accordance with the configuration information (Patent1, claim 9, configuring the receive beam at the RAN node to receive the uplink reference signal from the wireless communications device in accordance with the configuration information;);
measuring the uplink reference signal received (Patent1, claim 9, measuring the uplink reference signal received; and); and
sending a positioning measurement report for the uplink reference signal received to the positioning computation node (Patent1, claim 9, sending a positioning measurement report for the uplink reference signal received to the positioning computation node.).
Regarding claim 10, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 9, wherein the configuration
information indicates at least beam information for receiving the uplink reference signal (Patent1, claim 10, The method of claim 9, wherein the configuration information indicates at least beam information for receiving the uplink reference signal.).
Regarding claim 11, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 9, wherein the positioning
measurement report includes a timing measurement, a power measurement, and/or beam information for the uplink reference signal received (Patent1, claim 11, The method of claim 9, wherein the positioning measurement report includes a timing measurement, a power measurement, and/or beam information for the uplink reference signal received.).
Regarding claim 12, Patent1 teaches The method claim 9, further comprising allocating uplink
resources to the wireless communications device based on the configuration information (Patent1, claim 12, The method claim 9, further comprising allocating uplink resources to the wireless communications device based on the configuration information,),
wherein the configuration information includes timing information and resources are allocated to the wireless communications device so that uplink reference signal transmissions occur in accordance with the timing information (Patent1, claim 12, wherein the configuration information includes timing information and resources are allocated to the wireless communications device so that uplink reference signal transmissions occur in accordance with the timing information.).
Regarding claim 13, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 9, wherein sending the positioning
measurement report further comprising collecting measurement reports from one or more neighboring RAN nodes and sending an aggregate measurement report to the positioning computation node (Patent1, claim 13, The method of claim 9, wherein sending the positioning measurement report further comprising collecting measurement reports from one or more neighboring RAN nodes and sending an aggregate measurement report to the positioning computation node.).
Regarding claim 14, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 9, further comprising sending a
receive beam configuration of the RAN node to the positioning computation node (Patent1, claim 14, The method of claim 9, further comprising sending a receive beam configuration of the RAN node to the positioning computation node.).
Regarding claim 15, Patent1 teaches A method for uplink-based positioning performed by a
positioning computation node, comprising (Patent1, claim 15, A method for uplink-based positioning performed by a positioning computation node, comprising:):
receiving a channel quality measurement report from a wireless communications device that provides measurements of downlink reference signals from a set of network nodes (Patent1, claim 15, receiving a channel quality measurement report from a wireless communications device that provides measurements of downlink reference signals from a set of network nodes;);
determining a configuration for uplink-based positioning, based on the channel quality measurement report from the wireless communications device, wherein the configuration enables coordination between the wireless communications device and one or more network nodes selected from the set of network nodes (Patent1, claim 15, determining a configuration for uplink-based positioning, based on the channel quality measurement report from the wireless communications device, wherein the configuration enables coordination between transmit beams of uplink reference signals from the wireless communications device and respective receive beams by one or more network nodes selected from the set of network nodes;);
sending first configuration information to the one or more network nodes selected and second configuration information to the wireless communications device (Patent1, claim 15, sending first configuration information to the one or more network nodes selected and second configuration information to the wireless communications device;);
receiving respective positioning measurement reports, associated with uplink reference signal transmissions by the wireless communications device, from the one or more network nodes (Patent1, claim 15, receiving respective positioning measurement reports, associated with uplink reference signal transmissions by the wireless communications device, from the one or more network nodes; and); and
estimating a position of the wireless communications device based on the positioning measurement reports (Patent1, claim 15, estimating a position of the wireless communications device based on the positioning measurement reports.).
Regarding claim 16, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 15, wherein the configuration further
includes a threshold time within which transmission of the uplink reference signals occurs (Patent1, claim 16, The method of claim 15, wherein the configuration further includes a threshold time within which transmission of the uplink reference signals occurs,),
the threshold time is defined based on one of a time when the channel quality measurement report is received or a time at which channel quality measurements by the wireless communications device occurred (Patent1, claim 16, the threshold time is defined based on one of a time when the channel quality measurement report is received or a time at which channel quality measurements by the wireless communications device occurred.).
Regarding claim 17, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 15, further comprising (Patent1,
claim 17, The method of claim 15, further comprising:):
receiving respective beam configurations from the wireless communications device and the set
of network nodes (Patent1, claim 17, receiving respective beam configurations from the wireless communications device and the set of network nodes; and); and
sending a positioning request to a serving network node of the wireless communications device, wherein the positioning request indicates a desired accuracy (Patent1, claim 17, sending a positioning request to a serving network node of the wireless communications device, wherein the positioning request indicates a desired accuracy.).
Regarding claim 18, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 15, wherein determining the
configuration information further comprises selecting the one or more network nodes participating in the uplink-based positioning based on the channel quality measurement report from the wireless communications device (Patent1, claim 18, The method of claim 15, wherein determining the configuration information further comprises selecting the one or more network nodes participating in the uplink-based positioning based on the channel quality measurement report from the wireless communications device.).
Regarding claim 19, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 15, wherein the second configuration
information indicates uplink timing information and/or transmit beam information for one or more uplink reference signal transmissions from the wireless communications device (Patent1, claim 19, The method of claim 15, wherein the second configuration information indicates uplink timing information and/or transmit beam information for one or more uplink reference signal transmissions from the wireless communications device.).
Regarding claim 20, Patent1 teaches The method of claim 15, wherein the first configuration
information indicates respective timing information and receive beam information for the one or more network nodes participating in the uplink-based positioning (Patent1, claim 20, The method of claim 15, wherein the first configuration information indicates respective timing information and receive beam information for the one or more network nodes participating in the uplink-based positioning.).
Claim Objections
Claims 2, 8 and 9 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In claim 2, line 2, “the positioning computation node” should read “a positioning computation node”.
In claim 8, line 4, “the positioning computation node” should read “a positioning computation node”.
In claim 9, line 11, “the positioning computation node” should read “a positioning computation node”.
Appropriate correction is required.
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)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 7, 9-12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(2) as being anticipated by US 20210337496 A1 (hereinafter Da).
Regarding claim 1, Da discloses A method, performed by a wireless communications device, for
uplink-based positioning, comprising (Da [0007] a locating method for an uplink time difference of arrival is provided. [0043] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of determining the position of a user equipment using the beam information. Target user equipment in Fig. 1):
receiving configuration information for uplink-based positioning, wherein the configuration information enables coordination between the wireless communications device and a set of participating radio access network (RAN) nodes (Da [0041] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of using the beam direction of the DL-RS of a user equipment to determine the LMU participating in detecting the SRS transmitted by the user equipment according to an embodiment of the application;
[0059] S101: a locating server transmits a UTDOA information request (UTDOA INFORMATION REQUEST) to the serving base station of the target user equipment.
[0061] the UTDOA information request may carry the receiving beam information used by the LMU for detecting the SRS.
[0062] the receiving beam information may include one or more of the receiving beam direction of the SRS, the receiving beam width of the SRS, and the relationship between the receiving beam of the SRS and the receiving time of the SRS.
[0064] the serving base station receives the UTDOA information request, configures the resources of the location reference signal (such as SRS) for the target user equipment, and transmits the configuration information of the location reference signal (such as SRS) to the target user equipment through Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.
[0065] when the UTDOA information request received by the serving base station carries the receiving beam information used by the LMU for detecting the SRS, the serving base station may configure the SRS resources for the target user equipment based on the receiving beam information of the SRS.
[0066] the serving base station may configure the transmitting beam direction of the SRS of the target user equipment based on the receiving beam direction of the SRS, so that the transmitting beam direction of the SRS matches with the receiving beam direction, thereby improving the receiving performance of the SRS and thus improving the locating accuracy.
[0067] if the serving base station determines that the LMU receives the SRS in the beam scanning mode according to the receiving beam information used by the LMU for detecting the SRS carried in the UTDOA information request, the serving base station can configure the transmitting time and the beam direction of the SRS in reference with the beam information used by the LMU for receiving the SRS when configuring the SRS for the target user equipment, so that the time and beam direction of the target user equipment for transmitting the SRS match with the time and beam direction of the LMU for receiving the SRS.
Note: Both the serving base station and LMUs are RAN nodes.);
transmitting an uplink reference signal to the set of participating RAN nodes in accordance with the configuration information (Da [0068] After receiving the RRC signaling, the target user equipment can transmit the SRS periodically based on the SRS configuration. When the target user equipment is configured to transmit the SRS in the beam scanning mode, the beam direction of the target user equipment to transmit the SRS is related to the time to transmit the SRS.
[0043] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of determining the position of a user equipment using the beam information according to an embodiment of the application.
[0097] As shown in FIG. 4, the LMU1, LMU2, and LMU3 respectively detect the SRS beam x, beam y and beam z from the UE. The UE is located in the overlapping area of the SRS beam x, beam y and beam z. The locating server can combine the beam direction and beam intensity of the SRS detected by the LMU with the UL RTOA measurement value to calculate the position of the UE in the locating algorithm, thereby improving the locating accuracy and reliability of the Observed Time Difference of Arrival (OTDOA) locating method.).
Regarding claim 9, Da discloses A method for uplink-based positioning performed by a radio access network (RAN) node, comprising (Da [0007] a locating method for an uplink time difference of arrival is provided. [0043] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of determining the position of a user equipment using the beam information. Serving base station/Location Measurement Unit (LMU) in Fig. 1):
receiving configuration information for uplink-based positioning, wherein the configuration information enables coordination between a wireless communications device and the RAN node (
[0080] S105: the locating server receives the UTDOA information response, and transmits a measurement request (MEASUREMENT REQUEST) to the LMU.
[0082] The measurement request carries the SRS configuration information specified by the protocol, and may further carry the transmitting beam information of the SRS and the assistance locating information. The assistance locating information may include the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment, or include the relative information between the transmitting beam of the SRS and the receiving beam used by the LMU determined according to the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment.
[0018] the location reference signal is an SRS.);
configuring a receive beam at the RAN node to receive the uplink reference signal from the wireless communications device in accordance with the configuration information (Da [0091] the LMU may determine the receiving beam information of the LMU for the SRS according to the transmitting beam information of the SRS carried in the measurement request, so as to receive the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment.);
measuring the uplink reference signal received (Da [0088] S106: the LMU measures the location reference signal (such as SRS) transmitted by the target user equipment.); and
sending a positioning measurement report for the uplink reference signal received to the positioning computation node (Da [0092] S107: the LMU transmits a measurement response (MEASUREMENT RESPONSE) to the locating server, where the measurement response carries the locating measurement information of the target user equipment and the measured beam information of the location reference signal (such as SRS).).
Regarding claim 7, Da teaches The method of claim 1.
Da teaches further comprising receiving resource allocation information from a serving RAN
node for transmitting the uplink reference signal to the set of participating RAN nodes (Da [0064] the serving base station receives the UTDOA information request, configures the resources of the location reference signal (such as SRS) for the target user equipment, and transmits the configuration information of the location reference signal (such as SRS) to the target user equipment through Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.
[0065] when the UTDOA information request received by the serving base station carries the receiving beam information used by the LMU for detecting the SRS, the serving base station may configure the SRS resources for the target user equipment based on the receiving beam information of the SRS.).
Regarding claim 10, Da teaches The method of claim 9.
Da teaches wherein the configuration information indicates at least beam information for
receiving the uplink reference signal (Da [0082] The measurement request carries the SRS configuration information specified by the protocol, and may further carry the transmitting beam information of the SRS and the assistance locating information. The assistance locating information may include the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment, or include the relative information between the transmitting beam of the SRS and the receiving beam used by the LMU determined according to the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment.).
Regarding claim 11, Da teaches The method of claim 9.
Da teaches wherein the positioning measurement report includes a timing measurement, a
power measurement, and/or beam information for the uplink reference signal received (Da [0092] S107: the LMU transmits a measurement response (MEASUREMENT RESPONSE) to the locating server, where the measurement response carries the locating measurement information of the target user equipment and the measured beam information of the location reference signal (such as SRS).
[0093] The measurement response may be mainly used to report the measured uplink UL RTOA (UL Relative Time Of Arrival) measurement value to the locating server, so that the locating server can locate the target user equipment according to the UL RTOA measurement value transmitted by the LMU.).
Regarding claim 12, Da teaches The method claim 9.
Da teaches further comprising allocating uplink resources to the wireless communications
device based on the configuration information (Da [0065] the serving base station may configure the SRS resources for the target user equipment based on the receiving beam information of the SRS.),
wherein the configuration information includes timing information and resources are allocated to the wireless communications device so that uplink reference signal transmissions occur in accordance with the timing information (Da [0067]the serving base station can configure the transmitting time and the beam direction of the SRS in reference with the beam information used by the LMU for receiving the SRS when configuring the SRS for the target user equipment, so that the time and beam direction of the target user equipment for transmitting the SRS match with the time and beam direction of the LMU for receiving the SRS.).
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 2, 6, 13, 15 and 18-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Da, in view of “NR beam management supporting multi-gNB measurements for positioning”, 3GPP TSG RAN WG1 Meeting #95, R1-1813583, Spokane, US, November 12th – 16th, 2018 (hereinafter R1-1813583).
Regarding claim 15, Da teaches A method for uplink-based positioning performed by a positioning computation node, comprising (Da [0007] a locating method for an uplink time difference of arrival is provided. [0043] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of determining the position of a user equipment using the beam information. Locating server in Fig. 1.):
receiving a measurement report from a wireless communications device that provides measurements of downlink reference signals from a set of network nodes (Da [0074] the user equipment in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED state) measures the DL-RS periodically. The measured DL-RS may be a synchronization signal of an SSB (SS/PBCH block) or a Channel State Indication Reference Signal (CSI-RS) or other downlink reference signal. During the measurement process, the user equipment continuously reports the measurement result to the serving base station, and the serving base station transmits the DL-RS beam information reported by the user equipment to the locating server through a UTDOA information response.);
determining a configuration for uplink-based positioning, based on the measurement report from the wireless communications device, wherein the configuration enables coordination between the wireless communications device and one or more network nodes selected from the set of network nodes (Da [0075]after receiving the UTDOA information response, the locating server can determine, by using use the beam information of the DL-RS carried in this response, the LMU used to detect the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment, that is, the locating server can determine which LMUs are near the target user equipment and should participate in the detection of the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment and which LMUs are far away from the target user equipment and cannot receive the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment and are not necessary to participate in the detection of the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment, so as to avoid the LMUs far away from the target user equipment and unable to receive the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment from participating in the detection of the SRS transmitted by the user equipment, and thus avoid wasting system resources.
[0076] For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the LMU1, LMU2, and LMU3 are closer to the user equipment and should participate in detecting the SRS transmitted by the user equipment, while the LMU4 is far away from the user equipment and need not participate in detecting the SRS transmitted by the user equipment.
[0080] S105: the locating server receives the UTDOA information response, and transmits a measurement request (MEASUREMENT REQUEST) to the LMU.
[0082] The measurement request carries the SRS configuration information specified by the protocol, and may further carry the transmitting beam information of the SRS and the assistance locating information. The assistance locating information may include the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment, or include the relative information between the transmitting beam of the SRS and the receiving beam used by the LMU determined according to the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment.);
Da does not explicitly teach measurement report include channel quality.
R1-1813583 in the same or similar field of endeavor teaches measurement report include channel quality (R1-1813583, Page 4 The UE performs the actual measurements on the DL SSB beams transmitted by the n-gNB, and the s-gNB. After the beam measurements, the UE provides a single or multiple beam report(s) to the s-gNB or to the location measurement function (LMF). The beam report contains a gNB identifier, a beam-identifier and a measure of the signal quality corresponding to the received DL beam associated with the configured SSB resource. As said above, the strength/quality measure may be the either RSRP or a SINR.).
By modifying Da’s teachings of receiving a measurement report from a wireless communications device that provides measurements of downlink reference signals from a set of network nodes; determining a configuration for uplink-based positioning, based on the measurement report from the wireless communications device, wherein the configuration enables coordination between the wireless communications device and one or more network nodes selected from the set of network nodes with R1-1813583’s teachings of measurement report include channel quality, the modification results in
receiving a channel quality measurement report from a wireless communications device that provides measurements of downlink reference signals from a set of network nodes;
determining a configuration for uplink-based positioning, based on the channel quality measurement report from the wireless communications device, wherein the configuration enables coordination between the wireless communications device and one or more network nodes selected from the set of network nodes;
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Da with R1-1813583’s above teachings. The motivation is improving position estimation (R1-1813583 page 4).
Da teaches sending first configuration information to the one or more network nodes selected (Da [0080] S105: the locating server receives the UTDOA information response, and transmits a
measurement request (MEASUREMENT REQUEST) to the LMU.
[0082] The measurement request carries the SRS configuration information specified by the protocol, and may further carry the transmitting beam information of the SRS and the assistance locating information. The assistance locating information may include the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment, or include the relative information between the transmitting beam of the SRS and the receiving beam used by the LMU determined according to the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment.) and
second configuration information to the wireless communications device (Da [0098] It should be noted that there is no strict requirement on the time sequence relationship of the steps in the process shown in FIG. 1. For example, S103 and S104 can be executed at the same time, or S104 can be executed before S103. [0064] ]the serving base station receives the UTDOA information request, and transmits the configuration information of the location reference signal (such as SRS) to the target user equipment through Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling. );
receiving respective positioning measurement reports, associated with uplink reference signal transmissions by the wireless communications device, from the one or more network nodes (Da [0092] S107: the LMU transmits a measurement response (MEASUREMENT RESPONSE) to the locating server, where the measurement response carries the locating measurement information of the target user equipment and the measured beam information of the location reference signal (such as SRS). ); and
estimating a position of the wireless communications device based on the positioning measurement reports (Da [0095] S108: the locating server receives the measurement response, and locates the target user equipment according to the locating measurement information carried in the measurement response.
[0096] the locating server can calculate the position of the target user equipment using the information such as beam direction, beam intensity and time difference of arrival (UL RTOA) of the SRS detected by the LMU, thereby making the locating more reliable and accurate.).
Regarding claim 2, Da teaches The method of claim 1.
Da teaches further comprising: receiving a request for positioning from the positioning
computation node (Da [0059] S101: a locating server transmits a UTDOA information request (UTDOA INFORMATION REQUEST) to the serving base station of the target user equipment.
[0064] S102-S103: the serving base station receives the UTDOA information request, configures the resources of the location reference signal (such as SRS) for the target user equipment, and transmits the configuration information of the location reference signal (such as SRS) to the target user equipment through Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling. );
measuring downlink reference signals received from a RAN node (Da [0074] the user equipment in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED state) measures the DL-RS periodically. The measured DL-RS may be a synchronization signal of an SSB (SS/PBCH block) or a Channel State Indication Reference Signal (CSI-RS) or other downlink reference signal.); and
transmitting a measurement report, associated with the downlink reference signals received, to the positioning computation node (Da [0074] During the measurement process, the user equipment continuously reports the measurement result to the serving base station, and the serving base station transmits the DL-RS beam information reported by the user equipment to the locating server through a UTDOA information response.).
Da does not explicitly teach from a plurality of RAN nodes, measurement report include channel quality.
R1-1813583 in the same or similar field of endeavor teaches from a plurality of RAN nodes, measurement report include channel quality (R1-1813583, Page 4 The UE performs the actual measurements on the DL SSB beams transmitted by the n-gNB, and the s-gNB. After the beam measurements, the UE provides a single or multiple beam report(s) to the s-gNB or to the location measurement function (LMF). The beam report contains a gNB identifier, a beam-identifier and a measure of the signal quality corresponding to the received DL beam associated with the configured SSB resource. As said above, the strength/quality measure may be the either RSRP or a SINR.).
By modifying Da’s teachings of measuring downlink reference signals received from a RAN node;
transmitting a measurement report, associated with the downlink reference signals received, to the positioning computation node with R1-1813583’s teachings of from a plurality of RAN nodes, measurement report include channel quality, the modification results in
measuring downlink reference signals received from a plurality of RAN nodes; and
transmitting a channel quality measurement report, associated with the downlink reference signals received, to the positioning computation node.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Da with R1-1813583’s above teachings. The motivation is improving position estimation (R1-1813583 page 4).
Regarding claim 6, Da in view of R1-1813583 (hereinafter combination) teaches The method of
claim 2.
Da teaches wherein the measurement report includes a measurement value with associated
beam information for downlink reference signals received, wherein the beam information includes transmit beam information associated with the downlink reference signals included in the measurement report and/or receive beam information of the wireless communications device (Da [0074] In an implementation, the user equipment in the connected state (RRC_CONNECTED state) measures the DL-RS periodically. The measured DL-RS may be a synchronization signal of an SSB (SS/PBCH block) or a Channel State Indication Reference Signal (CSI-RS) or other downlink reference signal. During the measurement process, the user equipment continuously reports the measurement result to the serving base station, and the serving base station transmits the DL-RS beam information reported by the user equipment to the locating server through a UTDOA information response.
[0070] The UTDOA information response carries the configuration information of the SRS and the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment.
0072] The beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment may further include at least one of the followings.
[0073] The beam information of the Downlink Reference Signal (DL-RS) measured by the target user equipment. The beam information of the DL-RS may include the information such as the beam identifier and the beam direction of the DL-RS.).
Da does not explicitly teach the measurement report include channel quality.
R1-1813583 teaches the measurement report include channel quality (See R1-1813583, Page 4 cites above in rejection of claim 2).
By modifying Da’s teachings of wherein the measurement report includes a measurement value
with associated beam information for downlink reference signals received, wherein the beam information includes transmit beam information associated with the downlink reference signals included in the measurement report and/or receive beam information of the wireless communications device with R1-1813583’s teachings of the measurement report include channel quality, the modification results in
wherein the channel quality measurement report includes a measurement value with associated
beam information for downlink reference signals received, wherein the beam information includes transmit beam information associated with the downlink reference signals included in the channel quality measurement report and/or receive beam information of the wireless communications device
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Da as modified by R1-1813583 with R1-1813583’s above teachings. The motivation is improving position estimation (R1-1813583 page 4).
Regarding claim 13, Da teaches The method of claim 9.
Although Da teaches sending the positioning measurement report to the positioning computation node (See rejection of claim 9 above), Da does not explicitly teach collecting measurement reports from one or more neighboring RAN nodes and aggregating measurement report.
R1-1813583 teaches collecting measurement reports from one or more neighboring RAN nodes and aggregating measurement report (R1-1813583 Page 6, Section 4 SRS configuration and beam report for UL positioning measurements
Based on the received UL SRS beams transmitted by the UE, each n-gNB may estimate a single or a set of TOAs which is/are associated with an UL SRS beam. The estimated TOA(s) along with the SRS beam-IDs and possibly an estimate of the direction-of-arrival (DoAs) of each path component associated to a TOA are reported to the s-gNB. Note the s-gNB is the serving gNB, a n-gNB is a neighboring gNB.).
By modifying Da’s teachings of sending the positioning measurement report to the positioning computation node with R1-1813583’s teachings of collecting measurement reports from one or more neighboring RAN nodes and aggregating measurement report, the modification results in
wherein sending the positioning measurement report further comprising collecting measurement reports from one or more neighboring RAN nodes and sending an aggregate measurement report to the positioning computation node.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Da as modified by R1-1813583 with R1-1813583’s above teachings. The motivation is improving position estimation (R1-1813583 page 4).
Regarding claim 18, the combination teaches The method of claim 15.
Da teaches wherein determining the configuration information further comprises selecting the
one or more network nodes participating in the uplink-based positioning based on the measurement report from the wireless communications device (Da [0075] after receiving the UTDOA information response, the locating server can determine, by using use the beam information of the DL-RS carried in this response, the LMU used to detect the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment, that is, the locating server can determine which LMUs are near the target user equipment and should participate in the detection of the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment and which LMUs are far away from the target user equipment and cannot receive the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment and are not necessary to participate in the detection of the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment, so as to avoid the LMUs far away from the target user equipment and unable to receive the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment from participating in the detection of the SRS transmitted by the user equipment, and thus avoid wasting system resources.
[0076] For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the LMU1, LMU2, and LMU3 are closer to the user equipment and should participate in detecting the SRS transmitted by the user equipment, while the LMU4 is far away from the user equipment and need not participate in detecting the SRS transmitted by the user equipment.).
Da does not explicitly teach the measurement report include channel quality.
R1-1813583 teaches the measurement report include channel quality (See R1-1813583, Page 4 cites above in rejection of claim 15).
By modifying Da’s teachings of wherein determining the configuration information further comprises selecting the one or more network nodes participating in the uplink-based positioning based on the measurement report from the wireless communications device with R1-1813583’s teachings of the measurement report include channel quality, the modification results in
wherein determining the configuration information further comprises selecting the one or more network nodes participating in the uplink-based positioning based on the channel quality measurement report from the wireless communications device.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Da as modified by R1-1813583 with R1-1813583’s above teachings. The motivation is improving position estimation (R1-1813583 page 4).
Regarding claim 19, the combination teaches The method of claim 15.
Da teaches wherein the second configuration information indicates uplink timing information
and/or transmit beam information for one or more uplink reference signal transmissions from the wireless communications device ( Da [0067] the serving base station can configure the transmitting time and the beam direction of the SRS in reference with the beam information used by the LMU for receiving the SRS when configuring the SRS for the target user equipment, so that the time and beam direction of the target user equipment for transmitting the SRS match with the time and beam direction of the LMU for receiving the SRS.).
Regarding claim 20, the combination teaches The method of claim 15.
Da teaches wherein the first configuration information indicates respective timing information
and receive beam information for the one or more network nodes participating in the uplink-based positioning (Da [0091] the LMU may determine the receiving beam information of the LMU for the SRS according to the transmitting beam information of the SRS carried in the measurement request, so as to receive the SRS transmitted by the target user equipment. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, if the target user equipment transmits the SRS in the beam scanning mode, the LMU can determine the relationship between the beam transmission direction and transmission time of the SRS according to the transmitting beam information of the SRS carried in the measurement request, and can use this information to determine the receiving beam direction of the SRS, so as to reduce the time and power consumption required for the LMU to search for the SRS, and improve the detection reliability of the SRS and the measurement accuracy of the UL RTOA. ).
Claim(s) 3 and 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Da in view of R1-1813583 as applied to claim 2 and 15 above, and further in view of US 20210400620 A1 by Tao et al. (hereinafter Tao).
Regarding claim 3, the combination teaches The method of claim 2.
The combination does not explicitly teach wherein the request for positioning further
indicates a desired accuracy.
Tao in the same or similar field of endeavor teaches wherein the request for positioning further
indicates a desired accuracy (Tao [0075]at step 300, the UE receives a location information request from a location server, the location information request indicating the UE to provide location information. Besides the location information request, the location server indicates configurations of positioning reference signal transmitted from multiple transmission points. [0077]at step 310, the UE determines the timing for transmitting positioning measurement report according to at least any one of: [0078] request positioning accuracy; [0079] the configuration of positioning reference signal;).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the combination with Tao’s above teachings.
The motivation is reducing the latency of reporting positioning measurement (Tao [0023]).
Regarding claim 17, the combination teaches The method of claim 15.
Da teaches further comprising: receiving respective beam configurations from the wireless communications device and the set of network nodes (Da [0069] S104: the serving base station transmits a UTDOA information response (UTDOA INFORMATION RESPONSE) to the locating server.
[0070] The UTDOA information response carries the configuration information of the SRS and the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment.
[0072] The beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment may further include at least one of the followings.
[0073] The beam information of the Downlink Reference Signal (DL-RS) measured by the target user equipment. The beam information of the DL-RS may include the information such as the beam identifier and the beam direction of the DL-RS.); and
sending a positioning request to a serving network node of the wireless communications device (Da [0059] S101: a locating server transmits a UTDOA information request (UTDOA INFORMATION REQUEST) to the serving base station of the target user equipment.
[0064] S102-S103: the serving base station receives the UTDOA information request, configures the resources of the location reference signal (such as SRS) for the target user equipment, and transmits the configuration information of the location reference signal (such as SRS) to the target user equipment through Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling.),
Da does not explicitly teach wherein the positioning request indicates a desired accuracy.
Tao teaches wherein the positioning request indicates a desired accuracy (Tao [0075]at step 300, the UE receives a location information request from a location server, the location information request indicating the UE to provide location information. Besides the location information request, the location server indicates configurations of positioning reference signal transmitted from multiple transmission points.
[0077]at step 310, the UE determines the timing for transmitting positioning measurement report according to at least any one of:
[0078] request positioning accuracy;
[0079] the configuration of positioning reference signal; ).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the combination with Tao’s above teachings.
The motivation is reducing the latency of reporting positioning measurement (Tao [0023]).
Claim(s) 4 and 16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Da in view of R1-1813583 as applied to claim 2 and 15 above, and further in view of US 20190327060 A1 by Liu (hereinafter Liu).
Regarding claim 4, the combination teaches The method of claim 2.
Although the combination teaches transmitting the uplink reference signal, the measuring of the
downlink reference signals or the transmitting of the channel quality measurement report (See rejection of claim 2), the combination does not explicitly teach wherein occurs within a predetermined time period from.
Liu in the same or similar field of endeavor teaches wherein occurs within a predetermined time
period from (Liu [0057] 201. A network device sends N first reference signals to a terminal device, where N is a positive integer greater than or equal to 1.
[0058] The N first reference signals sent by the network device are N downlink reference signals
[0066] 204. The terminal device obtains the channel quality measurement result of the N first reference signals
[0074] 206. The terminal device sends the channel quality measurement result to the network device.
[0078] 208. The terminal device sends the M second reference signals to the network device.
[0079] The M second reference signals sent by the terminal device are M uplink reference signals.
[0082] a moment n for sending the M second reference signals and a moment k for sending the channel quality measurement result meet the following condition:
[0083] n=k+m, where
[0084] m is a positive integer greater than 0, or m is equal to 0.
[0085] a value of m cannot be arbitrarily large. Otherwise, beam calibration accuracy is affected.).
By modifying the combination’s teachings of transmitting the uplink reference signal, the measuring of the downlink reference signals or the transmitting of the channel quality measurement report with Liu’s teachings of wherein occurs within a predetermined time period from, the modification results in
wherein transmitting the uplink reference signal occurs within a predetermined time period from the measuring of the downlink reference signals or the transmitting of the channel quality measurement report.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the combination with Liu’s above teachings.
The motivation is simplifying a beam management process of the network device or the terminal device, and maximizing resource utilization efficiency (Liu [0009]).
Claim 16 recites similar limitations of claim 4, is thus rejected under similar rational.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Da in view of R1-1813583 as applied to claim 2 above, and further in view of “Aspects of UL-based NR positioning techniques”, 3GPP TSG RAN WG1 Meeting AH-1901, R1-1901183, Taipei, Taiwan, January 21st – 25th, 2019 (hereinafter R1-1901183).
Regarding claim 5, the combination teaches The method of claim 2.
Although R1-1813583 teaches from the plurality of RAN nodes, the channel quality
measurement Report (R1-1813583, Page 4 The UE performs the actual measurements on the DL SSB beams transmitted by the n-gNB, and the s-gNB. After the beam measurements, the UE provides a single or multiple beam report(s) to the s-gNB or to the location measurement function (LMF). The beam report contains a gNB identifier, a beam-identifier and a measure of the signal quality corresponding to the received DL beam associated with the configured SSB resource. As said above, the strength/quality measure may be the either RSRP or a SINR.),
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the combination with R1-1813583’s above teachings. The motivation is improving position estimation (R1-1813583 page 4).
R1-1813583 does not explicitly teach further comprising selecting a set of RAN nodes for inclusion, wherein the selecting of the set of RAN nodes is based on the desired accuracy and/or respective measurements associated with.
R1-1901183 in the same or similar field of endeavor teaches further comprising selecting a set of
RAN nodes for inclusion, wherein the selecting of the set of RAN nodes is based on the desired accuracy and/or respective measurements associated with (R1-1901183 Section 3 Beam management for UTDOA Beam management for UTDOA needs to address the following two questions:
1. Which UE beam/antenna port shall be used for the UL-PRS transmission?
2. Which gNB receive beam is useful for reception of UL-PRS signals?
It is envisaged that the SSB-based beam reporting may be sufficient for addressing the above two questions. After receiving the SSB block, the UE can deduce on which antenna port a gNB can receive the signal with sufficient strength and select the antenna ports that would be useful for UL-PRS transmission. The CSI-RS measurements may also be used additionally as an option. Likewise, a UE can report to the LMF which gNBs are received. This information can be used assign a UE to a group and to select the n-gNB beams useful for UL-PRS reception.).
By modifying Da with R1-1813583’s teachings of from the plurality of RAN nodes, the channel quality measurement Report with R1-1901183’s teachings of further comprising selecting a set of
RAN nodes for inclusion, wherein the selecting of the set of RAN nodes is based on the desired accuracy and/or respective measurements associated with, the modification results in
further comprising selecting a set of RAN nodes from the plurality of RAN nodes for inclusion in
the channel quality measurement report, wherein the selecting of the set of RAN nodes is based on the desired accuracy and/or respective measurements associated with the plurality of RAN nodes.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the combination as modified by R1-1813583 with R1-1901183 ’s above teachings. The motivation is supporting UL-PRS transmission (R1-1901183 Section 3 Beam management for UTDOA).
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Da as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of WO 2018023646 A1 by Sun et al. (hereinafter Sun).
Regarding claim 8, Da teaches The method of claim 1.
Da teaches wherein the configuration information for transmitting uplink reference signals to the set of participating RAN nodes (See Da [0041], [0059], [0061-0062], [0064-0067] cited above in rejection of claim 1.), and
the method further comprising sending a transmit beam configuration of the wireless communications device to the positioning computation node (Da [0069] the serving base station transmits a UTDOA information response (UTDOA INFORMATION RESPONSE) to the locating server.
[0070] The UTDOA information response carries the configuration information of the SRS and the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment.
[0071] the beam information of the reference signal related to the target user equipment may include the transmitting beam information of the SRS as the location reference signal.).
Da does not explicitly teach wherein the configuration information indicates a beam pattern.
Sun in the same or similar field of endeavor teaches wherein the configuration information
indicates a beam pattern (Sun page 15, the network device may send the identifier of the beam pattern to the terminal device, to indicate that the terminal device sends the sounding reference signal by using a beam in the beam pattern. It should be understood that the network device and the terminal device may predetermine a plurality of beam patterns and identifiers of beam patterns corresponding to each of the plurality of beam patterns, and when the sounding reference signal is configured, the network device may directly send one of the beam patterns.), and
By modifying Da’s teachings of wherein the configuration information for transmitting uplink reference signals to the set of participating RAN nodes, and the method further comprising sending a transmit beam configuration of the wireless communications device to the positioning computation node with Sun’s teachings of wherein the configuration information indicates a beam pattern, the modification results in
wherein the configuration information indicates a beam pattern for transmitting uplink reference signals to the set of participating RAN nodes, and the method further comprising sending a transmit beam configuration of the wireless communications device to the positioning computation node.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Da with Sun’s above teachings. The motivation is improving the coverage performance of the sounding reference signal and reducing the power consumption of the terminal device (Sun page 5).
Claim(s) 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Da as applied to claim 9 above, and further in view of US 20180324738 A1 (hereinafter Stirling-Gallacher).
Regarding claim 14, Da teaches The method of claim 9.
Da does not explicitly teach further comprising sending a receive beam configuration of the RAN
node to the positioning computation node.
Stirling-Gallacher in the same or similar field of endeavor teaches further comprising sending a
receive beam configuration of the RAN node to the positioning computation node (Stirling-Gallacher
[0048] FIG. 3 illustrates a communications system 300 supporting beamformed
communications. Communications system 300 includes a plurality of transmit-receive points (TRPs), such as TRP1 305, TRPS 307, and TRP4 309. TRPs may be network side devices, such as access nodes.
[0095] the example embodiments are also operable in the uplink with transmissions from a UE (transmitting device) to TRPs (receiving device). In the uplink, the receiving devices may use UTDOA measurements from the transmitting devices and received AoAs at each receiving device to determine if the UTDOA measurements from chosen communications beam directions are LOS or NLOS.
[0096] For the case the signals are received in the uplink directions, signaling between the receiving devices (the receiving TRPs) and the LS may occur as follows:
[0097] 1. The received AoA at each receiving device may be explicitly signaled (using LPPa to an E-SMLC at the LS, for example); or
[0098] 2. The receiving device may report the receive communications beam index to the E-SMLC and the AoA may be determined using a receive communications beam to AoA angle mapping stored in the TRP-A.
[0099] In a second example 1120 shown in FIG. 11B, receiving device 1105 signals to E-SMLC, a receive beam index, an adjusted time of arrival, and signal strength for at least one receive communications beam (event 1125).).
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective
filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Da with Stirling-Gallacher’s above teachings. The motivation is improving position precision (Stirling-Gallacher [0046]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Franke et al. US 20210409967 A1, Beam Management Methods And Apparatuses For Positioning Measurements In A Communications Network
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to David Z Sun whose telephone number is (571)270-0750. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 0800am-0500pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Moo Jeong can be reached at 571-272-9617. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/D.Z.S./Examiner, Art Unit 2418
/Moo Jeong/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2418
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