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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 10/28/2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is 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 obviousness-type 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); and 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 a nonstatutory double patenting ground provided the conflicting application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with this application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement.
Effective January 1, 1994, a registered attorney or agent of record may sign a terminal disclaimer. A terminal disclaimer signed by the assignee must fully comply with 37 CFR 3.73(b).
Claims 1-20 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory obviousness-type double patenting as being unpatentable with respect to claims 1-30 of US Patent 12,101,741. Although the conflicting claims are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because all the claimed limitations recited in the present application are transparently found in US Patent 12,101,741 with obvious wording variations. Take an example of comparing claim 1 of pending application and claims 1 and 5 of US Patent 12,101,741:
Pending Application 17/097,944
US Patent 12,101,741
A first user equipment (UE) for wireless communication, comprising
[Claim 1]: A first user equipment (UE) for wireless communication, comprising
one or more memories; and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more memories comprising instructions executable by the one or more processors to cause the first UE to
[Claim 1]: one or more memories; and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more memories including instructions executable by the one or more processors to cause the first UE to
receive an indication of a configuration for transmitting a sidelink reference signal (SL-RS) that is to be transmitted independently of data transmission
[Claim 1]: receive an indication of a configuration for transmitting a sidelink reference signal (SL-RS) that is to be transmitted independently of a data transmission
wherein the configuration indicates whether resources allocated for SL-RSs are included in a resource pool configuration or whether SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel
[Claim 5]: wherein the configuration specifies that resources allocated for SL-RSs are not included in a resource pool configuration or that SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are not available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel
transmit the SL-RS to a second UE according to the configuration
[Claim 1]: transmit the SL-RS to a second UE according to the configuration
Take an example of comparing claim 16 of pending application and claims 12, 13, and 17 of US Patent 12,101,741:
Pending Application 17/097,944
US Patent 12,101,741
A second user equipment (UE) for wireless communication, comprising
[Claim 12]: A first user equipment (UE) for wireless communication, comprising
one or more memories; and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more memories comprising instructions executable by the one or more processors to cause the second UE to
[Claim 12]: one or more memories; and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more memories including instructions executable by the one or more processors to cause the first UE to
transmit an indication of a configuration for transmitting a sidelink reference signal (SL-RS) that is to be transmitted independently of data transmission to a first UE
[Claim 12]: generate a configuration for transmitting a sidelink reference signal (SL-RS) that is to be transmitted independently of a data transmission…and transmit an indication of the configuration to a first UE
wherein the configuration indicates whether resources allocated for SL-RSs are included in a resource pool configuration or whether SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel
[Claim 17]: wherein the configuration specifies that resources allocated for SL-RSs are not included in a resource pool configuration or that SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are not available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel
receive the SL-RS from the first UE according to the configuration
[Claim 13]: receive the SL-RS from the first UE (implicitly from based on the configuration)
Take an example of comparing claim 20 of pending application and claims 23 and 5 of US Patent 12,101,741:
Pending Application 17/097,944
US Patent 12,101,741
A method for wireless communication performed by a first user equipment (UE), comprising
[Claim 23]: A method of wireless communication performed by a first user equipment (UE), comprising
receiving an indication of a configuration for transmitting a sidelink reference signal (SL- RS) that is to be transmitted independently of data transmission
[Claim 23]: receiving an indication of a configuration for transmitting a sidelink reference signal (SL-RS) that is to be transmitted independently of a data transmission
wherein the configuration indicates whether resources allocated for SL-RSs are included in a resource pool configuration or whether SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel
[Claim 5]: wherein the configuration specifies that resources allocated for SL-RSs are not included in a resource pool configuration or that SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are not available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel
transmitting the SL-RS to a second UE according to the configuration
[Claim 23]: transmitting the SL-RS to a second UE according to the configuration
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.
Claim(s) 1-13 and 15-20 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yilmaz et al. (US 2024/0276430 A1; “Yilmaz”) in view of Yu et al. (2024/0098757 A1; “Yu”).
Regarding claim 1, Yilmaz teaches a first user equipment (UE) for wireless communication [Yilmaz ¶ 0091, Fig. 3: a first UE, e.g., UE 5 or UE 10, in a communication network], comprising:
one or more memories; and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more memories comprising instructions executable by the one or more processors to cause the first UE to [Yilmaz ¶ 0042, Fig. 3: one or more memories MEM 10B and the computer program code PROG 10C are configured to cause, with the one or more processors DP 10A, the UE 10 to perform one or more of the operations as described herein]:
receive an indication of a configuration for transmitting a sidelink reference signal (SL-RS) that is to be transmitted independently of data transmission [Yilmaz ¶ 0091, Fig. 7A: in step 710, receiving, from the second user equipment, a message comprising information for controlling a transmission of the sidelink positioning reference signal to the second user equipment; ¶ 0096: the information comprises at least one of: a first index corresponding to a configuration of the SL-PRS selected by the second user equipment, a second index corresponding to a configuration of the SL-PRS to be activated, or a third index corresponding to a configuration of the SL-PRS to be deactivated (here, the an index is analogous to an indication of a configuration. Furthermore, there is no recitation of a dependence between SL-PRS and a data transmission, therefore, the SL-PRS transmission is independent of any data transmission)], and
transmit the SL-RS to a second UE according to the configuration [Yilmaz ¶ 0091, Fig. 7A: in step 720, transmitting, to the second user equipment, the sidelink positioning reference signal based at least on the determined configuration of the sidelink positioning reference signal].
However, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the configuration indicates whether resources allocated for SL-RSs are included in a resource pool configuration or whether SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Yu teaches wherein the configuration indicates whether resources allocated for SL-RSs are included in a resource pool configuration or whether SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel [Yu ¶ 0099: SL-PRS can be transmitted in a dedicated SL-PRS resource pool, and related configuration information can be configured per a resource pool; Fig. 4 showing SL-PRS configuration indicating available resources for PRS transmission in a given pool; ¶ 0046: configuration indicates resource availability for a respective resource pool; Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed inventio to combine the method of indicating SL-PRS configuration information to an anchor UE to request SL-PRS transmissions as taught by Yilmaz, with the method of configuring SL-PRS resources on a per pool basis as taught by Yu. The motivation to combine these references would be to reduce signaling overhead in a wireless communication system [Yu ¶ 0041].
Regarding claim 2, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, wherein the SL-RS comprises a sidelink positioning reference signal (SL-PRS) [Yilmaz ¶ 0091: configuration information comprising at least one configuration of sidelink positioning reference signal].
Regarding claim 3, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the SL-RS has a frequency bandwidth that is independent of a frequency bandwidth configured for transmission on a physical sidelink shared channel.
However, Yu teaches wherein the SL-RS has a frequency bandwidth that is independent of a frequency bandwidth configured for transmission on a physical sidelink shared channel [Yu ¶¶ 0137-0139, Fig. 6A: PSCCH resides in first BWP, e.g., sub-channel 3, and PRS resides in independent BWP, e.g., sub-channels 0-3].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 4, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the SL-RS is time-division multiplexed with a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH).
However, Yu teaches wherein the SL-RS is time-division multiplexed with a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) [Yu ¶¶ 0137-0139, Fig. 6A: PSCCH, in symbols 1-3, is time-division duplexed with PRS in symbols 4-12].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 5, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the configuration specifies that the SL-RS is to be transmitted in one or more symbols of a sidelink slot after a physical sidelink shared channel or a physical sidelink control channel in the sidelink slot.
However, Yu teaches wherein the configuration specifies that the SL-RS is to be transmitted in one or more symbols of a sidelink slot after a physical sidelink shared channel or a physical sidelink control channel in the sidelink slot [Yu ¶¶ 0099-0106, Fig. 4: Fig. 4 shows resource pool configurations, wherein the configuration gives a resource pattern for PRS resources, e.g., K0 = 0 is analogous to location of resource pool after PSCCH, and pattern gives specific RE locations within the pool].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 6, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the configuration specifies that the SL-RS is to be transmitted in one or more specified resource elements of a sidelink slot.
However, Yu teaches wherein the configuration specifies that the SL-RS is to be transmitted in one or more specified resource elements of a sidelink slot [Yu ¶¶ 0099-0106, Fig. 4: Fig. 4 shows resource pool configurations, wherein the configuration gives a resource pattern for PRS resources, e.g., l_offset symbol is analogous to location of resource pool after PSCCH, and pattern gives specific RE locations within the pool].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 7, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the configuration specifies that the SL-RS is to be transmitted in a sidelink slot that is allocated for the SL-RS.
However, Yu teaches wherein the configuration specifies that the SL-RS is to be transmitted in a sidelink slot that is allocated for the SL-RS [Yu ¶ 0046 & 0051: a timeslot index value regarding each resource of the available resource(s) in the resource pool].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 8, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the configuration specifies that resources allocated for SL-RSs are not included in the resource pool configuration or that SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are not available for transmission on the physical sidelink channel.
However, Yu teaches wherein the configuration specifies that resources allocated for SL-RSs are not included in the resource pool configuration or that SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are not available for transmission on the physical sidelink channel [Yu ¶ 0099: SL-PRS can be transmitted in a dedicated SL-PRS resource pool, and related configuration information can be configured per a resource pool; Fig. 4 showing SL-PRS configuration indicating available resources for PRS transmission in a given pool; ¶ 0046: configuration indicates resource availability for a respective resource pool].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 9, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the one or more memories further include instructions executable by the one or more processors to cause the first UE to receive the indication of the configuration as part of a resource pool configuration.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Yu teaches wherein the one or more memories further include instructions executable by the one or more processors to cause the first UE to receive the indication of the configuration as part of a resource pool configuration [Yu ¶ 0099: SL-PRS can be transmitted in a dedicated SL-PRS resource pool, and related configuration information can be configured per a resource pool; Fig. 4 showing SL-PRS configuration indicating available resources for PRS transmission in a given pool; ¶ 0046: configuration indicates resource availability for a respective resource pool (here, the configuration is a resource pool configuration)].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 10, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, wherein the configuration specifies a bandwidth for the SL-RS [Yu ¶ 0093: configuration of the sidelink positioning reference signal comprises at least one of bandwidth, carrier frequency, periodicity and power for the transmission of the sidelink positioning reference signal].
Regarding claim 11, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the configuration specifies one or more of: a quantity of one or more symbols for the SL-RS in a sidelink slot, a location of the one or more symbols for the SL-RS in the sidelink slot, a quantity of one or more gap symbols in the sidelink slot, a location of the one or more gap symbols in the sidelink slot, a quantity of one or more automatic gain control (AGC) symbols in the sidelink slot, or a location of the one or more AGC symbols in the sidelink slot.
However, Yu teaches wherein the configuration specifies one or more of: a quantity of one or more symbols for the SL-RS in a sidelink slot, a location of the one or more symbols for the SL-RS in the sidelink slot, a quantity of one or more gap symbols in the sidelink slot, a location of the one or more gap symbols in the sidelink slot, a quantity of one or more automatic gain control (AGC) symbols in the sidelink slot, or a location of the one or more AGC symbols in the sidelink slot [Yu ¶¶ 0099-0106: an example configuration for SL-PRS (see Fig. 4) may be a configuration of 14 symbols in one time slot includes: 1 AGC symbol (i.e. quantity AGC symbol), 3-symbol PSCCH transmission, 6-symbol SL-PRS (i.e. a quantity of one or more symbols for the SL-RS in a sidelink slot), 2-symbol PSFCH transmission, and 1 GP symbol (i.e. quantity of gap symbols); here, the location of the SL-PRS, AGC, and GP may be derived from the configuration information to give the resource allocation patterns in Fig. 4; see also Fig. 6A showing arrangement of AGC, PSCCH, PRS, and GP in a slot of 14 symbols; Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 12, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the configuration specifies one or more of: a comb pattern for one or more symbols for the SL-RS in a sidelink slot, a hopping pattern for the one or more symbols for the SL-RS in the sidelink slot, or a repetition factor for a symbol for the SL-RS in the sidelink slot.
However, Yu teaches wherein the configuration specifies one or more of: a comb pattern for one or more symbols for the SL-RS in a sidelink slot, a hopping pattern for the one or more symbols for the SL-RS in the sidelink slot, or a repetition factor for a symbol for the SL-RS in the sidelink slot [Yu ¶¶ 0054 $ 0057: SL PRS configuration information includes a comb value of the PRS pattern; Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 13, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, wherein the one or more memories further include instructions executable by the one or more processors to cause the first UE to transmit an index, via sidelink control information or a medium access control control element (MAC CE), that corresponds to the configuration [Yu ¶ 0043: UE generates SCI based on the PRS configuration information, wherein the SCI indicates a resource in time and/or frequency domains and the resource is for transmitting a SL-PRS, wherein the UE transmits the generated SCI; ¶¶ 0054-0055: the SCI includes a pattern index value of a PRS pattern of the SL-PRS].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 15, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose
However, Yu teaches wherein the SL-RS is transmitted to the second UE via one or more resources included in a dedicated resource pool or via one or more resources included in a shared resource pool [Yu ¶ 0099: SL-PRS can be transmitted in a dedicated SL-PRS resource pool, and related configuration information can be configured per a resource pool].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 1 above.
Regarding claim 16, Yilmaz teaches a second user equipment (UE) for wireless communication [Yilmaz ¶ 0091, Fig. 3: a second UE, e.g., UE 5 or UE 10, in a communication network], comprising:
one or more memories; and one or more processors coupled to the one or more memories, the one or more memories comprising instructions executable by the one or more processors to cause the second UE to [Yilmaz ¶ 0042, Fig. 3: one or more memories MEM 10B and the computer program code PROG 10C are configured to cause, with the one or more processors DP 10A, the UE 10 to perform one or more of the operations as described herein]:
transmit an indication of a configuration for transmitting a sidelink reference signal (SL-RS) that is to be transmitted independently of data transmission to a first UE [Yilmaz ¶ 0042, Fig. 3: one or more memories MEM 10B and the computer program code PROG 10C are configured to cause, with the one or more processors DP 10A, the UE 10 to perform one or more of the operations as described herein]; and
receive the SL-RS from the first UE according to the configuration [Yilmaz ¶ 0091, Fig. 7A: in step 720, transmitting, to the second user equipment, the sidelink positioning reference signal based at least on the determined configuration of the sidelink positioning reference signal].
However, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the configuration indicates whether resources allocated for SL-RSs are included in a resource pool configuration or whether SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Yu teaches wherein the configuration indicates whether resources allocated for SL-RSs are included in a resource pool configuration or whether SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel [Yu ¶ 0099: SL-PRS can be transmitted in a dedicated SL-PRS resource pool, and related configuration information can be configured per a resource pool; Fig. 4 showing SL-PRS configuration indicating available resources for PRS transmission in a given pool; ¶ 0046: configuration indicates resource availability for a respective resource pool; Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed inventio to combine the method of indicating SL-PRS configuration information to an anchor UE to request SL-PRS transmissions as taught by Yilmaz, with the method of configuring SL-PRS resources on a per pool basis as taught by Yu. The motivation to combine these references would be to reduce signaling overhead in a wireless communication system [Yu ¶ 0041].
Regarding claim 17, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the second UE of claim 16, wherein the SL-RS comprises a sidelink positioning reference signal (SL-PRS) [Yilmaz ¶ 0091: configuration information comprising at least one configuration of sidelink positioning reference signal].
Regarding claim 18, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the second UE of claim 16, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the SL-RS has a frequency bandwidth that is independent of a frequency bandwidth configured for transmission on a physical sidelink shared channel.
However, Yu teaches wherein the SL-RS has a frequency bandwidth that is independent of a frequency bandwidth configured for transmission on a physical sidelink shared channel [Yu ¶¶ 0137-0139, Fig. 6A: PSCCH resides in first BWP, e.g., sub-channel 3, and PRS resides in independent BWP, e.g., sub-channels 0-3].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 16 above.
Regarding claim 19, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the second UE of claim 16, however, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the SL-RS is time-division multiplexed with a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH).
However, Yu teaches wherein the SL-RS is time-division multiplexed with a physical sidelink control channel (PSCCH) [Yu ¶¶ 0137-0139, Fig. 6A: PSCCH, in symbols 1-3, is time-division duplexed with PRS in symbols 4-12].
The motivation to combine these references is illustrated in the rejection of claim 16 above.
Regarding claim 20, Yilmaz teaches a method for wireless communication performed by a first user equipment (UE) [Yilmaz ¶ 0091, Fig. 3: a first UE, e.g., UE 5 or UE 10, in a communication network], comprising:
receiving an indication of a configuration for transmitting a sidelink reference signal (SL- RS) that is to be transmitted independently of data transmission [Yilmaz ¶ 0091, Fig. 7A: in step 710, receiving, from the second user equipment, a message comprising information for controlling a transmission of the sidelink positioning reference signal to the second user equipment; ¶ 0096: the information comprises at least one of: a first index corresponding to a configuration of the SL-PRS selected by the second user equipment, a second index corresponding to a configuration of the SL-PRS to be activated, or a third index corresponding to a configuration of the SL-PRS to be deactivated (here, the an index is analogous to an indication of a configuration. Furthermore, there is no recitation of a dependence between SL-PRS and a data transmission, therefore, the SL-PRS transmission is independent of any data transmission)]; and
transmitting the SL-RS to a second UE according to the configuration [Yilmaz ¶ 0091, Fig. 7A: in step 720, transmitting, to the second user equipment, the sidelink positioning reference signal based at least on the determined configuration of the sidelink positioning reference signal].
However, Yilmaz does not explicitly disclose wherein the configuration indicates whether resources allocated for SL-RSs are included in a resource pool configuration or whether SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Yu teaches wherein the configuration indicates whether resources allocated for SL-RSs are included in a resource pool configuration or whether SL-RSs included in the resource pool configuration are available for transmission on a physical sidelink channel [Yu ¶ 0099: SL-PRS can be transmitted in a dedicated SL-PRS resource pool, and related configuration information can be configured per a resource pool; Fig. 4 showing SL-PRS configuration indicating available resources for PRS transmission in a given pool; ¶ 0046: configuration indicates resource availability for a respective resource pool; Examiner’s Note: the limitations are written in the alternative, therefore, it is only necessary that one of the alternative limitations be taught by the applied references].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed inventio to combine the method of indicating SL-PRS configuration information to an anchor UE to request SL-PRS transmissions as taught by Yilmaz, with the method of configuring SL-PRS resources on a per pool basis as taught by Yu. The motivation to combine these references would be to reduce signaling overhead in a wireless communication system [Yu ¶ 0041].
Claim(s) 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yilmaz in view of Yu in view of Zhao et al. (US 2021/0400665 A1; cited in Applicant’s IDS submitted 10/28/2024; “Zhao”).
Regarding claim 14, Yilmaz in view of Yu teaches the first UE of claim 1, however, does not explicitly disclose wherein the one or more memories further include instructions executable by the one or more processors to cause the first UE to, if the transmission of the SL-RS is to overlap at least in a time domain with the transmission of other SL or uplink transmissions, prioritize a transmission of the SL-RS further based at least in part on a priority of the SL-RS relative to a priority of the other SL or uplink transmissions.
However, in a similar field of endeavor, Zhao teaches wherein the one or more memories further include instructions executable by the one or more processors to cause the first UE to, if the transmission of the SL-RS is to overlap at least in a time domain with the transmission of other SL or uplink transmissions, prioritize a transmission of the SL-RS further based at least in part on a priority of the SL-RS relative to a priority of the other SL or uplink transmissions [Zhao ¶¶ 0128-0129: when the terminal device needs to send the first uplink channel and the second sidelink transmission channel on the target transmission resource, the terminal device can obtain the third parameter information of third data to be sent corresponding to the first uplink channel and the second parameter information of second data to be sent corresponding to the second sidelink transmission channel, and according to the comparison result of the parameter information, the terminal device determines to send the first uplink channel or the second sidelink transmission channel on the target transmission resource, wherein the parameter information may be a priority information (here, a comparison of a first priority information for SL transmission and second priority information for another/uplink channel is compared)].
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed inventio to combine the method of indicating SL-PRS configuration information to an anchor UE to request SL-PRS transmissions as taught by Yilmaz, with the method of prioritizing one of a sidelink transmission or other transmission based on configured parameters of the respective transmissions as taught by Zhao. The motivation to combine these references would be to avoid sidelink transmission conflicts and improve the transmission efficiency of a wireless communication system [Zhao ¶ 0012].
Conclusion
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/BRIAN P COX/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2474
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