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 .
DETAILED ACTION
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 9/4/24. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
(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.
Claims 1-8, 10-16, are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a) (2) as being anticipated by Zhang et al. [US 20260106707].
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.
As per claim 1, Zhang teaches:
An electronic device (i.e. Fig. 1A; 102; ¶ 0042) comprising:
a transmitter comprising a plurality of antennas; (i.e. ¶ 0042; The wireless device 102 includes a single transmitter (transmit chain) and multiple receivers (receive chains) communicatively coupled to multiple antennas 104-A, 104-B, 104-C, and 104-D) and
one or more processors coupled to the transmitter, the one or more processors configured to receive sensing data corresponding to a transmit power level of each antenna of the plurality of antennas, (i.e. an UL transmission can be referred to as a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission, and can be used to improve data throughput and/or transmission reliability. The UL transmission output from the antenna ports 214 of the wireless device 102 are transmitted at a power level to allow for proper reception by cells of the cellular wireless network; ¶ 0052; FIG. 2A illustrates a diagram 200 of an exemplary uplink transmit chain for the wireless device 102. A transmitter 218 can receive a digital data stream 202 for uplink data to be communicated wirelessly to a cellular wireless network through one or more antenna ports 214. A digital-to-analog converter (DAC) 204 of the transmitter 20 converts the digital data stream 202 into an analog signal which is modulated onto an uplink radio frequency (RF) carrier by an OFDM modulator 206 of the transmitter 218. The modulated analog signal is amplified by a power amplifier 208 and filtered through a suitable transmit (TX) filter 210 resulting in an amplified analog transmit data signal 212 that is transmitted wirelessly a radio link to a cellular wireless network via one or more antenna ports 214. When multiple antenna ports 214 (or antennas) are used, an UL transmission can be referred to as a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission, and can be used to improve data throughput and/or transmission reliability. The UL transmission output from the antenna ports 214 of the wireless device 102 are transmitted at a power level to allow for proper reception by cells of the cellular wireless network. The UL transmissions are limited by the wireless circuitry of the transmitter 218 and the transmission properties of the antenna ports 214. The UL transmissions from all antenna ports 214 of the wireless device 102 are required to meet regulatory requirements, such as a specific absorption rate (SAR) limit for human exposure to radio frequency (RF) energy. A maximum transmit power limit (MTPL) can be determined by the wireless device 102 for transmission via radio links used for UL transmission. The MTPL for various transmissions can depend on an RF band that is used, a radio access technology (RAT) of the transmission, a bandwidth of the transmission, and physical properties of antennas via which the transmission occurs. Different antenna ports 214 can have different MTPL values for different transmissions in different RF bands of the same RAT)
cause the transmitter to send a sounding reference signal (SRS) set via one or more antennas to a network, the one or more antennas selected from the plurality of antennas based on the sensing data, (i.e. transmitter to send SRS resource set using multiple antenna; ¶ 0051; FIG. 1F illustrates a diagram 160 of another example of an SRS resource set 106-F used for UL sounding by a 2T4R wireless device 102. A gNodeB 112 configures the wireless device 102 with an SRS resource set 106-F designated for codebook usage and which includes a single SRS resource SRS-0 that has two SRS ports. The wireless device 102 can group together pairs of antennas based on hardware capabilities of the wireless device 102 and select a pair of antennas to use for UL transmission based on DL measurements of signals received via the antennas 104-A/B/C/D. In the example of FIG. 1F, the wireless device 102 pairs together antennas 104-A and 104-B in a first antenna group and antennas 104-C and 104-D in a second antenna group. The wireless device 102 can select an antenna group, e.g., antenna pair 104-A/B, and transmit the SRS resource SRS-0 via the selected antenna group to the gNodeB 112. The gNodeB 112 measures a received version of SRS-0, estimates an associated UL channel, and determines an UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use for subsequent transmissions. Unlike in the example of FIG. 1E, the wireless device 102 (and not the gNodeB 112) selects the antenna group (pair); however, the gNodeB 112 can select either antenna 104-A or 104-B or a combination of 104-A and 104-B for the wireless device 102 to use for UL transmissions based on the selected UL precoder. The gNodeB 112 sends a DCI message to the wireless device 102, the DCI message including a TPMI value indicating the selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to subsequently use. The wireless device 102 transmits the PUSCH to the gNodeB 112 using the selected precoder. The wireless device 102 can subsequently determine to switch between using the first antenna pair 104-A/B and the second antenna pair 104-C/D before sending the SRS resource SRS-0 to the gNodeB 112. The gNodeB 112 again measures a received version of SRS-0, estimates the UL channel, determines an UL precoder, and transmits a DCI message with a TPMI value indicating the determined UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use subsequently when transmitting the PUSCH to the gNodeB 112) and
cause the transmitter to exchange user data with the network based on transmission diversity. (i.e. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports; ¶ 0054; FIG. 2C illustrates diagrams 230, 232, 234 of exemplary UL precoding matrices with non-coherent antenna port selection. For single layer transmission, as shown by diagrams 230, 232, only one layer (as shown, layer 0) of data is scaled and transferred by the precoder 226 to the antenna ports. Sets of precoder matrices for different numbers of transmit layers are defined in 3GPP cellular wireless communications standards. A base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, indicates a selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use by sending a TPMI index value to the wireless device 102 in a DCI message. Different TPMI index values correspond to different precoding matrices. For single-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to selection of a first antenna port of an antenna port group, as shown in diagram 230, while a TPMI index value of ‘1’ corresponds to selection of a second antenna port of the antenna port group. In some embodiments, the wireless device 102 selects an antenna port group (e.g., pair of antennas as illustrated in FIG. 2C) using an open-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on DL performance monitoring via the different antenna ports. In some embodiments, the base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, of the cellular wireless network selects the antenna port group using a closed-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on UL measurements of SRS signals, and indicates the selected antenna port group by sending an SRS indicator (SRI) value to the wireless device 102, e.g., in the DCI message with the TPMI value that selects the precoding matrix. For two-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to mapping each layer independently to a separate antenna port of the antenna port group, e.g., layer 0 to a first antenna port and layer 1 to a second antenna port. The exemplary UL precoding matrices shown in FIG. 2C correspond to non-coherent transmission, where data from individual layers are only sent to individual antenna ports. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports.)
As per claim 2, Zhang teaches:
The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to determine the one or more antennas based on the sensing data corresponding to antenna pairs of the plurality of antennas. (i.e. the wireless device 102 selects an antenna port group (e.g., pair of antennas as illustrated in FIG. 2C) using an antenna port group selection procedure; ¶ 0054; FIG. 2C illustrates diagrams 230, 232, 234 of exemplary UL precoding matrices with non-coherent antenna port selection. For single layer transmission, as shown by diagrams 230, 232, only one layer (as shown, layer 0) of data is scaled and transferred by the precoder 226 to the antenna ports. Sets of precoder matrices for different numbers of transmit layers are defined in 3GPP cellular wireless communications standards. A base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, indicates a selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use by sending a TPMI index value to the wireless device 102 in a DCI message. Different TPMI index values correspond to different precoding matrices. For single-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to selection of a first antenna port of an antenna port group, as shown in diagram 230, while a TPMI index value of ‘1’ corresponds to selection of a second antenna port of the antenna port group. In some embodiments, the wireless device 102 selects an antenna port group (e.g., pair of antennas as illustrated in FIG. 2C) using an open-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on DL performance monitoring via the different antenna ports. In some embodiments, the base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, of the cellular wireless network selects the antenna port group using a closed-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on UL measurements of SRS signals, and indicates the selected antenna port group by sending an SRS indicator (SRI) value to the wireless device 102, e.g., in the DCI message with the TPMI value that selects the precoding matrix. For two-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to mapping each layer independently to a separate antenna port of the antenna port group, e.g., layer 0 to a first antenna port and layer 1 to a second antenna port. The exemplary UL precoding matrices shown in FIG. 2C correspond to non-coherent transmission, where data from individual layers are only sent to individual antenna ports. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports.)
As per claim 3, Zhang teaches:
The electronic device of claim 2, wherein the one or more processors are configured to identify the one or more antennas based on determining which antenna pair of the plurality of antennas has a largest combination of reference signal received power indications and transmit power levels. (i.e. selecting an antenna port group and/or antenna port for use for PUSCH transmission by the wireless device 102 based on maximum transmit power; ¶ 0055.)
As per claim 4, Zhang teaches:
The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to determine the one or more antennas based on the sensing data corresponding to respective power amplifier and antenna pairs of the plurality of antennas. (i.e. ¶ 0052; selection based on power amplifier).
As per claim 5, Zhang teaches:
The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the transmit power level comprises a maximum transmission power difference. (i.e. ¶ 0055; MTPL; maximum transmit power level).
As per claim 6, Zhang teaches:
The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to receive an indication of a data layer transmission mode from the network, and confirm the data layer transmission mode based on the transmit power level of each antenna of the one or more antennas. (i.e. selecting an antenna port group and/or antenna port for use for PUSCH transmission by the wireless device 102 based on maximum transmit power; ¶ 0055).
As per claim 7, Zhang teaches:
The electronic device of claim 6, wherein the one or more processors are configured to cause the transmitter to exchange the user data with the network based on the data layer transmission mode. (i.e. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports; ¶ 0054; FIG. 2C illustrates diagrams 230, 232, 234 of exemplary UL precoding matrices with non-coherent antenna port selection. For single layer transmission, as shown by diagrams 230, 232, only one layer (as shown, layer 0) of data is scaled and transferred by the precoder 226 to the antenna ports. Sets of precoder matrices for different numbers of transmit layers are defined in 3GPP cellular wireless communications standards. A base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, indicates a selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use by sending a TPMI index value to the wireless device 102 in a DCI message. Different TPMI index values correspond to different precoding matrices. For single-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to selection of a first antenna port of an antenna port group, as shown in diagram 230, while a TPMI index value of ‘1’ corresponds to selection of a second antenna port of the antenna port group. In some embodiments, the wireless device 102 selects an antenna port group (e.g., pair of antennas as illustrated in FIG. 2C) using an open-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on DL performance monitoring via the different antenna ports. In some embodiments, the base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, of the cellular wireless network selects the antenna port group using a closed-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on UL measurements of SRS signals, and indicates the selected antenna port group by sending an SRS indicator (SRI) value to the wireless device 102, e.g., in the DCI message with the TPMI value that selects the precoding matrix. For two-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to mapping each layer independently to a separate antenna port of the antenna port group, e.g., layer 0 to a first antenna port and layer 1 to a second antenna port. The exemplary UL precoding matrices shown in FIG. 2C correspond to non-coherent transmission, where data from individual layers are only sent to individual antenna ports. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports.)
As per claim 8, Zhang teaches:
The electronic device of claim 7, wherein the data layer transmission mode corresponds to a single data layer mode, and wherein the one or more processors are configured to cause the transmitter to exchange the user data with the network based on transmission diversity and the single data layer mode. (i.e. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports via single layer transmission; ¶ 0054; FIG. 2C illustrates diagrams 230, 232, 234 of exemplary UL precoding matrices with non-coherent antenna port selection. For single layer transmission, as shown by diagrams 230, 232, only one layer (as shown, layer 0) of data is scaled and transferred by the precoder 226 to the antenna ports. Sets of precoder matrices for different numbers of transmit layers are defined in 3GPP cellular wireless communications standards. A base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, indicates a selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use by sending a TPMI index value to the wireless device 102 in a DCI message. Different TPMI index values correspond to different precoding matrices. For single-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to selection of a first antenna port of an antenna port group, as shown in diagram 230, while a TPMI index value of ‘1’ corresponds to selection of a second antenna port of the antenna port group. In some embodiments, the wireless device 102 selects an antenna port group (e.g., pair of antennas as illustrated in FIG. 2C) using an open-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on DL performance monitoring via the different antenna ports. In some embodiments, the base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, of the cellular wireless network selects the antenna port group using a closed-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on UL measurements of SRS signals, and indicates the selected antenna port group by sending an SRS indicator (SRI) value to the wireless device 102, e.g., in the DCI message with the TPMI value that selects the precoding matrix. For two-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to mapping each layer independently to a separate antenna port of the antenna port group, e.g., layer 0 to a first antenna port and layer 1 to a second antenna port. The exemplary UL precoding matrices shown in FIG. 2C correspond to non-coherent transmission, where data from individual layers are only sent to individual antenna ports. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports).
As per claim 10, Zhang teaches:
A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations (i.e. computing device, processors; Fig. 1A; 102; ¶ 0042, 0073-0074) comprising:
sending, via a transmitter coupled to one or more antennas, a sounding reference signal (SRS) set to a network; (i.e. SRS resource set using multiple antenna; ¶ 0051; FIG. 1F illustrates a diagram 160 of another example of an SRS resource set 106-F used for UL sounding by a 2T4R wireless device 102. A gNodeB 112 configures the wireless device 102 with an SRS resource set 106-F designated for codebook usage and which includes a single SRS resource SRS-0 that has two SRS ports. The wireless device 102 can group together pairs of antennas based on hardware capabilities of the wireless device 102 and select a pair of antennas to use for UL transmission based on DL measurements of signals received via the antennas 104-A/B/C/D. In the example of FIG. 1F, the wireless device 102 pairs together antennas 104-A and 104-B in a first antenna group and antennas 104-C and 104-D in a second antenna group. The wireless device 102 can select an antenna group, e.g., antenna pair 104-A/B, and transmit the SRS resource SRS-0 via the selected antenna group to the gNodeB 112. The gNodeB 112 measures a received version of SRS-0, estimates an associated UL channel, and determines an UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use for subsequent transmissions. Unlike in the example of FIG. 1E, the wireless device 102 (and not the gNodeB 112) selects the antenna group (pair); however, the gNodeB 112 can select either antenna 104-A or 104-B or a combination of 104-A and 104-B for the wireless device 102 to use for UL transmissions based on the selected UL precoder. The gNodeB 112 sends a DCI message to the wireless device 102, the DCI message including a TPMI value indicating the selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to subsequently use. The wireless device 102 transmits the PUSCH to the gNodeB 112 using the selected precoder. The wireless device 102 can subsequently determine to switch between using the first antenna pair 104-A/B and the second antenna pair 104-C/D before sending the SRS resource SRS-0 to the gNodeB 112. The gNodeB 112 again measures a received version of SRS-0, estimates the UL channel, determines an UL precoder, and transmits a DCI message with a TPMI value indicating the determined UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use subsequently when transmitting the PUSCH to the gNodeB 112)
receiving, via a receiver coupled to the one or more antennas, an indication of a data layer transmission mode from the network; (i.e. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports; ¶ 0054; FIG. 2C illustrates diagrams 230, 232, 234 of exemplary UL precoding matrices with non-coherent antenna port selection. For single layer transmission, as shown by diagrams 230, 232, only one layer (as shown, layer 0) of data is scaled and transferred by the precoder 226 to the antenna ports. Sets of precoder matrices for different numbers of transmit layers are defined in 3GPP cellular wireless communications standards. A base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, indicates a selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use by sending a TPMI index value to the wireless device 102 in a DCI message. Different TPMI index values correspond to different precoding matrices. For single-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to selection of a first antenna port of an antenna port group, as shown in diagram 230, while a TPMI index value of ‘1’ corresponds to selection of a second antenna port of the antenna port group. In some embodiments, the wireless device 102 selects an antenna port group (e.g., pair of antennas as illustrated in FIG. 2C) using an open-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on DL performance monitoring via the different antenna ports. In some embodiments, the base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, of the cellular wireless network selects the antenna port group using a closed-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on UL measurements of SRS signals, and indicates the selected antenna port group by sending an SRS indicator (SRI) value to the wireless device 102, e.g., in the DCI message with the TPMI value that selects the precoding matrix. For two-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to mapping each layer independently to a separate antenna port of the antenna port group, e.g., layer 0 to a first antenna port and layer 1 to a second antenna port. The exemplary UL precoding matrices shown in FIG. 2C correspond to non-coherent transmission, where data from individual layers are only sent to individual antenna ports. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports.)
confirming the data layer transmission mode based on a power level of the one or more antennas; (i.e. an UL transmission can be referred to as a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission, and can be used to improve data throughput and/or transmission reliability. The UL transmission output from the antenna ports 214 of the wireless device 102 are transmitted at a power level to allow for proper reception by cells of the cellular wireless network; ¶ 0052; FIG. 2A illustrates a diagram 200 of an exemplary uplink transmit chain for the wireless device 102. A transmitter 218 can receive a digital data stream 202 for uplink data to be communicated wirelessly to a cellular wireless network through one or more antenna ports 214. A digital-to-analog converter (DAC) 204 of the transmitter 20 converts the digital data stream 202 into an analog signal which is modulated onto an uplink radio frequency (RF) carrier by an OFDM modulator 206 of the transmitter 218. The modulated analog signal is amplified by a power amplifier 208 and filtered through a suitable transmit (TX) filter 210 resulting in an amplified analog transmit data signal 212 that is transmitted wirelessly a radio link to a cellular wireless network via one or more antenna ports 214. When multiple antenna ports 214 (or antennas) are used, an UL transmission can be referred to as a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission, and can be used to improve data throughput and/or transmission reliability. The UL transmission output from the antenna ports 214 of the wireless device 102 are transmitted at a power level to allow for proper reception by cells of the cellular wireless network. The UL transmissions are limited by the wireless circuitry of the transmitter 218 and the transmission properties of the antenna ports 214. The UL transmissions from all antenna ports 214 of the wireless device 102 are required to meet regulatory requirements, such as a specific absorption rate (SAR) limit for human exposure to radio frequency (RF) energy. A maximum transmit power limit (MTPL) can be determined by the wireless device 102 for transmission via radio links used for UL transmission. The MTPL for various transmissions can depend on an RF band that is used, a radio access technology (RAT) of the transmission, a bandwidth of the transmission, and physical properties of antennas via which the transmission occurs. Different antenna ports 214 can have different MTPL values for different transmissions in different RF bands of the same RAT) and
sending, via the transmitter coupled to the one or more antennas, user data to the network using the data layer transmission mode. (i.e. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports; ¶ 0054; FIG. 2C illustrates diagrams 230, 232, 234 of exemplary UL precoding matrices with non-coherent antenna port selection. For single layer transmission, as shown by diagrams 230, 232, only one layer (as shown, layer 0) of data is scaled and transferred by the precoder 226 to the antenna ports. Sets of precoder matrices for different numbers of transmit layers are defined in 3GPP cellular wireless communications standards. A base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, indicates a selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use by sending a TPMI index value to the wireless device 102 in a DCI message. Different TPMI index values correspond to different precoding matrices. For single-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to selection of a first antenna port of an antenna port group, as shown in diagram 230, while a TPMI index value of ‘1’ corresponds to selection of a second antenna port of the antenna port group. In some embodiments, the wireless device 102 selects an antenna port group (e.g., pair of antennas as illustrated in FIG. 2C) using an open-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on DL performance monitoring via the different antenna ports. In some embodiments, the base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, of the cellular wireless network selects the antenna port group using a closed-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on UL measurements of SRS signals, and indicates the selected antenna port group by sending an SRS indicator (SRI) value to the wireless device 102, e.g., in the DCI message with the TPMI value that selects the precoding matrix. For two-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to mapping each layer independently to a separate antenna port of the antenna port group, e.g., layer 0 to a first antenna port and layer 1 to a second antenna port. The exemplary UL precoding matrices shown in FIG. 2C correspond to non-coherent transmission, where data from individual layers are only sent to individual antenna ports. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports.)
As per claim 11, Zhang teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the operations comprise: receiving, via the receiver coupled to the one or more antennas, the indication of the data layer transmission mode and the indication of an antenna to be used with the data layer transmission mode from the network; (i.e. ¶ 0042; The wireless device 102 includes a single transmitter (transmit chain) and multiple receivers (receive chains) communicatively coupled to multiple antennas 104-A, 104-B, 104-C, and 104-D) confirming the antenna to be used with the data layer transmission mode based on the data layer transmission mode; and sending, via the transmitter coupled to the antenna, user data to the network using the data layer transmission mode. (i.e. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports; ¶ 0054; FIG. 2C illustrates diagrams 230, 232, 234 of exemplary UL precoding matrices with non-coherent antenna port selection. For single layer transmission, as shown by diagrams 230, 232, only one layer (as shown, layer 0) of data is scaled and transferred by the precoder 226 to the antenna ports. Sets of precoder matrices for different numbers of transmit layers are defined in 3GPP cellular wireless communications standards. A base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, indicates a selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use by sending a TPMI index value to the wireless device 102 in a DCI message. Different TPMI index values correspond to different precoding matrices. For single-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to selection of a first antenna port of an antenna port group, as shown in diagram 230, while a TPMI index value of ‘1’ corresponds to selection of a second antenna port of the antenna port group. In some embodiments, the wireless device 102 selects an antenna port group (e.g., pair of antennas as illustrated in FIG. 2C) using an open-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on DL performance monitoring via the different antenna ports. In some embodiments, the base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, of the cellular wireless network selects the antenna port group using a closed-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on UL measurements of SRS signals, and indicates the selected antenna port group by sending an SRS indicator (SRI) value to the wireless device 102, e.g., in the DCI message with the TPMI value that selects the precoding matrix. For two-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to mapping each layer independently to a separate antenna port of the antenna port group, e.g., layer 0 to a first antenna port and layer 1 to a second antenna port. The exemplary UL precoding matrices shown in FIG. 2C correspond to non-coherent transmission, where data from individual layers are only sent to individual antenna ports. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports).
As per claim 12, Zhang teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the operations comprise sending, via the transmitter coupled to the one or more antennas, user data to the network using the data layer transmission mode and transmission diversity, and wherein the data layer transmission mode corresponds to a single data layer. (i.e. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports via single layer transmission; ¶ 0054; FIG. 2C illustrates diagrams 230, 232, 234 of exemplary UL precoding matrices with non-coherent antenna port selection. For single layer transmission, as shown by diagrams 230, 232, only one layer (as shown, layer 0) of data is scaled and transferred by the precoder 226 to the antenna ports. Sets of precoder matrices for different numbers of transmit layers are defined in 3GPP cellular wireless communications standards. A base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, indicates a selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use by sending a TPMI index value to the wireless device 102 in a DCI message. Different TPMI index values correspond to different precoding matrices. For single-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to selection of a first antenna port of an antenna port group, as shown in diagram 230, while a TPMI index value of ‘1’ corresponds to selection of a second antenna port of the antenna port group. In some embodiments, the wireless device 102 selects an antenna port group (e.g., pair of antennas as illustrated in FIG. 2C) using an open-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on DL performance monitoring via the different antenna ports. In some embodiments, the base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, of the cellular wireless network selects the antenna port group using a closed-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on UL measurements of SRS signals, and indicates the selected antenna port group by sending an SRS indicator (SRI) value to the wireless device 102, e.g., in the DCI message with the TPMI value that selects the precoding matrix. For two-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to mapping each layer independently to a separate antenna port of the antenna port group, e.g., layer 0 to a first antenna port and layer 1 to a second antenna port. The exemplary UL precoding matrices shown in FIG. 2C correspond to non-coherent transmission, where data from individual layers are only sent to individual antenna ports. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports).
As per claim 13, Zhang teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the operations comprise receiving sensing data corresponding to a transmit power level of each antenna of a plurality of antennas of the transmitter, and sending, via the transmitter coupled to the one or more antennas, the SRS set to the network, the one or more antennas selected from the plurality of antennas based on the sensing data. (i.e. SRS resource set using multiple antenna; ¶ 0051; FIG. 1F illustrates a diagram 160 of another example of an SRS resource set 106-F used for UL sounding by a 2T4R wireless device 102. A gNodeB 112 configures the wireless device 102 with an SRS resource set 106-F designated for codebook usage and which includes a single SRS resource SRS-0 that has two SRS ports. The wireless device 102 can group together pairs of antennas based on hardware capabilities of the wireless device 102 and select a pair of antennas to use for UL transmission based on DL measurements of signals received via the antennas 104-A/B/C/D. In the example of FIG. 1F, the wireless device 102 pairs together antennas 104-A and 104-B in a first antenna group and antennas 104-C and 104-D in a second antenna group. The wireless device 102 can select an antenna group, e.g., antenna pair 104-A/B, and transmit the SRS resource SRS-0 via the selected antenna group to the gNodeB 112. The gNodeB 112 measures a received version of SRS-0, estimates an associated UL channel, and determines an UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use for subsequent transmissions. Unlike in the example of FIG. 1E, the wireless device 102 (and not the gNodeB 112) selects the antenna group (pair); however, the gNodeB 112 can select either antenna 104-A or 104-B or a combination of 104-A and 104-B for the wireless device 102 to use for UL transmissions based on the selected UL precoder. The gNodeB 112 sends a DCI message to the wireless device 102, the DCI message including a TPMI value indicating the selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to subsequently use. The wireless device 102 transmits the PUSCH to the gNodeB 112 using the selected precoder. The wireless device 102 can subsequently determine to switch between using the first antenna pair 104-A/B and the second antenna pair 104-C/D before sending the SRS resource SRS-0 to the gNodeB 112. The gNodeB 112 again measures a received version of SRS-0, estimates the UL channel, determines an UL precoder, and transmits a DCI message with a TPMI value indicating the determined UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use subsequently when transmitting the PUSCH to the gNodeB 112).
As per claim 14, Zhang teaches:
The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the operations comprise receiving the power level of the one or more antennas from memory. (i.e. memory; Fig. 1A; 102; ¶ 0042, 0073-0074).
As per claim 15, Zhang teaches:
A method, comprising: receiving, via a processor, (i.e. using processors; Fig. 1A; 102; ¶ 0042, 0073-0074) sensing data corresponding to a transmit power level of each antenna of a plurality of antennas; (i.e. an UL transmission can be referred to as a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission, and can be used to improve data throughput and/or transmission reliability. The UL transmission output from the antenna ports 214 of the wireless device 102 are transmitted at a power level to allow for proper reception by cells of the cellular wireless network; ¶ 0052; FIG. 2A illustrates a diagram 200 of an exemplary uplink transmit chain for the wireless device 102. A transmitter 218 can receive a digital data stream 202 for uplink data to be communicated wirelessly to a cellular wireless network through one or more antenna ports 214. A digital-to-analog converter (DAC) 204 of the transmitter 20 converts the digital data stream 202 into an analog signal which is modulated onto an uplink radio frequency (RF) carrier by an OFDM modulator 206 of the transmitter 218. The modulated analog signal is amplified by a power amplifier 208 and filtered through a suitable transmit (TX) filter 210 resulting in an amplified analog transmit data signal 212 that is transmitted wirelessly a radio link to a cellular wireless network via one or more antenna ports 214. When multiple antenna ports 214 (or antennas) are used, an UL transmission can be referred to as a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission, and can be used to improve data throughput and/or transmission reliability. The UL transmission output from the antenna ports 214 of the wireless device 102 are transmitted at a power level to allow for proper reception by cells of the cellular wireless network. The UL transmissions are limited by the wireless circuitry of the transmitter 218 and the transmission properties of the antenna ports 214. The UL transmissions from all antenna ports 214 of the wireless device 102 are required to meet regulatory requirements, such as a specific absorption rate (SAR) limit for human exposure to radio frequency (RF) energy. A maximum transmit power limit (MTPL) can be determined by the wireless device 102 for transmission via radio links used for UL transmission. The MTPL for various transmissions can depend on an RF band that is used, a radio access technology (RAT) of the transmission, a bandwidth of the transmission, and physical properties of antennas via which the transmission occurs. Different antenna ports 214 can have different MTPL values for different transmissions in different RF bands of the same RAT)
sending, via a transmitter coupled to one or more antennas, a first sounding reference signal (SRS) set to a network, the one or more antennas selected from the plurality of antennas based on the sensing data; (i.e. SRS resource set using multiple antenna; ¶ 0051; FIG. 1F illustrates a diagram 160 of another example of an SRS resource set 106-F used for UL sounding by a 2T4R wireless device 102. A gNodeB 112 configures the wireless device 102 with an SRS resource set 106-F designated for codebook usage and which includes a single SRS resource SRS-0 that has two SRS ports. The wireless device 102 can group together pairs of antennas based on hardware capabilities of the wireless device 102 and select a pair of antennas to use for UL transmission based on DL measurements of signals received via the antennas 104-A/B/C/D. In the example of FIG. 1F, the wireless device 102 pairs together antennas 104-A and 104-B in a first antenna group and antennas 104-C and 104-D in a second antenna group. The wireless device 102 can select an antenna group, e.g., antenna pair 104-A/B, and transmit the SRS resource SRS-0 via the selected antenna group to the gNodeB 112. The gNodeB 112 measures a received version of SRS-0, estimates an associated UL channel, and determines an UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use for subsequent transmissions. Unlike in the example of FIG. 1E, the wireless device 102 (and not the gNodeB 112) selects the antenna group (pair); however, the gNodeB 112 can select either antenna 104-A or 104-B or a combination of 104-A and 104-B for the wireless device 102 to use for UL transmissions based on the selected UL precoder. The gNodeB 112 sends a DCI message to the wireless device 102, the DCI message including a TPMI value indicating the selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to subsequently use. The wireless device 102 transmits the PUSCH to the gNodeB 112 using the selected precoder. The wireless device 102 can subsequently determine to switch between using the first antenna pair 104-A/B and the second antenna pair 104-C/D before sending the SRS resource SRS-0 to the gNodeB 112. The gNodeB 112 again measures a received version of SRS-0, estimates the UL channel, determines an UL precoder, and transmits a DCI message with a TPMI value indicating the determined UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use subsequently when transmitting the PUSCH to the gNodeB 112)
receiving, via a receiver coupled to the one or more antennas, an indication of a data layer transmission mode from the network; and sending, via the transmitter coupled to the one or more antennas, user data to the network using the data layer transmission mode. (i.e. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports; ¶ 0054; FIG. 2C illustrates diagrams 230, 232, 234 of exemplary UL precoding matrices with non-coherent antenna port selection. For single layer transmission, as shown by diagrams 230, 232, only one layer (as shown, layer 0) of data is scaled and transferred by the precoder 226 to the antenna ports. Sets of precoder matrices for different numbers of transmit layers are defined in 3GPP cellular wireless communications standards. A base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, indicates a selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use by sending a TPMI index value to the wireless device 102 in a DCI message. Different TPMI index values correspond to different precoding matrices. For single-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to selection of a first antenna port of an antenna port group, as shown in diagram 230, while a TPMI index value of ‘1’ corresponds to selection of a second antenna port of the antenna port group. In some embodiments, the wireless device 102 selects an antenna port group (e.g., pair of antennas as illustrated in FIG. 2C) using an open-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on DL performance monitoring via the different antenna ports. In some embodiments, the base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, of the cellular wireless network selects the antenna port group using a closed-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on UL measurements of SRS signals, and indicates the selected antenna port group by sending an SRS indicator (SRI) value to the wireless device 102, e.g., in the DCI message with the TPMI value that selects the precoding matrix. For two-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to mapping each layer independently to a separate antenna port of the antenna port group, e.g., layer 0 to a first antenna port and layer 1 to a second antenna port. The exemplary UL precoding matrices shown in FIG. 2C correspond to non-coherent transmission, where data from individual layers are only sent to individual antenna ports. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports).
As per claim 16, Zhang teaches:
The method of claim 15, comprising: sending, via the transmitter coupled to the one or more antennas, an indication to the network, the indication being configured to change the data layer transmission mode that the network assigned. (i.e. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports; ¶ 0054; FIG. 2C illustrates diagrams 230, 232, 234 of exemplary UL precoding matrices with non-coherent antenna port selection. For single layer transmission, as shown by diagrams 230, 232, only one layer (as shown, layer 0) of data is scaled and transferred by the precoder 226 to the antenna ports. Sets of precoder matrices for different numbers of transmit layers are defined in 3GPP cellular wireless communications standards. A base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, indicates a selected UL precoder for the wireless device 102 to use by sending a TPMI index value to the wireless device 102 in a DCI message. Different TPMI index values correspond to different precoding matrices. For single-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to selection of a first antenna port of an antenna port group, as shown in diagram 230, while a TPMI index value of ‘1’ corresponds to selection of a second antenna port of the antenna port group. In some embodiments, the wireless device 102 selects an antenna port group (e.g., pair of antennas as illustrated in FIG. 2C) using an open-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on DL performance monitoring via the different antenna ports. In some embodiments, the base station, e.g., gNodeB 112, of the cellular wireless network selects the antenna port group using a closed-loop antenna port group selection procedure, such as based on UL measurements of SRS signals, and indicates the selected antenna port group by sending an SRS indicator (SRI) value to the wireless device 102, e.g., in the DCI message with the TPMI value that selects the precoding matrix. For two-layer transmission, a TPMI index value of ‘0’ corresponds to mapping each layer independently to a separate antenna port of the antenna port group, e.g., layer 0 to a first antenna port and layer 1 to a second antenna port. The exemplary UL precoding matrices shown in FIG. 2C correspond to non-coherent transmission, where data from individual layers are only sent to individual antenna ports. Coherent transmission would allow for combining data from the individual layers before sending to the antenna ports).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 9, 17-20 objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. See attached form PTO-892 for cited references and the prior art made of record.
YANG et al. (US 20200112349) discloses:
Some techniques and apparatuses described herein permit a user equipment (UE) to be configured by a base station using a configuration that is not the same as a capability reported to the base station by the UE, thereby increasing flexibility in configurations and communication between the UE and the base station.
Sevindik (US 20230057805) discloses:
Methods and apparatus for increasing channel diversity in a MIMO system, e.g. a massive MIMO system, are described. Some selected sounding reference signal values are applied to control base station transmission for antennas, e.g., randomly or semi-randomly selected antennas, to which they do not actually correspond. The wireless terminal perceives this change as a change in channel conditions, which is subsequently reported in channel status information (CSI) to the base station. This results in increased channel diversity, which is beneficial to the base station scheduler.
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/SHARAD RAMPURIA/
Primary Patent Examiner
Art Unit 2641
Prosecution Insights