DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 1-2, 4-9, 11-14, and 16-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Beppler (Pub. No.: 2025/0374068 A1) in view of Miyagawa (Pub. No.: 2000/0123456 A1).
1) In regard to claim 16, Beppler discloses the claimed system for mitigating terrestrial network (TN) co-channel interference on a non-terrestrial network (NTN) uplink associated with a satellite of the NTN (fig. 1: 100), the system comprising:
one or more processors (fig. 1: 120 and fig. 4: 402); and
a non-transitory, computer-readable memory having instructions stored thereon (fig. 4: 404), which, when executed, cause the one or more processors to perform steps comprising:
obtaining, for each of a plurality of temporal frames, a stored set of interference mitigations for the temporal frame (¶0022), wherein each of the set of interference conditions is:
associated with a corresponding one of a set of interference conditions for the temporal frame, with a corresponding first operating parameters for application to TN communications by an implicated cell during the temporal frame, and with a corresponding second operating parameters for application to NTN uplink communications during the temporal frame, the first and second operating parameters being substantially orthogonal (¶0022 and ¶0051-¶0053); and
previously determined by predicting a beam coverage area of a beam being projected by the satellite for NTN uplink communications during the temporal frame, such that each of the set of interference conditions corresponds to an instance in which a cell coverage area of an implicated cell of a plurality of cells of the TN is overlapped by the beam coverage area and in which an implicated frequency range is assigned for both the NTN uplink communications in the beam and TN communications in the implicated cell during the temporal frame (¶0022 and ¶0054);
directing a terrestrial radio access network, for each of the stored set of interference mitigations during its corresponding temporal frame of the plurality of temporal frames, to apply the corresponding first operating parameters to the TN communications by the implicated cell (¶0022 server directs the terrestrial devices to modify their operating parameters or conditions to minimize the effects of co-channel interference); and
directing a non-terrestrial radio access network, for each of the stored set of interference mitigations during its corresponding temporal frame of the plurality of temporal frames, to apply the corresponding second operating parameters to the NTN uplink communications (¶0022 server directs the non-terrestrial devices to modify their operating parameters or conditions to minimize the effects of co-channel interference).
Beppler does not explicitly disclose an orthogonalization schedule, a corresponding first orthogonalization scheme scheduled, and a corresponding second orthogonalization scheme scheduled, and the first and second orthogonalization scheme being orthogonal.
However, Miyagawa discloses it has been known for a system for mitigating terrestrial network co-channel interference on a non-terrestrial network uplink to monitor an orthogonalization schedule, a corresponding first orthogonalization scheme scheduled, and a corresponding second orthogonalization scheme scheduled, and the first and second orthogonalization scheme being orthogonal (figs. 3-16 and ¶0061-¶0062).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the claimed invention was filed to allow the system of Beppler to provide a first orthogonalization scheme scheduled, and a corresponding second orthogonalization scheme scheduled, and the first and second orthogonalization scheme being orthogonal, as taught by Miyagawa.
One skilled in the art would be motivated to modify Beppler as described above in order to prevent interference between the terrestrial network and non-terrestrial network, as taught by Miyagawa.
2) In regard to claim 17 (dependent on claim 16), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the system of claim 16, wherein: each temporal frame is segmented into a plurality of time slots; and for each of the stored set of interference mitigations during its corresponding temporal frame of the plurality of temporal frames: the first orthogonalization scheme defines a first subset of the time slots to use for the TN communications; the second orthogonalization scheme defines a second subset of the time slots to use for the NTN uplink communications, wherein the first and second subsets of the time slots are temporally orthogonal; the directing the terrestrial radio access network comprises allocating the first subset of the time slots for the TN communications; and the directing the non-terrestrial radio access network comprises allocating the second subset of the time slots for the NTN uplink communications (Miyagawa figs. 4a & 4b and ¶0063-¶0065).
3) In regard to claim 18 (dependent on claim 16), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the system of claim 16, wherein: each temporal frame is segmented into a plurality of bandwidth parts; and for each of the stored set of interference mitigations during its corresponding temporal frame of the plurality of temporal frames: the first orthogonalization scheme defines a first subset of the bandwidth parts to use for the TN communications; the second orthogonalization scheme defines a second subset of the bandwidth parts to use for the NTN uplink communications, wherein the first and second subsets of the bandwidth parts are spectrally orthogonal; the directing the terrestrial radio access network comprises allocating the first subset of the bandwidth parts for the TN communications; and the directing the non-terrestrial radio access network comprises allocating the second subset of the bandwidth parts for the NTN uplink communications (Miyagawa figs. 3a & 3b and ¶0060-¶0062).
4) In regard to claim 19 (dependent on claim 16), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the system of claim 16, wherein: the first orthogonalization scheme defines a first cover code; the second orthogonalization scheme defines a second cover code, wherein the first cover code and the second cover code are code-wise orthogonal; and for each of the stored set of interference mitigations during its corresponding temporal frame of the plurality of temporal frames: the directing the terrestrial radio access network comprises multiplying the TN communications by the first cover code prior to transmitting the TN communications; and the directing the non-terrestrial radio access network comprises multiplying the NTN uplink communications by the second cover code prior to transmitting the NTN uplink communications (Miyagawa figs. 15 & 16 and ¶0111).
5) In regard to claim 20 (dependent on claim 16), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the system of claim 16, wherein: the non-transitory memory is disposed in a centralized network resource that is accessible to both the terrestrial radio access network and the non-terrestrial radio access network (Beppler fig. 1: 120).
6) In regard to claim 1, claim 1 is rejected and analyzed with respect to claim 16 and the references applied.
7) In regard to claim 2 (dependent on claim 1), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the method of claim 1, wherein the scheduling comprises: segmenting the temporal frame into a plurality of time slots; scheduling a first subset of the time slots as the first orthogonalization scheme for the TN communications by the implicated cell during the temporal frame; and scheduling a second subset of the time slots as the second orthogonalization scheme for the NTN uplink communications by the beam during the temporal frame, wherein the first and second subsets of the time slots are temporally orthogonal (Miyagawa figs. 4a & 4b and ¶0063-¶0065).
8) In regard to claim 4 (dependent on claim 2), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the method of claim 2, wherein the scheduling further comprises: determining a communication resource demand for the temporal frame indicating a demand for TN communication resources and/or for NTN uplink communication resources, and determining respective numbers of the plurality of time slots to allocate as each of the first and second subsets based on the communication resource demand (Miyagawa fig. 7b and ¶0075).
9) In regard to claim 5 (dependent on claim 1), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the method of claim 1, wherein the scheduling comprises: segmenting the implicated frequency range into a plurality of bandwidth parts; scheduling a first subset of the bandwidth parts as the first orthogonalization scheme for the TN communications by the implicated cell during the temporal frame; and scheduling a second subset of the bandwidth parts as the second orthogonalization scheme for the NTN uplink communications by the beam during the temporal frame, wherein the first and second subsets of the bandwidth parts are spectrally orthogonal (Miyagawa figs. 3a & 3b and ¶0060-¶0062).
10) In regard to claim 6 (dependent on claim 5), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the method of claim 5, wherein the scheduling further comprises: determining a communication resource demand for the temporal frame indicating a demand for TN communication resources and/or for NTN uplink communication resources, and determining respective numbers of the plurality of bandwidth parts to allocate as each of the first and second subsets based on the communication resource demand (Miyagawa fig. 6b and ¶0070).
11) In regard to claim 7 (dependent on claim 1), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the method of claim 1, wherein the scheduling comprises: determining a first cover code and a second cover code, such that the first cover code and the second cover code are code-wise orthogonal; scheduling multiplication of the TN communications by the first cover code prior to transmitting the TN communications during the temporal frame as the first orthogonalization scheme; and scheduling multiplication of the NTN uplink communications by the second cover code prior to transmitting the NTN communications during the temporal frame as the second orthogonalization scheme (Miyagawa figs. 15 & 16 and ¶0111).
12) In regard to claim 8, claim 8 is rejected and analyzed with respect to claim 16 and the references applied.
13) In regard to claim 9 (dependent on claim 8), claim 9 is rejected and analyzed with respect to claim 17 and the references applied.
14) In regard to claim 11 (dependent on claim 9), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the method of claim 9, further comprising: predicting a communication resource demand for the temporal frame indicating a demand for TN communication resources and/or for NTN uplink communication resources; and determining respective numbers of the plurality of time slots to allocate as each of the first and second subsets based on the communication resource demand (Miyagawa fig. 7b and ¶0075).
15) In regard to claim 12 (dependent on claim 8), claim 12 is rejected and analyzed with respect to claim 18 and the references applied.
16) In regard to claim 13 (dependent on claim 12), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the method of claim 12, further comprising: predicting a communication resource demand for the temporal frame indicating a demand for TN communication resources and/or for NTN uplink communication resources; and determining respective numbers of the plurality of bandwidth parts to allocate as each of the first and second subsets based on the communication resource demand (Miyagawa fig. 6b and ¶0070).
17) In regard to claim 14 (dependent on claim 8), claim 14 is rejected and analyzed with respect to claim 19 and the references applied.
Claims 3 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Beppler (Pub. No.: 2025/0374068 A1) in view of Miyagawa (Pub. No.: 2000/0123456 A1) and further in view of Bienas (Pub. No.: 2021/0352738 A1).
1) In regard to claim 3 (dependent on claim 2), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the method of claim 2.
Beppler and Miyagawa do not explicitly disclose the scheduling further comprises: computing a temporal confidence based on an amount of coordination between a terrestrial radio access network (T-RAN) directing the TN communications and a non-terrestrial radio access network (NT-RAN) directing the NTN communications; and scheduling a third subset of the time slots as one or more padding times based on the temporal confidence, wherein at least a portion of the third subset is temporally orthogonal to the first and second subsets.
However, Bienas discloses it has been known for a communication network to compute a temporal confidence based on an amount of coordination between a first network device and a second network device; and scheduling a third subset of the time slots as one or more padding times based on the temporal confidence, and at least a portion of the third subset is temporally orthogonal to the first and second subsets (fig. 8 discloses as a guard time and ¶0018-¶0020).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the claimed invention was filed to allow the method of Beppler to add a guard time in the communication between the devices, as taught by Bienas.
One skilled in the art would be motivated to modify Beppler as described above in order to allow a device to start transmitting without causing interference.
2) In regard to claim 10 (dependent on claim 9), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the method of claim 9.
Beppler and Miyagawa do not explicitly disclose directing the terrestrial radio access network and/or the non-terrestrial radio access network, for each of the stored set of interference mitigations during its corresponding temporal frame of the plurality of temporal frames, to allocate a third subset of the time slots of the temporal frame for one or more padding times based on a temporal confidence, wherein at least a portion of the third subset is temporally orthogonal to the first and second subsets, and wherein the temporal confidence is computed based on an amount of coordination between the terrestrial radio access network and the non-terrestrial radio access network.
However, Bienas discloses it has been known for a communication network to directing the terrestrial radio access network and/or the non-terrestrial radio access network, for each of the stored set of interference mitigations during its corresponding temporal frame of the plurality of temporal frames, to allocate a third subset of the time slots of the temporal frame for one or more padding times based on a temporal confidence, wherein at least a portion of the third subset is temporally orthogonal to the first and second subsets, and wherein the temporal confidence is computed based on an amount of coordination between the terrestrial radio access network and the non-terrestrial radio access network (fig. 8 discloses as a guard time and ¶0018-¶0020).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the claimed invention was filed to allow the method of Beppler to add a guard time in the communication between the devices, as taught by Bienas.
One skilled in the art would be motivated to modify Beppler as described above in order to allow a device to start transmitting without causing interference.
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Beppler (Pub. No.: 2025/0374068 A1) in view of Miyagawa (Pub. No.: 2000/0123456 A1) and further in view of Rakib (Pat. No.: 7,031,344 B2).
1) In regard to claim 15 (dependent on claim 14), Beppler and Miyagawa further disclose the method of claim 14, further comprising, for each of the stored set of interference mitigations during its corresponding temporal frame of the plurality of temporal frames.
Beppler and Miyagawa do not explicitly disclose directing a payload of the satellite to multiply the second cover code by NTN uplink signals received by the payload, the NTN uplink signals as received by the payload comprise a sum of: the TN communications multiplied by the first cover code and by one or more channel gains, and the NTN communications multiplied by the second cover code.
However, Rakib discloses it is known for a communication system to direct a payload of a device to multiply a cover code by an uplink signals received by the payload, the uplink signals as received by the payload comprise a sum of: the first network communications multiplied by the first cover code and by one or more channel gains, and the second network communications multiplied by the second cover code (fig. 23 and col. 101, lines 26-29).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the claimed invention was filed to allow the method of Beppler to direct a payload to be multiplied by a cover code, as taught by Rakib.
One skilled in the art would be motivated to modify Beppler as described above in order to improve interference resistance.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CURTIS J KING whose telephone number is (571)270-5160. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 6:00 - 2:00 EST.
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/CURTIS J KING/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2685
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