Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 18/836,393

USER EQUIPMENTS, BASE STATION DEVICES AND METHODS

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
Aug 07, 2024
Priority
Feb 10, 2022 — JP 2022-019488 +1 more
Examiner
ACOLATSE, KODZOVI
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Sharp Corporation
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
84%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
7m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 84% — above average
84%
Career Allowance Rate
777 granted / 929 resolved
+23.6% vs TC avg
Strong +21% interview lift
Without
With
+21.4%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 6m
Avg Prosecution
51 currently pending
Career history
985
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.5%
-39.5% vs TC avg
§103
85.1%
+45.1% vs TC avg
§102
12.1%
-27.9% vs TC avg
§112
0.8%
-39.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 929 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
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 . This is responsive to Application 18/836,393 filed 08/07/2024 in which claims 4-6 are presented for examination Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action: A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made. Claims 4-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Si (US 2022/0263619 A1) in view of Pan et al (US 2023/0327723 A1). Regarding claim 4, Si teaches a user equipment comprising: reception circuitry configured to receive a SS/PBCH block, a MIB including a higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon, and a Type0-PDCCH (Si: Figs. 5-6; [0115]-[0118], [0229]-[0238]; UE receives SS/PBCH and MIB with SubcarrierSpacingCommon) wherein monitoring occasions of the Type0-PDCCH are associated with the SS/PBCH block (Si: Figs. 5-6; [0015], [0115]-[0118] UE monitoring type0-PDCCH multiplexed with SS/PBCH); wherein and quasi co-location of reception of the Type0-PDCCH is assumed based on a value of the NSSBQCL (Si: Figs. 5-6; [0106]; [0184]). Si does not explicitly disclose in a case that the higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon indicates 'scs15or60', NSSBQCL = 32 is assumed for quasi co-location of reception of the SS/PBCH block. Pan teaches in a case that the higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon indicates 'scs15or60', NSSBQCL = 32 is assumed for quasi co-location of reception of the SS/PBCH block (Pan: Table 11; [0101]-[0102], [0105]-[0106] NSSBQCL = 32 SubcarrierSpacingCommon with scs15or16 when spare bit is set to 1). It would have been obvious to a person having an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Si in a case that the higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon indicates 'scs15or60', NSSBQCL = 32 is assumed for quasi co-location of reception of the SS/PBCH block as disclosed by Pan to provide a system for SSB acquisition (Pan: Abstract). Regarding claim 5, Si teaches a base station device comprising: transmission circuitry configured to transmit a SS/PBCH block, a MIB including a higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon, and a Type0-PDCCH (Si: Figs. 5-6; [0115]-[0118], [0229]-[0238]; UE receives SS/PBCH and MIB with SubcarrierSpacingCommon) wherein monitoring occasions of the Type0-PDCCH are associated with the SS/PBCH block (Si: Figs. 5-6; [0015], [0115]-[0118] UE monitoring type0-PDCCH multiplexed with SS/PBCH). Si does not explicitly disclose in a case that the higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon indicates 'scs15or60', NSSBQCL = 32 is assumed for quasi co-location of transmission of the SS/PBCH block and the Type0-PDCCH. Pan teaches in a case that the higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon indicates 'scs15or60', NSSBQCL = 32 is assumed for quasi co-location of transmission of the SS/PBCH block and the Type0-PDCCH (Pan: Table 11; [0101]-[0102], [0105]-[0106] NSSBQCL = 32 SubcarrierSpacingCommon with scs15or16 when spare bit is set to 1). It would have been obvious to a person having an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Si in a case that the higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon indicates 'scs15or60', NSSBQCL = 32 is assumed for quasi co-location of transmission of the SS/PBCH block and the Type0-PDCCH as disclosed by Pan to provide a system for SSB acquisition (Pan: Abstract). Regarding claim 6, Si teaches a method used by a user equipment comprising: receiving a SS/PBCH block, a MIB including a higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon, and a Type0-PDCCH (Si: Figs. 5-6; [0115]-[0118], [0229]-[0238]; UE receives SS/PBCH and MIB with SubcarrierSpacingCommon) wherein monitoring occasions of the Type0-PDCCH are associated with the SS/PBCH block (Si: Figs. 5-6; [0015], [0115]-[0118] UE monitoring type0-PDCCH multiplexed with SS/PBCH); wherein and quasi co-location of reception of the Type0-PDCCH is assumed based on a value of the NSSBQCL (Si: Figs. 5-6; [0106]; [0184]). Si does not explicitly disclose in a case that the higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon indicates 'scs15or60', NSSBQCL = 32 is assumed for quasi co-location of reception of the SS/PBCH block. Pan teaches in a case that the higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon indicates 'scs15or60', NSSBQCL = 32 is assumed for quasi co-location of reception of the SS/PBCH block (Pan: Table 11; [0101]-[0102], [0105]-[0106] NSSBQCL = 32 SubcarrierSpacingCommon with scs15or16 when spare bit is set to 1). It would have been obvious to a person having an ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the system of Si in a case that the higher layer parameter subCarrierSpacingCommon indicates 'scs15or60', NSSBQCL = 32 is assumed for quasi co-location of reception of the SS/PBCH block as disclosed by Pan to provide a system for SSB acquisition (Pan: Abstract). Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KODZOVI ACOLATSE whose telephone number is (571)270-1999. The examiner can normally be reached Monday to Friday 10 am to 6pm. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Avellino Joseph can be reached at (571) 272-3905. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /KODZOVI ACOLATSE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2478
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Aug 07, 2024
Application Filed
Jun 10, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12684535
SHARED RESOURCE POOLS BETWEEN TRANSMISSION AND RECEPTION POINTS WITH USER EQUIPMENT ASSISTANCE
3y 4m to grant Granted Jul 14, 2026
Patent 12677186
REALLOCATION OF PROCESSING LOAD BETWEEN BASEBAND UNITS
3y 7m to grant Granted Jul 07, 2026
Patent 12677268
METHODS FOR INSERTING AND EXTRACTING OPERATIONS, ADMINISTRATION, AND MAINTENANCE OF TRANSMITTING END, DEVICE, AND MEDIUM
3y 4m to grant Granted Jul 07, 2026
Patent 12672135
CONFIGURATION INFORMATION SENDING METHOD AND APPARATUS, AND REDUNDANCY VERSION RV VALUE DETERMINING METHOD AND APPARATUS
2y 8m to grant Granted Jun 30, 2026
Patent 12652705
RANDOM ACCESS METHOD AND APPARATUS IN WIRELESS COMMUNICATION SYSTEM
2y 4m to grant Granted Jun 09, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
84%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+21.4%)
2y 6m (~7m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 929 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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