DETAILED ACTION
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 a non-final action for application number 18/838,010 in response to an original application filed on 08/13/2024.
Claims 3-12 and 18-27 are currently pending and have been considered below.
Claims 1, 2, 13-17 and 28 have been cancelled.
Claims 3 and 18 are independent claims.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS), submitted on 08/13/2024 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 § 103
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent may not be obtained though the invention is not identically disclosed or described as set forth in section 102 of this title, if the differences between the subject matter sought to be patented and the prior art are such that the subject matter as a whole would have been obvious at the time the invention was made to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which said subject matter pertains. Patentability shall not be negatived by the manner in which the invention was made.
Claims 3-5, 9-12, 18-20 and 24-27 are rejected under pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Dang et al. (US 2022/0046517 A1) in view of Maattanen et al. (US 2023/0319661 A1)
Regarding claims 3 and 18, a method, comprising: searching, by a user equipment, for a public land mobile network, [taken into account in the Srxlev evaluation as a result of a periodic search for a higher priority PLMN while camped normally in a VPLMN, (Dang et al., Paragraph 225), Extract of the Cell Selection procedure (RRC): [0203] Cell Search (PSS and SSS)—RRC asks PHY [0204] UE PHY scans the UE supported frequencies and reports the cells allowed to access, (Dang et al., Paragraphs 202-205)],
in response to finding a public land mobile network transmitting, using a geostationary system, one or more messages comprising coverage information for one or more non-geostationary satellites in a non-terrestrial network, [the wireless communication system is configured to broadcast a parameter set for generating the list and/or signaling, (Dang et al., Paragraph 100)],
receiving by the user equipment the one or messages, [the user device (UE) is configured to receive and/or store a parameter set for generating the list, (Dang et al., Paragraph 50)],
updating by the user equipment preferences used for a list used for public land mobile network selection, [As shown in FIG. 4, the left column of the list contains the IDs of the transmission points, which are subject of the access control, i.e. IDs of satellites or base stations, which are barred, (Dang et al., Paragraph 135 Figure 4)], to make one or more public land mobile networks corresponding to the coverage information as higher priority than other public land mobile networks in the list, [Qrxlev-min-offset Offset to the signaled Qrxlev-min taken into account in the Srxlev evaluation as a result of a periodic search for a higher priority PLMN while camped normally in a VPLMN, (Dang et al., Paragraph 225)],
Dang et al. fails to explicitly teach performing by the user equipment one or more cell searches for cells from the one or more non-geostationary satellites using the updated list,
Maattanen et al. teaches that the wireless device receives a parameter from a network node. The parameter includes an indication to search for a TN though the NTN provides coverage for the wireless device. Based on the parameter, the wireless device searches for the TN and prioritizes the TN over the NTN when selecting the TN for cell reselection, (Maattanen et al., Paragraph 57),
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of the invention was made to modify Dang et al. by performing by the user equipment one or more cell searches for cells from the one or more non-geostationary satellites using the updated list, (Maattanen et al., Paragraph 57), in order to configure priorities which govern how the UE performs cell reselection between carrier frequencies and RATs, (Maattanen et al., Paragraph 26).
Regarding claims 4 and 19, the method wherein the searching for a public land mobile network further comprises scanning, by the user equipment while listening to the geostationary system, radio frequency channels to search for a network, and the receiving is performed in response to finding the public land mobile network transmitting the one or more messages while performing the scanning, [Extract of the Cell Selection procedure (RRC): [0203] Cell Search (PSS and SSS)—RRC asks PHY [0204] UE PHY scans the UE supported frequencies and reports the cells allowed to access, (Dang et al., Paragraph 204)].
Regarding claims 5 and 20, the method further comprising listening by the user equipment to a public land mobile network based on priorities in the list, but where the user equipment does not try to register or register in the public land mobile network to which the user equipment is listening, [Similar to avoiding the selection of defined cell using blacklist in the UE, an in-line interference causing NGSO transmission point could be identified during the Cell Selection Procedure. Then, this NGSO transmission point would be restricted from access. Cell Selection is performed via the RRC protocol using (pre-)defined parameter values to allow/restrict access to cell, (Dang et al., Paragraph 201)].
Regarding claims 9 and 24, the method wherein the one or more messages are system information block messages, [The broadcast of the above mentioned parameters may be done in the MIB, SIB1, SIB2 or new SIB specific for NTN, (Dang et al., Paragraph 170)].
Regarding claims 10 and 25, the method wherein the coverage information contains information for cell searches to be performed in the non-terrestrial network by the user equipment, [The list may contain static and dynamic content as shown in FIG. 4. So not for all entries, validity information is needed to avoid more signalling overhead. [0139] The validity information may be specified individually, i.e., time window may vary dependent on the position of the UE. Hence, the validity information may be specified for individual UEs, (Dang et al., Paragraph 137)].
Regarding claims 11 and 26, the method wherein the information for the cell searches comprises one or more or the following:
A time window where the one or more non-geostationary satellites will be available in the area of a current geostationary cell in the geostationary system, The validity information may be specified individually, i.e., time window may vary dependent on the position of the UE. Hence, the validity information may be specified for individual UEs, (Dang et al., Paragraph 137)].
the one or more public land mobile networks associated to the one or more non- geostationary satellites;
one or more frequency channels available in the one or more non-geostationary satellites; or
a coverage likelihood indicating how likely it is to get connectivity from the one or more non-geostationary satellites in the current geostationary cell.
Regarding claims 12 and 27, the method wherein the information for the cell searches comprises a list comprising one or more of the following:
a. a further list of public land mobile networks that maintain roaming agreements for the one or more non-geostationary satellites with the public land mobile network associated to the one or more non-geostationary satellites;
b. ephemeris information of the one or more non-geostationary satellites, [The parameter set includes at least one or more of an user device antenna configuration [e.g., antenna orientation, lobe characteristics, beam width], an user device (UE) position [e.g., geographic coordinates, tracking area ID], a first transmission point position [e.g., NGEO, ephemeris data, two-line data], a second transmission point position [e.g., GEO, ephemeris data, two-line data] and an antenna configuration of the first and second transmission points (TPs), (Dang et al., Paragraph 50)].
C. beam polarization for the one or more non-geostationary satellites;
d. doppler pre-compensation used in the one or more non-geostationary satellites; or
e. available physical cell identifiers for cells created by the one or more non- geostationary satellites.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 6-8 and 21-23 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Shukri Taha whose telephone number is 571-270-1921. The examiner can normally be reached 8:30am-5pm Mon-Fri.
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/SHUKRI TAHA/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2478
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