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
This is response to Application 18/844,922 filed on 09/06/2024 in which claims 1-14 and 16-21 are presented for examination.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claims 1-4, 8-10, 12-14, 16, 17, and 19-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Karunakaran et al. (WO 2020/239197 A1).
1. Regarding claims 1 and 17, Karunakaran teaches an apparatus (Figure 4) and method, comprising:
receiving, by a processor of a user equipment (UE), a configuration from a network configuring a set of configured grant (CG) resources (page 13 lines 1-13 transmit one or more configured grant messages); and
transmitting, by the processor, an indication to the network indicating a number of CG resources of the set of CG resources used or unused in transmission in an occasion (page 13 lines 1-13, page 24 lines 14-27 transmit feedback with an activity pattern report, number of CG transmissions and usage status).
2. Regarding claim 2, Karunakaran teaches, wherein the transmitting of the indication comprises transmitting the indication to indicate the number of CG resources used in transmission of varying sized data in the occasion (page 13 lines 1-13, page 24 lines 14-27 transmit feedback with an activity pattern report, number of CG transmissions and usage status).
3. Regarding claim 3, Karunakaran teaches, wherein the transmitting of the indication comprises transmitting the indication using a first CG resource of the set of CG resources used in an occasion (page 13 lines 1-13, page 24 lines 14-27 transmit feedback with an activity pattern report).
4. Regarding claims 4 and 19, Karunakaran teaches, wherein the transmitting of the indication comprises transmitting the indication using each CG resource of the set of CG resources used in the occasion (page 23 lines 24-32, report history of CG transmissions; periodically).
5. Regarding claims 8 and 20, Karunakaran teaches, wherein the transmitting of the indication comprises transmitting a last-CG indication to indicate whether a respective CG resource on which the last-CG indication is transmitted is a last CG resources of the set of CG resources to be used (page 13 lines 1-13, page 24 lines 14-27 transmit feedback with an activity pattern report).
6. Regarding claims 9 and 21, Karunakaran teaches wherein the transmitting of the indication comprises transmitting a countdown value indicating a number of one or more CG resources of the set of CG resources remaining to be used (page 13 lines 1-13, page 24 lines 14-27 transmit feedback with an activity pattern report).
7 Regarding claim 10, Karunakaran teaches, wherein the indication is in a form of a physical-layer buffer status report (BSR) (Page 8 lines 30-36 maintained by buffer status reports).
8. Regarding claim 12, Karunakaran teaches, wherein all CG resources in the set of CG resources are of a same size (page 33 lines 27-35 multiple configurations define a specific set of resources).
9. Regarding claim 13, Karunakaran teaches, wherein a size of a first CG resource in the set of CG resources is different than that of one or more other CG resources in the set of CG resources (page 33 lines 27-35 multiple configurations define a specific set of resources).
10. Regarding claim 14, Karunakaran teaches, wherein some or all CG resources in the set of CG resources are separated out in time (page 33 lines 27-35 multiple configurations define a specific set of resources; time-frequency plane).
11 Regarding claim 16, Karunakaran teaches, further comprising:
transmitting, by the processor, a stream of varying sized data using the indicated number of CG resources.
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 5-7 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Karunakaran et al. (WO 2020/239197 A1) in view of Bagheri et al. (US 2025/0220670 A1).
12. Regarding claim 5, Karunakaran does not explicitly disclose wherein the indication is indicated via a uplink control information (UCI).
Bagheri teaches wherein the indication is indicated via a uplink control information (UCI) (Paragraph [0068] signaled in the CG-UCI).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide wherein the indication is indicated via a uplink control information (UCI) as taught by Bagheri in the system of Karunakaran for configuration based on CG-UCI see abstract of Bagheri.
13. Regarding claim 6, Karunakaran does not explicitly disclose wherein the indication is indicated via a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE).
Bagheri teaches wherein the indication is indicated via a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) (Paragraph [0068] signaled in the CG-UCI).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide wherein the indication is indicated via a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) as taught by Bagheri in the system of Karunakaran for configuration based on higher layer see Paragraph [0068] of Bagheri.
14. Regarding claim 7, Karunakaran does not explicitly disclose wherein the indication is indicated via a CG uplink control information (CG-UCI).
Bagheri teaches wherein the indication is indicated via a CG uplink control information (CG-UCI) (Paragraph [0068] signaled in the CG-UCI).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide wherein the indication is indicated via a CG uplink control information (CG-UCI) as taught by Bagheri in the system of Karunakaran for configuration based on CG-UCI see abstract of Bagheri.
15. Regarding claim 18, Karunakaran does not explicitly disclose wherein the transmitting of the indication comprises transmitting the indication using a first CG resource of the set of CG resources to indicate the number of CG resource via a uplink control information (UCI), a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) or a CG-UCI.
Bagheri teaches wherein the transmitting of the indication comprises transmitting the indication using a first CG resource of the set of CG resources to indicate the number of CG resource via a uplink control information (UCI), a medium access control (MAC) control element or a CG-UCI (Paragraph [0068] signaled in the CG-UCI).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide wherein the transmitting of the indication comprises transmitting the indication using a first CG resource of the set of CG resources to indicate the number of CG resource via a uplink control information (UCI), a medium access control (MAC) control element or a CG-UCI as taught by Bagheri in the system of Karunakaran for configuration based on CG-UCI see abstract of Bagheri.
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Karunakaran et al. (WO 2020/239197 A1) in view of Pan et al. (US 2024/0172235 A1)
16. Regarding claim 11, Karunakaran does not explicitly disclose wherein the indication provides coarse data information, including a frame size, in a granularity level of a CG grant size.
Pan teaches wherein the indication provides coarse data information, including a frame size, in a granularity level of a CG grant size (Paragraph [0099] different sizes; granularity).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide wherein the indication provides coarse data information, including a frame size, in a granularity level of a CG grant size as taught by Pan in the system of Karunakaran for power saving see Paragraph [0099] of Pan.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure:
Chen et al. (US 2024/0334439 A1)
Guo et al. (US 2023/0217447 A1)
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DIANE LEE LO whose telephone number is (571)270-1952. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8 am - 5 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Faruk Hamza can be reached at (571)272-7969. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/DIANE L LO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2466
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