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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d).
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 12/24/2025 and 10/08/2024 were filed after the mailing date of the application on 10/08/2024. 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
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.
(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 1-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Dinan (US 2013/0028239), hereinafter Dinan.
Regarding Claim 1, Dinan teaches: A terminal apparatus comprising: radio resource control layer processing circuitry: “he wireless device 406 may include . . .at least one processor 408” (Dinan ¶ 0019) configured to configure a first time alignment timer and a second time alignment timer for a serving cell: “The number of time alignment timer to be maintained may be one per carrier group. Time alignment timers may be configured by the base station” (Dinan ¶ 0074) and “There may be one timing reference and one time alignment timer (time alignment timer) per carrier group. Time alignment timer for carrier groups may be configured with different values” (Dinan ¶ 0029); medium access control layer processing circuitry: “he wireless device 406 may include . . . at least one processor 408” (Dinan ¶ 0019); and reception circuitry: “he wireless device 406 may include at least one communication interface 407” (Dinan ¶ 0019) configured to receive a first TA command and a second TA command applied to the serving cell: “Carrier(s) may be grouped in carrier groups, and carrier groups may have their own downlink timing reference, time alignment timer, and/or time alignment commands. Group(s) may have their own random access process” (Dinan ¶ 0120), wherein the medium access control layer processing circuitry starts or restarts the first time alignment timer based at least on reception of the first TA command: “a wireless device may include a configurable timer (timeAlignmentTimer) that may be used to control how long the wireless device is considered uplink time aligned. When a timing alignment command MAC control element is received, the wireless device may apply the timing alignment command and start or restart timeAlignmentTimer” (Dinan ¶ 0120), the medium access control layer processing circuitry starts or restarts the second time alignment timer based at least on reception of the second TA command: “Base station 602 transmits time alignment commands to the wireless device. The time alignment commands are configured to cause adjustment of carrier(s) transmission time. The time alignment value for different carrier groups may be different. Upon reception of the commands by the wireless device 601, the wireless device 601 may adjust uplink carrier signal timings of the corresponding carrier group accordingly” (Dinan ¶ 0063), and in a case that the first time alignment timer or the second time alignment timer expires, the medium access control layer processing circuitry flushes all HARQ buffers for the serving cell: “When the time alignment timer associated with the first carrier group expires, all time alignment timers may be considered as expired and the wireless device may flush all HARQ buffers of all serving carriers . . . When the time alignment timer associated with second carrier group expires: . . . and/or d) MAC may flush the uplink HARQ buffers of the corresponding second carriers” (Dinan ¶ 0029).
Regarding Claim 2, Dinan teaches: A base station apparatus comprising: radio resource control layer processing circuitry: “The base station 401 may include . . . at least one processor 403” (Dinan ¶ 0019) configured to configure a first time alignment timer and a second time alignment timer for a serving cell: “The number of time alignment timer to be maintained may be one per carrier group. Time alignment timers may be configured by the base station” (Dinan ¶ 0074) and “There may be one timing reference and one time alignment timer (time alignment timer) per carrier group. Time alignment timer for carrier groups may be configured with different values” (Dinan ¶ 0029); and medium access control layer processing circuitry: “The base station 401 may include . . . at least one processor 403” (Dinan ¶ 0019); and transmission circuitry: “The base station 401 may include at least one communication interface 402” (Dinan ¶ 0019) configured to transmit a first TA command and a second TA command applied to the serving cell: “Carrier(s) may be grouped in carrier groups, and carrier groups may have their own downlink timing reference, time alignment timer, and/or time alignment commands. Group(s) may have their own random access process” (Dinan ¶ 0120), wherein the first time alignment timer is started or restarted by a terminal apparatus based at least on reception of the first TA command: “a wireless device may include a configurable timer (timeAlignmentTimer) that may be used to control how long the wireless device is considered uplink time aligned. When a timing alignment command MAC control element is received, the wireless device may apply the timing alignment command and start or restart timeAlignmentTimer” (Dinan ¶ 0120), the second time alignment timer is started or restarted by a terminal apparatus based at least on reception of the second TA command: “Base station 602 transmits time alignment commands to the wireless device. The time alignment commands are configured to cause adjustment of carrier(s) transmission time. The time alignment value for different carrier groups may be different. Upon reception of the commands by the wireless device 601, the wireless device 601 may adjust uplink carrier signal timings of the corresponding carrier group accordingly” (Dinan ¶ 0063), and in a case that the first time alignment timer or the second time alignment timer expires, all HARQ buffers for the serving cell are flushed: “When the time alignment timer associated with the first carrier group expires, all time alignment timers may be considered as expired and the wireless device may flush all HARQ buffers of all serving carriers . . . When the time alignment timer associated with second carrier group expires: . . . and/or d) MAC may flush the uplink HARQ buffers of the corresponding second carriers” (Dinan ¶ 0029).
Regarding Claim 3, Dinan teaches: A communication method used by a terminal apparatus, the method comprising: configuring a first time alignment timer and a second time alignment timer for a serving cell: “The number of time alignment timer to be maintained may be one per carrier group. Time alignment timers may be configured by the base station” (Dinan ¶ 0074) and “There may be one timing reference and one time alignment timer (time alignment timer) per carrier group. Time alignment timer for carrier groups may be configured with different values” (Dinan ¶ 0029); and receiving a first TA command and a second TA command applied to the serving cell: “Carrier(s) may be grouped in carrier groups, and carrier groups may have their own downlink timing reference, time alignment timer, and/or time alignment commands. Group(s) may have their own random access process” (Dinan ¶ 0120); starting or restarting the first time alignment timer based at least on reception of the first TA command: “a wireless device may include a configurable timer (timeAlignmentTimer) that may be used to control how long the wireless device is considered uplink time aligned. When a timing alignment command MAC control element is received, the wireless device may apply the timing alignment command and start or restart timeAlignmentTimer” (Dinan ¶ 0120); starting or restarting the second time alignment timer based at least on reception of the second TA command: “Base station 602 transmits time alignment commands to the wireless device. The time alignment commands are configured to cause adjustment of carrier(s) transmission time. The time alignment value for different carrier groups may be different. Upon reception of the commands by the wireless device 601, the wireless device 601 may adjust uplink carrier signal timings of the corresponding carrier group accordingly” (Dinan ¶ 0063); and in a case that the first time alignment timer or the second time alignment timer expires, flushing all HARQ buffers for the serving cell: “When the time alignment timer associated with the first carrier group expires, all time alignment timers may be considered as expired and the wireless device may flush all HARQ buffers of all serving carriers . . . When the time alignment timer associated with second carrier group expires: . . . and/or d) MAC may flush the uplink HARQ buffers of the corresponding second carriers” (Dinan ¶ 0029).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRADLEY DAVIS LYTLE whose telephone number is (703)756-4593. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Kwang bin Yao can be reached at 571-272-3182. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/B.D.L./Examiner, Art Unit 2473
/BRADLEY D LYTLE JR./Examiner, Art Unit 2473
/KWANG B YAO/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2473
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