885DETAILED 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 office correspondence is in response to the application number 18/857394 filed on October 16, 2024.
Preliminary Amendment
Prior to examination on the merits, Applicant has requested amendments to the claims for examination. The amendments are accepted.
Claims 1 – 6, and 9 – 11 are amended.
Claims 7 – 8 are cancelled.
Claims 12 – 22 are added.
Claims 1 – 6 and 9 – 22 are pending.
Authorization for Internet Communications
The examiner encourages Applicant to submit an authorization to communicate with the examiner via the Internet by making the following statement (from MPEP 502.03):
“Recognizing that Internet communications are not secure, I hereby authorize the USPTO to communicate with the undersigned and practitioners in accordance with 37 CFR 1.33 and 37 CFR 1.34 concerning any subject matter of this application by video conferencing, instant messaging, or electronic mail. I understand that a copy of these communications will be made of record in the application file.”
Please note that the above statement can only be submitted via Central Fax (not Examiner's Fax), Regular postal mail, or EFS Web using PTO/SB/439.
Priority
This Application is the National Stage filing under 35 U.S.C. § 371 of PCT Application Ser. No. PCT/CN2022/087520 filed on April 18, 2022. The applicant is entitled to a priority date of 4/18/2022.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on October 16, 2024 and November 04, 2025 were filed on or after the mailing date of the application on October 16, 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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(d):
(d) REFERENCE IN DEPENDENT FORMS.—Subject to subsection (e), a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, fourth paragraph:
Subject to the following paragraph [i.e., the fifth paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112], a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
Claims 10 – 11 and 20 – 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(d) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 4th paragraph, as being of improper dependent form for failing to further limit the subject matter of the claim upon which it depends, or for failing to include all the limitations of the claim upon which it depends.
If said claims are meant to be independent claims, the claims should include all necessary limitations and not a reference to a different independent claim.
Applicant may cancel the claim(s), amend the claim(s) to place the claim(s) in proper dependent form, rewrite the claim(s) in independent form, or present a sufficient showing that the dependent claim(s) complies with the statutory requirements
35 USC § 101 Analysis – Judicial Exception
35 U.S.C. 101 reads as follows:
Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title.
The claimed invention is directed to statutory subject matter and are not rejected under 35 USC 101 because of a judicial exception.. The claimed subject matter is integrated into a practical application under prong 2 of the Step 2A analysis as documented in MPEP 2016.04(d). The claims are directed to non-abstract improvements in computer related technology. A claim is non-statutory when it is directed to a judicial exception (e.g. either one of mathematical concepts, mental processes, or certain methods of organizing human activity) without significantly more. The claimed invention is not directed to a judicial exception. Instead, the claimed invention is directed to a technological improvement for triggering a measurement report for a cell / base station, the process includes a terminal device receiving measurement configuration information sent by a network-side device, where the measurement configuration information includes a quantity configuration. Thereafter, determining a target access technology corresponding to the quantity configuration and a target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology, and performing at least one of the deleting stored report information corresponding to the target measurement index identifier, or stopping the running of a report timer corresponding to the target measurement index identifier. The ordered steps of the claim language provides efficiencies when performing measurement reports on a cell of an access technology which is not reconfigured, among a plurality of access technologies supported by a terminal device, and prevents the introduction of delays when performing measurement reports on a cell. Therein the claims are statutory under 35 U.S.C. 101.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 15 is objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Please refer to the claim analysis of said claims described below.
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 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 of this title, 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 – 6, 9 – 13, and 17 – 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being un-patentable over Ahlstrom et al. (U.S. 2021/0037435 A1; herein referred to as Ahlstrom) in view of Haustein et al. U.S. 2023/0189382 A!; herein referred to as Haustein) in further view of Tsuboi et al. (U.S. 2024/0057199 A1; herein referred to as Tsuboi).
In regard to claim 1, Ahlstrom teaches A measurement configuration processing method, performed by a terminal device (see Fig. 1 wireless device) (see abstract “ . . . the wireless device (111) may receive, from a network node (101), a measurement reporting configuration information element or a measurement identity information element of a measurement configuration that includes a list (127) of one or more cells for which to report a CGI or a list (129) of one or more cells for which not to report a CGI. . . .”) , comprising:
receiving measurement configuration information sent by a network-side device (see ¶ [0007] “ . . . , a method performed by a wireless device for handling measurements associated with a CGI includes receiving, by the wireless device, from a network node, a measurement reporting configuration information element or a measurement identity information element of a measurement configuration that includes one or more cells for which to report CGI or one or more cells for which not to report the CGI. . . .”), wherein the measurement configuration information comprises a quantity configuration (see ¶ [0050] “ . . . The measurement configuration includes the following parameters: (1) measurement objects; (2) reporting configurations; (3) measurement identities; (4) quantity configurations; and (5) measurement gaps. . . “) ;
determining a target access technology corresponding to the quantity configuration (see ¶ [0054] “ . . . Regarding quantity configurations, one quantity configuration is configured per radio access technology (RAT) type. The quantity configuration defines the measurement quantities and associated filtering used for all event evaluation and related reporting of that measurement type. . . .”)
Ahlstrom fails to explicitly teach,
However Haustein teaches and a target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology (see Haustein ¶ ¶ [0183 - 0200] “ . . . In connection with logging measurements, device 10 and/or device 20 may be configured for logging measurements for the measurement report together with a header, identifier, marker or stamp, i.e., additional information, containing one or more of: an absolute time a relative time a time relative to a slot a frame or the start of service (uptime) a speed over ground a location such as global positioning system (GPS) or other global navigation satellite system (GNNS) coordinates an altitude a cell-ID of the wireless communication network a beam ID of a beam in the wireless communication network an antenna pattern related to the beam and/or beam ID a cell sector a service set identifier (SSID) an internet service provider (ISP) a pathloss model (PLM) [0198] a mobile network operator (MNO) a radio access technology (RAT) connection type such as 5G, 4G, 3G, 2G, Y-5®, Bluetooth®, a long-range navigation (loran) and/or a service type such as voice over IP (Vol P), video on demand, augmented reality, virtual reality or the like . . .”);
It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the applicant’s application to incorporate systems and methods for obtaining a set of measurement results comprising at least one measurement result by measuring a radio link parameter associated with an operation of the wireless communication network, and generating a measurement report comprising a set of results having at least one measurement result of the set of measurement results, and which includes an identifier indicating a particular access technology type, and for transmitting the measurement report to an entity of the wireless communication network, as taught by Haustein, into a system and method for configuring a wireless device to report measurement details for one or more cells of the wireless communication network, as taught by Ahlstrom. Such incorporation provides identification of the access technology being applied for the measurement operation.
The combination of Ahlstrom and Haustein fails to explicitly teach ,
However Tsuboa teaches and performing at least one of the following: deleting stored report information corresponding to the target measurement index identifier,]or stopping a running of a report timer corresponding to the target measurement index identifier (see ¶ ¶ [0448 - 0450] “ . . . the measurement identifier (measId) is used for associating (or linking) the Measurement objects and the Reporting configurations, and specifically links measurement object identifiers (measObjectId) and reporting configuration identifiers (reportConfigId). One measurement object identifier (measObjectId) and one reporting configuration identifier (reportConfigId) are associated with the measurement identifier (measId). The measurement configuration can be added, modified, or removed for a relationship of the measurement identifiers (measId), the Measurement objects, and the Reporting configurations. The list of measurement identifiers to be removed included in the measurement configuration includes a list of measurement identifiers, and the terminal apparatus performs processing of the following (A) to (C) for each of the measurement identifiers included in the list of measurement identifiers to be removed: (A) remove an entry of the measurement identifier from the variable VarMeasConfig of the cell group as a measurement configuration object; (B) in a case of being included, remove an entry of the measurement report for the measurement identifier from the variable VarMeasReportList of the cell group as a measurement configuration object; (C) stop a timer used for a periodic report for the measurement identifier or a timer T321 in a case that the timer has been started, and reset related information for the measurement identifier. Note that the timer T321 is a timer started in a case that a measurement configuration including a reporting configuration for a purpose of measurement of a cell global identity is received. The timer is stopped in a case that an identifier of the reporting configuration for a purpose of measurement of the cell global identity is included in the list of reporting configurations to be removed to be described below, a case that a detected cell does not broadcast SIB1, or the like. The list of measurement identifiers to be added and/or modified included in the measurement configuration includes a list of measurement identifiers, and the terminal apparatus performs processing of the following (A) to (C) for each of the measurement identifiers included in the list of measurement identifiers to be added and/or modified: (A) in a case that an entry of a measurement identifier matching the measurement identifier is present in the list of measurement identifiers included in the variable VarMeasConfig of the cell group as a measurement configuration object, replace the entry with a value received for the measurement identifier (the value received for this measId). Otherwise, add the new entry for the measurement identifier to the variable VarMeasConfig of the cell group as a measurement configuration object; (B) in a case of being included, remove a measurement report entry for the measurement identifier from the variable VarMeasReportList of the cell group as a measurement configuration object; (C) stop a timer used for a periodic report for the measurement identifier or a timer T321 in a case that the timer has been started, and reset related information for the measurement identifier . . .”).
It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the applicant’s application to incorporate systems and methods to enable a terminal device to communicate with a base station for monitoring multiple cell groups and processing measurement reports as taught by Tsuboi, into a system and method for configuring a wireless device to report measurement details for one or more cells of the wireless communication network, and obtaining a set of measurement results comprising at least one measurement result by measuring a radio link parameter associated with an operation of the wireless communication network, and generating a measurement report comprising a set of results having at least one measurement result of the set of measurement results, and which includes an identifier indicating a particular access technology type, and for transmitting the measurement report to an entity of the wireless communication network, as taught by the combination of Ahlstrom and Haustein. Such incorporation provides a reporting system that can select which measurement information to report.
In regard to claim 2, the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsubio teaches wherein determining the target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology (see Haustein ¶ ¶ [0183 - 0200] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein) comprises:
determining the target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology according to a corresponding relationship between an access technology and a measurement index identifier (see Tsuboi ¶ [0459] “ . . . The measurement object identifier (measObjectId) is an identifier used for identifying a configuration of the Measurement objects. As described above, the configuration of the Measurement objects is defined for each radio access technology (RAT) and frequency, and further, in NR, for each subcarrier spacing. Separate specifications of the Measurement objects may be present for E-UTRA, UTRA, GERAN, and CDMA2000. The measurement object NR (measObjectNR) being the Measurement objects for NR defines information applied to the serving cell and neighbor cells of NR. Note that a correspondence between a measurement object of a measurement object identifier and a serving cell may be indicated by an information element (for example, a serving cell configuration) included in an RRC message including the measurement configuration and/or an RRC message not including the measurement configuration. . . .”)
The motivation to combine the references is described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein. Additionally, Tsubio provides a message object identifier for each access technology.
In regard to claim 3 the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsubio teaches, wherein the corresponding relationship between the access technology and the measurement index identifier comprises: an access technology of a measurement object corresponding to the measurement index identifier (see Tsubio ¶ [0457] “ . . . The Measurement objects are configured (defined) for each RAT and frequency. Note that, in a case that the RAT is NR, the measurement objects may be configured for each frequency and subcarrier spacing. The Reporting configurations may include a definition for NR and a definition for a RAT other than NR. ; or
an access technology of a report configuration corresponding to the measurement index identifier (see Tsubio ¶ [0469] “ . . . In reporting configurations InterRAT (reportConfigInterRAT) being the Reporting configurations for a RAT other than NR, multiple triggering conditions (triggering criteria) for an event used for reporting the measurement in a RAT other than NR are defined. For example, in a case that the measurement results of a neighbor cell (another RAT) are more satisfactory than a threshold b1_Threshold configured for each RAT after application of each parameter, an event B1 is caused. In a case that the measurement results of the PCell are poorer than a threshold b2_Threshold1 after application of each parameter, and the measurement results of a neighbor cell (another RAT) are more satisfactory than a threshold b2_Threshold2 configured for each RAT after application of each parameter, an event B2 is caused . . .”).; or
a corresponding relationship sent by the network-side device between an access technology and the measurement index identifier (see Tsubio ¶ [0468] “ . . . Multiple event triggering conditions for performing the measurement report are defined, each of which includes an entering condition and a leaving condition. In other words, the terminal apparatus that satisfies the entering condition for an event indicated by the base station apparatus transmits a measurement report to the base station apparatus. The terminal apparatus that satisfies the leaving condition for an event indicated from the base station apparatus transmits a measurement report to the base station apparatus in a case that the terminal apparatus is configured to trigger a report in a case that the terminal apparatus satisfies the leaving condition from the base station apparatus (in a case that reportOnLeave is included in the reporting configuration) . . .”)
In regard to claim 4, Ahlstrom teaches A measurement configuration processing method, performed by a network-side device (see Fig. 1 network node 101) (see ¶ [0003] “ . . . a network node configures a wireless device to report a CGI of a cell by updating a so-called measurement object at the wireless device. A measurement object in this regard is an object (e.g., carrier frequency or cell) on which the wireless device is to perform a measurement. In order to configure the wireless device to report the CGI for multiple cells, the network node correspondingly updates multiple measurement objects at the wireless device, one for each cell for which the wireless device is to report a CGI. . . .”), comprising:
sending measurement configuration information to a terminal device (see ¶ [0007] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein)., wherein the measurement configuration information comprises a quantity configuration(see ¶ [0050] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein) , the quantity configuration is used to determine a target measurement index identifier(see ¶ [0054] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein)
Ahlstrom fails to explicitly teach,
However Haustein teaches corresponding to a target access technology(see Haustein ¶ ¶ [0183 - 0200] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein) ,
The motivation to combine Haustein with Ahlstrom is described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein.
The combination of Ahlstrom and Haustein fails to explicitly teach ,
However Tsuboi teaches and the target measurement index identifier is used to determine at least one of: determine deleted stored report information or a running-stopped report timer (see ¶ ¶ [0448 - 0450] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein).
The motivation to combine Tsuboi with the combination of Ahlstrom and Haustein is described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein.
In regard to claim 5, the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsubio teaches wherein further comprises: determining the target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology according to a corresponding relationship between an access technology and a measurement index identifier (see Tsuboi ¶ [0459] as described for the rejection of claim 2 and is incorporated herein).
The motivation to combine the references is described for the rejection of claim 2 and is incorporated herein.
In regard to claim 6, the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsubio teaches, wherein the corresponding relationship between the access technology and the measurement index identifier comprises: an access technology of a measurement object corresponding to the measurement index identifier (see Tsubio ¶ [0457] as described for the rejection of claim 3 and is incorporated herein) ; or
an access technology of a report configuration corresponding to the measurement index identifier (see Tsubio ¶ [0469] as described for the rejection of claim 3 and is incorporated herein) ; or
a corresponding relationship sent to the terminal device between an access technology and the measurement index identifier (see Tsubio ¶ [0468] as described for the rejection of claim 3 and is incorporated herein)
The motivation to combine the references is described for the rejection of claim 3 and is incorporated herein.
In regard to claim 9, Ahlstrom teaches A communication apparatus, comprising a processor and a memory, and a computer program stored on the memory and capable of being run by the processor (see ¶ [0006] “ . . . a wireless device configured for handling measurements associated with a CGI includes a processor and a memory, the memory containing instructions executable by the processor whereby the wireless device is configured to receive, from a network node, a measurement object that includes an indication of one or more cells for which to report CGI or a list of one or more cells for which not to report the CGI . . . “) , wherein the processor is configured to:
receive measurement configuration information sent by a network-side device (see ¶ [0007] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein) , wherein the measurement configuration information comprises a quantity configuration (see ¶ [0050] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein);
determine a target access technology corresponding to the quantity configuration(see ¶ [0054] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein)
Ahlstrom fails to explicitly teach
However Haustein teaches and a target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology(see Haustein ¶ ¶ [0183 - 0200] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein) ,
The motivation to combine Haustein with Ahlstrom is described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein.
The combination of Ahlstrom and Haustein fails to explicitly teach ,
However Tsuboi teaches and perform at least one of: deleting stored report information corresponding to the target measurement index identifier, or stopping the running of a report timer corresponding to the target measurement index identifier (see ¶ ¶ [0448 - 0450] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein).
The motivation to combine Tsuboi with the combination of Ahlstrom and Haustein is described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein.
In regard to claim 10, Ahlstrom teaches A communication apparatus, comprising: a processor and an interface circuit; wherein the interface circuit is configured to receive a code instruction and transmit the code instruction to the processor (see ¶ [0006] as described for the rejection of claim 9 and is incorporated herein) ; and
the processor is configured to run the code instruction so as to execute the measurement configuration processing method according to claim 1 (see the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi as applied to the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein).
The motivation to combine the references is described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein.
In regard to claim 11, Ahlstrom teaches A non-transitory computer readable storage medium, used to store an instruction, wherein when the instruction is executed (see ¶ [0098] “ . . . embodiments herein also include a computer program product stored on a non-transitory computer readable (storage or recording) medium and comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform as described above. . . .”), the measurement configuration processing method according to claim 1 (see the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi as applied to the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein).
The motivation to combine the references is described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein.
In regard to claim 12, the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi teaches wherein determining the target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology (see Haustein ¶ ¶ [0183 - 0200] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein) comprises:
on a condition that the corresponding relationship between the access technology and the measurement index identifier comprises the access technology of the measurement object corresponding to the measurement index identifier, determining a measurement object corresponding to the target access technology according to the corresponding relationship between the measurement index identifier and the access technology of the measurement object stored, and determining the target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology (see Tsuboi ¶¶ [0617-0620] “ . . . The relaxed required condition may be a required condition defined in a specification in advance, or may be a required condition notified from the base station apparatus. The first condition may include a part or all of the conditions of the following (A) to (C): [0618] (A) the measurement objects are the inter-frequency measurements (the frequency of the measurement objects is a frequency other than the serving cell, or the frequency of the measurement objects is the serving frequency and a subcarrier spacing different from the serving cell is used); [0619] (B) the measurement objects are the inter-radio access technology measurements; [0620] (C) the measurement identifiers are not included in the conditional reconfiguration performing condition of the conditional reconfiguration. . . “).
The motivation to combine the references is described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein. Additionally Tsuboi coordinates a measurement object based on the access technology used for the measurements.
In regard to claim 13, the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi teaches wherein determining the target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology (see Haustein ¶ ¶ [0183 - 0200] as described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein) comprises:
on a condition that the corresponding relationship between the access technology and the measurement index identifier comprises the access technology of the report configuration corresponding to the measurement index identifier (see Haustein ¶ [0202] “ . . . Device 10 and/or device 20 may include or incorporate or comprise sensor elements and/or calculation units such as processors or the like that allow to determine the respective parameter. Alternatively or in addition, device 10 and/or device 20 may be configured for receiving information indicating a measurement result from another device, e.g., using a wired or wireless interface. Device 10 and/or 20 may be configured for generating the log and/or measurement report so as to comprise the received measurement results. For example, the received measurement result may be stored in the log 24 which may be stored in a memory to which device 20 has access. Optionally, the received information, e.g., the measurement result itself and a time information, may be updated by an own time information or the like. . . “) ,
determining a report configuration corresponding to the target access technology according to the corresponding relationship between the measurement index identifier and the access technology of the report configuration stored, and determining the target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology (see Tsuboi ¶¶ [0617-0620] “ . . . The relaxed required condition may be a required condition defined in a specification in advance, or may be a required condition notified from the base station apparatus. The first condition may include a part or all of the conditions of the following (A) to (C): (A) the measurement objects are the inter-frequency measurements (the frequency of the measurement objects is a frequency other than the serving cell, or the frequency of the measurement objects is the serving frequency and a subcarrier spacing different from the serving cell is used); (B) the measurement objects are the inter-radio access technology measurements; (C) the measurement identifiers are not included in the conditional reconfiguration performing condition of the conditional reconfiguration. . . “).
The motivation to combine the references is described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein. Additionally Tsuboi coordinates a measurement object based on the access technology used for the measurements.
In regard to claim 17, the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi teaches wherein the measurement configuration information comprises at least one of: a measurement object (see Ahlstrom ¶ [0003] “ . . . a network node configures a wireless device to report a CGI of a cell by updating a so-called measurement object at the wireless device. A measurement object in this regard is an object (e.g., carrier frequency or cell) on which the wireless device is to perform a measurement. In order to configure the wireless device to report the CGI for multiple cells, the network node correspondingly updates multiple measurement objects at the wireless device, one for each cell for which the wireless device is to report a CGI . . .”) , a report configuration (see Ahlstrom ¶ ¶ [0047-0049] “ . . . The wireless device 111 may be a user equipment (UE). A UE performs measurements to monitor and report the signal level and quality of its serving cell and neighboring cell(s). These measurements assist the radio network to choose a suitable serving cell for the UE. There are different reasons to relocate a UE from a current serving cell to another cell, such as coverage reasons, traffic load level or support of a specific service. UE measurements are configured by the radio network. Several parameters are involved to specify the conditions for measurements and reporting. In Long Term Evolution (LTE), for example, UE measurement configurations provided by the Evolved Universal mobile telecommunications system Terrestrial Radio Access Network (EUTRAN) to the UE are specified in the 3GPP TS 36.331 EUTRA radio resource control (RRC) Protocol Specification. The corresponding specification, 3GPP TS 38.331 NR RRC Protocol Specification, is currently being prepared for New Radio (NR) which is expected to be partly similar to the EUTRAN version where applicable. The measurement configuration framework in NR will be based on the framework from LTE, described in 3GPP TS 38.331. In NR, the network can configure an RRC_CONNECTED UE to perform cell level and beam level measurements and report them in accordance with the measurement configuration. The measurement configuration is provided by means of dedicated signaling. , or a measurement index identifier (see Ahlstrom Fig. 1A, ¶ [0037] “ . . . FIG. 1A illustrates an embodiment of a system 100 for handling measurements associated with a cell global identifier in accordance with various aspects as described herein. In FIG. 1A, the system 100 may include network nodes 101 (e.g., base station, gNB) and a wireless device 111 (e.g., UE). The network node 101 may serve, provide, or otherwise be associated with cell 103. The cell 103 in some sense may refer to the geographical coverage area of the network node 101, e.g., as covered by one or more particular carriers transmitted and/or received by the network node 101. The cell 103 in another sense, depending on its particular usage, may refer to or be associated with a carrier itself. . . .”).
In regard to claim 18, the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi teaches wherein the corresponding relationship between an access technology and a measurement index identifier(see Tsuboi ¶ [0459] as described for the rejection of claim 2 and is incorporated herein) is obtained through at least one of:
configuring by the network-side device (see Tsuboi ¶ [0466] “ . . . In a case that the event triggering conditions indicated by the event identifier (eventId) are satisfied, the terminal apparatus performs measurement report for the base station apparatus. The trigger quantity (triggerQuantity) is quantity used for evaluating the event triggering conditions. In other words, reference signal received power (RSRP) or reference signal received quality (RSRQ) is indicated. In other words, the terminal apparatus performs measurement of a downlink synchronization signal by using the quantity indicated by the trigger quantity (triggerQuantity), and determines whether or not the event triggering conditions indicated by the event identifier (eventId) are satisfied . . .”) ;
determining through communication protocol stipulation (e.g. trigger time) (see Tsuboi ¶ ¶ [0463-0464] “ . . . The reporting configuration identifier (reportConfigId) is an identifier used for identifying the Reporting configurations related to measurement. As described above, the Reporting configurations related to the measurement may include a definition for NR and a definition for a RAT (a part or all of UTRA, GERAN, CDMA2000, and E-UTRA) other than NR. The reporting configuration NR (reportConfigNR) being the Reporting configurations for NR defines triggering conditions (triggering criteria) of an event used for reporting the measurement in NR. The reporting configuration NR (reportConfigNR) may include a part or all of an event identifier (eventId), trigger quantity (triggerQuantity), hysteresis, trigger time (timeToTrigger), report quantity (reportQuantity), a maximum number of report cells (maxReportCells), a report interval (reportInterval), and the number of times of reporting (reportAmount) . . .”), or
obtaining from other terminal devices (see Tsuboi ¶ [0346] “ . . . In a case that the RRC reconfiguration message is notified to the terminal apparatus on SRB3, the configuration of the SCG may be notified by the configuration of above (C) of the RRCReconfiguration message. In a case that the RRC reconfiguration message is notified to the terminal apparatus on SRB1, the configuration of the SCG may be notified using the RRC reconfiguration message generated by the secondary node, which is included in above (E) of the RRCReconfiguration message generated by the master node. In this case, the configuration of the SCG may be notified using the configuration of above (C) included in the RRC reconfiguration message generated by the secondary node. Another message may be used for the configuration of the SCG. . . .:).
The motivation to combine Tsuboi with the combination of Ahlstrom and Haustein is described for the rejection of claim 1. Additionally, Tsuboi provided multiple objects for providing measurements based on the access technology.
In regard to claim 19, the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi teaches wherein the measurement configuration information comprises at least one of: a measurement object(see Ahlstrom ¶ [0003] as described for the rejection of claim 17 and is incorporated herein) , a report configuration (see Ahlstrom ¶ ¶ [0047-0049] as described for the rejection of claim 17 and is incorporated herein), or a measurement index identifier (see Ahlstrom Fig. 1A, ¶ [0037] as described for the rejection of claim 17 and is incorporated herein).
In regard to claim 20, Ahlstrom teaches A communication apparatus, comprising a processor and a memory, and a computer program stored on the memory and capable of being run by the processor(see ¶ [0006] “ . . . a wireless device configured for handling measurements associated with a CGI includes a processor and a memory, the memory containing instructions executable by the processor whereby the wireless device is configured to receive, from a network node, a measurement object that includes an indication of one or more cells for which to report CGI or a list of one or more cells for which not to report the CGI . . . “) , wherein the processor is configured to implement the measurement configuration processing method according to claim 4 (see the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi as applied to the rejection of claim 4 and is incorporated herein).
The motivation to combine the references is described for the rejection of claim 4 and is incorporated herein.
In regard to claim 21, Ahlstrom teaches A communication apparatus, comprising: a processor and an interface circuit; wherein the interface circuit is configured to receive a code instruction and transmit the code instruction to the processor (see ¶ [0006] as described for the rejection of claim 9 and is incorporated herein); and
the processor is configured to run the code instruction so as to execute the measurement configuration processing method according to claim 4 (see the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi as applied to the rejection of claim 4 and is incorporated herein).
The motivation to combine the references is described for the rejection of claim 4 and is incorporated herein.
In regard to claim 22, Ahlstrom teaches A non-transitory computer readable storage medium, used to store an instruction, wherein when the instruction is executed (see ¶ [0098] “ . . . embodiments herein also include a computer program product stored on a non-transitory computer readable (storage or recording) medium and comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform as described above. . . .”) , the measurement configuration processing method according to claim 4 is implemented (see the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi as applied to the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein).
The motivation to combine the references is described for the rejection of claim 1 and is incorporated herein.
Claims 14 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being un-patentable over Ahlstrom et al. (U.S. 2021/0037435 A1; herein referred to as Ahlstrom) in view of Haustein et al. U.S. 2023/0189382 A!; herein referred to as Haustein) in further view of Tsuboi et al. (U.S. 2024/0057199 A1; herein referred to as Tsuboi) as applied to Claims 1 – 6, 9 – 13, and 17 – 22 in further view of Tsuboi et al. (U.S. 2018/0227972 A1; herein referred to as Tsuboi2).
In regard to claim 14, the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, Tsuboi, and Tsuboi2 teaches wherein further comprises:
on a condition that the corresponding relationship between the access technology and the measurement index identifier comprises a corresponding relationship sent by the network-side device between the access technology and the measurement index identifier (see Tsuboi2 ¶ [0100] “ . . . The base station device assigns, to the frequency F1 and frequency F2 as measurement objects, an identifier 0 and an identifier 1, respectively, as the measurement object IDs, and reports this to the terminal device. Further, the base station device assigns reporting configurations including a reporting configuration 1, a reporting configuration 2, and a reporting configuration 3, with reporting configuration IDs including identifiers 0, 1, and 2, respectively, and reports such configurations to the terminal device. Furthermore, the base station device reports, to the terminal device, the measurement IDs, which are linked to the combinations of the measurement object identifiers and the reporting configuration identifiers . . .”),
receiving a list sent by the network-side device, wherein the list comprises at least one measurement index identifier (see Tsuboi2 Fig. 7 ¶ ¶ [0101-0102] “ . . . In FIG. 7, as a measurement ID #0, a combination of a measurement object with the identifier 0 (frequency F1), and the reporting configuration with the identifier 0 is specified. Likewise, a combination of the measurement object with the identifier 0 (frequency F1) and the reporting configuration with the identifier 1 is specified as a measurement ID #1, and a combination of the measurement object with the identifier 1 (frequency F2) and the reporting configuration with the identifier 2 is specified as a measurement ID #2. The measurement event information is, for example, information configured with measurement events indicating the following situations and parameters to determine the stated situations: a situation in which the reception quality of a cell-specific reference signal of the serving cell becomes worse/better than a given threshold; a situation in which the reception quality of a cell-specific reference signal of the neighboring cell becomes worse than that of the serving cell; a situation in which the reception quality of the neighboring cell becomes better than the given threshold, and the like, for example. In the parameters, pieces of information such as a threshold, an offset value, a time necessary for a measurement event to hold, and the like are configured. In NPL 4, for example, it is defined as a measurement event A4 that measurement reporting is triggered when the reception quality of a neighboring cell becomes better than a threshold (enter) (or when the reception quality is distanced from the above state (leave)). . . .”), or
comprise a measurement index identifier corresponding to at least one access technology, wherein the at least one access technology comprises a target access technology (see Tsuboi2 ¶ [0103] “ . . . The periodical measurement information includes purposes of the measurement, and the terminal device is notified of the following information: for example, the measurement is intended to report a cell of the highest reception power; the measurement is intended to acquire a cell global identifier included in the system information being broadcast in a cell of the measurement object frequency; and the like. In a case where the measurement is intended to acquire a cell global identifier, information telling from which cell a cell global identifier as the measurement object should be acquired is also included. In the case where the measurement is intended to acquire a cell global identifier, a value of a timer for the measurement (for example, a timer T321) is configured based on a Radio Access Technology (RAT), a multiplexing method, or the like to be a measurement object, and time counting of the timer is started. When the time counting of the stated timer expires, or when the measurement is completed before the expiration of the timer, measurement reporting is triggered. . . “).
It would have been obvious to one with ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the applicant’s application to incorporate systems and methods that enable a terminal device and base station to update measurement reporting procedures based on discovered updated configurations at the cell, as taught by Tsuboi2, into a system and method for configuring a wireless device to report measurement details for one or more cells of the wireless communication network, and obtaining a set of measurement results comprising at least one measurement result by measuring a radio link parameter associated with an operation of the wireless communication network, and generating a measurement report comprising a set of results having at least one measurement result of the set of measurement results, and which includes an identifier indicating a particular access technology type, and for transmitting the measurement report to an entity of the wireless communication network, and by monitoring multiple cell groups and processing measurement reports as taught by the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi. Such incorporation provides that the measurement processing to furnish reports can be optimized to report when a change occurs.
In regard to claim 16, the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, Tsuboi, and Tsuboi2 teaches wherein the measurement configuration processing method further comprises:
on a condition that the corresponding relationship between the access technology and the measurement index identifier comprises a corresponding relationship sent by the network-side device between the access technology and the measurement index identifier(see Tsuboi2 ¶ [0100] “ . . . The base station device assigns, to the frequency F1 and frequency F2 as measurement objects, an identifier 0 and an identifier 1, respectively, as the measurement object IDs, and reports this to the terminal device. Further, the base station device assigns reporting configurations including a reporting configuration 1, a reporting configuration 2, and a reporting configuration 3, with reporting configuration IDs including identifiers 0, 1, and 2, respectively, and reports such configurations to the terminal device. Furthermore, the base station device reports, to the terminal device, the measurement IDs, which are linked to the combinations of the measurement object identifiers and the reporting configuration identifiers . . .”) ,
receiving a list sent by the network-side device, wherein the list comprises all measurement index identifiers configured by the terminal device and the access technology corresponding to each measurement index identifier (see Tsuboi2 Fig. 7 ¶ ¶ [0101-0103] “ . . . In FIG. 7, as a measurement ID #0, a combination of a measurement object with the identifier 0 (frequency F1), and the reporting configuration with the identifier 0 is specified. Likewise, a combination of the measurement object with the identifier 0 (frequency F1) and the reporting configuration with the identifier 1 is specified as a measurement ID #1, and a combination of the measurement object with the identifier 1 (frequency F2) and the reporting configuration with the identifier 2 is specified as a measurement ID #2. The measurement event information is, for example, information configured with measurement events indicating the following situations and parameters to determine the stated situations: a situation in which the reception quality of a cell-specific reference signal of the serving cell becomes worse/better than a given threshold; a situation in which the reception quality of a cell-specific reference signal of the neighboring cell becomes worse than that of the serving cell; a situation in which the reception quality of the neighboring cell becomes better than the given threshold, and the like, for example. In the parameters, pieces of information such as a threshold, an offset value, a time necessary for a measurement event to hold, and the like are configured. In NPL 4, for example, it is defined as a measurement event A4 that measurement reporting is triggered when the reception quality of a neighboring cell becomes better than a threshold (enter) (or when the reception quality is distanced from the above state (leave)). The periodical measurement information includes purposes of the measurement, and the terminal device is notified of the following information: for example, the measurement is intended to report a cell of the highest reception power; the measurement is intended to acquire a cell global identifier included in the system information being broadcast in a cell of the measurement object frequency; and the like. In a case where the measurement is intended to acquire a cell global identifier, information telling from which cell a cell global identifier as the measurement object should be acquired is also included. In the case where the measurement is intended to acquire a cell global identifier, a value of a timer for the measurement (for example, a timer T321) is configured based on a Radio Access Technology (RAT), a multiplexing method, or the like to be a measurement object, and time counting of the timer is started. When the time counting of the stated timer expires, or when the measurement is completed before the expiration of the timer, measurement reporting is triggered. . . “).
The motivation to combine Tsuboi2 with the combination of Ahlstrom, Haustein, and Tsuboi is described for the rejection of claim 14 and is incorporated herein.
Claim Analysis For Allowable Subject Matter
In regard to claim 15, wherein determining the target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology comprises:
determining the target measurement index identifier corresponding to the target access technology in the list;
wherein the deleting stored report information corresponding to the target measurement index identifier comprises:
deleting the stored report information corresponding to the target measurement index identifier in the list.
This claim comprises allowable subject matter as it teaches subject matter that is distinctive from the cited prior art and other analogous art. The specification of the instant application highlights the limitations recited in the claim as the improvement over existing measurement processing algorithms. (see US 2025/0286795 A1; ¶ [0023], ¶¶ [0031-0032], ¶¶ [0039-0041]). The applicant is advised to provide as an ordered combination, integrating claims 3, 14, and 15 into the independent claims to put said claims in a condition for allowance. The applicant is invited to contact the examiner to discuss and move the prosecution forward.
Conclusion
There are prior art made of record which are not relied upon but are considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure. They are listed on the PTO-892 accompanying this action.
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/JAMES N FIORILLO/Examiner, Art Unit 2444