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 .
Election/Restrictions
REQUIREMENT FOR UNITY OF INVENTION
As provided in 37 CFR 1.475(a), a national stage application shall relate to one invention only or to a group of inventions so linked as to form a single general inventive concept (“requirement of unity of invention”). Where a group of inventions is claimed in a national stage application, the requirement of unity of invention shall be fulfilled only when there is a technical relationship among those inventions involving one or more of the same or corresponding special technical features. The expression “special technical features” shall mean those technical features that define a contribution which each of the claimed inventions, considered as a whole, makes over the prior art.
The determination whether a group of inventions is so linked as to form a single general inventive concept shall be made without regard to whether the inventions are claimed in separate claims or as alternatives within a single claim. See 37 CFR 1.475(e).
When Claims Are Directed to Multiple Categories of Inventions:
As provided in 37 CFR 1.475 (b), a national stage application containing claims to different categories of invention will be considered to have unity of invention if the claims are drawn only to one of the following combinations of categories:
(1) A product and a process specially adapted for the manufacture of said product; or
(2) A product and a process of use of said product; or
(3) A product, a process specially adapted for the manufacture of the said product, and a use of the said product; or
(4) A process and an apparatus or means specifically designed for carrying out the said process; or
(5) A product, a process specially adapted for the manufacture of the said product, and an apparatus or means specifically designed for carrying out the said process.
Otherwise, unity of invention might not be present. See 37 CFR 1.475 (c).
Restriction is required under 35 U.S.C. 121 and 372.
This application contains the following inventions or groups of inventions which are not so linked as to form a single general inventive concept under PCT Rule 13.1.
In accordance with 37 CFR 1.499, applicant is required, in reply to this action, to elect a single invention to which the claims must be restricted.
Group I, claims 1-15, drawn to updating a transmission configuration indicator (TCI), in H04W 76/20.
Group II, claims 16-20, drawn to switching a bandwidth part (BWP), in H04W 72/0453.
The groups of inventions listed above do not relate to a single general inventive concept under PCT Rule 13.1 because, under PCT Rule 13.2, they lack the same or corresponding special technical features for the following reasons:
Groups I-II lack unity of invention because the groups do not share the same or corresponding technical feature.
During a telephone conversation with Greg Osterloth on 09/25/2026 a provisional election was made without traverse to prosecute the invention of Group I, claims 1-15. Affirmation of this election must be made by applicant in replying to this Office action. Claims 16-20 are withdrawn from further consideration by the examiner, 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a non-elected invention.
Applicant is reminded that upon the cancelation of claims to a non-elected invention, the inventorship must be corrected in compliance with 37 CFR 1.48(a) if one or more of the currently named inventors is no longer an inventor of at least one claim remaining in the application. A request to correct inventorship under 37 CFR 1.48(a) must be accompanied by an application data sheet in accordance with 37 CFR 1.76 that identifies each inventor by his or her legal name and by the processing fee required under 37 CFR 1.17(i).
Specification
The specification amendment submitted on 10/18/2024 which added the cross-reference to related applications has been accepted.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claims 9-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, or for pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Claim 9 recites “the common TCI indication” in line 2. It is unclear whether or not it is referring to “the common TCI ID indication” in claim 8. For the purpose of examination, examiner will interpret the claim as best understood.
Claim 10 recites “the common TCI indication” in line 2. It is unclear whether or not it is referring to “the common TCI ID indication” in claim 8. For the purpose of examination, examiner will interpret the claim as best understood.
Claim 11 recites “the common TCI indication” in line 2. It is unclear whether or not it is referring to “the common TCI ID indication” in claim 8. For the purpose of examination, examiner will interpret the claim as best understood.
Claim 12 recites “the common TCI indication” in lines 4-5. It is unclear whether or not it is referring to “the common TCI ID indication” in claim 8. For the purpose of examination, examiner will interpret the claim as best understood.
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 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, 6-8, and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Ryu et al. (US 2021/0084625 A1, hereinafter “Ryu”).
Regarding claim 1, Ryu discloses A user equipment (UE) [see Fig. 7-8, para. 125-141; a UE], comprising:
a transceiver [see Fig. 7-8, para. 125-141; a receiver and a transmitter]; and
a processor [see Fig. 7-8, para. 125-141; a processor] configured to,
receive, via the transceiver, a common transmission configuration indicator (TCI) identifier (ID) indication for a set of target component carriers (CCs) within a set of multiple CCs [see Fig. 6, step 615, para. 120, 242-244, 256-258; receiving a MAC-CE from a network entity indicating the identified active CCs (and/or BWPs), and the associated activated set of TCI states associated with each CC; also see Fig. 5, para. 115-116. Note that the MAC-CE has a format such as discussed in the examples of FIG. 2, 4, or 5];
identify, within the set of multiple CCs, the set of target CCs to which the common TCI ID indication applies [see Fig. 6, steps 620-630, para. 121-123, 242, 244, 247, 256, 259, 261-262; determining a first set of active TCI states for a first CC and a second set of active TCI states for a second CC based at least in part on the received MAC-CE]; and
activate, for each CC in the set of target CCs and in accord with the common TCI ID indication, a respective TCI state [see Fig. 6, steps 625-630, para. 122-123, 244-245, 248, 259-261; activating the first set of active TCI states for the first CC and the second set of active TCI states for the second CC based on the MAC-CE] in at least one TCI state list [see Fig. 5, para. 115-116; in a TCI state list of which TCI states are active in MAC-CE 520].
Regarding claim 2, Ryu discloses wherein: each CC in the set of multiple CCs has a same TCI configuration mode, selected from a joint TCI configuration mode or a separate TCI configuration mode [see para. 107, 247-248, 262-263; each CC in the active CCs has a same TCI configuration mode]; and
the set of target CCs includes each CC in the set of multiple CCs [see para. 107, 247-248, 262-263; the first/second CCs includes each CC in the active CCs; also see Fig. 5, para. 115-116].
Regarding claim 3, Ryu discloses wherein: a first subset of CCs in the set of multiple CCs is configured in a first TCI configuration mode [see Fig. 5, para. 115-116, 107, 247-248, 262-263; a first subset of CCs in the active CCs is configured with serving cell ID for BWP ID-1]; a second subset of CCs in the set of multiple CCs is configured in a second TCI configuration mode [see Fig. 5, para. 115-116, 107, 247-248, 262-263; a second subset of CCs in the active CCs is configured with serving cell ID for BWP ID-N]; and the processor identifies one of the first subset of CCs or the second subset of CCs as the set of target CCs [see Fig. 6, steps 620-630, para. 121-123, 242, 244, 247, 256, 259, 261-262; identifies one of the first subset of CCs or the second subset of CCs as the first/second CCs].
Regarding claim 6, Ryu discloses wherein: a first subset of CCs in the set of multiple CCs is configured in a first TCI configuration mode [see Fig. 5, para. 115-116, 107, 247-248, 262-263; a first subset of CCs in the active CCs is configured with serving cell ID for BWP ID-1]; a second subset of CCs in the set of multiple CCs is configured in a second TCI configuration mode [see Fig. 5, para. 115-116, 107, 247-248, 262-263; a second subset of CCs in the active CCs is configured with serving cell ID for BWP ID-N]; the processor identifies both the first subset of CCs and the second subset of CCs as the set of target CCs [see Fig. 6, steps 620-630, para. 121-123, 242, 244, 247, 256, 259, 261-262; identifies both the first subset of CCs or the second subset of CCs as the first/second CCs]; and the processor activates a first subset of respective TCI states for the first subset of CCs separately from a second subset of respective TCI states for the second subset of CCs [see Fig. 5, para. 115-116, Fig. 6, steps 625-630, para. 122-123, 244-245, 248, 259-261; activating a first subset of respective TCI states for the first subset of CCs separately from a second subset of respective TCI states for the second subset of CCs].
Regarding claim 7, Ryu discloses wherein the processor is configured to apply the common TCI ID indication to all configured bandwidth parts (BWPs) for the set of target CCs [see Fig. 5, para. 115-116, Fig. 6, para. 120-121, 242-263; configured bandwidth parts (BWPs) for first/second CCs according to the MAC-CE].
Regarding claim 8, Ryu discloses wherein the processor is configured to apply the common TCI ID indication to only active bandwidth parts (BWPs) for the set of target CCs [see Fig. 5, para. 115-116, Fig. 6, para. 120-121, 242-263; configured active bandwidth parts (BWPs) for first/second CCs according to the MAC-CE].
Regarding claim 13, Ryu discloses wherein the common TCI ID indication is received in a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) (MAC CE) on one CC and applied to the set of target CCs [see Fig. 6, step 615, para. 120, 242-244, 256-258; receiving the MAC-CE on one CC and applied to the first/second CCs].
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Lim et al. (US 2021/0360674 A1), discloses a device may monitor a first search space corresponding to an active first component carrier (e.g. corresponding to a primary cell in an NR wireless network), and may detect first control information (e.g. downlink control information, DCI) as a result of the monitoring of the first search space. The first control information may include a carrier indicator (e.g. a carrier indicator field, CIF) identifying an inactive (or deactivated) second component carrier (e.g. corresponding to a secondary cell in the NR wireless network). The device may activate the inactive second component carrier to make it an active second component carrier, at least in response to detecting the first control information. The device may also set up a second search space corresponding to the active second component carrier, monitor the second search space, and may decode a physical control channel in the second search space. The device may then receive a (first) physical data channel according to at least the decoding of the physical control channel.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to BRIAN T LE whose telephone number is (571)270-5615. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F 9AM-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, JAE LEE can be reached on 571-270-3936. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/BRIAN T LE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2469
