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 .
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.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1, 13 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang (US 2022/0015060 A1) in view of Haustein et al (US 2023/0189315 A1).
Claim 1. Wang shows a method (abstract) comprising: receiving, from a base station (figs. 1, 2 and 5: network device / cell / location management device), information related to a configuration of reference signals ([0053]: the network device pre-measures gains of each beam at different radiation angles; [0056]: reference signal configuration information and measurement reporting configuration information need to be configured for the terminal device first before DAOD measurement / [0150]: the terminal device receives the reference signal from the corresponding positioning cell based on the reference signal configuration information received from the location management device); receiving the reference signals from the base station ([0053]: sends a reference signal to a terminal device by using the three beams / [0150]: receives the corresponding reference signal configuration information from the location management device); transmitting the measurement information to the base station ([0055]: the terminal device feeds back measurement results to the network device / [0156]: the terminal device selects one receive beam that has a largest RSRP for baseline reference signal transmission); wherein the measurement information comprises at least one of information related to a structure of an antenna array of a user equipment (UE) ([0217]: the capability information of the terminal device includes any one or more of the following a quantity of receive beams, a quantity of receive antenna panels, whether path power reporting is supported, and a quantity of paths whose powers can be reported when path power reporting is supported) or a reception angle for the reference signals ([0160] – [0161]: the terminal device sends, to the location management device, a response message that carries the reference signal measurement result… the location management device obtains DAODs based on the reference signal measurement result).Wang does not expressly describe features of: generating measurement information based on the reference signals
receiving scheduling information from the base station; and receiving data transmitted according to the scheduling information from the base station.Haustein teaches features of: generating measurement information based on reference signals receiving scheduling information from a base station ([1463] – [1466]: a device for operating in a wireless communication system… using information indicating a set of reference signals used in the wireless communication system… generating a measurement report based on the measurement result and reporting the measurement report to the wireless communication system); and
receiving data transmitted according to the scheduling information from the base station ([1502]: requesting a schedule of downlink and/or uplink signals from the communication partner in the at least one selected future radio resources; [1528]: the device is configured for receiving, from the wireless communication system and responsive to transmitting the information or the request an indication indicating that the device is scheduled to receive information in the radio resource).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the features as taught by Haustein in the (UE) method of Wang to facilitate mitigating interference.
Claim 13. Wang shows a user equipment (UE) (figs. 1, 2, 5 and 9: terminal device) comprising: a transceiver (fig. 9: radio frequency circuit with antenna); and a processor connected to the transceiver (fig. 9: processor), wherein the processor is configured to: receive from a base station, information related to a configuration of reference signals ([0053]: the network device pre-measures gains of each beam at different radiation angles; [0056]: reference signal configuration information and measurement reporting configuration information need to be configured for the terminal device first before DAOD measurement / [0150]: the terminal device receives the reference signal from the corresponding positioning cell based on the reference signal configuration information received from the location management device); receive the reference signals from the base station ([0053]: sends a reference signal to a terminal device by using the three beams / [0150]: receives the corresponding reference signal configuration information from the location management device); transmit the measurement information to the base station ([0055]: the terminal device feeds back measurement results to the network device / [0156]: the terminal device selects one receive beam that has a largest RSRP for baseline reference signal transmission); wherein the measurement information comprises at least one of information related to a structure of an antenna array of the UE ([0217]: the capability information of the terminal device includes any one or more of the following a quantity of receive beams, a quantity of receive antenna panels, whether path power reporting is supported, and a quantity of paths whose powers can be reported when path power reporting is supported) or a reception angle for the reference signals ([0160] – [0161]: the terminal device sends, to the location management device, a response message that carries the reference signal measurement result… the location management device obtains DAODs based on the reference signal measurement result).Wang does not expressly describe features of: generating measurement information based on reference signals; receiving scheduling information from a base station; and receive data transmitted according to the scheduling information from the base station.Haustein teaches features of: generating measurement information based on reference signals receiving scheduling information from a base station ([1463] – [1466]: a device for operating in a wireless communication system… using information indicating a set of reference signals used in the wireless communication system… generating a measurement report based on the measurement result and reporting the measurement report to the wireless communication system); and
receiving data transmitted according to the scheduling information from the base station ([1502]: requesting a schedule of downlink and/or uplink signals from the communication partner in the at least one selected future radio resources; [1528]: the device is configured for receiving, from the wireless communication system and responsive to transmitting the information or the request an indication indicating that the device is scheduled to receive information in the radio resource).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the features as taught by Haustein in the UE of Wang to facilitate mitigating interference.
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Claim 14. Wang shows a base station (figs. 1, 2, 5, 7 and 8: network device / cell / location management device) comprising: a transceiver (figs. 7 and 8: transceiver); and a processor connected to the transceiver (figs. 7 and 8: processor), wherein the processor is configured to: transmit, to a user equipment (UE), information related to a configuration of reference signals ([0053]: the network device pre-measures gains of each beam at different radiation angles; [0056]: reference signal configuration information and measurement reporting configuration information need to be configured for the terminal device first before DAOD measurement / [0150]: the terminal device receives the reference signal from the corresponding positioning cell based on the reference signal configuration information received from the location management device); transmit the reference signals to the UE using an antenna array including a plurality of antenna elements ([0053]: sends a reference signal to a terminal device by using the three beams / [0150]: receives the corresponding reference signal configuration information from the location management device; [0217]: the capability information of the terminal device includes any one or more of the following a quantity of receive beams, a quantity of receive antenna panels; [0055]: the terminal device feeds back measurement results to the network device / [0156]: the terminal device selects one receive beam that has a largest RSRP for baseline reference signal transmission); wherein the measurement information comprises at least one of information related to a structure of an antenna array of the UE ([0217]: the capability information of the terminal device includes any one or more of the following a quantity of receive beams, a quantity of receive antenna panels, whether path power reporting is supported, and a quantity of paths whose powers can be reported when path power reporting is supported) or a reception angle for the reference signals ([0160] – [0161]: the terminal device sends, to the location management device, a response message that carries the reference signal measurement result… the location management device obtains DAODs based on the reference signal measurement result).Wang does not expressly describe features of: receiving measurement information generated based on the reference signals from the UE; transmitting scheduling information to the UE; and transmitting data according to the scheduling information.Haustein teaches features of: receiving measurement information generated based on reference signals from a UE ([1463] – [1466]: a device for operating in a wireless communication system… using information indicating a set of reference signals used in the wireless communication system… generating a measurement report based on the measurement result and reporting the measurement report to the wireless communication system); transmitting scheduling information to the UE ([1502]: requesting a schedule of downlink and/or uplink signals from the communication partner in the at least one selected future radio resources); and transmitting data according to the scheduling information ([1528]: the device is configured for receiving, from the wireless communication system and responsive to transmitting the information or the request an indication indicating that the device is scheduled to receive information in the radio resource).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the features as taught by Haustein in the base station of Wang to facilitate mitigating interference.
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Claims 2 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang in view of Haustein et al, applied to claims 1 and 14, and in further view of Huang et al (US 2022/0263238 A1).
Claim 2. Wang, modified by Haustein, shows the method of claim 1; Wang, modified by Haustein, does not expressly describe wherein the reference signals are transmitted to generate channel information per antenna element group of a first antenna element group and a second antenna element group defined by dividing antenna elements included in the antenna array without overlapping.Huang teaches feature of reference signals being transmitted to generate channel information per antenna element group of a first antenna element group and a second antenna element group defined by dividing antenna elements included in an antenna array without overlapping ([0089]: the line connecting the centers of the first antenna elements in the first antenna element group does not overlap with the straight line connecting the centers of the second antenna elements in the second antenna element group).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the non-overlapping scheme as taught by Huang in the antenna element groups of Wang, modified by Haustein, such that mutual coupling between a first antenna and a second antenna can be reduced, thereby improving the antenna performance and user wireless experience.
Claim 17. Wang, modified by Haustein, shows the base station of claim 14; Wang, modified by Haustein, does not expressly described wherein the reference signals are transmitted to generate channel information per antenna element group of a first antenna element group and a second antenna element group defined by dividing antenna elements included in the antenna array without overlapping.Huang teaches feature of reference signals being transmitted to generate channel information per antenna element group of a first antenna element group and a second antenna element group defined by dividing antenna elements included in an antenna array without overlapping ([0089]: the line connecting the centers of the first antenna elements in the first antenna element group does not overlap with the straight line connecting the centers of the second antenna elements in the second antenna element group).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to implement the non-overlapping scheme as taught by Huang in the antenna element groups of Wang, modified by Haustein, such that mutual coupling between a first antenna and a second antenna can be reduced, thereby improving the antenna performance and user wireless experience.
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Claims 6 and 21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang in view of Haustein et al, applied to claims 1 and 14, and in further view of Jiang et al (US 2024/0414655 A1).
Claim 6. Wang, modified by Haustein, shows the method of claim 1; Wang, modified by Haustein, does not expressly describe wherein the information related to the configuration of the reference signals comprises at least one of port information allocated to each antenna element group, resource information allocated to each antenna element group or orthogonal covering code (OCC) information allocated to each antenna element group.Jiang teaches feature of information related to configuration of reference signals comprises port information allocated to each antenna element group ([0132] – [0135]: the indication information provides an indication by using a bitmap to indicate the antenna element… each bit corresponds to one antenna element, or may correspond to one antenna element group… where the antenna port may be a port, or may be a port group, that is, each bit corresponds to one port, or may correspond to one port group, and for example, 8 bits are used to indicate 8 ports, that is, to indicate on/off states of “port 1” to “port 8”, where “1” means on, “0” means off, and information bits of “01111101” mean that “port 1” and “port 7” are off and that the other ports are on… using a bitmap to indicate the reference signal turned on and/or off by the network-side device, and mapping a bit to the reference signal on a one-to-one basis).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to configure information of the reference signals with port information as taught by Jiang in the reference signals information of each antenna element group of Wang, modified by Haustein, to enhance beamforming gain and directivity, reduce pilot overhead and simplify channel estimations.
Claim 21. Wang, modified by Haustein, shows the base station of claim 14; Wang, modified by Haustein, does not expressly describe wherein the information related to the configuration of the reference signals comprises at least one of port information allocated to each antenna element group, resource information allocated to each antenna element group or orthogonal covering code (OCC) information allocated to each antenna element group.Jiang teaches feature of information related to configuration of reference signals comprises port information allocated to each antenna element group ([0132] – [0135]: the indication information provides an indication by using a bitmap to indicate the antenna element… each bit corresponds to one antenna element, or may correspond to one antenna element group… where the antenna port may be a port, or may be a port group, that is, each bit corresponds to one port, or may correspond to one port group, and for example, 8 bits are used to indicate 8 ports, that is, to indicate on/off states of “port 1” to “port 8”, where “1” means on, “0” means off, and information bits of “01111101” mean that “port 1” and “port 7” are off and that the other ports are on… using a bitmap to indicate the reference signal turned on and/or off by the network-side device, and mapping a bit to the reference signal on a one-to-one basis).It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to configure information of the reference signals with port information as taught by Jiang in the reference signals information of each antenna element group of Wang, modified by Haustein, to enhance beamforming gain and directivity, reduce pilot overhead and simplify channel estimations.
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Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 3, 4, 5, 18, 19 and 20 are 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.
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Conclusion
The prior art made of record is considered pertinent to applicant’s disclosure.
1. Kong et al, US 2020/0209296 A1: a system for determining beam dynamics and multi-user performance of a base station, the base station having a base station antenna array comprising a plurality of antenna elements, the system comprising a measurement probe antenna positioned in a mid-field of the base station antenna array, the measurement probe antenna providing measurement signals for measuring antenna element patterns of the plurality of antenna elements in the base station antenna array, respectively; a coupling probe array, comprising a plurality of coupling probe antennas, positioned in a reactive field of the base station antenna array for coupling radio frequency (RF) signals, received from and/or transmitted to the plurality of antenna elements in the base station antenna array over-the-air, to selected coupling probe antennas of the plurality of coupling probe antennas to form a high dimension radiation channel matrix between the base station antenna array and the coupling probe array; an anechoic chamber housing at least the base station, the measurement probe antenna, the reference antenna and the coupling probe array; a channel emulator configured to receive the measured antenna element patterns from the measurement probe antenna, to receive the RF signals coupled to the selected coupling probe antennas, to provide bi-directional channel models of channels between the base station and a plurality of user devices, respectively, based on the received RF signals, and to jointly emulate the measured antenna element patterns, user equipment (UE) antenna patterns of the user devices, and the bi-directional channel models to provide bi-directional spatial channel emulation for each of the plurality of user devices, enabling measurement by the channel emulator of beam dynamics of the plurality of antenna elements in the base station antenna array and interference among the plurality of user devices; and an RF switch configured to selectively connect the selected coupling probe antennas of the plurality of coupling probe antennas to the channel emulator, the selected coupling probe antennas corresponding to the plurality of antenna elements in the base station antenna array, respectively, enabling the channel emulator to provide the bi-directional channel models, wherein each of the selected coupling probe antennas is determined for each of the antenna elements as having a strongest power from among the plurality of coupling probe antennas with respect to an antenna element of the plurality of antenna elements.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Xavier Szewai Wong whose telephone number is 571.270.1780. The examiner can normally be reached on 11:30 am - 8:30 pm Mon to Fri.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jeffrey Rutkowski can be reached on 571.270.1215. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/XAVIER S WONG/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2415 27th September 2026
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