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 .
Claim Interpretation
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(f):
(f) Element in Claim for a Combination. – An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
An element in a claim for a combination may be expressed as a means or step for performing a specified function without the recital of structure, material, or acts in support thereof, and such claim shall be construed to cover the corresponding structure, material, or acts described in the specification and equivalents thereof.
The claims in this application are given their broadest reasonable interpretation using the plain meaning of the claim language in light of the specification as it would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. The broadest reasonable interpretation of a claim element (also commonly referred to as a claim limitation) is limited by the description in the specification when 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is invoked.
As explained in MPEP § 2181, subsection I, claim limitations that meet the following three-prong test will be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph:
(A) the claim limitation uses the term “means” or “step” or a term used as a substitute for “means” that is a generic placeholder (also called a nonce term or a non-structural term having no specific structural meaning) for performing the claimed function;
(B) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is modified by functional language, typically, but not always linked by the transition word “for” (e.g., “means for”) or another linking word or phrase, such as “configured to” or “so that”; and
(C) the term “means” or “step” or the generic placeholder is not modified by sufficient structure, material, or acts for performing the claimed function.
Use of the word “means” (or “step”) in a claim with functional language creates a rebuttable presumption that the claim limitation is to be treated in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph. The presumption that the claim limitation is interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, is rebutted when the claim limitation recites sufficient structure, material, or acts to entirely perform the recited function.
Claim limitations in this application that use the word “means” (or “step”) are being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action. Conversely, claim limitations in this application that do not use the word “means” (or “step”) are not being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, except as otherwise indicated in an Office action.
Since the claim limitation(s) invokes 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, claim 29 has been interpreted to cover the corresponding structure described in the specification that achieves the claimed function, and equivalents thereof.
A review of the specification shows that the following appears to be the corresponding structure described in the specification for the 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph limitation in claim 29. For example, independent claim 29 claims a user equipment (UE), comprising: means for obtaining a first measurement of a positioning reference signal (PRS) resource in a first subset of contiguous physical resource blocks (PRBs) ...; means for obtaining a second measurement of the PRS resource in a second subset of contiguous PRBs...; and means for combining at least the first measurement and the second measurement to obtain a measurement of the PRS resource ([0008]).
If applicant does not intend to have this limitation interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph, applicant may: (1) amend the claim limitation to avoid it being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph (e.g., by reciting sufficient structure to perform the claimed function); or (2) present a sufficient showing that the claim limitation recites sufficient structure to perform the claimed function so as to avoid it being interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph.
For more information, see MPEP § 2173 et seq. and Supplementary Examination Guidelines for Determining Compliance With 35 U.S.C. 112 and for Treatment of Related Issues in Patent Applications, 76 FR 7162, 7167 (Feb. 9, 2011).
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, 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, 2, 11-14 and 16-29 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 20210185632 A1 (MANOLAKOS et al.) (hereinafter MANOLAKOS) in view of US 20230336310 A1 (ALAWIEH et al.) (hereinafter ALAWIEH).
In re claims 1, 16 and 29, MANOLAKOS discloses a method of wireless communication performed by a user equipment (UE) ([0007], “A user equipment (UE) receives and processes aggregated downlink (DL) positioning reference signals (PRS) transmitted by a transmission reception point (TRP) to increase the effective PRS bandwidth, thereby increasing positioning accuracy, such as time of arrival measurements”), and a user equipment (UE), comprising: a memory (Fig. 20:2004); at least one transceiver (Fig. 20:2010); and at least one processor (Fig. 20:2002) communicatively coupled to the memory and the at least one transceiver ([0214], “UE 115 may, for example, include one or more processors 2002, memory 2004, an external interface such as a transceiver 2010 (e.g., wireless network interface), which may be operatively coupled with one or more connections 2006 (e.g., buses, lines, fibers, links, etc.) to non-transitory computer readable medium 2020 and memory 2004”), the at least one processor configured to: obtain a first measurement of a positioning reference signal (PRS) resource in a first subset of contiguous physical resource blocks (PRBs) of a set of contiguous PRBs ([0090], “The UE 115 may receive the PRS transmission over the one or more PRS resources of the slot. The UE 115 may determine a report parameter for at least some of if not each PRS resource included in the transmission. The report parameter (which may include a report quantity) for each PRS resource may include one or more of a time of arrival (TOA), a reference signal time difference (RSTD), a reference signal receive power (RSRP), an angle, a PRS identification number, a reception to transmission difference (UE Rx-Tx), a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), or a reference signal receive quality (RSRQ)” (measurement of a PRS in a PRB slot)), wherein the set of contiguous PRBs spans an entire bandwidth of the PRS resource ([0007], “Each PRS component may be, e.g., a separate PRS resource associated with a contiguous frequency-domain bandwidth... PRS components of an aggregated DL PRS that are unpunctured, e.g., that are aligned in time and do not collide with higher priority signals, and are configured with common constraints are processed jointly by the UE assuming that the PRS components are transmitted from a same antenna port, thereby increasing the effective PRS bandwidth”), and wherein the PRS resource is transmitted in each PRB of the set of contiguous PRBs ([0088], “A base station 105 may configure a PRS transmission on one or more PRS resources of a channel. A PRS resource may span resource elements of multiple physical resource blocks (PRBs) within one or more OFDM symbols of a slot depending on a configured number of ports. For example, a PRS resource may span one symbol of a slot and contain one port for transmission); obtain a second measurement of the PRS resource in a second subset of contiguous PRBs of the set of contiguous PRBs, wherein the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs are in adjacent slots ([0088], “In any OFDM symbol, the PRS resources may occupy consecutive PRBs” (adjacent slots of PRB’s)); and combine at least the first measurement and the second measurement to obtain a measurement of the PRS resource ([0017], “process jointly the one or more PRS components for each aggregated PRS when the PRS components are configured with the same constraints”. [0052], “positioning reference signals (PRS) may be aggregated, e.g., combined at the receiver to span at least one of contiguous Component Carriers (CCs), bands, frequency layers, or bandwidths within a same band, or bandwidths of different bands, or a combination thereof. The use of aggregated DL PRS effectively increases the PRS bandwidth, which improves position measurements, e.g., by increasing the accuracy of time of arrival measurements”).
MANOLAKOS does not explicitly disclose obtain a first measurement of a positioning reference signal (PRS) resource in a first subset of contiguous physical resource blocks (PRBs) of a set of contiguous PRBs; obtain a second measurement of the PRS resource in a second subset of contiguous PRBs of the set of contiguous PRBs, wherein the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs are in adjacent slots.
ALAWIEH discloses obtain a first measurement of a positioning reference signal (PRS) resource in a first subset of contiguous physical resource blocks (PRBs) of a set of contiguous PRBs (Fig. 3, Fig. 17A, [0263], “In FIG. 17A, an intra-band contiguous scenario is shown, in which a first bandwidth part 1774, in which PRS resources are located, and a second bandwidth part 1784, in which O-PRS resource are located, are arranged contiguously within one frequency band”. [0264], “For example, if the UE does not support a measuring without measurement gap, the UE may be measuring only contiguous bandwidth parts”); obtain a second measurement of the PRS resource in a second subset of contiguous PRBs of the set of contiguous PRBs, wherein the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs are in adjacent slots ([0212], “The first radio resource 1874 is in a first frequency range 1879. The second radio resource 1884 is in a second frequency range 1889. The first frequency range 1879 and the second frequency range 1889 may be contiguous or non-contiguous. The first frequency range 1879 may be a first bandwidth part and the second frequency range 1889 may be a second bandwidth part. The apparatus 600 may measure the first radio resource 1874 and the second radio resource 1884 simultaneously”. [0016], “An embodiment may have an apparatus, e.g. a user device, UE, for a wireless communication network, having one or more antennas for receiving a radio signal, wherein the apparatus is configured or preconfigured to measure, for a position measurement, one or more first radio resources and one or more second radio resources”. [0088], “the first frequency layer is contiguous with the second frequency layer”. [0053], “As the user device may be subject to movement, a position measurement using reference signals within a short time period may yield a higher accuracy than a position measurement using reference signals distributed over a long time” (transmission from adjacent slots of PRB leads to higher accuracy). [0077], “According to an embodiment, one of the first radio resources is in a first frequency range, wherein one of the second radio resources is in a second frequency range (which may be different from the first frequency range), and wherein the first radio resource and the second radio resource are located within a common time period (e.g. within one radio frame, within one slot, or within a common set of OFDM symbols, or within one OFDM symbol), and wherein the apparatus is to measure aggregated radio resources so as to obtain a combined measurement information, the aggregated radio resources comprising the first radio resource and the second radio resource. That is, for example, the apparatus may coherently combine the two or more resources to extend the effective bandwidth over the first radio resource and the second radio resource. Thus, the measurement information may be based on a first reference signal transmitted on the first radio resource and a second reference signal transmitted on the second radio resource” (discloses combining PRS measurements from contiguous PRB slots to extend bandwidth). [0203], “FIGS. 12A and 12B illustrate examples of periodic arrangements of PRS within a radio frame. As described with respect to FIG. 2, a radio frame 204 may comprise subframes 206. In the example of FIG. 12A of a subcarrier spacing of 15 kHz, each subframe 206 comprises one slot. The shown PRS configuration comprises a 4-slot periodicity of slots 208a, which are configured as PRS resources”).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the teachings of MANOLAKOS with ALAWIEH to provide a method of measurements of reference signals transmitted across the full bandwidth in each slot wherein the UE is able to measure different portions of the PRS resource over the span of multiple slots. The advantage of doing so is to determine a final measurement which is more accurate, less retuning time and power saving for low tier UE’s.
In re claims 2 and 17, the combination discloses the method of claim 1 and the UE of claim 16, wherein ALAWIEH discloses wherein the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs are contiguous in frequency ([0212], “The first radio resource 1874 is in a first frequency range 1879. The second radio resource 1884 is in a second frequency range 1889. The first frequency range 1879 and the second frequency range 1889 may be contiguous or non-contiguous”).
In re claim 11, the combination discloses the method of claim 1, wherein ALAWIEH discloses the method further comprising: obtaining a third measurement of the PRS resource in a third subset of contiguous PRBs of the set of contiguous PRBs, wherein the second subset of contiguous PRBs and the third subset of contiguous PRBs are in adjacent slots (Fig. 2A, Fig. 3, Fig. 17A, [0071], “the apparatus is to measure two or more of the second resources simultaneously, i.e., the two or more second resources are located within an equivalent time frame or slot or set of one or more OFDM symbols”. [0078], “According to an embodiment, one of the first radio resources is in a first frequency range, and one of the second radio resources is in a second frequency range (which may be different from the first frequency range), wherein the first radio resource and the second radio resource are located within a common time period (e.g. within one radio frame, within one slot, or within a common set of OFDM symbols, or within one OFDM symbol)” (here it is measured over the second and third subset of PRB wherein the second and third subset configuration maybe adjacent slots)).
In re claim 12, the combination discloses the method of claim 11, wherein ALAWIEH discloses wherein: the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs are contiguous in frequency ([0212], “The first radio resource 1874 is in a first frequency range 1879. The second radio resource 1884 is in a second frequency range 1889. The first frequency range 1879 and the second frequency range 1889 may be contiguous or non-contiguous”. [0264], “For example, if the UE does not support a measuring without measurement gap, the UE may be measuring only contiguous bandwidth parts” (UE supports measurements without measurement gap)), the second subset of contiguous PRBs and the third subset of contiguous PRBs are dis-contiguous in frequency ([0212], “The first radio resource 1874 is in a first frequency range 1879. The second radio resource 1884 is in a second frequency range 1889. The first frequency range 1879 and the second frequency range 1889 may be contiguous or non-contiguous”. [0264], “For example, if the UE does not support a measuring without measurement gap, the UE may be measuring only contiguous bandwidth parts (here, UE supports measurements with measurement gap)), wherein MAOLAKOS discloses the first measurement and the second measurement are coarse measurements of the PRS resource, and the third measurement is a fine measurement of the PRS resource obtained based on the coarse measurement of the PRS resource ([0047], “The PRS are commonly transmitted using multiple Component Carriers, bands, frequency layers, or bandwidths in a same band, but each PRS is bandwidth limited. By aggregating the PRS for positioning, e.g., a UE or TRP may jointly process a plurality of PRS resources thereby increasing the effective bandwidth of the PRS to improve positioning accuracy” (measurement on individual first and second subset is course and then jointly processing in third measurement for finer accuracy). [0008], “receiving one or more aggregated PRS from the one or more second wireless entities, wherein each aggregated PRS comprise one or more PRS components transmitted from a same second entity, wherein each PRS component transmitted from the same second entity comprises a separate PRS resource associated with a contiguous frequency-domain bandwidth or comprises a plurality of frequency-domain bandwidths spanned by a single PRS resource; processing jointly unpunctured PRS components of the aggregated PRS that are aligned in time domain; performing positioning measurements using the processed aggregated PRS from the one or more second wireless entities; and transmitting location information based on the positioning measurements” (course measurements from first and second subset that are contiguous in frequency and then aggregating them for fine measurement and accuracy)0.
In re claims 13 and 27, the combination discloses the method of claim 1 and the UE of claim 16, wherein MANOLAKOS discloses wherein: obtaining the first measurement comprises measuring a first symbol of the PRS resource in the first subset of contiguous PRBs, obtaining the second measurement comprises measuring a second symbol of the PRS resource in the second subset of contiguous PRBs, and the second symbol is separated from the first symbol by a retuning gap ([0110], “The UE may be unable to transmit the UL PRS signal due to interruption caused by uplink or downlink RF retuning time. For example, during carrier switching or during an UL and/or DL retuning phase, rf-RetuningTimeUL and/or rf-RetuningTimeDL, the UE is unable to transmit UL PRS signals”). ALAWIEH also discloses (Fig. 2A, [0010], “As also illustrated in FIG. 2, for a subcarrier spacing of 30 kHz, one subframe 204 is subdivided into two slots, whereas for a subcarrier spacing of 240 kHz, one subframe 204 is subdivided into 16 slots 206. Each of the slots 206 is subdivided into 14 symbols 208”. [0077], “According to an embodiment, one of the first radio resources is in a first frequency range, wherein one of the second radio resources is in a second frequency range (which may be different from the first frequency range), and wherein the first radio resource and the second radio resource are located within a common time period (e.g. within one radio frame, within one slot, or within a common set of OFDM symbols, or within one OFDM symbol)”. [0264], “For example, if the UE does not support a measuring without measurement gap, the UE may be measuring only contiguous bandwidth parts” (measurement gap between the contiguous parts). [0283], “The network may also configure the UE with a measurement gap to perform the PRS measurements on the indicated resources”).
In re claim 14, the combination discloses the method of claim 13, wherein ALAWIEH discloses wherein the retuning gap is zero, one, or two symbols in length (Fig. 10, [0238], “In examples, a O-PRS resource can be configured to have one of semi-persistent, aperiodic and periodic configuration. For periodic and semi-persistent configuration, a periodicity may be configured, for example like the O-PRS. 1086 to FIG. 10. The periodicity may be configured based on a number of slots, such that the resource is transmitted once every N slots. As an example, for a subcarrier spacing configuration μ” (discloses spacing between symbols)). MANOLAKOS discloses symbol length ([0095], “A resource of one OFDM symbol length in the time domain and one subcarrier in the frequency domain (represented as a block of subframe 212) is referred to as a resource element (RE). Each grouping of the 12 subcarriers 216 and the 14 OFDM symbols is termed a resource block (RB) and, in the example above, the number of subcarriers in the resource block...” (common knowledge for a person skilled in art and minor design variation)).
In re claim 18, the combination discloses the UE of claim 17, wherein the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs overlap in frequency ([0212], “The first radio resource 1874 is in a first frequency range 1879. The second radio resource 1884 is in a second frequency range 1889” (frequency range). [0247], “In examples, the UE shall not expect to be configured with O-PRS over the symbols during which the UE is also configured with a PRS resources. If the UE is configured O-PRS resources having overlapping OFDM symbols with another PRS resource, the UE can assume that both resources are quasi co-located with QCL-typeD” (there can be overlap in frequency as one of the scenarios)).
In re claim 19, the combination discloses the UE of claim 18, wherein the overlap in frequency comprises: an overlap of a portion of a PRB of the first subset of contiguous PRBs and a portion of a PRB of the second subset of contiguous PRBs, or an overlap of one or more PRBs of the first subset of contiguous PRBs and one or more PRBs of the second subset of contiguous PRBs. ([0212], “The first radio resource 1874 is in a first frequency range 1879. The second radio resource 1884 is in a second frequency range 1889. The first frequency range 1879 and the second frequency range 1889 may be contiguous or non-contiguous. The first frequency range 1879 may be a first bandwidth part and the second frequency range 1889 may be a second bandwidth part”. [0247], “In examples, the UE shall not expect to be configured with O-PRS over the symbols during which the UE is also configured with a PRS resources. If the UE is configured O-PRS resources having overlapping OFDM symbols with another PRS resource, the UE can assume that both resources are quasi co-located with QCL-typeD” (All features are covered. One of the possible scenarios of the combinations)).
In re claim 20, the combination discloses the UE of claim 18, wherein MANOLAKOS discloses wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: estimate a phase offset between the first measurement and the second measurement based on the overlap in frequency ([0073], “The adjustment of signals communicated via the antenna elements may include a transmitting device or a receiving device applying certain phase offset”).
In re claim 21, the combination discloses the UE of claim 17, wherein MANOLAKOS discloses wherein: the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs are contiguous in frequency based on an inability of the UE to ensure that a phase offset between the first measurement and the second measurement is less than a threshold ([0016], “wherein PRS components in the aggregated PRS are configured with constraints comprising one or more of symbol indices that are not separated by more than a predefined number of symbols, slot indices that are not separated by more than a predefined number of slots...” (discloses constraints for performing aggregated measurements on PRS and phase offsets). [0150], “If the constraints on the configuration of the PRS components in an aggregated PRS instance are not the same or similar, the PRS components are not aligned, and accordingly, the receiving entity may process the PRS components separately. Thus, the PRS components of an aggregated PRS to be processed jointly should have the same or similar, e.g., within a predetermined threshold, constraints including one or more of symbol indices that are not separated by more than a predefined number of symbols (e.g., 14 number of symbols), slot indices that are not separated by more than a predefined number of slots (e.g., 10 number of slots), frames that are not separated by more than a predefined number of frames (e.g., 10 number of frames), subframes that are not separated by more than a predefined number of subframes (e.g., 10 number of subframes), a same periodicity, a same comb type, a same number of symbols, a same quasi-colocation (QCL) information, a “Start PRB” that is within a predefined threshold (e.g., the difference may not be more than 24 PRBs), a same subcarrier spacing, a same cyclic prefix (CP), a same muting configuration, and bandwidths that are within a predefined threshold (e.g., the ratio between the maximum bandwidth to the minimum bandwidth may not be more than 2), or a combination thereof. It should be understood that the specific numbers and thresholds provided above are exemplary and are not limiting, e.g., other numbers and thresholds may be used if desired” (here interpreted as inability to ensure that the phase offset is less than a threshold)).
In re claim 22, the combination discloses the UE of claim 17, wherein MANOLAKOS discloses wherein: the first measurement and the second measurement are coarse measurements of the PRS resource based on the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs being contiguous in frequency ([0007], “A user equipment (UE) receives and processes aggregated downlink (DL) positioning reference signals (PRS) transmitted by a transmission reception point (TRP) to increase the effective PRS bandwidth, thereby increasing positioning accuracy, such as time of arrival measurements...Each PRS component may be, e.g., a separate PRS resource associated with a contiguous frequency-domain... PRS components of an aggregated DL PRS that are unpunctured, e.g., that are aligned in time and do not collide with higher priority signals, and are configured with common constraints are processed jointly by the UE assuming that the PRS components are transmitted from a same antenna port, thereby increasing the effective PRS bandwidth”. [0047], “The PRS are commonly transmitted using multiple Component Carriers, bands, frequency layers, or bandwidths in a same band, but each PRS is bandwidth limited. By aggregating the PRS for positioning, e.g., a UE or TRP may jointly process a plurality of PRS resources thereby increasing the effective bandwidth of the PRS to improve positioning accuracy” (measurement on individual first and second subset is course and then jointly processing in third measurement for finer accuracy). [0008], “receiving one or more aggregated PRS from the one or more second wireless entities, wherein each aggregated PRS comprise one or more PRS components transmitted from a same second entity, wherein each PRS component transmitted from the same second entity comprises a separate PRS resource associated with a contiguous frequency-domain bandwidth or comprises a plurality of frequency-domain bandwidths spanned by a single PRS resource; processing jointly unpunctured PRS components of the aggregated PRS that are aligned in time domain; performing positioning measurements using the processed aggregated PRS from the one or more second wireless entities; and transmitting location information based on the positioning measurements” (for contiguous in frequency the PRS measurements from first and second subset are course and then aggregating the measurements for accuracy)).
In re claim 23, the combination discloses the UE of claim 16, wherein ALAWIEH discloses wherein the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs are dis-contiguous in frequency ([0212], “The first radio resource 1874 is in a first frequency range 1879. The second radio resource 1884 is in a second frequency range 1889. The first frequency range 1879 and the second frequency range 1889 may be contiguous or non-contiguous”. [0264], “For example, if the UE does not support a measuring without measurement gap, the UE may be measuring only contiguous bandwidth parts (here, UE supports measurements with measurement gap)).
In re claim 24, the combination discloses the UE of claim 23, wherein ALAWIEH discloses wherein: the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs are dis-contiguous in frequency ([0212], “The first radio resource 1874 is in a first frequency range 1879. The second radio resource 1884 is in a second frequency range 1889. The first frequency range 1879 and the second frequency range 1889 may be contiguous or non-contiguous) and wherein MANOLAKOS discloses based on a capability of the UE to ensure that a phase offset between the first measurement and the second measurement is less than a threshold ([0016], “wherein PRS components in the aggregated PRS are configured with constraints comprising one or more of symbol indices that are not separated by more than a predefined number of symbols, slot indices that are not separated by more than a predefined number of slots, frames that are not separated by more than a predefined number of frames, subframes that are not separated by more than a predefined number of subframes, a same periodicity, a same comb type, a same number of symbols, a same quasi-colocation (QCL) information, start physical resource block (PRB) that is within a predefined threshold, a same subcarrier spacing, a same cyclic prefix (CP), muting configuration, and bandwidth that are within a predefined threshold”. [0150], “If the constraints on the configuration of the PRS components in an aggregated PRS instance are not the same or similar, the PRS components are not aligned, and accordingly, the receiving entity may process the PRS components separately. Thus, the PRS components of an aggregated PRS to be processed jointly should have the same or similar, e.g., within a predetermined threshold, constraints including one or more of symbol indices that are not separated by more than a predefined number of symbols (e.g., 14 number of symbols), slot indices that are not separated by more than a predefined number of slots (e.g., 10 number of slots), frames that are not separated by more than a predefined number of frames (e.g., 10 number of frames), subframes that are not separated by more than a predefined number of subframes (e.g., 10 number of subframes), a same periodicity, a same comb type, a same number of symbols, a same quasi-colocation (QCL) information, a “Start PRB” that is within a predefined threshold (e.g., the difference may not be more than 24 PRBs), a same subcarrier spacing, a same cyclic prefix (CP), a same muting configuration, and bandwidths that are within a predefined threshold (e.g., the ratio between the maximum bandwidth to the minimum bandwidth may not be more than 2), or a combination thereof. It should be understood that the specific numbers and thresholds provided above are exemplary and are not limiting, e.g., other numbers and thresholds may be used if desired” (processed independently as separate if phase offset is greater than threshold)).
In re claim 25, the combination discloses the UE of claim 23, wherein MANOLAKOS discloses wherein: the first measurement and the second measurement are fine measurements of the PRS resource based on the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs being dis-contiguous in frequency (Fig. 12, [0007], “An aggregated DL PRS includes one or more PRS components that are transmitted from a same TRP. Each PRS component may be, e.g., a separate PRS resource associated with a contiguous frequency-domain bandwidth or may be, e.g., a plurality of frequency-domain bandwidths spanned by a single PRS resource. PRS components of an aggregated DL PRS that are unpunctured, e.g., that are aligned in time and do not collide with higher priority signals, and are configured with common constraints are processed jointly by the UE assuming that the PRS components are transmitted from a same antenna port, thereby increasing the effective PRS bandwidth”. [0147], “FIG. 12 illustrates an occasion 1200 that includes a plurality of PRS components PRS1, PRS2, PRS3, and PRS4 of an aggregated PRS, with PRS component PRS2 punctured by an SSB, but may be, e.g., punctured by UL (DL) symbols or may have a different slot structure than PRS components PRS1, PRS3 and PRS4. In one implementation, if in one of the PRS components, e.g., PRS2, the PRS is dropped in one or more of the OFDM symbols, then the receiving entity may jointly process 1202 contiguous PRS components PRS3 and PRS4 assuming that the PRS components PRS3 and PRS4 of the aggregated PRS are transmitted from a same antenna port, thereby increasing the effective PRS bandwidth of these PRS components. Any remaining unpunctured, non-contiguous PRS components in the aggregated PRS are processed 1204 by the receiving entity independently” (punctured or unpunctured non-contiguous PRS components are processed independently as they are dis-contiguous in frequency)).
In re claim 26, the combination discloses the UE of claim 16, wherein MANOLAKOS discloses wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: obtain a third measurement of the PRS resource in a third subset of contiguous PRBs of the set of contiguous PRBs, wherein the second subset of contiguous PRBs and the third subset of contiguous PRBs are in adjacent slots (Fig. 2, ([0088], “In any OFDM symbol, the PRS resources may occupy consecutive PRBs” (adjacent slots of PRB’s)). All features are covered in claim 16. See “In re claim 16”. Minor design variation. First and second subset can be interpreted as second and third subset in a series of slots)).
In re claim 28, the combination discloses the UE of claim 16, wherein MANOLAKOS discloses wherein: the set of contiguous PRBs comprises 272 PRBs, and the first subset of contiguous PRBs and the second subset of contiguous PRBs each comprise 24 contiguous PRBs ([0128], “In terms of DL PRS transmission (TX) power, conventionally, the UE assumes a constant EPRE for all resource elements (REs) of a given DL PRS Resource and that the DL PRS Resource TX power value range is the same as for synchronization signal block (SSB). Further, by agreement in RAN1, a UE includes a capability defined as the duration of DL PRS symbols in units of ms that the UE can process every T ms assuming 272 PRB allocation” [0154], “For example, the capabilities message may indicate a duration of DL PRS symbols in units of ms the UE 115 can process every T ms assuming 272 PRB allocation for different values of the number N of PRS components of an aggregated PRS”. [0150], “...a same number of symbols, a same quasi-colocation (QCL) information, a “Start PRB” that is within a predefined threshold (e.g., the difference may not be more than 24 PRBs)”).
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/SWATI JAIN/Examiner, Art Unit 2649
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