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 .
Status of claims
Claims 1–13, 15–18, 21–22, and 25 are pending. Claims 14, 19–20, 23–24, and 26 are canceled. Claims 10–11 contain allowable subject matter but depend from rejected claims and are objected to. Claims 17 and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102. Claims 1–9, 12–13, 15–16, 18, 21, and 25 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103.
References
Lu et al., WO 2021/087963 A1, published May 14, 2021.
He et al. (Samsung), US 2020/0336253 A1, published October 22, 2020.
Xu et al. (Qualcomm), WO 2021/203326 A1, published October 14, 2021.
Fujitsu, WO 2021/205611 A1, published October 14, 2021.
Li et al. (Asustek), US 2021/0250954 A1, published August 12, 2021.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
Claims 17 and 22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as anticipated by Fujitsu.
Regarding claim 17, Fujitsu discloses “A method for resource determination, wherein the method is performed by a network side device, and the method comprises:”
Fujitsu’s base station 1 determines parameters for sidelink resource selection by communication device 2 (Fujitsu, FIG. 22, control unit 11 and resource-selection discussion).
“sending a slot parameter M to a terminal device, wherein M is a positive integer and M>1.”
Fujitsu base-station control unit 11 determines Y, the number of slots in the selection candidate slot set, and notifies terminal device 2 by PDCCH or RRC (Fujitsu, FIG. 22 and associated control-unit description; FIGS. 14–16). The disclosed plural-slot example includes Y = 9, a positive integer greater than one. Claim 17 does not require M to represent the length of a contiguous selected resource, so the network-sent Y is the recited M.
Regarding Claim 22, Fujitsu discloses “A network side device, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor executes the computer program stored in the memory to cause the device to perform the method according to claim 17.”
Fujitsu FIG. 22 depicts base station 1 with control unit 11 implemented by a processor and storage unit 12 storing the software program executed by that processor. The control unit determines candidate-slot-count Y and notifies communication device 2 by PDCCH or RRC (Fujitsu, FIG. 22 and accompanying description). These components perform the method of claim 17 as mapped immediately above.
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.
Claim(s) 1-3,5-9,13,15-16,21 and 25 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lu et al. (WO 2021/087963 A1, published May 14, 2021,hereinafter Lu) in view of He et al., US 2020/0336253 A1, published October 22, 2020, hereinafter Samsung).
Regarding Claim 1, Claim 1 recites “A method for resource determination, wherein the method is performed by a terminal device, and the method comprises:”
Lu discloses a first terminal device selecting resources for first data from candidates in a sidelink resource pool (Lu, description of the first selection manner and FIGS. 7–8, 12). Samsung discloses terminal PSSCH transmission in NR V2X (Samsung, FIG. 13 and accompanying discussion).
“determining a first resource based on a slot parameter M, wherein a time domain length of the first resource is M consecutive slots, M is a positive integer and M>1, and the first resource is used for a Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH) or a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH) transmission.”
Lu selects an initial resource Ri and further candidate resources based on a target count and time interval (Lu, FIGS. 7–8, 12). Samsung expressly discloses PSSCH transmissions of one TB in consecutive slots and a one-slot time gap configured through DCI or RRC (Samsung, FIG. 13 and accompanying discussion). Lu does not expressly designate the selected run as a single resource having M consecutive slots. Selecting the target count M > 1 with a one-slot interval and treating that run as the first resource for the disclosed PSSCH transmissions would have applied Samsung’s known consecutive-slot transmission arrangement to Lu’s resource-selection procedure, yielding the predictable selection of adjacent occasions for sidelink transmission. The PSCCH alternative need not independently be met.
Lu does not expressly disclose requiring the selected resources to be M immediately consecutive PSSCH transmission slots as one first resource. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to set Lu’s target count to M > 1 and its time interval to Samsung’s one-slot interval because this produces the adjacent transmission occasions needed for Samsung’s consecutive PSSCH transmission, with a predictable M-slot run.
Regarding claim 2, Claim 2 recites “The method according to claim 1, wherein determining the first resource based on the slot parameter M comprises:”
The two recited acts are mapped separately below.
“receiving the slot parameter M sent by a network side device, wherein the slot parameter M is used to indicate the number of consecutive slots for the PSSCH or the PSCCH transmission; and”
Samsung states that DCI or RRC signaling may indicate a time-domain gap of one slot or a number of consecutive slots for a PSSCH transmission (Samsung, FIG. 13 discussion). Configuring that number as the M-slot length for the claimed consecutive transmission is the proposed combination with Lu. This is a modification of Samsung’s disclosed signaling, not an express quotation of a parameter named M.
“based on the slot parameter M, performing random resource selection in a candidate resource set to determine the first resource, wherein a slot length of each candidate resource in the candidate resource set is M slots.”
Lu randomly selects initial candidate Ri from the resource pool (Lu, FIG. 12, initial-resource-selection step); Samsung identifies consecutive PSSCH slots (FIG. 13). Lu does not expressly randomly select an entire M-slot candidate as a single candidate. In the proposed combination, the candidate set is constructed from eligible M-slot runs and Lu’s random choice is made among those runs, rather than among single-slot starting positions. Each run therefore has the recited M-slot length. This predictable candidate representation avoids selecting a starting slot without the requisite following M−1 slots; it is an obviousness inference, not express disclosure.
Lu does not expressly disclose network signaling of M as the number of consecutive PSSCH slots or random selection among candidates each already M slots long. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to use the signaled count M to define eligible M-slot candidate runs before applying Lu’s random choice because prequalifying each run prevents choosing an initial slot whose following M−1 slots are unavailable.
Regarding Claim 3, Claim recites :
“The method according to claim 2, wherein the first resource further comprises L subCH sub-channels which are continuous or discrete in a frequency domain, and frequency domain resource starting positions and ending positions are the same or different between adjacent slots, wherein L subCH is a positive integer.”
Lu identifies a single-slot PSSCH/PSCCH candidate as LsubCH contiguous subchannels in a resource pool, with LsubCH a positive integer (Lu, candidate-resource and selection-window description, FIG. 3). Lu also permits a zero frequency interval when selecting additional slots (Lu, FIG. 12 and accompanying discussion), which keeps the same subchannel starting and ending positions across adjacent slots in the proposed one-slot-spaced run. The continuous-subchannel and same-position alternatives are relied upon; discrete subchannels or differing positions are not needed.
Lu does not expressly disclose their application across the M consecutive transmission slots recited through claim 2. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to retain Lu’s zero-frequency-offset allocation across Samsung’s successive slots because a fixed subchannel position avoids reallocating the frequency resource for each slot.
Regarding Claim 5, Claim 5 recites : “The method according to claim 1, wherein determining the first resource based on the slot parameter M comprises:”
The claim specifies the manner of determining the first resource.
“based on the slot parameter M, determining the first resource from a candidate resource set, wherein a time domain length of each candidate resource in the candidate resource set is a single slot.”
Lu defines candidate sidelink resources associated with individual slots and selects an initial candidate and further candidates from them (Lu, FIGS. 7–8, 12 and selection-window description). Each constituent candidate occupies one slot; Samsung FIG. 13 provides the consecutively spaced transmission occasions. Choosing M such one-slot candidates provides the first resource as combined for claim 1.
Lu does not expressly disclose the M consecutive slots of the first resource. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to assemble M of Lu’s one-slot candidates at Samsung’s one-slot spacing because those constituents furnish the transmission occasions for Samsung’s consecutive-slot PSSCH.
Regarding Claim 6, Claim 6 recites “The method according to claim 5, wherein determining the first resource from the candidate resource set based on the slot parameter M comprises at least one of:”
The claim recites “at least one of” two selection alternatives. The first alternative is relied upon.
“based on the slot parameter M, performing multiple resource selections from the candidate resource set to determine the first resource, wherein a slot length for each resource selection is a single slot; or”
Lu selects an initial one-slot resource and repeatedly selects additional one-slot resources until the target count is reached (Lu, FIG. 12 and first selection manner). Samsung’s one-slot time gap (FIG. 13) supplies M adjacent slots in the claim 1 combination. Each selection is of a single-slot constituent.
“based on the slot parameter M, performing one resource selection from the candidate resource set to determine the first resource, wherein a slot length for the one resource selection is M slots.”
This is the alternative to the preceding recitation. A separate express teaching of one selection of an M-slot candidate is not relied upon for this disjunctive ground. The modification concerning an M-slot candidate in claim 2 is addressed above.
Lu does not expressly disclose that the selected individual slots form the claim 1 M-consecutive-slot PSSCH run. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to perform Lu’s existing one-slot selection M times at Samsung’s adjacent-slot spacing because Lu’s iterative selection already obtains a desired resource count.
Regarding claim 7, claim 7 recites “The method according to claim 6, wherein performing multiple resource selections from the candidate resource set based on the slot parameter M to determine the first resource comprises:” The multiple-selection alternative of claim 6 is the basis for this dependency.“randomly selecting a first candidate resource x from the candidate resource set; and” Lu states that the first terminal device may randomly select initial resource Ri corresponding to slot Ti from the candidates (Lu, FIG. 12 and initial-resource discussion). This is first candidate x.
“based on the first candidate resource x, selecting, from the candidate resource set, candidate resources corresponding to M consecutive time domains as the first resource.”
Lu selects further candidates from the initial position using Tgap to reach the target number (Lu, FIG. 12, first selection manner); using Samsung’s one-slot interval yields M consecutive slot positions. This is a proposed combination; Lu does not expressly require every candidate run to be contiguous.
Lu does not expressly disclose that M selected candidates occupy consecutive slots. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to use Lu’s random starting candidate followed by one-slot steps because this retains Lu’s random choice while obtaining the consecutive occasions taught by Samsung.
Regarding Claim 8, The limitations of the claim(s) from which claim 8 depends are addressed in the preceding grounds and are incorporated here.
“in response to no first resource being selected from the candidate resource set based on the first candidate resource x, reselecting a second candidate resource x from the candidate resource set, and performing selection of the first resource from the candidate resource set again based on the second candidate resource x.”
Lu discusses repeating the initial-resource selection when the desired selection cannot be completed from the first candidate (Lu, FIGS. 10B, 12 and associated selection logic). In the combined M-slot candidate procedure, if no full run is selectable from initial x, randomly choosing a different initial one-slot candidate and reapplying the same selection rule is the recited reselection. The precise “second candidate resource x” label is a claim identifier, not an additional act.
Lu does not expressly disclose applying that retry to an unsuccessful M-consecutive-slot run. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to choose another starting candidate and repeat Lu’s extension when the first starting point fails because a different point may yield a complete M-slot run.
Claim 9
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 over Lu and Samsung as applied to claim 7.
The limitations of the claim(s) from which claim 9 depends are addressed in the preceding grounds and are incorporated here.
“selecting, from the candidate resource set, candidate resources corresponding to M consecutive time domains according to a first selection order as the first resource.”
Lu describes selection by moving forward in time from the initial candidate in a first time interval and, separately, movement in the other direction (Lu, FIGS. 7–11, first selection manner). Selecting successively forward with Samsung’s one-slot interval establishes the first selection order and M consecutive selected positions.
Lu does not expressly disclose selection of M immediately consecutive slots in that order. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to select the successive candidates in chronological order at one-slot spacing because this forms the consecutive transmission run disclosed by Samsung.
Claim 13
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 over Lu and Samsung as applied to claim 1. The deleted stop-transmission alternative is not relied upon.
The limitations of the claim(s) from which claim 13 depends are addressed in the preceding grounds and are incorporated here.
“in response to the first resource not existing in the candidate resource set, randomly selecting a fourth resource from the candidate resource set, wherein a time domain length of the fourth resource is a single slot, and transmitting a TB in the single slot.”
Lu randomly selects an initial single-slot resource Ri (Lu, FIG. 12) and describes terminating additional selection when no qualifying further resource is found before the target count (Lu, FIGS. 7–11, resource-shortfall discussion). Samsung identifies PSSCH transmissions of a TB (Samsung, FIG. 13). Where the M-slot run is unavailable, selecting an available one-slot candidate and transmitting the TB there applies Lu’s random single-slot selection as a fallback to Samsung’s TB transmission. The conditional fallback is an obviousness inference; it is not represented as an express single-reference teaching.
Lu does not expressly disclose the amended conditional single-slot TB-transmission fallback when the M-slot resource does not exist. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to select an available single-slot candidate and transmit the TB when the full M-slot run is unavailable because an available transmission opportunity can carry the TB despite the shortfall.
Claim 15
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 over Lu and Samsung as applied to claim 1.
The limitations of the claim(s) from which claim 15 depends are addressed in the preceding grounds and are incorporated here.
“The method according to claim 1, further comprising: if the first resource does not exist in the candidate resource set, selecting a fifth resource from the candidate resource set, wherein a time domain length of the fifth resource is L consecutive slots, and L is a positive integer smaller than M.”
Lu describes stopping the extension of a selected series when no further candidate exists, potentially leaving fewer selected resources than its target count (Lu, FIGS. 7–11 and first selection manner). Samsung supplies one-slot spacing for consecutive PSSCH transmissions (Samsung, FIG. 13). When an M-slot run is unavailable, retaining an available shorter run of L consecutive slots with 0 < L < M is the proposed use of Lu’s partial resource selection with Samsung’s adjacent-slot transmission. The “fifth resource” is a label; the actual shorter-run fallback and its conditional trigger are supplied by this rationale, not asserted to be express in Lu.
Lu does not expressly disclose the particular L-consecutive-slot fallback when the M-slot resource does not exist. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to retain an available L-slot consecutive run when M slots are unavailable because the shorter run permits PSSCH transmission using the resources that remain eligible.
Claim 16
Claim 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 over Lu and Samsung as applied to claim 15.
The limitations of the claim(s) from which claim 16 depends are addressed in the preceding grounds and are incorporated here.
“repeatedly transmitting a same TB or different TBs in the M consecutive slots or in the L consecutive slots.”
Samsung expressly describes multiple consecutive-slot PSSCH transmissions for a single TB (Samsung, FIG. 13 discussion). Repeating that TB in the M-slot run of claim 1 or shorter L-slot run of claim 15 meets the same-TB alternative. Different TBs need not be shown.
Lu does not expressly disclose transmitting the same TB repeatedly over the M or L consecutive slots. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to repeat the same TB on the selected M-slot or L-slot run because Samsung’s known repetition provides the reliability benefit of successive PSSCH occasions.
Claim 21
Claim 21 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 over Lu and Samsung as applied to claim 1.
“A terminal device, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor executes the computer program stored in the memory to cause the device to:”
Lu discloses a terminal processor and memory storing executable program instructions for the terminal resource-selection operations (Lu, FIGS. 22–24 and apparatus description). The following recited operation is mapped as for claim 1, with Samsung FIG. 13 supplying consecutive PSSCH transmissions.
“determine a first resource based on a slot parameter M, wherein a time domain length of the first resource is M consecutive slots, M is a positive integer and M>1, and the first resource is used for a Physical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH) or a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH) transmission.”
Lu’s processor executing stored instructions selects candidate resources to a target count (Lu, FIGS. 22–24 and first selection manner). Samsung FIG. 13 teaches consecutive PSSCH slots. Configuring that program to select M adjacent slots as one resource for PSSCH is the claim 1 modification; M > 1 is the selected target count.
Lu does not expressly disclose programming the terminal to select the M immediately adjacent PSSCH slots of claim 1. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to program Lu’s processor to select the adjacent slots discussed for claim 1 because Lu’s existing terminal already executes candidate selection and the modification changes the selection rule rather than the hardware.
Claim 25
Claim 25 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 over Lu and Samsung as applied to claim 1.
“A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions, wherein when the instructions are executed, the method according to claim 1 is implemented.”
Lu describes a computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that cause the terminal to carry out its resource-selection method and identifies nonvolatile storage (Lu, program and storage-medium discussion following FIGS. 22–24). Modifying the executable selection to select the M adjacent PSSCH slots taught by Samsung FIG. 13 implements the claim 1 method for the reasons stated in that ground. The claimed medium is non-transitory storage.
Lu does not expressly disclose instructions implementing the M-consecutive-slot modification of claim 1. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to store the claim 1 modified selection instructions on Lu’s disclosed non-transitory medium because execution of those instructions implements the same predictable terminal resource-selection operation.
Claim(s) 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Lu and Samsung in view of Xu.
Regarding claim 4, Claim 4 recites:“The method according to claim 2, wherein the first resource further comprises X indexes of Interlaced Resource Blocks (IRBs) which are continuous or discrete in a frequency domain, and frequency domain resource starting positions and ending positions are the same or different between adjacent slots, wherein X is a positive integer.”
Xu allocates sidelink frequency resources using indexed interlaces and an indexed RB set, including selection of a starting interlace index (Xu, claims 1 and 8–9, frequency-allocation description). Employing Xu’s interlace indexing for the frequency dimension of the consecutive-slot selection would have adapted the known NR-U sidelink allocation for use in the same unlicensed resource pool. Selecting the same indexed interlace allocation in adjacent slots meets the same-starting-and-ending-position alternative; X is the positive number of selected indexes. Xu does not expressly require the same position in adjacent slots, which is the stated predictable configuration.
Lu with Samsung does not expressly disclose the additional indexed interlaced resource block frequency allocation. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to use Xu’s indexed interlace allocation for the consecutive sidelink occasions because its interlace and RB-set indexes identify frequency resources for NR-U sidelink; retaining the same indexes across adjacent slots yields a predictable fixed allocation.
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Liu and Samsung in view of Fujitsu.
Regarding Claim 12, Claim 12 recites: “The method according to claim 6, wherein performing one res*
ource selection from the candidate resource set based on the slot parameter M to determine the first resource comprises:”
The one-resource-selection branch of claim 6 is used for this ground; its construction is addressed in the combination below.
“determining a plurality of candidate resource subsets, wherein time domain resources in each of the plurality of candidate resource subsets are continuous, and a length of time domain continuity is equal to or greater than the M slots; and”
Fujitsu determines plural subsets of candidate slots and expressly selects consecutive Ni slots for each subset at arbitrary positions in the selection window (Fujitsu, FIGS. 14–16, steps S11–S17). Setting the uninterrupted subset length at least M before selecting ensures the requested M-slot run is available. Fujitsu does not expressly label each subset as at least M in every example; that length threshold is the proposed application to the required target M.
“performing selection from any one of the candidate resource subsets to select candidate resources corresponding to M consecutive time domains as the first resource.”
Selecting one of Fujitsu’s continuous candidate subsets having at least M slots and choosing M adjoining slots therefrom constitutes one selection of an M-slot run. The modification uses Fujitsu’s subset construction to avoid a gap or unavailable slot in Lu’s selection pool, predictably furnishing the consecutive transmission occasions taught by Samsung. The precise one-selection form is an obviousness inference.
Lu with Samsung does not expressly disclose determining plural continuous candidate subsets each at least M slots long and selecting an M-slot run from one. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to choose a Fujitsu candidate subset at least M slots long and select M adjoining slots from it because checking an uninterrupted candidate region avoids selecting across an unavailable slot.
Claim 18 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 over Fujitsu as applied to claim 17 below, further in view of Asustek.
The limitations of the claim(s) from which claim 18 depends are addressed in the preceding grounds and are incorporated here.
“The method according to claim 17, further comprising:”
The phrase “at least one of” permits reliance on the resource-pool alternative. All recited alternatives are identified below.
“sending, to the terminal device, at least one of the following parameters:”
Asustek describes a network or higher-layer configured sidelink resource pool and the UE’s candidate-resource determination within that pool (Asustek, resource-pool configuration and candidate-resource discussion). Providing the pool information with Fujitsu’s PDCCH or RRC candidate-set parameters (Fujitsu, FIG. 22) enables selection in the intended pool. This is the relied-upon alternative and the reason to combine.
“a resource pool from which a resource is to be reported;”
This is an alternative in the “at least one of” list. The ground relies on the resource-pool alternative above and does not assert that this separate item is taught by the applied combination.
“layer 1 (L1) priority;”
This is an alternative in the “at least one of” list. The ground relies on the resource-pool alternative above and does not assert that this separate item is taught by the applied combination.
“remaining packet delay budget;”
This is an alternative in the “at least one of” list. The ground relies on the resource-pool alternative above and does not assert that this separate item is taught by the applied combination.
“the number of sub-channels or IRB indexes to be used for PSSCH or PSCCH transmission in a slot; or”
This is an alternative in the “at least one of” list. The ground relies on the resource-pool alternative above and does not assert that this separate item is taught by the applied combination.
“a resource reservation interval,”
Asustek describes selection of candidate sidelink resources within a configured pool (Asustek, resource-pool and candidate-resource discussion). Supplying that pool in Fujitsu’s network configuration leads the terminal to determine the candidate set according to it. The network-origin aspect of Asustek’s pool configuration should be checked against the exact cited passage.
Fujitsu does not expressly disclose the network-sent resource-pool alternative from the claim 18 list. It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art to include the configured resource pool among Fujitsu’s network-sent selection inputs because the terminal must know the pool before determining its candidate set within it; the network origin of the pool information still requires pinpoint verification.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 10 and 11 are objected to as dependent upon rejected claim 9 and its predecessors but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form to include all limitations of the base and intervening claims, subject to other requirements. The applied references do not establish the complete conditional N plus M−N selection and combination recited in claim 10. Claim 11 further requires the second selection order to be opposite the first. The particular features are recorded verbatim below.
Conclusion
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/ANGEL T BROCKMAN/Examiner, Art Unit 2412
Prosecution Insights