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 1-14 are pending in instant application.
Claim 2-7, 14 and 9-13 are rejected for being dependent on rejected base claims 1 and 8.
Claim 1 and 8 are rejected under 103 over Guo et al. [Guo] US 20230388871 A1,
Kim et al. [Kim] WO 2024072796 A1, Ryu et al. [Ryu] US 20240284521 A1.
Claim 2 and 9 are rejected under 103 over Guo et al. [Guo] US 20230388871 A1.
Claim 3 and 10 are rejected under 103 over Guo et al. [Guo] US 20230388871 A1.
Claim 4 and 11 are rejected under 103 over Bai et al. [Bai] US20240334267A1.
Claim 5 and 12 are rejected under 103 over Guo et al. [Guo] US 20230388871 A1.
Claim 6 and 13 are rejected under 103 over MolavianJazi et al. [MolavianJazi] US 20210058971 A1.
Claim 7 and 14 are rejected under 103 over Bai et al. [Bai] US 20240334267 A1.
Priority
This application makes reference to or appears to claim subject matter disclosed in Application No. [ 63/586,206 ], filed [ 09/28/2023 ]. If applicant desires to claim the benefit of a prior-filed application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e), 120, 121, 365(c) or 386(c), the instant application must contain, or be amended to contain, a specific reference to the prior-filed application in compliance with 37 CFR 1.78. If the application was filed before September 16, 2012, the specific reference must be included in the first sentence(s) of the specification following the title or in an application data sheet (ADS) in compliance with pre-AIA 37 CFR 1.76; if the application was filed on or after September 16, 2012, the specific reference must be included in an ADS in compliance with 37 CFR 1.76. For benefit claims under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c), the reference must include the relationship (i.e., continuation, divisional, or continuation-in-part) of the applications.
If the instant application is a utility or plant application filed under 35 U.S.C. 111(a), the specific reference must be submitted during the pendency of the application and within the later of four months from the actual filing date of the application or sixteen months from the filing date of the prior application. If the application is a national stage application under 35 U.S.C. 371, the specific reference must be submitted during the pendency of the application and within the later of four months from the date on which the national stage commenced under 35 U.S.C. 371(b) or (f), four months from the date of the initial submission under 35 U.S.C. 371 to enter the national stage, or sixteen months from the filing date of the prior application. See 37 CFR 1.78(a)(4) for benefit claims under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) and 37 CFR 1.78(d)(3) for benefit claims under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c). This time period is not extendable and a failure to submit the reference required by 35 U.S.C. 119(e) and/or 120, where applicable, within this time period is considered a waiver of any benefit of such prior application(s) under 35 U.S.C. 119(e), 120, 121, 365(c), and 386(c). A benefit claim filed after the required time period may be accepted if it is accompanied by a grantable petition to accept an unintentionally delayed benefit claim under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) (see 37 CFR 1.78(c)) or under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c) (see 37 CFR 1.78(e)). The petition must be accompanied by (1) the reference required by 35 U.S.C. 120 or 119(e) and by 37 CFR 1.78 to the prior application (unless previously submitted), (2) the applicable petition fee under 37 CFR 1.17(m)(1) or (2), and (3) a statement that the entire delay between the date the benefit claim was due under 37 CFR 1.78 and the date the claim was filed was unintentional. The presentation of a benefit claim may result in an additional fee under 37 CFR 1.17(w)(1) or (2) being required, if the earliest filing date for which benefit is claimed under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, 365(c), or 386(c) and 1.78(d) in the application is more than six years before the actual filing date of the application. The Director may require additional information where there is a question whether the delay was unintentional. The petition should be addressed to: Mail Stop Petition, Commissioner for Patents, P.O. Box 1450, Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450.
If the reference to the prior application was previously submitted within the time period set forth in 37 CFR 1.78 but was not included in the location in the application required by the rule (e.g., if the reference was submitted in an oath or declaration or the application transmittal letter), and the information concerning the benefit claim was recognized by the Office as shown by its inclusion on the first filing receipt, the petition under 37 CFR 1.78 and the petition fee under 37 CFR 1.17(m)(1) or (2) are not required. Applicant is still required to submit the reference in compliance with 37 CFR 1.78 by filing an ADS in compliance with 37 CFR 1.76 with the reference (or, if the application was filed before September 16, 2012, by filing either an amendment to the first sentence(s) of the specification or an ADS in compliance with pre-AIA 37 CFR 1.76). See MPEP § 211.02.
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 (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) 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.
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.
Claim 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Guo in view of Kim and Ryu.
Regarding claim 1, Guo discloses a method performed by a User Equipment (UE) for Layer 1/Layer 2 Triggered Mobility (LTM), the method comprising: receiving, from a source cell, a Cell Switch Command (CSC) Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE), the CSC MAC CE indicating a target cell, Timing Advance (TA) information, and a Transmission Configuration Indicator (TCI) state; (Paragraph [0434], LTM execution: The UE 5402 performs L1 measurements on the configured LTM candidate target cell(s), and transmits lower-layer measurement reports to the source RAN node 5414 (step 5). The RAN node 5414 decides to execute LTM cell switch to a target cell, and transmits a cell switch command MAC CE triggering LTM cell switch by including the candidate configuration index of the target cell (step 6). The UE 5402 switches to the configuration of the LTM candidate target cell (e.g., the UE 5402 detaches from the source cell and applies target configurations). The UE 5402 performs random access (or RACH) procedure towards the target cell, if TA is not available (step 7). Paragraph [0163], If a MAC entity receives a TCI States Activation/Deactivation for UE-specific PDSCH MAC CE on a Serving Cell, the MAC entity indicates to lower layers the information regarding the TCI States Activation/Deactivation for UE-specific PDSCH MAC CE. If the MAC entity receives an Enhanced TCI States Activation/Deactivation for UE-specific PDSCH MAC CE on a Serving Cell, the MAC entity indicates to lower layers the information regarding the Enhanced TCI States. Fig 36, depicts an example signaling procedure for LTM, UE receives Cell Switch Command MAC CE (Step 6) indicating a target cell. Paragraph [0477], In a second example implementation 4302, the TA is sent over dedicated RRC signaling or using MAC CE in the S-Cell 130 s (see e.g., “transfer TA” in FIG. 43 ). In this case, it should be possible to uniquely identify the UE 5402, and hence, the preamble can be UE-specific. In some examples, the preamble can be a target-specific preamble (e.g., specific to the C-Cell 130 c). That is, the same preamble can be used by source for some other UEs 5402. As a special case, the S-Cell 130 s can send the TA in a cell switch command MAC CE (see e.g., [TS38321]).)
determining whether the TA information is valid;(Paragraph [0486], One drawback of the timer-based implementations is that, even if the UE 5402 does not move, the TA timer will expire anyway, which may lead to unnecessary TA update procedure. To address this issue, a distance-based TA maintenance mechanism can be applied. In these implementations, a distance threshold is configured to the UE 5402. After the UE 5402 receives the TA value towards a C-Cell 130 c, the UE 5402 stores current UE location coordinates (e.g., using GPS/GNSS coordinates, LTE/NR positioning/location services, and/or some other coordinate system). Then, the UE 5402 checks the latest UE location periodically. If the distance between the stored UE location and a latest UE location is equal to or less than the distance threshold, the TA value can be considered valid.)
determining a pathloss based on a pathloss reference signal associated with the TCI state in a case that the TA information is valid; (Paragraph [0712] The IE Candidate-Tci-States defines a group of one or more TCI states for the early DL synchronization procedure. An example Candidate-Tci-States IE is shown and described by table 8.4.11-1. Page 86 Lines 20-22, maxNrofPUSCHPathlossReferenceRSs-1-r17 INTEGER: =63 – Maximum number of RSs used as pathloss reference for PUSCH, PUCCH, SRS -- power control for unified TCI state operation minus 1 <Explanation>Pathloss reference signal is associated with TCI state.Paragraph [0486], One drawback of the timer-based implementations is that, even if the UE 5402 does not move, the TA timer will expire anyway, which may lead to unnecessary TA update procedure. To address this issue, a distance-based TA maintenance mechanism can be applied. In these implementations, a distance threshold is configured to the UE 5402. After the UE 5402 receives the TA value towards a C-Cell 130 c, the UE 5402 stores current UE location coordinates (e.g., using GPS/GNSS coordinates, LTE/NR positioning/location services, and/or some other coordinate system). Then, the UE 5402 checks the latest UE location periodically. If the distance between the stored UE location and a latest UE location is equal to or less than the distance threshold, the TA value can be considered valid. Fig 23 depicts identifying and determining RLM-RS <explanation> RLM-RS is directly related to path loss because it is the signal the UE uses to measure and evaluate the impact of path loss on link quality. Further paragraph confirms TA validity and association of pathloss reference signal with TCI state.)
Guo does not disclose determining whether the CSC MAC CE comprises Contention-Free Random Access (CFRA) information in a case that the TA information is not valid; and determining the pathloss based on a Synchronized Signal Block (SSB) indicated in the CFRA information in a case that the CSC MAC CE comprises the CFRA information.
However, Kim discloses determining whether the CSC MAC CE comprises Contention-Free Random Access (CFRA) information in a case that the TA information is not valid; and (Paragraph [0433], The wireless device may perform early TA acquisition with candidate cell(s) requested by the network before receiving the cell switch command. This may be done via CFRA triggered by a PDCCH order from the source cell, following which the wireless device sends preamble towards the indicated candidate cell. In order to minimize the data interruption of the source cell due to CFRA towards the candidate cell(s), the wireless device may not receive RAR for the purpose of TA value acquisition and the TA value of the candidate cell is indicated in the cell switch command. The wireless device may not maintain the TA timer for the candidate cell and relies on network implementation to guarantee the TA validity. The wireless device may perform L1 measurements on the configured candidate cell(s), and transmit lower-layer measurement reports to the base station. L1 measurement may be performed as long as apply the RRC reconfiguration. The base station may decide to execute cell switch to a target cell, and transmit a MAC CE triggering cell switch by including the candidate configuration index of the target cell. The wireless device may switch to the target cell and applies the configuration indicated by candidate configuration index. The wireless device may perform the random-access procedure towards the target cell, if the wireless device does not have valid TA of the target cell.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings as taught by Guo with the teachings of Kim, since doing so would have enabled a faster, more efficient handover in LTM scenarios
Modified Guo does not disclose determining the pathloss based on a Synchronized Signal Block (SSB) indicated in the CFRA information in a case that the CSC MAC CE comprises the CFRA information.
However, Ryu discloses determining the pathloss based on a Synchronized Signal Block (SSB) indicated in the CFRA information in a case that the CSC MAC CE comprises the CFRA information. (Paragraph [0102], Accordingly, as described herein, the RRC configuration provided by the source cell may generally configure various PRACH parameters that a UE may use to transmit a PRACH to initiate an aperiodic CFRA procedure in a target cell, and one or more remaining PRACH parameters may be dynamically indicated. For example, as shown in Fig. 7A, and by reference number 710, the network node may transmit, to the UE via the source cell, a MAC-CE that triggers a handover from the source cell to a target cell configured for L1/L2 mobility, and the MAC-CE may also include a CFRA trigger that dynamically indicates one or more PRACH parameters that the UE may use to transmit the PRACH to initiate the aperiodic CFRA procedure in the target cell. For example, in some aspects, the MAC-CE that triggers the handover to the target cell may include a slot offset indication, which may indicate a PRACH slot in which the UE is to transmit the PRACH to initiate the aperiodic CFRA procedure in the target cell. In addition, the MAC-CE may indicate a RACH occasion index within the PRACH slot, a preamble index for the PRACH that the UE is to transmit to initiate the aperiodic CFRA procedure, and/or a transmission configuration indication (TCI) state associated with an index of an SSB to be used as a pathloss reference signal for determining a transmission power of the PRACH. Accordingly, in some aspects, the UE may use the slot offset indication provided in the MAC-CE to determine a PRACH slot in which to transmit the PRACH to initiate the aperiodic CFRA procedure, may use the RACH occasion index indicated in the MAC-CE to determine a RACH occasion within the PRACH slot, and may use the preamble index indicated in the MAC-CE to determine the preamble associated with the PRACH that is transmitted to initiate the aperiodic CFRA procedure in the target cell.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings as taught by Modified Guo with the teachings of Ryu, since doing so would have achieved fast, accurate link estimation during handover.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Modified Guo.
Regarding Claim 2, Modified Guo teaches the method of claim 1.
Guo teaches further comprising: determining to perform a Random-Access Channel-less (RACH-less) cell switch procedure in a case that the TA information is valid, (Paragraph [1000], Example F30 includes the method of any of examples F27-F29 and/or some other examples herein, wherein the UE determines to trigger RACH-less cell switch in MAC layer, if the LTM cell switch MAC CE provides a TA value with or without a RAR.)
wherein determining the pathloss based on the pathloss reference signal associated with the TCI state comprises determining the pathloss during the RACH-less cell switch procedure. (Page 86 Lines 20-22, maxNrofPUSCHPathlossReferenceRSs-1-r17 INTEGER : :=63 – Maximum number of RSs used as pathloss reference for PUSCH,PUCCH,SRS -- power control for unified TCI state operation minus 1 <Explanation>Pathloss reference signal is associated with TCI state. Paragraph [1000], Example F30 includes the method of any of examples F27-F29 and/or some other examples herein, wherein the UE determines to trigger RACH-less cell switch in MAC layer, if the LTM cell switch MAC CE provides a TA value with or without a RAR.)
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Modified Guo.
Regarding Claim 3, modified Guo teaches method of claim 2.
Guo teaches wherein the pathloss determined based on the pathloss reference signal associated with the TCI state during the RACH-less cell switch procedure is associated with a transmission power of a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) transmission to the target cell. (FIGS. 21 and 22, depict example TCI state activation/deactivation MAC CEs; Paragraph [1037], Example H17 includes the method of example H16 and/or some other example(s) herein, wherein the indication of the cell switch is based on a handover (HO), a condition HO (CHO), a conditional primary SCG cell (PSCell) addition (CPA), a conditional PSCell Change (CPC), or a conditional PSCell addition or change (CPAC). Page 86 Table 8.5-1-continued Lines 3-4, maxNrofPUSCHPathlossReferenceRSs INTEGER : :=4 – Maximum number of RSs used as pathloss reference for PUSCH power control. <explanation> calculation shows pathloss reference signal is calculated for PUSCH transmission)
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Modified Guo in view of Bai
Regarding claim 4, modified Guo teaches the method of claim 3. Modified Guo does not teach wherein the PUSCH transmission is a first uplink transmission to the target cell after receiving the CSC MAC CE from the source cell.
However, Bai teaches wherein the PUSCH transmission is a first uplink transmission to the target cell after receiving the CSC MAC CE from the source cell. (Paragraph [0133] A handover event (e.g., a cell switch from the first cell to the second cell) may be triggered via lower layer signaling, such as L1 or L2 signaling. For example, the handover event may be triggered via L1 or L2 signaling (e.g., via L1 or L2 messages) as part of a Layer 1/2 Triggered Mobility (LTM) procedure. That is, in accordance with an LTM procedure, the network entity 305-a (e.g., a source network entity) may transmit a cell switch command message (e.g., a handover command) via L1 signaling (e.g., via downlink control information (DCI)) or via L2 signaling (e.g., via a MAC control element (MAC-CE)). In some examples, transmitting a cell switch command message via L1 or L2 signaling (e.g., triggering a cell switch via DCI or a MAC-CE) may reduce a latency associated with handover events, among other benefits. Paragraph [0144], In some examples, the first uplink transmission (e.g., of the initial uplink message 350) may be a PUSCH transmission. For example, the UE 315 may transmit a PUSCH transmission as the initial uplink message 350. The identity information may be a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI), such as a cell RNTI (C-RNTI), included in the PUSCH transmission (e.g., included in a MAC-CE transmitted via the PUSCH). For example, the PUSCH may carry a C-RNTI MAC-CE that identifies the UE 315 to the network entity 305-b. The C-RNTI MAC CE may be identified by a MAC subheader (e.g., with a logical channel identifier (LCID)). In some other examples, the identity information may be implicitly indicated (e.g., to the network entity 305-b) by one or more of the resources used for the PUSCH transmission (e.g., a PUSCH resource). That is, the identity information of the UE 315 may be associated with (e.g., implicitly indicated via, correspond to) the resource allocation 355. Paragraph [0118], After the handover, the UE 115 may transmit the initial uplink message to the target network node via the second cell and in accordance with the activated resource allocation.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings as taught by modified Guo with the teachings of Bai, since doing so would have achieved lower latency and better signal quality.
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Modified Guo.
Regarding Claim 5, modified Guo teaches the method of claim 2.
Guo teaches wherein the pathloss reference signal is provided by a pathlossReferenceRS field. (Page 86 Table 8.5-1-continued Lines 3-4, maxNrofPUSCHPathlossReferenceRSs INTEGER : :=4 – Maximum number of RSs used as pathloss reference for PUSCH power control.)
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Modified Guo in view of MolavianJazi.
Regarding Claim 6, modified Guo teaches the method of claim 1. Modified Guo does not teach wherein the pathloss determined based on the SSB indicated in the CFRA information is associated with a transmission power of a Physical Random-Access Channel (PRACH) triggered by the CSC MAC CE.
However, MolavianJazi teaches wherein the pathloss determined based on the SSB indicated in the CFRA information is associated with a transmission power of a Physical Random-Access Channel (PRACH) triggered by the CSC MAC CE. (Paragraph [0072], In some embodiments, the UE receives a MAC-CE activation command to map up to [N] (e.g., N=8) TCI states to the codepoints of the DCI field ‘Transmission Configuration Indication’, Paragraph [0076] , A PRACH preamble transmission, for both CBRA and CFRA modes, is associated with a downlink (DL) RS. This association can help a serving gNB to identify an uplink spatial reception filter or beam to receive a PRACH and can help a UE to identify an uplink spatial transmission filter or beam to transmit a PRACH. For example, a UE can use a same or a related, such as with QCL properties or same direction but narrower width, uplink transmission filter or beam as that used for DL reception of the indicated DL RS for Msg1 transmission. This association can also be used to provide a DL RS resource for pathloss estimation for determining a PRACH preamble transmission power. A DL RS for Msg1 transmission can be one of the following options based on a first PRACH scenario, where an SS/PBCH block (SSB) is used for BFR, CFRA, PDCCH-order PRACH, SI request, and CBRA, or a second PRACH scenario, where CSI-RS is used for BFR, CFRA, CBRA. As used herein, “SSB” can be used as a short form for “SS/PBCH block.” The terms “SSB” and “SS/PBCH block” can be used interchangeably in this patent document.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings as taught by modified Guo with the teachings of MolavianJazi, since doing so would have achieved early and reliable channel estimation.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Modified Guo in view of Bai.
Regarding Claim 7, modified Guo teaches the method of claim 6. Modified Guo does not teach further comprising: performing a Random-Access procedure with the target cell based on the transmission power of the PRACH.
However, Bai teaches further comprising: performing a Random-Access procedure with the target cell based on the transmission power of the PRACH. (Paragraph [0075], In some examples, the handover event may be triggered by the second network node via lower layer signaling. For example, the second network node may transmit a cell switch command message to the first network node via lower layer signaling. The cell switch command message may trigger the handover of the first network node from the first cell (e.g., a source call) to the second cell (e.g., a target cell). After the handover of the first network node from the first cell to the second cell, the first network node may transmit an initial uplink message via the second cell that identifies the first network node to the third network node (e.g., indicates an arrival of the first network node on the second cell). In some examples, the first network node may transmit a physical random-access channel (PRACH) message that identifies the first network node to the third network node.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings as taught by modified Guo with the teachings of Bai, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result to achieve low-latency and high-reliability access modes.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Guo in view of Kim and Ryu.
Regarding Claim 8, Guo discloses a User Equipment (UE) for Layer 1/Layer 2 Triggered Mobility (LTM), the UE comprising: at least one processor; and at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium coupled to the at least one processor and storing one or more computer-executable instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the UE to: (Abstract, The present disclosure is related to layer 1 (L1)/layer 2 (L2) triggered mobility (LTM) aspects, including LTM inter-cell mobility, LTM in split architectures; dynamic cell group changes, activation, and deactivation, conditional primary SCG cell addition or change (CPAC) aspects; Paragraph [0803] FIG. 56 illustrates components capable of reading instructions from a machine-readable or computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. Specifically, FIG. 56 shows a diagrammatic representation of hardware resources 5600 including one or more processors (or processor cores) 5610, one or more memory/storage devices 5620, and one or more communication resources 5630, each of which may be communicatively coupled via a bus 5640 or other interface circuitry. For examples where node virtualization (e.g., NFV) is utilized, a hypervisor 5602 may be executed to provide an execution environment for one or more network slices/sub-slices to utilize the hardware resources 5600. Paragraph [1049], Example Z11 includes a computer program comprising instructions, wherein execution of the program by a processing element is to cause the processing element to carry out the method, techniques, or process as described in or related to any of examples A01-A18, B01-B50, C01-C14, D01-D25, E01-E15, F01-F30, G01-G15, H01-H27, or portions thereof.)
receive, from a source cell, a Cell Switch Command (CSC) Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Element (CE), the CSC MAC CE indicating a target cell, Timing Advance (TA) information, and a Transmission Configuration Indicator (TCI) state; (Paragraph [0434], LTM execution: The UE 5402 performs L1 measurements on the configured LTM candidate target cell(s), and transmits lower-layer measurement reports to the source RAN node 5414 (step 5). The RAN node 5414 decides to execute LTM cell switch to a target cell, and transmits a cell switch command MAC CE triggering LTM cell switch by including the candidate configuration index of the target cell (step 6). The UE 5402 switches to the configuration of the LTM candidate target cell (e.g., the UE 5402 detaches from the source cell and applies target configurations). The UE 5402 performs random access (or RACH) procedure towards the target cell, if TA is not available (step 7).
Paragraph [0163], If a MAC entity receives a TCI States Activation/Deactivation for UE-specific PDSCH MAC CE on a Serving Cell, the MAC entity indicates to lower layers the information regarding the TCI States Activation/Deactivation for UE-specific PDSCH MAC CE. If the MAC entity receives an Enhanced TCI States Activation/Deactivation for UE-specific PDSCH MAC CE on a Serving Cell, the MAC entity indicates to lower layers the information regarding the Enhanced TCI States. Fig 36, depicts an example signaling procedure for LTM, UE receives Cell Switch Command MAC CE (Step 6) indicating a target cell. Paragraph [0477], In a second example implementation 4302, the TA is sent over dedicated RRC signaling or using MAC CE in the S-Cell 130 s (see e.g., “transfer TA” in FIG. 43 ). In this case, it should be possible to uniquely identify the UE 5402, and hence, the preamble can be UE-specific. In some examples, the preamble can be a target-specific preamble (e.g., specific to the C-Cell 130 c). That is, the same preamble can be used by source for some other UEs 5402. As a special case, the S-Cell 130 s can send the TA in a cell switch command MAC CE (see e.g., [TS38321]).)
determine whether the TA information is valid; (Paragraph [0486], One drawback of the timer-based implementations is that, even if the UE 5402 does not move, the TA timer will expire anyway, which may lead to unnecessary TA update procedure. To address this issue, a distance-based TA maintenance mechanism can be applied. In these implementations, a distance threshold is configured to the UE 5402. After the UE 5402 receives the TA value towards a C-Cell 130 c, the UE 5402 stores current UE location coordinates (e.g., using GPS/GNSS coordinates, LTE/NR positioning/location services, and/or some other coordinate system). Then, the UE 5402 checks the latest UE location periodically. If the distance between the stored UE location and a latest UE location is equal to or less than the distance threshold, the TA value can be considered valid.)
determining a pathloss based on a pathloss reference signal associated with the TCI state in a case that the TA information is valid; (Paragraph [0712] The IE Candidate-Tci-States defines a group of one or more TCI states for the early DL synchronization procedure. An example Candidate-Tci-States IE is shown and described by table 8.4.11-1. Page 86 Lines 20-22, maxNrofPUSCHPathlossReferenceRSs-1-r17 INTEGER : :=63 – Maximum number of RSs used as pathloss reference for PUSCH,PUCCH,SRS -- power control for unified TCI state operation minus 1 <Explanation> Pathloss reference signal is associated with TCI state. Paragraph [0486], One drawback of the timer-based implementations is that, even if the UE 5402 does not move, the TA timer will expire anyway, which may lead to unnecessary TA update procedure. To address this issue, a distance-based TA maintenance mechanism can be applied. In these implementations, a distance threshold is configured to the UE 5402. After the UE 5402 receives the TA value towards a C-Cell 130 c, the UE 5402 stores current UE location coordinates (e.g., using GPS/GNSS coordinates, LTE/NR positioning/location services, and/or some other coordinate system). Then, the UE 5402 checks the latest UE location periodically. If the distance between the stored UE location and a latest UE location is equal to or less than the distance threshold, the TA value can be considered valid. Fig 23 depicts identifying and determining RLM-RS. <explanation> RLM-RS is directly related to path loss because it is the signal the UE uses to measure and evaluate the impact of path loss on link quality. Further paragraph confirms TA validity and association of pathloss reference signal with TCI state.)
Guo does not disclose determine whether the CSC MAC CE comprises Contention-Free Random Access (CFRA) information in a case that the TA information is not valid; and determine the pathloss based on a Synchronized Signal Block (SSB) indicated in the CFRA information in a case that the CSC MAC CE comprises the CFRA information.
However, Kim discloses determine whether the CSC MAC CE comprises Contention-Free Random Access (CFRA) information in a case that the TA information is not valid; (Paragraph [0433], The wireless device may perform early TA acquisition with candidate cell(s) requested by the network before receiving the cell switch command. This may be done via CFRA triggered by a PDCCH order from the source cell, following which the wireless device sends preamble towards the indicated candidate cell. In order to minimize the data interruption of the source cell due to CFRA towards the candidate cell(s), the wireless device may not receive RAR for the purpose of TA value acquisition and the TA value of the candidate cell is indicated in the cell switch command. The wireless device may not maintain the TA timer for the candidate cell and relies on network implementation to guarantee the TA validity. The wireless device may perform L1 measurements on the configured candidate cell(s), and transmit lower-layer measurement reports to the base station. L1 measurement may be performed as long as apply the RRC reconfiguration. The base station may decide to execute cell switch to a target cell, and transmit a MAC CE triggering cell switch by including the candidate configuration index of the target cell. The wireless device may switche to the target cell and applies the configuration indicated by candidate configuration index. The wireless device may perform the random-access procedure towards the target cell, if the wireless device does not have valid TA of the target cell.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings as taught by Guo with the teachings of Kim, since doing so would have enabled a faster, more efficient handover in LTM scenarios
Modified Guo does not disclose determine the pathloss based on a Synchronized Signal Block (SSB) indicated in the CFRA information in a case that the CSC MAC CE comprises the CFRA information.
However, Ryu discloses determining the pathloss based on a Synchronized Signal Block (SSB) indicated in the CFRA information in a case that the CSC MAC CE comprises the CFRA information. (Paragraph [0102], Accordingly, as described herein, the RRC configuration provided by the source cell may generally configure various PRACH parameters that a UE may use to transmit a PRACH to initiate an aperiodic CFRA procedure in a target cell, and one or more remaining PRACH parameters may be dynamically indicated. For example, as shown in Fig. 7A, and by reference number 710, the network node may transmit, to the UE via the source cell, a MAC-CE that triggers a handover from the source cell to a target cell configured for L1/L2 mobility, and the MAC-CE may also include a CFRA trigger that dynamically indicates one or more PRACH parameters that the UE may use to transmit the PRACH to initiate the aperiodic CFRA procedure in the target cell. For example, in some aspects, the MAC-CE that triggers the handover to the target cell may include a slot offset indication, which may indicate a PRACH slot in which the UE is to transmit the PRACH to initiate the aperiodic CFRA procedure in the target cell. In addition, the MAC-CE may indicate a RACH occasion index within the PRACH slot, a preamble index for the PRACH that the UE is to transmit to initiate the aperiodic CFRA procedure, and/or a transmission configuration indication (TCI) state associated with an index of an SSB to be used as a pathloss reference signal for determining a transmission power of the PRACH. Accordingly, in some aspects, the UE may use the slot offset indication provided in the MAC-CE to determine a PRACH slot in which to transmit the PRACH to initiate the aperiodic CFRA procedure, may use the RACH occasion index indicated in the MAC-CE to determine a RACH occasion within the PRACH slot, and may use the preamble index indicated in the MAC-CE to determine the preamble associated with the PRACH that is transmitted to initiate the aperiodic CFRA procedure in the target cell.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings as taught by Modified Guo with the teachings of Ryu, since doing so would have achieved fast, accurate link estimation during handover.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over modified Guo.
Regarding Claim 9, modified Guo discloses the UE of claim 8.
Guo teaches wherein the one or more computer-executable instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the UE to: determine to perform a Random-Access Channel-less (RACH-less) cell switch procedure in a case that the TA information is valid, (Paragraph [1000], Example F30 includes the method of any of examples F27-F29 and/or some other examples herein, wherein the UE determines to trigger RACH-less cell switch in MAC layer, if the LTM cell switch MAC CE provides a TA value with or without a RAR.)
wherein determining the pathloss based on the pathloss reference signal associated with the TCI state comprises determining the pathloss during the RACH-less cell switch procedure. (Page 86 Lines 20-22,maxNrofPUSCHPathlossReferenceRSs-1-r17 INTEGER : :=63 – Maximum number of RSs used as pathloss reference for PUSCH,PUCCH,SRS -- power control for unified TCI state operation minus 1 <Explanation>Pathloss reference signal is associated with TCI state. Paragraph [1000], Example F30 includes the method of any of examples F27-F29 and/or some other examples herein, wherein the UE determines to trigger RACH-less cell switch in MAC layer, if the LTM cell switch MAC CE provides a TA value with or without a RAR.)
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Modified Guo.
Regarding claim 10, modified Guo discloses the UE of claim 9.
Guo discloses wherein the pathloss determined based on the pathloss reference signal associated with the TCI state during the RACH-less cell switch procedure is associated with a transmission power of a Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) transmission to the target cell. (FIGS. 21 and 22, depict example TCI state activation/deactivation MAC CEs; Paragraph [1037], Example H17 includes the method of example H16 and/or some other example(s) herein, wherein the indication of the cell switch is based on a handover (HO), a condition HO (CHO), a conditional primary SCG cell (PSCell) addition (CPA), a conditional PSCell Change (CPC), or a conditional PSCell addition or change (CPAC). Page 86 Table 8.5-1-continued Lines 3-4, maxNrofPUSCHPathlossReferenceRSs INTEGER: =4 – Maximum number of RSs used as pathloss reference for PUSCH power control. <explanation> calculation shows pathloss reference signal is calculated for PUSCH transmission.)
Claim 11 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Modified Guo in view of Bai.
Regarding claim 11, Modified Guo discloses the UE of claim 10. Modified Guo does not teach wherein the PUSCH transmission is a first uplink transmission to the target cell after receiving the CSC MAC CE from the source cell.
However, Bai teaches wherein the PUSCH transmission is a first uplink transmission to the target cell after receiving the CSC MAC CE from the source cell. (Paragraph [0133] A handover event (e.g., a cell switch from the first cell to the second cell) may be triggered via lower layer signaling, such as L1 or L2 signaling. For example, the handover event may be triggered via L1 or L2 signaling (e.g., via L1 or L2 messages) as part of a Layer 1/2 Triggered Mobility (LTM) procedure. That is, in accordance with an LTM procedure, the network entity 305-a (e.g., a source network entity) may transmit a cell switch command message (e.g., a handover command) via L1 signaling (e.g., via downlink control information (DCI)) or via L2 signaling (e.g., via a MAC control element (MAC-CE)). In some examples, transmitting a cell switch command message via L1 or L2 signaling (e.g., triggering a cell switch via DCI or a MAC-CE) may reduce a latency associated with handover events, among other benefits. Paragraph [0144], In some examples, the first uplink transmission (e.g., of the initial uplink message 350) may be a PUSCH transmission. For example, the UE 315 may transmit a PUSCH transmission as the initial uplink message 350. The identity information may be a radio network temporary identifier (RNTI), such as a cell RNTI (C-RNTI), included in the PUSCH transmission (e.g., included in a MAC-CE transmitted via the PUSCH). For example, the PUSCH may carry a C-RNTI MAC-CE that identifies the UE 315 to the network entity 305-b. The C-RNTI MAC CE may be identified by a MAC subheader (e.g., with a logical channel identifier (LCID)). In some other examples, the identity information may be implicitly indicated (e.g., to the network entity 305-b) by one or more of the resources used for the PUSCH transmission (e.g., a PUSCH resource). That is, the identity information of the UE 315 may be associated with (e.g., implicitly indicated via, correspond to) the resource allocation 355. Paragraph [0118], After the handover, the UE 115 may transmit the initial uplink message to the target network node via the second cell and in accordance with the activated resource allocation.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings as taught by modified Guo with the teachings of Bai, since doing so would have achieved lower latency and better signal quality.
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Modified Guo.
Regarding claim 12, modified Guo discloses the UE of claim 9.
Guo teaches wherein the pathloss reference signal is provided by a pathlossReferenceRS field. (Page 86 Table 8.5-1-continued Lines 3-4, maxNrofPUSCHPathlossReferenceRSs INTEGER : :=4 – Maximum number of RSs used as pathloss reference for PUSCH power control.)
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Modified Guo in view of MolavianJazi
Regarding claim 13, modified Guo discloses the UE of claim 8. Modified Guo does not disclose wherein the pathloss determined based on the SSB indicated in the CFRA information is associated with a transmission power of a Physical Random-Access Channel (PRACH) triggered by the CSC MAC CE.
However, MolavianJazi teaches wherein the pathloss determined based on the SSB indicated in the CFRA information is associated with a transmission power of a Physical Random-Access Channel (PRACH) triggered by the CSC MAC CE. (Paragraph [0072], In some embodiments, the UE receives a MAC-CE activation command to map up to [N] (e.g., N=8) TCI states to the codepoints of the DCI field ‘Transmission Configuration Indication’, Paragraph [0076] , A PRACH preamble transmission, for both CBRA and CFRA modes, is associated with a downlink (DL) RS. This association can help a serving gNB to identify an uplink spatial reception filter or beam to receive a PRACH and can help a UE to identify an uplink spatial transmission filter or beam to transmit a PRACH. For example, a UE can use a same or a related, such as with QCL properties or same direction but narrower width, uplink transmission filter or beam as that used for DL reception of the indicated DL RS for Msg1 transmission. This association can also be used to provide a DL RS resource for pathloss estimation for determining a PRACH preamble transmission power. A DL RS for Msg1 transmission can be one of the following options based on a first PRACH scenario, where an SS/PBCH block (SSB) is used for BFR, CFRA, PDCCH-order PRACH, SI request, and CBRA, or a second PRACH scenario, where CSI-RS is used for BFR, CFRA, CBRA. As used herein, “SSB” can be used as a short form for “SS/PBCH block.” The terms “SSB” and “SS/PBCH block” can be used interchangeably in this patent document.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings as taught by modified Guo with the teachings of MolavianJazi, since doing so would have achieved early and reliable channel estimation.
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C.103 as being unpatentable over Modified Guo in view of Bai.
Regarding claim 14, modified Guo discloses the UE of claim 6. Modified Guo does not disclose wherein the one or more computer-executable instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the UE to: perform a Random-Access procedure with the target cell based on the transmission power of the PRACH.
However, Bai disclose wherein the one or more computer-executable instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, further cause the UE to: perform a Random-Access procedure with the target cell based on the transmission power of the PRACH. (Paragraph [0075], In some examples, the handover event may be triggered by the second network node via lower layer signaling. For example, the second network node may transmit a cell switch command message to the first network node via lower layer signaling. The cell switch command message may trigger the handover of the first network node from the first cell (e.g., a source call) to the second cell (e.g., a target cell). After the handover of the first network node from the first cell to the second cell, the first network node may transmit an initial uplink message via the second cell that identifies the first network node to the third network node (e.g., indicates an arrival of the first network node on the second cell). In some examples, the first network node may transmit a physical random-access channel (PRACH) message that identifies the first network node to the third network node.)
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the teachings as taught by modified Guo with the teachings of Bai, since doing so would have achieved the desirable result to achieve low-latency and high-reliability access modes.
Conclusion
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/VNP/Examiner, Art Unit 2414
/EDAN ORGAD/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2414
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