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 .
Priority
The present application does not claim for foreign priority.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) was submitted on 1/30/2025. The submission is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement has been considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claim 6 is objected because of the following informalities:
In claim 6, it is suggested to replace LCH” (in line 2) with “logical channel” for consistency of the term used throughout the claims and for clarity.
Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor, or for pre-AIA the applicant regards as the invention.
Regarding claim 9:
Claim 9 recites a limitation “the other node”. There is insufficient antecedent basis for the limitation in the claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-9 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by He et al. (US 2026/0046685 A1, hereinafter He) claiming benefit to and fully-supported by US provisional applications 63/682,182 filed Aug. 12, 2024.
Regarding claim 1:
He teaches a node (see, He: Fig. 2 and Fig. 4, UE 120) of a telecommunications system, the node comprising processor circuitry (see, He: Fig. 2, Controller/Processor 280) configured to generate a buffer status report upon occurrence of a logical channel priority change (see, He: Fig. 4, Step 410; para. [0087], “As shown by reference number 410, the UE 120 may generate (e.g., initiate) a BSR. In some aspects, the UE 120 may generate the BSR responsive to obtaining data associated with a first LCH. The data may be associated with the first LCH in that the data may belong to the first LCH. For example, the UE 120 may generate the BSR upon arrival of the data in a buffer of the UE 120. For example, the data may be new uplink data for transmission. In some examples, the BSR may indicate an amount of the data and/or the first LCH.”; and para. [0088], “In some aspects, the UE 120 may generate the BSR based at least in part on any LCH associated with any pending BSR having a priority that is lower than a priority of the first LCH.”, supports are found in Fig. 2, Fig. 4 and para. [0085-0086] of 63/682,182.).
Regarding claim 2:
As discussed above, He teaches all limitations in claim 1.
He further teaches wherein comprising interface circuitry (see, He: Fig. 2, antennas 252, modems 254, and TX MIMO processor 266; para. [0064]) configured to transmit the buffer status report across a radio interface (see, He: Fig. 2, antennas 252) to another node (see, He: Fig. 2 and Fig. 4, Network Node (NN) 110) of the system (see, He: Fig. 4, Step 420 and para. [0090], “As shown by reference number 420, the UE 120 may transmit, and the network node 110 may receive, the BSR.”, supports are found in Fig. 2, Fig. 4 and para. [0087] of 63/682,182.).
Regarding claim 3:
As discussed above, He teaches all limitations in claim 1.
He further teaches wherein the processor circuitry is configured to generate the buffer status report when a logical channel has available data for transmission (see, He: Fig. 4, Step 410 and para. [0087], “As shown by reference number 410, the UE 120 may generate (e.g., initiate) a BSR. In some aspects, the UE 120 may generate the BSR responsive to obtaining data associated with a first LCH. The data may be associated with the first LCH in that the data may belong to the first LCH. For example, the UE 120 may generate the BSR upon arrival of the data in a buffer of the UE 120. For example, the data may be new uplink data for transmission. In some examples, the BSR may indicate an amount of the data and/or the first LCH.”, supports are found in Fig. 4 and para. [0085] of 63/682,182.).
Regarding claim 4:
As discussed above, He teaches all limitations in claim 1.
He further teaches wherein the processor circuitry is configured to generate the buffer status regardless of presence of available data for a logical channel (see, He: Fig. 4, Step 410 and para. [0084], “Additionally, or alternatively, the UE may transmit a BSR upon expiry of a timer, such as a periodic BSR timer or a BSR retransmit timer. A periodic BSR timer may prompt the UE to send BSRs periodically, and a BSR retransmit timer may prompt the UE to retransmit a BSR if the UE has not received an uplink grant for the uplink data.”, supports are found in Fig. 4 and para. [0082] of 63/682,182. Generating the buffer status report (BSR) is inherent prerequisite to transmitting the BSR. A BSR cannot be transmitted unless the UE first determines and generates the buffer status information to be included in the transmitted MAC CE.).
Regarding claim 5:
As discussed above, He teaches all limitations in claim 1.
He further teaches wherein the processor circuitry is configured to generate the buffer status report when a priority of a logical channel becomes higher than any other logical channel having available data (see, He: Fig. 4, Step 410 and para. [0088], “the UE 120 may generate the BSR based at least in part on any LCH associated with any pending BSR having a priority that is lower than a priority of the first LCH. A pending BSR is a BSR that has been generated and not yet transmitted by the UE 120.”; para. [0084], “a UE may transmit a BSR in response to one or more triggers. For example, the UE may transmit a BSR upon arrival in the buffer of the UE of new uplink data having a higher priority than any other uplink data that is already in the buffer.”, supports are found in Fig. 4 and para. [0082] of 63/682,182.).
Regarding claim 6:
As discussed above, He teaches all limitations in claim 1.
He further teaches wherein the processor circuitry is configured to generate the buffer status report when a LCH priority is changed to a higher priority (see, He: para. [0005], “The one or more processors may be configured to cause the UE to generate, responsive to obtaining data associated with a first logical channel (LCH), a buffer status report (BSR) based at least in part on any LCH associated with any pending BSR having a priority that is lower than a priority of the first LCH and based at least in part on a BSR triggering constraint.”; para. [0022], “The UE may transmit a BSR in response to one or more triggers. For example, the UE may transmit a BSR upon arrival in the buffer of the UE of new uplink data having a higher priority than any other uplink data that is already in the buffer (or if the buffer is empty).”, supports are found in para. [0004] [0021] of 63/682,182.).
Regarding claim 7:
As discussed above, He teaches all limitations in claim 6.
He further teaches wherein the processor circuitry is configured to generate the buffer status report when a remaining time has become smaller than a threshold (see, He: para. [0095], “the one or more BSR triggering constraint budget parameters may include a BSR quantity threshold N and a BSR time window threshold TN. For example, the UE 120 may not trigger (e.g., transmit) the BSR 540 at any time (e.g., regardless of the time gap) if the UE 120 has transmitted more than N BSRs in the last TN ms. For example, the UE 120 may be allowed to trigger a BSR at any time, provided the UE 120 has not transmitted more than N BSRs in the last TN ms.”, support is found in para. [0091] of 63/682,182. Generating the buffer status report (BSR) is inherent prerequisite to transmitting the BSR. A BSR cannot be transmitted unless the UE first determines and generates the buffer status information to be included in the transmitted MAC CE.).
Regarding claim 8:
As discussed above, He teaches all limitations in claim 1.
He further teaches wherein the processor circuitry is further configured to generate a subsequent buffer status report only after lapse of a predetermined time (see, He: para. [0084], “the UE may transmit a BSR upon expiry of a timer, such as a periodic BSR timer or a BSR retransmit timer. A periodic BSR timer may prompt the UE to send BSRs periodically, and a BSR retransmit timer may prompt the UE to retransmit a BSR if the UE has not received an uplink grant for the uplink data. In some examples, the UE may wait until expiry of a prohibit timer to transmit a BSR to avoid overreporting of BSRs.”, support is found in para. [0082] of 63/682,182. Generating the buffer status report (BSR) is inherent prerequisite to transmitting the BSR. A BSR cannot be transmitted unless the UE first determines and generates the buffer status information to be included in the transmitted MAC CE.).
Regarding claim 9:
As discussed above, He teaches all limitations in claim 1.
He further teaches wherein the node comprises a wireless terminal (see, He: Fig. 2 and Fig. 4, UE 120) and the other node comprises a network node (see, He: Fig. 2 and Fig. 4, Network Node (NN) 110).
Regarding claim 14:
He teaches a method in a node (see, He: Fig. 2 and Fig. 4, UE 120) of a telecommunications system, the method comprising:
generating a buffer status report upon occurrence of a logical channel priority change (see, He: Fig. 4, Step 410 and para. [0087], “As shown by reference number 410, the UE 120 may generate (e.g., initiate) a BSR. In some aspects, the UE 120 may generate the BSR responsive to obtaining data associated with a first LCH. The data may be associated with the first LCH in that the data may belong to the first LCH. For example, the UE 120 may generate the BSR upon arrival of the data in a buffer of the UE 120. For example, the data may be new uplink data for transmission. In some examples, the BSR may indicate an amount of the data and/or the first LCH.”; and para. [0088], “In some aspects, the UE 120 may generate the BSR based at least in part on any LCH associated with any pending BSR having a priority that is lower than a priority of the first LCH.”, supports are found in Fig. 2, Fig. 4 and para. [0085-0086] of 63/682,182.); and
transmitting the buffer status report across a radio interface (see, He: Fig. 2, antennas 252) to another node (see, He: Fig. 2 and Fig. 4, Network Node (NN) 110) of the system (see, He: Fig. 4, Step 420 and para. [0090], “As shown by reference number 420, the UE 120 may transmit, and the network node 110 may receive, the BSR.”, supports are found in Fig. 2, Fig. 4 and para. [0087] of 63/682,182.).
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied 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 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over He in view of Wang et al. (US 2024/0040566 A1, hereinafter Wang).
Regarding claim 10:
As discussed above, He teaches all limitations in claim 1.
He does not explicitly teach wherein the buffer status report comprises an identifier of a logical channel group for which a logical channel priority change has occurred and an indication of the size of the buffer for the logical channel group.
In the same field of endeavor, Wang teaches wherein the buffer status report comprises an identifier of a logical channel group for which a logical channel priority change has occurred and an indication of the size of the buffer for the logical channel group (see, Wang: para. [0035], “In some examples, the update may include one or both of a change in a BSR priority assigned to one or more BSRs associated with one or more logical channel groups (LCGs) of a group of LCGs or a change in a MAC-CE threshold size. In some examples, the network node receives, from the UE, a message indicating one or more BSR parameters, such as one or more of a respective identifier of each LCG associated with current network traffic or a respective buffer size of one or more buffers. Each buffer size may be associated with a single-bit buffer size field.”; para. [0136], “the one or more BSR parameters include one or more of a respective identifier of each LCG associated with current network traffic or one or more single-bit buffer size fields.”).
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of He in combination of the teachings of Wang in order for the UE to update BSR parameters according to the changes (see, Wang: Abstract and para. [0035]).
Claims 11 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over He in view of Cho et al. (WO 2017/078468 A1, hereinafter Cho).
Regarding claim 11:
As discussed above, He teaches all limitations in claim 1.
He does not explicitly teach wherein the buffer status report comprises an identifier of a logical channel for which a logical channel priority change has occurred and a field indicative of whether the logical channel priority change has occurred.
In the same field of endeavor, Cho teaches wherein the buffer status report comprises an identifier of a logical channel for which a logical channel priority change has occurred and a field indicative of whether the logical channel priority change has occurred (see, Cho: Fig. 51; Fig. 52; Table 11; and para. [612-620], “In Sub-Header Type 1 shown in FIG. 51A, a PI-BSR Logical Channel ID (LCID) may include a value indicating that a BSR is used for transmitting uplink data through priority change. … According to Table 11, since the BSR is a BSR for changing the priority, the LCID may include a value of '10111'.”, see page 39 of English translation.).
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of He in combination of the teachings of Cho in order for the UE to indicate the priority level of uplink data to be transmitted by changing the priority (see, Cho: para. [0620], see page 39 of English translation.).
Regarding claim 15:
He teaches a node (see, He: Fig. 2 and Fig. 4, Network Node (NN) 110) of a telecommunications system, the node comprising:
interface circuitry (see, He: Fig. 2, MIMO Detector 236) configured to receive a buffer status report from another node (see, He: Fig. 2 and Fig. 4, UE 120) of the system across a radio interface (see, He: Fig. 2, antennas 234) (see, He: Fig. 4, Step 420 and para. [0090], “As shown by reference number 420, the UE 120 may transmit, and the network node 110 may receive, the BSR.”, supports are found in Fig. 2, Fig. 4 and para. [0087] of 63/682,182.); and
processor circuitry (see, He: Fig. 2, Controller/Processor 240) configured to determine from the buffer status report
He does not explicitly teach wherein the processor circuitry is configured to determine from the buffer status report whether the buffer status report was generated upon occurrence of a logical channel priority change.
In the same field of endeavor, Cho wherein the processor circuitry is configured to determine from the buffer status report whether the buffer status report was generated upon occurrence of a logical channel priority change (see, Cho: para. [552], “When the first network node receives the BSR from the terminal, the first network node may perform MAC processing for the BSR and allocate a resource for transmitting the uplink data to the terminal.”; para. [553], “Thereafter, the first network node configures or resets the PDCP and the RLC according to the BSR transmitted from the terminal.”; para. [565], “In this case, the setting of the PDCP and RLC may be performed at the time when the first network node recognizes that the uplink data is transmitted through the change of priority as well as the time at which the uplink data is received.”; Fig. 51; Fig. 52; Table 11; and para. [612-620], “In Sub-Header Type 1 shown in FIG. 51A, a PI-BSR Logical Channel ID (LCID) may include a value indicating that a BSR is used for transmitting uplink data through priority change. … According to Table 11, since the BSR is a BSR for changing the priority, the LCID may include a value of '10111'.”, see pages 35, 36, and 39 of English translation.).
Accordingly, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to apply the teachings of He in combination of the teachings of Cho in order for the network node to recognize that the uplink data is transmitted through the change of priority as well as the time at which the uplink data is received (see, Cho: para. [0565], see page 36 of English translation.).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 12 and 13 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JI-HAE YEA whose telephone number is (571) 270-3310. The examiner can normally be reached on MON-FRI, 7am-3pm, ET.
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/JI-HAE YEA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2471
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