Prosecution Insights
Last updated: October 02, 2026
Application No. 18/937,462

GROUPCAST TRANSMISSION METHOD AND APPARATUS THEREFOR

Non-Final OA §102§103
Filed
Nov 05, 2024
Priority
Sep 21, 2018 — RE 10-2018-0114133 +9 more
Examiner
LAFONTANT, GARY
Art Unit
Tech Center
Assignee
Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
74%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
6m
Est. Remaining
75%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 74% — above average
74%
Career Allowance Rate
349 granted / 475 resolved
+13.5% vs TC avg
Minimal +2% lift
Without
With
+1.5%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 5m
Avg Prosecution
26 currently pending
Career history
498
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
4.3%
-35.7% vs TC avg
§103
56.3%
+16.3% vs TC avg
§102
27.3%
-12.7% vs TC avg
§112
10.3%
-29.7% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 475 resolved cases

Office Action

§102 §103
DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . Claim 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 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. Claim(s) 1-6 and 8-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Ohtsuji (US 2020/0008127 A1). Regarding claim 1, 8 Ohtsuji discloses an operation method of a first terminal (Fig.1(1)) in sidelink communication (See [0049]; sidelink communication), comprising: determining a first transmit power for sidelink communication (See [0108]; determine sidelink transmission power) with a second terminal (Fig.1(2)): determining a second transmit power for uplink communication (See [0108]; determine uplink transmission power) with a base station (Fig.1(3)): comparing the first transmit power with the second transmit power (See [0108]; compare the sidelink transmission power ( or the power consumption required for the sidelink transmission) in the relay path with the uplink transmission power ( or the power consumption required for the uplink transmission) in the direct path): and in response to the first transmit power being less than the second transmit power (See [0108]; comparison of transmission power is performed) , performing the sidelink communication using the first transmit power (See [0108]; select a path that will result in smaller transmission power (or smaller power consumption). Note: With Regard to Claim 8, the terminal comprises a processor (Fig.8(804)) Regarding claim 2, 9 Ohtsuji teaches all the features with respect to claim 1, 8 and Ohtuji further teaches in response to the first transmit power is greater than the second transmit power (See [0108]; comparison of transmission power is performed), performing the sidelink communication using the second transmit power (See [0108]; select a path that will result in smaller transmission power (or smaller power consumption). Regarding Claim 3, 10 Ohtsuji teaches all the features with respect to claim 1, 8 and Ohtuji further teaches comparing the first transmit power (See [0108]; determine sidelink transmission power) with a third transmit power (See [0088-0089]; [0108]; determine terminal maximum uplink transmission power of a terminal); and in response to the first transmit power being greater exceeding the third transmit power (See [0108]; comparison of transmission power is performed), setting the first transmit power to the third transmit power (See [0108]; select a path that will result in smaller transmission power (or smaller power consumption). Regarding Claim 4, 11 Ohtsuji teaches all the features with respect to claim 3, 10 and Ohtuji further teaches wherein the third transmit power is a maximum transmit power of the terminal (See [0088-0089]; the uplink quality information may indicate maximum transmission power of each relay UE 2) . Regarding Claim 5, 12 Ohtsuji teaches all the features with respect to claim 1, 8 and Ohtuji further teaches wherein the first transmit power is determined based on reception power related parameters received from the second terminal (See [0108]; the remote UE 1 may use the path loss between each relay UE 2 and the base station 3 to estimate the sidelink transmission power of each relay UE 2) . Regarding Claim 6, 13 Ohtsuji teaches all the features with respect to claim 5, 12 and Ohtuji further teaches wherein the reception power related parameters includes at least one of a reference signal received power (RSRP) (See [0027-0028]; [0082-0083]; downlink RSRP received in Relay UE 2 is considered by remote UE1) or a path loss measured based on a signal transmitted by the first terminal (See [0108]; UE1 determined path loss between UEs and path loss between UE and base station) . 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) 7 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable by Ohtsuji (US 2020/0008127 A1) in view of Lin (US 2021/0211845 A1). Regarding Claim 7, 14 Ohtsuji teaches all the features with respect to claim 6, 12 But Ohtsuji fails to explicitly recite wherein the signal is a synchronization signal block (SSB) transmitted by the first terminal. However in an analogous art, Lin teaches about transmission of synchronization signals where the signal get measured (See [0027]; [0040]). Ohtsuji and Lin are analogous art because they all pertain to wireless communication signal with V2X technology. Ohtsuji teaches about a UE comparing uplink and sidelink signal in order to select the smaller power transmission. Lin teaches about transmission of synchronization signal where the signal get measured. Ohtsuji could use Lin features such as to use one of the usual transmitted signal to measure and compare against the SSB signal power. Therefore it would have been obvious as to one of ordinary skill at the time of the written of the claim to combine Ohtsuji and Lin as to obtain an efficient wireless communication system. Note: Tang (US 2021/0329657 A1) is a reference that could have been used a prior art but not used. It teaches about selecting transmission power between uplink and sidelink by priority configuration. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GARY LAFONTANT whose telephone number is (571)272-3037. The examiner can normally be reached 10:00AM -6:00PM. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jeanette Parker can be reached at 571-2703647. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /GARY LAFONTANT/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2646
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Nov 05, 2024
Application Filed
Jan 15, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Sep 09, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §102, §103 (current)

Precedent Cases

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
74%
Grant Probability
75%
With Interview (+1.5%)
2y 5m (~6m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 475 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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