Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 19/041,804

PREPARING CSI USING A SET OF ZERO AMPLITUDE PARAMETERS

Non-Final OA §103
Filed
Jan 30, 2025
Priority
Dec 15, 2017 — continuation of 10/305,568 +4 more
Examiner
YU, LIHONG
Art Unit
2631
Tech Center
2600 — Communications
Assignee
Motorola Mobility LLC
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
82%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
1y 0m
Est. Remaining
99%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 82% — above average
82%
Career Allowance Rate
680 granted / 831 resolved
+19.8% vs TC avg
Strong +19% interview lift
Without
With
+18.9%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
2y 6m
Avg Prosecution
18 currently pending
Career history
846
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.5%
-39.5% vs TC avg
§103
90.2%
+50.2% vs TC avg
§102
4.0%
-36.0% vs TC avg
§112
2.0%
-38.0% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 831 resolved cases

Office Action

§103
DETAILED ACTION Notice of 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 Objections Claims 1-20 are objected to because of the following informalities: In claim 1, line 9, it is suggested that “codeword” be replaced with “the codeword”. In claim 8, line 1, it is suggested that “the set of location bits” be replaced with “a set of location bits”. In claim 11, line 6, it is suggested that “codeword” be replaced with “the codeword”. In claim 18, line 1, it is suggested that “the set of location bits” be replaced with “a set of location bits”. 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. Claims 1-3 and 11-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhao et al. (US 2016/0344458 A1) in view of Papasakellariou (US 2016/0183244 A1). Consider claims 1 and 11: Zhao discloses a base station for wireless communication (see paragraphs 0001-0002, where Zhao describes a base station eNodeB and a user equipment (UE) in a radio communication system), comprising: at least one memory (see paragraph 0361, where Zhao describes that the eNodeB may have a storage device); and at least one processor coupled with the at least one memory and configured to cause the base station to (see paragraph 0361, where Zhao describes a computing device which executes program codes stored in the storage device): receive, from a user equipment (UE), channel state information (CSI) based on a CSI codebook comprising a plurality of precoding matrices (see paragraph 0004-0005, where Zhao describes that the sender, i.e., the eNodeB, receives channel information feedback from a receiver, i.e., the UE, the channel information feedback is generated based on a codebook, the codebook includes a plurality of code words, and the code word index is called a precoding matrix indicator); identify a codeword based on the CSI (see paragraph 0005, where Zhao describes that the eNodeB finds a code word base on received code word index, the code word is selected by the UE, the selected code word most matched with the channel); and determine a total number of non-zero coefficients based on the codeword (see paragraph 0006, where Zhao describes that the eNodeB determines N non-zero feature vectors of a channel based on N columns of the received code word), wherein codeword identifies the total number of non-zero coefficients (see paragraph 0006, where Zhao describes that N columns of each code word indicate N non-zero feature vectors), and wherein the total number of non-zero coefficients is associated with the CSI codebook over a set of transmission layers (see paragraphs 0005-0006, where Zhao describes that a code word in a codebook is selected based on channel information, each code word has N columns when the rank is N, the number of ranks is equal to the number of non-zero feature vectors, and the rank is the number of layers as shown in TABLE 1; see paragraph 0015, where Zhao describes that the rank of the channel matrix corresponds to the number of layers; see paragraph 0020, where Zhan describes that the layers are transmission layers). As discussed above, Zhao discloses that the base station receives the code word transmitted from the UE (see paragraph 0005, where Zhao describes that the sender, i.e. the eNodeB, finds the precoding code word according to received code word index). However, Zhao does not specifically disclose: decode a codeword based on the CSI. Papasakellariou teaches: decode a codeword based on a CSI (see Fig. 1 and paragraph 0160, where Papasakellariou describes a base station eNB 102 which decodes a codeword conveying CSI reports transmitted from a user equipment). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include: decode a codeword based on the CSI, as taught by Papasakellariou to modify the method of Zhao in order to improve interface efficiency, as discussed by Papasakellariou (see paragraph 0003). Consider claims 2 and 12: Zhao in view of Papasakellariou discloses the invention of claims 1 and 11 above. Zhao discloses: each non-zero coefficient corresponding to the total number of non-zero coefficients is represented by one or more bits, integers, or values in a range (see paragraph 0006, where Zhao describes that N columns of each code word indicate N non-zero feature vectors). Consider claims 3 and 13: Zhao in view of Papasakellariou discloses the invention of claims 1 and 11 above. Zhao discloses: the received CSI comprises a combined CSI for the set of transmission layers (see paragraphs 0005-0006, where Zhao describes that the channel information incudes code word index, the base station eNodeB finds a code word according to the received code word index from the UE, N columns in the code word represents a rank of N, a rank is number of layers as described in Table 1). Claims 4 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhao et al. (US 2016/0344458 A1) in view of Papasakellariou (US 2016/0183244 A1), as applied to claims 1 and 11 above, and further in view of Onggosanusi et al. (US 2016/0211895 A1). Consider claims 4 and 14: Zhao in view of Papasakellariou discloses the invention of claims 1 and 11 above. Zhao and Papasakellariou do not specifically disclose: each transmission layer in the set of transmission layers comprises multiple beams. Onggosanusi teaches: each transmission layer in a set of transmission layers comprises multiple beams (see paragraph 0323, where Onggosanusi describes a wireless communication system in which there is NB beams in frequency domain for each transmission layer). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include: each transmission layer in the set of transmission layers comprises multiple beams, as taught by Onggosanusi to modify the method of Zhao and Papasakellariou in order to avoid interlayer interference, as discussed by Onggosanusi (see paragraph 0323). Claims 5, 6, 15 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhao et al. (US 2016/0344458 A1) in view of Papasakellariou (US 2016/0183244 A1), as applied to claims 1 and 11 above, and further in view of Onggosanusi et al. (US 2018/0175993 A1). Consider claims 5 and 15: Zhao in view of Papasakellariou discloses the invention of claims 1 and 11 above. Zhao discloses: the at least one processor is configured to cause the base station to determine a set of non-zero coefficients over the set of transmission layers (see paragraph 0006, where Zhao describes that the eNodeB determines N non-zero feature vectors of a channel based on N columns of the received code word; see paragraphs 0005-0006, where Zhao describes that a code word in a codebook is selected based on channel information, each code word has N columns when the rank is N, the number of ranks is equal to the number of non-zero feature vectors, and the rank is the number of layers as shown in TABLE 1; see paragraph 0015, where Zhao describes that the rank of the channel matrix corresponds to the number of layers; see paragraph 0020, where Zhan describes that the layers are transmission layers), and wherein the total number of non-zero coefficients over the set of transmission layers is based on the set of non-zero coefficients (see paragraph 0006, where Zhao describes that the eNodeB determines N non-zero feature vectors of a channel). Zhao and Papasakellariou do not specifically disclose: determine a set of zero coefficients over the set of transmission layers. Onggosanusi teaches: determine a set of zero coefficients over a set of transmission layers (see paragraph 0190, where Onggosanusi describes that N0,1 can be used to represent the number of wideband (WB) amplitudes that are zero for layer 1, and N0,2 can be used to represent the number of wideband (WB) amplitudes that are zero for layer 2). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include: determine a set of zero coefficients over the set of transmission layers, as taught by Onggosanusi to modify the method of Zhao and Papasakellariou in order to sufficiently accommodate reporting of channel state information associated with large transmit antennas, as discussed by Onggosanusi (see paragraph 0012). Consider claims 6 and 16: Zhao in view of Papasakellariou discloses the invention of claims 1 and 11 above. Zhao does not specifically disclose: the total number of non-zero coefficients is encoded using a variable length code. Onggosanusi teaches: total number of non-zero coefficients is encoded using a variable length code (see paragraph 0201, where Onggosanusi describes that a bitmap B=B0B1 is used to represent the number of wideband (WB) amplitudes that are zero or non-zero, if a bit =1, then the corresponding WB amplitude is non-zero, where bitmap B0 has a length of 2L and bitmap B1 has a length of 2L, where L=2, 3 and 4). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include: the total number of non-zero coefficients is encoded using a variable length code, as taught by Onggosanusi to modify the method of Zhao and Papasakellariou in order to sufficiently accommodate reporting of channel state information associated with large transmit antennas, as discussed by Onggosanusi (see paragraph 0012). Claims 7 and 17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhao et al. (US 2016/0344458 A1) in view of Papasakellariou (US 2016/0183244 A1), as applied to claims 1 and 11 above, and further in view of Oggier et al. (US 8,928,503 B2). Consider claim 7 and 17: Zhao in view of Papasakellariou discloses the invention of claims 1 and 11 above. Zhao discloses: the codeword is selected from a plurality of candidate codewords (see paragraph 0005, where Zhao describes that the code word is selected by the UE, the selected code word is a code word that is most matched with the channel). Zhao does not specifically disclose: a length of each candidate codeword from the plurality of candidate codewords is not more than a number of bits needed to code the total number of non-zero coefficients. Oggier teaches: a length of a candidate codeword from a plurality of candidate codewords is not more than a number of bits needed to code total number of non-zero coefficients (see col. 17, lines 20-24, where Oggier describes a data encoding method in which three non-zero elements of a set of bits are encoded to get a codeword of length 3). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include: a length of each candidate codeword from the plurality of candidate codewords is not more than a number of bits needed to code the total number of non-zero coefficients, as taught by Oggier to modify the method of Zhao and Papasakellariou in order to reduce overhead, as discussed by Oggier (see col. 1, lines 18-28). Claims 8 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhao et al. (US 2016/0344458 A1) in view of Papasakellariou (US 2016/0183244 A1) and Oggier et al. (US 8,928,503 B2), as applied to claims 7 and 17 above, and further in view of Frederickson (US 5,208,834). Consider claims 8 and 18: Zhao in view of Papasakellariou and Oggier discloses the invention of claims 7 and 17 above. Zhao discloses: the CSI further comprises the set of location bits (see paragraph 0005, where Zhao describes that the channel information feedback includes a code word index i). Zhao does not specifically disclose: encoded using an enumerative coding. Frederickson teaches: encoded using an enumerative coding (see col. 2, lines 8-13, where Frederickson describes an enumerative coding). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include: encoded using an enumerative coding, as taught by Frederickson to modify the method of Zhao in order to be found easily, as discussed by Frederickson (see col. 2, lines 8-13). Claims 9, 10, 19 and 20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Zhao et al. (US 2016/0344458 A1) in view of Papasakellariou (US 2016/0183244 A1), Oggier et al. (US 8,928,503 B2) and Frederickson (US 5,208,834), as applied to claims 8 and 18 above, and further in view of Onggosanusi et al. (US 2018/0175993 A1). Consider claims 9 and 19: Zhao in view of Papasakellariou, Oggier and Frederickson discloses the invention of claims 8 and 18 above. Zhao does not specifically disclose: the at least one processor is configured to cause the base station to determine locations of zero coefficients based on the set of location bits. Onggosanusi teaches: one processor is configured to cause a device to determine locations of zero coefficients based on a set of location bits (see paragraph 0201, where Onggosanusi describes that a bitmap B=B0B1 is used to represent the number of wideband (WB) amplitudes that are zero or non-zero, if a bit =0, then the corresponding WB amplitude is zero). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include: the at least one processor is configured to cause the base station to determine locations of zero coefficients based on the set of location bits, as taught by Onggosanusi to modify the method of Zhao in order to sufficiently accommodate reporting of channel state information associated with large transmit antennas, as discussed by Onggosanusi (see paragraph 0012). Consider claims 10 and 20: Zhao in view of Papasakellariou, Oggier and Frederickson discloses the invention of claims 8 and 18 above. Zhao does not specifically disclose: the at least one processor is configured to cause the base station to determine locations of non-zero coefficients based on the set of location bits. Onggosanusi teaches: one processor is configured to cause a device to determine locations of non-zero coefficients based on a set of location bits (see paragraph 0201, where Onggosanusi describes that a bitmap B=B0B1 is used to represent the number of wideband (WB) amplitudes that are zero or non-zero, if a bit =1, then the corresponding WB amplitude is non-zero). Therefore, it would have been obvious to one ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to include: the at least one processor is configured to cause the base station to determine locations of non-zero coefficients based on the set of location bits, as taught by Onggosanusi to modify the method of Zhao in order to sufficiently accommodate reporting of channel state information associated with large transmit antennas, as discussed by Onggosanusi (see paragraph 0012). Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to LIHONG YU whose telephone number is (571)270-5147. The examiner can normally be reached 10:00 am-6:00 pm EST Monday-Friday. 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, Hannah S. Wang can be reached at (571)272-9018. 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. /LIHONG YU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2631
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Prosecution Timeline

Jan 30, 2025
Application Filed
Jun 10, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §103 (current)

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
82%
Grant Probability
99%
With Interview (+18.9%)
2y 6m (~1y 0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 831 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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