DETAILED ACTION
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
1. A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 2 December 2025 has been entered.
Response to Arguments
2. Applicant’s arguments with respect to the new limitations of independent claims 1, 8, and 15 have been considered but are moot because they do not apply to the new reference, Da Silva, that is relied on in the current rejection.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. 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.
7. Claims 1-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ramachandra et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication 2024/0022973 (hereinafter Ramachandra), in view of Wu, U.S. Patent Application Publication 2023/0143942 (hereinafter Wu), further in view of Da Silva et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication 2025/0365594 (hereinafter Da Silva).
Regarding claim 1, Ramachandra discloses a method (disclosed is a method performed by a UE, according to Abstract, [0118]) comprising:
communicating, by a wireless device:
first packets with a master base station associated with a dual connectivity of the wireless device (the UE engages in multi-radio access technology dual connectivity (MR-DC) communications with a master node (MN), according to [0032]); and
second packets with a secondary base station associated with the dual connectivity (the UE engages in MR-DC communications with a secondary node (SN), according to [0032]);
receiving, by the wireless device from the secondary base station and via a signaling radio bearer 3 (SRB3), a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration message indicating a layer 1 and/or layer 2 based mobility (LTM) procedure for the wireless device (as part of an SN modification procedure associated with an SCG (secondary cell group) (which entails lower layer, L1/L2 centric inter-cell mobility, according to Abstract, [0020]-[0021]), the UE receives an RRC reconfiguration message from the SN via SRB3, according to [0074]-[0075]), wherein the RRC reconfiguration message comprises:
an identifier of a target cell for the LTM procedure (the RRC reconfiguration message informs the UE of the PCI (physical cell identity) [“identifier”] of the PSCell [“target cell”] for the L1/L2 centric mobility procedure, according to [0074]-[0077], [0130]); and
configuration parameters of the target cell (the RRC reconfiguration message comprises configuration information enabling the UE to synchronize with the PSCell, according to [0074]-[0077], [0130]);
sending, by the wireless device to the secondary base station, one or more layer 1 measurement reports of the target cell (the UE sends an L1 measurement report, associated with the PSCell, to the SN, according to [0161], [0166], [0198], [0296], Fig. 14);
receiving, by the wireless device from the secondary base station, a medium access control (MAC) control element (CE) triggering a cell change to the target cell for the LTM procedure (the UE receives, from the SN, a MAC CE indicating the PSCell change, according to [0167], Fig. 14); and
sending, by the wireless device to the secondary base station, an RRC reconfiguration complete message for the LTM procedure after receiving the MAC CE (after receiving the MAC CE, the UE sends, to the MN, an RRC reconfiguration complete message for the L1/L2 centric mobility procedure, according to [0190], whereby the MN forwards the RRC reconfiguration complete message to the SN, according to [0155]).
Ramachandra does not expressly disclose that the RRC reconfiguration complete message is sent from the wireless device to the secondary base station via the SRB3, nor that the RRC reconfiguration message comprises a measurement configuration comprising one or more channel state information (CSI) report configuration parameters for the LTM procedure, sending, by the wireless device to the secondary base station, a first RRC reconfiguration complete message, whereby the one or more layer 1 measurement reports are sent based on the measurement configuration.
Wu discloses that the RRC reconfiguration complete message is sent from the wireless device to the secondary base station via the SRB3 (a UE sends an RRC reconfiguration complete message, via the SRB3, to an S-SN, according to [0276]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ramachandra with Wu such that the RRC reconfiguration complete message is sent from the wireless device to the secondary base station via the SRB3.
One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification in order to facilitate the exchange of SN-related information between a UE and an SN (Wu: [0005]).
Neither Ramachandra nor Wu expressly discloses that the RRC reconfiguration message comprises a measurement configuration comprising one or more channel state information (CSI) report configuration parameters for the LTM procedure, sending, by the wireless device to the secondary base station, a first RRC reconfiguration complete message, whereby the one or more layer 1 measurement reports are sent based on the measurement configuration.
Da Silva discloses that the RRC reconfiguration message comprises a measurement configuration comprising one or more channel state information (CSI) report configuration parameters for the LTM procedure (an RRC Reconfiguration message comprises a CSI measurement configuration, for L1/L2 intercell-mobility, that comprises parameters, according to [0068]-[0070]),
sending, by the wireless device to the secondary base station, a first RRC reconfiguration complete message (a UE sends, to a candidate DU (which may be a secondary cell), an RRC Reconfiguration Complete message, according to [0027], [0315]-[0316]),
whereby the one or more layer 1 measurement reports are sent based on the measurement configuration (the UE sends a Measurement Report according to the measurement configuration, whereby said measurement configuration specifies an L1 RSRP measurement, according to [0307]-[0308]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ramachandra as modified by Wu with Da Silva such that the RRC reconfiguration message comprises a measurement configuration comprising one or more channel state information (CSI) report configuration parameters for the LTM procedure, sending, by the wireless device to the secondary base station, a first RRC reconfiguration complete message, whereby the one or more layer 1 measurement reports are sent based on the measurement configuration.
One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification in order to minimize latency, overhead, and interruption time (Da Silva: [0005]-[0006], [0020]-[0022]).
Claim 8 recites a wireless device comprising one or more processors and memory storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors (Ramachandra discloses that the UE comprises a processor and a memory that stores instructions that are executed by said processor, according to [0300], Fig. 20 [elements 300, 303, and 305]), cause the wireless device to perform the method recited in claim 1, and is therefore rejected on the same grounds as claim 1.
Claim 15 recites a non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, when executed by one or more processors (Ramachandra discloses a non-transitory storage medium including program code that is executed by the UE’s processor, according to [0319]), cause a wireless device to perform the method recited in claim 1, and is therefore rejected on the same grounds as claim 1.
Regarding claim 2, the combination of Ramachandra, Wu, and Da Silva discloses all the limitations of claim 1. Additionally, Ramachandra discloses that the wireless device performs the LTM procedure to the target cell in response to the MAC CE (in response to receiving the MAC CE, the UE performs the L1/L2 centric inter-cell mobility procedure for the PSCell, according to [0167]-[0170], Fig. 14).
Regarding claim 3, the combination of Ramachandra, Wu, and Da Silva discloses all the limitations of claim 1. Additionally, Ramachandra discloses that the wireless device is connected with the master base station and the secondary base station (the UE operates in MR-DC in relation to the MN and SN, according to Abstract, [0032], [0165], Fig. 14).
Regarding claim 4, the combination of Ramachandra, Wu, and Da Silva discloses all the limitations of claim 1. Additionally, Ramachandra discloses the secondary base station determines/generates the target cell for the LTM procedure (the RRC reconfiguration message sent from the SN informs the UE of the PCI of the PSCell for the L1/L2 centric mobility procedure, according to [0074]-[0077], [0130]).
Regarding claim 5, the combination of Ramachandra, Wu, and Da Silva discloses all the limitations of claim 1.
Neither Ramachandra nor Wu expressly discloses that the secondary base
station determines/generates the configuration parameters of the target cell.
Da Silva discloses that the secondary base station determines/generates the configuration parameters of the target cell (a candidate DU (which may be a secondary cell, according to [0315]) generates the measurement configuration that is associated with L1/L2 based inter-cell mobility, which comprises parameters, according to [0027], [0068]-[0070]).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify Ramachandra as modified by Wu as modified by Da Silva with Da Silva such that the secondary base station determines/generates the configuration parameters of the target cell.
One of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to make this modification in order to minimize latency, overhead, and interruption time (Da Silva: [0005]-[0006], [0020]-[0022]).
Regarding claim 6, the combination of Ramachandra, Wu, and Da Silva discloses all the limitations of claim 1. Additionally, Ramachandra discloses that the wireless device generates the one or more layer 1 measurement reports (the UE generates an L1 measurement report, according to [0161], [0166], [0198], [0296], Fig. 14).
Regarding claim 7, the combination of Ramachandra, Wu, and Da Silva discloses all the limitations of claim 1. Additionally, Ramachandra discloses that the one or more layer 1 measurement reports comprises one or more measurement results of one or more reference signals configured by the configuration parameters of the target cell (the reported L1 measurements are performed on reference signals that are associated with the PScell that is configured with sync, according to [0161], [0309]).
Claims 9-14 do not differ substantively from claims 2-7, respectively, and are therefore rejected on the same grounds as claims 2-7, respectively.
Claims 16-20 do not differ substantively from claims 2-6, respectively, and are therefore rejected on the same grounds as claims 2-6, respectively.
Conclusion
8. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MATTHEW W GENACK whose telephone number is (571)272-7541. The examiner can normally be reached Monday through Friday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM Eastern Time.
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/MATTHEW W GENACK/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2645