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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 09/16/2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claims 1-20 are objected to because of the following informalities:
In claims 1, 14, and 20, “LDCP codewords” should be “LDPC codewords”.
In claims 1, 14, and 20, “LDCP codeword length” should be “LDPC codeword length”.
Appropriate correction is required.
Any claim not objected above, is objected due to its dependency on an objected claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
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.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 3-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Examiner respectfully notes that Applicant’s disclosure does not appear to include languages which can be readily mapped to the claimed features. For example, it is not clear which portion of Applicant’s original disclosure supports “determining a first codeword length responsive to the payload bit count being equal to, or less than equal to, half of the first codeword length”, “determining the second codeword length responsive to the payload bit count being greater than half of the first codeword length, and less than, or less than or equal to, half of the second codeword length”, and “determining the third codeword length responsive to the payload bit count being greater than, or greater than or equal to half of the second codeword length”.
Claims 1-20 are 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 applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claims 1, 7, 8, 10, 11, 14, 18, and 20 recite "the selected LDCP codeword length". There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claims.
Claims 7, 8, 9 recite "wherein determining the number of LDPC codewords to generate comprises". There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claims.
Claim 11 recites "wherein generating the number of LDPC codewords comprises". There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claims.
Claim 16 recites "wherein to determine the number of LDPC codewords to generate". There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claims.
Any claim not rejected above, is rejected due to its dependency on an objected claim.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
The USPTO Internet website contains terminal disclaimer forms which may be used. Please visit www.uspto.gov/patent/patents-forms. The actual filing date of the application in which the form is filed determines what form (e.g., PTO/SB/25, PTO/SB/26, PTO/AIA /25, or PTO/AIA /26) should be used. A web-based eTerminal Disclaimer may be filled out completely online using web-screens. An eTerminal Disclaimer that meets all requirements is auto-processed and approved immediately upon submission. For more information about eTerminal Disclaimers, refer to www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/applying-online/eterminal-disclaimer.
Claims 1-10 and 12-20 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-4, 7-9, and 13 of U.S. Patent No. 12273126. Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because the limitations of the claimed invention are substantially equivalent. See table below and comments (italics) explaining minor differences. Therefore, the pending claims would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the time this invention was made, given the patented claims.
Claim 11 is rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claim 6 of U.S. Patent No. 12273126 in view of Si et al. (US Pat. Pub. 20160013811; hereinafter referred to as Si). See table below. Therefore, the pending claims would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art at the time this invention was made, given the patented claim.
19172566
US 12273126
1. A method, comprising: determining, by the one or more processors, a low density parity check (LDPC) codeword length from among a predetermined set of codeword lengths, according to a payload bit count corresponding to a plurality of information bits; determining, by the one or more processors, a number of LDCP codewords according to the payload bit count and the selected LDCP codeword length; and providing, by the one or more processors, via an LDPC encoder, the number of LDPC codewords, each LDPC codeword encoding a respective portion of the plurality of information bits and having the selected LDPC codeword length
1. A method, comprising: determining, by a wireless communication device, a count of a plurality of information bits; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a codeword length according to the count; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a number of codewords as a function of the count; assigning, by the wireless communication device, portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generating, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codewords having the codeword length; and transmitting, by the wireless communication device, the codewords to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined set of codeword lengths comprise at least a first codeword length of 648 bits, a second codeword length of 1296 bits, and a third codeword length of 1944 bits
2. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the codeword length comprises: selecting, by the wireless communication device, a first codeword length responsive to the count being less than a first threshold; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a second codeword length responsive to the count being greater than a second threshold; or selecting, by the wireless communication device, a third codeword length responsive to the count being between the first threshold and the second threshold.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first codeword length is 648 bits, the second codeword length is 1944 bits, and the third codeword length is 1296 bits. (same codeword lengths)
3. The method of claim 2, wherein determining the LDPC codeword length comprises: determining the first codeword length responsive to the payload bit count being equal to, or less than or equal to, half of the first codeword length.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the codeword length comprises: selecting, by the wireless communication device, a first codeword length responsive to the count being less than a first threshold; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a second codeword length responsive to the count being greater than a second threshold; or selecting, by the wireless communication device, a third codeword length responsive to the count being between the first threshold and the second threshold.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first codeword length is 648 bits, the second codeword length is 1944 bits, and the third codeword length is 1296 bits.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein the first threshold is 21 bytes, and the second threshold is 44 bytes.
(use of a byte threshold vs. half of codeword length is merely a design choice)
4. The method of claim 2, wherein determining the LDPC codeword length comprises: determining the second codeword length responsive to the payload bit count being greater than half of the first codeword length, and less than, or less than or equal to, half of the second codeword length.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the codeword length comprises: selecting, by the wireless communication device, a first codeword length responsive to the count being less than a first threshold; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a second codeword length responsive to the count being greater than a second threshold; or selecting, by the wireless communication device, a third codeword length responsive to the count being between the first threshold and the second threshold.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first codeword length is 648 bits, the second codeword length is 1944 bits, and the third codeword length is 1296 bits.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein the first threshold is 21 bytes, and the second threshold is 44 bytes.
(use of a byte threshold vs. half of codeword length is merely a design choice)
5. The method of claim 2, wherein determining the LDPC codeword length comprises: determining the third codeword length responsive to the payload bit count being greater than, or greater than or equal to half of the second codeword length.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein selecting the codeword length comprises: selecting, by the wireless communication device, a first codeword length responsive to the count being less than a first threshold; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a second codeword length responsive to the count being greater than a second threshold; or selecting, by the wireless communication device, a third codeword length responsive to the count being between the first threshold and the second threshold.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first codeword length is 648 bits, the second codeword length is 1944 bits, and the third codeword length is 1296 bits.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein the first threshold is 21 bytes, and the second threshold is 44 bytes.
(use of a byte threshold vs. half of codeword length is merely a design choice)
6. The method of claim 5, wherein determining the number of LDPC codewords to generate comprises: determining, by the one or more processors, to generate more than one LDPC codeword responsive to the payload bit count being greater than half of the third codeword length.
1. A method, comprising: determining, by a wireless communication device, a count of a plurality of information bits; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a codeword length according to the count; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a number of codewords as a function of the count; assigning, by the wireless communication device, portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generating, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codewords having the codeword length; and transmitting, by the wireless communication device, the codewords to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
(selecting more than one codeword as a function of a count to be generated is described in the claim, wherein half of the third codeword length is merely a design choice).
7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the number of LDPC codewords to generate comprises: determining, by the one or more processors, to generate one LDPC codeword responsive to the payload bit count being less than, or less than or equal to half of the selected LDPC codeword length.
1. A method, comprising: determining, by a wireless communication device, a count of a plurality of information bits; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a codeword length according to the count; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a number of codewords as a function of the count; assigning, by the wireless communication device, portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generating, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codewords having the codeword length; and transmitting, by the wireless communication device, the codewords to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
(selecting one codeword as a function of a count to be generated is described in the claim, wherein half of the selected LDPC codeword is merely a design choice).
8. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the number of LDPC codewords to generate comprises: determining, by the one or more processors, to generate two or more LDPC codewords responsive to the payload bit count being greater than half of the selected LDPC codeword length.
1. A method, comprising: determining, by a wireless communication device, a count of a plurality of information bits; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a codeword length according to the count; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a number of codewords as a function of the count; assigning, by the wireless communication device, portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generating, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codewords having the codeword length; and transmitting, by the wireless communication device, the codewords to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
(selecting two or more codewords as a function of a count to be generated is described in the claim, wherein half of the selected LDPC codeword is merely a design choice).
9. The method of claim 1, wherein each LDPC codeword is configured to encode a respective portion of information bits equal to substantially half of the codeword length for the LDPC codeword.
1. A method, comprising: determining, by a wireless communication device, a count of a plurality of information bits; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a codeword length according to the count; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a number of codewords as a function of the count; assigning, by the wireless communication device, portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generating, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codewords having the codeword length; and transmitting, by the wireless communication device, the codewords to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
(encoding using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits for each codeword, wherein half of the codeword length for the LDPC codeword is merely a design choice)
10. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the number of LDPC codewords comprises determining the number of LDPC codewords according to the payload bit count relative to half of the selected LDPC codeword length.
1. A method, comprising: determining, by a wireless communication device, a count of a plurality of information bits; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a codeword length according to the count; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a number of codewords as a function of the count; assigning, by the wireless communication device, portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generating, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codewords having the codeword length; and transmitting, by the wireless communication device, the codewords to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
(making a number of codewords as a function of a count relative to half of the selected LDPC codeword length is merely a design choice)
12. The method of claim 1, wherein each portion of the plurality of information bits is substantially equally divided across the number of LDPC codewords.
1. A method, comprising: determining, by a wireless communication device, a count of a plurality of information bits; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a codeword length according to the count; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a number of codewords as a function of the count; assigning, by the wireless communication device, portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generating, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codewords having the codeword length; and transmitting, by the wireless communication device, the codewords to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
13. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting, by the one or more processors, the number of LDPC codewords to a device comprising an LDPC decoder configured to decode the number of LDPC codewords.
1. A method, comprising: determining, by a wireless communication device, a count of a plurality of information bits; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a codeword length according to the count; selecting, by the wireless communication device, a number of codewords as a function of the count; assigning, by the wireless communication device, portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generating, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codewords having the codeword length; and transmitting, by the wireless communication device, the codewords to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
14. A device, comprising: one or more processors configured to: determine a low density parity check (LDPC) codeword length from among a predetermined set of codeword lengths, according to a payload bit count corresponding to a plurality of information bits; determine a number of LDCP codewords according to the payload bit count and the selected LDCP codeword length; and provide, via an LDPC encoder, the number of LDPC codewords, each LDPC codeword encoding a respective portion of the plurality of information bits and having the selected LDPC codeword length.
7. A wireless communication device, comprising: one or more processors configured to: determine a count of a plurality of information bits; select a codeword length according to the count; select a number of codewords as a function of the count; assign portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generate, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codeword having the codeword length; and transmit the codeword to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
15. The device of claim 14, wherein the predetermined set of codeword lengths comprise at least a first codeword length of 648 bits, a second codeword length of 1296 bits, and a third codeword length of 1944 bits.
8. The wireless communication device of claim 10, wherein the one or more processors are configured to: select a first codeword length responsive to the count being less than a first threshold; select a second codeword length responsive to the count being greater than a second threshold; or select a third codeword length responsive to the count being between the first threshold and the second threshold.
9. The wireless communication device of claim 11, wherein the first codeword length is 648 bits, the second codeword length is 1944 bits, and the third codeword length is 1296 bits.
(same codeword lengths)
16. The device of claim 14, wherein, to determine the number of LDPC codewords to generate, the one or more processors are configured to: determine to generate more than one LDPC codeword responsive to the payload bit count being greater than half of the third codeword length.
7. A wireless communication device, comprising: one or more processors configured to: determine a count of a plurality of information bits; select a codeword length according to the count; select a number of codewords as a function of the count; assign portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generate, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codeword having the codeword length; and transmit the codeword to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
(selecting more than one codeword as a function of a count to be generated is described in the claim, wherein half of the third codeword length is merely a design choice).
17. The device of claim 14, wherein each LDPC codeword is configured to encode a respective portion of information bits equal to substantially half of the codeword length for the LDPC codeword.
7. A wireless communication device, comprising: one or more processors configured to: determine a count of a plurality of information bits; select a codeword length according to the count; select a number of codewords as a function of the count; assign portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generate, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codeword having the codeword length; and transmit the codeword to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
(making a number of codewords as a function of a count relative to half of the selected LDPC codeword length is merely a design choice)
18. The device of claim 14, wherein, to determine the number of LDPC codewords, the one or more processors are configured to determine the number of LDPC codewords according to the payload bit count relative to half of the selected LDPC codeword length.
7. A wireless communication device, comprising: one or more processors configured to: determine a count of a plurality of information bits; select a codeword length according to the count; select a number of codewords as a function of the count; assign portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generate, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codeword having the codeword length; and transmit the codeword to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
(making a number of codewords as a function of a count relative to half of the selected LDPC codeword length is merely a design choice)
19. The device of claim 14, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to transmit, via a transmitter, the number of LDPC codewords to a second device comprising an LDPC decoder configured to decode the number of LDPC codewords.
7. A wireless communication device, comprising: one or more processors configured to: determine a count of a plurality of information bits; select a codeword length according to the count; select a number of codewords as a function of the count; assign portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generate, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codeword having the codeword length; and transmit the codeword to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
20. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to: determine a low density parity check (LDPC) codeword length from among a predetermined set of codeword lengths, according to a payload bit count corresponding to a plurality of information bits; determine a number of LDCP codewords according to the payload bit count and the selected LDCP codeword length; and provide, via an LDPC encoder, the number of LDPC codewords, each LDPC codeword encoding a respective portion of the plurality of information bits and having the selected LDPC codeword length.
13. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to: determine a count of a plurality of information bits; select a codeword length according to the count; select a number of codewords as a function of the count; assign portions of the plurality of information bits to each codeword of the number of codewords, the portions having a substantially equal number of information bits; generate, by a low-density parity-check (LDPC) encoder of the wireless communication device, each codeword using the assigned portions of the plurality of information bits, the codeword having the codeword length; and transmit the codeword to an LDPC decoder of another wireless communication device.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein generating the number of LDPC codewords comprises, for a first LDPC codeword for a first portion of the plurality of information bits, appending a first set of parity bits to the first portion of the plurality of information bits, the first LDPC codeword comprising the first portion of information bits and the first set of parity bits, wherein a count of the first portion of information bits and the first set of parity bits is equal to the selected LDPC codeword length.
6. The method of claim 1, further comprising setting, for the codeword, a number of parity bits according to the codeword length.
Si par. 0047 discloses a combination of a quantity of bits of a codeword and a quantity of bits of the parity bit of the codeword is the code length of a codeword. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to combine Si with US Pat. 12273126 because it is a predictable result of applying the codeword bits and parity bits relationship with the known encoding process.
Closest Prior Arts of Record
Si et al. (US Pat. Pub. 20160013811) discloses a coding method and a coding device that determines the length of to-be-coded data in burst data (Par. 0059-0061). The coding device further determines the FEC coding type according to the length of the to-be-coded data and use LDPC coding to generate codewords having the determined to-be-coded data length (Par. 0062-0070). Si further discloses a sending device configured to receive data (Par. 0103).
Examiner’s Note
There are no prior art(s) rejections in this Office Action. However, examiner will further consider and update search to determine merits of the claims once Applicants fix the above 35 U.S.C. 112(a) and (b) rejections and nonstatutory double patent rejections.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JEFFREY A YANG whose telephone number is (703)756-1447. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. PST.
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/JEFFREY ANDREW YANG/Examiner, Art Unit 2111
/MARK D FEATHERSTONE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2111
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