Ex Parte Jovanovic et al

Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Jun 29, 2018

14336720 (P.T.A.B. Jun. 29, 2018)

UNITED STA TES p A TENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
APPLICATION NO. FILING DATE
14/336,720 07/21/2014
135878 7590 07/03/2018
Fogg & Powers LLC/Commscope
4600 W 77th St
Suite 305
Minneapolis, MN 55435
FIRST NAMED INVENTOR
Milun Jovanovic
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Address: COMMISSIONER FOR PATENTS
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450
www .uspto.gov
ATTORNEY DOCKET NO. CONFIRMATION NO.
100.1429US02 4767
EXAMINER
ZUNIGA ABAD, JACKIE
ART UNIT PAPER NUMBER
2469
NOTIFICATION DATE DELIVERY MODE
07 /03/2018 ELECTRONIC
Please find below and/or attached an Office communication concerning this application or proceeding.
The time period for reply, if any, is set in the attached communication.
Notice of the Office communication was sent electronically on above-indicated "Notification Date" to the
following e-mail address( es):
docketing@fogglaw.com
eofficeaction@appcoll.com
PTOL-90A (Rev. 04/07)
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
Ex parte MILUN JOVANOVIC, ALFONS DUSSMANN,
and THOMAS KUMMETZ
Appeal 2018-001258
Application 14/336,720
Technology Center 2400
Before ERIC B. CHEN, MATTHEW R. CLEMENTS, and
SCOTT E. BAIN, Administrative Patent Judges.
CHEN, Administrative Patent Judge.
DECISION ON APPEAL
This is an appeal under 35 U.S.C. § 134(a) from the final rejection of
claims 21--40. Claims 1-20 have been cancelled. We have jurisdiction
under 35 U.S.C. § 6(b ). We reverse.
Appeal 2018-001258
Application 14/336,720
INVENTION
Appellants' invention relates to "extending coverage of a base
transceiver station" by processing a received signal "through an adaptable
equalizer to reduce noise, distortion, interference, and frequency errors" and
"retransmitt[ing it] into an extended coverage area." (Abstract.)
Claims 21 and 36 are independent claims. Illustrative claim 21 is
reproduced below, with disputed limitations in italics:
21. A communication system comprising:
at least one donor antenna for receiving wireless signals
having a carrier signal from a signal source;
processing circuitry including at least one equalizer that
is operatively coupled to the donor antenna, the processing
circuitry receiving the wireless signals through the donor
antenna and processing the wireless signals through the
equalizer to generate processed signals for retransmission;
the processing circuitry including at least one local carrier
signal and being configured for determining a frequency error
between a carrier signal of the received wireless signals and the
at least one local carrier signal;
the processing circuitry, in response to the determined
frequency error, configured for providing a compensation to the
frequency error.
EXAMINER'S REJECTIONS
Claims 21--40 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as unpatentable
over Eum (US 2011/0070839 Al; Mar. 24, 2011) and Wormer
(US 2008/0309421 Al; Dec. 18, 2008).
ANALYSIS
We are persuaded by Appellants' arguments (App. Br. 6-7) that the
combination of Eum and Wormer would not have rendered obvious
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Application 14/336,720
independent claim 21, which includes the disputed limitation "processing
circuitry including at least one equalizer that is operatively coupled to the
donor antenna, the processing circuitry receiving the wireless signals
through the donor antenna and processing the wireless signals through the
equalizer to generate processed signals for retransmission."
The Examiner found that reception antenna 701 and equalizer 715 of
Eum, as illustrated in Figure 7 A, correspond to the disputed limitation.
(Final Act. 5-6; see also Ans. 2-3.) The Examiner further found that "Eum
discloses a communication system for minimizing spectrum distortion
(frequency errors) between a carrier signal (pilot) using the at least one
reference signal." (Ans. 23.) We do not agree with the Examiner's findings.
Independent claim 21 recites "wireless signals having a carrier
signal" and "processing circuitry receiving the wireless signals through the
donor antenna and processing the wireless signals through the equalizer to
generate processed signals for retransmission" (emphases added). Thus, the
earlier recitation of "wireless signals having a carrier signal" provides an
antecedent basis for the later recitation of "processing the wireless signals
through the equalizer." Accordingly, claim 21 requires the "wireless signals
having a carrier signal" to be processed.
Eum teaches "cancelling a feedback signal of a radio signal in an on-
channel repeater." (i-f 3.) Figure 7 A of Eum illustrates a feedback
cancellation apparatus of an on-channel repeater (i-f 48), which includes "the
transmission signal generator 710 [has] a demodulator 708, an equalizer 715,
and a modulator 709" (i-f 92). Figure 7B, which illustrates a method for
cancelling a feedback signal in an on-channel repeater (i-f 49), includes the
following steps:
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Application 14/336,720
At step S724, the demodulator 708 demodulates the feedback
cancelled signal to a baseband symbol through matching
filtering. At step S726, the equalizer 715 compensates a signal
distorted by a main transmission channel using the demodulated
baseband symbol and generates 8-level baseband symbol. At
step S728, the modulator 709 inserts DC pilot into the 8-level
baseband symbol equalized by the equalizer 615, converts the
DC pilot inserted baseband symbol to an intermediate frequency
(IF) signal, and modulates the DC pilot inserted IF signal through
VSB modulation.
(if 100.)
Although the Examiner cited to equalizer 715 of Eum, the Examiner
has provided insufficient evidence to support a finding that Eum teaches the
limitation "the processing circuitry receiving the wireless signals [having a
carrier signal] through the donor antenna and processing the wireless signals
[having a carrier signal] through the equalizer to generate processed signals
for retransmission." In particular, Figure 7B of Eum illustrates the steps of:
(i) "the demodulator 708 demodulates the feedback cancelled signal to a
baseband symbol through matching filtering"; (ii) "the equalizer 715
compensates a signal distorted by a main transmission channel using the
demodulated baseband symbol and generates 8-level baseband symbol"; (iii)
and "the modulator 709 inserts DC pilot into the 8-level baseband symbol
equalized by the equalizer 615." (if 100.) Thus, the feedback cancelled
signal of Eum is demodulated by demodulator 708 before being processed
by equalizer 715 and the modulator 709 inserts a DC pilot after being
processed by equalizer 715. As a result, Eum's equalizer 715 processes
demodulated signals, not "wireless signals having a carrier signal."
The Examiner, therefore, has not shown on this record that Eum
teaches the limitation "the processing circuitry receiving the wireless signals
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Application 14/336,720
[having a carrier signal] through the donor antenna and processing the
wireless signals [having a carrier signal] through the equalizer to generate
processed signals for retransmission." Moreover, the Examiner's
application of Wormer does not cure the deficiencies of Eum.
Accordingly, we do not sustain the rejection of independent claim 21
under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a). Claims 22-35 depend from claim 21. We do not
sustain the rejection of claims 22-35 under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) for the same
reasons discussed with respect to claim 21.
Independent claim 36 recites limitations similar to those discussed
with respect to claim 21. We do not sustain the rejection of claim 36, as
well as its dependent claims 37--40, for the same reasons discussed with
respect to claim 21.
DECISION
The Examiner's decision rejecting claims 21--40 is reversed.
REVERSED
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