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`UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`
`
`
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`
`
`APPLE INC.,
`HTC CORPORATION AND HTC AMERICA, INC.,
`ZTE (USA) INC.,
`Petitioners
`v.
`
`INVT SPE LLC,
`Patent Owner
`
`
`Case No. IPR2018-01473
`U.S. Patent No. 6,611,676
`
`DECLARATION OF BRANIMIR VOJCIC
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 1
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`I, BRANIMIR VOJCIC, hereby declare as follows:
`
`1.
`
`I am competent to testify, and if called upon during an Inter Partes Review
`
`(IPR) proceeding would do so. If called upon as a witness, I could competently
`
`testify to the truth of each statement herein.
`
`2.
`
`I was asked to provide an opinion on Ground 1 asserted in IPR2018-01473,
`
`regarding U.S. Patent No. 6,611,676 (’676 patent) (Ex. 1001), statements made in
`
`the Petition related to Ground 1, and exhibits in support of the Petition’s Ground 1.
`
`3. My opinion is based upon my knowledge and experience, and my review of
`
`the ’676 patent, the Petition, and exhibits in support of the Petition.
`
`BACKGROUND
`I.
`I am an expert in wireless technology and other areas of
`
`4.
`
`telecommunications, signal processing, and electrical engineering. I am presently a
`
`Professor Emeritus of Engineering and Applied Science at The George
`
`Washington University. I retired from the university in May 2015, where I was a
`
`member of the faculty since September 1, 1991. In addition, I have served as a
`
`consultant for a number of companies in the wireless communications industry in
`
`various technology areas. I have also served on numerous committees and as a
`
`reviewer and editor for several journals, conferences, and organizations.
`
`5.
`
`I am presently President of Xplore Wireless, LLC, a small
`
`telecommunication consulting company. I am also a co-founder, Director, CEO
`
`
`
`1
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`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 2
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`and CTO of LN2, a startup in the telecommunication space.
`
`6.
`
`I received my Diploma of Engineering, Master of Science, and Doctor of
`
`Science degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of Belgrade in
`
`Yugoslavia in 1981, 1986, and 1989, respectively. The primary focus of my Doctor
`
`of Science studies was on Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) and spread
`
`spectrum communications technologies.
`
`7.
`
`In 1991, I joined The George Washington University as an Assistant
`
`Professor and was promoted to Associate Professor and Professor in 1997 and
`
`2000, respectively. From 2001 to 2004, I served as the Chairman of the Electrical
`
`and Computer Engineering Department at The George Washington University.
`
`During my tenure at The George Washington University, until May 2015, I taught
`
`many different courses on communications theory and networks, wireless
`
`communications, CDMA, and I was a course director for a number of courses in
`
`communications. I have supervised students mostly in the areas of communications
`
`and coding theory, wireless communications/networks , CDMA (including IS-95,
`
`CDMA2000, WCDMA/HSDPA/HSUPA) and OFDM/LTE and have been a thesis
`
`director for a number of Doctor of Science candidates, who now have successful
`
`careers in academia, industry, and government.
`
`8. My research in the areas I just mentioned has been supported by the
`
`communications industry and various Government agencies, such as Advanced
`
`
`
`2
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 3
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`Research Project Agency (ARPA), National Science Foundation (NSF), and
`
`National Security Agency (NSA). Much of this research concerns communications
`
`theory, performance evaluation, modeling wireless networks, multi-user detection,
`
`adaptive antenna arrays, and ad-hoc networks.
`
`9.
`
`I have authored or co-authored numerous journal and conference papers,
`
`contributed to various books, and co-authored a text book on CDMA, entitled “The
`
`cdma2000 System for Mobile Communications,” Prentice Hall, 2004. I also served
`
`as a co-editor of a book on wireless communications, entitled “Multiaccess,
`
`Mobility and Teletraffic in Wireless Communications, Volume III,” Kluwer
`
`Academic Publishers, Norwell, Massachusetts, 1998. My CV includes a detailed
`
`listing of my publications.
`
`10.
`
`I have also received awards for my work. In 1995, I received the prestigious
`
`National Science Foundation Faculty Early CAREER Development Award. The
`
`award is given annually by NSF to a select group of young professors nationwide
`
`to promote excellence in teaching and research.
`
`11.
`
`I have served as a consultant for numerous companies in the wireless
`
`communications industry in technology areas, in the areas of 2G/3G/4G mobile
`
`technologies, Wireless LANs, new generation broadcast systems, advanced mobile
`
`satellite systems and other aspects of modern communication systems. I have also
`
`taught academic courses as well as short courses for the industry and government
`
`
`
`3
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 4
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`on various aspects of communications in the areas of 2G, 2.5G, 3G and 4G cellular
`
`standards, such as CDMA2000 1xRTT, CDMA2000 Evolution Data Optimized
`
`(EVDO), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) and LTE.
`
`12.
`
`I am a Senior Member of the IEEE and was an Associate Editor for IEEE
`
`Communications Letters and Journal on Communications and Networks. I served
`
`as a member of technical program committees, as a session organizer for many
`
`technical conferences and workshops, and as a reviewer of technical papers for
`
`many journals and conferences.
`
`13.
`
`I am a co-inventor of U.S. Patent No. 6,523,147, entitled “Method and
`
`Apparatus for Forward Error Correction Coding for an AM In-Band On-Channel
`
`Digital Audio Broadcasting System,” US Patent No. 8,595,590 B1, entitled
`
`“Systems and Methods for Encoding and Decoding Check-Irregular Non-
`
`Systematic IRA Codes,” and applications, “Joint Source-Channel Decoding with
`
`Source Sequence Augmentation”, US 20140153654 A1, Jun 5, 2014, “Systems and
`
`Methods for Advanced Iterative Decoding and Channel Estimation of
`
`Concatenated Coding Systems”, US 20140153625 A1, Jun 5, 2014, “Advanced
`
`Decoding of High/Medium/Low Density Parity Check Codes”, PCT/US13/72883,
`
`and International Application Number PCT/CA01/01488, entitled “Multi-User
`
`Detector For Direct Sequence - Code Division Multiple Access (DS/CDMA)
`
`Channels.”
`
`
`
`4
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 5
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`14. A copy of my curriculum vitae is attached as Exhibit 2003.
`
`PERSON SKILLED IN THE ART
`II.
`I have reviewed the ’676 patent, the Petition, the Singer Declaration (Ex.
`
`15.
`
`1003), the Keskitalo reference (Ex. 1004), and the Lindell reference (Ex. 1005).
`
`16. The invention in the ’676 patent relates to CDMA mobile stations and
`
`CDMA transmission methods used for cellular radio communication systems.
`
`17. As such, I believe that a person skilled in the art of the technology described
`
`in the ’676 patent would have at least a bachelor’s degree in Electrical
`
`Engineering, or equivalent, with three years of experience researching or working
`
`with cellular radio communication systems, or a master’s degree in Electrical
`
`Engineering, or equivalent, with one year of experience researching or working
`
`with cellular radio communication systems.
`
`18.
`
`I believe that I am a person skilled in the art of the technology described in
`
`the ’676 patent.
`
`LEGAL PRINCIPLES
`III.
`I have been informed that expert opinion testimony is generally permitted
`19.
`
`where the expert’s scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will help
`
`the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue. The
`
`expert witness must be qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience,
`
`training, or education to testify in the form of an opinion.
`
`
`
`5
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 6
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`20.
`
`I understand that there is no requirement of a perfect match between the
`
`expert’s experience and the relevant field. A person may not need to be a person of
`
`ordinary skill in the art in order to testify as an expert, but rather must be “qualified
`
`in the pertinent art.” For example, the absence of an advanced degree in a
`
`particular field may not preclude an expert from providing testimony that is helpful
`
`to the Board, so long as the expert’s experience provides sufficient qualification in
`
`the pertinent art.
`
`21.
`
`I also understand that expert testimony may have many uses. For example, it
`
`may be used to explain the relevant technology to the panel. It may also be used to
`
`establish the level of skill in the art and describe the person of ordinary skill in the
`
`art. Experts may testify about the teachings of the prior art and how they relate to
`
`the patentability of the challenged claims. Expert testimony may also be offered on
`
`the issue of whether there would have been a reason to combine the teachings of
`
`references in a certain way, or if there may have been a reasonable expectation of
`
`success in doing so.
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`IV.
`22. As explained by the ’676 patent, traditionally, the base station responded to
`
`interference by regulating transmission power. Ex. 2001 at 1:41-45. The base
`
`station regulated transmission power based on two variables: “reception” signal-to-
`
`interference ratio (SIR) and “target” SIR. Ex. 1001 at 1:41-46. SIR is the quotient
`
`
`
`6
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 7
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`between the average received signal power and the average received interference
`
`(co-channel and/or from adjacent channels) power, i.e. cross-talk, from other
`
`transmitters and/or channels than the useful signal. When the reception SIR was
`
`less than the target SIR, the UE sent a command to the base station to increase
`
`transmission power. When the reception SIR is greater than the target SIR, the UE
`
`sent a command to the base station to decrease transmission power. Id. at 1:26-32.
`
`23. An increase in transmission power is “likely to increase interference with
`
`other mobile stations to an intolerable degree.” Ex 1001 at 1:50-55. As a result, all
`
`mobile stations in a similar geographic area will experience decreased
`
`performance.
`
`24. The reception SIR is a function of reception quality and the change in
`
`transmission power, as measured by the UE. Id. at 1:23-26; 1:41-45. The received
`
`SIR generally changes due to signal fading. Id. at 1:47-49. It may also change due
`
`to the changes in propagation environment, e.g. sudden signal blockages due to
`
`obstructions, or changes in interference activity.
`
`25. The target SIR is generally a function of the required quality, e.g. frame
`
`error rate (FER), mobile station’s transmission rate, and environment. Id. at 1:33-
`
`40 and 1:46-48. Id. at 1:46-49. Sometimes the target SIR may be also influenced
`
`by the type and priority of data being transmitted and other factors. Similar to
`
`reception SIR, the target SIR sometimes increases due to factors other than the
`
`
`
`7
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 8
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`FER, such as the transmission rate. The diagram below demonstrates this this
`
`iterative process of the traditional approach:
`
`
`
`
`
`There are several benefits of the approach claimed by the ’676 patent, as
`
`compared to the prior art.
`
`First, reducing the transmission rate without changing the transmission
`
`power allows for the optimal or fastest transmission as long as the inference with
`
`others is within the allowable range set by the base station. Id. at 11:53-55. Thus,
`
`
`
`8
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 9
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`the invention makes it possible to improve the reception quality of a UE even if the
`
`condition of the communication path deteriorates drastically and not increase the
`
`level of interference with others. Id. at 7:16-25. Second, the use of the TPC
`
`signal—information already reported by the UE—for channel estimation reduces
`
`the need for additional control information. Id. at 10:37-41.
`
`26. Thus, the ’676 patent provides improved overall system capacity that
`
`enables each UE to transmit successfully at data rates that could not be achieved
`
`without the invention, while still staying below a max transmission rate set by the
`
`base station.
`
`V.
`
`A RATE CHANGE CIRCUITRY IS NOT INTENDED FOR
`CUTTING OFF TRANSMISSION POWER
`27. A person skilled in the art would understand that the rate change circuitry of
`
`the ’676 patent is not intended for cutting off transmission power. i.e.
`
`discontinuing transmission completely. The ’676 patent allows a radio
`
`communication system to achieve better data transmission quality by controlling
`
`the transmission rate. Ex. 1001 at 1:59-67. Cutting off transmission power has the
`
`opposite effect of achieving better transmission: reducing transmission power to
`
`zero means no data transmission, and no data transmission means a disruption in
`
`radio communication and synchronization. Reducing transmission power to zero
`
`also interrupts the rate control feedback loop described in the ’676 patent, which is
`
`
`
`9
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 10
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`necessary for the comparison circuitry to compare the transmission power values.
`
`See, e.g., Ex.1001 at Fig. 12.
`
`VI.
`
`A POSITA WOULD NOT COMBINE KESKITALO AND
`LINDELL
`28. The ’676 patent and Keskitalo address the reduction of interference. There is
`
`no motivation to combine Lindell and Keskitalo are they are simply not
`
`compatible, even if combined, for multiple reasons.
`
`29. First, Lindell is directed to specific absorption ratio (SAR) related power
`
`measurements, to prevent a long term average radio frequency (RF) power
`
`radiation to a human body/head to exceed a regulated maximum level, and not to
`
`rate control and closed loop power control (closed Loop Power Control refers to
`
`the CDMA power control method where feedback is used for adjusting the
`
`transmit power level). Ex. 1005 at 2:1-4. Lindell is concerned with adjusting power
`
`up and down to maintain signal transmission quality level, such as signal-to-noise
`
`ratio, or match required power with the transmission rate. A POSITA would not
`
`look at Lindell to cure the deficiencies of Keskitalo.
`
`30. Second, Keskitalo deals only with rate control and mentions closed loop
`
`power control only in passing without going into details of power control or its
`
`possible connection with rate control, except mentioning that signal-to-noise ratio
`
`is the metric used for power control adjustments. Keskitalo at 3:9-19. Thus
`
`
`
`10
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 11
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`Keskitalo does not provide motivation/suggestion to improve power control in
`
`order to bring other references (such as Lindell). Moreover, a POSITA would find
`
`that power adjustment algorithms in Keskitalo and Linder are not compatible. The
`
`former is doing short term adjustments of power, up and down, to maintain a
`
`desired signal-to-noise ratio measured at the baseband, while the latter is
`
`preventing a very long term average RF power level to exceed some predetermined
`
`maximum. These approaches deal with completely different issues and
`
`correspondingly require completely difference solutions.
`
`31. Third, Keskitalo’s CDMA cellular system was discussed in the context of
`
`CDMA systems being tested at the time—around 1993. Specifically, Keskitalo
`
`references a CDMA system with a bandwidth of 1.25 MHz and the spreading code
`
`rate of 1.2288 Mbit/s. Ex. 1004 at 1:33-35; 4:26-28. A POSITA would understand
`
`that this CDMA system corresponds to the IS-95 CDMA system that was being
`
`tested around 1993 and proposed for adoption as a 2G CDMA system. In the IS-95
`
`CDMA system, power control bits are sent at the rate of 800 bits/s, i.e., one power
`
`control bit every 1.25 ms to adjust transmit power. Further, Keskitalo cited
`
`WO9419876, which incorporates by reference U.S. Patent No. 5,056,109. Ex.
`
`2003; Ex. 2004. In U.S. Patent No. 5,056,109, the power control commands are
`
`sent at the rate of 1,000 command per second. Ex. 2004 at 16:46-48. This further
`
`implies that the received and transmit power measurements are performed on that
`
`
`
`11
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 12
`
`
`
`IPR2018-01473
`
`Patent 6,611,676
`
`scale to follow rapid channel variations.
`
`32.
`
`On the other hand, the power measurement system for SAR in Lindell
`
`operates on scales of many minutes (“62. g. 6 min or 30 min”). Thus, the circuitry for
`
`power measurement on such a long scale is useless in the context of the ’676 patent
`
`and Keskitalo (1'. e. incompatible with Keskitalo) where power variations are on the
`
`scale of ms, i.e., more than 5 orders of magnitude shorter than in Lindell. Because
`
`of this, a POSITA would not be motivated to look at Lindell to resolve deficiencies
`
`in Keskitalo.
`
`33.
`
`In view of the above, a POSITA would recognize that Keskitalo and Lindell
`
`would not be compatible.
`
`I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States of America
`
`that the foregoing is true and correct.
`
`January 2, 2019
`
`7Lh‘W‘W‘
`
`Branimir Vojcic
`
`h,
`
`‘2
`
`|PR2018-01473
`
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 13
`
`IPR2018-01473
`Apple v. INVT
`INVT Exhibit 2002 - Page 13
`
`
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