`
`
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`
`
`Apple Inc.,
`Petitioner
`
`v.
`
`INVT SPE LLC,
`Patent Owner
`
`
`IPR Case No. IPR2019-00958
`U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`
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`
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`
`
`PETITION FOR INTER PARTES REVIEW
`UNDER 35 U.S.C. §311 ET SEQ. AND 37 C.F.R. §42.100 ET SEQ.
`(CLAIMS 1 THROUGH 7 OF U.S. PATENT NO. 7,848,439)
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`(IPR2019-00958)
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`EXHIBIT LIST
`
`EXHIBIT
`
`DESCRIPTION
`
`DATE
`
`1001
`
`1002
`
`1003
`
`1004
`
`1005
`
`1006
`
`1007
`
`1008
`
`1009
`
`U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439 to She et al.
`(“’439 Patent”)
`
`December 7, 2010
`
`File History of U.S. Patent No.
`7,848,439 to She et al.
`
`n/a
`
`U.S. Patent No. 6,904,283 to Li et al.
`
`June 7, 2005
`
`U.S. Patent No. 7,221,680 to Vijayan
`et al.
`
`May 22, 2007
`
`U.S. Patent No. 6,721,569 to Hashem
`et al.
`
`April 13, 2004
`
`U.S. Patent No. 5,596,604 to Cioffi et
`al.
`
`January 21, 1997
`
`Declaration of Zhi Ding, Ph.D.
`
`Curriculum Vitae of Zhi Ding, Ph.D.
`
`n/a
`
`n/a
`
`U.S. Patent No. 6,167,031 to Olofsson
`et al.
`
`December 26, 2000
`
`ii
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`(IPR2019-00958)
`
`TABLE OF CONTENTS
`
` Page
`I. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................ 1
`II. MANDATORY NOTICES UNDER 37 C.F.R. §42.8 .................................... 1
`A. REAL PARTIES-IN-INTEREST (§42.8 (B)(1)) ...................................................... 1
`B. RELATED MATTERS (§42.8 (B)(2)) ................................................................... 1
`C. LEAD AND BACKUP COUNSEL (§42.8 (B)(3)) .................................................... 1
`D. D. SERVICE INFORMATION (§42.8 (B)(4)) ......................................................... 2
`III. FEE FOR IPR (37 C.F.R. §42.15(A) AND §42.103 .................................... 2
`IV. REQUIREMENTS FOR IPR UNDER 37 C.F.R. §42.104 ........................ 2
`A. GROUNDS FOR STANDING (§42.104(A)) ........................................................... 2
`B. IDENTIFICATION OF CHALLENGED CLAIMS (§42.104(B)(1)) ............................. 2
`C. GROUNDS OF CHALLENGE (§42.104(B)(2)) ...................................................... 2
`V. PROPOSED GROUNDS ARE NOT REDUNDANT ................................... 3
`VI. RELEVANT INFORMATION CONCERNING THE ’439 PATENT .... 3
`A. STATE OF THE ART AT THE TIME THE ’439 PATENT WAS FILED ........................ 3
`1. Cellular Networks ........................................................................................ 3
`2. Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) .............................. 4
`3. Adaptive Modulation and Coding ................................................................ 4
`B. OVERVIEW OF THE ’439 PATENT ...................................................................... 5
`1. Prior-Art Systems Alleged in the ’439 Patent .............................................. 5
`2. The Purported Improvement of the ’439 Patent .......................................... 6
`C. PERSON OF ORDINARY SKILL IN THE ART (“POSITA”) .................................... 7
`D. EFFECTIVE FILING DATE AND PROSECUTION HISTORY OF THE ’439 PATENT .... 8
`VII. CLAIM CONSTRUCTION—37 C.F.R. §42.104 (B)(3) ............................ 8
`VIII. PRECISE REASONS FOR RELIEF REQUESTED .............................. 11
`A. SUMMARY OF THE PRIOR ART APPLIED IN THIS PETITION .............................. 11
`1. Overview of Li ........................................................................................... 11
`2. Overview of Vijayan .................................................................................. 14
`3. Overview of Hashem ................................................................................. 17
`4. Motivation to Combine Li with Vijayan .................................................... 18
`5. Motivation to Combine Li and Vijayan with Hashem ............................... 20
`B. LI IN VIEW OF VIJAYAN AND HASHEM RENDERS CLAIMS 1 THROUGH 7
`OBVIOUS .............................................................................................................. 22
`IX. CONCLUSION ............................................................................................ 75
`
`
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`iii
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`(IPR2019-00958)
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`TABLE OF AUTHORITIES
`
`Page(s)
`
`Cases
`In re Paulsen, 30 F.3d 1475, 1480 (Fed. Cir. 1994) ............................................... 10
`In re Translogic Tech., Inc., 504 F.3d 1249, 1257 (Fed. Cir. 2007) ........................ 9
`Phillips v. AWH Corp., 415 F.3d 1303, 1312 (Fed. Cir. 2005) .............................. 10
`
`Statutes
`35 U.S.C. § 112 ...................................................................................................... 10
`35 U.S.C. §§102(a), (b), (e) ........................................................................ 12, 15, 18
`35 U.S.C. §§311-319 .......................................................................................... 1, 79
`
`Other Authorities
`37 C.F.R. § 42.24 .................................................................................................... 78
`37 C.F.R. §§42.6(e) ................................................................................................ 79
`37 C.F.R. §42.103 ..................................................................................................... 2
`37 C.F.R. §42.104 ................................................................................................. 2, 9
`37 C.F.R. §42.15(a) .................................................................................................. 2
`37 C.F.R. §42.8 ......................................................................................................... 1
`37 C.F.R. 42.105(a) ................................................................................................ 79
`37 C.F.R., Part 42 ..................................................................................................... 1
`37 C.F.R.§42.100 et seq. ........................................................................................ 79
`37 CFR §42.100(b) ................................................................................................... 9
`
`
`
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`iv
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`(IPR2019-00958)
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`I.
`INTRODUCTION
`Apple Inc. (“Petitioner” or “Apple”) petitions for Inter Partes Review (“IPR”)
`
`under 35 U.S.C. §§311-319 and 37 C.F.R., Part 42, of claims 1 through 7 (“the IPR
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`Claims”) of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439 (“the ’439 Patent”), and asserts there is a
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`reasonable likelihood that it will prevail with respect to each of the IPR Claims.
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`Therefore, Petitioner respectfully requests cancellation of the IPR Claims.
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`II. MANDATORY NOTICES UNDER 37 C.F.R. §42.8
`A. Real Parties-In-Interest (§42.8 (b)(1))
`The real parties-in-interest is Apple Inc.
`B. Related Matters (§42.8 (b)(2))
`Pursuant to 37 C.F.R. § 42.8(b)(2), Petitioner is aware of the following
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`pending patent infringement lawsuits involving the ’439 Patent:
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`• INVT SPE LLC v. Apple, Inc., Case No. 2:17-cv-03738 (New Jersey);
`
`• INVT SPE LLC v. HTC Corporation and HTC America, Inc., Case No.
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`2:17-cv-03740 (New Jersey);
`
`• INVT SPE LLC v. ZTE Corporation and ZTE (USA) Inc., Case No. 2:17-
`cv-06522 (New Jersey); and
`
`• Certain KTE- and 3G-Compliant Cellular Communications Devices, Inv.
`No 337-TA-1138 (ITC).
`C. Lead and Backup Counsel (§42.8 (b)(3))
`Apple appoints Adam P. Seitz (Reg. No. 52,206) of Erise IP, as Lead Counsel,
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`and appoints Paul R. Hart (Reg. No. 59,646), of the same firm as Back-Up Counsel.
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`1
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`(IPR2019-00958)
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`An appropriate Power of Attorney is filed concurrently herewith.
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`D. D. Service Information (§42.8 (b)(4))
`Service of any documents to Counsel can be made via hand delivery to Erise
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`IP, P.A., 7015 College Blvd., Suite 700, Overland Park, Kansas 66211. Petitioner
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`consents to service by e-mail at ptab@eriseip.com Tel: 913-777-5600; Fax: 913-
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`777-5601.
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`III. FEE FOR IPR (37 C.F.R. §42.15(a) and §42.103
`Petitioner has paid the required fees. The Office is authorized to charge any
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`fee deficiency, or credit any overpayment, to Deposit Account No. 50-6159.
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`IV. REQUIREMENTS FOR IPR UNDER 37 C.F.R. §42.104
`A. Grounds for Standing (§42.104(a))
`Petitioner certifies that (1) the ’439 Patent is available for IPR (and has been
`
`instituted for IPR); and (2) Petitioner is not barred or estopped from requesting IPR
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`of the claims of the ’439 Patent on the Grounds identified in this Petition.
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`In its Motion for Joinder, Petitioner has additionally addressed the
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`inapplicability of General Plastic Indus. Co., Ltd. v. Canon Kabushiki Kaisha. These
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`Arguments are incorporated by reference herein.
`
`B.
`Identification of Challenged Claims (§42.104(b)(1))
`Petitioner requests IPR of Claims 1 through 7 of the ’439 Patent, and request
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`that the Patent Trial and Appeal Board cancel those claims as unpatentable.
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`C. Grounds of Challenge (§42.104(b)(2))
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`2
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`(IPR2019-00958)
`The Grounds of unpatentability presented in this Petition are as follows.
`
`Ground Basis
`
`Reference(s)
`
`1
`
`§103 U.S. Patent No. 6,904,283 to Li et al.
`(“Li”), in view of U.S. Patent No.
`7,221,680 to Vijayan et al. (“Vijayan”),
`and in view of U.S. Patent No. 6,721,569
`to Hashem et al. (“Hashem”)
`
`Claims
`Challenged
`1 through 7
`
`Li (Ex. 1003), Vijayan (Ex. 1004), and Hashem (Ex. 1005) were not cited
`
`during the prosecution of the ’439 Patent. The invalidity Grounds set forth in this
`
`Petition are confirmed and supported by the Declaration of Zhi Ding, Ph.D. (Ex.
`
`1007), which accompanies this Petition.
`
`V. PROPOSED GROUNDS ARE NOT REDUNDANT
`The Grounds in this Petition are not redundant.
`VI. RELEVANT INFORMATION CONCERNING THE ’439 PATENT
`A.
`State of the Art at the Time the ’439 Patent was Filed
`1. Cellular Networks
`The ’439 Patent generally concerns technologies related to wireless cellular
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`telephones and operating such phones within a cellular network. In a cellular
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`network, the network coverage area is divided into many cells. Each cell is served
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`by a base station (BS), which directly communicates with the mobile terminals or
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`user equipment (UE) within the cell. The signal flow from the BS to the UE is known
`
`as the downlink. The signal flow from the UE to the BS is known as the uplink. Ex.
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`
`
`3
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`1007 ¶32-33.
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`(IPR2019-00958)
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`2. Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM)
`There are many ways for a wireless link to use an allocated amount of
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`bandwidth to transmit and receive data signals. Orthogonal Frequency Division
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`Multiplexing (OFDM) was one way to transmit data that existed before the priority
`
`date of the ’439 Patent. With OFDM, a transmitter (such as a BS or a UE) can divide
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`its allocated frequency band into a number of orthogonal (non-overlapping)
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`subcarriers to transmit data-bearing signals in each time slot. Ex. 1001, 1:18-33; Ex.
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`1007 ¶36-37.
`
`3. Adaptive Modulation and Coding
`In OFDM systems, the BS can modulate each subcarrier with data using a
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`specific modulation scheme combined with a specific coding scheme. The
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`modulation and coding schemes are chosen based on channel conditions. When the
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`channel quality is high, higher-rate modulation and coding can be applied to achieve
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`a higher data rate while maintaining a sufficiently low bit error rate. When the
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`channel quality is poor, lower-rate modulation and coding must be applied to reduce
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`the data rate and maintain a sufficiently low bit error rate. Ex. 1001, 1:34- 52; Ex.
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`1007 ¶38.
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`In cellular systems, the channel conditions vary over time because the UEs
`
`are moving. To compensate for this, the UE periodically estimates the downlink
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`4
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`(IPR2019-00958)
`channel quality of its subcarriers. A modulation and coding combination can then be
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`chosen for each subcarrier or a group of subcarriers based upon the estimated
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`channel conditions. Adjusting modulation and coding in response to channel quality
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`is known as adaptive modulation and coding (AMC). AMC was mainstream
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`technology before the priority date of the ’439 Patent. Ex. 1001, 1:34- 52; Ex. 1007
`
`¶40.
`
`B. Overview of the ’439 Patent
`1. Prior-Art Systems Alleged in the ’439 Patent
`To execute AMC on a subcarrier-by-subcarrier basis during downlink
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`transmissions, channel information for hundreds or thousands of subcarriers needs
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`to be sent from the UEs to the BS. It was well known, before the priority date of the
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`’439 Patent, that AMC of subcarrier granularity required too much feedback
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`signaling overhead. Ex. 1001, 2:4-15; Ex. 1007 ¶41.
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`In its background, the ’439 Patent acknowledges that, to reduce the feedback
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`overhead, multiple subcarriers can be bundled into subbands—groups of multiple
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`subcarriers in neighboring positions in the frequency domain—and that this was
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`done in the prior art. Ex. 1001, 2:12-31, 4:56-60; Ex. 1007 ¶42. With AMC applied
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`on subband basis, a joint (common) modulation parameter and a joint (common)
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`coding parameter can be applied to all of the subcarriers in a particular subband.
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`With less-granular information needing to be sent back from the UE to the BS, the
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`5
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`uplink spectrum efficiency (or spectrum utilization rate) can be improved. Such
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`AMC based on subbands was typically used before the priority date of the ’439
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`Patent. Ex. 1001, 2:12-31, 4:56-60; Ex. 1007 ¶42.
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`2. The Purported Improvement of the ’439 Patent
`The ’439 Patent alleges that prior-art systems implementing AMC based on
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`subbands still required too much feedback overhead and thus did not maximize the
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`uplink spectrum utilization rate. Ex. 1001, 5:35-39; Ex. 1007 ¶48. The ’439 Patent
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`purportedly solves this problem by taking the subbands of the prior art, which were
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`bundles of subcarriers, and further combining these subbands into “subband groups,”
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`which are groups of subbands. Ex. 1001, 5:40-44, Ex. 1007 ¶49. The ’439 Patent
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`then has a communication apparatus select a joint modulation parameter and a joint
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`coding parameter for each subband group, instead of selecting a modulation
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`parameter and a coding parameter for each subband as was done in the alleged prior
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`art. Ex. 1001, 5:42-44; Ex. 1007 ¶49.
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`In the ’439 Patent, the OFDM subbands are formed into subband groups based
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`on combination patterns. These combination patterns are stored in pattern storage
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`sections 601, 605 and 607, shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B. The combination patterns
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`may involve combining neighboring subbands, combining subbands spaced at
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`intervals, or combining all of the subbands into a single subband group. Ex. 1001,
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`10:21-33; Ex. 1007 ¶53.
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`6
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`(IPR2019-00958)
`Figure 8 of the ’439 Patent, reproduced below, shows an example of
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`combining neighboring subbands on the frequency axis across M time units, each of
`
`which corresponds to an OFDM symbol. This is similar to how neighboring
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`subcarriers are combined to form subbands. Ex. 1001, 10:33-49; Ex. 1007 ¶54.
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`Subbands having the same shading in this figure belong to the same subband group.
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`Ex. 1001, 10:48-49; Ex. 1007 ¶54.
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`
`
`C.
`Person of Ordinary Skill in the Art (“POSITA”)
`A person of ordinary skill in the art (“POSITA”) of the ’439 Patent at the time
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`of the alleged invention had a bachelor degree in electrical engineering, computer
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`science, or an equivalent field, plus at least three years of experience working in the
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`fields of wireless communication systems, communication networks, and signal
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`
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`7
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`(IPR2019-00958)
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`processing.1 Ex. 1007 ¶61.
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`D. Effective Filing Date and Prosecution History of the ’439
`Patent
`The ’439 Patent issued from Application No. 11/719,611, filed on May 17,
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`2007. This application was a national stage filing of PCT/JP2005/021246, filed on
`
`November 18, 2005. The PCT application claimed priority to Chinese Application
`
`No. 2004 1 0094967, filed on November 19, 2004. Ex. 1001, face page. Therefore,
`
`the effective filing date of the IPR Claims is no earlier than November 19, 2004.
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`During the prosecution of the ’439 Patent, an Office Action dated February 2,
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`2010 rejected original claims 1, 6, 7 and 9-11 as anticipated by the Applicant’s
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`admitted prior art, but indicated that original claims 2-5, 8 and 12 would be allowable
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`if rewritten in independent form. The limitation of a pattern storage section was the
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`only limitation found by the Patent Office to distinguish the cited references. Ex.
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`1002 at 233-241. In an Amendment dated April 29, 2010, the allowable claims were
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`rewritten in independent form per the Office Action. Ex. 1002 at 212-223.
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`VII. CLAIM CONSTRUCTION—37 C.F.R. §42.104 (b)(3)
`For purposes of this IPR, each challenged claim must be given “its broadest
`
`reasonable construction in light of the specification.” 37 CFR §42.100(b). The
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`broadest reasonable construction or interpretation standard requires that claim terms
`
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`1 Any reference herein to what a POSITA would have known, understood, or been
`motivated to do, and the like, refers to the alleged time of the purported invention.
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`8
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
`(IPR2019-00958)
`be “given their ordinary and customary meaning,” as would be understood by a
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`POSITA in the context of the entire disclosure. In re Translogic Tech., Inc., 504 F.3d
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`1249, 1257 (Fed. Cir. 2007). A special definition for a claim term must be set forth
`
`in the specification with “reasonable clarity, deliberateness, and precision.” In re
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`Paulsen, 30 F.3d 1475, 1480 (Fed. Cir. 1994).2
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`Because the standard of claim construction used in an IPR differs from that
`
`used in litigation, Petitioner reserves the right to present different constructions of
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`terms in litigation under claim construction standards appropriate for such cases.
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`Accordingly, Petitioner proposes the claim constructions below for purposes of this
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`Petition only. Any claim terms that are not defined below are presumed to have their
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`plain and ordinary meaning.3
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`A.
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`“subband” (claims 1-6): a group of subcarriers in neighboring
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`positions on the frequency domain. Ex. 1001, 2:19-21 (“[A] subband
`
`indicates a subcarrier group comprised of subcarriers in neighboring
`
`positions on the frequency domain.”); Ex. 1007 ¶66a.
`
`
`2 Petitioner has addressed claim construction under the current standard for IPR of
`the broadest reasonable interpretation 37 CFR §42.100(b). To the extent the Board
`adopts a different standard, for example by applying the standard under Phillips v.
`AWH Corp., 415 F.3d 1303, 1312 (Fed. Cir. 2005), Petitioner reserves the right to
`supplement briefing on this issue.
`3 Petitioner does not concede that any terms meet the statutory requirements of 35
`U.S.C. § 112.
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`9
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
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`“pattern storage section” (claim 1): a memory for storing patterns
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`B.
`
`for selecting subbands. Ex. 1001, FIGS. 6A, 6B (showing
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`combination pattern storage sections 601, 605 and 607); Ex. 1007
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`¶66b. The stored patterns are for selecting subbands to combine into
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`subband groups. Ex. 1001, 10:21-33; Ex. 1007 ¶66b. A POSITA
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`would have understood that the storage would have been
`
`implemented in a computer memory because that is how UEs, which
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`are essentially small computers, work. Ex. 1007 ¶66b.
`
`C.
`
`“patterns
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`for selecting subbands”
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`(claim 1): particular
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`configurations or arrangements of subbands on the frequency and/or
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`time domains. Ex. 1001, 10:21-11:3; Ex. 1007 ¶66c. Figures 8-10 of
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`the ’439 Patent show examples of how the subbands can configured
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`or arranged on the frequency and/or time domains to form subband
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`groups. Ex. 1001, FIGS. 8-10; Ex. 1007 ¶66c.
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`D.
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`“modulation parameters with a highest classification” (claim 5):
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`modulation parameters associated with a coding and modulation
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`scheme that allows achieving a highest throughput compared to
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`other modulation parameters that are available to the device. Ex.
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`1001, 10:7-20; Ex. 1007 ¶66d. Table 2 of the ’439 Patent shows the
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`highest classification (6) being associated with a coding parameter
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`10
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`(2/3 Turbo) and a modulation parameter (64QAM) having the
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`highest throughput (4 bps/Hz) of all of the classifications in the
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`table. Ex. 1001, 10:7-20; Ex. 1007 ¶66d.
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`VIII. PRECISE REASONS FOR RELIEF REQUESTED
`A.
`Summary of the Prior Art Applied in This Petition
`1. Overview of Li
`Li issued on June 7, 2005, was published on September 11, 2003, and was
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`filed on April 17, 2001. Li is a continuation-in-part of an application filed on
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`December 15, 2000. Li therefore qualifies as prior art under at least pre-AIA 35
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`U.S.C. §§102(a), (b), (e).
`
`At a high level, Li discloses an OFDM system having pre-defined groups of
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`“clusters.” Ex. 1003, Abstract; Ex. 1007 ¶68. The clusters 102, which are shown in
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`Figure 1A of Li, are the same as subbands in the ’439 Patent. Ex. 1003, 5:18- 28,
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`FIG. 1A; Ex. 1007 ¶68. In other words, each “cluster” of Li is a bundle of subcarriers
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`that are in neighboring positions in the frequency domain, as Figure 1A of Li makes
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`clear. Ex. 1003, 5:18-28, FIG. 1A; Ex. 1007 ¶68. Groups of clusters in Li thus are
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`the same as subband groups in the ’439 Patent. Ex. 1007 ¶68.
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`Li teaches partitioning the subcarriers in the OFDM system “into groups of at
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`least one cluster of subcarriers.” Ex. 1003, Abstract; Ex. 1007 ¶69. The UE, which
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`Li calls a “subscriber,” then “select[s] … one or more groups in the groups, and
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`allocat[es] at least one cluster in the one or more groups of clusters” for the BS to
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`11
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
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`use in communicating with the subscriber. Ex. 1003, Abstract; Ex. 1007 ¶69.
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`Figure 3 of Li (reproduced below) illustrates an embodiment of the subscriber
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`processing at the UE, which includes carrying out a channel estimation on the
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`clusters (channel/interference estimation processing block 301). Ex. 1003, 8:54-56,
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`9:12-15; Ex. 1007 ¶70. Based on the “per cluster” results from block 301 at the UE,
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`the cluster ordering and rate prediction processing block 303 decides one or more
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`modulation parameters and one or more coding parameters per cluster group. Ex.
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`1003, 8:61-65, 9:35-37, 9:43-46; Ex. 1007 ¶70. The cluster request processing block
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`304 then transmits the modulation and coding parameters back to the BS via an
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`established uplink for the BS to use in modulating and encoding data to be
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`transmitted to the subscriber in the downlink. Ex. 1003, 8:66-9:2, 9:43-46; Ex. 1007
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`¶70.
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`12
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`Petition for Inter Partes Review of U.S. Patent No. 7,848,439
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`Figure 6 of Li (reproduced below) shows the clusters (subbands), which are
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`represented by boxes along the frequency (horizontal) and time (vertical) axes,
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`partitioned into four cluster groups. Ex. 1003, 11:49-52; Ex. 1007 ¶71. The clusters
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`(subbands) constituting the cluster groups shown in Figure 6 are selected according
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`to a pattern—every fourth cluster going along the frequency axis f is selected to form
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`a cluster group. Ex. 1007 ¶71.
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`In Li, one motivation for combining multiple clusters (subbands) into such
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`cluster groups is to “improve[] frequency diversity within each group.” Ex. 1003,
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`11:58-61; Ex. 1007 ¶72. Exploiting diversity between subbands is one of the same
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`motivations stated in the ’439 Patent. Ex. 1001, 5:19-20; Ex. 1007 ¶72. Another
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`motivation in Li for “group-based cluster allocation” is to improve the uplink
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`spectrum efficiency and to lower the feedback overhead by “reducing the data bits
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`for cluster indexing, thereby reducing the bandwidth requirements of the feedback
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`channel (information) and control channel (information) for cluster allocation.” Ex.
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`1003, 11:62-66; Ex. 1007 ¶72. The ’439 Patent also states this same motivation of
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`reducing the feedback overhead. Ex. 1001, 5:32-45, 12:17-24; Ex. 1007 ¶72.
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`2. Overview of Vijayan
`Vijayan issued on May 22, 2007, was published on May 17, 2005, and was
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`filed on September 1, 2004, making it prior art under at least pre-AIA 35 U.S.C.
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`§102(e).
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`At a high level, Vijayan discloses an OFDM system where the BS allocates a
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`group of subbands
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`for downlink
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`transmission and applies a common
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`coding/modulation scheme for all subbands in the group. The patent discloses
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`various patterns of subbands for the subband groups, where each subband group
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`comprises multiple subbands.
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`More specifically, Vijayan uses the word “subband,” which is equivalent to a
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`subcarrier in the ’439 Patent. Ex. 1004, 1:29-32 (“With OFDM, each subband is
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`associated with a respective subcarrier that may be modulated with data.”). Vijayan
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`also discloses the concept of a “subband group,” which is equivalent to the concept
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`of a subband in the ’439 Patent: “In one subband grouping scheme, each group
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`contains Nspg consecutive usable subbands.” Ex. 1004, 8:16-17.
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`Furthermore, Vijayan discloses the concept of a PLC (physical layer channel),
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`which is equivalent to the concept of a subband group in the ’439 Patent. A PLC is
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`comprised of multiple subbands: “[A]n active PLC may be assigned as many
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`subband groups as possible while conforming to the maximum bit rate.” Ex. 1004,
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`9:64-66; see also id., Ex. 1004, 10:7-13 (“In an embodiment, the rectangular pattern
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`for each active PLC includes contiguous subband groups (in indices) and contiguous
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`symbol periods. This type of assignment reduces the amount of overhead signaling
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`needed to specify the rectangular pattern ….”). Thus, Vijayan discloses an OFDM
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`system where the BS allocates a group of subbands for downlink transmission. Ex.
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`1007 ¶75.
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`Vijayan also discloses the BS applying a joint modulation parameter and a
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`joint coding parameter for each subband group. The joint modulation and coding
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`parameters are specified by one of eight “modes,” which are shown in Table 1 of
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`Vijayan, reproduced below. Each mode m “is associated with a specific modulation
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`scheme (e.g., QPSK or 16-QAM) and a specific inner code rate Rin(m) (e.g., ⅓, ½,
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`or ⅔).” Ex. 1004, 13:14-16; Ex. 1007 ¶76.
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`In Vijayan, each PLC (i.e., subband group) is assigned a mode m,
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`corresponding to a specific modulation scheme and a specific inner code rate from
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`the second and third columns of Table 1, respectively. “The data stream for each
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`PLC is encoded and modulated based on a coding and modulation scheme selected
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`for that PLC.” Ex. 1004, 4:43-45. In Figure 9B of Vijayan, reproduced below, a
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`specific mode is assigned to each subband group in each symbol period (subband
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`group 1 in symbol period 1 consisting of three subbands at adjacent frequencies is
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`assigned mode 1, and thus all subbands in subband group 1 are assigned the QPSK
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`modulation scheme and a ⅓ inner code rate). Ex. 1004, 13:12-16, 14:40-47; Ex. 1007
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`¶77.
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`3. Overview of Hashem
`Hashem issued on April 13, 2004 and was filed on September 29, 2000,
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`making it prior art under at least pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. §§102(a), (b), (e).
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`Hashem generally relates to the transmission of data in a radio-frequency
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`communication system having a BS and a remote unit (i.e., a UE). Ex. 1005,
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`Abstract. As shown in Figure 1 of Hashem, reproduced below, the remote unit (1)
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`receives downlink sub-carrier signals; (2) measures the signal-to-interference ratio
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`(S/I) of each sub-carrier signal; (3) determines acceptable and unacceptable sub-
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`carriers by comparing each measured sub-carrier S/I to a threshold value; and (4)
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`sends a return signal to a BS, including the average S/I of the acceptable sub- carriers
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`and a sequence of index numbers identifying the acceptable sub-carriers.
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`Ex. 1005, 4:15-65. The BS, in turn, (5) receives the return signal; (6) extracts
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`the average S/I of the acceptable sub-carriers; (7) selects an optimum Link Mode for
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`the acceptable sub-carriers; (8) encodes and modulates data using the optimum Link
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`Mode; and (9) transmits the encoded data in the acceptable sub-carriers to the remote
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`unit. Ex. 1005, 4:66-5:21; Ex. 1007 ¶79. The Link Mode “is a set of at least one
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`transmission parameter, such as a modulation level, a coding rate ….” Ex. 1005,
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`4:11-15; Ex. 1007 ¶79.
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`Hashem teaches that signaling overhead can be saved if the remote unit 16,
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`instead of the base station 10, calculates the optimum Link Mode and transmits an
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`index for the optimum Link Mode to the BS. Ex. 1005, 6:50-53, 7:1-7; Ex. 1007 ¶80.
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`4. Motivation to Combine Li with Vijayan
`Li and Vijayan are contemporaneous prior-art references in the same
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`technology area (OFDM-based communication systems). Ex. 1003, 1:11-14 (“[T]he
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`invention relates to multi-cell, multi-subscriber wireless systems using orthogonal
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`frequency division multiplexing (OFDM).”); Ex. 1004, 1:23-26 (“A multi-carrier
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`communication system utilizes multiple carriers for data transmission. These
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`multiple carriers may be provided by orthogonal frequency division multiplexing
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`(OFDM) ….”); Ex. 1007 ¶84.
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`A POSITA would have been motivated to combine Li and Vijayan in order to
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`reduce feedback overhead in an OFDM system. Li and Vijayan teach that selecting
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`modulation and coding parameters for a either subband or a subband group are two
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`of a few alternatives to reduce feedback overhead. Li, for example, discloses that a
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`subscriber sends SINR values for each cluster in the group that “can significantly
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`reduce the feedback overhead.” Ex. 1003, 12:9-23; Ex. 1007 ¶85.
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`Vijayan is similarly concerned about reducing feedback overhead. FIG. 9B of
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`Vijayan shows assignments of slots for subband groups (i.e., PLCs), where each
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`subband group is associated with a mode (and thus a modulation parameter and a
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`coding parameter). Ex. 1004, 13:12-16, 14:40-47; Ex. 1007 ¶86. Vijayan teaches
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`that the slot assignments for PLCs “reduce the amount of overhead signaling needed
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`to indicate the specific slots assigned to each active PLC.” Ex. 1004, 11:22-26; Ex.
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`1007 ¶86. A POSITA would have recognized that the technology described in
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`Vijayan could further reduce the signaling overhead described in Li. Ex. 1007 ¶86.
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`Furthermore, Vijayan teaches that the transmission time for each PLC (a
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`subband group) may be shortened “by allocating more subbands to the PLC.” Ex.
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`1004, 7:66-67; Ex. 1007 ¶88. The PLCs are channel resources allocated to a
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`downlink transmission to a UE. Ex. 1004, 4:7-16, FIGS. 5A-5C (showing the PLCs
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`comprised of multiple data subbands Ndsb); Ex. 1007 ¶88. As more subbands are
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`allocated to each PLC, the granularity of resource allocation becomes coarser. Ex.
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`1007 ¶88. Vijayan recognizes the “tradeoff between packing efficiency and
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`overhead signaling” when selecting the granularity. Ex. 1004, 7:67-8:2; Ex. 1007
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`¶88. This is because finer granularity “requires more overhead signaling to indicate
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`the resources allocated to each PLC.” Ex. 1004, 8:3-5; Ex. 1007 ¶88. Understanding
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`the tradeoff between packing efficiency and overhead signaling, as taught in
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`Vijayan, a POS