General Motors LLC v. Neo Wireless LLC

Prosecution History analysis

Examiner Search analysis

Invalidity Framework analysis

Petition

Petition Analysis

## 1. Case Identification
- Case #: [IPR2023-00963](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/case/ptab/IPR2023-00963)
- Patent #: [10,447,450](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/patent/10447450)
- Filed: June 5, 2023
- Petitioner(s): [General Motors LLC](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/party/general-motors-llc), [Nissan North America Inc](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/party/nissan-north-america-inc), and [Tesla Inc](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/party/tesla-inc).
- Patent Owner(s): [Neo Wireless LLC](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/party/neo-wireless-llc)
- Challenged Claims: 1-18

## 2. Patent Overview
- Title: Method and System for Multi-Carrier Packet Communication with Reduced Overhead
- Brief Description: The [’450 patent](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/case/ptab/IPR2023-00963/doc/1001) discloses a method for allocating resources in an Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) communication system. The method defines a segment of communication resources using "time-frequency resource units," where the segment is identified by only two parameters: a starting time-frequency coordinate and a number (N) of units, allegedly reducing signaling overhead compared to defining segments with two-dimensional coordinates.

## 3. Grounds for Unpatentability
#### Ground 1: Claims 1-5, 7-11, and 13-17 are obvious over Vijayan089 in view of Laroia.
  - **Prior Art Relied Upon:** [Vijayan089](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/case/ptab/IPR2023-00963/doc/1005) (Application # 2005/0058089) and [Laroia](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/case/ptab/IPR2023-00963/doc/1007) (Application # 2005/0277429).
  - **Core Argument for this Ground:**
    - **Prior Art Mapping:** Petitioner argued that Vijayan089, which discloses an OFDM communication system, teaches all elements of independent claims 1, 7, and 13, except for assigning a specific identifier to a mobile station. Vijayan089 was said to disclose defining a segment of time-frequency resources using two parameters: "the start of the segment" (a starting coordinate) and "the length of the segment" (a number of "transmission slots," equivalent to the claimed N-value). This method was explicitly taught to "reduce[] the amount of overhead signaling." Laroia was cited for its express disclosure of assigning a terminal-specific identifier in an OFDM system to allow a mobile device to identify and receive messages intended for it.
    - **Motivation to Combine:** A Person of Ordinary Skill in the Art (POSITA) would combine Laroia with Vijayan089 to implement the "unicast communications" mentioned but not detailed in Vijayan089. Adding Laroia's well-known identifier technique to Vijayan089's resource allocation scheme was presented as a simple, predictable way to enable a mobile device to discern its own data stream. This combination would also further the shared goal of both references, which is to minimize power consumption by allowing a device to process only its intended data.
    - **Expectation of Success:** Petitioner asserted a POSITA would have had a reasonable expectation of success because both references describe conventional OFDM systems, and assigning identifiers for unicast messaging was a ubiquitous and well-understood technique. The combination would have amounted to applying a known technique to a similar system to yield predictable results.

#### Ground 2: Claims 1-5, 7-11, and 13-17 are obvious over Vijayan475 in view of Wu.
  - **Prior Art Relied Upon:** [Vijayan475](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/case/ptab/IPR2023-00963/doc/1006) (Application # 2005/0141475) and [Wu](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/case/ptab/IPR2023-00963/doc/1008) (Application # 2005/0063345).
  - **Core Argument for this Ground:**
    - **Prior Art Mapping:** This ground presented an alternative to Ground 1. Petitioner argued that Vijayan475, like Vijayan089, discloses defining a resource segment using a starting coordinate and a number of units (N) to reduce overhead. However, Vijayan475 teaches a different method, defining the starting coordinate with "Start Offset" and "Slot Info" parameters and the N-value with a "Stream Lengths" parameter, and applies this to a "multiplexed logical channel" (MLC). Wu was cited for teaching the assignment of a "sixteen bit UE identifier" that "identifies which receiver is to receive the current [downlink] content," allowing the mobile device to demodulate an OFDM slot only if it is the scheduled recipient.
    - **Motivation to Combine:** The motivation was similar to Ground 1. A POSITA would combine Wu's explicit identifier system with Vijayan475's resource allocation method to implement the "unicast communications" disclosed in Vijayan475. This combination would provide a straightforward way for a mobile device to use the identifier to discern its specific slot allocation parameters from those intended for other devices, improving the functionality of Vijayan475's system.
    - **Expectation of Success:** Success was expected because both references describe conventional OFDM systems, and adding a well-known identifier (from Wu) to an existing resource allocation scheme (from Vijayan475) was a predictable implementation choice for achieving targeted communication.

#### Ground 3: Claims 6, 12, and 18 are obvious over Vijayan089, Laroia, and Choi.
  - **Prior Art Relied Upon:** Vijayan089 (Application # 2005/0058089), Laroia (Application # 2005/0277429), and [Choi](https://ai-lab.exparte.com/case/ptab/IPR2023-00963/doc/1009) (Application # 2005/0243774).
  - **Core Argument for this Ground:**
    - **Prior Art Mapping:** This ground built upon the combination in Ground 1 to address dependent claims 6, 12, and 18, which add the limitation of applying "repetition coding." Petitioner asserted that Choi explicitly teaches enhancing data transmission by "repetition encoding the data" to improve "error correction" and provide a "more robust data transmission scheme."
    - **Motivation to Combine:** A POSITA would have been motivated to add Choi's repetition coding to the Vijayan089/Laroia system to achieve the well-known benefit of improved error correction. Petitioner noted that Vijayan089 already acknowledges using redundancy for forward error correction, making the application of Choi's specific repetition technique a simple and obvious improvement to further this goal in an OFDM system.
    - **Expectation of Success:** As all three references operate in the context of standard wireless communications, a POSITA would have reasonably expected that applying a known error correction technique (Choi) to an OFDM system (Vijayan089/Laroia) would successfully improve its robustness.
- **Additional Grounds:** Petitioner asserted an additional obviousness challenge against claims 6, 12, and 18 based on the combination of Vijayan475, Wu, and Choi, relying on a similar motivation to add Choi's repetition coding to the base combination of Ground 2.

## 4. Arguments Regarding Discretionary Denial
- Petitioner argued that discretionary denial under §314(a) and §325(d) is inappropriate. The petition contended that the *Fintiv* factors favor institution because the parallel district court litigation is in its earliest stages, with no trial date set and no significant investment of resources by the court or parties. Petitioner also stipulated that it would not pursue the same invalidity grounds in the district court litigation if the IPR is instituted. Furthermore, the petition argued that the merits are strong, as evidenced by its concurrent motion to join a related, already-instituted IPR (IPR2022-01567) that relies on the same prior art and grounds. Arguments against denial under *General Plastic* and *Advanced Bionics* were also presented, noting that the art and arguments were not previously considered by the USPTO.

## 5. Relief Requested
- Petitioner requests institution of inter partes review and cancellation of claims 1-18 of the ’450 patent as unpatentable.

GM, Nissan & Tesla target an OFDM comms patent, arguing 18 claims are obvious over Vijayan & Laroia prior art for resource allocation methods.