DETAILED ACTION
Response to Amendment
The Amendment filed February 26, 2026 has been entered. Claims 1, 3, 4 and 6 – 19 are pending in the application with claims 2 and 5 being cancelled and claims 7 and 16 being withdrawn. The amendment to the claims has overcome all of the objections set forth in the last Non-Final Action mailed December 3, 2025.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
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 1, 3, 4, 6, 8 – 15 and 17 – 19 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 and 11 recite the limitation “to control the diversion channel, in particular the bypass valve, to open, when the control unit receives an instruction to not meter processing liquid coming from the sealed transfer system, and to close, when the control unit receives an instruction to meter processing liquid coming from the sealed transfer system”. The phrase “in particular” makes the claim indefinite. A broad range or limitation together with a narrow range or limitation that falls within the broad range or limitation (in the same claim) is considered indefinite, since the resulting claim does not clearly set forth the metes and bounds of the patent protection desired. See MPEP § 2173.05(c). In the present instance, claim 1 recites the broad recitation of controlling “the diversion channel”, and the claim also recites “in particular the bypass valve” which is the narrower statement of the limitation. It is suggested to either recited the diversion channel being controlled or the bypass valve (which is part of the diversion channel) being controlled to overcome the rejection.
Claims 3, 4, 6 and 8 – 10 are rejected for being dependent on claim 1.
Claims 12 – 15 and 17 – 19 are rejected for being dependent on claim 11.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(d):
(d) REFERENCE IN DEPENDENT FORMS.—Subject to subsection (e), a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
The following is a quotation of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, fourth paragraph:
Subject to the following paragraph [i.e., the fifth paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112], a claim in dependent form shall contain a reference to a claim previously set forth and then specify a further limitation of the subject matter claimed. A claim in dependent form shall be construed to incorporate by reference all the limitations of the claim to which it refers.
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(d) or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, 4th paragraph, as being of improper dependent form for failing to further limit the subject matter of the claim upon which it depends, or for failing to include all the limitations of the claim upon which it depends.
Claim 14 recites the same limitations as present in lines 13-17 of amended independent claim 11, upon which claim 14 depends. Thus, claim 14 fails to further limit the subject matter of the claim 11 upon which it depends .
Applicant may cancel the claim(s), amend the claim(s) to place the claim(s) in proper dependent form, rewrite the claim(s) in independent form, or present a sufficient showing that the dependent claim(s) complies with the statutory requirements.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
Claims 1, 9 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ballu, Patrick (US 2013/0206278 – herein after Ballu) in view of Inman, Seth (US 2021/0105934 – herein after Inman) and further in view of Xiao et al. (CN 206746504 – herein after Xiao).
In reference to claim 1, Ballu teaches a liquid circuit (fluid circuit formed of components 40+50+11 for instance, in fig. 1) for an agricultural sprayer (sprayer boom 16), comprising:
a main tank (cistern 11);
a sealed transfer system (conduit 48) configured to transfer a liquid product contained in a drum (tank 40) to the liquid circuit in a sealed manner (conduit 48 is a sealed/closed system that allows for transfer of the fluid in tank 40 to pump 70 present within the asserted liquid circuit, see figs. 1-2);
a suction mechanism (venturi air aspirator 95, see fig. 2 and ¶34/¶41) designed to suck the liquid product coming from the sealed transfer system and to discharge said liquid product to the main tank (see ¶48);
a dosing mechanism (pump 70, see fig. 2 and ¶34), to does the liquid product, arranged downstream from the sealed transfer system (48) and upstream from the suction mechanism (95), wherein the dosing mechanism (pump 70) comprises a centrifugal pump (see ¶37); and
a control unit (51, see fig. 2 and ¶35) designed to determine a quantity of liquid product to be provided to the suction mechanism (95) for filling of the main tank (11), and to control the dosing mechanism (70) to provide the determined quantity of liquid product to the suction mechanism (95), in such a way as to meter the liquid product transferred from the sealed transfer system (48) to the main tank (11) [see ¶35-¶36: the control device is designed to determine the needs of the main tank 11 and thus control associated elements to provide desired concentrated mixture M2 to the tank 11; part of this process involves control of the pump 70 by the controller 51 for providing pre-determined quantity of liquid (indicated by arrows F0 and F4 in fig. 2) from drum 40 via sealed transfer system 48].
Ballu remains silent on the liquid circuit, wherein the dosing mechanism comprises “a displacement pump”.
However, Inman teaches a similar liquid circuit comprising a dosing mechanism [referred as primary pump (see claims 1 and 3) or water pump (¶21)] is connected to a suction mechanism [referred as venturi pump (¶22, claim 1)] and pumps fluid from a fluid drum (20). Imran further teaches that the displacement pump (primary pump) is a positive displacement pump or a centrifugal pump (see claim 6).
Both Ballu and Inman teach a similar liquid circuit that involves pumping of liquid (water) from its corresponding reservoir (drum) using a dosing mechanism (pump) towards the suction mechanism (jet/venturi pump). Inman teaches that the dosing mechanism is a positive displacement pump or a centrifugal pump. Thus, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to substitute a centrifugal pump in the liquid circuit of Ballu for a positive displacement pump using the teaching of Inman in order to obtain the predictable result of pumping the liquid from the drum towards the suction mechanism. KSR Int’l v. Teleflex Inc., 127 S. Ct. 1727, 1740-41, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1396 (2007).
Ballu, as modified, does not teach the liquid circuit, comprising a diversion channel arranged parallel to the displacement pump, between the sealed transfer system and the suction mechanism, and designed to authorize the liquid product coming from the sealed transfer system to bypass the displacement pump for the suction thereof by the suction mechanism, when the diversion channel is open, and the diversion channel comprising a bypass valve designed to open and close; and wherein the control unit is designed “to control the diversion channel or the bypass valve, to open, when the control unit receives an instruction to not meter processing liquid coming from the sealed transfer system, and to close, when the control unit receives an instruction to meter processing liquid coming from the sealed transfer system”.
However, Xiao teaches a liquid circuit comprising a diversion channel (channel with valve 4) arranged parallel to the displacement pump (2), between a fluid source (1) and a target discharged location (5), and designed to authorize the liquid product coming from the fluid source to bypass the displacement pump, when the diversion channel (channel with valve 4) is open, and the diversion channel comprising a bypass valve (4) designed to open and close; and wherein the control unit (control room) is designed to control the diversion channel or the bypass valve, to open, when the control unit receives an instruction to not meter processing liquid coming from the fluid source, and to close, when the control unit receives an instruction to meter processing liquid coming from the fluid source [see ¶15 of translation that describes the operation of the liquid circuit: the control unit operates the liquid circuit in two ways: 1) state where pump 2 is operated in order to meter liquid from fluid source 1 to tank 5, wherein in this state bypass valve 4 is closed; and 2) state where pump 2 is not operated thus not metering liquid from fluid source 1 to tank 5, wherein in this state bypass valve 4 is opened to move liquid from fluid source 1 to tank 5].
It would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to provide a diversion line with a bypass valve as taught by Xiao such that the diversion line is arranged parallel to the displacement pump and programming the control unit to selectively open or close the bypass valve based on metering instructions in the modified liquid circuit of Ballu since utilizing a dual-path layout managed by a control unit allows the system to verify operational stability, detect structural or volumetric abnormalities in advance, and prevent fluctuations, as recognized by Xiao (see ¶9 of translation). Applying the teachings of Xiao to the modified liquid circuit of Ballu allows for the ability to dynamically isolate the displacement pump when active metering is not required. This achieves the predictable results of: formulating an automated purging or non-metered flow circuit pathway without causing system “fluctuations” or backpressure errors; and providing a programmatic cross-check to ensure that when an instruction to stop metering is received, the displacement pump is safely bypassed, protecting the circuit components from fluid hammer or flow discrepancies.
In reference to claim 9, Ballu teaches an agricultural sprayer (sprayer boom 16) for an agricultural machine (machine formed of components/vehicles 1 and 2) comprising the liquid circuit (40+50+11) according to claim 1.
In reference to claim 10, Ballu teaches the agricultural machine comprising the agricultural sprayer according to claim 9, wherein the sealed transfer system (48) is onboard (situated on) the agricultural machine (machine formed of components/vehicles 1 and 2).
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ballu in view of Inman and further in view of Xiao and Applicants Admitted Prior Art (herein after AAPA).
Ballu, as modified, teaches the liquid circuit, with the displacement pump (a positive displacement pump).
Ballu, as modified, remains silent on the liquid circuit “wherein the displacement pump is: a gear or lobe pump, or a variable displacement, swash plate or bent-axis axial piston pump, or a peristaltic pump, or a single rotary piston valveless pump, or a piston pump with valve”.
Inman further teaches that the positive displacement pump comprises a piston pump or a plunger pump (see claim 7). Inman remains silent on claimed specific types of positive displacement pumps.
However, AAPA teaches: (see ¶46 of pg. pub of the instant application) “Gear or lobe pumps, peristaltic and variable displacement, swash plate or bent-axis axial piston pumps, are well known to those skilled in the art”; and (see ¶47 of pg. pub of the instant application) “The term “single rotary piston valveless pump” means a pump such as for example described in documents U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,941,809 A and 5,246,354 B1”.
Thus, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to use any one of the claimed pump types as the positive displacement pump in the modified liquid circuit of Ballu since AAPA states that these types of pumps are well known to those skilled in the art.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ballu in view of Inman further in view of Xiao and Meijun Chen (CN 202346737U – herein after Meijun).
Ballu, as modified, remains silent on the liquid circuit, wherein the control unit is designed to determine, from the determined quantity of liquid product and a displacement of the displacement pump, a number of revolutions to be carried out by the displacement pump, and to control the displacement pump to rotate the determined number of revolutions.
However, Meijun teaches a liquid circuit (see figs. 1-3 and provided translation of the disclosure) with a displacement pump (referred as “positive displacement gear pump”) and a control unit (referred as “microcontroller”), wherein the control unit is designed to determine, from the determined quantity of liquid product (referred as “preset value”, see ¶20) and a displacement of the displacement pump (see ¶20: “output fluid volume” is proportional to number of rotations), a number of revolutions to be carried out by the displacement pump [the micro controller system determines the required rotations to match the preset value and directly controls the motor to perform that action using a revolution detector and counter].
The modified liquid circuit of Ballu has a positive displacement pump (as taught by Inman). Inman remains silent on a specific type of the positive displacement pump. However, positive displacement pump in the form of gear pump is well-known in the art. It would have been an obvious matter of design choice to use the gear pump as a positive displacement pump in the modified liquid circuit of Ballu. Furthermore, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Ballu’s control unit to control Inman’s positive displacement pump (gear pump) in the modified liquid circuit of Ballu such that the control unit is designed “to determine, from the determined quantity of liquid product and a displacement of the displacement pump, a number of revolutions to be carried out by the displacement pump, and to control the displacement pump to rotate the determined number of revolutions using a displacement pump” as taught by Meijun for the purpose of utilizing the relationship between the fluid output quantity and the rotational speed of a positive displacement pump to design a fluid quantitative filling control device that is simple in structure, low in cost, and greatly improves fluid metering accuracy and efficiency, as recognized by Meijun (see ¶6).
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ballu in view of Inman and further in view of Xiao and Kato, Takashi (US 2007/0177998 – herein after Kato).
Ballu, as modified, remains silent on the liquid circuit, wherein the control unit is designed to control the displacement pump to rotate at a higher rotation speed during a suction phase and at a lower rotation speed during a discharge phase of each cycle of the displacement pump, a variation in the rotation speed between the suction and discharge phase being progressive.
However, Kato teaches a liquid circuit (see fig. 1) with a displacement pump (10) and a control unit (40), the control unit is designed to control the displacement pump to rotate at a higher rotation speed during a suction phase and at a lower rotation speed during a discharge phase of each cycle of the displacement pump (see ¶82: “Optimal liquid chemical discharge accuracy can be achieved because the system was designed such that the intake speed of the liquid chemical is higher than the discharge speed in the liquid chemical pump 10..”), a variation in the rotation speed between the suction and discharge phase being progressive [the variation in the rotation speed between the suction and discharge phases happens in a smooth manner (as evident from fig. 6(b) and ¶59-¶64); note the following with respect to fig. 6(b): “intake phase” for pump (see fig. 6(b)) is from timing “t1” to “t2” and “discharge phase” for pump is from timing “t3” to “t4”; progressive variation means that during both the suction and discharge phases, the speed changes gradually; transition between suction and discharge does not involve instantaneous/sudden jump in pump speed].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Ballu’s control unit for using a displacement pump that allows for different speeds during its suction and discharge cycle as taught by Kato in the modified liquid circuit of Ballu because such a driving method allows to accurately detect the presence of gas inside a pump chamber of a pump and can optimally perform fluid discharge of the pump, as recognized by Kato (see ¶7).
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ballu in view of Inman and further in view of Xiao and Gregory, David (US 2006/0237040 – herein after Gregory).
Ballu, as modified, does not teach the liquid circuit further comprising a rinsing tank configured to contain a rinsing liquid and a rinsing channel connecting the rinsing tank to a rinsing device of the sealed transfer system able to rinse the drum and comprising a rinsing pump designed to suck the rinsing liquid coming from the rinsing tank and to discharge it to the rinsing device.
However, Gregory teaches a liquid circuit (see fig. 1A and ¶25) comprising a rinsing tank (tank corresponding to cleaner solution 11) configured to contain a rinsing liquid (11) and a rinsing channel (channel/conduit) connecting the rinsing tank to a rinsing device (misting nozzle, see ¶11) of a sealed (closed) transfer system able to rinse the fluid container (14) and comprising a rinsing pump (13) designed to suck the rinsing liquid coming from the rinsing tank and to discharge it to the rinsing device (nozzle).
The asserted drum in the liquid circuit of Ballu contains liquid (water). It is a good practice to rinse the drum out before filling it with the liquid to remove any dirt, dust, or residues that may have accumulated. Thus, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to provide a rinsing assembly (i.e. assembly formed of by components such as rising tank, rinsing pump and rinsing device) as taught by Gregory for the drum in the modified liquid circuit of Ballu for the purpose of rinsing the inside walls of the drum to remove any build up accumulated over time, as recognized by Gregory (see ¶6).
Claims 11, 14 and 17 – 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ballu, Patrick (US 2013/0206278 – herein after Ballu) in view of Gregory, David (US 2006/0237040 – herein after Gregory) and Inman, Seth (US 2021/0105934 – herein after Inman) and further in view of Xiao et al. (CN 206746504 – herein after Xiao).
In reference to claims 11 and 17, Ballu teaches a liquid circuit (fluid circuit formed of components 40+50+11 for instance, in fig. 1) for an agricultural sprayer (sprayer boom 16), comprising:
a main tank (cistern 11) sized and shaped for holding processing liquid (liquid within the tank 11);
a sealed transfer system (conduit 48) in fluid communication with the main tank, the sealed transfer system comprising an interface for sealingly connecting to a drum (tank 40) to transfer a liquid product contained in the drum, through the sealed transfer system, to the liquid circuit in a sealed manner (conduit 48 is a sealed/closed system that allows for transfer of the fluid in tank 40 to pump 70 present within the asserted liquid circuit, see figs. 1-2);
a suction mechanism (venturi air aspirator 95, see fig. 2 and ¶34/¶41) in fluid communication with the sealed transfer system to suck the liquid product coming from the sealed transfer system and to discharge said liquid product to the main tank (see ¶48);
a dosing mechanism (pump 70, see fig. 2 and ¶34), to does the liquid product, arranged downstream from the sealed transfer system (48) and upstream from the suction mechanism (95), wherein the dosing mechanism (pump 70) comprises a centrifugal pump (see ¶37); and
a control unit (51, see fig. 2 and ¶35) designed to determine a quantity of liquid product to be provided to the suction mechanism (95) for filling of the main tank (11), and to control the dosing mechanism (70) to provide the determined quantity of liquid product to the suction mechanism (95), in such a way as to meter the liquid product transferred from the sealed transfer system (48) to the main tank (11) [see ¶35-¶36: the control device is designed to determine the needs of the main tank 11 and thus control associated elements to provide desired concentrated mixture M2 to the tank 11; part of this process involves control of the pump 70 by the controller 51 for providing pre-determined quantity of liquid (indicated by arrows F0 and F4 in fig. 2) from drum 40 via sealed transfer system 48].
Ballu remains silent on the liquid circuit comprising “a rinse device having a nozzle for rinsing the drum”, as in claim 11; and “a rinsing tank configured to contain a rinsing liquid and a rinsing channel connecting the rinsing tank to the rinse device of the sealed transfer system able to rinse the drum and comprising a rinsing pump designed to suck the rinsing liquid coming from the rinsing tank and to discharge it to the rinse device”, as in claim 17.
However, Gregory teaches a liquid circuit (see fig. 1A and ¶25) comprising: “a rinse device having a nozzle (misting nozzle, see ¶11) for rinsing the drum (14)”, as in claim 11; and “a rinsing tank (tank corresponding to cleaner solution 11) configured to contain a rinsing liquid (cleaner solution 11) and a rinsing channel (channel/conduit) connecting the rinsing tank to the rinse device (nozzle) of the sealed (closed) transfer system able to rinse the drum (14) and comprising a rinsing pump (13) designed to suck the rinsing liquid coming from the rinsing tank and to discharge it to the rinse device (nozzle)”, as in claim 17.
The asserted drum in the liquid circuit of Ballu contains liquid (water). It is a good practice to rinse the drum out before filling it with the liquid to remove any dirt, dust, or residues that may have accumulated. Thus, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to provide a rinsing assembly (i.e. assembly formed of by components such as rising tank, rinsing pump and rinse device) as taught by Gregory for the drum in the liquid circuit of Ballu for the purpose of rinsing the inside walls of the drum to remove any build up accumulated over time, as recognized by Gregory (see ¶6).
Ballu remains silent on the liquid circuit, wherein the dosing mechanism comprises “a displacement pump”, as in claim 11.
However, Inman teaches a similar liquid circuit comprising a dosing mechanism [referred as primary pump (see claims 1 and 3) or water pump (¶21)] is connected to a suction mechanism [referred as venturi pump (¶22, claim 1)] and pumps fluid from a fluid drum (20). Imran further teaches that the displacement pump (primary pump) is a positive displacement pump or a centrifugal pump (see claim 6).
Both Ballu and Inman teach a similar liquid circuit that involves pumping of liquid (water) from its corresponding reservoir (drum) using a dosing mechanism (pump) towards the suction mechanism (jet/venturi pump). Inman teaches that the dosing mechanism is a positive displacement pump or a centrifugal pump. Thus, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to substitute a centrifugal pump in the liquid circuit of Ballu for a positive displacement pump using the teaching of Inman in order to obtain the predictable result of pumping the liquid from the drum towards the suction mechanism. KSR Int’l v. Teleflex Inc., 127 S. Ct. 1727, 1740-41, 82 USPQ2d 1385, 1396 (2007).
Ballu, as modified, does not teach the liquid circuit, comprising a diversion channel arranged parallel to the displacement pump, between the sealed transfer system and the suction mechanism, and designed to authorize the liquid product coming from the sealed transfer system to bypass the displacement pump for the suction thereof by the suction mechanism, when the diversion channel is open, and the diversion channel comprising a bypass valve designed to open and close; and wherein the control unit is designed “to control the diversion channel or the bypass valve, to open, when the control unit receives an instruction to not meter processing liquid coming from the sealed transfer system, and to close, when the control unit receives an instruction to meter processing liquid coming from the sealed transfer system”, as in claim 11.
However, Xiao teaches a liquid circuit comprising a diversion channel (channel with valve 4) arranged parallel to the displacement pump (2), between a fluid source (1) and a target discharged location (5), and designed to authorize the liquid product coming from the fluid source to bypass the displacement pump, when the diversion channel (channel with valve 4) is open, and the diversion channel comprising a bypass valve (4) designed to open and close; and wherein the control unit (control room) is designed to control the diversion channel or the bypass valve, to open, when the control unit receives an instruction to not meter processing liquid coming from the fluid source, and to close, when the control unit receives an instruction to meter processing liquid coming from the fluid source [see ¶15 of translation that describes the operation of the liquid circuit: the control unit operates the liquid circuit in two ways: 1) state where pump 2 is operated in order to meter liquid from fluid source 1 to tank 5, wherein in this state bypass valve 4 is closed; and 2) state where pump 2 is not operated thus not metering liquid from fluid source 1 to tank 5, wherein in this state bypass valve 4 is opened to move liquid from fluid source 1 to tank 5].
It would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to provide a diversion line with a bypass valve as taught by Xiao such that the diversion line is arranged parallel to the displacement pump and programming the control unit to selectively open or close the bypass valve based on metering instructions in the modified liquid circuit of Ballu since utilizing a dual-path layout managed by a control unit allows the system to verify operational stability, detect structural or volumetric abnormalities in advance, and prevent fluctuations, as recognized by Xiao (see ¶9 of translation). Applying the teachings of Xiao to the modified liquid circuit of Ballu allows for the ability to dynamically isolate the displacement pump when active metering is not required. This achieves the predictable results of: formulating an automated purging or non-metered flow circuit pathway without causing system “fluctuations” or backpressure errors; and providing a programmatic cross-check to ensure that when an instruction to stop metering is received, the displacement pump is safely bypassed, protecting the circuit components from fluid hammer or flow discrepancies.
In reference to claim 14, see rejection of claim 11 above.
In reference to claim 18, Ballu teaches an agricultural sprayer (sprayer boom 16) for an agricultural machine (machine formed of components/vehicles 1 and 2) comprising the liquid circuit (40+50+11) according to claim 11.
In reference to claim 19, Ballu teaches the agricultural machine comprising the agricultural sprayer according to claim 18, wherein the sealed transfer system (48) is onboard (situated on) the agricultural machine (machine formed of components/vehicles 1 and 2).
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ballu in view of Gregory, Inman and further in view of Xiao and Applicants Admitted Prior Art (herein after AAPA).
Ballu, as modified, teaches the liquid circuit, with the displacement pump (a positive displacement pump).
Ballu, as modified, remains silent on the liquid circuit “wherein the displacement pump is: a gear or lobe pump, or a variable displacement, swash plate or bent-axis axial piston pump, or a peristaltic pump, or a single rotary piston valveless pump, or a piston pump with valve”.
Inman further teaches that the positive displacement pump comprises a piston pump or a plunger pump (see claim 7). Inman remains silent on claimed specific types of positive displacement pumps.
However, AAPA teaches: (see ¶46 of pg. pub of the instant application) “Gear or lobe pumps, peristaltic and variable displacement, swash plate or bent-axis axial piston pumps, are well known to those skilled in the art”; and (see ¶47 of pg. pub of the instant application) “The term “single rotary piston valveless pump” means a pump such as for example described in documents U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,941,809 A and 5,246,354 B1”.
Thus, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to use any one of the claimed pump types as the positive displacement pump in the modified liquid circuit of Ballu since AAPA states that these types of pumps are well known to those skilled in the art.
Claim 13 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ballu in view of Gregory, Inman and further in view of Xiao and Meijun Chen (CN 202346737U – herein after Meijun).
Ballu, as modified, remains silent on the liquid circuit, wherein the control unit is designed to determine, from the determined quantity of liquid product and a displacement of the displacement pump, a number of revolutions to be carried out by the displacement pump, and to control the displacement pump to rotate the determined number of revolutions.
However, Meijun teaches a liquid circuit (see figs. 1-3 and provided translation of the disclosure) with a displacement pump (referred as “positive displacement gear pump”) and a control unit (referred as “microcontroller”), wherein the control unit is designed to determine, from the determined quantity of liquid product (referred as “preset value”, see ¶20) and a displacement of the displacement pump (see ¶20: “output fluid volume” is proportional to number of rotations), a number of revolutions to be carried out by the displacement pump [the micro controller system determines the required rotations to match the preset value and directly controls the motor to perform that action using a revolution detector and counter].
The modified liquid circuit of Ballu has a positive displacement pump (as taught by Inman). Inman remains silent on a specific type of the positive displacement pump. However, positive displacement pump in the form of gear pump is well-known in the art. It would have been an obvious matter of design choice to use the gear pump as a positive displacement pump in the modified liquid circuit of Ballu. Furthermore, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Ballu’s control unit to control Inman’s positive displacement pump (gear pump) in the modified liquid circuit of Ballu such that the control unit is designed “to determine, from the determined quantity of liquid product and a displacement of the displacement pump, a number of revolutions to be carried out by the displacement pump, and to control the displacement pump to rotate the determined number of revolutions using a displacement pump” as taught by Meijun for the purpose of utilizing the relationship between the fluid output quantity and the rotational speed of a positive displacement pump to design a fluid quantitative filling control device that is simple in structure, low in cost, and greatly improves fluid metering accuracy and efficiency, as recognized by Meijun (see ¶6).
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ballu in view of Gregory, Inman and further in view of Xiao and Kato, Takashi (US 2007/0177998 – herein after Kato).
Ballu, as modified, remains silent on the liquid circuit, wherein the control unit is designed to control the displacement pump to rotate at a higher rotation speed during a suction phase and at a lower rotation speed during a discharge phase of each cycle of the displacement pump, a variation in the rotation speed between the suction and discharge phase being progressive.
However, Kato teaches a liquid circuit (see fig. 1) with a displacement pump (10) and a control unit (40), the control unit is designed to control the displacement pump to rotate at a higher rotation speed during a suction phase and at a lower rotation speed during a discharge phase of each cycle of the displacement pump (see ¶82: “Optimal liquid chemical discharge accuracy can be achieved because the system was designed such that the intake speed of the liquid chemical is higher than the discharge speed in the liquid chemical pump 10..”), a variation in the rotation speed between the suction and discharge phase being progressive [the variation in the rotation speed between the suction and discharge phases happens in a smooth manner (as evident from fig. 6(b) and ¶59-¶64); note the following with respect to fig. 6(b): “intake phase” for pump (see fig. 6(b)) is from timing “t1” to “t2” and “discharge phase” for pump is from timing “t3” to “t4”; progressive variation means that during both the suction and discharge phases, the speed changes gradually; transition between suction and discharge does not involve instantaneous/sudden jump in pump speed].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to the person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to modify Ballu’s control unit for using a displacement pump that allows for different speeds during its suction and discharge cycle as taught by Kato in the modified liquid circuit of Ballu because such a driving method allows to accurately detect the presence of gas inside a pump chamber of a pump and can optimally perform fluid discharge of the pump, as recognized by Kato (see ¶7).
Response to Arguments
The arguments filed February 26, 2026 have been fully considered but they are moot. The amendment to independent claims 1 and 11 changed the scope of the claim. As a result, the prior arts have been re-evaluated and re-applied to these claims, in a view of newly found reference of Xiao.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHIRAG JARIWALA whose telephone number is (571)272-0467. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8 AM-5 PM.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, ESSAMA OMGBA can be reached at 469-295-9278. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/CHIRAG JARIWALA/Examiner, Art Unit 3746
/ESSAMA OMGBA/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3746
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