FINAL ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 2/2/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. .
Applicant argues that Duan’s flow sensor senses flow rate and not volumetric flow.
Under a broadest reasonable interpretation (BRI), words of the claim must be given their plain meaning, unless such meaning is inconsistent with the specification. The plain meaning of a term means the ordinary and customary meaning given to the term by those of ordinary skill in the art at the relevant time. The ordinary and customary meaning of a term may be evidenced by a variety of sources, including the words of the claims themselves, the specification, drawings, and prior art. However, the best source for determining the meaning of a claim term is the specification - the greatest clarity is obtained when the specification serves as a glossary for the claim terms.
A flow sensor can have many definitions. In the prior art of Reccanello ES 2850949 T3, it is described as a flow rate sensor [”it comprises a flow sensor 20 configured to measure the flow rate of liquid that moves from the reservoir to the supply mouth”]. In What Is Flow Sensors And How Does It Work? - Ourmechanicalworld.com, a flow sensor is described as a flow meter, a device designed to measure the rate of flow of liquids or gases in a given system. In a wide array of industries, from manufacturing to healthcare, precise flow measurement is critical for ensuring the efficiency, safety, and performance of systems.
Per MPEP rules, when a term has many definitions, the meaning cannot be inconsistent with the specification, and the best source for determining the meaning is the specification. Applicant states in ¶37, ”there is flow sensor 21, which constitutes a means by which the amount of cleaning liquid flowing through the cleaning-liquid pipe 15 and supplied to the cleaning means 9 in a time interval can be sensed… If both the pump 23 and the flow sensor 21 can sense the amount conveyed per time interval”. The amount of cleaning liquid conveyed per time interval is essentially a flow rate. Furthermore, Applicant states in ¶26, “[a]s an alternative to the flow sensor or in addition to it, it is likewise possible for a cleaning-liquid pump to be provided, in the cleaning-liquid pipe, that is designed to sense the amount of cleaning liquid supplied to the cleaning means in the first time interval, such that the pump acts as a means for sensing the amount of cleaning liquid supplied from the cleaning-liquid tank to the cleaning means within a first time interval. In this case, there is no need to provide yet another sensor in addition to the pump. If yet another sensor is provided, a redundant system is provided that remains functional even if one of the two means for sensing the flow rate fails” (Emphasis added). Here, Applicant is explicitly acknowledging that the sensor is (or at least can be) flow rate sensors.
Applicant did not specify in the disclosure that the flow sensor was only a volumetric or mass flow sensor. The claim recites “sensing the amount…within a…time interval” and “comparing the sensed amount…to a threshold”. A flow rate reads on the claims because a flow rate is an amount within a time interval, and can be compared with a threshold, as taught by Duan. In conclusion, since there is no inconsistency between the plain meaning of flow sensors and the specification definition of flow sensors, the Examiner concludes that is valid to use the flow meters of Duan to reject the claims.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Claim 3 requires that the (same) flow sensor senses both the cleaning and dirty liquid flow. This was not described in the specification. Applicant own disclosure states:
¶28 If a second means is provided, for the purpose of sensing the level in the dirty-liquid container, the amount of cleaning liquid supplied in the first time interval being sensed, by the second means, by sensing of a change in the level in the dirty-liquid container in the second time interval …¶50 During a first time interval, the amount of cleaning liquid applied to the floor surface 7 to be cleaned is sensed by means of the flow sensor 21….¶52 Similarly, during a second time interval, the amount of dirty liquid removed into the dirty-liquid container 33 during this second time interval is sensed by means the second and third pressure sensors 39, 41.
There is no evidence that Applicant had possession of a flow sensor that senses both cleaning and dirty liquid flow.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1, 3, 5-8, 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Duan CN 112568819 A.
Re claim 1, Duan discloses a method for operating a floor cleaning machine [fig. 1] on a floor surface, the floor cleaning machine comprising a cleaning-liquid container 241, a dirty-liquid container 242, a chassis 110 for moving the floor cleaning machine over the floor surface, a brush 238 and a suction foot 230, the brush 238 having cleaning elements 238 configured to engage with the floor surface, the brush being connected to the cleaning- liquid container for the purpose of supplying cleaning liquid to the brush and being configured to apply cleaning liquid to the floor surface to be cleaned, the suction foot that is connected to the dirty-liquid container 242 and configured to transmit dirty liquid from the floor surface to the dirty-liquid container 242, the method comprising:
moving the floor cleaning machine over the floor surface [intended use of mopping robot],
sensing [with the first flow meter, “the pipeline of the first water pump connected with the clean water cavity is provided with a first flow meter”], as it moves, the amount of cleaning liquid being supplied from the cleaning-liquid tank 241 to the cleaning means 200 within a first time interval [any inherent time frame],
sensing [with the second flow meter, “the pipeline of the second water pump connected with the sewage cavity is provided with a second flow meter”], as it moves, the amount of dirty liquid being removed from the suction foot 230 to the dirty-liquid container 242 within a second time interval [any inherent time frame],
comparing the sensed amount of cleaning liquid against a first threshold value [“when the flow rate of the first flow meter is greater than the second flow threshold value”],
comparing the sensed amount of dirty liquid against a second threshold value [“the flow rate of the second flow meter is less than the third flow threshold value”],
outputting a first fault signal if the sensed amount of cleaning liquid is greater than the first threshold value and the sensed amount of dirty liquid is less than the second threshold value [“the automatic cleaning device for fault reminding.”].
Re claim 3, Duan further discloses a flow sensor [first flow meter] designed to sense the amount of cleaning liquid supplied from the cleaning-liquid tank 241 to the brush 238 within a first time interval, and
the floor cleaning machine comprising the flow sensor [second flow meter] designed to sense the amount of dirty liquid removed from the suction foot to the dirty- liquid container 242 within a second time interval.
Re claim 5, Duan further discloses wherein the chassis 110 of the floor cleaning machine comprises a drive 140 configured to drive the chassis in order to move the floor cleaning machine over the floor surface, and the drive 140 being switched off [stop] if the first signal or a second fault signal is present [Abstract].
Re claim 6, Duan further discloses the floor cleaning machine being designed as an autonomous floor cleaning machine [fig. 1].
Re claim 7, Duan further discloses wherein the cleaning-liquid container 241 and the brush 238 are connected by a cleaning-liquid pipe for the purpose of supplying cleaning liquid [“the pipeline of the first water pump connected with the clean water cavity”], and a flow sensor [first flow rate meter] is provided, in the cleaning-liquid pipe, to sense the amount of cleaning liquid supplied in the first time interval.
Re claim 8, Duan further discloses wherein the cleaning-liquid container 241 and the brush 238 are connected by a cleaning-liquid pipe for the purpose of supplying cleaning liquid, and a cleaning-liquid pump [“the water feeding mechanism comprises a first water pump”] and flow sensors [flow meters] designed to sense the amount of cleaning liquid supplied to the brush in the first time interval, such that the flow sensors sense the amount of cleaning liquid supplied from the cleaning-liquid container to the brush within the first interval.
Re claim 13, Duan further discloses a floor cleaning machine [fig. 1] designed to execute the method according to Claim 1.
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.
Claim(s) 9, 11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Duan CN 112568819 A in view of Liu CN 113455967 A.
Re claims 9, 11, Duan discloses claim 1 as discuss above but fails to disclose a first level sensor for sensing the level in the cleaning-liquid container, and the amount of cleaning liquid supplied in the first time interval being sensed, by the first level sensor, by sensing of a change in the level in the cleaning-liquid container in the first time interval; and a second level sensor for the purpose of sensing the level in the cleaning-liquid container and in the dirty-liquid container by sensing of a change in the level in the dirty-liquid container in the second time interval.
Liu teaches obtaining water quantity data through flow meters or level sensors [“obtaining the current water quantity data in the cleaning groove. It should be noted that the water amount data can be the liquid level information in the cleaning tank, the obtaining mode can be by setting a liquid level sensor in the cleaning tank, or a liquid level sensor is set at the bottom of the cleaning robot, or by setting a flow valve on the water inlet pipeline is realized”].
Thus, Duan and Liu disclose obtaining water quantity data of a cleaning machine. A person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would have recognized that the level sensor of Liu could have been substituted for the second flow meter of Duan because both serve the purpose of providing water quantity data. Furthermore, a person of ordinary skill in the art would have been able to carry out the substitution. Finally, the substitution achieves the predictable result of analyzing the water quantity data on the containers.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to substitute the level sensor of Liu for the second flow rate meter of Duan according to known methods to yield the predictable result of analyzing the water quantity data on the containers.
Claim(s) 10, 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Duan CN 112568819 A in view of Liu CN 113455967 A and in further view of Xiao CN 210138108 U.
Re claims 10, 12, Duan and Liu teach claims 9 and 11 as discuss above but fail to teach specifically a float and a pressure sensor to sense the level of the containers.
However, Xiao teaches using a float and a pressure sensor to sense the level of the containers [“in addition to float liquid level sensor, in some embodiments, the level sensor can, for example, also be a buoy liquid level transmitter in the storage tank, a magnetic floating ball type liquid level sensor, or static pressure liquid level sensor or the like”].
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the float or pressure sensor of Xiao in the containers of Duan in order to yield the predictable result of measuring water levels in the cleaning and dirty containers.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2, 4 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The best prior art of Duan does not teach any type of measurement of current of an electric motor applying negative pressure to the dirty-liquid tank, or that the current is compared to the threshold, or that a second fault is outputted if the current is less than a threshold and the amount of dirty liquid is less than a threshold. The prior art of Peters DE 102015110563 A1, teaches measuring current of an electric motor applying negative pressure to the dirty-liquid tank, comparing the current to a threshold, and outputting a warning if the comparison is less than the threshold [“a measuring device for detecting the motor current from the electric motor is received,…, and that the measuring device generates a signal for falling below a current threshold value of the motor current for a predetermined period of time… for a predetermined period of time…When the respective threshold value is exceeded, the signal is generated which in the simplest case indicates to a user, for example by a lamp or a warning tone, that the float valve has been closed and thus the maximum waste water level in the dirty water tank has been reached or if no dirty water intake is currently possible”]. However, Peters does not teach, or render obvious a redundant system where a first fault signal is outputted if the sensed amount of cleaning liquid is greater that a threshold and the sensed amount of dirty liquid is less than a threshold, AND a second fault signal is outputted if the current is less than a threshold and the amount of dirty liquid is less than a threshold.
Claim 4 is objected as dependent on claim 2.
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. 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.
Correspondence
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Carlos A. Rivera whose telephone number is (571)270-5697. The examiner can normally be reached 9AM -4PM.
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, Brian Keller can be reached at (571) 272-8548. 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.
C. A. R.
Primary Patent Examiner
Art Unit 3723
/C. A. RIVERA/Primary Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3723
Prosecution Insights