Detailed Action
This is a Non-Final Office action based on application 18/177,663 filed on 2 March 2023. The application is a 111(a) and does not claim priority to any earlier filing.
Claims 1-21 are pending, claims 2-5 and 8-11 are withdrawn, and claims 1, 6-7, and 12-21 have been fully considered.
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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant's election without traverse of claims 1, 6-7, and 12-21, in the reply filed on 21 May 2026, is acknowledged. Claims 2-5 and 8-11 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.
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 6-7 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.
Particularly, claim 6 is rejected under §112(b) because this clause is unclear:
active flocculate introduced from said electrocoagulation unit and to subsequently de-aerate the wastewater;
This clause is ungrammatical and incomplete, because it recites an action without reciting the object of the action. By comparison, a similar clause appearing in claim 1 is
a post reaction tank for receiving the wastewater from said electrocoagulation unit, said post reaction tank having means for agitating the wastewater therein to disperse active flocculate introduced from said electrocoagulation unit and to subsequently de-aerate the wastewater;
Examiner’s interpretation is that the objectionable clause of claim 6 (clause (i) above), was intended to match the corresponding clause in claim 1 (clause (ii) above), and a portion of the claim 6 text was deleted accidentally.
For the purpose of treating the claims against the prior art in this action, where the clause (i) appears in claim 6, Examiner interprets the claim as instead having the text of clause (ii).
Appropriate correction is required. Claim 7 is likewise rejected under 112(b) because it inherits the indefiniteness of claim 6.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 12-13 and 15-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by DeHeer et al (US 2022/0396511 A1).
Regarding claim 12, DeHeer teaches a media tank for treatment of wastewater within a water treatment system (para [0005]-[0006], “wastewater processing modules”), said media tank comprising:
a plurality of passageways that direct flow of the wastewater through the media tank (para [0005], “The flow-deflecting baffle(s) divide the interior volume into a plurality of fluidly connected sections ... to channel the wastewater to flow along the circuitous bulk flow paths between the fluidly connected sections”);
said media tank being selectively loaded with a quantity of microporous material for absorbing contaminants (para [0082]-[0090], “Purification medium 200 includes a particulate material 202 at least partially filling interior volume 101 of wastewater processing container 100 and configured to permit flow of wastewater 12 therethrough. Particulate material 202 may be selected to (i) physically adsorb, chemically adsorb, and/or absorb contaminants from wastewater 12 .... may include porous particles”); and
wherein said plurality of passageways are arranged such that the wastewater flows through said plurality of passageways in differing directions to increase the amount of time in which the wastewater is exposed to the microporous material (para [0035]-[0036]).
Regarding claim 13, DeHeer teaches the media tank as claimed in 12, and further teaches wherein: said media tank includes an inlet (figures 1-2 and 10, inlet 102), an outlet (figures 1-2 and 10, outlet 104), a base (figures 1-2 and 10, base 112), exterior walls mounted on said base (figures 1-2 and 10, exterior walls 118; para [0038], “lateral sides 119 that extend symmetrically upward from base side 112”), and interior walls arranged within said exterior walls (figures 1-2 and 10, a plurality of “flow-deflecting baffles” 120, subdivided into upwardly-flow-deflecting baffles 128 and downwardly-flow directing baffles 130; para [0030]-[0035], [0044]), wherein said plurality of passageways are formed by said interior walls and said exterior walls (para [0038], the base and exterior walls device interior volume 101; para [0028]-[0035], the baffles 120 further device interior volume 101 into a plurality of passageways 106; see figures 1-2).
Regarding claim 15, DeHeer teaches the media tank as claimed in claim 12, wherein said media tank further includes a diverter plate located in said media tank to slow a velocity of incoming wastewater and to facilitate settlement of solids (interior walls 128, 130 as shown at DeHeer figures 1, 2, and 10; these interior walls read on claimed “diverter plates” and functional features thereof, because they have similar structure and apparent function as Applicant’s diverter plates 107 shown in instant figure 11).
Regarding claim 16, DeHeer teaches the media tank as claimed in claim 15, wherein said diverter plate includes at least one opening formed therein to increase mixing of the wastewater as it passes through the media tank (figure 10, first diverter plate 128 has an opening in its top, and second diverter plate 130 has two openings in its bottom; these are presumed to possess the claimed function of “to increase mixing of the wastewater as it passes through the media tank” because they are structured and positioned similarly to the openings 109 of the diverter plates 107 in instant figure 11 (which presumably have the claimed feature)).
Regarding claim 17, DeHeer teaches the media tank of claim 15, and wherein said diverter plate includes a plurality of diverter plates located in said media tank and selectively positioned within said plurality of passageways (figures 1, 2, and 10, plurality of diverter plates 128, 130).
Regarding claim 18, DeHeer teaches the media tank of claim 16, and further teaches said at least one opening includes a plurality of openings formed in said diverter plate (figure 10, diverter plate 130 has two openings on its bottom).
Regarding claim 19, DeHeer teaches the media tank of claim 12, wherein flow of the wastewater through the media tank is achieved in a serpentine pattern (see water flow path indicated at #107 in figure 2).
Regarding claim 20, DeHeer teaches the media tank of claim 20, wherein flow of the wastewater through the media tank is achieved by a plurality of interconnected straight passageways and bends (figure 2, flow path 107 of the wastewater includes a plurality of straight segments connected by bends).
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.
Claim 14 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DeHeer.
Regarding claim 14, DeHeer teaches the media tank as claimed in 12, and further teaches
said media tank further includes:
a first passage wall located in said media tank (figures 1 and 10, the leftmost baffle 128, spaced immediately downstream of inlet-side exterior wall 114) that defines an equalization chamber (figure 10, the chamber between inlet-side wall 114 and left most baffle 128) and a weir that allows flow of the wastewater into a first compartment of the media tank (figures 1 and 10, upper edge 126 of the first passage wall 128 is a weir over which water flows into compartment 106 of the media tank).
DeHeer teaches that the weir height of the first passage wall defines the waterline height of the water passing through the media tank (para [0028], [0044], [0126]), and suggests that the user may select and implement a desired value of waterline height based on treatment goals and water flowrate (para [0028], [0106], [0108], [0221]).
DeHeer does not teach the weir is adjustable.
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, in light of DeHeer’s teaching that it is desirable to operate the media tank in such a way as to keep the waterline of the wastewater at a desired height (para [0028], [0106], [0108], [0221]), and DeHeer’s teaching that the waterline height is controlled in part by the height of the weir (para [0028], [0044], [0126]), to modify DeHeer’s media tank by making the weir adjustable so that the user is able to adjust the weir and thereby adjust the waterline height toward a desired height.
Claim 21 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over DeHeer as applied to claim 12 above, in further view of Romano (US 5,622,630 A).
Regarding claim 21, DeHeer teaches the media tank of 12. DeHeer teaches that their media tank is applicable to sequestration of any of a wide variety of contaminants (para [0077]-[0079]) and that the microporous material may be selected based on its capacity to adsorb or absorb particular contaminants of interest (para [0089]), and that the microporous material may be selected from a variety of inorganic mineral adsorbents (para [0089], “specific examples of suitable particle types include pumice, scoria, vermiculite, granulated activated carbon, perlite, gravel, and expanded clay”). However, DeHeer does not disclose the microporous material includes zeolite.
Romano discloses a media tank for the treatment of wastewater (figure 1-2; col 3 ln 65 – col 4 ln 2), said media tank being selectively loaded with a quantity of zeolite material for absorbing contaminants (col 5 ln 20-22, “bed 51 of zeolite pebbles”; col 5 ln 37-39); and comprising a passageway through which wastewater flows to contact the microporous material (col 9 ln 10-36).
Romano teaches that the zeolite material is an effective adsorbent for wastewater contaminants of interest such as heavy metals and charged organic species (col 10 ln 4-29), and that their media tank, loaded with zeolite sorbent, is effective at removing contaminants from wastewater (col 12 ln 10-19).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to select a zeolite as the microporous sorbent material in the wastewater-treating media tank of DeHeer, based on Romano’s teaching that a media tank including zeolite sorbent is effective for removal of contaminants from wastewater. The simple substitution of one known element for another (i.e., one sorbent material for another) is likely to be obvious when predictable results are achieved (i.e., effective adsorption of contaminants from wastewater) [MPEP § 2143(B)]. Furthermore, the selection of a known material, which is based upon its suitability for the intended use, is within the ambit of one of ordinary skill in the art [MPEP § 2144.07].
Claims 1, 6, and 7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Losh et al (US 2014/0238934 A1), in view of Wang et al (CN 105481202 A; hereinafter, citations to the text of Wang are taken from a machine translation of the document into English), Morkovsky et al (US 5,928,493 A), and DeHeer.
Regarding claim 1:
Losh teaches a system for water treatment comprising:
an aerobic pre-treatment station (figure 1, para [0050], “The wastewater treatment system 100 comprises a biological treatment system 101”), comprising at least one fluid containment cell which holds and circulates wastewater to be treated therein (figure 1, first cell 104 and second cell 112), said aerobic pre-treatment station including a selected quantity and concentration of single cell algae introduced into the wastewater wherein said algae facilitates aerobic treatment of the wastewater (figure 3 and para [0053], algae are grown in algae growth tank 328 for supply to the fluid containment cell; figure 2 and para [0052], in an embodiment, the primary cell is a lagoon 22 which is supplied algae via algae culture line 222b; para [0049], the algae may be single cell algae);
an electrocoagulation unit that receives wastewater from said aerobic pretreatment station (figure 1, electrocoagulation unit 116 receives wastewater from aerobic pretreatment cells 104, 112), said electrocoagulation unit providing further treatment of the wastewater to remove selected contaminants (para [0048]);
two clarifier tanks for receiving the wastewater from said electrocoagulation unit (figure 5, para [0059]), wherein said clarifier tank separates solids from liquid in said wastewater and said solids settle out of the wastewater and are collected on a bottom surface of said clarifier tank (figure 4, para [0058]).
Losh does not teach, downstream of the clarifier tank(s), a sand filter and a media tank as claimed.
Wang teaches a system for wastewater treatment comprising:
an pre-treatment station comprising at least one fluid containment cell which holds and circulates wastewater to be treated therein (para [0039], “equalization tank 2 ... pre-filter 3 ... primary dosing tank 4”);
an electrocoagulation unit that receives wastewater from said aerobic pretreatment station (figure 1, para [0039], “electrocoagulation system 5”), said electrocoagulation unit providing further treatment of the wastewater to remove selected contaminants (para [0051]);
a clarifier tank for receiving the wastewater from said post reaction tank, wherein said clarifier tank separates solids from liquid in said wastewater and said solids settle out of the wastewater and are collected on a bottom surface of said clarifier tank (“primary sludge sedimentation tank 6” and “secondary sludge sedimentation tank 8” as disclosed at figure 1 and para [0039], [0051]-[0053]);
a sand filter for receiving a pressurized flow of said wastewater from said clarifier tank, said sand filter causing further removal of total suspended solids by pressurization of the wastewater flow through said sand filter (figure 1, sand filter 9; para [0039], “the outlet of the supernatant from the secondary sludge sedimentation tank is connected to a sand filter tank 9”; para [0053]-[0054]);
a media tank for receiving the wastewater from said sand filter, said media tank having a plurality of passageways in which said passageways direct flow of the wastewater therethrough, said media tank being selectively loaded with a quantity of microporous material for absorbing contaminants including cations (para [0054], “effluent from the sand filter passes through the defluorination device, it comes into contact with the natural mineral filter media ... fluoride is adsorbed”; para [0055], “effluent from the defluoridator enters the zeolite bed ... The zeolite channel have high selective adsorption performance for NH4+”; the defluoridator and the zeolite bed are both media tanks loaded with microporous material for absorbing contaminants, and included among the contaminant species absorbed is NH4+ which is a cation); and
Wang teaches that the sand filter downstream of the clarifier tanks has the advantageous effect of removing any flocculated material that escaped capture in the clarifier tanks (para [0027]-[0028], “beneficial effects of this invention .... a sand filter tank, which is used to remove the flocculent suspended matter that was not completely settled in the aforementioned process”)
Wang teaches that the media tank downstream of the sand filter has the advantageous effect of removing, from the wastewater, soluble ions that are not removed by electrocoagulation, clarification, and sand filtration (para [0023]-[0024]; [0029]-[0030]).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the wastewater treatment system of Losh by adding a sand filter downstream of the clarifier tank(s), and a media tank downstream of the sand filter, based on Wang’s teaching that, after electrocoagulating impurities from wastewater and removing the flocculated impurities by sedimenting in a clarifier tank, it is beneficial to subject the wastewater stream to sand filtration to remove any remaining flocculated material that escaped capture in the clarifier tanks (para [0027]-[0028]) followed by absorbent media treatment to absorb ions that were not removed by electrocoagulation (para [0023]-[0024], [0029]-[0030]). Furthermore, the claimed limitations are obvious because all the claimed elements were known in the prior art and one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as claimed by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination yielded nothing more than predictable results [MPEP 2143(A)].
Losh and Wang do not teach a post reaction tank located downstream of the electrocoagulation tank and upstream of the clarifier tank, said post reaction tank having means for agitating the wastewater therein to disperse active flocculate introduced from said electrocoagulation unit and to subsequently de-aerate the wastewater.
Morkovsky teaches an electrocoagulation apparatus for water treatment comprising:
an electrocoagulation unit that receives wastewater from said aerobic pretreatment station, said electrocoagulation unit providing further treatment of the wastewater to remove selected contaminants (figure 1, electrocoagulation unit 140; col 5 ln 64 – col 6 ln 37);
a post reaction tank for receiving the wastewater from said electrocoagulation unit (figure 1, tank 200), said post reaction tank having means for agitating the wastewater therein (figure 1, agitator 210; col 8 ln 38-39) to disperse active flocculate introduced from said electrocoagulation unit (col 8 ln 45-65, “chemical flocculant maybe added”) and to subsequently de-aerate the wastewater (col 8 ln 39-40, “Gasses trapped in treated water 205 are thereby expelled”);
a clarifier tank for receiving the wastewater from said post reaction tank (figure 1, clarifier tank 250 receives water from post reaction tank 205; figures 7-9 show internal structure of the clarifier 250), wherein said clarifier tank separates solids from liquid in said wastewater and said solids settle out of the wastewater and are collected on a bottom surface of said clarifier tank (figure 9; col 10 ln 8-11, “Heavy materials (i.e. coagulated waste materials) tend to fall below the slot 820 and continue to the bottom of the clarifier 250, coming to rest at the clarifier drain 780”);
Morkovsky teaches that the recited combination of an electrocoagulation device with a post-reaction tank and a clarifier forms a device which requires minimal maintenance and which is efficient and effective for removing contaminants from wastewater (col 2 ln 33-51; col 4 ln 10 - col 5 ln 15).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Losh by incorporating, between the electrocoagulation unit and the clarification unit, a post reaction tank for agitating, degassing, and dosing flocculant into the wastewater stream as claimed, based on the teaching, from Morkovsky, that an electrocoagulation unit followed by such a post reaction tank and then by a clarifier constituents an efficient and effective subsystem for removing contaminants from a wastewater stream (col 2 ln 33-51; col 4 ln 10 - col 5 ln 15).
Losh, Wang, and Morkovsky do not teach that the flow passages of the media tank are arranged such that wastewater flows through a first passageway of said plurality of passageways in one direction, and the wastewater flows through a second passageway in a substantially opposite direction, and further wherein said wastewater flows in a curved pattern between a downstream end of said first passageway and an upstream end of said second passageway.
DeHeer teaches a media tank for treatment of wastewater within a water treatment system (para [0005]-[0006], “wastewater processing modules”), said media tank comprising:
a plurality of passageways that direct flow of the wastewater through the media tank (para [0005], “The flow-deflecting baffle(s) divide the interior volume into a plurality of fluidly connected sections ... to channel the wastewater to flow along the circuitous bulk flow paths between the fluidly connected sections”);
said media tank being selectively loaded with a quantity of microporous material for absorbing contaminants (para [0082]-[0090], “Purification medium 200 includes a particulate material 202 at least partially filling interior volume 101 of wastewater processing container 100 and configured to permit flow of wastewater 12 therethrough. Particulate material 202 may be selected to (i) physically adsorb, chemically adsorb, and/or absorb contaminants from wastewater 12 .... may include porous particles”); and
wherein the flow passages of the media tank are arranged such that wastewater flows through a first passageway of said plurality of passageways in one direction, and the wastewater flows through a second passageway in a substantially opposite direction, and further wherein said wastewater flows in a curved pattern between a downstream end of said first passageway and an upstream end of said second passageway (see flowpath #107 in DeHeer’s figures 1-2; water flows upward, then curves, then flows downward, the curves to flow upward again).
DeHeer teaches that such a flow path arrangement has the beneficial effect that the wastewater flows through said plurality of passageways in differing directions to increase the amount of time in which the wastewater is exposed to the microporous material (para [0035]-[0036]).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate, into the system of Losh, Wang, and Morkovsky, the feature of wherein the media tank has a flow path configured such that the wastewater flows in a curved pattern and reverses directions, based on DeHeer’s teaching that such as a wastewater flow pattern improves the operation of the media tank by increasing the contact time between the wastewater and the microporous sorbent material in the media tank (para [0035]-[0036]).
Regarding claim 6:
Losh teaches a system for water treatment comprising:
an aerobic pre-treatment station (figure 1, para [0050], “The wastewater treatment system 100 comprises a biological treatment system 101”), comprising at least one fluid containment cell which holds and circulates wastewater to be treated therein (figure 1, first cell 104 and second cell 112), said aerobic pre-treatment station including a selected quantity and concentration of single cell algae introduced into the wastewater wherein said algae facilitates aerobic treatment of the wastewater (figure 3 and para [0053], algae are grown in algae growth tank 328 for supply to the fluid containment cell; figure 2 and para [0052], in an embodiment, the primary cell is a lagoon 22 which is supplied algae via algae culture line 222b; para [0049], the algae may be single cell algae);
an electrocoagulation unit that receives wastewater from said aerobic pretreatment station (figure 1, electrocoagulation unit 116 receives wastewater from aerobic pretreatment cells 104, 112), said electrocoagulation unit providing further treatment of the wastewater to remove selected contaminants (para [0048]); and
two clarifier tanks for receiving the wastewater from said electrocoagulation unit (figure 5, para [0059]), wherein said clarifier tank separates solids from liquid in said wastewater and said solids settle out of the wastewater and are collected on a bottom surface of said clarifier tank (figure 4, para [0058]).
Losh does not teach, downstream of the clarifier tank(s), a media tank as claimed.
Wang teaches a system for wastewater treatment comprising:
an pre-treatment station comprising at least one fluid containment cell which holds and circulates wastewater to be treated therein (para [0039], “equalization tank 2 ... pre-filter 3 ... primary dosing tank 4”);
an electrocoagulation unit that receives wastewater from said aerobic pretreatment station (figure 1, para [0039], “electrocoagulation system 5”), said electrocoagulation unit providing further treatment of the wastewater to remove selected contaminants (para [0051]);
a clarifier tank for receiving the wastewater from said post reaction tank, wherein said clarifier tank separates solids from liquid in said wastewater and said solids settle out of the wastewater and are collected on a bottom surface of said clarifier tank (“primary sludge sedimentation tank 6” and “secondary sludge sedimentation tank 8” as disclosed at figure 1 and para [0039], [0051]-[0053]);
a sand filter for receiving a pressurized flow of said wastewater from said clarifier tank, said sand filter causing further removal of total suspended solids by pressurization of the wastewater flow through said sand filter (figure 1, sand filter 9; para [0039], “the outlet of the supernatant from the secondary sludge sedimentation tank is connected to a sand filter tank 9”; para [0053]-[0054]);
a media tank for receiving the wastewater from said sand filter, said media tank having a plurality of passageways in which said passageways direct flow of the wastewater therethrough, said media tank being selectively loaded with a quantity of microporous material for absorbing contaminants including cations (para [0054], “effluent from the sand filter passes through the defluorination device, it comes into contact with the natural mineral filter media ... fluoride is adsorbed”; para [0055], “effluent from the defluoridator enters the zeolite bed ... The zeolite channel have high selective adsorption performance for NH4+”; the defluoridator and the zeolite bed are both media tanks loaded with microporous material for absorbing contaminants, and included among the contaminant species absorbed is NH4+ which is a cation); and
Wang teaches that the sand filter downstream of the clarifier tanks has the advantageous effect of removing any flocculated material that escaped capture in the clarifier tanks (para [0027]-[0028], “beneficial effects of this invention .... a sand filter tank, which is used to remove the flocculent suspended matter that was not completely settled in the aforementioned process”)
Wang teaches that the media tank downstream of the sand filter has the advantageous effect of removing, from the wastewater, soluble ions that are not removed by electrocoagulation, clarification, and sand filtration (para [0023]-[0024]; [0029]-[0030]).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the wastewater treatment system of Losh by adding a sand filter downstream of the clarifier tank(s), and a media tank downstream of the sand filter, based on Wang’s teaching that, after electrocoagulating impurities from wastewater and removing the flocculated impurities by sedimenting in a clarifier tank, it is beneficial to subject the wastewater stream to sand filtration to remove any remaining flocculated material that escaped capture in the clarifier tanks (para [0027]-[0028]) followed by absorbent media treatment to absorb ions that were not removed by electrocoagulation (para [0023]-[0024], [0029]-[0030]).
Losh and Wang do not teach a post reaction tank located downstream of the electrocoagulation tank and upstream of the clarifier tank, said post reaction tank having means for agitating the wastewater therein to disperse active flocculate introduced from said electrocoagulation unit and to subsequently de-aerate the wastewater.
Morkovsky teaches an electrocoagulation apparatus for water treatment comprising:
an electrocoagulation unit that receives wastewater from said aerobic pretreatment station, said electrocoagulation unit providing further treatment of the wastewater to remove selected contaminants (figure 1, electrocoagulation unit 140; col 5 ln 64 – col 6 ln 37);
a post reaction tank for receiving the wastewater from said electrocoagulation unit (figure 1, tank 200), said post reaction tank having means for agitating the wastewater therein (figure 1, agitator 210; col 8 ln 38-39) to disperse active flocculate introduced from said electrocoagulation unit (col 8 ln 45-65, “chemical flocculant maybe added”) and to subsequently de-aerate the wastewater (col 8 ln 39-40, “Gasses trapped in treated water 205 are thereby expelled”);
a clarifier tank for receiving the wastewater from said post reaction tank (figure 1, clarifier tank 250 receives water from post reaction tank 205; figures 7-9 show internal structure of the clarifier 250), wherein said clarifier tank separates solids from liquid in said wastewater and said solids settle out of the wastewater and are collected on a bottom surface of said clarifier tank (figure 9; col 10 ln 8-11, “Heavy materials (i.e. coagulated waste materials) tend to fall below the slot 820 and continue to the bottom of the clarifier 250, coming to rest at the clarifier drain 780”).
Morkovsky teaches that the recited combination of an electrocoagulation device with a post-reaction tank and a clarifier forms a device which requires minimal maintenance and which is efficient and effective for removing contaminants from wastewater (col 2 ln 33-51; col 4 ln 10 - col 5 ln 15).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the device of Losh by incorporating, between the electrocoagulation unit and the clarification unit, a post reaction tank for agitating, degassing, and dosing flocculant into the wastewater stream as claimed, based on the teaching, from Morkovsky, that an electrocoagulation unit followed by such a post reaction tank and then by a clarifier constituents an efficient and effective subsystem for removing contaminants from a wastewater stream (col 2 ln 33-51; col 4 ln 10 - col 5 ln 15).
Losh, Wang, and Morkovsky do not teach that the flow passages of the media tank are arranged such that wastewater flows through a first passageway of said plurality of passageways in one direction, and the wastewater flows through a second passageway in a substantially opposite direction, and further wherein said wastewater flows in a curved pattern between a downstream end of said first passageway and an upstream end of said second passageway, the media tank including a plurality of diverter plates.
DeHeer teaches a media tank for treatment of wastewater within a water treatment system (para [0005]-[0006], “wastewater processing modules”), said media tank comprising:
a plurality of passageways that direct flow of the wastewater through the media tank (para [0005], “The flow-deflecting baffle(s) divide the interior volume into a plurality of fluidly connected sections ... to channel the wastewater to flow along the circuitous bulk flow paths between the fluidly connected sections”);
said media tank being selectively loaded with a quantity of microporous material for absorbing contaminants (para [0082]-[0090], “Purification medium 200 includes a particulate material 202 at least partially filling interior volume 101 of wastewater processing container 100 and configured to permit flow of wastewater 12 therethrough. Particulate material 202 may be selected to (i) physically adsorb, chemically adsorb, and/or absorb contaminants from wastewater 12 .... may include porous particles”); and
wherein the flow passages of the media tank are arranged such that wastewater flows through a first passageway of said plurality of passageways in one direction, and the wastewater flows through a second passageway in a substantially opposite direction, and further wherein said wastewater flows in a curved pattern between a downstream end of said first passageway and an upstream end of said second passageway (see flowpath #107 in DeHeer’s figures 1-2; water flows upward, then curves, then flows downward, the curves to flow upward again)
wherein said media tank includes a plurality of diverter plates each with a corresponding flow opening through which the wastewater flows through (figures 1, 2, and 10, plurality of diverter plates 128, 130).
DeHeer teaches that such a flow path arrangement has the beneficial effect that the wastewater flows through said plurality of passageways in differing directions to increase the amount of time in which the wastewater is exposed to the microporous material (para [0035]-[0036]).
It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate, into the system of Losh and Wang, the feature of wherein the media tank flow path is configured such that the wastewater flows in a curved pattern and reverses directions, based on DeHeer’s teaching that such as a wastewater flow pattern improves the operation of the media tank by increasing the contacting time between the wastewater and the microporous sorbent material in the media tank (para [0035]-[0036]).
Furthermore, the claimed limitations are obvious because all the claimed elements were known in the prior art, one skilled in the art could have combined the elements as claimed by known methods with no change in their respective functions, and the combination yielded nothing more than predictable results [MPEP 2143(A)].
Regarding claim 7, modified Losh renders the system of claim 6 obvious. Losh further teaches a pump station integrated in said system (para [0028], [0050]) which facilitates routing and control of makeup water into the various tanks of the system.
Wang, who is relied upon for suggesting that a media tank be incorporated into Losh’s system, further teaches that the spent absorbent media is regenerated by treating with a regeneration solution and subsequently rinsing with clean water (para [0054]-[0055]).
Wang does not explicitly teach a device in fluid communication with the media tank for carrying out the disclosed function of dispensing regenerant solution into the media tank and thereby reloading the media tank with regenerated media. However, it would have been obvious to provide structure for performing Wang’s disclosed operation, and, as the claim recites no particular structural feature of the claimed “media mover”, there is no basis by which the claimed media mover can be distinguished from the means Wang uses to perform the operation.
It also would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use Losh’s pump station to facilitate the routing and control of the makeup water used by Wang’s media mover, based on Wang’s teaching that the media reloading operation uses makeup water (para [0054]-[0055]) and Losh’s teaching that pumps may generally be used throughout the system to direct and control the flow of fluids between the different cells and tanks (para [0028], [0050]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Noordhoff (US 5,552,043 A) teaches a media tank for water treatment, said media tank being loaded with microporous material for adsorbing contaminants, said media tank comprising a plurality of passageways arranged such that the wastewater flows in a serpentine pattern through the tank to increase the amounts of time that the wastewater is exposed to the microporous sorbent material.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Andrew R Koltonow whose telephone number is (571)272-7713. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 10:00 - 6:00 ET.
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, Luan V Van can be reached at (571) 272-8521. 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.
/ANDREW KOLTONOW/ Examiner, Art Unit 1795
/LUAN V VAN/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1795
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