DETAILED ACTION
Claims 4-6, 8 and 10-16 are presented for examination. Claims 1-3, 7 and 9 are cancelled. Claims 4-6, 8, 10 and 12-15 are amended. Claim 16 is new. This office action is response to the submission on 12/3/2025.
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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 1/5/2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Response to Arguments
With respect to Claim Objections:
Applicant’s arguments, see page 6 of applicant response filed 12/3/2025, with respect to the claim objection of claim 8 has been fully considered and is persuasive in light of the amendments to claim 8. However, a different issue with the amended claim has been indicated below, therefore the objection to claim 8 has not been withdrawn.
With respect to 35 USC § 112 (b) Rejections:
Applicant’s arguments, see page 6 of applicant response filed 12/3/2025, with respect to the 35 USC § 112 (b) rejections of claims 1 and 12-15 have been fully considered and are persuasive in light of the amendments to the claims. The 35 USC § 112 (b) rejections of claims 1 and 12-15 have been withdrawn.
With respect to 35 USC § 102 and 103 Rejections:
Applicant’s arguments, see pages 6-10 of applicant response filed 12/3/2025, with respect to claims 8 and 15 have been fully considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Claim Objections
Claim 8 is objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim limitation “liquid level sensors that detects the liquid levels;” in line 9 should read “liquid level sensors that detect the liquid levels;” (Typo). Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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 4-6, 8-10 and 14-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over A. Adamczyk et al., "Full mission astronaut radiation exposure assessments for long duration lunar surface missions," 2011 Aerospace Conference, Big Sky, MT, USA, 2011, pp. 1-15, doi: 10.1109/AERO.2011.5747250. (Hereinafter referred to as “Adamczyk”), in view of Hiroshima (US20240375796A1), further in view of Hoyer et al. (WO2007006422A1) (Citations to examiner provided translation), further in view of Lee et al. (US20050051666A1).
Independent Claim 8:
Adamczyk teaches “A moving body comprising: a cabin including four walls;” (Adamczyk Fig. 5 teaches a small pressurized rover i.e. a moving body which includes four walls;
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“a plurality of tanks arranged adjacent to the four walls of the cabin respectively so as to surround the device;” (Adamczyk teaches water walls that surround the vehicle in Adamczyk [Page 6 left column, third paragraph] "Water walls that enclosed a subset of the internal volume were added to the design, and the effects of redistributing the water to surround the astronauts more evenly were examined. These water walls are the colored flat panels inside the vehicle in Figure 6A."; Adamczyk Figs. 6A-6C teach the water tanks being on all sides and the roof of the vehicle.
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“a liquid transfer apparatus that (Adamczyk teaches that water from the radiator may be used to fill the water wall panels i.e. liquid may be transferred from the radiator on the roof of the vehicle to the walls on the side of the vehicle in Adamczyk [Section 7 - Small pressurized rover , paragraph 2] "The water wall panels are shown more clearly, with the surrounding vehicle components removed, in Figure 6B. An exploded view of the panels is shown in Figure 6C. The analysis of the water walls was designed so that the thickness of each panel could be specified separately. The radiator was considered as a contributing component of the water wall shielding augmentation system, since it was already in the design and some or all of its 500 lbm of water would be used to fill the water wall panels.").
Adamczyk does not appear to explicitly teach “a device installed inside the cabin;”, or “and in a case in which it is determined that the liquid level of one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction relative to the device is lower than a standard liquid level, control the liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction from at least two other tanks adjacent to the one or more tanks.” However, Hiroshima does teach these claim limitations and teaches “a plurality of tanks arranged adjacent to the four walls of the cabin respectively so as to surround the device;” as well.
Hiroshima teaches “a device installed inside the cabin;” (Hiroshima teaches electronic devices used in the internal space i.e. the device in Hiroshima [0056] "Therefore, the energy of space radiation entering the internal space 14 of the space facility 100 from the outside of the space facility 100 can be reduced, and malfunction occurring in electronic devices used in the internal space 14 and burnout of elements can be prevented."),
“a plurality of tanks arranged adjacent to the four walls of the cabin respectively so as to surround the device;” (Hiroshima teaches divided areas 18 i.e. tanks in Hiroshima [0049] "Among them, the divided areas 18 existing in the direction in which space radiation Ra is emitted are filled with water. In the example illustrated in FIG. 8 , three consecutive divided areas 18-1, 18-2, and 18-3 are filled with water. That is, the outer wall space 15 is divided into a plurality of divided areas 18, and at least one of the divided areas 18 is filled with water. With such a configuration, even in a case where the amount of water to be stored is small with respect to the capacity of the outer wall space 15, the space radiation Ra with which the space facility 100 is irradiated can be efficiently shielded. That is, it is possible to attenuate the space radiation with a small amount of water by recognizing the direction in which the space radiation arrives in advance and filling the divided areas 18 facing this arrival direction with water. The number of the divided areas 18 to be filled with water is not limited to three, and may be two or less or four or more."), and
“and in a case in which it is determined that the liquid level of one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction relative to the device is lower than a standard liquid level, control the
liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction (Hiroshima teaches filling the divided areas 18 with water facing the direction of the radiation with water in Hiroshima [0049] "Among them, the divided areas 18 existing in the direction in which space radiation Ra is emitted are filled with water. In the example illustrated in FIG. 8 , three consecutive divided areas 18-1, 18-2, and 18-3 are filled with water. That is, the outer wall space 15 is divided into a plurality of divided areas 18, and at least one of the divided areas 18 is filled with water. With such a configuration, even in a case where the amount of water to be stored is small with respect to the capacity of the outer wall space 15, the space radiation Ra with which the space facility 100 is irradiated can be efficiently shielded. That is, it is possible to attenuate the space radiation with a small amount of water by recognizing the direction in which the space radiation arrives in advance and filling the divided areas 18 facing this arrival direction with water. The number of the divided areas 18 to be filled with water is not limited to three, and may be two or less or four or more.").
Hiroshima and Adamczyk are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of radiation protection. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Hiroshima and Adamczyk before him/her, to modify the teachings of a small pressurized rover of Adamczyk to include the teachings of a bulkhead structure for a space facility of Hiroshima because adding the detection of radiation and filling divided areas with water of Hiroshima would reduce the cost incurred when using the space facility as described in Hiroshima [0060] “In the present embodiment, the outer wall space 15 is a water storage tank that stores water to be used in the space facility 100. Therefore, domestic water as a necessary item in the space facility 100 can be used as water for shielding space radiation, and it is possible to reduce the cost incurred when using the space facility 100.”
Neither Adamczyk or Hiroshima appear to explicitly teach “direction sensors that detect the incoming direction of radiation, the direction sensors being disposed at outer sides of the four walls of the cabin, respectively:” or “a memory; and a processor coupled to the memory and that is configured to: receive information relating to the incoming direction of radiation from the direction sensors;” However, Hoyer does teach these claim limitations.
Hoyer teaches “direction sensors that detect the incoming direction of radiation, the direction sensors being disposed at outer sides of the four walls of the cabin, respectively:” (Hoyer teaches radiation sensors which can detect solar radiation from different directions i.e. they may determine the direction of the radiation which may be arranged parallel to side and roof surfaces of a house in Hoyer [0038] "In order to determine the energy input through the windows 12 into the house 10, a radiation sensor 20, which is preferably designed as a solar sensor, is arranged on the front side 10a, the long side 10b and the roof surface 10c. Alternatively, a radiation sensor package consisting of an essentially cuboid element, whose side surfaces run essentially parallel to the side and roof surfaces of house 10, could also be arranged on an unshaded area of house 10, for example on the gable of the roof surface 10c, with radiation sensors arranged on the side surfaces of the element. Such a radiation sensor package can also detect solar radiation from different directions."; Hoyer teaches that radiation sensors may be arranged in each window of the room i.e. on all sides in Hoyer [0024] "In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, at least one radiation sensor is arranged in each window of the room."; Hoyer teaches that the radiation sensors may be mounted on the outside in Hoyer [0025] "If the radiation sensor is located on the outside of the window or on a wall surface on the outside of the room, the radiation transmission through the window pane must be taken into account to accurately determine the energy input into the room, as this results in energy losses. The actual energy input into the room is a function of the angle of incidence of the radiation on the window pane, the transmittance of the window, the reflection and absorption of the radiation, and the duration of the incident radiation. Accurate determination of the energy input into the room therefore requires knowledge of a large number of factors, which entails a great deal of effort. Preferably, the radiation sensor is therefore arranged on the inside of the window directly behind the window pane, particularly preferably parallel to the window pane, so that these factors are automatically taken into account and the radiation sensor only measures the actual radiation power entering the room over time. Multiplying by the window area directly yields the energy input into the room without further calculations."), and
“a memory; and a processor coupled to the memory and that is configured to: receive information relating to the incoming direction of radiation from the direction sensors;” (Hoyer teaches an evaluation unit i.e. a processor and memory that detects radiation and determines energy through each window i.e. it may determine radiation direction by finding the side with the greatest radiation detected in Hoyer [0020] "The device according to the invention for carrying out the method according to the invention comprises at least one radiation sensor in the direction of at least one exterior room with at least one window and at least one evaluation unit which can be connected to the solar sensors. The radiation sensors detect the amount of radiation, especially solar radiation, over time. Taking into account the respective window areas, the evaluation unit determines the respective energy input through each window by integrating the radiant power over time. The evaluation can be carried out directly after recording a single measurement value from the radiation sensors or after recording a series of measurement values from the radiation sensors.").
Hiroshima and Adamczyk are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of radiation protection. Hiroshima and Hoyer are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of detecting radiation. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Hiroshima, Adamczyk and Hoyer before him/her, to modify the teachings of a small pressurized rover of Adamczyk modified to include the teachings of a bulkhead structure for a space facility of Hiroshima to include the teachings of radiation sensors of Hoyer because adding the Apparatus and method for determining the energy input into a room by a radiation source of Hoyer would enable optimized technical management as described in Hoyer [0013] “For example, since a room where the sun shines through a window is already heated by the solar radiation, less power is needed. The heating system needs to work to heat the room to the specified final temperature. By taking into account the external energy input, only the difference in energy is required from the heating system, resulting in lower losses and thus improving the efficiency of the heating system. Furthermore, knowledge of external energy inputs into a space over time (cycle arbitrarily over seconds, hours, days, weeks) enables correspondingly optimized technical and energetic space management, e.g. for a building, a vehicle or a ship. In particular, measured radiation profiles, for example, from the radiation profiles in the preceding days, especially the preceding two days, can be used in advance to extrapolate the energy required for cooling or heating the object. Reduction of control fluctuations will be achieved.”
None of Adamczyk, Hiroshima, or Hoyer appear to explicitly teach “liquid level sensors that detects the liquid levels in the plurality of tanks;”, “a liquid transfer apparatus that includes the pipes and pumps and transfers the liquid between each pair of adjacent tanks among the plurality of tanks;”, “receive information relating to the liquid levels in the plurality of tanks from the liquid level sensors;”, or “causing the liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks However, Lee does teach these claim limitations.
Lee teaches “liquid level sensors that detects the liquid levels in the plurality of tanks;” (Lee teaches probes that indicate fuel level in Lee [0051] "Both fixed and movable capacitance probes are located in the wing fuel tanks 210 and indicate fuel level in each fuel compartment. Float switches at the forward body tank deactivate the forward feed pump and activate the aft feed pump when fuel levels are low in the forward body tanks." in the coolant liquid 6."),
“a liquid transfer apparatus that includes the pipes and pumps and transfers the liquid between each pair of adjacent tanks among the plurality of tanks;” (Lee teaches an automated fuel transfer system 200 with a plurality of tanks 202 that use pumps 204 to transfer fuel between the tanks in Lee [0045] "Referring to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D in combination with FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C, a group of schematic pictorial diagrams illustrate multiple aspects of an automated fuel transfer system 200 that can be used in a supersonic aircraft 100. The aircraft 100 includes a fuselage 101 and wing 104. The automated fuel transfer system 200 comprises a plurality of fuel tanks 202 distributed within the wing 104 and/or the fuselage 101, a plurality of pumps 204 coupled to the plurality of fuel tanks 202 and capable of transferring fuel among the plurality of fuel tanks 202, at least one sensor 110 capable of indicating a flight parameter, and a controller 112. The controller 112 is coupled to the sensors 110 and the plurality of pumps 204, and controls fuel transfer among the plurality of fuel tanks 202 to modify the aircraft lift distribution, thereby reducing or minimizing aircraft sonic boom."; Lee Fig. 2B teaches the tanks being connected via valves 232 and conduits/pipes
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“receive information relating to the liquid levels in the plurality of tanks from the liquid level sensors;” (Lee teaches probes that indicate fuel level in Lee [0051] "Both fixed and movable capacitance probes are located in the wing fuel tanks 210 and indicate fuel level in each fuel compartment. Float switches at the forward body tank deactivate the forward feed pump and activate the aft feed pump when fuel levels are low in the forward body tanks." in the coolant liquid 6."), and
“causing the liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks (Lee teaches an automated fuel transfer system 200 with a plurality of tanks 202 that use pumps 204 to transfer fuel between the tanks i.e. the fuel transfer system may transfer liquid from multiple tanks in Lee [0045] "Referring to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D in combination with FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C, a group of schematic pictorial diagrams illustrate multiple aspects of an automated fuel transfer system 200 that can be used in a supersonic aircraft 100. The aircraft 100 includes a fuselage 101 and wing 104. The automated fuel transfer system 200 comprises a plurality of fuel tanks 202 distributed within the wing 104 and/or the fuselage 101, a plurality of pumps 204 coupled to the plurality of fuel tanks 202 and capable of transferring fuel among the plurality of fuel tanks 202, at least one sensor 110 capable of indicating a flight parameter, and a controller 112. The controller 112 is coupled to the sensors 110 and the plurality of pumps 204, and controls fuel transfer among the plurality of fuel tanks 202 to modify the aircraft lift distribution, thereby reducing or minimizing aircraft sonic boom.").
Hiroshima and Adamczyk are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of radiation protection. Hiroshima and Hoyer are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of detecting radiation. Adamczyk, Hiroshima, and Lee are analogous art because they are in the same field of endeavor of transporting liquids. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Hiroshima, Adamczyk, Hoyer, and Lee before him/her, to modify the teachings of a small pressurized rover of Adamczyk modified to include the teachings of a bulkhead structure for a space facility of Hiroshima, further modified to include the teachings of radiation sensors of Hoyer to include the transferring of liquids between multiple tanks of Lee because adding the fuel transfer system of Lee would be a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results. A person having ordinary skill in the art would know that using pumps to fill liquid from one or more tanks to another tank would yield predictable results. The pumps in the combination would be performing the same function that they do separately – transferring liquid between tanks.
Claim 4:
Adamczyk in view of Hiroshima, further in view of Hoyer, further in view of Lee teaches “The moving body of claim 8, wherein the processor is configured to perform a process to transfer, in a case in which there are multiple tanks positioned in the incoming direction relative to the device, the liquid to at least one of the tanks positioned in the incoming direction.” (Hiroshima teaches filling multiple divided areas 18 i.e. tanks with water in Hiroshima [0049] "Among them, the divided areas 18 existing in the direction in which space radiation Ra is emitted are filled with water. In the example illustrated in FIG. 8 , three consecutive divided areas 18-1, 18-2, and 18-3 are filled with water. That is, the outer wall space 15 is divided into a plurality of divided areas 18, and at least one of the divided areas 18 is filled with water."
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Claim 5:
Adamczyk in view of Hiroshima, further in view of Hoyer, further in view of Lee teaches “The moving body of claim 4, wherein the processor is configured to perform a process to transfer the liquid such that, among the multiple tanks positioned in the incoming direction, the tank that is able to shield the radiation in a wider range relative to the device is given priority.” (Hiroshima teaches filling two divided areas i.e. tanks in the direction of radiation that is strongest in Hiroshima [0053-0054] "Among them, the divided areas 18 existing in the direction in which space radiation Ra is emitted are filled with water. In the example illustrated in FIG. 9 , four divided areas 18-11, 18-12, 18-13, and 18-14 are filled with water. That is, the intermediate wall 13 that separates the pressurized wall 11 and the protective wall 12 from each other is further provided, the first space 31 divided by the pressurized wall 11 and the intermediate wall 13 and the second space 32 divided by the intermediate wall 13 and the protective wall 12 are each divided into the plurality of divided areas 18, and at least one divided area 18 of the divided areas of the first space 31 and the divided areas of the second space 32 is filled with water. With such a configuration, it is possible to appropriately set a thick region and a thin region of the layer to be filled with water, and it is possible to fill the region irradiated with more space radiation Ra with water."
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Claim 6:
Adamczyk in view of Hiroshima, further in view of Hoyer, further in view of Lee teaches “The moving body of claim 4, wherein the processor is configured to perform a process to transfer the liquid so that the liquid levels in all of tanks positioned in the incoming direction become equal to or higher than the standard liquid level.” (Hiroshima teaches filling three consecutive divided areas i.e. tanks with water i.e. they are filled with water until the tanks become equal to the standard liquid level in Hiroshima [0049] "Among them, the divided areas 18 existing in the direction in which space radiation Ra is emitted are filled with water. In the example illustrated in FIG. 8 , three consecutive divided areas 18-1, 18-2, and 18-3 are filled with water. That is, the outer wall space 15 is divided into a plurality of divided areas 18, and at least one of the divided areas 18 is filled with water. With such a configuration, even in a case where the amount of water to be stored is small with respect to the capacity of the outer wall space 15, the space radiation Ra with which the space facility 100 is irradiated can be efficiently shielded.").
Claim 10:
Adamczyk in view of Hiroshima, further in view of Hoyer, further in view of Lee teaches “The moving body of claim 8, wherein the cabin is configured to be able to accommodate an occupant.” (Adamczyk teaches the astronauts participating in rover excursions for their safety i.e. the astronauts were in the rover in Adamczyk [Page 8 right column, paragraph 1] "In the current work, it was assumed that astronauts would take multiple day rover excursions; rovers were again modeled using the SPR. It was stipulated that all of the astronauts would participate in the rover excursions, and no one would remain in the habitat when the rovers were absent. This is necessary for astronaut safety, because both the SPE shelters and suit-ports are located in the rovers."; Adamczyk Fig. 5 [As shown above in claim 8] shows that the astronaut may go inside the rover.).
Independent Claim 14:
Adamczyk teaches “a moving body including a cabin having four walls,” (Adamczyk Fig. 5 [As shown above in claim 8] teaches a small pressurized rover i.e. a moving body which includes four walls;),
“a plurality of tanks for storing a liquid and arranged adjacent to the four walls of the cabin so as to surround the device,” (Adamczyk teaches water walls that surround the vehicle in Adamczyk [Page 6 left column, third paragraph] "Water walls that enclosed a subset of the internal volume were added to the design, and the effects of redistributing the water to surround the astronauts more evenly were examined. These water walls are the colored flat panels inside the vehicle in Figure 6A."; Adamczyk Figs. 6A-6C [As shown above in claim 8] teach the water tanks being on all sides and the roof of the vehicle.), and
“a liquid transfer apparatus that (Adamczyk teaches that water from the radiator may be used to fill the water wall panels i.e. liquid may be transferred from the radiator on the roof of the vehicle to the walls on the side of the vehicle in Adamczyk [Section 7 - Small pressurized rover , paragraph 2] "The water wall panels are shown more clearly, with the surrounding vehicle components removed, in Figure 6B. An exploded view of the panels is shown in Figure 6C. The analysis of the water walls was designed so that the thickness of each panel could be specified separately. The radiator was considered as a contributing component of the water wall shielding augmentation system, since it was already in the design and some or all of its 500 lbm of water would be used to fill the water wall panels.").
Adamczyk does not appear to explicitly teach “a device installed inside the cabin;”, or “and in a case in which it is determined that the liquid level of one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction relative to the device is lower than a standard liquid level, causing the liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction However, Hiroshima does teach these claim limitations and teaches “a plurality of tanks arranged adjacent to the four walls of the cabin respectively so as to surround the device;” as well.
Hiroshima teaches “a device installed inside the cabin;” (Hiroshima teaches electronic devices used in the internal space i.e. the device in Hiroshima [0056] "Therefore, the energy of space radiation entering the internal space 14 of the space facility 100 from the outside of the space facility 100 can be reduced, and malfunction occurring in electronic devices used in the internal space 14 and burnout of elements can be prevented."),
“a plurality of tanks arranged adjacent to the four walls of the cabin respectively so as to surround the device;” (Hiroshima teaches divided areas 18 i.e. tanks in Hiroshima [0049] "Among them, the divided areas 18 existing in the direction in which space radiation Ra is emitted are filled with water. In the example illustrated in FIG. 8 , three consecutive divided areas 18-1, 18-2, and 18-3 are filled with water. That is, the outer wall space 15 is divided into a plurality of divided areas 18, and at least one of the divided areas 18 is filled with water. With such a configuration, even in a case where the amount of water to be stored is small with respect to the capacity of the outer wall space 15, the space radiation Ra with which the space facility 100 is irradiated can be efficiently shielded. That is, it is possible to attenuate the space radiation with a small amount of water by recognizing the direction in which the space radiation arrives in advance and filling the divided areas 18 facing this arrival direction with water. The number of the divided areas 18 to be filled with water is not limited to three, and may be two or less or four or more."), and
“and in a case in which it is determined that the liquid level of one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction relative to the device is lower than a standard liquid level, control the
liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction (Hiroshima teaches filling the divided areas 18 with water facing the direction of the radiation with water in Hiroshima [0049] "Among them, the divided areas 18 existing in the direction in which space radiation Ra is emitted are filled with water. In the example illustrated in FIG. 8 , three consecutive divided areas 18-1, 18-2, and 18-3 are filled with water. That is, the outer wall space 15 is divided into a plurality of divided areas 18, and at least one of the divided areas 18 is filled with water. With such a configuration, even in a case where the amount of water to be stored is small with respect to the capacity of the outer wall space 15, the space radiation Ra with which the space facility 100 is irradiated can be efficiently shielded. That is, it is possible to attenuate the space radiation with a small amount of water by recognizing the direction in which the space radiation arrives in advance and filling the divided areas 18 facing this arrival direction with water. The number of the divided areas 18 to be filled with water is not limited to three, and may be two or less or four or more.").
Hiroshima and Adamczyk are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of radiation protection. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Hiroshima and Adamczyk before him/her, to modify the teachings of a small pressurized rover of Adamczyk to include the teachings of a bulkhead structure for a space facility of Hiroshima because adding the detection of radiation and filling divided areas with water of Hiroshima would reduce the cost incurred when using the space facility as described in Hiroshima [0060] “In the present embodiment, the outer wall space 15 is a water storage tank that stores water to be used in the space facility 100. Therefore, domestic water as a necessary item in the space facility 100 can be used as water for shielding space radiation, and it is possible to reduce the cost incurred when using the space facility 100.”
Neither Adamczyk or Hiroshima appear to explicitly teach “receiving information relating to an incoming direction of radiation from direction sensors disposed at outer sides of the four walls of the cabin;” However, Hoyer does teach these claim limitations.
Hoyer teaches “receiving information relating to an incoming direction of radiation from direction sensors disposed at outer sides of the four walls of the cabin:” (Hoyer teaches radiation sensors which can detect solar radiation from different directions i.e. they may determine the direction of the radiation which may be arranged parallel to side and roof surfaces of a house in Hoyer [0038] "In order to determine the energy input through the windows 12 into the house 10, a radiation sensor 20, which is preferably designed as a solar sensor, is arranged on the front side 10a, the long side 10b and the roof surface 10c. Alternatively, a radiation sensor package consisting of an essentially cuboid element, whose side surfaces run essentially parallel to the side and roof surfaces of house 10, could also be arranged on an unshaded area of house 10, for example on the gable of the roof surface 10c, with radiation sensors arranged on the side surfaces of the element. Such a radiation sensor package can also detect solar radiation from different directions."; Hoyer teaches that radiation sensors may be arranged in each window of the room i.e. on all sides in Hoyer [0024] "In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, at least one radiation sensor is arranged in each window of the room."; Hoyer teaches that the radiation sensors may be mounted on the outside in Hoyer [0025] "If the radiation sensor is located on the outside of the window or on a wall surface on the outside of the room, the radiation transmission through the window pane must be taken into account to accurately determine the energy input into the room, as this results in energy losses. The actual energy input into the room is a function of the angle of incidence of the radiation on the window pane, the transmittance of the window, the reflection and absorption of the radiation, and the duration of the incident radiation. Accurate determination of the energy input into the room therefore requires knowledge of a large number of factors, which entails a great deal of effort. Preferably, the radiation sensor is therefore arranged on the inside of the window directly behind the window pane, particularly preferably parallel to the window pane, so that these factors are automatically taken into account and the radiation sensor only measures the actual radiation power entering the room over time. Multiplying by the window area directly yields the energy input into the room without further calculations.").
Hiroshima and Adamczyk are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of radiation protection. Hiroshima and Hoyer are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of detecting radiation. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Hiroshima, Adamczyk and Hoyer before him/her, to modify the teachings of a small pressurized rover of Adamczyk modified to include the teachings of a bulkhead structure for a space facility of Hiroshima to include the teachings of radiation sensors of Hoyer because adding the Apparatus and method for determining the energy input into a room by a radiation source of Hoyer would enable optimized technical management as described in Hoyer [0013] “For example, since a room where the sun shines through a window is already heated by the solar radiation, less power is needed. The heating system needs to work to heat the room to the specified final temperature. By taking into account the external energy input, only the difference in energy is required from the heating system, resulting in lower losses and thus improving the efficiency of the heating system. Furthermore, knowledge of external energy inputs into a space over time (cycle arbitrarily over seconds, hours, days, weeks) enables correspondingly optimized technical and energetic space management, e.g. for a building, a vehicle or a ship. In particular, measured radiation profiles, for example, from the radiation profiles in the preceding days, especially the preceding two days, can be used in advance to extrapolate the energy required for cooling or heating the object. Reduction of control fluctuations will be achieved.”
None of Adamczyk, Hiroshima, or Hoyer appear to explicitly teach “A liquid level control method”, “liquid level sensors that detects the liquid levels in the plurality of tanks;”, “a liquid transfer apparatus that includes the pipes and pumps and transfers the liquid between each pair of adjacent tanks among the plurality of tanks;”, “receiving information relating to liquid levels in the plurality of tanks from liquid level sensors provided at the plurality of tanks;”, or “causing the liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks However, Lee does teach these claim limitations.
Lee teaches “A liquid level control method” (Lee teaches an automated fuel transfer system 200 with a plurality of tanks 202 that use pumps 204 to transfer fuel between the tanks in Lee [0045] "Referring to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D in combination with FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C, a group of schematic pictorial diagrams illustrate multiple aspects of an automated fuel transfer system 200 that can be used in a supersonic aircraft 100. The aircraft 100 includes a fuselage 101 and wing 104. The automated fuel transfer system 200 comprises a plurality of fuel tanks 202 distributed within the wing 104 and/or the fuselage 101, a plurality of pumps 204 coupled to the plurality of fuel tanks 202 and capable of transferring fuel among the plurality of fuel tanks 202, at least one sensor 110 capable of indicating a flight parameter, and a controller 112. The controller 112 is coupled to the sensors 110 and the plurality of pumps 204, and controls fuel transfer among the plurality of fuel tanks 202 to modify the aircraft lift distribution, thereby reducing or minimizing aircraft sonic boom."),
“liquid level sensors that detects the liquid levels in the plurality of tanks;” (Lee teaches probes that indicate fuel level in Lee [0051] "Both fixed and movable capacitance probes are located in the wing fuel tanks 210 and indicate fuel level in each fuel compartment. Float switches at the forward body tank deactivate the forward feed pump and activate the aft feed pump when fuel levels are low in the forward body tanks." in the coolant liquid 6."),
“a liquid transfer apparatus that includes the pipes and pumps and transfers the liquid between each pair of adjacent tanks among the plurality of tanks;” (Lee teaches an automated fuel transfer system 200 with a plurality of tanks 202 that use pumps 204 to transfer fuel between the tanks in Lee [0045] "Referring to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D in combination with FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C, a group of schematic pictorial diagrams illustrate multiple aspects of an automated fuel transfer system 200 that can be used in a supersonic aircraft 100. The aircraft 100 includes a fuselage 101 and wing 104. The automated fuel transfer system 200 comprises a plurality of fuel tanks 202 distributed within the wing 104 and/or the fuselage 101, a plurality of pumps 204 coupled to the plurality of fuel tanks 202 and capable of transferring fuel among the plurality of fuel tanks 202, at least one sensor 110 capable of indicating a flight parameter, and a controller 112. The controller 112 is coupled to the sensors 110 and the plurality of pumps 204, and controls fuel transfer among the plurality of fuel tanks 202 to modify the aircraft lift distribution, thereby reducing or minimizing aircraft sonic boom."; Lee Fig. 2B [As shown above in claim 8] teaches the tanks being connected via valves 232 and conduits/pipes), and
“receiving information relating to liquid levels in the plurality of tanks from liquid level sensors provided at the plurality of tanks;” (Lee teaches probes that indicate fuel level in Lee [0051] "Both fixed and movable capacitance probes are located in the wing fuel tanks 210 and indicate fuel level in each fuel compartment. Float switches at the forward body tank deactivate the forward feed pump and activate the aft feed pump when fuel levels are low in the forward body tanks." in the coolant liquid 6."), and
“causing the liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks (Lee teaches an automated fuel transfer system 200 with a plurality of tanks 202 that use pumps 204 to transfer fuel between the tanks i.e. the fuel transfer system may transfer liquid from multiple tanks in Lee [0045] "Referring to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D in combination with FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C, a group of schematic pictorial diagrams illustrate multiple aspects of an automated fuel transfer system 200 that can be used in a supersonic aircraft 100. The aircraft 100 includes a fuselage 101 and wing 104. The automated fuel transfer system 200 comprises a plurality of fuel tanks 202 distributed within the wing 104 and/or the fuselage 101, a plurality of pumps 204 coupled to the plurality of fuel tanks 202 and capable of transferring fuel among the plurality of fuel tanks 202, at least one sensor 110 capable of indicating a flight parameter, and a controller 112. The controller 112 is coupled to the sensors 110 and the plurality of pumps 204, and controls fuel transfer among the plurality of fuel tanks 202 to modify the aircraft lift distribution, thereby reducing or minimizing aircraft sonic boom.").
Hiroshima and Adamczyk are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of radiation protection. Hiroshima and Hoyer are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of detecting radiation. Adamczyk, Hiroshima, and Lee are analogous art because they are in the same field of endeavor of transporting liquids. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Hiroshima, Adamczyk, Hoyer, and Lee before him/her, to modify the teachings of a small pressurized rover of Adamczyk modified to include the teachings of a bulkhead structure for a space facility of Hiroshima, further modified to include the teachings of radiation sensors of Hoyer to include the transferring of liquids between multiple tanks of Lee because adding the fuel transfer system of Lee would be a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results. A person having ordinary skill in the art would know that using pumps to fill liquid from one or more tanks to another tank would yield predictable results. The pumps in the combination would be performing the same function that they do separately – transferring liquid between tanks.
Independent Claim 15:
Adamczyk teaches “a moving body, the moving body including a cabin having four walls,” (Adamczyk Fig. 5 [As shown above in claim 8] teaches a small pressurized rover i.e. a moving body which includes four walls;),
“a plurality of tanks for storing a liquid and arranged adjacent to the four walls of the cabin so as to surround the device,” (Adamczyk teaches water walls that surround the vehicle in Adamczyk [Page 6 left column, third paragraph] "Water walls that enclosed a subset of the internal volume were added to the design, and the effects of redistributing the water to surround the astronauts more evenly were examined. These water walls are the colored flat panels inside the vehicle in Figure 6A."; Adamczyk Figs. 6A-6C [As shown above in claim 8] teach the water tanks being on all sides and the roof of the vehicle.), and
“a liquid transfer apparatus that (Adamczyk teaches that water from the radiator may be used to fill the water wall panels i.e. liquid may be transferred from the radiator on the roof of the vehicle to the walls on the side of the vehicle in Adamczyk [Section 7 - Small pressurized rover , paragraph 2] "The water wall panels are shown more clearly, with the surrounding vehicle components removed, in Figure 6B. An exploded view of the panels is shown in Figure 6C. The analysis of the water walls was designed so that the thickness of each panel could be specified separately. The radiator was considered as a contributing component of the water wall shielding augmentation system, since it was already in the design and some or all of its 500 lbm of water would be used to fill the water wall panels.").
Adamczyk does not appear to explicitly teach “a device installed inside the cabin;”, or “and in a case in which it is determined that the liquid level of one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction relative to the device is lower than a standard liquid level, causing the liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction However, Hiroshima does teach these claim limitations and teaches “a plurality of tanks arranged adjacent to the four walls of the cabin respectively so as to surround the device;” as well.
Hiroshima teaches “a device installed inside the cabin;” (Hiroshima teaches electronic devices used in the internal space i.e. the device in Hiroshima [0056] "Therefore, the energy of space radiation entering the internal space 14 of the space facility 100 from the outside of the space facility 100 can be reduced, and malfunction occurring in electronic devices used in the internal space 14 and burnout of elements can be prevented."),
“a plurality of tanks arranged adjacent to the four walls of the cabin respectively so as to surround the device;” (Hiroshima teaches divided areas 18 i.e. tanks in Hiroshima [0049] "Among them, the divided areas 18 existing in the direction in which space radiation Ra is emitted are filled with water. In the example illustrated in FIG. 8 , three consecutive divided areas 18-1, 18-2, and 18-3 are filled with water. That is, the outer wall space 15 is divided into a plurality of divided areas 18, and at least one of the divided areas 18 is filled with water. With such a configuration, even in a case where the amount of water to be stored is small with respect to the capacity of the outer wall space 15, the space radiation Ra with which the space facility 100 is irradiated can be efficiently shielded. That is, it is possible to attenuate the space radiation with a small amount of water by recognizing the direction in which the space radiation arrives in advance and filling the divided areas 18 facing this arrival direction with water. The number of the divided areas 18 to be filled with water is not limited to three, and may be two or less or four or more."), and
“and in a case in which it is determined that the liquid level of one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction relative to the device is lower than a standard liquid level, control the
liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks positioned in the incoming direction (Hiroshima teaches filling the divided areas 18 with water facing the direction of the radiation with water in Hiroshima [0049] "Among them, the divided areas 18 existing in the direction in which space radiation Ra is emitted are filled with water. In the example illustrated in FIG. 8 , three consecutive divided areas 18-1, 18-2, and 18-3 are filled with water. That is, the outer wall space 15 is divided into a plurality of divided areas 18, and at least one of the divided areas 18 is filled with water. With such a configuration, even in a case where the amount of water to be stored is small with respect to the capacity of the outer wall space 15, the space radiation Ra with which the space facility 100 is irradiated can be efficiently shielded. That is, it is possible to attenuate the space radiation with a small amount of water by recognizing the direction in which the space radiation arrives in advance and filling the divided areas 18 facing this arrival direction with water. The number of the divided areas 18 to be filled with water is not limited to three, and may be two or less or four or more.").
Hiroshima and Adamczyk are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of radiation protection. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Hiroshima and Adamczyk before him/her, to modify the teachings of a small pressurized rover of Adamczyk to include the teachings of a bulkhead structure for a space facility of Hiroshima because adding the detection of radiation and filling divided areas with water of Hiroshima would reduce the cost incurred when using the space facility as described in Hiroshima [0060] “In the present embodiment, the outer wall space 15 is a water storage tank that stores water to be used in the space facility 100. Therefore, domestic water as a necessary item in the space facility 100 can be used as water for shielding space radiation, and it is possible to reduce the cost incurred when using the space facility 100.”
Neither Adamczyk or Hiroshima appear to explicitly teach “receiving information relating to an incoming direction of radiation from direction sensors disposed at outer sides of the four walls of the cabin;” However, Hoyer does teach these claim limitations.
Hoyer teaches “receiving information relating to an incoming direction of radiation from direction sensors disposed at outer sides of the four walls of the cabin:” (Hoyer teaches radiation sensors which can detect solar radiation from different directions i.e. they may determine the direction of the radiation which may be arranged parallel to side and roof surfaces of a house in Hoyer [0038] "In order to determine the energy input through the windows 12 into the house 10, a radiation sensor 20, which is preferably designed as a solar sensor, is arranged on the front side 10a, the long side 10b and the roof surface 10c. Alternatively, a radiation sensor package consisting of an essentially cuboid element, whose side surfaces run essentially parallel to the side and roof surfaces of house 10, could also be arranged on an unshaded area of house 10, for example on the gable of the roof surface 10c, with radiation sensors arranged on the side surfaces of the element. Such a radiation sensor package can also detect solar radiation from different directions."; Hoyer teaches that radiation sensors may be arranged in each window of the room i.e. on all sides in Hoyer [0024] "In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, at least one radiation sensor is arranged in each window of the room."; Hoyer teaches that the radiation sensors may be mounted on the outside in Hoyer [0025] "If the radiation sensor is located on the outside of the window or on a wall surface on the outside of the room, the radiation transmission through the window pane must be taken into account to accurately determine the energy input into the room, as this results in energy losses. The actual energy input into the room is a function of the angle of incidence of the radiation on the window pane, the transmittance of the window, the reflection and absorption of the radiation, and the duration of the incident radiation. Accurate determination of the energy input into the room therefore requires knowledge of a large number of factors, which entails a great deal of effort. Preferably, the radiation sensor is therefore arranged on the inside of the window directly behind the window pane, particularly preferably parallel to the window pane, so that these factors are automatically taken into account and the radiation sensor only measures the actual radiation power entering the room over time. Multiplying by the window area directly yields the energy input into the room without further calculations.").
Hiroshima and Adamczyk are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of radiation protection. Hiroshima and Hoyer are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of detecting radiation. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Hiroshima, Adamczyk and Hoyer before him/her, to modify the teachings of a small pressurized rover of Adamczyk modified to include the teachings of a bulkhead structure for a space facility of Hiroshima to include the teachings of radiation sensors of Hoyer because adding the Apparatus and method for determining the energy input into a room by a radiation source of Hoyer would enable optimized technical management as described in Hoyer [0013] “For example, since a room where the sun shines through a window is already heated by the solar radiation, less power is needed. The heating system needs to work to heat the room to the specified final temperature. By taking into account the external energy input, only the difference in energy is required from the heating system, resulting in lower losses and thus improving the efficiency of the heating system. Furthermore, knowledge of external energy inputs into a space over time (cycle arbitrarily over seconds, hours, days, weeks) enables correspondingly optimized technical and energetic space management, e.g. for a building, a vehicle or a ship. In particular, measured radiation profiles, for example, from the radiation profiles in the preceding days, especially the preceding two days, can be used in advance to extrapolate the energy required for cooling or heating the object. Reduction of control fluctuations will be achieved.”
None of Adamczyk, Hiroshima, or Hoyer appear to explicitly teach “A non-transitory storage medium storing a program that causes a computer to execute a liquid level control process”, “liquid level sensors that detects the liquid levels in the plurality of tanks;”, “a liquid transfer apparatus that includes the pipes and pumps and transfers the liquid between each pair of adjacent tanks among the plurality of tanks;”, “receiving information relating to liquid levels in the plurality of tanks from liquid level sensors provided at the plurality of tanks;”, or “causing the liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks However, Lee does teach these claim limitations.
Lee teaches “A non-transitory storage medium storing a program that causes a computer to execute a liquid level control process” (Lee teaches an automated fuel transfer system 200 with a plurality of tanks 202 that use pumps 204 to transfer fuel between the tanks in Lee [0045] "Referring to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D in combination with FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C, a group of schematic pictorial diagrams illustrate multiple aspects of an automated fuel transfer system 200 that can be used in a supersonic aircraft 100. The aircraft 100 includes a fuselage 101 and wing 104. The automated fuel transfer system 200 comprises a plurality of fuel tanks 202 distributed within the wing 104 and/or the fuselage 101, a plurality of pumps 204 coupled to the plurality of fuel tanks 202 and capable of transferring fuel among the plurality of fuel tanks 202, at least one sensor 110 capable of indicating a flight parameter, and a controller 112. The controller 112 is coupled to the sensors 110 and the plurality of pumps 204, and controls fuel transfer among the plurality of fuel tanks 202 to modify the aircraft lift distribution, thereby reducing or minimizing aircraft sonic boom."; Lee teaches a controller that can transfer fuel i.e. the controller contains a non-transitory storage medium storing a program in Lee [0008] “The aircraft further comprises at least one sensor capable of indicating a flight parameter and a controller. The controller is coupled to the one or more sensors and to the fuel transfer system. The controller can transfer fuel among the plurality of fuel tanks and adjust the aircraft center of gravity to reduce trim drag and increase aircraft range.”),
“liquid level sensors that detects the liquid levels in the plurality of tanks;” (Lee teaches probes that indicate fuel level in Lee [0051] "Both fixed and movable capacitance probes are located in the wing fuel tanks 210 and indicate fuel level in each fuel compartment. Float switches at the forward body tank deactivate the forward feed pump and activate the aft feed pump when fuel levels are low in the forward body tanks." in the coolant liquid 6."),
“a liquid transfer apparatus that includes the pipes and pumps and transfers the liquid between each pair of adjacent tanks among the plurality of tanks;” (Lee teaches an automated fuel transfer system 200 with a plurality of tanks 202 that use pumps 204 to transfer fuel between the tanks in Lee [0045] "Referring to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D in combination with FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C, a group of schematic pictorial diagrams illustrate multiple aspects of an automated fuel transfer system 200 that can be used in a supersonic aircraft 100. The aircraft 100 includes a fuselage 101 and wing 104. The automated fuel transfer system 200 comprises a plurality of fuel tanks 202 distributed within the wing 104 and/or the fuselage 101, a plurality of pumps 204 coupled to the plurality of fuel tanks 202 and capable of transferring fuel among the plurality of fuel tanks 202, at least one sensor 110 capable of indicating a flight parameter, and a controller 112. The controller 112 is coupled to the sensors 110 and the plurality of pumps 204, and controls fuel transfer among the plurality of fuel tanks 202 to modify the aircraft lift distribution, thereby reducing or minimizing aircraft sonic boom."; Lee Fig. 2B [As shown above in claim 8] teaches the tanks being connected via valves 232 and conduits/pipes), and
“receiving information relating to liquid levels in the plurality of tanks from liquid level sensors provided at the plurality of tanks;” (Lee teaches probes that indicate fuel level in Lee [0051] "Both fixed and movable capacitance probes are located in the wing fuel tanks 210 and indicate fuel level in each fuel compartment. Float switches at the forward body tank deactivate the forward feed pump and activate the aft feed pump when fuel levels are low in the forward body tanks." in the coolant liquid 6."), and
“causing the liquid transfer apparatus to transfer the liquid to the one or more tanks (Lee teaches an automated fuel transfer system 200 with a plurality of tanks 202 that use pumps 204 to transfer fuel between the tanks i.e. the fuel transfer system may transfer liquid from multiple tanks in Lee [0045] "Referring to FIGS. 2A, 2B, 2C, and 2D in combination with FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C, a group of schematic pictorial diagrams illustrate multiple aspects of an automated fuel transfer system 200 that can be used in a supersonic aircraft 100. The aircraft 100 includes a fuselage 101 and wing 104. The automated fuel transfer system 200 comprises a plurality of fuel tanks 202 distributed within the wing 104 and/or the fuselage 101, a plurality of pumps 204 coupled to the plurality of fuel tanks 202 and capable of transferring fuel among the plurality of fuel tanks 202, at least one sensor 110 capable of indicating a flight parameter, and a controller 112. The controller 112 is coupled to the sensors 110 and the plurality of pumps 204, and controls fuel transfer among the plurality of fuel tanks 202 to modify the aircraft lift distribution, thereby reducing or minimizing aircraft sonic boom.").
Hiroshima and Adamczyk are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of radiation protection. Hiroshima and Hoyer are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of detecting radiation. Adamczyk, Hiroshima, and Lee are analogous art because they are in the same field of endeavor of transporting liquids. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Hiroshima, Adamczyk, Hoyer, and Lee before him/her, to modify the teachings of a small pressurized rover of Adamczyk modified to include the teachings of a bulkhead structure for a space facility of Hiroshima, further modified to include the teachings of radiation sensors of Hoyer to include the transferring of liquids between multiple tanks of Lee because adding the fuel transfer system of Lee would be a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results. A person having ordinary skill in the art would know that using pumps to fill liquid from one or more tanks to another tank would yield predictable results. The pumps in the combination would be performing the same function that they do separately – transferring liquid between tanks.
Claim 16:
Adamczyk in view of Hiroshima, further in view of Hoyer, further in view of Lee teaches “The moving body of claim 8, wherein the direction sensors are sun sensors.” ( Hoyer teaches that the radiation sensors are solar sensors i.e. sun sensors in Hoyer [0029] "Preferably, the radiation sensor is a solar sensor, so that it is particularly suitable for the specific requirements of measuring radiation, especially solar radiation.").
Claims 11-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over A. Adamczyk et al., "Full mission astronaut radiation exposure assessments for long duration lunar surface missions," 2011 Aerospace Conference, Big Sky, MT, USA, 2011, pp. 1-15, doi: 10.1109/AERO.2011.5747250. (Hereinafter referred to as “Adamczyk”), in view of Hiroshima (US20240375796A1), further in view of Hoyer et al. (WO2007006422A1) (Citations to examiner provided translation), further in view of Lee et al. (US20050051666A1), further in view of Cartwright (US20150090342A1).
Claim 11:
Adamczyk in view of Hiroshima, further in view of Hoyer, further in view of Lee teaches “The moving body of claim 10,” as described above. None of Adamczyk, Hiroshima, Hoyer, or Lee appear to explicitly disclose “wherein at least one of the plurality of tanks includes a discharge portion that discharges the liquid to an exterior of the tank.” However, Cartwright does teach this claim limitation (Cartwright teaches a vessel i.e. tank with an outflow pipe 106 i.e. discharge portion in Cartwright [0021] "The vessel 102 also has an outflow pipe 106 for draining fluid from the vessel 102, which pipe 106 may be coupled to any further process elements as desired/required."
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Hiroshima and Adamczyk are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of radiation protection. Hiroshima and Hoyer are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of detecting radiation. Adamczyk, Hiroshima, Cartwright, and Lee are analogous art because they are from the same field of endeavor of controlling liquids. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, having teachings of Hiroshima, Lee, Hoyer, Adamczyk, and Cartwright before him/her, to modify the teachings of a small pressurized rover of Adamczyk modified to include the teachings of a bulkhead structure for a space facility of Hiroshima, further modified to include the teachings of radiation sensors of Hoyer, further modified to include the transferring of liquids between multiple tanks of Lee, with the teachings of an outflow pipe of Cartwright because adding Liquid Level Control Loop Optimizer of Cartwright would increase the accuracy with which a liquid level control loop may be implemented as described in Cartwright [0040] “In certain configurations, empirical data collected for the purpose of accounting for latency revealed an unexpected and previously unknown effect of rate of liquid level rise/fall on the performance of level loop control. Specifically, the speed of liquid level rise and fall may affect overshoot associated with the liquid level control loop. That is, greater rise and fall rates will cause greater overshoot of the liquid level beyond the established differential gap. For example, a very fast rate of liquid level rise can cause the liquid level to overshoot the upper end of the target DG, or a very fast dump rate can cause the liquid level to overshoot the lower end of target DG. The amount of overshoot is related to the rise/fall speed. Data revealed that slower level rises and falls do not exhibit this effect. This effect is not predicted based on known performance characteristics (valve, actuator, or controller characteristics) of level control loops. Having discovered this effect, the disclosed method 200 is able to account for the effect, thereby further increasing the accuracy with which a liquid level control loop may be implemented.”
Claim 12:
Adamczyk in view of Hiroshima, further in view of Hoyer, further in view of Lee, further in view of Cartwright teaches “The moving body of claim 11, wherein the moving body is a rover that travels on the lunar surface.” (Adamczyk teaches a rover being used for lunar analog missions in Adamczyk [Page 6 left column paragraph 2] "The Small Pressurized Rover (SPR) model was developed in 2008 in support of NASA's CAT III study. The cabin module was about 4 m wide and 4.5 m long and 3 m high. A physical mockup of this cabin was built, placed on a chassis, and utilized for lunar analog operational field tests in the desert. This vehicle is shown in Figure 5.").
Claim 13:
Adamczyk in view of Hiroshima, further in view of Hoyer, further in view of Lee, further in view of Cartwright teaches “The moving body of claim 12, wherein the moving body is a rover that travels in the lunar polar regions,” (Adamczyk teaches a rover being used for lunar analog missions in Adamczyk [Page 6 left column paragraph 2] "The Small Pressurized Rover (SPR) model was developed in 2008 in support of NASA's CAT III study. The cabin module was about 4 m wide and 4.5 m long and 3 m high. A physical mockup of this cabin was built, placed on a chassis, and utilized for lunar analog operational field tests in the desert. This vehicle is shown in Figure 5."), and
“and the plurality of tanks include a front tank provided in a front end portion of the rover, a rear tank provided in a rear end portion of the rover, a left tank provided in a width direction left end portion of the rover, and a right tank provided in a width direction right end portion of the rover.” (Adamczyk teaches water walls that surround the vehicle in Adamczyk [Page 6 left column, third paragraph] "Water walls that enclosed a subset of the internal volume were added to the design, and the effects of redistributing the water to surround the astronauts more evenly were examined. These water walls are the colored flat panels inside the vehicle in Figure 6A."; Adamczyk Figs. 6A-6C [As shown above in claim 8] teach the water tanks being on all sides and the roof of the vehicle.).
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.
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/Z.A.C./Examiner, Art Unit 2116 /KENNETH M LO/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2116