DETAILED ACTION
Specification
The disclosure (specification) is objected to because following paragraphs are unclear due to apparent editorial error(s). Going forward with examination, the paragraphs are interpreted to be (Note that in applicant’s response, where a change is requested in the specification, an entire paragraph of the specification containing the change will be needed):
Page 18, starting from line 9:
--Reference may be had to FIG. 1, in which a leak detection system 26 is shown, as respectively including an acoustic signal emitter 38 and an acoustic signal receiver assembly 40 which includes at least one acoustic receiver or detector 42. The acoustic detector 42 and emitter 38 are preferably spaced along a conduit 28. Although not essential, the detection system 26 preferably includes a sensor system processor 44. In a non-limiting aspect the sensor processor 44 may be provided as part of the acoustic signal receiver assembly 40, and which preferably electronically communicates with and controls both the acoustic signal emitter 38 and the acoustic signal detector 42. More preferably, the sensor system processor 44 is further provided in electronic communication with a control CPU 20 and operates to output data signals thereto which are representing sensed audio signal components. The signal emitter 38 is preferably selected to generate audio or acoustic signals at one or more preselected baseline frequencies. Most preferably, the emitter 38 operates to emit an acoustic signal s0(t) in a baseline frequency range of between about 10 to 100 kHz and preferably about 40 to 75 kHz as a pulsed signal which is cycled with a pulse duration selected between about 0.25 and 5 minutes, and preferably about 1 to 3 minutes.
Page 19, starting from line 28:
--The signal receiver 42 is preferably calibrated to acquire vibroacoustic signals in the specific target 0) (receiver mode) and/or its harmonic frequencies (f1, f2 . . . ) correlated to the preselected emitted baseline frequency. In one possible mode of operation, harmonic frequencies for each baseline output signal are identified by Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem.--
Page 20, starting from line 24:
--In the case of water cooled EAF furnace 12 (FIG. 2), the emitted target frequency band is typically in the range of between about 40 to 75 kHz. The applicant has appreciated that depending upon the individual industrial installation, or furnace type, different target frequencies may be selected, depending upon the background noise signal which is generated by the industrial installation during its normal operations. More preferably the signal emitter 38 is operable to produce and emit the specific baseline sound wave (transducer mode), which is tuned in the processor 44 to the specific propagation characteristics of the cooling conditions being monitored.--
Page 25, starting from line 10:
--In operation, the acoustic source signal s0(t) is generated by the signal emitter 38 and propagated directly into and along the cooling water flow 101 travelling in the conduit 28. The signal detector 42 placed towards the outlet end 34 of the conduit 28 receives and measures the propagated source signal and/or its harmonic signals. By comparing the received signal and/or its harmonic signals with the emitted source signal, the acoustic channel responses hAB(t) of the cooling conduit 28 may be estimated. The acoustic channel response hAB(t) may then be used to correlate s0(t) through cooling water flow 101 as it moves along the flow path 100 in a normal structure of the conduit 28. This allows for [[the]] a reduction in normal background acoustic noise from the measurements of the acoustic channel response hAB(t) obtained by the signal detector 42, and an estimate of a true normal acoustic channel response hAB(t) from the known source signal s0(t) in the normal structure of the conduit 28.
Page 25, starting from line 20:
--Water leaks, ruptures, or other such anomalies happening at position z between the emitter 38 and a signal detector 42 will result in a distortion of the detected acoustic channel response hAB(t) recorded at the signal detector 42. A comparison between the normal acoustic channel response hAB(t) and a distorted acoustic channel response hAB(t) recorded at the signal detector 42 allows the detection of an anomaly in of the conduit 28 thus also in the cooling panel structure an output by the sensor processor 44 and/or CPU 20 of a warning and/or control signal to the furnace 12 indicative and/or responsive to the anomaly such as a water leak.--
Appropriate correction is required.
Double Patenting
The nonstatutory double patenting rejection is based on a judicially created doctrine grounded in public policy (a policy reflected in the statute) so as to prevent the unjustified or improper timewise extension of the “right to exclude” granted by a patent and to prevent possible harassment by multiple assignees. A nonstatutory double patenting rejection is appropriate where the conflicting claims are not identical, but at least one examined application claim is not patentably distinct from the reference claim(s) because the examined application claim is either anticipated by, or would have been obvious over, the reference claim(s). See, e.g., In re Berg, 140 F.3d 1428, 46 USPQ2d 1226 (Fed. Cir. 1998); In re Goodman, 11 F.3d 1046, 29 USPQ2d 2010 (Fed. Cir. 1993); In re Longi, 759 F.2d 887, 225 USPQ 645 (Fed. Cir. 1985); In re Van Ornum, 686 F.2d 937, 214 USPQ 761 (CCPA 1982); In re Vogel, 422 F.2d 438, 164 USPQ 619 (CCPA 1970); In re Thorington, 418 F.2d 528, 163 USPQ 644 (CCPA 1969).
A timely filed terminal disclaimer in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(c) or 1.321(d) may be used to overcome an actual or provisional rejection based on nonstatutory double patenting provided the reference application or patent either is shown to be commonly owned with the examined application, or claims an invention made as a result of activities undertaken within the scope of a joint research agreement. See MPEP § 717.02 for applications subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA as explained in MPEP § 2159. See MPEP § 2146 et seq. for applications not subject to examination under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . A terminal disclaimer must be signed in compliance with 37 CFR 1.321(b).
The filing of a terminal disclaimer by itself is not a complete reply to a nonstatutory double patenting (NSDP) rejection. A complete reply requires that the terminal disclaimer be accompanied by a reply requesting reconsideration of the prior Office action. Even where the NSDP rejection is provisional the reply must be complete. See MPEP § 804, subsection I.B.1. For a reply to a non-final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.111(a). For a reply to final Office action, see 37 CFR 1.113(c). A request for reconsideration while not provided for in 37 CFR 1.113(c) may be filed after final for consideration. See MPEP §§ 706.07(e) and 714.13.
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Claims 1-24 are rejected on the ground of nonstatutory double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1-11 and 21-24 of U.S. Patent No. 11,913,857 B2 (hereinafter “the Patent”). Although the claims at issue are not identical, they are not patentably distinct from each other because the Patent already claims at least the following (Note that the Patent claims a method comprising steps that necessitate all the structures recited in the present claims):
1. An industrial furnace control system comprising (See the Patent claims 1 and 8):
a furnace (See the Patent claims 1 and 8);
a cooling assembly for cooling a portion of said furnace, the cooling assembly comprising:
a cooling fluid circuit, thermally communicating with the portion of said furnace, and comprising a conduit for receiving a substantially free-surfaceless flow of cooling fluid therealong (See the Patent claim 1; Col, 19, lines 37-39);
a fluid leak detection system comprising an acoustic emitter positioned at a first location along said conduit, and an acoustic sensor positioned at a second location along said conduit spaced from said first location (See the Patent claim 1; Col. 19, lines 40-44);
a processor electronically communicating with the acoustic sensor and operable to output control signals to control at least one operating parameter of the furnace (See the Patent claim 1; Col. 19, lines 44-47),
the acoustic emitter operable to output and propagate at least one output acoustic signal along said free-surfaceless flow, the at least one acoustic signal including one or more preselected baseline frequency components having at least one frequency or frequency band detectable by the acoustic sensor, the preselected baseline frequency components being selected whereby a cooling fluid leak results in a threshold change in the at least one frequency or frequency band (See the Patent claim 1; Col 19, lines 48-51 and lines 57-66);
the acoustic sensor operable to receive and sense the at least one output acoustic signal to detect a change in at least one said preselected baseline frequency component or a harmonic frequency correlated to the at least one preselected baseline frequency component (See the Patent claim 1; Col. 19, lines 52-56),
the processor storing program instructions executable by the processor to:
identify the threshold change in the frequency or frequency band by effecting a Fourier Transform or short time Fourier Transform of the detected acoustic signal (See the Patent claim 1; Col. 20, lines 1-11), and
on identifying the threshold change in the frequency or frequency band in the detected acoustic signal, output at least one said control signal to control at least one said operating parameter (See the Patent claim 1; Col. 20, lines 1-11).
2. The furnace control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said output acoustic signal comprises a pulsed signal having a pulse duration selected at between about 0.25 and 3 minutes and a pulse repetition time of between about 1 and 5 minutes (See the Patent claim 2).
3. The furnace control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein program instructions include instructions to identify the threshold change in the frequency or frequency band by comparing the at least one preselected baseline frequency component of the detected output acoustic signal with a known baseline source signal of the furnace during a normal operation cycle (See the Patent claim 3).
4. The furnace control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processor is operable to output said at least one control signal on identifying a change in the frequency or frequency band in the detected acoustic signal which exceeds a preselected threshold amount (See the Patent claim 4).
5. The furnace control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the one or more preselected baseline frequency components are selected with a frequency range of between 10 kHz and 100 kHz, and preferably between 48 kHz and 70 kHz (See the Patent claim 5).
6. The furnace control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said acoustic sensor is spaced along said conduit from said acoustic emitter by a distance of between about 5 and 50 meters, and further wherein the acoustic emitter is configured to emit said output acoustic signal directly into a mid-portion of the free-surfaceless flow (See the Patent claims 6 and 11).
7. The furnace control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the program instructions to identify the threshold change in the frequency or frequency band further comprise instructions to identify a background noise signal pattern emitted by the furnace during a normal operation cycle, and correlate the detected output acoustic signal with the background noise signal pattern, and reduce normal acoustic noise components from the sensed output acoustic signal (See the Patent claim 7).
8. The furnace control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the furnace comprises an industrial steel making furnace, and the output control signal comprises a furnace operation control or furnace warning signal control (See the Patent claim 8).
9. The furnace control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the program instructions include instructions to select the preselected baseline frequency component by the steps of (See the Patent claim 9):
outputting from said acoustic emitter, a plurality of test acoustic signals, said test acoustic signals comprising a plurality of individual output frequencies;
sensing said test acoustic signals by said acoustic sensor; and
selecting the one or more preselected baseline frequency component on the basis of relative signal propagation strength of the test acoustic signals detected by the acoustic sensor.
10. The furnace control system as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of said acoustic sensor and said acoustic emitter are positioned towards a mid-portion of said free-surfaceless flow at locations spaced from a sidewall of said conduit, and further wherein said second location is spaced from said first position in a direction of said free-surfaceless flow (See the Patent claims 10 and 11).
11 (essentially equivalent to claim 1).
A fluid leak detection system for an industrial furnace installation including an industrial furnace, the fluid leak detection system including (See the Patent claims 1 and 8):
a cooling circuit for positioning in thermal communication with at least part of the industrial furnace, the cooling circuit including a fluid conduit for receiving a substantially free-surfaceless flow of cooling fluid therealong (See the Patent claim 1; Col. 19, lines 37-39);
an acoustic emitter positioned at a first location along said conduit (See the Patent claim 1; Col. 19, lines 40-41); and
an acoustic sensor positioned at a second location along said conduit spaced from said first position (See the Patent claim 1; Col. 19, lines 42-43),
a processor electronically communicating with the acoustic sensor and operable to output control signals to control at least one operating parameter of the industrial furnace installation (See the Patent claim 1; Col. 19, lines 44-47),
the acoustic emitter operable to output and propagate at least one output acoustic signal through said flow of cooling fluid, the at least one output acoustic signal including at least one preselected frequency component having a frequency range selected to preferentially propagate along said conduit to said acoustic sensor, the frequency range being selected whereby a fluid leak in said fluid conduit results in a threshold change in the preselected frequency component (See the Patent claim 1; Col 19, lines 48-51 and lines 57-66),
the acoustic sensor operable to receive and sense the at least one output acoustic signal to detect the at least one said preselected frequency component or a harmonic frequency correlated to the at least one preselected frequency component (See the Patent claim 1; Col 19, lines 52-56),
the processor storing program instructions executable by the processor to:
identify in the sensed acoustic signal a threshold change in the detected at least one preselected frequency component or the harmonic frequency correlated to the at least one detected preselected frequency component by effecting a Fourier Transform or short time Fourier Transform thereon (See the Patent claim 1; Col. 20, lines 1-11); and
output at least one said control signal on detecting the threshold change in the at least one frequency component (See the Patent claim 1; Col. 20, lines 1-11).
12. The system as claimed in claim 11, wherein the at least one operating parameter is selected from the group consisting of a warning status indicator, an automatic safety protocol, and a furnace operation control (See the Patent claim 8).
13. The system of claim 11, wherein the flow of cooling fluid comprises a coolant-water flow, and wherein said acoustic emitter is positioned directly in the coolant-water flow at a position selected to emit said output acoustic signal at a location spaced from a sidewall of the fluid conduit (See the Patent claim 11).
14. The system as claimed in claim 11, wherein the program instructions include instructions to output said at least one control signal on identifying a change in one or more frequency bands in at least one preselected frequency component or harmonic frequency correlated to the at least one preselected frequency component beyond a preselected threshold amount (See the Patent claim 4).
15. The system as claimed in claim 14, wherein a frequency range of the preselected frequency component and/or the harmonic frequency correlated to the preselected frequency component is selected at between 10 kHz and 100 kHz, and preferably between 48 kHz and 70 kHz (See the Patent claim 5).
16. The system as claimed in claim 15, wherein the step of identifying the change in the one or more frequency bands further comprises comparing detected acoustic signal frequency bands with a background noise signal pattern of the industrial furnace during a normal operation cycle (See the Patent claim 7).
17. The system as claimed in claim 11, further wherein the acoustic emitter is operable to output said at least one output acoustic signal as a pulsed signal having a pulse duration selected at between about 0.25 and 3 minutes and a pulse repetition time of between about 1 and 5 minutes (See the Patent claim 2).
18. The system as claimed in claim 17, wherein the acoustic sensor is spaced along said conduit from said acoustic emitter in a direction of said flow of cooling fluid by a distance of between about 5 and 50 meters, and wherein the acoustic emitter is operable to emit said output acoustic signal directly into and along the flow of cooling fluid (See the Patent claim 6).
19. The system as claimed in claim 11, further wherein the processor is operable to select the at least one preselected frequency component by the execution of program instructions to (See the Patent claim 9):
output from said acoustic emitter, a plurality of test acoustic signals, comprising a plurality of individual output frequencies;
sense said test acoustic signals by said acoustic sensor; and
select said at least one preselected frequency component on the basis of relative signal propagation strength of the sensed test acoustic signals in the flow of cooling fluid.
20. A control system for a steel making furnace installation including an electric arc furnace and a cooling panel thermally communicating with a sidewall portion of the electric arc furnace, the cooling panel including a conduit for receiving a cooling fluid flow therein (See the Patent claim 21; Col. 22, lines 27-33),
the control system comprising:
a fluid leak detection system comprising an acoustic emitter, an acoustic sensor, and a processor electronically communicating with the acoustic sensor (See the Patent claim 21; Col. 22, lines 34-46),
the acoustic emitter being operable to output an acoustic signal in said cooling fluid flow for propagation therein along said conduit (See the Patent claim 21; Col. 22, lines 34-46),
the acoustic signal including at least one preselected frequency component or at least one harmonic frequency correlated to said preselected frequency component, the preselected frequency component selected whereby a leak in the conduit results in a threshold change in at least one frequency or frequency band of the frequency components (See the Patent claim 21; Col. 22, lines 34-46),
the acoustic sensor being spaced from said acoustic emitter and operable to receive and sense the output acoustic signal (See the Patent claim 21; Col. 22, lines 47-62),
the processor being operable to output a control signal for controlling at least one operating parameter of the steel making furnace installation (See the Patent claim 21; Col. 22, lines 34-46),
the acoustic emitter being provided for positioning at a first location along said conduit selected to output said acoustic signal along a central portion of said cooling fluid flow spaced from the conduit sidewall (See the Patent claim 21; Col. 22, lines 47-62),
the acoustic sensor being provided for positioning along said conduit at a position spaced downstream from the acoustic emitter for receiving and sensing the output acoustic signal at the central portion of said cooling fluid flow (See the Patent claim 21; Col. 22, lines 47-62),
the processor operable to identify in the sensed output acoustic signal, a threshold change at least one said frequency component or harmonic frequency of said frequency component by effecting a Fourier Transform or short time Fourier Transform of the sensed output acoustic signal (See the Patent claim 21; Col. 22, line 63 – Col. 23, line 3), and
on identifying the threshold change, effect the output of said control signal (See the Patent claim 21; Col. 22, line 63 – Col. 23, line 3).
21. The control system as claimed in claim 20, wherein the fluid leak detection system is operable to periodically recalibrate the output acoustic signal by (See the Patent claim 22):
effecting the output by the acoustic emitter of a plurality of test acoustic signals across a frequency spectrum range,
detecting and sensing the test acoustic signals by the acoustic sensor to identify detected test signal strength, and
selecting a next output acoustic signal on the basis of the detected test signal strength.
22. The control system as claimed in claim 21, wherein said output acoustic signal comprises a pulsed signal having a pulse duration selected at between about 0.25 and 3 minutes and a pulse repetition time of between about 1 and 5 minutes (See the Patent claim 23).
23. The control system as claimed in claim 20, wherein the at least one operating parameter is selected from the group consisting of a warning status indicator, an automatic safety protocol, and a furnace installation control signal, and the preselected frequency component has a frequency range between 48 kHz and 70 kHz (See the Patent claim 24).
24. The control system as claimed in claim 20, wherein the cooling fluid flow comprises a substantially free-surfaceless flow of cooling water (See the Patent claim 21; Col. 22, lines 56-57).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-24 would be allowed if the above double patenting rejections were overcome. The following would be an examiner’s statement of reasons for allowance (which is essentially the same as the statement of reasons for allowance regarding the Patent):
With respect to independent claims 1, 11 and 20, prior art of record doesn’t teach, suggest, or render obvious the total combination of the recited features, including the following allowable subject matter (or an equivalent): “… identify the threshold change in the frequency or frequency band by effecting a Fourier Transform or short time Fourier Transform of the detected acoustic signal…”
(The remaining claims are dependent on claim 1, claim 11, or claim 20.)
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Nguyen (Wyn) Q. Ha whose telephone number is (571) 272-2863, email: ngiyenq.ha@uspto.gov. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8 am - 4:30 pm (Eastern Time).
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/Nguyen Q. Ha/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2853 January 12, 2026