DETAILED ACTION
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 28 April 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. In regards to amended instant independent claim 1 and new claims 21 and 22, Applicant argues that Jensen et al. allegedly relies on an equal number of transmitters, being three transmitter/receiver pairs, and therefore Jensen et al. does not teach or suggest an AGW transducer than includes a sensing element having at least one transmitter and at least one receiver with the number of transmitters being different from the number of receivers, as recited in amended instant independent claim 1, as well as failing to meet the specific recited arrangement of transmitter and receivers recited in new instant dependent claims 21 and 22 (note: new instant dependent claims 21 and 22 depend from cancelled claim 7, and it is assumed the Applicant intended dependency from claim 8). The Examiner respectfully disagrees. Applicant appears to reference only one of the many embodiments disclosed by Jensen et al., and none of the other disclosed embodiments which do not require only pairs of transmitters and receivers. For example, in an exemplary embodiment depicted in Fig. 6 and described in para 0074 of Jensen et al., there are two radar transmitters Tx1 and Tx2, and three radar receivers Rx1, Rx2, and Rx3. In addition, the Examiner clearly referenced para 0121 in the previous grounds of rejection of dependent claim 8 (see §17 of the Non Final Office action mailed on 02 February 2026), wherein Jensen et al. disclose modifications of the many embodiments of the liquid level sensing system, being: “one or more radar transmitters and the plurality of radar receivers may include a single radar transmitter and a plurality radar receivers (emphasis added) defining a single input, multiple output radar sensor arrangement.” As such, Jensen et al. clearly disclose to one of ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date the newly added broadly recited limitations of instant independent claim 1 being: “having at least one transmitter and at least one receiver with the number of transmitters being different from the number of receivers,” as well as newly added limitations to amended claim 8, including: “a single transmitter for generating all the sourcing waves in the AGW transducer, and the at least one receiver comprises a plurality of receivers, each receiving at least a portion of the sourcing waves from the single transmitter.” Claims 10, 13 and 15-20 remain withdrawn.
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 21 and 22 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. Instant dependent claims 21 and 22 depend from cancelled claim 7. As such, it is unclear as to which claim the two claims actually depend from, rendering the claims indefinite.
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.
Claim(s) 1, 8, 21 and 22 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CN 111306442 B to Li et al. and U.S. 2025/0044140 to Jensen et al. Li et al. disclose a liquid level sensing system (see Fig. 1 and entire reference and English translation) including a sensing probe including an axial guided wave (AGW) transducer (4), wherein the AGW transducer includes a sensing element (41) which inherently includes at least one transmitter and at least one receiver; and a rod (43) operatively associated with the AGW transducer, wherein the AGW transducer is operatively connected with a first end of the rod; and including a liquid tank (1) in which a second end of the rod extends through an opening in an inner wall of the liquid tank into the liquid tank, wherein the first end of the rod and the AGW transducer are outside of the inner wall, thus meeting a majority of the limitations in instant independent claim 1. Li et al. does not explicitly disclose the sensing element having the at least one transmitter and the at least one receiver with the number of transmitters being different from the number of receivers (as recited in instant independent claim 1); wherein the at least one transmitter includes a single transmitter for generating all sourcing waves in the AGW transducer and the at least one receiver includes a plurality of receivers, each receiving at least a portion of the sourcing waves from the single transmitter (as recited in instant dependent claim 8); wherein the plurality of receivers encircle the single transmitter (as recited in instant dependent claim 21); wherein the single transmitter is centrally located on the sensing element and the plurality of receivers are circumferentially arranged about the single transmitter (as recited in instant dependent claim 22). Jensen et al. discloses a liquid level sensing system (100) (see entire reference) wherein in a particular embodiment (see Fig. 6 and para 0074) there are two transmitters Tx1 and Tx2, and three receivers Rx1, Rx2, and Rx3, thus having at least one transmitter and at least one receiver with the number of transmitter being different from the number of receivers (meeting the remaining limitations recited in instant independent claim 1) and wherein any of the embodiments disclosed by Jensen et al. can be modified to include a single transmitter for generating all sourcing waves in the AGW transducer and the at least one receiver includes a plurality of receivers each receiving at least a portion of the sourcing waves from the single transmitter (see para 0121) (meeting the limitations recited in instant dependent claim 8). It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date of the instant invention to modify the liquid level sensing system disclosed by Li et al., wherein the sensing element has a different number of transmitters than the number of receivers, or a single transmitter and a plurality of receivers, as taught by Jensen et al., thus providing a single-input, multiple-output sensor arrangement, or multi-input, multiple-output (MIMO) allowing for the plurality of receivers to be respectively operable at different times to obtain a plurality of liquid level measurements (see para 0121), as well as improving on accuracies of measurement for measuring liquid levels of storage tanks mounted in moving vehicles (see para 0004), thus all the remaining limitations of instant independent claim 1 and instant dependent claim 8.
In specific regards to instant dependent claims 21 and 22, Li et al. and Jensen et al. do not limit the specific arrangement and/or placement of the single transmitter and plurality receivers, and one of ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date would arrange the plurality of receivers at any desired location relative to the single transmitter to receive the necessary and required returning waves/signals from the liquid surface to determine the liquid level in the liquid tank, through routine experimentation regarding the arrangements, including the arrangement(s) recited in instant dependent claims 21 and 22. In addition, the instant filed specification fails to disclose that employing one transmitter and a plurality of receivers arranged as recited in instant dependent claims 21 and 22 is employed for any specific engineering reasons, or for any particular design purpose or reasons in regards to the liquid level sensing. The instant filed specification, on page 8, lines 19-20 states: “It is contemplated herein that any number of transmitters and/or receivers can be included.” As such, that the particular recited arrangements of instant dependent claims 21 and 22 does not appear to solve any particular design and/or engineering problem, thus it would be well within the ordinary skill level to employ and desired arrangement of a single transmitter and plurality of receivers disclosed by Li et al. and Jensen et al., as a matter of design choice by one of ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date, to ensure returning/reflected waves/signals are received to determine the liquid level in the liquid tank, thus meeting the limitations recited in instant dependent claims 21 and 22.
Claim(s) 2-6, 11, 12 and 14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over CN 111306442 B to Li et al. and U.S. 2025/0044140 to Jensen et al. as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of U.S. 2021/0372570 to Stubenrach. Li et al. and Jensen et al. disclose a liquid level sensing system having all the previously recited elements of instant independent claim 1. Li et al. further disclose the liquid tank holds a cryogenic liquid (LNG), wherein the inner wall of the cryogenic liquid tank is surrounded by an outer wall (2), wherein the second end of the rod extends through an opening/joint assembly (71) in the inner wall and an opening in the outer wall (as recited in instant dependent claim 2); wherein the openings (71, 72) in the inner and outer walls of the cryogenic liquid tank are at a top side of the cryogenic liquid tank, wherein the top side of the cryogenic liquid tank is opposite a bottom side of the cryogenic liquid tank, wherein the second end of the rod is spaced apart from the bottom side of the cryogenic liquid tank (as recited in instant dependent claim 3); wherein the outer wall of the cryogenic liquid tank and the inner wall of the liquid-hydrogen tank are separated by a vacuum jacket (see Background of Li et al. regarding C-type double layer vacuum tank) (as recited in instant dependent claim 4); wherein the sensing probe is positioned at an angle (vertical of 90 degrees) with respect to a liquid level plane of the cryogenic liquid tank (as recited in instant dependent claim 5); wherein the angle (vertical of 90 degrees) of the sensing probe with respect to the liquid level plane is greater than zero degrees and less than 180 degrees (as recited in instant dependent claim 6); wherein the cryogenic liquid tank includes both liquid natural gas and gaseous natural gas and a liquid natural gas and gaseous natural gas interface exists therebetween, such that the liquid natural gas occupies a bottom portion of the cryogenic liquid tank and the gaseous natural gas occupies a top portion of the tank (as recited in instant dependent claim 11); wherein the at least one transmitter is configured to transmit a pulse along a length of the rod from the first end of the rod to the second end of the rod and back to the first end of the rod, wherein the at least one receiver is configured to receive a reflected pulse (as recited in instant dependent claim 12); and wherein a longitudinal axis of the liquid-hydrogen tank extends parallel to a liquid level surface within the liquid-hydrogen tank (see Fig. 1) (as recited in instant dependent claim 14).
Li et al. and Jensen et al. disclose all the elements regarding a cryogenic-liquid tank, but does not explicitly disclose the cryogenic liquid being hydrogen, thus a liquid-hydrogen tank (as recited in instant dependent claims 2-7, 11, 12 and 14. However, liquid-hydrogen is also a cryogenic fluid, and, as such, the liquid level sensing system would function equally as well in a liquid-hydrogen tank containing liquid hydrogen, and to determine the level/interface of liquid-hydrogen below a gaseous hydrogen within a liquid-hydrogen tank, thus it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art as of the effective filing date to employ a liquid-hydrogen tank and associated hydrogen liquid stored therein to determine the level of liquid hydrogen within the tank. Such liquid-hydrogen tanks are known, which is evidenced by Stubenrach (see entire reference), which discloses a tank (see Figs. 1-2) for storing cryogenic liquids, including a liquid-hydrogen tank sharing many of the same elements as the cryogenic liquid tank disclosed by Li et al., wherein the tank forms an inner container/tank for receiving the cryogenic hydrogen liquid of a double-walled container/tank, which additionally comprises an outer container (11) and the inner container, i.e. the storage container (1) and wherein a vacuum is formed between the outer tank/container and the inner tank/container (see para 0031). Thus it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to employ the Li et al. and Jensen et al. liquid level sensing system for cryogenic liquids, employing liquid-hydrogen, also a cryogenic fluid, thus rendering the system to employ a liquid-hydrogen tank to contain both liquid hydrogen and gaseous hydrogen and determine the interface/level between the two, or any other cryogenic liquid, as desired, to determine the level therein, meeting all the limitations regarding liquid-hydrogen recited in instant dependent claims 2-6, 11, 12 and 14.
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.
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Applicant is invited to review PTO form 892 accompanying this Office Action listing Prior Art relevant to the instant invention cited by the Examiner.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Primary Examiner John Fitzgerald whose telephone number is (571) 272-2843. The examiner can normally be reached on Monday-Friday from 7:00 AM to 3:30 PM E.S.T. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner's supervisor John Breene, can be reached at telephone number (571) 272-4107. 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. The central 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.
/JOHN FITZGERALD/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2855
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