DETAILED ACTION
Non-Final Rejection
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 22 November 2024 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Specification
The abstract of the disclosure is objected to because the length is over 150 words. A corrected abstract of the disclosure is required and must be presented on a separate sheet, apart from any other text. See MPEP § 608.01(b).
Applicant is reminded of the proper language and format for an abstract of the disclosure.
The abstract should be in narrative form and generally limited to a single paragraph on a separate sheet within the range of 50 to 150 words in length. The abstract should describe the disclosure sufficiently to assist readers in deciding whether there is a need for consulting the full patent text for details.
The language should be clear and concise and should not repeat information given in the title. It should avoid using phrases which can be implied, such as, “The disclosure concerns,” “The disclosure defined by this invention,” “The disclosure describes,” etc. In addition, the form and legal phraseology often used in patent claims, such as “means” and “said,” should be avoided.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 7, 9-11, and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Gupta (U.S. Patent 10,179,826).
Regarding claim 7, Gupta discloses a mixing apparatus 300 comprising:
a material supply line 314 that supplies two or more kinds of materials including a liquid;
a mixing tank 315 that accommodates the two or more kinds of materials that have been supplied through the material supply line;
a stirring device 316 that stirs a mixed solution of the two or more kinds of materials inside the mixing tank; and
a transportation line 344 that is connected to the mixing tank and transports the mixed
solution inside the mixing tank to an outside of the mixing tank,
wherein the mixing apparatus is configured to maintain a liquid level height of the mixed solution inside the mixing tank at a level falling within a predetermined range by controlling at least one of a supply amount of the two or more kinds of materials to be supplied into the mixing tank through the material supply line and a transportation amount of the mixed solution to be transported to the outside of the mixing tank through the transportation line (Col. 16 ln 6-23) (FIG. 3; Col. 13 ln 27-67, Col. 15 ln 27-56, Col. 16 ln 6-23).
Regarding claim 9, Gupta discloses the transportation line is connected to a lower discharge port (315 at 344, FIG. 3) formed in a lower portion of the mixing tank, and
the transportation line has a return line 346C that returns the mixed solution discharged from
the lower discharge port back into the mixing tank from an upper side of the mixing tank (FIG. 3; Col. 13 ln 27-67).
Regarding claim 10, Gupta discloses the mixing apparatus is configured to maintain the liquid level height of the mixed solution inside the mixing tank at a level falling within a predetermined range by controlling at least one of the supply amount of the two or more kinds of materials to be supplied to the mixing tank through the material supply line, a return amount of the mixed solution to be returned to the mixing tank through the return line, and the transportation amount of the mixed solution to be transported from the mixing tank to another apparatus through the transportation line (FIG. 3; Col. 16 ln 6-23).
Regarding claim 11, Gupta discloses the material supply line has a first opening (315 at 314, FIG. 3) for discharging the two or more kinds of materials into the mixing tank on the upper side of the mixing tank,
the return line has a second opening (315 at 346C above 372, FIG. 3) for discharging the mixed solution into the mixing tank on the upper side of the mixing tank, and
when a transverse cross-section of the mixing tank is divided into six regions at intervals of 60 degrees with a central axis of the mixing tank as a reference, and a first virtual region to a sixth virtual region adjacent to one another in clockwise order are specified, the mixing apparatus is configured such that the two or more kinds of materials are discharged through the first opening onto a liquid level of the mixed solution present in at least one of the first virtual region and the second virtual region, the mixed solution that have been returned through the second opening is discharged onto a liquid level of the mixed solution present in at least one of the fourth virtual region and the fifth virtual region, and discharge of the two or more kinds of materials through the first opening and discharge of the mixed solution through the second opening is undone onto a liquid level of the mixed solution present in the third virtual region and the sixth virtual region (The first and second openings appear to be 180 degrees apart (see FIG. 3), thus meeting the limitation of being in the proper virtual region, as regions 1 and 2 are respectively 180 degrees apart from regions 4 and 5; and all of the regions have the same liquid level, therefore the entry of fluid into 315 is within regions 3 and 6) (FIG. 3).
Regarding claim 13, Gupta discloses a production method of a mixed solution, comprising:
supplying two or more kinds of materials including a liquid through a material supply
line 314 to a mixing tank 315 connected to the material supply line and a transportation line 344;
stirring a mixed solution of the two or more kinds of materials inside the mixing tank (via 316);
transporting the mixed solution to an outside of the mixing tank through the transportation line; and
maintaining a height of a liquid level of the mixed solution inside the mixing tank at a level falling within a predetermined range by controlling at least one of a supply amount of the two or more kinds of materials to be supplied into the mixing tank through the material supply line and a transportation amount of the mixed solution to be transported to the outside of the mixing tank through the transportation line (FIG. 3; Col. 13 ln 27-67, Col. 15 ln 27-56, Col. 16 ln 6-23).
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
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.
Claims 8 and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Gupta.
Regarding claim 8, Gupta discloses the claimed invention substantially as claimed, as set forth above for claim 7.
Gupta further discloses the stirring device includes:
a shaft portion (Seen in FIG. 3, connecting 316 ad 317) rotatable inside the mixing tank; and
one or a plurality of stirring blades 317 joined to the shaft portion, the stirring blade rotating inside the mixing tank in association with rotation of the shaft portion (FIG. 3, Col. 13 ln 27-67).
Gupta is silent regarding when a height along a vertical direction from a lowermost position of a bottom portion of the mixing tank to an upper end of the stirring blade at an uppermost position is H1, the mixing apparatus is configured to maintain the liquid level height such that the liquid level height becomes equal to or less than 1.21 H1 and equal to or more than a height of a lower end of the stirring blade at the uppermost position.
However, it is observed that the relative height of the liquid with respect to the stirring blade is a result effective variable because the height of the liquid impacts the manner with which the liquid reacts inside of the tank. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made to manage the height of the liquid at a desired height compared to the stirring blade, since it has been held that discovering an optimum value of a result effective variable involves only routine skill in the art.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time of filing to modify Gupta by maintaining the liquid level within the tank at equal to or less than 1.21 H1 and equal to or more than a height of a lower end of the stirring blade at the uppermost position, for the purpose of discovering the optimum value of a result effective variable.
Regarding claim 12, Gupta, as modified above, discloses the claimed invention substantially as claimed, as set forth above for claim 8.
Gupta further discloses the transportation line is connected to a lower discharge port (315 at 344, FIG. 3) formed in a lower portion of the mixing tank, and
the transportation line has a return line 346C that returns the mixed solution discharged from
the lower discharge port back into the mixing tank from an upper side of the mixing tank (FIG. 3; Col. 13 ln 27-67).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Kroner (U.S. Patent 6,660,814) discloses a mixing apparatus similar to the one disclosed in the present application.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER D BALLMAN whose telephone number is (571)272-9984. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 6:00-3:00.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Craig M Schneider can be reached at 571-272-3607. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/CHRISTOPHER D BALLMAN/Examiner, Art Unit 3753
/CRAIG M SCHNEIDER/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 3753