PATENT CLAIM ANALYSIS

Application Number: 16241670
Application Type: Utility
Filing Date: 2019-01
Publication Date: 2019-07
Patent Classification: ["850", "009000"]

Abstract:
A sample vessel retention mechanism for an inverted microscope having an optical objective and a scanning probe microscope (SPM) head. The inverted microscope includes a platform for supporting a sample vessel, in which is formed an aperture sized to provide a passage for the objective of the inverted microscope to approach the sample vessel from below. The retention mechanism provides a vacuum region formed in the platform, with the vacuum region being barometrically coupled with a vacuum generator. Establishment of a vacuum in the vacuum region prevents or substantially reduces oscillation of the sample vessel floor in an operating frequency range of the SPM head.

Claim (Index 1):
A sample vessel retention mechanism for an inverted microscope having an optical objective and a scanning probe microscope (SPM) head that includes a SPM probe and control system configured to perform scanning of a sample in the sample vessel, the SPM head operably producing a controlled motion of the SPM probe utilizing a control system, the controlled motion tracking the sample surface within an operating bandwidth, the sample vessel retention mechanism comprising:\n a platform for supporting a sample vessel, the platform providing a surface above which a sample vessel is situated during operation of the SPM head; an aperture formed in the platform, the aperture being sized to provide a passage for the objective of the inverted microscope to approach the sample vessel from below; and at least one vacuum region having a boundary that includes a floor of the sample vessel and the surface of the platform, each of the at least one vacuum region being barometrically coupled with a vacuum generator to facilitate a working vacuum within that vacuum region by operation of the vacuum generator; wherein the at least one vacuum region includes at least a portion situated substantially proximate the aperture, such that, during operation of the SPM head producing the motion, the working vacuum causes the floor of the sample vessel to be substantially isolated from any acoustic excitation within the operating bandwidth resulting from the controlled motion of the SPM probe.

Metadata:
- Claim Count in Document: 1.0
- Percentile: 99.0
- Lexical Diversity: 1.94828
- Patent Class: 850.0
- Transitional Phrase Type: open
- Component Type: 1
- Foreign Priority: False
- Related Applications: ['15739094', '11832881', '14386511', '11428047', '14630074']

Analysis Scores:
- 35 USC 101 Eligibility (BERT): 0.6087266323695667
- 35 USC 102 Novelty (BERT): 0.5353292608638377
- Combined Prediction Score: 0.6013868952189938
- Mean Citation Score: 212.19263
- Max Citation Score: 369.57645
- Similarity Product: 365.3986179209948

Labels:
- Claim Label 101: 0
- Claim Label 102: 1
- Claim Label 103: 1
- Claim Label 112: 0
- Combined Label: 0
- Label 101 Adjusted: 0

Dataset: test