Opinion ID: 211242
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Apparatus for storing a slurry having solid and liquid components, comprising:

Text: 10 a storage tank defining a volume for holding a body of liquid and solid slurry components, including a floor of generally circular configuration and having a center, said storage tank further including an outer surrounding wall positioned generally at a radial distance from the center; 11 at least two flow generating means positioned to be submerged within the liquid and solid slurry components for generating flow of at least one of the slurry components along a rotational direction, each of said flow generating means being disposed at distances from the center ranging between approximately 30 percent and 70 percent of said radial distance; 12 each of said first and second flow generating means being pointed toward the outer surrounding wall for generating a substantial helical flow path of the liquid and solid components therein with the liquid and solid components traveling outwardly, across the tank floor from the center portion of the tank toward the tank wall and then upwardly along the tank outer surrounding wall to a first point and then inwardly along an upper portion of the body toward the center of the tank and then downwardly toward the tank floor, and then outwardly to a second point spaced circumferentially in the direction of rotation of the entire body of liquid, the liquid and solid components continuing to travel in the helical path as the entire body of liquid and solid components continues to rotate; 13 a pressure source coupled to the first and second flow generating means to generate directed streams from the flow generating means to rotate the body of liquid and solid components and to cause the flow in the helical path; and 14 said flow generating means creating a substantially volume filling flow of at least one of the slurry components within said storage tank which mixes the liquid and solid slurry components to form a substantially homogeneous slurry suitable for unloading from said storage tank using liquid handling devices. 15 '414 Patent, col. 8, l. 56 — col. 9, l. 39 (emphases added). In LD I, we construed the term substantial helical flow to be all flow patterns that are generally, though not necessarily perfectly, spiral, and that fill much, though not necessarily all, of the tank's volume. LD I, 355 F.3d at 1369. Claim 8 includes the relevant terms from claim 1. The written description includes the following examples of tank arrangement and helical flow path. NOTE: OPINION CONTAINING TABLE OR OTHER DATA THAT IS NOT VIEWABLE 16 In Figure 7, impellers or pumps 20 that are placed within the claimed radii of r 1 and r 2 create the substantial helical flow as shown in Figures 5 and 6.