# US 2025/0085154 A1 · Methods for determining a level of a medium in a container, computer readable media, and probing systems

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 2025/0085154 A1
- Document ID: US20250085154A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 18/830,861
- Filed: 2024-09-11
- Published: 2025-03-13
- Earliest claimed: 2023-09-12
- Assignees: Sick AG
- Applicants: Sick AG
- Inventors: Alexander Frederick GOODYER; Bashar AHMAD; Simon GODSILL
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20250085154A1

## CPC

- G01F 23/284: Electromagnetic waves
- G01F 23/2962: Measuring transit time of reflected waves
- G01S 7/2923: {based on data belonging to a number of consecutive radar periods}
- G01S 7/412: {based on a comparison between measured values and known or stored values}
- G01S 13/10: using transmission of interrupted, pulse modulated waves (determination of distance by phase measurement G01S13/32)
- G01S 13/70: for range tracking only
- G01F: MEASURING VOLUME, VOLUME FLOW, MASS FLOW OR LIQUID LEVEL; METERING BY VOLUME
- G01S: RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES

## Abstract

A computer implemented method for determining a level of a medium in a container comprises the following steps carried out by computer hardware components: sending a plurality of pulses through a probe in the container; sensing responses caused by reflections of the pulses; determining a statistical model related to the medium in the container based on the responses; and determining the level of the medium in the container based on the statistical model.

## Claims

### Claim 1

Computer implemented method for determining a level of a medium in a container,
the method comprising the following steps carried out by computer hardware components:
sending a plurality of pulses through a probe in the container;
sensing responses caused by reflections of the pulses;
determining a statistical model related to the medium in the container based on the responses; and
determining the level of the medium in the container based on the statistical model.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The computer implemented method of claim 1,
wherein the statistical model represents an echo curve.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The computer implemented method of claim 1,
wherein the statistical model comprises a probability distribution.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The computer implemented method of claim 3,
wherein the statistical model is determined based on fitting parameters of the probability distribution to the sensed responses.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The computer implemented method of claim 4,
wherein the parameters comprise one or more of: mean, amplitude, and number of peaks.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The computer implemented method of claim 1,
wherein the statistical model is determined using a Markov Chain Monte Carlo interference technique.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The computer implemented method of claim 1,
wherein determining the statistical model comprises adding peaks, removing peaks, or maintaining a number of peaks.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The computer implemented method of claim 1,
wherein a prior and/or proposal distributions in the statistical model are determined based on a peak proximity parameter.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The computer implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:
determining point estimates for locations and amplitudes of pulses based on the statistical model;
wherein the level of the medium in the container is determined based on the point estimates.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The computer implemented method of claim 9, further comprising:
determining locations of the reflections based on the point estimates;
wherein the level of the medium in the container is determined based on the locations of the reflections.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

The computer implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:
tracking of the level of the medium in the container.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The computer implemented method of claim 1, further comprising:
decomposing the statistical model into a plurality of reflections.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The computer implemented method of claim 12, further comprising:
identifying the medium based on the plurality of reflections.

### Claim 14 (depends on 12)

The computer implemented method of claim 12, further comprising:
identifying a medium situation based on the plurality of reflections.

### Claim 15 (depends on 1)

Non-transitory computer readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed by a computer system, make the computer system carry out the computer implemented method of claim 1.

### Claim 16

Probing system, comprising:
an emitter configured to send a plurality of pulses through a probe in a container;
a sensor configured to sense responses caused by reflections of the pulses;
a determination circuit configured to determine a statistical model related to a medium in the container based on the responses, and to determine a level of the medium in the container based on the statistical model.