Appeal No. 97-1544
Application 08/358,976
the switch in Matsui (e.g., Figs. 15a, 15b mounted as in Fig.
21a) will be struck by vehicle structure (e.g., 133, 133a)
displaced by the crushing of a portion of the vehicle in a
crash and be deformed or “bent” as a result of that contact so
that the first conductive member (95) is displaced relative to
said second conductive member (95N) to cause said switch to
change from a nonconducting state to a conducting state.
Appellant’s specifi-cation, at page 11, lines 6-7, in
reference to Figure 5, appears to support this general
understanding of “bending” as it applies to the switch member
seen therein. Stated simply, in contrast to appellant’s
arguments, claim 23 on appeal is clearly not limited to the
mounting arrangement and type of switch “bending” as depicted
in the embodiment of the invention seen in Figure 6 of the
application, but is instead subject to the broader interpre-
tation applied by this panel of the Board supra.
For the above reasons, the examiner‘s rejection of claim
23 under 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) based on Matsui will be sustained.
Given appellant’s above-noted grouping of the claims, claims
24 through 27 will fall with independent claim 23 from which
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