Appeal No. 97-4184
Application No. 08/521,256
not defined in the specification, nor is there any indication
of what structure is “preloaded.” Second, it is not clear
whether the “product” referred to here is the fastening system
(the substrate and the prongs), to which the appellant’s
claims are directed, or the combination of the fastening
system and the receiving surface, or something else. Third,
what is meant by stating that the preload is provided “in the
product” (emphasis added) is not clear. Fourth, if it is only
the prestrained substrate which provides the preload, it would
appear that preload is not present after the assembly of the
prongs to the substrate, and therefore is not relevant to the
claims, which are directed to a product and not a method of
making a product.
These inadequacies in the specification become important
when one attempts to determine the metes and bounds of claim
1. Because a patentee has the right to exclude others from
making, using and selling the invention covered by the patent,
the public must be apprised of exactly what the patent covers,
so that those who would approach the area circumscribed by the
claims of a patent may more readily and accurately determine
the boundaries of protection involved and evaluate the
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