Appeal No. 2003-0693
Application No. 09/006,248
34 relative to various work stations. The system includes rails 38
extending between brackets 40 and 42. The brackets are secured to
respective locking portions 45 and 46 associated with the cross
bar. Arms (not numbered) are mounted to the rails 38 by clamp
members 36 that allow the arms to be mounted at any axial location
along the rail. Suction tools 26, 28 are mounted to the ends of
the arms. Although not shown, Herbermann ‘097 states (col. 3,
lines 65-67) that fluid, electric or vacuum connections, presumably
for the suction tools, can extend through the locking portions.
Although not expressly set forth in the answer, it appears
that the examiner finds correspondence between the rails 38, the
unnumbered arms (i.e., the members mounted to the rails 38 by clamp
members 36), and the suction tools 26, 28 of Herbermann ‘097 and
the base, the arms, and the interfacing workpiece members,
respectively, of claim 29. The examiner implicitly concedes that
Herbermann ‘097 does not disclose (1) a base having at least two
parallel and elongated internal bores operable to carry fluid, and
(2) fluid paths connected to said manifold and extending to the
suction tools through the interiors of the arms. The examiner
turns to Blatt ‘556 and Kraft, respectively, for teachings of these
features.
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