Appeal No. 2004-2284
Application 09/832,873
have been obvious over the combined teachings of Egenes, Riquet and Aktiebolag 5 to one of
ordinary skill in this art at the time the claimed invention was made.
As an initial matter, we find that when the claim terms are given their broadest
reasonable interpretation in light of the written description in the specification as interpreted by
one of ordinary skill in the art, and without reading into the claims any limitation or particular
embodiment disclosed in the specification, see, e.g., In re Morris, 127 F.3d 1048, 1054-55,
44 USPQ2d 1023, 1027 (Fed. Cir. 1997); In re Zletz, 893 F.2d 319, 321-22, 13 USPQ2d 1320,
1322 (Fed. Cir. 1989), the plain language of appealed independent claim 1 specifies a process for
dispersing fibrous paper stock comprising at least the specified steps. In the second step, the
term “fibrous paper stock” would have been understood by one of ordinary skill in this art to
mean “fibrous stock made from recycled paper” (specification, page 1, [0002]). The step of
pressing “some” water, regardless of amount, from such stock can be done by any means that
would thicken the stock to any extent in a consistent manner. We note that dependent claim 6
modifies claim 1 by specifying that “a worm extruder assists in the pressing of water out of the . .
. stock,” which language includes “pressing” by any means assisted by a worm extruder.
The third step of the process of claim 1 specifies that the “mallet roll” must have a
rotating shaft with objects extending therefrom which act as “mallets” that can “cooperate with
fixed peripheral impact sections,”including “radially oriented staffs” (specification, page 7,
[0031]), with respect to “loosening and distributing the highly consistent stock” by “breaking up
the . . . stock” so it will pass “between the mallets and fixed peripheral impact sections.” The
condition of the “broken up” stock at this point includes “the stock flow to the dispersing
machine becomes very even” as described in the specification (pages 2-3, [0007]). The fifth and
last specified step of this claim specifies “dispersing . . . loosened and distributed . . . stock in the
dispersing machine” wherein this processing can include “creating very fibrous crumbs”
(specification, page 3, [0007]).
The transitional term “comprising” opens the claimed processes encompassed by claim 1
to include steps, elements and materials in addition to those specified. See In re Baxter, 656
F.2d 679, 686-87, 210 USPQ 795, 802-03 (CCPA 1981) (“As long as one of the monomers in
5 A discussion of Aktiebolag is not necessary to our decision. See In re Kronig, 539 F.2d 1300,
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