Appeal No.96-0601
Application 08/104,965
materials disclosed by Camps would “inherently” allow the box to
be deformed to some extent and that with “sufficient pressure”
the lid would become removed. This position is based on
speculation and unfounded assumptions. Even if we were to agree
with the examiner that Camps’ first section could be deformed to
“some extent” with sufficient pressure, there is absolutely
nothing to indicate that this deformation of “some extent” would
have any effect at all on Camps’ latches 31, much less function
to unlatch them. It is well settled that inherency may not be
established by probabilities or possibilities. In re Oelrich,
666 F.2d 578, 581, 212 USPQ 323, 326 (CCPA 1981) and In re
Rijckaert, 9 F.3d 1531, 1534, 28 USPQ2d 1955, 1957 (Fed. Cir.
1993).
As to the examiner’s contention on page 4 of the Answer that
one “could manually grasp and flex the box and lid [of Camps]
while additional pressure is exerted directly on the latches and
tabs,” the plain language of each of the independent claims on
appeal expressly requires a latch means which functions in such a
manner that, upon manual deformation of the first section between
the pivot point and the latch means, the latch means unlatches.
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