Appeal No. 97-3194 Page 9
Application No. 08/442,816
portable articles to lock the same against removal or
transportation (page 1, lines 8-11). As shown in Figure 2,
Damon's lock includes
(1) a U-shaped bar or rod 1 having upon one end teeth 2, (2) a
U-shaped hollow tube 3, and (3) a locking assembly mounted
upon one end of the tube 3 for engagement with the teeth 2.
Damon's locking assembly includes flanges 7 integral with the
tube 3, a toothed plate 8, a spring 10, a cover 11, a screw-
threaded projection 16, and a key 18. In addition, Damon
teaches (page 1, lines 42-54) that
[t]he other end of the bar 1 has a longitudinal groove 4,
terminating in an L-shaped groove 5, which engages a lug
6 on the inside of one end of the tube or sleeve 3, so
that the shackle [bar 1] may be operated to slide in or
out of the sleeve the whole length of the said groove 4
with the toothed end of the shackle in or out of the
sleeve without separating the shackle from the sleeve,
said shackle being turned to have the lug 6 engage the L-
shaped groove 5 to put the toothed end of the shackle
out of the out of the line with the sleeve or to separate
the sleeve entirely.
After the scope and content of the prior art are
determined, the differences between the prior art and the
claims at issue are to be ascertained. Graham v. John Deere
Co., 383 U.S. 1, 17-18, 148 USPQ 459, 467 (1966).
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Last modified: November 3, 2007