Appeal No. 98-0680
Application No. 08/685,160
exercise of independent judgment (Lear Siegler, Inc. v.
Aeroquip Corp., 733 F.2d 881, 889, 221 USPQ 1025, 1032 (Fed.
Cir. 1984)).
Moreover, even if the appellants were correct in the
assertion that the member 92 of Good cannot be considered to
be a "diffuser" and the manifold or "diffuser" 10 (including
the chambers 22a,22b and openings 44a-44d) of Rion must be
bodily incorporated into the air bag assembly of Good, we
share the examiner's view that the resultant structure would
not result in the inflation gas being "significantly
restricted" as the appellants allege. Reviewing the
appellants' disclosure, no particular definition of "without
being significantly restricted" is set forth in the
specification and, from perusal of the specification and
drawings, it is apparent that this terminology has been used
in a very broad sense. Accordingly, giving this terminology
its broadest reasonable interpretation, the inflation gas 2
2It is well settled that the terminology in a pending
application's claims is to be given its broadest reasonable
interpretation (In re Morris, 127 F.3d 1048, 1056, 44 USPQ2d
1023, 1028 (Fed. Cir. 1997) and In re Zletz, 893 F.2d 319,
321, 13 USPQ2d 1320, 1322 (Fed. Cir. 1989)).
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