Appeal No. 99-0622 Page 6
Application No. 08/637,717
221 USPQ 385, 388 (Fed. Cir.), cert dismissed, 468 U.S. 1228
(1984).
The examiner asserts that Leach discloses all positively
claimed elements, including "a harness, an anchorage point
(36), a connection point (16,18), a connector (42,26,20)"
(answer, page 4). We agree with the appellant's argument that
the connecting strap 20 cannot be interpreted as both an
essential part of the harness and a connector recited in
addition to the harness (brief, page 6).
The connecting strap (20) of Leach is required, in
combination with the waistband (12) and shoulder straps (22,
24), to form a harness "sized and configured to be secured
about a person's body" in the manner set forth in claim 42.
The connecting strap (20), as a necessary part of the recited
harness, cannot also be interpreted, for purposes of
anticipation, as any of the portions of the connector, which
are recited in claim 42 as elements in addition to the
harness. See In re Robertson, 169 F.3d 743, 745, 49 USPQ2d
1949, 1950-51 (Fed. Cir. 1999).
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