Appeal No. 99-0650
Application 08/726,978
something disclosed in the reference, i.e., all limitations of
the claim are found in the reference. See Kalman v. Kimberly-
Clark Corp., 713 F.2d 760, 772, 218 USPQ 781, 789 (Fed. Cir.
1983), cert. denied, 465 U.S. 1026 (1984).
Appellants disclose several embodiments of the claimed
invention. Each embodiment includes a bolt having a shank
portion and a head, a journal bearing for insertion into the
bore of the composite sheets, resilient means between the
shank portion of the bolt and the bore, and a nut on the bolt
for compressing the composite sheets between the head of the
bolt and the nut.
Independent claim 1 is directed to the Figures 2 and 4
embodiment of appellants’ invention and calls for resilient
means in the form of “a plurality of circumferentially
disposed hollow resilient springs supporting the bolt mounted
between said journal and said shank portion” (emphasis added).
According to appellants’ disclosure, these springs comprise “a
plurality of hollow, thin-walled, springs 28 (bearing tubes)
radially support[ing] the bolt 20” (specification, page 6).
Figure 4 shows these hollow tubes 28 disposed in a
4
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