Ex parte LI - Page 4




                  Appeal No. 1996-2163                                                                                                                     
                  Application 08/106,541                                                                                                                   

                           Turning first to the rejection of claims 18 and 19 under the enablement and best                                                
                  mode provisions of the first paragraph of 35 USC § 112, we reverse the rejection of these                                                
                  claims to the extent it relies upon the best mode provision.  The examiner has presented                                                 
                  us no evidence of concealment, accidental or intentional, on appellant’s part as to the                                                  
                  subject matter presently claimed as of the filing date of the present application.  Note In re                                           
                  Sherwood, 613 F.2d 809, 817, 204 USPQ 537, 544 (CCPA 1980), cert. denied, 450 U.S.                                                       
                  994, 210 USPQ 776 (1981).                                                                                                                
                           As to the enablement issue, the specification must teach those skilled in the art how                                           
                  to make and use the claimed invention without undue experimentation.  Genentech, Inc. v.                                                 
                  Novo Nordisk A/S, 108 F.3d 1361, 1365, 42 USPQ2d 1001, 1004 (Fed. Cir.), cert.                                                           
                  denied, 118 S. Ct. 397 (1997).  This same case indicates that the scope of the claims                                                    

                  must bear a reasonable correlation to the scope of enablement provided by the disclosure.                                                
                  Enablement is also not precluded even if some experimentation is necessary, although the                                                 
                  amount of experimentation needed must not be unduly excessive.  Hybritech, Inc. v.                                                       
                  Monoclonal Antibodies, Inc., 802 F.2d 1367, 1384, 231 USPQ 81, 94 (Fed. Cir. 1986),                                                      
                  cert. denied, 480 U.S. 947 (1987).                                                                                                       
                           We reverse the rejection of claims 18 and 19 under the enablement provision of 35                                               
                  USC § 112, first paragraph.  The examiner’s view is based upon the failure of the                                                        
                  specification to specifically disclose the theoretical calculations and analysis providing the                                           
                  basis of appellant’s invention as well as an adequate description of the claimed minimum                                                 

                                                                            4                                                                              





Page:  Previous  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  Next 

Last modified: November 3, 2007