Appeal No. 1997-1351
Application 08/127,924
OPINION
Indefiniteness
The second paragraph of 35 U.S.C. § 112 requires that a
claim set out and circumscribe a particular area with a
reasonable degree of precision and particularity when read
in light of the disclosure as it would be by the person of
ordinary skill in the art. See Orthokinetics, Inc. v.
Safety Travel Chairs, Inc., 806 F.2d 1565, 1576,
1 USPQ2d 1081, 1088 (Fed. Cir. 1986). "The first sentence
of the second paragraph of § 112 is essentially a
requirement for precision and definiteness of claim
language. If the scope of subject matter embraced by a
claim is clear, and if the applicant has not otherwise
indicated that he intends that claim to be of a different
scope, then the claim does particularly point out and
distinctly claim the subject matter which the applicant
regards as his invention. That is to say, if the 'enabling'
disclosure of a specification is not commensurate in scope
with the subject matter encompassed by a claim, that fact
does not render the claim imprecise or indefinite or
otherwise not in compliance with the second paragraph of
- 5 -
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Next
Last modified: November 3, 2007