Appeal No. 1997-2305
Application 08/451,459
include a means for collecting, compressing and storing the
fuel gas as recited in appellant’s claim 21 (answer, page 7).
Eldridge’s apparatus includes a reactor capable of being at
least partly filled with water, submergible electrodes for
forming an electric arc, and a gasometer (50) which contains a
vertically moving bell which fills with gas (page 1, lines 9-
30; page 3, lines 41-65; Fig. 1). The gas is collected in the
bell and stored until the gas is sent to a burner by opening
regulating cock 56 (page 3, lines 65-73). It reasonably
appears that the gas is under some pressure when it is in the
bell and pushing the bell in the vertical direction.
Appellant argues that Eldridge does not disclose a
magazine adapted to hold carbon therein and further adapted to
dispense carbon therefrom into the electric arc as recited in
claim 22 (brief, page 8). We give this claim its broadest
reasonable interpretation consistent with the specification.
See In re Zletz, 893 F.2d 319, 321, 13 USPQ2d 1320, 1322 (Fed.
Cir. 1989); In re Sneed, 710 F.2d 1544, 1548, 218 USPQ 385,
388 (Fed. Cir. 1983); In re Herz, 537 F.2d 549, 551, 190 USPQ
461, 463 (CCPA 1976); In re Okuzawa, 537 F.2d 545, 548, 190
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