Appeal No. 1998-0073
Application 08/273,813
Turning to the rejection of claim 2, Appellant argues on
pages 15 and 16 that Chadima teaches an end cap for sealing a
data communication port. Appellant further argues, on pages
20 and 21, that Chadima’s end cap is sealed from the housing
using an O-ring by securing connectors to the housing. On
page 3 of the reply brief, Appellant adds that the invention
as in claim 2 is not implemented using “end caps” made of
metal, but with detachable port covers form-fitted to
respective ports by being made of “soft rubber.”
The Examiner responds to Appellant’s arguments on pages 3
and 4 of the answer by stating that Hsieh teaches a clam shell
case with the top and the bottom housings connected by hinges
while Chadima teaches the sealing of external ports using a
sealing gasket to environmentally seal a portable computer.
In particular, the Examiner points to the abstract of Chadima
that teaches a “water tight housing” and a “sealed environment
within the housing” for a portable computer. The Examiner
further argues that Chadima uses O-rings which can be made of
different materials such as rubber.
As pointed out by our reviewing court, we must first
determine the scope of the claim. “[T]he name of the game is
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