Appeal No. 1999-1911
Application No. 08/659,308
includes a neck that terminates in an opening having a beveled
edge. Reinhard describes the shape and function of the
opening as follows:
The mouth 33 of passage 32 is outwardly
flared, to facilitate insertion of applicator
14-15, and the upwardly projecting end has
both concave and convex chamfers to define
a circumferentially extensive “line” or edge
for axially driven sealing contact against
a flat annular bottom 34 (FIG. 2) of the
opening in which the threaded neck body 31
is received in cap 11. [Column 2, lines
37-45; emphasis added.]
The Lerner reference applied by the examiner against the
claims is directed to a container and applicator for use in
connection with nail polish and the like (column 1, lines 12-
14). The upper portion of the neck of Lerner’s container
includes a bead portion 36 adjacent the neck opening that is
designed to engage with a flat lower surface of flange 48 of
applicator 40, which flange has a certain degree of resiliency
(column 2, lines 13-16). Lerner explains the sealing action
between the bead
36 and flange 48 as follows:
The annular bead 36 on the upper portion
of the neck of the bottle provides a sealing
ring or an annular point contact with the
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Last modified: November 3, 2007