Appeal No. 96-3533
Application 08/203,624
further include any manner of ingredients, such as viscosity modifiers, solvents or flocculating
agents, which would facilitate or otherwise affect the uniform distribution of any fiber
in the resin and/or the application of the mixed coating material composition on a substrate
(specification, e.g., page 4, lines 16-19, and page 6, lines 17-24). Baxter, supra. [Id.;
emphasis supplied.]
Thus, we found that mixing fibers with resin in water in Gamble Example I resulted in a uniform
distribution of fibers in the resin (id., pages 6-9).
We have not found a definition for the claim phrase “fibers are uniformly dispersed in the resin”
per se in our review of appellants’ specification. Nor have we found any disclosure which would
provide a definition for any part thereof, including “in the resin” and “resin.” The disclosure which
appears to pertain to the first step of the claimed method encompassed by claim 1 is that “[t]he
successful utilization of artificial dielectric coatings requires a uniform dispersion of fibers in a resin matrix
and then applying the fiber-containing resin matrix onto a substrate in such manner as to provide random
fiber placement and uniform thickness control” (page 3). It would thus appear that the art recognized
requirement is “a uniform dispersion of fibers in a resin matrix” which can be applied to a substrate in a
“manner as to provide random fiber placement and uniform thickness control.” Indeed, the specification
(e.g., pages 4-6) provides no further processing information other than the nature of the fibers, the
physical manipulation by which the fibers and resin are mixed and, with respect to the “resin,” that
[t]he fibers are uniformly dispersed in a lightly loaded dielectric matrix material. The matrix
material comprises a resin material which preferably is a non-thermoplastic material. For
instance, the resin can comprise a thermosetting polymer material such as silicone. [Id., page
6.]
There is no definition of “matrix” in the specification. The specification concludes with a statement that
the disclosure is non-limiting (id.).
On this record, we interpret the bare term “resin” in appealed claim 1 to have the customary,
ordinary meaning of a polymeric resinous material recognized in the art of electromagnetic-attenuating
coatings. We further find that the polymeric resinous material must be capable of forming a “matrix,” as
this term is ordinarily defined, within which fibers can be contained in a coating material such that the
coating material will form a coating containing the fibers when applied to a substrate. There is no
limitation in claim 1 which would limit the “resin” other than its capability to form the stated coating.
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