Appeal No. 2000-0581
Application No. 08/429,155
the terminology "attaching device." In this same embodiment,
appellant's specification also discloses abutting surfaces 36,
37 on the blade and abutting surfaces 36, 37 on the blade
tips. Appellant's claim 7 suggests that the "attaching
devices" include at least the recesses on the fan blades and
claim 13 suggests that the "aligning means" includes at least
one of the abutting surfaces on the blades. As the attachment
function appears to result only from the cooperation of both
the cam and the recess, it appears that the "attaching
devices" require the cams on the tips, as well as the recesses
on the blades. Similarly, in that the aligning function
appears to result only from engagement of both the abutting
surfaces of the blade and the abutting surfaces of the tips,
the "aligning means" seems to require both structures.
In summary, from the above disclosure, it appears that
each of the attaching device and aligning means includes
cooperating structures on both the blades and the blade tips.
In this regard, we note that claim 1 does not positively
recite the tips and that claim 28 does not positively recite
the blades. Accordingly, it is not clear whether (1) claim 1,
in reciting attaching devices and aligning means, implicitly
13
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