Appeal No. 2000-1632
Application No. 09/055,308
casing, leaving angular movement as the sole freedom of motion
of the inertia member (column 3, lines 17-43). The bearing
balls 13 support the inertia member at a circumference of the
inertia member 12 and at a circumference of the chamber 15
(column 3, lines 26-29). The inertia member is yieldably
coupled to the casing by means of a viscous dampening fluid
contained in the casing chamber (column 4, lines 1-6).
Intermixed with the plastic bearing balls 13 are non-load-
bearing steel spheres 14 of smaller diameter than the plastic
bearing balls, the steel spheres acting as spacers between
adjacent plastic bearing balls so that fewer plastic bearing
balls need be provided (column 3, lines 54-75). Figure 3 is a
fragmentary sectional view illustrating the embodiment where
steel spheres are used as spacers (column 1, lines 63-64).
We also find, in light of the fact that Figure 3 is a
fragmentary sectional view of the damper, and in light of the
fact that the entire weight of the heavy inertia member is
retained by the plastic bearing balls against both axial and
radial movement, leaving only angular movement as its sole
freedom of movement, that an artisan would view Rumsey’s Figure
5
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