Appeal No. 2001-1398
Application 09/289,171
DISCUSSION
I. Grouping of claims
On page 4 in the main brief, under the “GROUPING OF CLAIMS”
heading, the appellant states that “[a]ll of the claims are
rejected and have been argued as a single group.” Hence,
pursuant to 37 CFR § 1.192(c)(7) we shall decide the appeal as to
the 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) rejection on the basis of representative
claim 1 alone, and claims 2, 3, 5, 8 through 10 and 21 shall
stand or fall therewith.
II. The 35 U.S.C. § 112, second paragraph, rejection
The explanation of this rejection asserts that claim 21
is indefinite because
appellant is claiming the embodiment that has
“particles of weighted material”. However, the last
three lines of claim 21, refer to the insert being
molded and this would appear to be directed to the
embodiment of thin metal strips 11 of relatively soft
lead, see [specification] page 10, lines 9-14, and
therefore the claim is unclear and indefinite [answer,
pages 3 and 4].
The examiner’s concern here is unfounded. Although the
underlying specification might not expressly state that the
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