Appeal No. 2001-1399 Page 4
Application No. 09/227,819
Landis discloses a syringe 34 having female luer fitting 34A at its discharge end
and a needle protection device for attachment to the female luer fitting. The needle
protection device comprises a cylindrical sleeve 32 that is provided on one end with a
male luer fitting 32A that is received in the female luer fitting 34A on the syringe, and on the
other end with a female luer fitting 32B for receiving a coacting fitting 36 on a needle.
Attached by hinge means 14 to sleeve 32 is a needle protection housing 12 that can be
pivoted into position over the needle at an appropriate time. The male luer fitting 32A on
the sleeve is described by Landis as being “threadingly attached” to the female luer fitting
34A on the syringe (column 6, lines 27 and 28).
Even assuming, arguendo, that the syringe disclosed by Landis constitutes the “vial”
recited in claim 1, that the female luer fitting on the end of the syringe corresponds to the
required “needle hub,” and that the male luer fitting on the sleeve constitutes the claimed
“collar having . . . gripper means for gripping the needle hub,” the interacting male and
female luer fittings do not “non-removably” attach the needle protection housing to the hub,
as required by claim 1, because they are attached to one another by threads and there is
no teaching in Landis that the sleeve cannot be unthreaded after having been fitted to the
end of the syringe. Moreover, is there no reason to believe this inherently would be the
case.
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