Appeal No. 1998-2639 Application 08/425,735 The American Heritage Dictionary, Second College Edition, copyright 1982, simply defines fall (among other things) as “Autumn.” Autumn, of course, is the season between summer and winter, “lasting from the autumnal equinox to the winter solstice, and from September to December in the Norther Hemisphere.” Id. Unless the examiner purchased the pool cue in the Southern Hemisphere (and there is no indication that this unlikely event is the case), the time period of purchase was sometime between September and December 1994. Even were we to assume that the examiner purchased the pool cue on the earliest date that can be considered “fall” under the usual definition, that is September 1, 1994, that date is at most six months and 19 days before the April 20, 1995, filing date of the application. The “more than one year” provision of § 102(b) is simply not satisfied.3 Taking each of the provisions of 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) in turn, it is evident that the examiner’s position is wanting. 1. The examiner has advanced no evidence that shows that the pool cue in his possession was “patented ... in this or a foreign country...more than one year prior to the date of the application for patent in the United States.” 2. The pool cue itself is a thing and does not constitute a printed publication, much less “a printed publication in this or a foreign country...more than one 3 Even were we to agree with the examiner’s assertion that July 1994 is in the fall of 1994 (answer mailed May 30, 2000), which we do not, July 1994 is not more than one year prior to April 20, 1995. 4Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 NextLast modified: November 3, 2007