Appeal No. 2002-0265 Page 16
Application No. 08/787745
Pursuant to 37 C.F.R.§ 1.196(b), claims 7-9 and 11-21 are rejected under 35
U.S.C. § 112, second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out
and distinctly claim the subject matter which the appellants regard as the invention.
This decision contains a new ground of rejection pursuant to 37 CFR §
1.196(b)(amended effective Dec. 1, 1997, by final rule notice, 62 Fed. Reg. 53,131,
53,197 (Oct. 10, 1997), 1203 Off. Gaz. Pat. & Trademark Office 63, 122 (Oct. 21,
1997)). 37 CFR § 1.196(b) provides that, “A new ground of rejection shall not be
considered final for purposes of judicial review.”
37 CFR § 1.196(b) also provides that the appellant, WITHIN TWO MONTHS
FROM THE DATE OF THE DECISION, must exercise one of the following two options
with respect to the new ground of rejection to avoid termination of proceedings
(§ 1.197(c)) as to the rejected claims:
(1) Submit an appropriate amendment of the claims so rejected or a
showing of facts relating to the claims so rejected, or both, and have the
matter reconsidered by the examiner, in which event the application will be
remanded to the examiner. . . .
(2) Request that the application be reheard under § 1.197(b) by the
Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences upon the same record. . . .
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