Appeal No. 1999-2314
Application 08/739,200
the improvements found in manipulating its overall structure.
The examiner responds that the claimed invention is not limited
to a practical application because the whole world can be
encompassed by the claim. The examiner also responds that the
claimed invention, as a product of manufacture, is not patentable
because the claims encompass any and every computer-readable
memory product implemented on any and every type of general
purpose computer, configured in any manner to perform the process
[answer, pages 5-15].
Appellants respond that the claimed invention is
statutory because it uses empirical data which results from
measurements of tangible, concrete and physical things, not mere
abstract ideas. Appellants also respond that even though the
claimed invention may have many practical applications, that fact
does not make the invention an abstract idea. Appellants also
respond that computer programs embodied on a tangible medium are
patentable subject matter. Finally, appellants argue that a
belief network is similar to a neural network which has been
indicated as being patentable in the guidelines noted above
[reply brief].
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