Appeal No. 2001-2459
Application No. 09/277,281
as disclosing structure which is capable of performing the
recited functional limitations. RCA Corp. v. Applied Digital
Data Sys. Inc., 730 F.2d 1440, 1444, 221 USPQ 385, 388 (Fed. Cir.
1984).
Upon a review of Intrater, we agree with Appellants that the
reference fails to teach a pull-up device including two MOS
transistors for holding the pad at a high potential. The
apparatus for testing the pin connections of Intrater tests the
connection between internal circuits of an integrated circuit, a
plurality of I/O pins, and conductive traces on a circuit board
by coupling a voltage source to the pins and comparing the
voltage level on the conductive traces with predetermined levels
(col. 3, lines 21-35). This arrangement differs from the claimed
“said pull-up device holding said respective pad at a high
potential by impressing a holding current if contact has not been
made with a pin” since the value of the voltage on the conductive
trace of Intrater determines if connection is made rather than
preventing the activation of a disconnected pin.
With respect to the Examiner’s characterization of the npn
bipolar junction transistor 30 of Intrater as a MOS transistor,
we recognize that the claims require two P-channel MOS
transistors in the pull-up device of claim 1 and two N-channel
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