Appeal No. 2001-2694
Application No. 09/103,704
We have specifically reviewed page 554 of Popescu which both
appellants and the examiner rely on to support their respective
positions regarding whether Popescu adds the noise signal during
the simulation. While Popescu does disclose that noise traces
are saved in files in a form of time-voltage or time-current
pairs and “fed at the simulator inputs . . .,” possibly arguing
for adding noise signals during simulation, the reference, on the
same page, indicates that “we shifted the noise generator away
from the simulation tool,” appearing to indicate that the noise
signal is not added during simulation which is clearly required
by the instant claims.
In summary, since we must resort to some speculation as to
whether Popescu is generating a noise current during simulation,
we will not sustain the examiner’s rejection of the claims
because a rejection under 35 U.S.C. § 103 may not be based on
speculation as to what a reference discloses.
Moreover, while Bolcato does appear to disclose the
introduction of current sources in each noisy component (page
888, left-hand column), we are not convinced that the artisan
would have been led by this teaching to include such a current
source in each element in Popescu for generating a noise current
for an associated element in a simulator if it is unclear whether
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