Appeal No. 2002-0957 Page 7
Application No. 09/635,634
(Fed. Cir. 1997). In this case, appellant’s claim 1 calls for a container comprising first
and second receptacles joined at a common upper edge “wherein panels extending
from the common edge provide a sufficient length of space therebetween to rest on at
least a portion of a forearm extended by a user therebetween and to accommodate at
least a portion of a thumb of a hand of the user.” We find no requirement in claim 1
that the panels define a length of space sufficient to accommodate a portion of the
user’s forearm as appellant’s argument implies. Rather, the claim simply requires that
the length of space be sufficient to rest on a portion of the user’s forearm. In any event,
as explained above, a portion of a thumb can be as small as a thumb nail or a pinch of
skin and a portion of a forearm can simply be a point on that forearm. With this in mind,
we share the examiner’s view that the spacing between the cells in De Murguiondo’s ice
tray is sufficient to rest on at least a portion of the forearm and to accommodate at least
a portion of a thumb, as called for in claim 1. Therefore, as this is the only limitation
argued by appellant not to be met by De Murguiondo, we shall sustain the examiner’s
rejection of claim 1 as being anticipated by De Murguiondo.
CONCLUSION
To summarize, the decision of the examiner to reject claim 1 under 35 U.S.C.
§ 102(b) is affirmed.
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