Appeal No. 2002-2021 Page 9
Application No. 09/024,077
Among the requirements of independent claim 1 is an interconnection which
mounts the surface defining means to the base “consisting essentially of a resilient
element” which is “of sufficient stiffness to prevent said [its longitudinal] axis from
shifting from a generally horizontal position.” The transitional phrase “consisting
essentially of” limits the scope of a claim to the specified materials or steps, “and those
that do not materially affect the basic and novel characteristic(s) of the claimed
invention.”7 It is our view that a basic characteristic of the appellant’s invention is that
the feeding surface is supported on the base entirely by horizontally oriented resilient
elements, which are of such stiffness as not to sag along their horizontally disposed
axis. This is explained throughout the specification, and is clearly shown in Figure 1,
wherein feeder 16 is supported on pedestal 64 of base 10 entirely by springs 60, and in
Figure 5, where feeder 100 and its mounting bars 108 are supported on pedestal 114
entirely by springs 130.
That is not the case in the Semenov vibrational feeder. Although Semenov
discloses horizontally oriented springs 8 which are connected on the one hand to feeder
means 1 and on the other hand to a base 4, these springs do not support the feeder
means, but merely function to dampen the amplitude of the oscillations provided by
vibrator 5 to feeder means 1 (translation, page 6). The feeder means appears to be
entirely supported by cylindrical bodies 2, which are mounted on supports 3 and a base
7In re Herz, 537 F.2d 549, 551-52, 190 USPQ 461, 463 (CCPA 1976).
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