Appeal No. 2003-1946
Application 09/156,952
re De Blauwe, 736 F.2d 699, 705, 222 USPQ 191, 196 (Fed. Cir.
1984). Regardless, it does not reasonably appear that the anti-
rotation lug lower edges shown in Brodner’s figure 4, or even
those shown in figure 2, are sufficiently tapered to cause the
problems argued by the appellants.
Significantly, there is no textual support in the
appellants’ specification for the claim requirement that the
lowermost edges of the anti-rotation lugs be substantially
perpendicular to the body outer surface. The support for this
claim requirement relied upon by the appellants is their drawing
figures 1, 2, 4 and 5 (amendment and response filed October 19,
2001, paper no. 22, page 4). The specification, however, states
that “other suitable materials, dimensions, and configurations
for the body, the cap, the ribs, the lugs, the fluid level
indicia, and other features of the sample vial will be apparent
to those skilled in the art, those disclosed being provided as
examples only” (specification, page 14, lines 14-16). Thus, the
term “substantially perpendicular”, when given its broadest
reasonable interpretation in view of the appellants’
specification, see In re Zletz, 893 F.2d 319, 321, 13 USPQ2d
1320, 1322 (Fed. Cir. 1989), encompasses considerable deviation
from perpendicular and, therefore, encompasses the deviation, if
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