Appeal No. 2004-1854
Application No. 08/971,851
2; Answer, page 8). We have jurisdiction pursuant to 35 U.S.C.
§ 134.
According to appellants, the invention is directed to a
pollution control device including a surface tension relieved
mounting article for use in mounting monolithic structures, where
the mounting article is formed of a sheet material that prevents
exhaust gas from bypassing the pollution control element and has at
least one score-line in a major top surface across the entire width
of the sheet corresponding to the direction of exhaust gas flow
through the device (Brief, page 3).2 Appellants state that the
claims do not stand or fall together (Brief, page 5). To the
extent appellants provide specific, substantive arguments for the
patentability of individual claims, we consider these claims
separately. In re McDaniel, 293 F.3d 1379, 1383, 63 USPQ2d 1462,
1465 (Fed. Cir. 2002). Representative independent claim 12 is
reproduced below:
12. A pollution control device comprising:
a housing;
a pollution control element having an outer curvature and
being disposed within said housing; and
a mounting article disposed between said pollution control
element and said housing, said mounting article comprising a sheet
material useful for mounting said pollution control element and
2We note that appellants also present claims to the mounting
article per se (see claims 34 and 36-38 on appeal).
2
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