Appeal No. 2005-0303
Application No. 09/928,884
disclosing the structure but not the intended use. In re Sinex, 309 F.2d 488, 492, 135
USPQ 302, 305 (CCPA 1962). Natsume, in our view, discloses the structure, even if,
arguably, not appellants’ intended use.
Second, even if the preamble recitation of an “engine controller” is considered to
give life and meaning to the instant claims, and we do not view it as such, since the
junction block of Natsume involves mating electrical components such as fuses, relays,
and wiring harness connectors, it would not be unfair to say, in a broad sense, that the
elements disclosed by Natsume constitute an “engine controller” in the sense that fuses,
relays, and wiring harness connectors are responsible, in their small part, for keeping
the automotive engine running. Note column 1, lines 15 et seq. of the reference, where
it is stated that the electrical junction block is employed for the “distribution of electrical
power from the battery and alternator to the various electrical systems of the vehicle.” If
that electrical power is not properly distributed, the engine will not operate. Thus, the
junction block may be said to be an “engine controller.”
Accordingly, we will sustain the rejection of claims 8, and 13-15 under 35 U.S.C.
§102 (b).
Turning to the rejection of claims 9-12, 16, and 17 under 35 U.S.C. §103, the
examiner turns to Denzene for a teaching of a heat sink, a passivation material, and a
seal element employed in a pre-assembled circuit assembly, and concludes that it
would have been obvious to adapt the pre-assembled circuit assembly of Natsume to
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