Appeal No. 2005-1835 Page 2
Application No. 10/106,538
BACKGROUND
The appellant's invention relates to an apparatus and method for testing load
bearing capacity on a pile or group of piles, utilizing a reaction anchor apparatus and
method (specification, p. 1). A copy of the claims under appeal is set forth in the
appendix to the appellant's brief.
The rejections under appeal are as follows:1
1. Claims 1, 2, 4, 14, 15 and 17 under 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) as being anticipated by
the Appellant's Admitted Prior Art (AAPA).2
2. Claims 3, 5 to 13, 16, 18, 19 and 21 under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as being
unpatentable over AAPA in view of U.S. Patent No. 4,974,9973 to Sero et al. (Sero).
Rather than reiterate the conflicting viewpoints advanced by the examiner and
the appellant regarding the above-noted rejections, we make reference to the answer
1Since the rejection of claims 1-19 and 21 under the judicially created doctrine of
obviousness-type double patenting set forth in the final rejection was not set forth in the
examiner's answer we assume that this ground of rejection has been withdrawn by the
examiner in view of the terminal disclaimed filed subsequent to the final rejection. See
Ex parte Emm, 118 USPQ 180, 181 (Bd. App. 1957).
2The AAPA is described on pages 3-4 and 9-12 of the specification and depicted
in Figures 1 and 2 and relates to conventional testing apparatus and method for testing
vertical piles, as shown in ASTM D1143-81 (reapproved 1987).
3Issued December 4, 1990.
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