Appeal No. 2006-0325 Παγε 2
Application No. 10/152,485
BACKGROUND
The appellant's invention relates to an apparatus for stabilizing upper and lower
vertebrae. Independent claims 1 and 6 are representative of the invention and read as
follows:
1. Apparatus for stabilizing upper and lower spinal vertebra
having right and left sides, comprising:
a pair of dampening elements, including a first
dampening element having an upper end anchored to the
right side of an upper vertebra and a lower end anchored to
the right side of a lower vertebra, and a second element
having an upper end anchored to the left side of an upper
vertebra and a lower end anchored to the left side of a lower
vertebra;
a pair of cross-coupling elements, including a first
cross-coupling element having a first end anchored to the
right side of the upper vertebra and a second end anchored
to the left side of the lower vertebra, and a second
cross-coupling element having a first end anchored to the
left side of the upper vertebra and a second end anchored to
the right side of the lower vertebra; and
wherein the combination of dampening and
cross-coupling elements limits relative movement between
the upper and lower vertebra in some directions while
permitting relative movement in other directions.
6. Apparatus for stabilizing upper and lower spinal vertebra,
comprising:
a pair of spaced-apart dampening elements aligned
along the spine, each dampening element having an upper
and a lower end anchored to an adjacent vertebra with
pedicle screws;
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