Appeal No. 2006-0812
Application No. 09/391,294
facts of each case in light of the overall form of the claim, and
the invention as described in the specification and illuminated in
the prosecution history.”).
In the present case, it is apparent that the preamble goes to
the intended use of the support and insulating member in the space
between the thin sheet material and the external wall of the
building. See Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc. v. Schering-
Plough Corp., 320 F.3d 1339, 1345, 65 USPQ2d 1961, 1965 (Fed. Cir.
2003) ("An intended use or purpose usually will not limit the
scope of the claim because such statements usually do no more than
define a context in which the invention operates."). The preamble
of claim 1 describes the corner post of thin sheet material and
the space defined by that corner post and the exterior wall of the
building, which is the space the claimed support and insulating
member will occupy. No part of the preamble, however, is
necessary to understanding or defining the claimed support and
insulating member.
Furthermore, where the building or corner post do appear in
the claim body, it is in terms of the member being “adapted for”
use with the building. See Loctite Corp. v. Ultraseal, Ltd., 781
F.2d 861, 868, 228 USPQ 90, 94 (Fed. Cir. 1985) ("we interpret
'adapted to remain ... metal surfaces' as merely language of
intended use, not a claim limitation").
6
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Next
Last modified: November 3, 2007