Appeal No. 2006-0817
Application 10/325,443
another meaning is intended by appellants as established in the written description of the
specification, and without reading into the claims any limitation or particular embodiment
disclosed in the specification. See, e.g., In re Am. Acad. of Sci. Tech. Ctr., 367 F.3d 1359, 1364,
70 USPQ2d 1827, 1830 (Fed. Cir. 2004); In re Morris, 127 F.3d 1048, 1054-55, 44 USPQ2d
1023, 1027 (Fed. Cir. 1997); In re Zletz, 893 F.2d 319, 321-22, 13 USPQ2d 1320, 1322 (Fed.
Cir. 1989).
The terms of claim 1 encompass any process for applying a lubricious coating to any
polymeric surface of any medical device comprising at least the steps, among others, of (1)
contacting the polymeric surface with any manner of “multi-functional monomer” and any
manner of solvent, wherein the solvent must cause the polymeric surface to swell and/or partially
dissolve to any extent, however small, such that the “multi-functional monomer” is “imbibed
into the surface” to any extent, however small; and (2) “providing and polymerizing a polymer”
on the polymeric surface, wherein the polymer is any polymer in any amount, however small,
which reacts “with the multi-functional monomer imbibed into the surface . . . to form” any
manner of “lubricious coating.” The transitional term “comprising” opens the claim to include
processes involving any manner of additional steps, reactants and reagents. See, e.g., In re
Baxter, 656 F.2d 679, 686-87, 210 USPQ 795, 802-03 (CCPA 1981) (“As long as one of
the monomers in the reaction is propylene, any other monomer may be present, because the term
‘comprises’ permits the inclusion of other steps, elements, or materials.”).
Appellants state in the written description in the specification that “[a]s used herein, the
term ‘imbibing’ means that the multi-functional monomer is either chemically or mechanically
bonded to a polymeric surface. Further, the term ‘monomer’ means any material capable of
polymerizing or cross-linking with a polymer and can include monomers, oligomers, polymers,
and the like” (page 4, ll. 22-26).
In view of these definitions stated by appellants, we interpret independent claim 1 as
requiring that the solvent interact with the polymeric surface, which interaction can be visually
determined by detecting swelling or dissolving of the surface, such that the multi-functional
“monomer” is “imbibed,” that is, bonded by any chemical or mechanical interactions to the
polymeric surface. The bonded multifunctional “monomer” can be any material that is capable
of polymerizing or cross-linking, that is, linking with another polymer which is provided to or
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