Appeal No. 2006-1094
Application No. 09/976,788
consideration of all of the evidence and arguments before us, we conclude that the
rejection should be sustained.
The appellant has not presented any separate argument for the patentability
of claims 2-30 apart from claim 1. Thus, in accordance with 37 CFR §
41.37(c)(1)(vii), we have selected claim 1 as the representative claim to decide the
appeal on this rejection, with claims 2-30 standing or falling with claim 1. See In
re Young, 927 F.2d 588, 590, 18 USPQ2d 1089, 1091 (Fed. Cir. 1991); In re
Wood, 582 F.2d 638, 642, 199 USPQ 137, 140 (CCPA 1978).
Cowan discloses an electronic control system for controlling a torque
converter lockup clutch, wherein an electronically controlled valve system is used
to modulate the pressure in the control pressure cavity of the lockup clutch to
thereby vary the clutch capacity to establish a controlled degree of slip of the
clutch so that the actual slip of the clutch may be maintained at a target slip value
that is adjusted depending upon the value of input shaft speed data and throttle
control position data stored in the memory of a microprocessor. The
microprocessor is designed to calibrate a desired slip value for each engine torque
and turbine speed condition whereby a closed-loop electronic control is achieved to
provide a partial converter bypass during a major portion of the vehicle operating
time. See abstract.
When the torque converter approaches a hydrokinetic coupling point as the
vehicle is operating under a steady state cruising condition, a continuous slip
occurs in the converter by reason of the hydrokinetic action of the turbine and the
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