Appeal No. 2006-2538 Page 3
Application No. 10/140,692
freshly baked goods which are subsequently subjected to refrigeration or freezing, and
for corrugated cases.” Page 15.
Discussion
1. Claims
Claims 1-16 and 21-24 are pending and on appeal. Claim 1 is representative
and reads as follows:
1. A hot melt adhesive comprising an adhesive polymer and a modified rosin-
terpene, and having a viscosity of less than about 3000 cps at 150°C.
“[A] claim preamble has the import that the claim as a whole suggests for it. In
other words, when the claim drafter chooses to use both the preamble and the body to
define the subject matter of the claimed invention, the invention so defined, and not
some other, is the one the patent protects.” Bell Commc’ns Research Inc. v. Vitalink
Commc’ns Corp., 55 F.3d 615, 620, 34 USPQ2d 1816, 1820 (Fed. Cir. 1995).
The preamble of claim 1 states that the claimed composition is a “hot melt
adhesive.” The phrase “hot melt adhesive” itself implies that the composition is solid at
room temperature and melts when heated. The specification states that hot melt
adhesives are applied melted and harden on cooling to provide an adhesive layer.
Page 1. We interpret the preamble of claim 1 to limit the claimed composition to one
having the properties disclosed for hot melt adhesives: the claimed composition is solid
at room temperature, melts when heated, and cools to form an adhesive layer.
Claim 1 also requires that the composition comprise an adhesive polymer and “a
modified rosin-terpene,” and that it has a viscosity of less than 3000 cps at 150°C.
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