Appeal 2006-2283
Application 10/375,343
Otani’s porous layer 8 is a “body” as it has “real or material substance
or form” (David B. Guralnik, Webster's New World Dictionary 158 (2nd
Coll. Ed., Simon & Schuster, Inc. 1984)). That it is formed on the base
portion 13 does not preclude it being considered a “body” by itself within
the context of Appellant’s Specification, as Appellant describes the coronal
body and the bone fixation body as being connected to each other by a
sintering process (Finding of Fact 1). Otani’s porous layer 8 also extends
along the region where the implant engages the bone and is the portion of
the implant into which the bone will grow, thereby functioning as the “bone
fixation” body. We find nothing in Appellant’s Specification or claims
which specifies the shape of the bone fixation body or excludes extension of
a portion, even a non-porous portion, of the coronal body into a recess
within the bone fixation body. On the contrary, as pointed out by the
Examiner (Answer 5), Appellant discloses and claims an embodiment
wherein the coronal body includes a male protrusion 86 extending into the
bone fixation body. Further, Otani’s porous layer 8 has a proximal end
connected to the distal end (the bottoms of neck 14 and base portion 13) of
the coronal body, as recited in claim 1, and has one end (the proximal or top
end) connected to the coronal body (neck 14 and base portion 13), as recited
in claims 7 and 16.
In light of the above, we conclude that the Examiner’s reading of the
bone fixation body of Appellant’s claims on the porous layer 8 of Otani is
reasonable. Appellant’s arguments, which do not address this reading of the
claims on Otani, thus fail to demonstrate the Examiner erred in rejecting
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