Appeal 2006-3219
Application 10/122,270
required two layers of blanks which can be of any length, width and depth.
Thus, the “woven mats” or “structures” can range from extending between
the inner margins of the two attachment portions and thus, across at least
some portion of the central shock absorbing portion, to extending from one
end of the part to the other. Indeed, claim 14 encompasses any automotive
part that can be obtained by molding at least the two specified layers of
woven mat having thermoplastic resin materials therein.
The open-ended terms “comprising,” “including,” and, in this
instance, “having,” open claim 14 to include a part molded from any manner
of other material in the two required blanks; additional blanks containing
any manner of materials and of any length, width, and depth; and any other
material (see Specification, e.g., 4-10). 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.”); In re Bertsch, 132 F.2d 1014, 1019, 56 USPQ 379, 384
(CCPA 1942) (“it is true that the word ‘comprising’ is usually in patent law
held to be synonymous with the word ‘including’”); cf., Ex parte Davis,
80 USPQ 448, 449 (Bd. App. 1948) (“the word ‘comprising’ alone being
synonymous with ‘including’”). On this record, we interpret the term
“having” as used in the claim language to have its ordinary meaning of
opening the claim to include additional materials because we find no basis in
the claim language or in the written description in the Specification to
interpret the term “having” in a limiting manner. See In re Morris, 127 F.3d
1048, 1054-55, 44 USPQ2d 1023, 1027 (Fed. Cir. 1997); In re Zletz, 893
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