Appeal 2007-0870
Reissue Application 09/902,904
Patent 6,038,784
(iv) The apparatus of claim 9 requires a "disk holding means,
connected to said upper face of said tray, for holding baby bottle disks in a
location that is isolated from areas of said tray in which liquid may collect."
According to Appellants' Specification (col. 4, ll. 39-53),
. . .apparatus 10 further includes a disk holding
system 50 for holding baby bottle disks in a
location that is isolated from areas of the tray 12 in
which liquid may collect. . . .In the preferred
embodiment, disc holding system 50 includes an
upstanding boss member 52 that projects upwardly
from the upper face 16 of tray 12 and has a
plurality of disc receiving slots 54 defined therein.
Boss member 52 and slots 54 are raised with
respect to an underlying reservoir 56 that is located
in the forward portion of tray 12. As an added
benefit, the reservoir space also acts as a finger
space area for a user to get his/her fingers beneath
the disc members for lifting them out after drying.
Thus, Appellants' Specification describes a boss member with slots raised
with respect to an underlying reservoir as a structure which corresponds to
the "disk holding means" recited in claim 9.
The Examiner concedes that the "disk holding system" described in
Appellants' Specification excludes Slipp's disclosed pegs c or d from
anticipating the claimed "disk holding means" (Answer, 16). However, the
Examiner maintains that the top surfaces of Slipp's receptacle a or bars e are
equivalent "disk holding means" because both are connected to an upper
surface of the tray and can hold bottle disks in a location isolated from areas
of the tray which may collect liquid (Answer, 16).
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