Appeal 2007-1743
Application 10/131,550
connected to a control network 20 that is separate from the network 18 that
sustains the conference. Using the control network, control signals are
conveyed from the control participant’s computer to a remote switching
system 14 comprising a host machine. In response to the control signals, the
host machine generates signals that cause the switch to engage and direct a
video conference sustained on conference network 18 among the various
participants (McDougall, abstract; col. 8, ll. 8-27; Figs. 1, 2).
We find that McDougall amply discloses the claimed limitations. As
an initial matter, we note that the plain meaning of the term “surveillance” as
claimed is quite broad and does not preclude the video conferencing
capability of McDougall. “Surveillance” is defined, in pertinent part, as
“[t]he act of observing or the condition of being observed.”4 Participating in
a video conference would certainly enable participants to observe each
other; indeed, that is the very function of a video conference. Simply put,
the very act of participants viewing each other via McDougall’s video
conference system involves video “surveillance” giving the term its broadest
reasonable interpretation.
We also find that McDougall’s host machine initialization and idle
loop functionality fully meets the claimed software loops. As shown in
Figure 30, the host machine provides a first loop which is primarily defined
by the “Event” decision box and includes various preliminary initialization
and feature loading functions. Such functionality not only initializes a
network, loads configurable features, and provides a system for connection
4 The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th ed., 2000,
available at http://www.bartleby.com/61/6/S0920600.html (last visited Aug.
17, 2007).
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