10600834 (B.P.A.I. Nov. 25, 2008)

Ex Parte Yatabe

Board of Patent Appeals and InterferencesNov 25, 2008

10600834 (B.P.A.I. Nov. 25, 2008)

UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE 1 ____________________ 2 3 BEFORE THE BOARD OF PATENT APPEALS 4 AND INTERFERENCES 5 ____________________ 6 7 Ex parte SHUUICHI YATABE 8 ____________________ 9 10 Appeal 2008-2135 11 Application 10/600,834 12 Technology Center 3600 13 ____________________ 14 15 Decided: November 25, 2008 16 ____________________ 17 18 Before: MURRIEL E.CRAWFORD, HUBER C. LORIN, and STEVEN 19 D.A. McCARTHY, Administrative Patent Judges. 20 21 CRAWFORD, Administrative Patent Judge. 22 23 24 DECISION ON APPEAL 25 26 STATEMENT OF CASE 27 Appellant appeals under 35 U.S.C. Â§ 134 (2002) from a final rejection 28 of claims 1 to 18. We have jurisdiction under 35 U.S.C. Â§ 6(b) (2002). 29 Appellant invented a vacuum pressure booster including an annular 30 recess portion and an annular protruding portion of a pair of cylinder holding 31 portions (Specification 1, 26). 32 Claim 1 under appeal reads as follows: 33 1. (Previously Presented) A vacuum pressure booster comprising: 34 a booster shell; 35 Appeal 2008-2135 Application 10/600,834 2 a booster piston accommodated inside the booster shell and 1 partitioning the interior of the booster shell into a front side vacuum 2 pressure chamber communicating with a vacuum pressure source and 3 a rear side operation chamber; 4 a valve cylinder communicating with the booster piston, the valve 5 cylinder including: 6 a valve piston fitted into the valve cylinder to be slidable in a forward 7 and rearward direction of the valve cylinder; 8 an input rod coupling with the valve piston at a front end thereof; 9 a control valve switching communication of the operation chamber 10 with the vacuum pressure chamber and with air in accordance with a 11 forward and rearward movement of the input rod between the valve piston 12 and the valve cylinder; and 13 an input return spring for pushing the input rod backward, and the 14 control valve including: 15 an annular vacuum pressure introducing valve seat formed in the 16 valve cylinder; 17 an atmosphere introducing valve seat formed in the valve piston and 18 arranged inside the vacuum pressure introducing valve seat; 19 a valve body including: an annular attaching bead portion airtightly 20 attached to the valve cylinder; an expansion cylinder portion extending in 21 the axial direction from the attaching bead portion; and an annular valve 22 portion communicating with a forward end portion of the expansion cylinder 23 portion and opposed to the vacuum pressure introducing valve seat and the 24 atmosphere introducing valve seat so as to seat thereon; and 25 a valve spring for pushing the valve portion so as to seat on the 26 vacuum pressure introducing valve seat and the atmosphere introducing 27 valve seat, 28 Appeal 2008-2135 Application 10/600,834 3 wherein a first port communicating with the vacuum pressure 1 chamber is opened on the outer circumferential side of the vacuum pressure 2 introducing valve seat, 3 a second port communicating with the operation chamber is opened 4 between the vacuum pressure introducing valve seat and the atmosphere 5 introducing valve seat in such a manner that the inner circumferential side of 6 the valve portion is communicated with the atmosphere, 7 the attaching bead portion is tightly held between a pair of cylindrical 8 holding portions formed in a pair of valve holders attached to the valve 9 cylinder and engaging an inner circumferential face of the valve cylinder, 10 an annular recess portion and an annular protruding portion of the pair 11 of cylinder holding portions are elastically engaged with each other, and 12 a diameter of the cylindrical holding portions is smaller than the inner 13 diameter of the valve cylinder. 14 The Examiner rejected claims 1 to 18 under 35 U.S.C. Â§ 102(b) as 15 being anticipated by Suzuki.1 16 The prior art relied upon by the Examiner in rejecting the claims on 17 appeal is: 18 Suzuki 5,190,125 Mar. 2, 1993 19 20 Appellant contends that Suzuki does not disclose the subject matter of 21 claim 1. Specifically, Appellant contends that Suzuki does not disclose an 22 annular recess portion and an annular protruding portion of the pair of 23 cylinder holding portions elastically engaged with each other. 24 25 1 The rejection of claims 19 and 21 under 35 U.S.C. Â§ 112, second paragraph has been withdrawn (Answer 3). Appeal 2008-2135 Application 10/600,834 4 ISSUES 1 Has Appellant shown that the Examiner erred in finding that Suzuki 2 discloses cylinder holding portions which include an annular recess portion 3 and an annular protruding portion? 4 5 FINDINGS OF FACT 6 Suzuki discloses a vacuum pressure booster comprising a valve body 7 which includes a pair of cylindrical holding portions 131a and 131b (Figure 8 4). Cylindrical holding portion 131a has two recesses. One recess in the 9 form of a circular groove has an O-ring 40 disposed therein. One recess 10 engages a portion of valve element 22 (Figure 4). Cylindrical holding 11 portion 131b discloses two legs that project outward, one such leg is labeled 12 131b in Figure 4. However, neither leg engages either recess portion of 13 cylindrical holding portion 131a. 14 15 PRINCIPLES OF LAW 16 A claim is anticipated only if each and every element as set forth in 17 the claim is found, either expressly or inherently described, in a single prior 18 art reference. Verdegaal Bros. Inc. v. Union Oil Co., 814 F.2d 628, 631, 19 (Fed. Cir.), cert. denied, 484 U.S. 827 (1987). The inquiry as to whether a 20 reference anticipates a claim must focus on what subject matter is 21 encompassed by the claim and what subject matter is described by the 22 reference. As set forth by the court in Kalman v. Kimberly-Clark Corp., 713 23 F.2d 760, 772 (Fed. Cir. 1983), cert. denied, 465 U.S. 1026 (1984), it is only 24 necessary for the claims to "'read on' something disclosed in the reference, 25 Appeal 2008-2135 Application 10/600,834 5 i.e., all limitations of the claim are found in the reference, or 'fully met' by 1 it." 2 ANALYSIS 3 As we found above, Suzuki does not disclose a pair of cylinder 4 holding portions having an annular recess portion and an annular protruding 5 portion elastically engaged with each other. As such, Suzuki does not 6 disclose the elements of claim 1 from which claims 2 to 18 depend. 7 8 CONCLUSION OF LAW 9 On the record before us, Appellant has shown that the Examiner erred 10 in finding that Suzuki anticipates the subject matter of claim 1. As such, we 11 will not sustain the Examinerâ€™s rejection of claim 1 and claims 2 to 18 12 dependent on claim 1. 13 14 REVERSED 15 16 JRG 17 18 GREENBLUM & BERNSTEIN, P.L.C. 19 1950 ROLAND CLARKE PLACE 20 RESTON, VA 20191 21 22