REVERSED

1600 Biotechnology and Organic Chemistry
Ex Parte Williams et al MILLS 112(1)/103(a) Marshall O'Toole, Gerstein Murray & Borun
Anti-viral uses of leflunomide products
Weithmann et al., US 5,556,870, Sept. 17, 1996
Coghlan et al., WO 94/24095, Oct. 27, 1994

[W]here the Patent Office has reason to believe that a functional limitation asserted to be critical for establishing novelty in the claimed subject matter may, in fact, be an inherent characteristic of the prior art, it possesses the authority to require the applicant to prove that the subject matter shown to be in the prior art does not possess the characteristic relied on. In re Best, 562 F.2d 1252, 1254-55 (CCPA 1977).

However, "the examiner must provide some evidence or scientific reasoning to establish the reasonableness of the examiner’s belief that the functional limitation is an inherent characteristic of the prior art" before the burden is shifted to the applicant to disprove the inherency. Ex parte Skinner, 2 USPQ2d 1788, 1789 (BPAI 1986).

2400 Networking, Mulitplexing, Cable, and Security
Ex Parte Walls et al BARRY 103(a) HEWLETT PACKARD COMPANY
37 C.F.R. § 41.50(b)
Apparatus for communicating with a network
Hanson US 2003/0120811 A1 Jun. 26, 2003
Tompkins US 7,046,686 B1 May 16, 2006

A rejection should not be based on "speculations and assumptions." In re Steele, 305 F.2d 859, 862 (CCPA 1962). "All words in a claim must beconsidered in judging the patentability of that claim against the prior art. If no reasonably definite meaning can be ascribed to certain terms in the claim, the subject matter does not become obvious - the claim becomes indefinite." In re Wilson, 424 F.2d 1382, 1385 (CCPA 1970).

2800 Semiconductors, Electrical and Optical Systems and Components
Ex Parte Van Bijnen et al HOFF 112(1) PHILIPS INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY & STANDARDS
System comprising an electrical bridge for generating an electrical signal

3600 Transportation, Construction, Electronic Commerce, Agriculture, National Security, and License & Review
Ex Parte Jahrling GRIMES 103(a) SIEMENS CORPORATION
Support mat for a trauma patient
McCormick et al., U.S. 6,128,796, Oct. 10, 2000
Frank, US 1,913,750, June 13, 1933
Neary, US 5,509,718, Apr. 23, 1996
Weeks, US 4,993,092, Feb. 19, 1991
Zwickey, US 5,400,448, Mar. 28, 1995

3700 Mechanical Engineering, Manufacturing, and Products & Designs
Ex Parte Hibshman et al GREEN 102(b)/103(a) GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY / FLETCHER YODER
Gas cooking burner with enhanced air entrainment and system
Longfellow US 1,170,766 Feb. 08, 1916
Anschütz US 3,149,613 Sept. 22, 1964
Gerdes US 5,405,263 Apr. 11, 1995
Walters US 4,827,899 May 09, 1989
Motegi US 5,899,680 May 04, 1999
Akin US 5,921,476 Jul. 13, 1999

Ex Parte Van Gompel et al PRATS 102(b) BRINKS HOFER GILSON & LIONE
Disposable absorbent garment
Sasaki EP 0 951 890 A2 Oct. 27, 1999

NUIJTEN - 37 C.F.R. § 41.50(b)

2100 Computer Architecture and Software
Ex Parte Pocock et al BARRETT 101/103(a) MUIRHEAD AND SATURNELLI, LLC
Host implementation of virtual devices
Hitz 5,819,292 Oct. 6, 1998

We conclude that "software" comprising "executable code" is similarly not within any of the four statutory categories and is not patent eligible subject matter. See In re Chatfield, 545 F.2d 152, 159 (CCPA 1976) (Rich, J., dissenting) ("It has never been otherwise than perfectly clear to those desiring patent protection on inventions which are new and useful programs for general purpose computers (software) that the only way it could be obtained would be to describe and claim (35 U.S.C. § 112) the invention as a 'process' or a 'machine.'"). It is now also common to claim software as a "manufacture" by reciting storing program code stored on a tangible medium that, when executed, will perform a method. But, executable code per se is not a "manufacture" under § 101.

AFFIRMED-IN-PART

1600 Biotechnology and Organic Chemistry
Ex Parte Srivastava 103(a) JONES DAY
methods and compositions for the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases
Kwak et al. US 6,562,347 B1 May 13, 2003
Nair et al. WO 97/41210 Nov. 6, 1997
Srivastava et al. WO 98/34641 Aug. 13, 1998

3600 Transportation, Construction, Electronic Commerce, Agriculture, National Security, and License & Review
Ex Parte Ross 102(e) MICHAEL CHAN / NCR CORPORATION
Self-service terminal
Slater US 6,615,190 B1 Sep. 2, 2003