1700 Chemical & Materials Engineering
Ex Parte Han et al 11158047 OWENS 103(a) ROBERT E. BUSHNELL & LAW FIRM EXAMINER WEDDLE, ALEXANDER MARION
3600 Transportation, Construction, Electronic Commerce, Agriculture, National Security, and License & Review
Ex Parte Davis et al 11086943 LORIN 103(a)/101 37 C.F.R. § 41.50(b) JACKSON WALKER LLP EXAMINER AUGUSTIN, EVENS J
AFFIRMED-IN-PART
1700 Chemical & Materials Engineering
2100 Computer Architecture and Software
2400 Networking, Mulitplexing, Cable, and Security
3600 Transportation, Construction, Electronic Commerce, Agriculture, National Security, and License & Review
Ex Parte Eisenberg et al 09974321 LORIN 103(a)/101 37 C.F.R. § 41.50(b) 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY EXAMINER BUCHANAN, CHRISTOPHER R
According to current Office policy, computer programs per se are not considered patentable subject matter under §101, as they are in themselves purely non-functional descriptive constructs. See U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, Interim Examination Instructions for Evaluating Subject Matter Eligibility Under 35 U.S.C. § 101, Aug. 2009, at 2, available at http://www.uspto.gov/patents/law/comments/2009-08-25_interim_101_instructions.pdf. Also see MPEP § 2106.01 (I), citing In re Warmerdam, 33 F.3d 1354, 1361 (Fed. Cir. 1994).
Warmerdam, In re, 33 F.3d 1354, 31 USPQ2d 1754 (Fed. Cir. 1994) . .2106, 2106.01, 2106.02
Ex Parte Foster et al 09931123 LORIN 101/103(a) SCHIFF HARDIN, LLP EXAMINER FELTEN, DANIEL S
Patentable weight need not be given to descriptive material absent a new and unobvious functional relationship between the descriptive material and the substrate (here the system). See In re Lowry, 32 F.3d 1579, 1582-83 (Fed. Cir. 1994). In re Ngai, 367 F.3d at 1338. See also, Ex parte Mathias, 191 Fed. Appx. 959 (CCPA sic [Fed. Cir.] 2006).
Lowry, In re, 32 F.3d 1579, 32 USPQ2d 1031 (Fed. Cir. 1994) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2106.01
Ngai, In re, 367 F.3d 1336, 70 USPQ2d 1862 (Fed. Cir. 2004) . . . . . . . . . . 2106.01, 2112.01