European Patent Office

T 0681/01 of 28.11.2006

European Case Law Identifier
ECLI:EP:BA:2006:T068101.20061128
Date of decision
28 November 2006
Case number
T 0681/01
Petition for review of
-
Application number
97307021.2
IPC class
D06P 1/44
Language of proceedings
English
Distribution
Distributed to board chairmen (C)
OJ versions
No OJ links found
Other decisions for this case
-
Abstracts for this decision
-
Application title
A treated fabric, a method of treatment and a window covering product comprising such material
Applicant name
HUNTER DOUGLAS INDUSTRIES B.V.
Opponent name
01: Junkers + Müllers GmbH
02: LOUVER-LITE Ltd
Board
3.3.07
Headnote

(1) Article 69 EPC and the protocol thereto cannot be relied on to read into the claim an implicit restrictive feature not suggested by the explicit wording of the claim (see point 2.1.1)

(2) There must be something in the circumstances that suggests that a confidential relation existed before a delivery which appears to be the result of an ordinary commercial transaction can be disregarded as not making the delivered goods available to a member of the public.

Keywords
Claim construction - reliance on Article 69 EPC to restrict claim (no)
Prior use - confidentiality (no)
Novelty - Main request, first auxiliary request (no)
Amendment allowable (Article 123(2)EPC) - second auxiliary request (no)
Novelty third auxiliary request over particular prior use (yes)
Remittal (yes)
Catchword
-

ORDER

For these reasons it is decided that:

1. The decision under appeal is set aside.

2. The case is remitted to the first instance for further prosecution on the basis of the seven claims filed as Third Auxiliary Request at the oral proceedings on 28 November 2006.