European Patent Office

T 0050/02 (Pentafluoroethane refrigerant/DAIKIN) du 29.06.2004

Identifiant européen de la jurisprudence
ECLI:EP:BA:2004:T005002.20040629
Date de la décision
29 juin 2004
Numéro de l'affaire
T 0050/02
Requête en révision de
-
Numéro de la demande
94908493.3
Classe de la CIB
C07C 19/08
Langue de la procédure
Anglais
Distribution
Distribuées aux présidents et aux membres des chambres de recours (B)
Téléchargement
Décision en anglais
Versions JO
Aucun lien JO trouvé
Autres décisions pour cet affaire
-
Résumés pour cette décision
-
Titre de la demande
Process for producing 1,1,1,2,2-pentafluoroethane, process for producing 2,2-dichloro-1,1,1-trifluoroethane, and method of purifying 1,1,1,2,2-pentafluoroethane
Nom du demandeur
DAIKIN INDUSTRIES, LIMITED
Nom de l'opposant
Solvay (Société Anonyme)
Chambre
3.3.01
Sommaire
-
Mots-clés
Main request: inventive step (no) - juxtaposition of two known steps
First, second, (new) fourth, fifth, sixth auxiliary requests: amendments - supported by the application as filed (no)
Former third and fourth auxiliary requests: withdrawn
Sixth auxiliary request (version 2): inventive step (no) - juxtaposition of two known steps
Seventh auxiliary request: admissibility (no) - substantially modified request filed for the first time during oral proceedings raising new issues
Eighth auxiliary request: inventive step (yes) - non obvious solution
Exergue
"A document is made available to the public in the sense of article 54(2) EPC if all interested parties have an opportunity of gaining knowledge of the content of the document for their own purposes, even if they do not have a right to disseminate it to third parties, provided these third parties would be able to obtain knowledge of the content of the document by purchasing it for themselves.
In relation to the two requirements stated in T 300/86 for something to be considered as being made available to the public, namely that
(i) all the interested parties must have the opportunity of gaining knowledge of the content of the document,
(ii) however unrestricted by contractual or other legal restrictions on use or dissemination of the information therein
this Board considers that only the first is acceptable, but that the second requirement is too broadly formulated, and not justified by the phrase "made available to the public" in Article 54(2) EPC.
The Board sees the essence of the requirement in Article 54 EPC 'being made available to the public' as the information being available to any interested person, who having once obtained the information should then be free to exploit the information for his own purposes in an industrial application. It is not necessary that this information be supplied free of charge, or that the recipient should be entitled to disseminate it to all and sundry, provided others can obtain the information for themselves from the original source" (cf. points 2.5.2 and 2.5.3).

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 with the order to maintain the patent on the basis of the eighth auxiliary request submitted at the oral proceedings on 29 June 2004 and a description to be adapted thereto.