Posts Tagged: "Wasica Fin. GmbH v. Cont’l Auto. Sys."

If patent owner intends a special meaning, clear disavowal of ordinary meaning required

If the patent owner intends claim terms to have a special meaning, the patent must provide a clear disavowal of ordinary meaning or an alternative lexicography. Otherwise, the patent owner can expect to obtain the full scope of the term’s plain and ordinary meaning. Ordinary meaning also may yield to context, as where “sequence” may include “one bit,” not “at least two.” The Court also stresses that anticipation requires that a single reference “describe the claimed invention with sufficient precision and detail to establish that the subject matter existed in the prior art.” Ambiguous references do not anticipate a claim.