• Campbell Soup Company / Campbell Sales Company et al. v. Gamon Plus, Inc.All claims unpatentable
  PTAB · Mar 27, 2018 · IPR2017-00096 · APJ Robert L Kinder · IPR · Final written decision

  The sole claim is unpatentable under § 102 over Pendergrast and under § 103 over Pendergrast alone or with Knott.

  RulingsFinal written decision

  • PTAB / AIA Trials › Institution threshold (reasonable likelihood / more likely than not)InstitutedInstituted

    “Manufacturing, L.L.C. (collectively, “Petitioner”) filed a Petition to institute an inter partes review of the claim for “[t]he ornamental design for a gravity feed dispenser display” in U.S. Patent No. D595,074 (“the ’074 patent”). Paper 2 (“Pet.”). Gamon Plus, Inc. (“Gamon” or “Patent Owner”) did not file a Preliminary Response to the Petition. Applying the standard set forth in 35 U.S.C. § 314(a), we instituted an inter partes review of the challenged claim. Paper 9 (“Dec.”).” slip op. at 2

  • Skill levelSkill level petitioner adoptedDecided for petitioner

    “[A] design[er] of ordinary skill in the field of the ’074 Patent would have been a person with a background or familiarity with commercial dispensers, and particularly dispensers for consumer commodities such as cans, bottles, or small packaged items. . . . The designer of ordinary skill would also have a basic understanding of physics and or mechanics, which may include practical experience in the field of studying consumer commodity dispensers, or may include high school or introductory college level physics coursework. The designer of ordinary skill would also have a basic understanding of the dimensions and functions afforded to cans and bottles in the context of packaging. Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 21, 22. We agree with Mr. Gandy’s undisputed testimony as to the designer of ordinary skill based on the final trial record.” slip op. at 10

  • Claim Construction › Intrinsic evidence (Phillips canons) › Plain and ordinary meaning to a POSITATerm construed petitioner constructionDecided for petitioner

    “Based on these contentions, Petitioner proposes the broadest reasonable construction of the ’074 patent claim is “the ornamental design of either two or three adjacent cylindrical objects in a gravity feed dispenser display, each cylindrical object comprising a smooth curved surface with planar ends, as shown in the drawings of the ’074 Patent.” Pet. 26 (emphasis omitted). Based on the undisputed arguments above, and considering the relationship of the prior art to the claimed design, we find it helpful to describe verbally certain features of the claim for purposes of this Decision. See Egyptian Goddess, 543 F.3d at 680. We interpret the scope of the claimed design based on the unique or distinctive shape or appearance of the cylindrical objects that is not dictated by function. Based on the final record before us, we find persuasive Petitioner’s contention that the specific arrangement of the cylindrical objects is dictated primarily by function. The precise placement of cylindrical objects is controlled by the use of the gravity feed dispenser and the natural resting position of one cylindrical object on two others. See, e.g., Ex. 1001, Fig. 4. Our invalidity analysis below focuses on what the claimed cylindrical objects contribute to the design’s overall ornamentation. See Richardson, 597 F.3d at 1293–94 (factoring out purely functional aspects of a design patent from an obviousness analysis). Neither party has indicated that our claim interpretation from the Decision to Institute (Dec. 3–8) is improper and we do not perceive any reason or evidence that recommends any deviation from our initial construction. We therefore convey the scope of the claim of the ’074 patent as: “the ornamental design of a gravity feed dispenser display depicting either two or three adjacent cylindrical objects, each cylindrical object comprising a smooth curved surface with planar ends, as shown in the drawings of the ’074 patent.” See Dec. 8.” slip op. at 7

  • Novelty / Anticipation (§102) › Anticipation standard (single reference, every element)UnpatentableUnpatentable

    “Based on the record before us, Petitioner has established persuasively that both embodiments of the ’074 patent design and the design of Pendergrast are substantially the same under the ordinary observer analysis. Both designs are for a gravity feed dispenser display. Petitioner establishes that the ornamental design of the cans of Pendergrast are substantially identical to the ’074 patent cylindrical objects, with each having a smooth curved surface with planar ends. See Ex. 1003, Fig. 1, 3; Ex. 1002 ¶¶ 42–47. Further, although not required under our claim construction, the placement and positioning of Pendergrast’s cylindrical objects are also substantially the same as that of the ’074 patent. See Ex. 1002 ¶ 46. Accordingly, based on the final record before us, Petitioner has established by a preponderance of the evidence that Pendergrast anticipates the claim of the ’074 patent.” slip op. at 14

  Patent outcomesUS D595,074 unpatentable
  Claim construction§ 102 anticipation§ 103 obviousness

Holdings, summaries, rulings, issues, outcomes, winners and claim constructions shown for a decision were generated by a large language model reading the opinion. They are a guide to the decision, not the decision. Confirm every one against the court's own text before relying on it. Outcomes read from the patent owner’s side. Party names are extracted from the decision and are missing on about 900 short Director denials and scans, which carry the trial number instead.