The Research On The Related Issues Brought By The "Means Plus Function" Claims

As one of the most important legal documents to delimit the protection scope, theclaim with the other patent application documents together, constructing a responsibleprotection scope. But in the certain fields just as electronics， communications andcomputer science where are written by structure characters and method or step characterscannot reach the goals of defining, there comes the―means plus function" claims. As oneof the new forms of claims to accommodate the development of the science andtechnology, although the―means plus function" claims have been adopted by the patentworkers widely, the laws and regulations have not being synchronized with thedevelopment of practice—not being confirmed of the definition of―the means pluslimitation", not being standardized of the forms of the writing, the coexistence betweenthe―the rules of interpreted by all ways" provided by―Guidelines For PatentExamination" and the―the rules of interpreted by specific plus DOE" provided by Fa Shi[2009] No.21，to make the Patent Office and Patent Reexamination Board have thedifferent ways of deciding with the support given by the specification, to make the courtshave no idea about how to apply the DOE in the litigations about the―means plus functionclaims" being infringed.This paper tries to analyze the―means plus function limitation" theoretically,comparing the advantages and disadvantages of the two rules of interpretation between the―Guidelines For Patent Examination" and the Fa Shi [2009] No.21,then find out the exitsof the Dilemma and the ways to the related issues.The full paper contains four chapter:Chapter1: Expounding the concepts of the―means plus function limitation",existence values and the issues at present;Chapter2: To those cases about the―means plus function", chase down the inherent problems, and then point out that the origin of the problem rests with the―the rules ofinterpreted by all ways" and the―the rules of interpreted by specific plus DOE" areapplied by the different bodies; analyzing the prior problems—decision and compositionthat should be solved before the unification of the two rules of interpretation; by theanalyzing of the influences to the―means plus function limitation" brought by the patentpolicies between America and China, comparison of the two rules, holding that theresponsibility of the―the rules of interpreted by all ways".Chapter3: To analyze the two clauses of―sufficient disclosure" and the―supportedgiven by specification", organizing the ways when they are being applied and giving thesuggestions about the decision of the problems of the―supported by the specification" onthe―means plus function claims";giving the decision for―rules of interpreted by specificplus DOE"。...