Broadest Reasonable Construction Must Comport with Plain Meaning and Specification

In In re Imes, [2014-1206] (January 29, 2015) the Federal Circuit reversed the rejection of Imes’ claims to a device for communicating digital camera image and video information over a network. Some of the claims required a “wireless communication module.” Purporting to apply the broadest reasonable interpretation, the Examiner rejected these claims in view of prior art that disclosed the use of a memory card to transfer images and videos, pointing out that no wires are used. The Federal Circuit concluded that this construction was “inconsistent with the broadest reasonable interpretation in view of the specification.” The Federal Circuit found the construction “straightforward,” particularly since the term wireless was defined in the specification, and it was used consistently throughout. Also at issue were claims to “wirelessly communicate streaming video” which the Examiner found met by prior art that serially transmits images by email, reasoning that video is just a series of images. The Federal Circuit held “sending a series of emails with attached still images is not the same as streaming video.” Such a construction is unreasonable as it comports with neither the plain meaning of the term nor the specification.”