Although a means-plus-function element may be illustrated in black box form, the corresponding structure must be clearly articulated in the specification—the black box itself is not sufficient—and clearly distinguished from other embodiments in order to provide breadth. Here, for example, a black box element mapping to a means-plus-function element without any textual description of corresponding structure was found to be merely an abstraction of other illustrated circuitry rather than a broader, distinct embodiment. It may therefore be best to specifically articulate corresponding structure for any black box elements and to also make sure to keep these elements separate and distinct from other illustrated components.
Background / Facts: The patent being asserted here is directed to three-dimensional or 3D movie technology. The claims address problems relating to the strength of the “3D effect,” which the patent refers to as stereoscopic feelings. In this regard, the claims recite an “offset presetting means” and Fig. 2 illustrates a corresponding black box “offset presetting means 106.” The only dispute here is the identification in the specification of the structure of “offset presetting means” corresponding to the claim function under 35 U.S.C. § 112(f).
Issue(s): Whether the “offset presetting means 106” in Fig. 2 provides broader structure that is separate and distinct from the specific circuitry illustrated in Fig. 3.
Holding(s): No. “[R]epeating or paraphrasing means-plus-function claim language in the specification alone does not describe any structure. [] Without disclosing any structure of ‘offset presetting means,’ the descriptions of Figure 2 fail to provide the corresponding structure for the claim element.” Instead, as the court went on to note, Fig. 3, which is described as being directed to the same “present embodiment” as Fig. 2, provides the lone corresponding structure in the patent. “The [] patent is clear that Figures 2 and 3 refer to the same embodiment of a larger circuit that comprises the ‘offset presetting means.’ Within that same larger circuit referred to in Figures 2 and 3, there is necessarily only a single embodiment of the ‘offset presetting means.’”