Steuben Foods, Inc. v. Nestle USA, Inc. (No. 2017-1290, 3/13/18) (Dyk, Reyna, Hughes)
March 13, 2018 1:43 PM
Hughes, J. Affirming Board decision of unpatentability of claims related to aseptic packaging. One prior art reference disclosed “that the specific concentration of hydrogen peroxide in the spraying zone is around 300,000 ppm.” Other prior art taught “'limiting the concentration of [hydrogen peroxide] in the filling zone in order to comply with regulatory limits' of, for instance, no more than 0.5 ppm in the Unites States.” The Court found that, together, this art “fairly suggests maintaining 'at least about 5 to 1' or 'at least about 1,000 ppm to 0.1 ppm' ratio of sterilant concentration levels recited in the claims.” Also, Patentee's construction of “sterilant concentration levels in the plurality of zones” would have improperly restricted the claim term to a specific embodiment.
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