Prosecution history estoppel can limit the scope of unamended patent claims when closely related claims are amended or cancelled. U.S. Patent No. 8,900,294, owned by Colibri Heart Valve LLC, relates to methods for implanting an artificial heart valve. The patent initially included two independent claims for partial deployment, but one was rejected and subsequently cancelled due to a lack of written description. As a result, the patent issued with only one claim, which specifies partial deployment through pushing out the valve.
Prosecution history estoppel may limit unamended claims when related claims are amended or cancelled during patent prosecution, potentially narrowing a patent's enforceable scope.
Colibri Heart Valve LLC owned U.S. Patent No. 8,900,294, which describes a method for implanting an artificial heart valve and was involved in a lawsuit against Medtronic.
Initially, the patent included two independent claims for partial deployment; however, one was cancelled after rejection for lack of written description, leading to a narrower claim.
The remaining independent claim details deploying a heart valve by pushing it out of a delivery apparatus, omitting the retraction method due to the cancelled claim.
Collection
[
|
...
]