Datum Date Date

10 . 09 . 2010

Blatt Sheet Feuille

Anmelde-Nr: Application No: Demande no:

05 790 8 70 . 9

Objections under Article 84 EPC The application does not meet the requirements of Article 84 EPC, because independent claims 1 and 19 are not clear. Claims 1 and 19 have been drafted as separate independent method claims. Under Article 84 in combination with Rule 43(2) EPC, an application may contain more than one independent claim in a particular category only if the subject-matter claimed falls within one or more of the exceptional situations set out in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of Rule 43(2) EPC. This is however not the case in the present application.

Independent claims 1, 9 or 19 are not in the two-part form in accordance with Rule 43 (1) EPC, which in the present case would be appropriate, with those features known in combination from the prior art being placed in the preamble (Rule 43(1 )(a) EPC) and the remaining features being included in the characterising part (Rule 43(1 )(b) EPC).

To meet the requirements of Rule 42(1 )(b) EPC, documents US 2003/055635 A 1 (BIZJAK KARL M) 20 March 2003 (2003-03-20); US 2004/037440 A1 (CROFT Ill JAMES J) 26 February 2004 (2004-02-26); US 5 212 733 A (DEVITT ET AL) 18 May 1993 (1993-05-18) (see documents D 1-03 of the ISR) representing the closes prior art should be identified in the description and the relevant background art disclosed therein should be briefly discussed.

The applicant is therefore invited to file amendments in order to overcome these deficiencies.

EPO Form 2906 01.91 TRI