Background
Pictometry International Corporation owns a patent for a method of estimating roof area using aerial imagery and the roof’s predominant pitch. Roofr Inc. petitioned for an inter partes review, arguing the patent claims were obvious over prior art references. The Patent Trial and Appeal Board held all claims unpatentable for obviousness. Pictometry appealed, challenging the Board’s interpretation of the term predominant pitch and the obviousness of dependent claims requiring a weighted average.
The court’s reasoning
The court reviewed the Board’s legal determinations de novo and factual findings for substantial evidence. It found no reversible error in the Board’s interpretation of predominant pitch, noting the term is not limited to a weighted average of all roof sections. The court also affirmed the Board’s conclusion that using a weighted average to calculate predominant pitch was obvious, as it was a known technique applied to yield a predictable result.
What it means going forward
This decision reinforces the Federal Circuit’s deference to the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s factual findings in obviousness determinations and clarifies that claim terms like predominant pitch are not strictly limited to specific calculation methods unless explicitly defined in the patent.
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