SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH PROCESS .
8 FIRST , IT SHOULD BE STATED THAT NEITHER THE FLORENCE AGREEMENT NOR REGULATIONS NO 1798/75 CONTAINS A DEFINITION OF THE TERMS ' ' INSTRUMENTS ' ' AN ' ' APPARATUS ' ' FOR THE PURPOSES OF ARTICLE 3 ( 1 ) OF THE REGULATION . HOWEVER , AS THE COURT HAS ALREADY STATED , IT FOLLOWS IN PARTICULAR FROM THE FIRST RECITAL IN THE PREAMBLE TO THAT REGULATION , WHICH PROVIDES THAT IT IS NECESSARY TO ALLOW , ' ' BY ALL POSSIBLE MEANS ' ' , THE ADMISSION FREE OF CUSTOMS DUTIES OF EDUCATIONAL , SCIENTIFIC AND CULTURAL MATERIALS , THAT THE TERMS ' ' INSTRUMENTS ' ' AND ' ' APPARATUS ' ' IN ARTICLE 3 ( 1 ) OF REGULATION NO 1798/75 CANNOT BE GIVEN A NARROW INTERPRETATION .
9 NEVERTHELESS , THE TERMS IN QUESTION MUST BE DEFINED IN SUCH A WAY THAT THE EXEMPTION FROM CUSTOMS DUTIES COVERS ONLY ITEMS POSSESSING OBJECTIVE CHARACTERISTICS WHICH MAKE THEM PARTICULARLY SUITABLE FOR PURE SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH ( CF . JUDGMENT OF 2 FEBRUARY 1978 IN CASE 72/77 , UNIVERSITEITSKLINIEK UTRECHT V INSPECTEUR DER INVOERRECHTEN EN ACCIJNZEN , ( 1978 ) ECR 189 ).
10 SUCH SUITABILITY MUST THEREFORE BE INHERENT IN THE ITEM FOR WHICH EXEMPTION IS REQUESTED . IT FOLLOWS THAT EXEMPTION FROM DUTY CAN BE GRANTED ONLY IN RELATION TO ITEMS WHICH , BY VIRTUE OF THEIR PARTICULAR TECHNICAL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTIONING , THEMSELVES SERVE DIRECTLY AS A MEANS OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH .
11 ON THE OTHER HAND , AN ITEM WHICH IS USED NOT AS A MEANS BUT ONLY AS AN OBJECT OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH CANNOT BE DESCRIBED AS A SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENT OR APPARATUS ; INDEED , WHERE RESEARCH IS CARRIED OUT NOT BY MEANS OF THAT ITEM BUT ON IT , THE ITEM PLAYS ONLY A PURELY PASSIVE ROLE IN THE RESEARCH PROCESS .
12 A FORTIORI , RECEPTACLES WHICH ARE USED ONLY TO PRESERVE AND STORE A SUBSTANCE ON WHICH RESEARCH IS CARRIED OUT CANNOT BE DESCRIBED AS SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS OR APPARATUS . EVEN THE FACT THAT THEY ARE SUITABLE FOR THE PRESERVATION AND CULTIVATION OF TISSUE IN A STERILE MEDIUM CANNOT CONFER UPON THEM THE CHARACTER OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS OR APPARATUS ; THAT CIRCUMSTANCE DOES NOT ALTER THE ESSENTIAL CHARACTERISTIC OF A RECEPTABLE , THAT IS TO SAY THE FACT THAT ITS USE IS PASSIVE .
13 AS REGARDS THE FACT THAT THE GERMAN VERSION OF ARTICLE 3 ( 1 ) OF REGULATION NO 1798/75 CONTAINS NOT ONLY THE WORDS ' ' INSTRUMENTS ' ' AND ' ' APPARATUS ' ' BUT ALSO THE WORD ' ' GERATE ' ' ( UTENSILS ), IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT THAT CANNOT CONFER UPON THAT LINGUISTIC VERSION A WIDER MEANING THAT THAT IMPLIED BY THE OTHER VERSIONS WHICH DO NOT CONTAIN THAT WORD . THEREFORE NO SPECIAL SIGNIFICANCE SHOULD BE ATTRIBUTED TO THE WORD ' ' GERATE ' ' IN THE GERMAN TEXT .
14 THE ANSWER TO THE QUESTION