Task: songer_direct1

What follows is an opinion from a United States Court of Appeals.
Your task is to determine the ideological directionality of the court of appeals decision, coded as "liberal" or "conservative". Consider liberal to be for government tax claim; for person claiming patent or copyright infringement; for the plaintiff alleging the injury; for economic underdog if one party is clearly an underdog in comparison to the other, neither party is clearly an economic underdog; in cases pitting an individual against a business, the individual is presumed to be the economic underdog unless there is a clear indication in the opinion to the contrary; for debtor or bankrupt; for government or private party raising claim of violation of antitrust laws, or party opposing merger; for the economic underdog in private conflict over securities; for individual claiming a benefit from government; for government in disputes over government contracts and government seizure of property; for government regulation in government regulation of business; for greater protection of the environment or greater consumer protection (even if anti-government); for the injured party in admiralty - personal injury; for economic underdog in admiralty and miscellaneous economic cases. Consider the directionality to be "mixed" if the directionality of the decision was intermediate to the extremes defined above or if the decision was mixed (e.g., the conviction of defendant in a criminal trial was affirmed on one count but reversed on a second count or if the conviction was afirmed but the sentence was reduced). Consider "not ascertained" if the directionality could not be determined or if the outcome could not be classified according to any conventional outcome standards.

STEPHENS, Circuit Judge.
This is an appeal from a final decree entered September 13, 1935, by the District Court for the Northern District of California, Southern Division, dismissing a bill of complaint charging infringement of two patents. The two patents are No. 1,875,-259, applied for November 1, 1921, and No. 1,875,260, applied for March 12, 1925, both issued August 30, 1932, in the name of George D. Parker. For convenience here, as in the trial court, these patents will hereinafter be referred to by only the last three digits, viz., ’259 and ’260 respectively, or as the Parker patents.
The original plaintiffs were Clara B. Parker, executrix of the last will of the patentee, George D. Parker, deceased; James M. Leaver, Jr., owner of a half interest in the ’260 patent; and Charles E. Evans; doing business under the name of Parker-Leaver-Evans Wire Tie. Under a contract made in October, 1922, each plaintiff had an equitable interest in the outcome of any suit brought on either Parker patent.
Before trial, Clara B. Parker and Charles E. Evans died, whereupon Donald Parker and Citizens National Trust & Savings Bank of Riverside, California, administrators of the Estate of George D. Parker, deceased; and Minnie Amanda Evans, executrix of the last will and testament of Charles M. Evans, deceased, were substituted as plaintiffs for Clara D. Parker and Charles E. Evans, respectively.
The original defendant was Pacific Box Corporation. At the trial the Eby Manufacturing Company, the manufacturer of the machine charged to infringe the patents in suit, intervenéd and defended the suit.' Unless otherwise herein noted, the original defendant and -the intervenor will be designated as Defendants, and all appellants will occasionally be referred to as Plaintiffs.
Subsequent to the entry of the decree for the defendants, notice was given to James M. Leaver, Jr., by the other plaintiffs to join in the contemplated appeal to this Court, but Leaver failed to join. The judge of the District Court made his order allowing appeal. by the remaining plaintiffs, in the following words: “ * * * it appearing that the remaining plaintiff named in the decree appealed from, James M. Leaver, Jr., has failed and refused to join in said appeal, Now Therefore * * * it is ordered that said appeal be, and the same is hereby allowed * * *
Appellees contend that the appeal should be dismissed, so far as patent ’260 is concerned, for the non-joinder of Leaver as party appellant. It is their contention that the finding of the judge of the District Court with reference to Leaver’s “refusal” to join is not justified; that all the record shows is the notice served on Leaver and his “failure” to join in the appeal; and that this is not the equivalent of summons and severance.
This Court has recognized the rule that on an appeal taken only by some of the persons against whom a joint judgment is rendered, there should be a summons and severance, or its equivalent, and that in the absence of such summons and severance or its equivalent, a motion to dismiss is well taken. Pflueger v. Sherman, 9 Cir., 75 F. 2d 84, 89; Mittry Bros. Const. Co. v. United States, 9 Cir., 75 F.2d 79, 81. However, there appears to be no merit in appellees’ contention that the absence of the record to show a “refusal” as well as a “failure” of Leaver to join in the appeal destroys the effect of the notice given to Leaver and the court order based thereon as the equivalent of summons and severance.
The Supreme Court of the United States in the case of Masterson v. Howard, 10 Wall. 416, 418, 19 L.Ed. 953, 954, in holding that a case must be dismissed in the absence of summons and severance or its equivalent, said, “We do not attach importance to the technical mode of proceeding called summons and severance. We should have held this appeal good if it had appeared in any way by the record that Maverick had been notified in writing to appear, and that he had failed to appear, or, if appearing, had refused to join. * * * We think there should be a written notice and due service, or the record should show his appearance and refusal, and that the court on that ground granted an appeal to the party who prayed for it, as to his own interest.”
In Inglehart v. Stansbury, 151 U.S. 68, 72, 14 S.Ct. 237, 238, 38 L.Ed. 76, 77, the Supreme Court said: “ * * * it is quite clear that Inglehart’s heirs could not appeal alone, without joining the other defendants as appellants, or showing a valid excuse for not joining them. This could only be shown by a summons and severance, or by some equivalent proceeding, such as a request to-the other defendants and their refusal to join in the appeal, or at least a notice to them to appear, and their failure to do so * *
Appellees next contend that the appeal should be dismissed because of the nonjoinder of Parker-Leaver-Evans Wire Tie; that the rule as to summons and severance cannot be invoked as to that concern because there is no showing of service of any notice at all on them.
This contention is likewise without merit, as the complaint shows on its face that the Parker-Leaver-Evans Wire Tie is not a legal entity. The original plaintiffs were designated as “Clara B. Parker, etc., James M. Leaver, Jr., and Charles E. Evans, doing business under the name of Parker-Leaver-Evans Wire Tie.”
After this appeal was taken, the Wire Tie Machinery Company, a California corporation, acquired the interests of the Parker administrators, and was permitted by this court to be substituted for the Parker administrators as party appellant. Ap-pellees complain that the Wire Tie Machinery Company has no position before this court, in view of certain provisions in the agreement between the original plaintiffs prohibiting assignment of their respective interests, without unanimous consent of the parties.
Suffice it to say that this court has already made its order substituting the Wire Tie Machinery Company as party appellant. We will not disturb that order at this time, in the absence of showing that the assignment of the interest of the Parker Estate to the Wire Tie Machinery Company was not made with the consent of the other parties involved.
_ The original complaint herein charged the Pacific Box Corporation as user of a bundle tying machine (hereinafter designated as the Eby machine), built accord-mg to the teaching of Dunn and Eldndge, with infringement of claims 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 52, 55, 60, 67, 75 and 76 of the 259 patent and of claims 7, 12, 13, 65, 66, 69, 70, 76, 85, 86 and 87 of the 260 pat-en^-
The ’259 patent covers a machine with duplex revolving arms for the purpose of carrying two wires around a bundle simultaneously and tying both of the same m what is known as a fiat knot. The method of binding is what is known as the tight looping method, that is, laying the wire under tension completely around the bundle or ox'
Prior to the construction of the machine covered by this patent, there were being built various types of binding machines, One of such machines, covered by the Thompson patent, No. 1,152,670, issued September 7, 1915, also utilized a rotating arm to carry the wire around the bundle, That machine however, tied the ends of the wire in a corner knot, or what is known as a pigtail knot. The pigtail or corner knot left the twisted wire protruding from the bundle, and created a menace to stevedores handling the packages; furthermore, the twisting of the wire in this manner tended to crystallize the wire, and numerous breakages would occur. These disadvantages were eliminated by the use of the so-called flat knot. Another of such machines, covered by the McChesney patent, No. 1,357,883, issued November 2, 1920, did tie the wire in a flat knot, but that machine utilized what is known as the loose looping method of binding. In other words, that machine has a motor-driven feeding roller that pushes the wire through an open trough that curves around the bun-die. After the wire is thus pushed through the trough loosely around the bundle, a gripper that slides back and forth draws the excess wire back until the loop is pulled out of the trough and shrunk in size to t^le bundle.
The rotating arm of the machine covered by the Thompson patent operated in a uni-directional rotation. In order to provide for an overlapping of the ends of the wire necessary to the tying of a flat knot, Parker in his machine provided for the oscillation of the arm back and forth somewhat in excess of one full revolution,
Twomley, Parker’s technical emplovee, testified that early in 1920 Parker gave him the idea of making his drawing for the >259 machine. The drawings were started about july> i920, and completed in the early part of 1921. The patent was applied for jn November, 1921. The manufacture of the machine was commenced in the early part of 1921 and completed in the latter part of that year. Only one machine was manufactured under that patent,
D who testified for Eb tegtified that he went tQ work for Eb ¡n 0ctob im In DeCember of the same year he b t0 build a bindi maclline. In the summer Qr fall of 1921 he roduced an op_ erating maclline, wWch was completed to the satisfaction of Dunn in February, 1922. It was circularized to the trade in March, l922. That machine also utilized what is known as the tight binding method, but instead of a revolving arm to carry the wire around the bundle, it used a ring gear for that purpose. (Very loosely speaking, a “ring gear” as used in connection with binding machines, consists of a cogged ring, larger in circumference than the box or bundle to be tied. The wire is conducted by this rotating ring around the box or bundle.) The machine tied a corner, or pigtail knot, as distinguished from a flat knot. He applied for a patent for this machine on July 6, 1922. Two corporations ordered the machines, and in October, 1922, Dunn took the two machines to Honolulu to be demonstrated there. They were accepted and paid for. When Dunn was in Honolulu, he had a conference with White, manager of one of the purchasing corporations, who suggested that he preferred to have a flat knot rather than the corner knot as produced by the machine which he purchased. Upon his return from Honolulu, Dunn commenced his drawings to convert his machine into a machine tying a flat knot, Dunn testified that he completed these drawings in the summer of 1923.
There is much conflict in the testimony as to just when the construction of Dunn’s new flat knot machine was actually completed. The trial court found as a fact that “The first full-size flat knot type of Dunn and Eldridge machine was completed and successfully operated in June, 1923”. Plaintiffs contend, however, that the court was in error in this finding.
The following are excerpts from the record with reference to the date of completion of the Dunn and Eldridge flat-knot machine:
Guy A. Dunn testified:
“So on my return to San Francisco, I had thought the thing over coming across from Honolulu, and I immediately discussed the matter with Mr. Eldridge, and gave him my ideas of just how we could coordinate a slot-twisting handle in the place of our corner knot twister. After a short time we saw daylight by a rearrangement of the parts, etc. The result of that was the final Eby flat-knot machine. As nearly as I can remember that was completed in its modification with the slot knot, sometime in 1924. * * * I do not remember exactly who the first one was that we shipped to. It was Mr. Fox. He was one of the first. According to our records, he was the-first one to order, on February 27, 1924. Previous to that we had built and demonstrated the flat knot machine following my return from Honolulu.”
“I testified that after I returned from Honolulu in the fall of 1922 I set out getting up.a flat knotter adaptation of our machine and that at the end of 1923 I had such a machine with a flat knotter adap-fation completed. I can explain the reason for the delay of approximately a year in there before I produced the flat knotter device. We had a number of these first machines under construction, and orders for the same, and Mr. Eby had considerable money involved in this layout, and he said that it was not economical from a financial standpoint to bring out a new model in face of these facts. In view of that fact, we did not press the completion of this machine as rapidly as we otherwise could have done.”
On cross examination, Dunn testified: “I first saw a full automatic wire binding machine tying a flat knot at the Los An-geles Lumber Products Company. That was a Parker machine. That was not pri- or to the actual development on my part of the ®by flat knot machine.”
(Further evidence discloses that this was in August, 1923.)
“Subsequent to my observation of the operation of the BW flat tie machine at San' Pedro (Parker machine, in August, 1923) we did not reconstruct or modify the design of the Eby corner twist machine to embody the disclosure of the BW flat tie machine in that respect. We did not modify it at all. We arranged the mechanism alone as to adapt the new flat tie mechanism, to coordinate with the racking mechanism of the first model”
“I d*d not obtain any benefit in the lme of ideas or suggestions from my observa^on the tie machine operated a* San Pedr°,in tbe designing of the Eby knot machine, the basis 'of this suit,
“It [the twister device on the Eby flat-knot machine] was a movable twister as distinguished from a stationary twister. Very clearly I can state the reasons why I employed a movable twister as distinguished from a stationary twister. That is due to a mechanical reason in regard to the cam. The movable twister required a cam that would not have to synchronize as accurately as it would in the case of a stationary twister, so we adopted the path of least resistance, which means simplicity in machinery. This was subsequent to my observation of the Parker flat knot twister on the machine at San Pedro. That is tnie, but this construction all came to us bef°re I saw tire Parker machine, but after Mr. White had referred the matter to me ln H°no u*u>
“I returned (from Honolulu after the conference with White), and having observed the flat twister of the Parker machine, the thing that actuated me to put in a movable twister when I started in to build a flat knot tying machine was the natural course of sequence of any engineer groping around in the dark for a solution to his problem, and he might go one way and he might go another.”
From the above quoted excerpts from Dunn’s testimony on cross-examination, it seems apparent that Dunn admitted that he did not commence the construction of the Eby flat-knot machine until after his observation of the Parker machine in August, 1923.
Dunn further testified:
“My preliminary drawings for the first Eby' flat type of machine was started immediately after I returned from Honolulu in December, 1922. I cannot recall the exact date when the drawings of said Eby flat type machine were completed. It was sometime in the year 1923, I imagine it was in the summer.”
“I would have to refer to the records for the date when the first flat knot type machine was started in construction. It was held back for several months, we did not put any great pressure on putting the machine out, for the reason that I stated previously, at Mr. Gerrard’s and Mr. Eby’s request.”
“As near as I can recollect at the present time (it took) something like nine or ten months (to complete the first flat tie knot automatic machine from the date I left Honolulu).”
Dunn left Honolulu in December, 1922. Therefore, from the above testimony it seems apparent that the Eby flat-knot machine was not completed until September or October of 1923.
At the trial, in addition to the testimony taken in open court, portions of the testimony of Guy A. Dunn, of John D. Eby, deceased, president of the defendant Eby Machinery Co., of George D. Parker, deceased, the patentee of the Parker machines, an,d of other witnesses taken in various suits on other patents and in a Patent Office interference involving Dunn & Eld-ridge and Leaver, were introduced as exhibits. The following are excerpts from such testimony relative to the date of completion of the Eby flat-knot machine:
John D. Eby testified: “This last machine [flat knot machine] was completed in the spring of 1923 — no, it was sketched' — we commenced on this last machine in the spring of 1923, commenced to plan on this machine in the spring of 1923, and we sold one of these machines in December, 1923, and delivered it the next June.”
Guy A. Dunn testified in one of these previous suits: “I returned from Honolulu in the winter or late fall of 1922, and on arrival in San Francisco I discussed the matter with Mr. Eldridge and we immediately set out to build a flat knot machine. Some of the drawings of that machine were started immediately. They were completed in the early summer or spring of 1923. The construction of the first flat knot machine was held back for several months for the reason that we had quite a few corner knot machines in stock, and quite a bit of money invested, and Mr. Eby objected to proceeding with the building of this flat knot machine until these corner knot machines were sold. I think I said the construction of the first flat knot machine was started about the spring of 1923. I don’t remember exactly when the first flat knot machine was completed.”
“Q. Was your drawing of that machine complete and your design of that machine complete before you saw a Parker automatic wire-tying machine? A. (by Dunn): Mr. Eldridge and I had it thoroughly analyzed and knew exactly what we intended to do.”
The witness at this point was referring to the observation of the Parker machine in San Pedro in August, 1923. It should be noted that Dunn is making no claim at this time that the flat knot machine was completed in August,, 1923, but rather that he “had it thoroughly analyzed and knew exactly what (he) intended to do”.
■ Dunn later testified, “I have checked up on certain definite dates as to the completion of the manufacture and sale of these different machines on a card taken from our records. * * * The first flat knot machine of the type that is shown in the drawings Exhibit U, was built on June 1, 1923. That machine was placed on demonstration before several corporations, * * * but after some hold-back of the machine until we could get rid of the corner knot machine, that we had completed, as I stated yesterday. * * * The first machine of the flat knot type was sold on December 27, 1923, but it had been demonstrated before the trade months previous to that.”
This is the only place in the record where it is stated that June, 1923, was the date of the completion of the flat-knot machine, as distinguished from the drawings.
He later testified, “The flat knot machine and the corner tie machine had both been completed and constructed prior to December of 1923, according to the records.”
This testimony would indicate that Dunn is drawing a distinction between “completion” and “construction”, and that when he referred to the machine being “completed” he meant the drawings were completed.
Dunn testified in another of said previous suits, “Stating what I did subsequent to the completion of the design of the spiral twist machine in the line of designing a wire tying machine, as it became apparent that the market required a machine of higher speed and a knot that would be more desirable, I had the flat, so-called flat-knot in mind for some time, remembering it as the tie on cement barrels, etc., but up to this present time that you speak of I saw no practicable, feasible way of applying it to an automatic machine, but after doing some careful study the. development of the flat knot machine started. The idea came to me of how to apply the tie of a flat knot to an automatic machine in 1923. In my own mind I was perfectly satisfied with the operation of the corner knot machine, and it was a question of applying the flat knot to the other general principles. As near as I can remember at the present time, it took something like nine or ten months.”
The record in one of these previous suits also discloses the following proceedings at the trial: Counsel for plaintiffs objected to the pertinency of certain identification cards posted over the machines exhibited in evidence, on the ground that they were merely hearsay. The Court said, ■“The cards are merely here to identify the machines as exhibited. I cannot see any ■objection to them. It is understood that they are not evidence. They are simply for the purpose of identifying the machine..1 think they should be read into the record."
The card was read into the record: '“This is the improved I)unn and Eldridge wire tying machine. First machine built June 1, 1923; first machine sold December 27, 1923; delivered June 30, d924.”
This latter excerpt from the record is.cited by defendants in their brief as testimony corroborating the finding of the trial court in this case- to the effect that the “first full-size flat knot type of Dunn and Eldridge machine was completed and successfully, operated in June, 1923”. However, as is evident from the above, said card cannot properly be regarded as evidence.
It should further be noted at this point that there is no evidence in the record to the effect that the Eby flat-knot machine was “successfully operated in June, 1923” as found by the trial court.
On March 17, 1924, Eby applied for a patent on his new flat knot machine.
Prior to this time, Twomley, working for Parker, started working on a new" machine, eventually covered by the ’260 patent involved in this suit. This machine makes use of a ring gear for winding the wire around the bundle, in the place of the revolving arms of the ’259 patent. It, as did the ’259 machine, ties the wire in a flat Jcnot.
Twomley testified that he started on his drawings for this ’260 machine in the latter part of 1922, and that he started work on the construction of the machine in the early part of 1923. He corroborated this by the introduction of shop orders for materials used in the machine. Twomley further testified that he completed and successfully operated the machine in June of 1923. This date he was unable to corroborate. In August, 1923, Twomley took the ’260 machine to the Los Angeles Lumber Products Company, at San Pedro, California. It was in operation in the neighborhood for thirty days.
At the same time, one of Eby’s machines (corner knot machine) was also being demonstrated at the Los Angeles Lumber Products Company. It is not clear from the record whether or not the Los Angeles Lumber Products Company was already under contract to purchase the Eby machine at the time Parker’s machine was demonstrated. Twomley testified that the purpose of taking the Parker machine over there was to put it in actual practice and to give it a test fun to develop any weakness that there might be in the machine. He further testified that he did not know whether or not the machine was put out there with the object of making a sale. Dunn, on the other hand, testified that the Eby Machinery Company was asked to demonstrate their machine in the plant of the Los Angeles Lumber Products Company, and when he arrived with the machine he found a Parker machine in competition. It is uncontradicted in the evidence, however, that the Los Angeles Lumber Products Company did purchase one of the Eby machines (corner knot machines), and that the Parker machine went back to Parker’s shop. Twomley testified that at the time of this demonstration the Parker ’260 machine was a “successful machine”, although some slight changes were made thereafter. He testified that those changes were merely safety devices.
The Parker ’260 machine was circularized in “The Timberman” in December, 1923, as appears from a copy of that publication introduced in evidence.
On March 12, 1925, the application for Parker patent ’260 was filed.
During the pendency of the Parker applications for the ’’259 and ’260 patents, various amendments were made by Parker, withdrawing certain claims and adding certain others. Appellees contend that the addition of new claims constituted “new matter” and that Eby and Dunn & Eldridge acquired what the law recognizes as “intervening rights”. This phase of the case will be discussed later in this opinion.
On March 23, 1932, Dunn requested the Patent Office to declare an interference between the Eby application of March 17, 1924 (his flat knot machine) with the Parker ’260 application. He copied for the purpose of this Interference some 32 claims from said Parker patent. Later the first Dunn and Eldridge application, filed July 6, 1922 (original corner knot machine) was added to the Interference on motion of Dunn, and Eldridge. Two more Parker claims were added, making 34 claims in all.
The two Parker patents, ’259 and ’260, were issued by the Patent Office on August 30, 1932.
The Interference above referred to was hotly contested in the Patent Office, and was still pending at the time of the trial of the principal case in the District Court.
Appellants have grouped their assignments of error into seven groups, and we will consider them herein in the same order.
Group one is headed “The Decree should have been confined to the issues.”
In the complaint filed by the plaintiffs. herein, defendants were charged with infringement of 13 o'f the 83 claims of the ’259 patent and of 11 of the 99 claims of the ’260 patent. The decree of the trial court, however, holds that all of the claims of both patents are void, for various reasons, and that Dunn and Eldridge were prior inventors of all that was patentable or that might be’infringed in either of said patents.
Claims of a patent are independent inventions. One may be infringed and others not; one may be valid and the rest invalid. The patent does not stand or fall as a unity. Leeds & Catlin Co. v. Victor Talking Machine Co., 213 U.S. 301, 319, 29 S.Ct. 495, 53 L.Ed. 805. It is a fundamental concept of equity procedure that adjudication must be based upon, the issues created'by the pleadings. Reynolds v. Stockton, 140 U.S. 254, 265, 11 S.Ct. 773, 776, 35 L.Ed. 464; McEwen et al. v. H. J. Grimes & Co. et al., 6 Cir., 90 F.2d 872, 874.
In the principal case only the claims alleged in the complaint to have been infringed by defendant were in issue. The decree of the District Court, insofar as it went beyond the issues, should be reversed.
Appellants’ second group of errors is to the effect that the District Court erred in not finding invention in the subject matter of the claims in suit.
The District Court decreed that the device disclosed by the ’259 patent involves a mere unpatentable aggregation of parts found and disclosed in the prior art, and more particularly by the patents to Thompson and McChesney. The District Court also decreed that the device disclosed by the ’260 patent is a mere improvement over that disclosed in the Evans patent. (The Evans patent referred to is the Evans Reissue patent, No. 16,292, issued March 16, 1926.)
The ’259 patent is for a rotary arm binding machine, tying a flat knot. The Thompson patent referred to above is also a rotary arm binding machine. The machine does not make a flat knot, but rather a corner, or pigtail knot. The McChes-ney patent referred to is for a binding machine of what is known as the “loose looping” variety. It ties a flat knot.
The ’260 patent utilizes a ring gear in the place of the rotating arm, and also ties a flat knot. The Evans patent also uses the ring gear, but ties a corner, or pigtail knot.
It is the contention of the appellees, and in this they are supported by the findings of the trial court, that all that Parker did was to incorporate the flat knot of the Mc-Chesney patent into the binding machines' disclosed by the Thompson and Evans patents, and that hence patents ’259 and ’260 lack invention.
, Appellants contend that this is error, claiming that the flat knot' mechanism of the McChesney patent could not have been substituted.for the corner knot of the Thompson and Evans patents — that the arm of the binding machine of the Thompson patent and the ring gear of the Evans patent operated in a uni-djrectional rotation, and hence could not provide the proper overlapping of the ends of the wire necessary to make the flat knot. The Parker patents provide for an oscillating movement of the arm of ’259 and the ring gear of ’260.
The Supreme Court in the case of Webster Loom Co. v. Higgins, 105 U.S. 580, 591, 26 L.Ed. 1177, gives its test as to what constitutes invention as follows r “It may be laid down as a general rule, though perhaps not an invariable one, that if a new combination and arrangement of known elements produce a new and beneficial result, never attained before, it is evidence of invention.”
• In the cited case Webster combined the advantages of Bigelow’s rigid lathe with Weild’s trough or wire bar for supporting the wire. By the combination the Webster loom could produce some' 50 yards a day, when previous looms could never produce more than 40 yards a day. The claim was made in that case that the mere combination of the prior patents did not constitute invention, but the Supreme Court in reply to that contention said, “But it is plain, from the evidence and from the very fact that it was not sooner adopted and used, that it did not, for years, occur in this light to even the most skillful persons. It may have been Under their very eyes, they may álmost be said to have stumbled over it; but they certainly failed to see it, to estimate its value and to bring it into notice”.
The court then gives the test as to what constitutes invention above quoted.
The Webster Loom case, supra, has-been cited by the courts many times in their decisions distinguishing between patentable combinations and mere aggregations.
It is well settled that what constitutes an invention, as distinguished from an aggregation, is a question of fact, and not o.f law. Reinharts, Inc., v. Caterpillar Tractor Co., 9 Cir., 1936, 85 F.2d 628, 630. The court below found as a fact that the claims of the Parker patents in suit did not constitute invention. As a general rule this court will not overturn the findings of fact of the trial judge, since he has had an opportunity of hearing the witnesses testify and is in a better position than this court to judge their veracity. However, in a case such as the case at bar, the question of whether or not the subject matter constitutes invention does not turn upon the truth or falsity of the testimony of the witnesses. Their testimony of necessity is as to their opinions of whether it required more than mechanical skill to effect the combination of parts.
Applying the test laid down by the Supreme Court in the Webster Loom case, supra, we are of the opinion that the subject matter of the Parker patents did constitute invention. It is uncontroverted that never before had anyone produced a fully automatic wire binding machine that tied a flat knot. Dunn, “a skilled mechanic and designer”, who built the defendants’ machine, testified that at the time of his trip to Honolulu (where White suggested to him the desirability of having a binding machine that tied a flat knot) he knew “no practicable, feasible way of applying it (a flat knot) to an automatic machine” and that it took him something like nine or ten months to work it out for Eby.
One of the assignments of error in this group is that the said court erred in concluding as a matter of law, adjudging and decreeing that claim 69 of said patent ’260 is invalid as not readable upon the' dislosure of the patentee thereof in the application for said patent.
Claim 69 reads as follows: “In a wire tying machine, a wire guiding ring rotatable to describe a path encircling an object to be tied, means for supplying wire under tension to said ring, means for rotating the ring to effect encircling of the wire about the object so that one portion of the wire overlaps another portion thereof in a plane substantially parallel to the adjacent surface of the object, and means located within the periphery of said ring for intertwisting the overlapping portions to provide a substantially flat knot.”
The District Court in its Memorandum gives as its reason for such finding that “One portion of the wire does not ‘overlap another in a plane substantially parallel to the adjacent surface of the object.’”
In this connection, Roemer, testifying for the defendant, testified: “Claim 69 is a claim which I doubt reads on either the Parker machine or the Eby machine. This claim, which defines a ring gear type of machine, calls for means for rotating the ring to effect encircling of the wire about the object, so that one portion of the wire overlaps another portion thereof in a plane substantially parallel to the adjacent surface of the object. By that I understand that the slotted twister would have to be placed with its slot parallel to the face of the object at the time the wire was placed in the twister. By reference to the Parker patent 260 it can be seen that in the receiving position of the slotted pinion the slot is directed away from the adjacent surface of the bundle. This is likewise true in the Eby machine, as is clearly evidenced in the model, Defendants’ Exhibit B, wherein the slot is faced away from the bundle at the time it receives a wife. With this in view, I do not see how it is possible for one portion of the wire to overlap another portion thereof in a plane substantially parallel to the adjacent surface of the object. As a matter of fact, the wire in both Parker and Eby overlaps in a plane which is exactly perpendicular to the adjacent face of the bundle.”
We cannot agree with this view of claim 69. An examination of the patent will show that the wires do lie together in the slot of the twister pinion, and that that slot (or the bottom of it where the wires lie) is in a plane substantially parallel to the adjacent surface of the bundle. We think it reasonably accurate to say that one portion of the wire overlaps another portion thereof in a plane substantially parallel to the adjacent surface of the bundle.
Appellants’ third group of errors are to the effect that the District Court should have found that Parker — not Dunn and Eldridge — was the inventor of the subject matter of the claims in suit.
We think the record definitely establishes that Parker was the first inventor of a fully automatic binding machine that wound the wire around the bundle under tension and tied the ends of the wire in a flat knot. His first machine was the ’259, which was built in the latter part of 1921. The application for patent was filed November 1, 1921. Dunn testified that the Dunn and Eldridge first automatic machine was completed in February, 1922. That machine tied a corner knot, as distinguished from a flat knot.
The trial court decreed “That Guy A. Dunn and John Eldridge, joint applicants of application for patent, Serial Number 573,205, filed in the United States Patent Office on July 6, 1922, were prior inventors, with respect to the patentee of Patent No.

Question: What is the ideological directionality of the court of appeals decision?
A. conservative
B. liberal
C. mixed
D. not ascertained
Answer:

Answer: C