Strict Antecedent Basis: Noun Phrases

Created: Oct 26, 2016; Modified: Oct 28, 2016.

Noun phrases

Noun phrases are the building blocks of clear claim language. A noun phrase is a word or group of words that functions in a sentence as subject, object, or prepositional object. A noun phrase in a claim should be clearly defined so that future references to the noun phrase are easily recognized.

Instantiation

A noun phrase should be instantiated only once in a claim using one keyword phrase among a set of instantiating keyword phrases:

• a,
• an,
• one|two|,
• at least,
• each.

The following are examples of instantiating a noun phrase with a keyword phrase from the set of instantiating keyword phrases:

• a first thing,
• a second thing,
• a plurality of things,
• one or more things,
• two or more things,
• three or more things,
• at least one thing,
• at least two things.

The each instantiating keyword phrase is a special keyword phrase that is discussed in Sets and Iteration.

Referencing

Use the the keyword phrase to reference a noun phrase exactly as instantiated. The following are examples of referencing an instantiated noun phrase:

• the first thing,
• the second thing,
• the plurality of things,
• the one or more things,
• the two or more things,
• the three or more things,
• the at least one thing,
• the at least two things.

A noun phrase should not be referenced using a modifier, such as an adjective. For example, if a claim includes receiving a thing, then the thing should not be referenced as the received thing in the claim.

Immutable objects

A noun phrase references an object that is immutable. If the object is modified, then the object is a new object. Accordingly, a new noun phrase should be instantiated to represent the new object. The following is an example of assigning a new noun phrase to a modified object:

1. A method comprising:
   receiving a first thing;
   modifying the first thing to produce a second thing.

Do not make a noun phrase ambiguous by referring to two objects with the same noun phrase. The following is an example of a claim that creates an antecedent basis error by using a single noun phrase to reference two objects with different states:

1. A method comprising:
   receiving a thing that includes an original component;
   modifying the original component included in the thing;
   sending the thing to a client computer.

Some may argue that sending the thing clearly means sending the thing with a new component from a previous component included in the claim. However, that logic requires steps in a claim to have a rigid order, and someone could invent around the claimed invention by merely performing two or more steps in a different order. Furthermore, in a long or subsequent dependent claim, a reader may also have a hard time determining whether a reference to the thing is referring to the thing with the previous component or the new component.

The following claim is free of antecedent basis errors by assigning a new noun phrase to a new object created by modifying an original object:

1. A method comprising:
   receiving a first thing that includes a particular component;
   producing a second thing from the first thing by modifying the particular component;
   sending the second thing to a client computer.

Classification distinction

Although a noun phrase represents an immutable object, a new noun phrase should not be instantiated when an object is merely further characterized, clarified, or described. The following is an example of a noun phrase that represents an object that is further described after the noun phrase was instantiated.

1. A method comprising:
   receiving a thing, wherein the thing has a particular component;
   sending the thing to a client computer.