歐洲專利法在發明單一性的規定下要求一件專利僅能包括一組獨立請求項，但仍有例外，歐洲專利法Rule 43(2)規定可以包括多項獨立項的條件有：多個相互關聯的產品、相同產品的不同用途、對特定問題提出的可供選擇的方案。
EPC Rule 43(2)
Without prejudice to Article 82, a European patent application may contain more than one independent claim in the same category (product, process, apparatus or use) only if the subject-matter of the application involves one of the following:
(a) a plurality of interrelated products,
(b) different uses of a product or apparatus,
(c) alternative solutions to a particular problem, where it is inappropriate to cover these alternatives by a single claim.
案例討論一：
案號：T 0978/10
申請號：05012193.8
系爭專利名稱：Public Access CPR and AED Device
申請人：Revivant Corporation
涉及法規：
EPC Art. 76(1), 84, 52(1), 54(1), 54(2)
EPC R. 43(2), 115(2)
RPBA Art. 15(3)
案由：專利申請人對歐洲專利局審查核駁意見（申請號：05012193.8）提出訴願，此案為歐洲申請案No.00913721.7的分割申請案。
引證案：
D2: DE-A-196 30 951
D8: WO-A-99/09929
訴願人提出的訴願理由有：
1. 本案請求項1, 2範圍明確，其中引用多處說明書段落證明支持請求項的技術
2. 本案請求項1, 2為兩個獨立請求項，兩者共存本案並符合EPC Rule 43(2)，理由主要是兩個獨立範圍為解決問題的可選擇方案
3. 請求項內用語為明確
4. 本案具新穎性與進步性
對於以上第2點，審查委員認為請求項1, 2並非解決特定問題的選擇方案，不符Rule 43(2)，但提示請求項2可改寫為請求項1的附屬項。
請求項1, 2：
1. A medical treatment system for treatment of a patient, wherein said medical treatment system is intended to be used in an environment wherein the device may be removed from a secure storage device and deployed upon the patient by a first operator pending arrival of a second operator, said medical treatment system comprising:
a plurality of medical devices;
means for controlling physical access to the plurality of medical devices;
means for controlling functional enablement of a medical device included within the plurality of medical devices;
means for identifying the first operator and permitting physical access to a medical device by the first operator while prohibiting functional enablement of the medical device to the first operator;
means for identifying the second operator and permitting functional enablement of a medical device included within the plurality of medical devices upon identification of the second operator;
wherein the means for controlling physical access is operable to permit physical access to a medical device included within the plurality of medical devices depending upon the identity of the first operator; and
the means for controlling functional enablement is operable to permit functional enablement of a medical device included within the plurality of medical devices depending upon the identity of the second operator;
wherein at least one of the medical devices amongst the plurality of medical devices is capable of both operating in a non-therapeutic mode and a therapeutic mode, and the controller permits the first operator to operate the at least one medical device in a non-therapeutic mode while prohibiting the first operator from operating the at least one medical device in a therapeutic mode.
2. A medical treatment system for treatment of a patient, wherein said medical treatment system is intended to be used in an environment wherein the device may be removed from a secure storage device and deployed upon the patient by a first operator pending arrival of a second operator, said medical treatment system comprising:
a plurality of medical devices;
means for controlling physical access to the plurality of medical devices;
means for controlling functional enablement of a medical device included within the plurality of medical devices;
means for identifying the first operator and permitting physical access to a medical device by the first operator while prohibiting functional enablement of the medical device to the first operator;
means for identifying the second operator and permitting functional enablement of a medical device included within the plurality of medical devices upon identification of the second operator;
wherein the means for controlling physical access is operable to permit physical access to a medical device included within the plurality of medical devices depending upon the identity of the first operator; and
the means for controlling functional enablement is operable to permit functional enablement of a medical device included within the plurality of medical devices depending upon the identity of the second operator;
wherein the at least one medical device is an automatic external defibrillator, and the controller permits access to the automatic external defibrillator to the first operator, thereby allowing the first operator to install the automatic external defibrillator on the patient, but the system prohibits the first operator from operating the automatic external defibrillator to apply defibrillating shock to the patient, and the system permits the second operator to operate the automatic external defibrillator to apply defibrillating shock to the patient.
以上兩項看來是極為相像的範圍，差異僅在wherein子句所描述的功能上，這應該是很有可能被視為是解決同一問題的兩個方案，不過，結果並非如此。
案例討論二：
案號：T 2495/11
申請號：04747891.2
系爭專利名稱：IMAGE PICKUP APPARATUS AND SYNCHRONIZATION SIGNAL GENERATING APPARATUS
申請人：Sony Corporation
涉及法規：
EPC Art. 92
EPC R. 43, 61, 63 (2007), 164 (2007)
EPC 1973 R. 67
案由：專利申請人對歐洲專利局審查核駁意見（申請號：04747891.2，基於國際申請案：PCT/JP2004/010527）提出訴願。
系爭專利為一種影像擷取裝置，以及同步訊號產生裝置。其中具有多項獨立請求項如下，顯然大概就是區分兩種請求範圍，影像擷取裝置以及同步訊號產生裝置，涉及EPC Rule 43(2)的規定，以下列舉訴願階段的claims（WO2005009031），但是EPO目前公開的樣貌已經不同。
1. An image pick-up device comprising:
image signal generation means for generating an image signal of a variable frame-rate picked-up image;
drive-and-control means for driving and controlling the image signal generation means;
setting information generation means for generating image pick-up setting information to generate an image signal which is frame-synchronized with the image signal generated by the image signal generation means; and
output means for outputting the image signal generated by the image signal generation means and the image pick-up setting information.
7. An image pick-up device comprising:
image signal generation means for generating an image signal of a variable frame-rate picked-up image; and
drive-and-control means for receiving image pick-up setting information to generate an image signal that is frame-synchronized with the image signal of a reference variable frame-rate picked-up image, and controlling a driving operation of the image signal generation means based on this image pick-up setting information, thereby frame-synchronizing the image signal generated by the image signal generation means with the image signal of the reference variable frame-rate picked-up image.
15. A synchronization-signal-generating device for supplying a synchronization signal to an image pick-up device having image signal generation means for generating an image signal of a variable frame-rate picked-up image, comprising:
setting information generation means for generating image pick-up setting information which is used to frame-synchronize the image signal generated by the image signal generation means of the image pick-up device with a reference frame;
synchronization signal generation means for generating the synchronization signal that corresponds to the reference frame;
synchronization signal output means for outputting the generated synchronization signal with the generated image pick-up setting information being inserted thereinto; and
control means for setting the reference frame.
17. An image pick-up device comprising:
an image signal generation portion that generates an image signal of a variable frame-rate picked-up image;
a controller driving and controlling the image signal generation portion;
a setting information generation portion that generates image pick-up setting information to generate an image signal that is frame-synchronized with the image signal generated by the image signal generation portion; and
an output portion that outputs the image signal generated by the image signal generation portion and the image pick-up setting information.
（這裡僅討論43(2)）對於申請人提出申請案符合EPC Rule 43(2)多項獨立請求項例外情事的主張，歐洲專利訴願委員會認為：
- 這裡有關EPC Rule 43(2)的爭議源自於歐洲專利局並未對全部的請求項進行檢索，這是單一性的考量；
- claims 1, 7的共同技術特徵為"frame rate synchronisation signals"，但此被認為不具新穎性，因此這兩項獨立項不符43(2)所規定的僅能單一獨立項的例外情事；
- claim 1與claim 15界定不同的裝置，不符43(2)規定的例外情事；
- claim 17與claim 1為一樣的發明標的，僅差在描述方式，缺乏請求項簡明的撰寫要求（lack of conciseness）；
- 對於claim 1的附屬項，即便是附屬項，但是仍有並非連結於一個發明概念下的問題。
案號：T 1350/08
申請號：04727431.1
系爭專利名稱：Apparatus to generate parameter for NTRU, NTRU decryption and
encryption system, apparatus, method and program implementing
said parameter generating unit
申請人：Panasonic Corporation
涉及法規：
EPC Art. 83, 84, 111(1)
EPC R. 43(2)
案由：專利申請人對歐洲專利局審查核駁意見（申請號：04727431.1）提出訴願。
在此僅討論EPC Rule 43(2)的議題，本案經訴願後，確認其中兩項獨立請求項為符合EPC Rule 43(2)可以在一件歐洲專利案中具備兩項以上獨立項的例外情事。
根據歐洲專利局公報，本案有很多獨立項，在此不全部列舉，可直接看結論。
本案在專利審查時，被認定專利獨立請求項之間不符EPC Rule 43(2)的規定，但經申請人提出修正，獨立請求項包括一裝置項（claim 1）、兩個方法項（claims 14, 17），以及兩個產品裝置項（claims 16, 19）。訴願委員會認為以上方法與產品裝置項為互補的加密與解密的功能，判斷為符合43(2)的規定。
以上獨缺claim 1，但認為claim 1的附屬項claims 11-13已經界定以上有關加解密等不可分割的技術特徵，也一同符合43(2)的例外情事。
本案符合EPC Rule 43(2)規定。
補充：
歐洲訴願委員會認為修正後請求項仍應判斷是否符合Rule 43(2)，案例有G 1/91 (OJ 1992, 253)，也就是原請求項若已符合單一性規定，之後經過修正，仍不得違反單一性規定。而且，重點是，在專利獲准後「異議階段」若不符單一性規定，還不得提出分割案。
關於EPC Rule 43(2)規定的異議案例有T 263/05 (OJ 2008, 329)。
關於包括多個獨立請求項而又符合單一性規定的案例：T 1416/04。
結論：
從我快速瀏覽所搜尋到有關43(2)多項獨立項的救濟案例中，判斷時考量了是否各項獨立項（即便是附屬項也有此考量）同在一個發明概念下，且此發明概念具有新穎特徵（即考量STF）；另還連結「簡明」的請求項撰寫要求，看來，用不同語言界定同一發明，在EPO會有些問題。一般來說，對於不同的發明標的是否有一定要連結的必要性，EPO看得很緊，能夠上訴成功的極少。
比如：插座/插頭、鑰匙/門鎖、螺絲/螺帽、加密/解密等可歸類符合EPC Rule 43(2)可以在一件歐洲專利案中包括一項以上獨立請求項的例外情事規定。
本討論案例檔案：
http://www.epo.org/law-practice/case-law-appeals/pdf/t100978eu1.pdf
Ron
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