Where a method claim includes steps defined as being carried out by devices other than generic data processing means, a corresponding device and/or computer program claim may need more than a mere reference to the method claim as in formulations (i)-(iv) in F‑IV, 3.9.1, to fulfil the requirements of Art. 84 (see also F-IV, 3.8). Furthermore, if not all the features of the method claim are reflected inclaims in other categories referring to the method, said claims in other categories have to be construed and examined separately with respect to novelty and inventive step.

In particular in applied fields such as medical devices, measuring, optics, electro-mechanics or industrial production processes, method claims frequently involve steps of manipulating or interacting with technical physical entities by using computer control. These method steps may not always be fully performed by the computer and the method claim may recite specific technical means for carrying out some of the steps. In such a case, defining a computer program claim as in F‑IV, 3.9.1(iii), will normally lead to an objection under Art. 84 if the step carried out by the specific technical means cannot be carried out by a generic data processing means (see Example 1 below). An objection under Art. 84 may also arise if the claims do not define which steps are carried out by the data processor or by the additional devices involved, as well as their interactions. The same applies if specific data processing means (e.g. a particular parallel computer architecture) are required as opposed to the generic data processing means described in F‑IV, 3.9.1.

Remarks: In this example, the method claim comprises a step which is defined as being executed by specific technical means (the electromagnetic detector in a pulse oximeter). A computer program claim making reference only to the method would lack clarity because such a program could not be executed e.g. on a general-purpose computer which does not have a pulse oximeter with an electromagnetic detector. Therefore, the computer program claim should be defined as being executed on the pulse oximeter with an electromagnetic detector (by referring to the device of claim 2) rather than only referring to the method claim 1.