`
`Cancel Claim 14, without prejudice.
`
`1.
`
`(Withdrawn) A die responsive to a pressure applied thereto to cut a shape from a sheet
`
`material against which the die is pressed, said die comprising an inside opening that corresponds
`
`to the shape to be cut from the sheet material, an outside border that surrounds said inside
`
`opening, and a cutting edge that projects from said outside border to cut the shape from the sheet
`material, said cutting edge being located on said outer border such that said cutting edge
`surrounds the inside opening of said die, whereby none ofsaid outside. border extends past the
`cutting edge and none of said outside borderlies between said cutting edge and said inside
`
`opening, so that said cutting edge is tegistered with the shape to be cut whensaid die is
`positioned on the sheet material and the outside border of said die surroundsthe shape.
`
`2.
`
`(Withdrawn) The die recited in Claim 1, wherein the cutting edge which projects from
`
`the outside borderof said die is a cutting blade.
`
`3.
`
`(Withdrawn) The die recited in Claim 1, wherein said cutting edge is located on the
`
`outside border of said die'so as to lie exactly at the periphery of the inside opening of said die
`surrounded by said outside border, whereby said cutting edge exactly defines the shape to be cut
`
`from the sheet material.
`
`4.
`
`(Withdrawn) The die recited in Claim 1, wherein the cutting edge of said die is located
`
`at the interface of said inside opening with said outside border.
`
`AmendAftrFinalRejec. ELL-125
`
`
`
`5.
`
`(Withdrawn) The die recited in Claim 1, wherein the outside border of said die has a
`
`width of at least 2.5 mm.
`
`a
`
`7.
`
`8.
`
`(Cancelled)
`
`(Cancelled)
`
`(Cancelled)
`
`9.
`
`(Cancelled)
`
`10.
`
`(Cancelled)
`
`11.=(Cancelled)
`
`12.
`
`(Cancelled)
`
`13.
`
`(Currently Amended) A method for cutting out, by meansofa first die, a shape that is
`
`printed on a sheet material, wherein the die includes an inside opening that corresponds to the
`
`shape to be cut from the sheet material, a flat outside border having first and opposite faces that
`
`surround said inside opening, and a cutting edge that projects from the first face of theflat
`
`outside border, such that said cutting edge surrounds the inside opening of said first die and
`
`corresponds exactly with the shape that is printed on the sheet material and none ofthe flat
`
`AmendAftrFinalRejec.ELL-125
`
`
`
`outside border of said die extends into the inside opening of said die past the interface of said
`
`cutting edge with the first face of said flat outer border, said method comprisingthe stepsof:
`
`locating the shape printed on the sheet material to be cut therefrom;
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`placing thefirstfaceoftheflat-outer-berderofsaid_first-die-onthe sheet-material cutting
`
`
`
`edge which projects from the first face of the flat outside border of said first die against the sheet
`
`material, and looking through the inside opening ofsaid first die so that the shape printed on the
`
`sheet material is located entirely within the inside opening ofsaid first die and the cutting edge
`
`which projects from the first face of said flat outside border is automatically registered so as to
`
`lie-againstthe-sheetmaterialand
`
`surround the shape to be cut therefrem:; from the sheet material:
`
`
`and
`
`applying a force to the opposite face of the flat outside border of said first die after said
`
`cutting edge hasfirst been placed against the sheet material for pushing said cutting edge through
`
`said sheet material to cut the shape outwardly therefrom.
`
`14.
`
`(Cancelled)
`
`15.
`
`(Previously Presented)
`
`The methodrecited in Claim 13, comprising the additional
`
`step of forming said first die by chemically etchinga flat piece of metal.
`
`16.
`
`(Previously Presented)
`
`The methodrecited in Claim 15, comprising the additional
`
`step of formingat least a second die by chemically etching the flat piece of metal, such that the
`
`second die is nested within and spaced from the first die so asto lie at the inside opening of said
`
`first die, wherebythe size ofthe inside openingofsaidfirst die is larger than said seconddie.
`
`AmendAftrFinalRejec.ELL-125
`
`