Login or register (free and only takes a few minutes) to participate in this question.
You will also have access to many other tools and opportunities designed for those who have language-related jobs (or are passionate about them). Participation is free and the site has a strict confidentiality policy.
17:27 Feb 2, 2012
German to English translations [PRO] Law/Patents - Patents / examinations
German term or phrase:Pos.
This sentence comes from a summary of an examination for patentability. The numbers in question do not refer to the patent being examined, but to another patent used to evaluate patentability.
Behälter (Fig.2), insbesondere Druckbehälter, mit einem rohrförmigen Gehäuseteil (Fig.2, Pos.12), in dem ein Deckelteil (Fig.2, Pos.10) festlegbar ist, wobei in einer Ausnehmung (Fig.2, Pos.18) auf der Innenseite des Gehäuseteiles zumindest teilweise Anlagesegmente (Fig.2, Pos.24,28) eingelegt sind, an denen sich das Deckelteil in seinem Einbauzustand abstützt, und dass mindestens ein Festlegemittel (Fig.2, Pos.30) vorgesehen ist.
Is it possible that Pos. here does not mean position, but rather reference number?
The parts are not moving, there is not reference to an open or closed position, instead Pos. is used to indicate a specific piece of the device. Normally, I would assumed that it is a reference number, but I can't find evidence that Pos. is used in this way.
Perhaps this question could have been phrased differently, but I can certainly understand why it was asked. My interpretation was as follows "Could anyone with experience in patents confirm whether Pos. = item is actually used in this way in a patent context?". I have been working with patents for more than 20 years and I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of times I have ever seen this usage of Pos./item in a patent.
It's not specific to patents. The abbreviation is widely used in all sectors of industry. And if you have checked the glossary and don't believe that any of the previous questions are relevant to your context, you should say so - otherwise, we can only assume that you've forgotten to check.
I *did* check the glossary, Phil. I found nothing related to patents, and reference numbers. Because of the legal nature of this work, I felt very uncomfortable applying answers from finance and chemistry to a rather specific question.
The translation workplace 
peer agreement (net): +6
peer agreement (net): +1