Juxtapose the following sentence from your post:...

"We really, in my non-legal opinion, do not want to lose outright on any disputed term in the variable speed ring oscillator claim of the '336."...

With the comment by Judge WARD about "...his wife following him on a walk, and she had to take more frequent steps to keep up with him, as being 'variable speed'", and you may have a clue which way he may go on 336...

GLTA...

Gil...