Appeal No. 94-4172
Application 08/001,854
that
“Inoue et al place no limits on the amount of
colloidal silica to be used in their
protective layers and thus the exact amount
for any application becomes an ordinary
design variable subject to ordinary
optimization procedures using the value
exemplified as a starting point” (Answer,
page 6).
Implicit in this contention is the belief that such
“optimization” of the colloidal silica amount to be used in
patentee’s protective layer would yield a coverage value within
the here claimed range. The record before us contains no
evidence to support this belief.
It is significant that the appellants and Inoue use
colloidal silica in their respective protective layers for
different reasons. As previously indicated, the appellants use
colloidal silica in order to improve maximum optical density and
exposure latitude. On the other hand, patentee uses colloidal
silica as a matting agent (see lines 39 through 41 in column 31)
in order to prevent sticking (see lines 19 through 23 in column
21). Because the appellants and Inoue use colloidal silica for
different reasons, it cannot be assumed that the amount necessary
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