Appeal No. 96-0447
Application No. 08/145,731
changed, the lamp of Tenen would appear to be without the
necessary starting circuit since the capacitors 27 and 28 of
Tenen have magnitudes greater than the operating circuit
capacitors in order to start the lamp. Since the instant
claimed invention requires the delivery of the two energy
values during operating conditions and not during starting
conditions, and the claim limitation of “same order of
magnitude” relates to these two energy values during
operation, not start-up, it was improper for the examiner to
merely dismiss this limitation with the rationale that it
would have been obvious to change the ratio of energy values
in Tenen as the mere discovery of the optimum or workable
ranges of general conditions disclosed by the prior art. The
prior art, as represented by Tenen, does not disclose the
“general conditions” of the instant claimed invention [since
Tenen lacks the necessary disclosure of the claimed operating
circuit] and the “same order of magnitude” limitation relates
to more than a mere optimization of ranges.
The examiner’s decision rejecting claims 3, 5 and 9
through 18 under 35 U.S.C. § 103 is reversed.
REVERSED
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