Appeal No. 1997-2958 5
Application No. 08/401,719
rolling the cast alloy to a final plate thickness, said rolling step including setting a cold rolling rate
at a final stage to at least 50%; and
subjecting the rolled plate of a final plate thickness to final annealing, wherein the rolled plate of
the final plate thickness is heated to an elevated temperature within a range of 150 to 250°C at a
temperature-elevating speed of at least 1°C/sec, maintaining the rolled plate at the elevated
temperature for 0 to 5 minutes, and thereafter cooling the rolled plate at a cooling speed of at least
1°C/sec. [Emphasis ours.]
The prior art reference of record relied upon by the examiner in rejecting the appealed claims is:
Komatsubara et al. (Komatsubara) 5,181,969 Jan. 26, 1993
Claims 1-22 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as being unpatentable over Komatsubara.
We affirm the rejection of claims 1, 4, 5, and 15-22 and reverse the rejection of claims 2, 3, and 6-14.
In addition, we raise issues for the examiner to consider upon return of the application.
OPINION
Grouping of the Claims
Initially, we note that appellants have not separately argued all the claims. Appellants do
present arguments for claims 1-5, 14, and 20-22, although, in many instances, the arguments are not
clearly distinguished as being directed to any particular claim . We were unable to identify any1
1It is prudent for appellants and examiners to organize the arguments on a claim by claim basis
and to tailor the arguments to the particular claim being addressed so that important issues are not
overlooked and each claim is treated appropriately.
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