Appeal No. 1998-0106
Application No. 08/377,753
1-3 to be separated to permit removal of the slotting
knives and the cylindrical printing plates.
Each of the couplings 27, 28 has separable gears 29,
30 which are uniquely keyed or configured to ensure that
the transmission gears are reassembled in the same relative
positions occupied before disassembly. This feature solves
the problem of reassembling the transmission gears in
different positions where the cardboard sheets are not
printed or slotted at the proper locations.
From the foregoing discussion, it is apparent that
both the Takeda patent and appellants' invention relate to
problems arising from the relative positions of gear
transmission components after reassembly. To this extent,
the Takeda patent is reasonably pertinent to the particular
problem with which appellants were involved to apparently
meet the second part of the two-part test for analogous art
as set forth in In re Clay, 966 F.2d 656, 658, 23 USPQ2d
1058, 1060 (Fed. Cir. 1992). On the other hand, appellants
and Takeda are concerned with different specific problems,
namely the problem of wear in appellants= invention, and the
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