Appeal No. 1998-0294
Application No. 08/318,726
ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated to modify
the Japanese reference in the manner proposed by the examiner
because the system disclosed by Schladitz is an “alternative”
to that of the Japanese reference that would provide “improved
evaporation of the liquid” (Answer, page 4) is speculation,
unsupported by evidence. From our perspective, there is no
teaching, suggestion or incentive in either reference which
would have led the artisan to modify the apparatus of the
Japanese reference by removing the heaters that are installed
inside the filter material and replacing them with a plurality
of thin metal wires located on the external surface of the
filter material. In this regard, it would appear that placing
a heating device on the outside of the filter material in the
Japanese system would necessitate a major reconstruction of
the system and revision of its manner of operation, and would
be fraught with questions as to whether placing a heating wire
on the external surface of the filter material would continue
to provide the desired humidification function and would not
adversely effect the flow of cooling air. This, in our view,
would have been a disincentive to one of ordinary skill in the
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