Appeal No. 2001-1898
Application No. 08/835,945
modification obvious unless the desirability thereof was
suggested by the prior art. In re Fritch, 972 F.2d 1260, 1266,
23 USPQ2d 1780, 1783-84 (Fed. Cir. 1992).
Rejection Pursuant to 37 CFR § 1.196(b)
Pursuant to 37 CFR § 1.196(b), claims 57 and 59 to 62 are
rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as unpatentable over Stenberg
in view of the Snap-on Catalog. Stenberg is discussed above in
relation to rejection (4). The Snap-on Catalog at page 233
discloses, as item Q, a file handle which is cylindrical, with a
l" diameter. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary
skill, in view of the Snap-on Catalog, to use a cylindrical shape
for the file handle 2 of Stenberg, the Catalog suggesting that
such a handle is desirable because it "[p]rovides a large,
comfortable grip for all bastard cut files." With a cylindrical
handle, the ends of the bar 6 of Stenberg would be made
cylindrical so that they would "join" (conform to) the surface of
the handle and not injure the user's hand, as disclosed at page
3, last two lines.
Conclusion
The examiner's decision to reject claims 55 and 56 under
§ 112, second paragraph, is affirmed; to reject claims 47 to 56
under § 102(b) is affirmed as to claims 47, 49, 52, 54 and 55,
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