Ex parte SAKAGUCHI - Page 5




          Appeal No. 1998-3365                                                        
          Application No. 08/673,214                                                  


          determinations set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S.              
          1, 17, 148 USPQ 459, 467                                                    
          (1966), and to provide a reason why one having ordinary skill               
          in the pertinent art would have been led to modify the prior                
          art or to combine prior art references to arrive at the                     
          claimed invention.  Such reason must stem from some teaching,               
          suggestion or implication in the prior art as a whole or                    
          knowledge generally available to one having ordinary skill in               
          the art.  Uniroyal, Inc. v. Rudkin-Wiley Corp., 837 F.2d 1044,              
          1051, 5 USPQ2d 1434, 1438 (Fed. Cir.), cert. denied, 488 U.S.               
          825 (1988); Ashland Oil, Inc. v. Delta Resins & Refractories,               
          Inc., 776 F.2d 281, 293, 227 USPQ 657, 664 (Fed. Cir. 1985),                
          cert. denied, 475 U.S. 1017 (1986); ACS Hosp. Sys., Inc. v.                 
          Montefiore Hosp., 732 F.2d 1572, 1577, 221 USPQ 929, 933 (Fed.              
          Cir. 1984).  These showings by the examiner are an essential                
          part of complying with the burden of presenting a prima facie               
          case of obviousness.  Note In re Oetiker, 977 F.2d 1443, 1445,              
          24 USPQ2d 1443, 1444 (Fed. Cir. 1992).  If that burden is met,              
          the burden then shifts to the applicant to overcome the prima               
          facie case with argument and/or evidence.  Obviousness is then              
          determined on the basis of the evidence as a whole and the                  
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