Ex Parte RUBIN - Page 12




          art teaches formulation comprising multiple release layers to                 
          provide for immediate and sustained release of actives, including             
          levodopa and carbidopa".  Supplemental Appeal Brief, page 3.                  
               One skilled in the art armed Conte would have been aware of              
          problems associated with the Dempski manner of administration of              
          drugs.  Conte describes Dempski's problem, as well as its                     
          solution.  Furthermore, Conte explicitly describes solution of                
          Dempski's problem with respect to administration of levodopa and              
          carbidopa, the dosages suggested by Dempski, to treat Parkinson's             
          disease.  Hence, Conte provides a reason, suggestion, teaching,               
          incentive or motivation to replace the Dempski device with the                
          Conte device.  Insofar as we can tell, applicant has done exactly             
          what Conte teaches.  In other words, applicants have used a known             
          technique in a known manner to address a known problem to obtain              
          an entirely expected result.  Cf. In re Gorman, 933 F.2d 982,                 
          987, 18 USPQ2d 1885, 1889 (Fed. Cir. 1991) (the claim elements                
          appear in the prior art in the same configurations, serving the               
          same functions, to achieve the results suggested in the prior                 
          art).                                                                         

                    2.   Applicant's arguments                                          
               A first argument made by applicant is interesting.  The                  
          argument seems to be that the prior art acknowledged by Conte                 
          or cited against Conte, establishes that Conte must have                      
          discovered something different from what Conte says he discovered             
          (Supplemental Appeal Brief, pages 3-4).  Unfortunately for                    

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