Appeal No. 2006-1792
Application 10/329,665
The references relied on by the examiner are:
Whelan 3,663,496 May 16, 1972
Duryea 4,820,576 Apr. 11, 1989
Russell 4,959,110 Sep. 25, 1990
Brownell et al. (Brownell) WO 94/25267 Nov. 10, 1994
(published World Intellectual Property Organization Application)
Yasuma 08-134327 A May 28, 1996
(published unexamined Japanese patent application)
Nanaumi 10-330583 A Dec. 15, 1998
(published unexamined Japanese patent application)
Phyllis A. Lyday (Lyday), “Boron,” Mineral Yearbook, USGS, pp. 1-11 (1995).
The examiner has rejected appealed claims 1 through 3 and 5 through 35 under 35 U.S.C.
§ 103(a) as being unpatentable over the admitted prior art in the written description in the
specification ([0020] through [0025]) in view of Whelan, Russell, Lyday and any one of
Brownell, Duryea, Nanaumi or Yasuma (answer, pages 3-10).
Appellants argue claim 1 with respect to the grouping of claims 1 through 3, 5 through
14, 16 through 32, 34 and 35, and claim 15 with respect to the grouping of claims 15 and 33
(brief, pages 7 and 14). Accordingly, we decide this appeal based on these claims 1 and 15.
37 CFR § 41.37(c)(1)(vii) (September 2004).
We affirm.
We refer to the answer and to the brief and reply brief for a complete exposition of the
positions advanced by the examiner and appellants.
Opinion
We have carefully reviewed the record on this appeal and based thereon find ourselves in
agreement with the supported position advanced by the examiner that, prima facie, the claimed
method of insulating a structure of a rocket motor encompassed by appealed claims 1 and 15
would have been obvious over the combined teachings of the admitted prior art, Whelan,
Russell, Lyday, Brownell, Duryea, Nanaumi and Yasuma to one of ordinary skill in this art at the
time the claimed invention was made. Accordingly, since a prima facie case of obviousness has
been established by the examiner, we again evaluate all of the evidence of obviousness and
nonobviousness based on the record as a whole, giving due consideration to the weight of
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