Ex Parte Nokelainen - Page 7



                 Appeal No. 2006-1956                                                                                     
                 Application No. 09/935,917                                                                               

            1    while Hayamizu processes roll type paper (Reply 3).  In light of these                                   
            2    differences, Appellant argues that one of skill in the art would not have                                
            3    looked to the disparate system of Hayamizu to modify Moll.  Id.                                          
            4            We fully appreciate the differences between Moll and Hayamizu.  We                               
            5    note, however, that Hayamizu’s X-axis cutter actually cuts a severed sheet,                              
            6    such sheet having first been severed from the roll paper by the Y-axis cutter.                           
            7    Further, Carter evidences that perforators and severing type cutters (slitters)                          
            8    are sufficiently related as to be considered together in the art and further                             
            9    evidences an art-recognized desire to selectively slit or perforate sheets with                          
           10    a minimum of operator involvement, skill or adjustments (col. 1, ll. 11-24).                             
           11    We therefore conclude that the differences between Moll and Hayamizu are                                 
           12    not of such a nature that one of ordinary skill in the art would have                                    
           13    overlooked or been dissuaded from applying the teachings of one apparatus                                
           14    on the other.                                                                                            
           15            It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to                                
           16    modify the Moll perforation apparatus by replacing the manually-set switch                               
           17    system with a programming system of the type taught by Hayamizu wherein                                  
           18    bar codes 7 are printed onto the sheets to convey instructions, read by                                  
           19    discriminating signal detectors 20, to control the perforator to form a desired                          
           20    pattern of perforations on the sheets.  The motivation for the modification is                           
           21    to permit variability in the perforation patterns from one sheet to another                              
           22    with a minimum of operator involvement or adjustments.                                                   

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