Appeal 2006-1966
Application 10/246,506
The references of record relied upon by the examiner as evidence of
obviousness are:
MacKenzie U.S. 3,851,983 Dec. 03, 1974
Schlueter U.S. 5,067,845 Nov. 26, 1991
Claims 1-3, 5, 6, 8-10, 12 and 13 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103
as being unpatentable over MacKenzie in view of Schlueter.
ISSUES
The sole issue for our consideration on appeal is whether the examiner
has made out a prima facie case of obviousness of the claimed subject
matter.
FINDINGS OF FACT
The following are findings of fact regarding the scope and content of
the prior art and the differences between the prior art and the claimed subject
matter.
1. MacKenzie discloses a coupling 10 using a sleeve-like member 11 to
attach a hub structure, shaft S, to a vehicle axle, shaft D. The tubular
structure is adapted to slide over the end of the vehicle axle D. The
tubular structure includes an expansion slot 13 which extends along a
portion less than the full length of the sleeve or tubular structure and
the clamping fastener including screws 16 and 17 in sockets 14 and 15
so that the sleeve-like member can be compressibly clamped about
shafts S and D. MacKenzie does not disclose that the tubular
structure of the clamp assembly has an expansion slot wherein moving
3
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Next
Last modified: September 9, 2013