Ex Parte Binot - Page 6


                 Appeal No.  2007-0175                                                          Page 6                   
                 Application No.  10/467,134                                                                             
                 material in the water or wastewater is eliminated by this “settling operation”, or                      
                 that at least 20% of hexane extractable material in the water or wastewater is                          
                 eliminated without subjecting the water or waste water to flotation degreasing                          
                 means as is required by appellant’s claimed invention.  For the following reasons                       
                 we disagree with the examiner’s assertion that the elimination of at least 20% of                       
                 hexane extractable material from the water or wastewater without subjecting the                         
                 water or wastewater to flotation degreasing means is simply a matter of                                 
                 optimizing the process taught by the combined teachings of Binot and Vion.                              
                 Answer, page  3.                                                                                        
                        The examiner recognizes that Binot does not teach the elimination of                             
                 hexane extractable material, or grease, by a means other than flotation                                 
                 degreasing.  Final Rejection, page 2.  Therefore, we look to Vion to provide a                          
                 teaching of the elimination of at least 20% of hexane extractable material, or                          
                 grease, from water or wastewater without the use of flotation degreasing means.                         
                 Vion is interested in reducing “the size of [a water/waste water treatment] plant                       
                 while optimizing the two functions of degritting and degreasing.  Vion, column 1,                       
                 lines 47-49.  To do this Vion proposes that the degritting and degreasing                               
                 operations can be broken down into elementary steps, and at least one of these                          
                 two steps can be combined with the steps carried out during the mechanical-                             
                 chemical treatment and settling operations of the process.  Vion, column 1, lines                       
                 50-63.  We note that Vion does not suggest that the steps, e.g., flotation                              
                 degreasing, are eliminated.  To the contrary, Vion states that the steps can be                         
                 combined with other steps in the process.                                                               






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