Appeal No. 95-2382
Application 07/955,671
(answer, page 5). Appellants admit that the substitution of bead
coating for curtain coating is well known in the photographic
industry but submit that EP ‘493 does not teach or suggest
chilling the liquid material in a downward horizontal facing
direction until the liquid materials gel (brief, page 7).
The examiner’s reasoning is deficient for several reasons.
Although bead coating is conventional in the art, as admitted by
appellants and shown in Figure 2 of EP ‘493, the reference only
discloses chilling coated photographic liquid materials in a
downward facing position for curtain coating (see Figures 5, 7
and 8). The conventional bead coating as shown in Figure 2 does
not result in the liquid material being in a downward facing
manner. The coating layer 3 is on top of the moving web 1 (see3
Figure 2). There is no motivation or suggestion to use the
coating and chilling method of the curtain coating embodiment of
Figures 5, 7 and 8 in the conventional bead coating depicted in
Figure 2. See Arkie Lures, Inc. v. Gene Larew Tackle, Inc., 119
F.3d 953, 957, 43 USPQ2d 1294, 1297 (Fed. Cir. 1997)(“It is
insufficient to establish obviousness that the separate elements
3 The examiner has referred to Figure 3 on page 5 of the answer
presumably for its depiction of conventional curtain coating. See EP ‘493, page
14, lines 21-23.
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