Appeal No. 96-1852
Application No. 08/016,931
art, either singularly or collectively, teaches or suggests
inhibiting the formation of deposits on a contact lens by
utilizing a composition comprising the recited ophthalmically
acceptable components. Accordingly, we are constrained to
reverse the examiner's rejection.
Under the provisions of 37 CFR § 1.196(b), we enter the
following new ground of rejection. Claims 13 and 15-22 are
rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103 over JP-011497. According to
page 3 of appellants' specification, the Japanese reference
discloses ophthalmic compositions comprising glutathione and
conventional auxiliaries such as appellants' wearability
component, polyvinyl alcohol. Although appellants'
specification states that the Japanese reference does not
teach use of the composition in the care of contact lens, it
is well settled that a claimed composition cannot be
distinguished from the same prior art composition by
recitation of an intended use not described in the prior art.
As a result, we find no patentable distinction between the
composition disclosed by Japanese '114 and the composition
recited in appealed claim 13. As for the claimed pHs set
forth in some of the dependent claims, it is also well settled
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