Appeal No. 97-1810 Page 5
Application No. 08/321,262
We sustain the rejection of claims 21 and 25, but not the
rejection of claim 24.
Claim 21
Claim 21 recites a disposable tooth cleaning apparatus
comprising, inter alia, an elongated brush portion having a
segment at one end and a plurality of bristles at the other
end, an elongated handle portion having a compartment for
holding a supply of powdered dentifrice and an opening through
which the dentifrice may be poured and through which the
segment of the brush portion is received for connecting the
brush portion and handle portion for use, and means for
sealing the opening for subsequent manual unsealing.
Merrill discloses a pocket outfit for the care of teeth.
As shown in Figures 1, the outfit includes a toothbrush 1
provided with a shank 2 whose tapered end fits exactly into a
corresponding aperture 3 formed in the hollow handle 4.
Merrill teaches (page 1, lines 49-54) that
[b]y this arrangement the brush is well secured to its
handle and at the same time the aperture 3 is closed, so
that the chamber 5 in the interior of the handle will
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