Appeal No. 97-4161
Application 08/397,408
column 4 and Figure 8; compare Figures 6 and 7. One of the
marrying roll patterns (Figures 4 and 9) is described as
“raised dots” which “have a substantial open area between each
. . . [so that] there is sufficient space for the sheet to
pucker slightly without causing unacceptable creasing of the
web” (column 3, line 32 et seq.). The density of the dot
pattern is described in terms of the surface area of the
marrying roller, in the broad sense between 0 and 100%, with
the preferred degree being 10-40% (column 3, lines 60-67).
The diameter of each dot is not stated, with the only clue
being the fact that the lamination of the plies to one another
is dependent upon the total area that these dots contact the
webs, with more than 40% contact causing unnecessary
debulking, while less than 10% fails to provide adequate
lamination (column 4, lines 1-6). It is clear that in the
Bauernfeind system the “dot” embossing step must occur
subsequent to the other embossing step, in that it is the
“dot” step that causes the webs to be laminated together in
the manner which constitutes the thrust of the invention.
Our understanding of this rejection is that the required
“pillow-like areas” comprise the areas 32 in Figure 9 of
6
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