Appeal No. 95-3566
Application No. 07/950,802
with, according to appellant, the distinction that a tail
pulley is employed that has "L-shaped spokes including legs
and arms." Here, we agree with the examiner that Combrowski
fairly teaches a method of skimming oil with a tail pulley
comprising vanes 35 that closely correspond to the claimed
spokes. We agree with the examiner that the general shape of
Combrowski's vanes fairly suggests L-shaped spokes having arms
and legs that are oriented in the direction of the pulley
rotation. Furthermore, Combrowski expressly teaches that
"[t]he geometrical shape of said vanes 35 can be developed in
different ways, the requirement of the user always being
important in this connection" (column 4, lines
51-54). In our view, any distinction between the shape of
Combrowski's vanes and shapes within the scope of claim 16
would have been an obvious matter of design choice for one of
ordinary skill in the art. We note that appellant presents no
argument that the shape of the claimed spokes offers a
particular advantage or solves a specific problem not achieved
by the vanes of Combrowski. In re Kuhle, 526 F.2d 553, 555,
188 USPQ 7, 9 (CCPA 1975). Also, we note that appellant bases
-8-
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