Appeal No. 96-0473
Application No. 08/082,727
monomer components being compatible with said disperse phase with the other
monomer component or components being compatible with said continuous phase.
The examiner relies upon the following references as evidence of obviousness:
Azar et al. (Azar) 3,893,932 Jul. 08, 1975
Crystal 3,974,078 Aug. 10, 1976
Wellman et al. (Wellman) 4,016,099 Apr. 05, 1977
Sawai et al. (Sawai) 4,254,201 Mar. 03, 1981
Appellants’ claimed invention is directed to a microcapsule toner comprising a core containing a
fixable component, and provided thereon a shell, wherein the fixable component has a micro phase
separation structure composed of a liquid continuous phase and a disperse phase containing a resin and
having a glass transition temperature of not higher than 20EC, and said fixable component contains a
block and/or graft copolymer comprising two or more monomer components, at least one of the
monomer components being compatible with said disperse phase with the other monomer component
or components being compatible with said continuous phase. According to appellants, the block and/or
graft copolymer assists in dispersing one part of the fixable component, i.e., the disperse phase
containing a resin, within another part of the fixable component, i.e., the liquid continuous phase. In
other words, the block and/or graft copolymer forms a micro phase separation structure within the core
of the microcapsule, not between the core and the wall material. (See Brief, page 7, para. 3.)
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