Appeal No. 1996-1158
Application No. 08/077,599
The Cheng reference does not mention the claimed fuel saving
recited in step (d), which reads as follows:
carrying out the process of steps (a),
(b) and (c) so that the amount of fuel
utilized per pound of carbon black produced
by the process of steps (a), (b) and (c) is
less than the fuel utilized per pound of
carbon black to form the first carbon black
produced by the process of steps (a) and
(b). . .
The dispositive question is, therefore, whether the
amount of fuel utilized per pound of carbon black produced by
the process steps (a), (b) and (c) described in the Cheng
reference is inherently less than the fuel utilized per pound
of carbon black produced by the process steps (a) and (b)
described in the Cheng reference. We answer this question in
the affirmative.
As indicated supra, the Cheng reference describes, inter
alia, process steps identical to the claimed process steps
(a), (b) and (c). These process steps, according to appellant
at pages 4 and 5 of the specification, would necessarily
result in the fuel saving recited in step (d). Specifically,
appellant states (specification, pages 4 and 5) that:
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