4981, an appeal from the final rejection of claims 10 through
16 in Application 08/248,583, which is directed to a method
for forming a fiber reinforced silicon carbide matrix.
Claim 10, the broadest claim in this application, reads
as follows:
10. A fiber reinforced silicon carbide matrix composite
comprising at least about 10 volume percent of metal nitride
coated fiber and from about 5 to 90 volume percent silicon
carbide, said metal nitride coated fiber consisting
essentially of a silicon carbide fiber, and a metal nitride
coating selected from the group consisting of silicon nitride,
titanium nitride, tantalum nitride, zirconium nitride, hafnium
nitride, aluminum nitride, niobium nitride, and mixtures
thereof, where said metal nitride first coating is a
continuous coating covering the entire surface of said silicon
carbide fiber.
As evidence of obviousness, the examiner relies on the
following prior art:
Singh et al. (Singh) 4,889,686 Dec. 26, 1989
Borom et al. (Borom) 5,015,540 May 14, 1991
(filed Jun. 1, 1987)
Rousseau 5,051,300 Sep. 24, 1991
(filed Aug. 15,1989)
Claims 10 through 12 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103
as unpatentable over the combined disclosures of either Borom
or Singh, and Rousseau.
We reverse.
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