Appeal No. 98-0059
Application No. 08/540,548
a sealing, watertight adhesive interposed between
adjacent flashing cards for sealably mounting the
vertical portion of each of the plurality of
partially overlapping adjacently disposed flashing
cards to the vertical portion of an adjacent
flashing card, forming a substantially watertight
seal therebetween.
According to the appellant, the sealing, watertight adhesive
performs two functions. First, it attaches together a
plurality of flashing cards and therefore makes flashing
easier for the installer to use. Second, it guards against
water seepage between individual flashing cards, thus
improving the roofing. See specification, pages 7 and 8.
The examiner finds in both Hartman and Prestidge all of
the subject matter required by claim 1 except for the
“sealable means between the overlapped vertical portions of
adjacent shingles [sic, cards]” (Answer, page 2). It is the
examiner’s position, however, that Damron teaches placing
sealing between two vertical members to exclude water, and
therefore it would have been obvious to place sealant “between
any structures where sealant is called for” (Answer, page 2).
The examiner also points out that his dictionary defines
sealant as “an adhesive agent used to secure something or to
prevent the seepage of moisture or air,” and therefore the
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Last modified: November 3, 2007