Appeal No. 98-2520
Application 08/613,792
construction for the composite shaft therein and provides no
teaching or suggestion concerning any defined layered shaft
structure like that set forth in the claims before us on
appeal. Kusumoto and Akatsuka each disclose golf club shafts
having a layered composite construction and, as noted by the
examiner, disclose individual layers therein that are the same
as or similar to certain of the individual layers used in
appellant’s claimed lightweight shaft and golf club. However,
what each of the references relied upon by the examiner lacks
is any teaching, suggestion or incentive for combining the
particular types of reinforcing layers set forth in the claims
on appeal in the particular sequence claimed so as to arrive
at a lightweight shaft or golf club like that defined in
appellant’s claims on appeal.
Like appellant (brief, page 11), it is our opinion
that the examiner has used the claimed invention as a guide or
blueprint to piece together various disparate aspects of the
Billings, Kusumoto and Akatsuka patents in an attempt to
arrive
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