Appeal No. 98-2655
Application 08/698,743
“Iba ‘104 discloses an apparatus for storing
and cleaning contact lenses comprising a container
(12) including an open end, a lens holding means
(18, 20, 22), a cap (14) for sealably covering the
open end of the container having at least one vent
hole (26) and a gas-permeable, liquid-impermeable
membrane (16) having an internal void (36) which
fixed [sic] to the internal surface of the cap and
positioned to cover all apertures. Iba ‘104 also
discloses all the other limitations of the claims
except for the gas-permeable, liquid-impermeable
membrane being welded to the internal surface of the
cap so that the membrane can’t become dislodged,
allowing the cap to leak at the vent holes. Dubois
‘796 discloses a container (10) comprising a body
(12) and a top closure (16) having a vented closure
(20) to permit the venting of gasses within the
container and avoid pressure buildup while
preventing any liquid from discharging from the
container. The closure includes a gas-permeable,
liquid-impermeable membrane (54) attached to the
plug (42) in any number of ways including by hot
welding (column 2, lines 57-68 and column 3, lines
1-3, and Figures 1, 4 and 5). It would have been
obvious to one having skill in the art in view of
Dubois ‘796 to modify the apparatus of Iba ‘104 so
the membrane is more securely attached to the
internal surface of the cap by any conventional
method such as welding to prevent the membrane from
falling off the cap and allowing undesired leakage”
(answer, pages 4-5).
Claim 5 stands rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as being
unpatentable over Iba and Dubois as applied to claim 1 above,
and further in view of Su.
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