Appeal No. 1999-0052
Application 08/660,663
use with a cover 2 which is adapted to be draped over a
vehicle. Each hold down device consists of an elastic cord 3
having at one end a weighted bottle 5 filled with water, sand,
gravel or the like and at the other end a clip 4 for
attachment to the lower margin of the cover (see Figure 1).
According to Jones, “[t]he elastic cord 3 is a yielding
attachment for the weight so that a sudden gust of wind puts a
less abrupt force on the clip. Furthermore, a forceful wind
will lift the weight instead of tearing the [cover] fabric”
(column 2, lines 42 through 46).
The relationship between Battle’s container 10 and the
vehicle enclosed therein indicates that the container would
not be subject to the wind-generated hold down problem
addressed by Jones. Indeed, in the absence of impermissible
hindsight there is no reasonable indication in the combined
teachings of these references that Battle’s container would be
subject to any type of hold down problem. In this light, it
is not apparent, nor has the examiner cogently explained, why
one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious
to provide the apparatus and method disclosed by Battle with
6
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