Appeal No. 1999-2220 Page 5
Application No. 08/662,930
storing, drying (at least to some degree), and/or cooling (at
least to some degree) would occur in these chambers” (Paper No.
10, page 3). There is no support for this in the reference.
First of all, element 116 is not described as a series of
chambers, but as a “vessel storage stage,” the function of
which is to store vessels (114) that contain substrates before
and after they are conveyed to chamber 119, where the
substrates are removed from the vessels for eventual processing
in chamber 109 (column 15, lines 44 and 45; columns 20 and 21).
Second, not only is there no teaching in Iwai of applying a
treatment anywhere other than in chamber 109, but stage 116 is
not described as even having a front closure that can isolate
the space so that a treatment could be accomplished therein.
Moreover, in view of the fact that the substrates are contained
in closed vessels 114 when they are stored in stage 116, no
treatment could be accomplished to them at that location with
the Iwai apparatus, as disclosed. Finally, we cannot agree
with the examiner that the mere act of “storing” substrates in
stage 116 amounts to “processing” them, and the conclusion that
drying and/or cooling would occur therein is mere speculation,
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