Appeal No. 1997-0494
Application 08/275,860
(c) a minor amount of a carbonated metal alkyl aryl sulfonate, wherein the total base equivalents
donated by the phenate is at least 90% of the total base equivalents donated by the phenate
and the sulfonate.
The appealed claims as represented by claim 11 are drawn to a lubricating oil composition
comprising at least the ingredients in the amounts specified, wherein the total base equivalents donated
by the carbonated sulfurized metal alkyl phenate is about 90% of the total base equivalents donated by
the phenate and the carbonated metal alkyl aryl sulfonate. According to appellants, the “phenate-
containing lubricating oils having good soot dispersancy and good rust inhibition” (specification, page 1).
The reference relied on by the examiner is:
Vernet et al. (Vernet) 5,071,576 Dec. 10, 1991
The examiner has rejected appealed claims 1, 3 and 4 under 35 U.S.C. § 103 as being
unpatentable over Vernet.2 We affirm this ground of rejection and thus the decision of the examiner.
Rather than reiterate the respective positions advanced by the examiner and appellants, we refer
to the examiner’s answer and to appellants’ brief for a complete exposition thereof.
Opinion
We have carefully reviewed the record on this appeal and based thereon find ourselves in
agreement with the examiner that the claimed lubricating oil composition encompassed by appealed
claim 1 would have been obvious over the teachings of Vernet to one of ordinary skill in this art at the
time the claimed invention was made.
There is no dispute that the individual ingredients of the claimed lubricating oil compositions are
shown in Vernet. The dispositive issue, therefore, is whether Vernet in disclosing lubricating oil
compositions containing blends of carbonated sulfurized metal alkyl phenate and the carbonated metal
alkyl aryl sulfonate, wherein the weight percent of the phenate can “usually” be up 10 to 90 wt % of the
blend of these two ingredients (e.g., col. 3, lines 43-47), each of which can “have a high total base
number, as measured by ASTM D 2896, . . . preferably in the range of 30-400” (col. 2, lines 21-24),
1 Appellants state in their brief (page 3) that the appealed claims “stand or fall together.” Thus, we
decide this appeal based on appealed claim 1. 37 CFR § 1.192(c)(7) (1995).
2 The rejection is stated in the examiner’s action of February 6, 1995 (Paper No. 5) (answer, page 3).
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