Appeal No. 1997-1682
Application No. 08/270,198
yellowing occurring when unreacted UV activated free-radical-
generating species from one layer are brought together with
the plasticizer of the vinyl layer (page 3 of Brief, last
paragraph). It would seem that Nakajima would have no
opportunity to recognize the stated problem since the UV
absorbing layer of Nakajima would prevent the occurrence of
such a problem. Furthermore, we totally agree with the
examiner that, based on Olson and the state of the prior art,
"[i]t would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in
the art at the time the invention was made to use UV-absorbing
layers to block UV radiation from reaching underlying PVC
layers" in order "to prevent UV-related discoloration and
degradation in PVC-containing laminates" (page 5 of Answer,
first paragraph).
We now turn to the examiner's rejection of claims 9 and
11 over Tolliver in view of DeBergalis. We will not sustain
this rejection because, as urged by appellant, neither of the
"references disclose free radical-plasticizer immiscibility as
a means for reducing yellowness caused by interaction of the
two" (sentence bridging pages 5 and 6 of Brief). Furthermore,
neither of the cited references makes any reference to the
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