Appeal No. 1998-1425
Application No. 08/437,808
after they have been formed (by extrusion), while claims 1 and
2 call for spraying the plate material before the tubes are
formed. As a result, in Kawase only the outer surface of the
tubes is sprayed, whereas in appellants' claimed process the
flux is sprayed on the inner surface of the plate material.
As appellants state on page 4 of the brief, "[i]n Kawase, it 3
is impossible to spray the flux to the inner surface of a flat
tube because the extruded flat tube is already closed." Thus,
modifying the AAPA in view of the teachings of Kawase would
not result in the process recited in claims 1 and 2.
In the above-quoted excerpt from pages 4 and 5 of the
examiner's answer, the examiner seems to take the position
that, in effect, the particular spraying direction would have
been an obvious matter of choice. We disagree. As far as can
be gleaned from the AAPA, in the prior art method the flux
would be brushed or rolled onto an upwardly facing tube plate
inner surface. We perceive no suggestion or motivation in the
prior art for one of ordinary skill to invert the plate
material and then apply the flux from underneath. Also,
3All references herein to the brief are to the Amended
Brief on Appeal filed on July 22, 1999.
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