Ex parte RASMUSSEN - Page 7




          Appeal No. 1998-2240                                       Page 7           
          Application No. 08/443,058                                                  


          that the flexible sheet be “readily removable” from the sphere              
          or hemisphere which it overlies.  As we explained in preceding              
          paragraphs, we consider this to mean that it be easily                      
          removable, that is, not permanently attached or attached in a               
          manner that would require the use of tools, solvents, or the                
          like to remove it.  The examiner’s position with regard to                  
          this limitation (Answer, page 5) is that because Wigal does                 
          not state whether the adhesive used to attach the sheet to the              
          globe is permanent or removable, using a removable adhesive is              
          included in the teachings that one of ordinary skill in the                 
          art would derive from it. The examiner further opines that                  
          “[i]t should be noted that all adhesive become[s] removable                 
          with time as it looses [sic, loses] its adhesivity,” a                      
          statement that not only begs the question of whether a sheet                
          attached therewith would be “readily removable” but, in the                 
          absence of supporting evidence, is untenable on its face.                   


               We agree with the appellant that Wigal does not support                
          the examiner’s position.  Wigal has among the objects of his                
          invention providing a device that is “durable and stable,                   
          being resistant to breakdown through the normal, expected hard              







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