Appeal No. 1998-2360
Application No. 08/604,976
The Gilder reference does not contain any disclosure
of blade exposures. Thus, this reference is pertinent only
for its teaching of a three-blade unit.
The Welsh patent does contain a disclosure of blade
exposures, but only for a two-blade unit. Furthermore, only
three examples are described in the Welsh specification for
the blade exposures. In the first example (see column 4,
lines 34-36), both blades have negative exposures which
progressively increase from the guard end of the blade unit
to the cap end of the blade unit. In the second example
(see column 4, lines 42-44), both blades have positive
exposures which progressively increase from the guard end
of the blade unit to the cap end of the blade unit. In the
third example (see column 4, lines 49-54), the leading
blade adjacent the guard has a negative exposure similar to
appellants= invention, but the trailing blade adjacent to
the cap has a zero exposure in contrast to the positive
exposure of the last or third blade in appellants=
invention.
Contrary to the examiner=s position as quoted supra,
Welsh does not teach or suggest a combination of positive
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