Appeal No. 1999-0067
Application 08/533,305
bayonet joint is exposed for engagement by male members
equipped with external means such as screw threads (25 in
Figure 4) or pins (44 in Figures 5-8). However, this manner
of attachment is disclosed only in a situation where the male
member merely projects through the center opening in a packing
washer (page 4, lines 1-4), and not where axial pressure is
applied to a seal.
It is well established that the mere fact that the prior
art structure could be modified does not make such a
modification obvious unless the prior art suggests the
desirability of doing so. See In re Gordon, 733 F.2d 900,
902, 221 USPQ 1125, 1127 (Fed. Cir. 1984). In the present
case, we fail to perceive any teaching, suggestion or
incentive in Espy or Rudolph which would have led one of
ordinary skill in the art to modify the Espy coupling in the
manner proposed by the examiner. Granted, one of ordinary
skill in the art would have explicitly been taught by Rudolph
that a bayonet joint reduces the amount of rotation necessary
to accomplish the act of coupling two members together by
means of a rotative connection. However, from our
perspective, applying this teaching to the Espy coupling would
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