Ex parte GAPCO - Page 11




          Appeal No. 1999-1480                                                        
          Application No. 08/523,330                                                  


          therefore required by dependent claims 64, 65 and 67-70,                    
          wherein a “permanent bond” is a connection between two                      
          elements that is intended to last indefinitely without change               
          and which can only be separated by destroying at least a                    
          portion of one of the bonded elements.  Further, claim 64                   
          requires that the “key is adhesively bonded to said handle”.                
          Adhesively bonded is understood from page 5, lines 16-20, of                
          appellant’s disclosure to be, e.g., “double-sided adhesive                  
          foam tape”.  The disclosed adhesive bond is not a “permanent                
          bond”.  With respect to claim 65, this claim  requires the key              
          to be “interference bonded” to said handle.  Interference                   
          bonded is understood from page 5, lines 29-35 and page 6,                   
          lines 1-4 of appellant’s disclosure and shown in Figure 1B to               
          be resilient directional or nondirectional ridges, teeth or                 
          the like that require significantly higher force and/or                     
          deformation of the slot to remove the key.  Therefore, an                   
          interference bond  is also not a “permanent bond”.                          


               Next we turn to the rejections under 35 U.S.C. § 103.  In              
          rejecting claims under 35 U.S.C. § 103, the examiner bears the              
          initial burden of presenting a prima facie case of obviousness              
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