Appeal No. 1999-2047
Application No. 08/837,350
Takagi teaches a spiral air duct (Fig. 6) wherein paper
23 is disposed on the outer periphery thereof to prevent
condensation dripping.
The Takagi document does not teach or suggest a shield-
plated corrugated tube, the invention being claimed. Further,
this patent provides drawings that are not to scale and makes
no mention whatsoever of any relationship between the width
and depth of the inner grooves of the spiral tube. See In re
Antonie, 559 F.2d 618, 620, 195 USPQ 6, 9 (CCPA 1977). It is
quite apparent to us that the examiner has focused upon width
and depth as it pertains to the inner grooves of the spiral
tube of Takagi only because of appellant’s teaching in this
application. The circumstances before us exemplify a classic
case of inappropriate reliance upon an appellant’s own
teaching as a basis for concluding obviousness. Only
appellant has informed us as to the importance of a
specifically claimed condition that addresses the width and
depth of inner grooved portions of a shield-plated corrugated
tube to overcome the disclosed bubble and plating problems
that accrue during electroless plating. Since the Takagi
5
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Next
Last modified: November 3, 2007