Appeal No. 2000-1728 Page 8
Application No. 08/785,128
As a result of our review, we have determined that there is nothing in the record which
would support answering any of the above questions in the affirmative. This being the
case, we conclude that the structure disclosed in the Japanese reference does not qualify
as being an equivalent under 35 U.S.C. § 112, sixth paragraph, of the structure disclosed
by the appellant in the specification.
Consideration of the teachings of DesMarais fails to alleviate the shortcoming in the
Japanese reference that is set out above.
The combined teachings of the Japanese reference and DesMarais therefore fail to
establish a prima facie case of obviousness with regard to the subject matter recited in
claim 1, and we will not sustain the rejection. It follows that we also will not sustain the
rejection of claims 2-6 and 10, which depend from claim 1.
The Rejection Based Upon The Japanese Reference, DesMarais and Visscher
This rejection applies to dependent claim 11, which depends from claim 1. The
shortcomings of the Japanese reference and DesMarais with regard to claim 1 have been
explained immediately above. Vissher does not cure these deficiencies, and therefore we
will not sustain the rejection of claim 11.
The Rejection Based Upon DesMarais and Visscher
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