Appeal No. 1998-0865
Application No. 08/488,455
together thus increasing the dpsi printing capability of the
ink jet print head." However, appellants argue (Brief, page
14) that:
[O]ne skilled in the art would not attempt to use concave
inkwells, since such inkwells would effectively have to
be spaced farther apart in order to provide
the minimum volume necessary within each
inkwell. That is, . . . one would
consequently reduce the volume of the
inkwell, and thus reduce the amount of ink
that can be carried in each inkwell. This
result is diametrically opposite to the
objective sought and result achieved by the
dome-shaped piezoelectric layers used in
Hubbard.
The examiner (Answer, page 4) points to column 3, lines 3-8,
of Hubbard as teaching that both concave and convex curvatures
are "predicted to achieve operable transducers." However,
lines 7-8 state that "the disadvantage of this resides in the
reduction of the volume of the cavity 32." In other words,
the referenced portion of Hubbard must be taken to mean that
the ability to eliminate the diaphragm exists regardless of
the direction of curvature of the transducer, but with a
concave curvature either the cavity volume will be reduced
(thus reducing the amount of ink carried in the ink well) or
the space occupied will increase (thereby decreasing the
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