Appeal No. 1998-1573
Application 08/599,840
I agree with my colleagues in this case. However, I respectfully offer the following additional
comments.
The claimed subject matter is directed to a process for coating the surface of a metal article with
a coating layer comprising alkyl-substituted polyphenylene oxide. See claim 1. The novelty of the
invention lies in heat-treating the alkyl-substituted polyphenylene oxide coated metal article in air to
enhance the corrosion protection. Id. According to the specification, the claimed heat treatment is to
enhance the adhesion of the coating to the metal article. See, e.g., page 4. When the adhesion of the
coating of the metal article is enhanced, the corrosion resistance of the coated metal article naturally
follows. Id. A[T]he heat treatment can range anywhere from above about room temperature up to
about 200 oC (emphasis mine).@ See page 5.
Claim 1 is written in Jepson format. Thus, the subject matter recited in the preamble of claim 1
is impliedly admitted to be old in the art. In re Ehrreich, 590 F.2d 902, 909, 200 USPQ 504, 510
(CCPA 1979); In re Aldrich, 398 F.2d 855, 857, 158 USPQ 311, 312 (CCPA 1968). In other
words, it is known to coat the surface of a metal article with a coating layer comprising alkyl-substituted
polyphenylene oxide. What is allegedly not known is the subsequent claimed heat treatment.2
However, I find that Whittemore recognizes the importance of insuring good adhesion between a
coating layer and a substrate. See column 4, lines 68-71. I find that Whittemore teaches coating a
polyphenylene oxide on metal articles and then drying and baking at 120 oC and about 280 oC,
respectively or 120 oC and about 315 oC, respectively. See column 7, lines 42-60. column 9, line 46
to column 10, line 27.
Given these teachings, I agree with my colleagues that one of ordinary skill in the art would have
been led to the claimed heat-treatment of the alkyl-substituted polyphenylene oxide coated metal article,
motivated by a desire to improve adhesion and hardness of the coating. This is especially true in the
present situation since the claimed heat-treatment embraces conventional air drying, which is necessary
for removing solvent from the wet coating on a metal article resulting from a conventional solution
coating technique. One of ordinary skill in the art would have had a reasonable expectation that
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