Appeal No. 1998-2300
Application No. 08/366,762
As evidence of obviousness, the Examiner relies on the following references:
Garcia 3,830,371 Aug. 20, 1974
Mehrotra 5,030,433 Jul. 9, 1991
Gonzalez-Oliver 5,063,003 Nov. 5, 1991
Menashi et al. (Menashi) 5,063,179 Nov. 5, 1991
THE REJECTION
The Examiner entered the following ground of rejection:
Claims 1, 3 and 4 are rejected as unpatentable under 35 U.S.C. § 103 over the
combination of Mehrotra, Menashi, Gonzalez-Oliver and Garcia. (Examiner’s Answer,
page 4).
OPINION
We have carefully reviewed the claims, specification and applied prior art, including
all of the arguments advanced by both the Examiner and Appellants in support of their
respective positions. This review leads us to conclude that the rejection is not well
founded. Accordingly, we will reverse § 103 rejection. We will limit our discussion to
claim 1, the sole independent claim.
It is well established that the examiner has the initial burden under § 103 to establish
a prima facie case of obviousness. In re Oetiker, 977 F.2d 1443, 1445, 24 USPQ2d
1443, 1444 (Fed. Cir. 1992); In re Piasecki, 745 F.2d 1468, 1471-72, 223
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