Appeal No. 1999-0831
Application No. 08/576,066
shift being made with a prepatient collimator instead of X-ray
tube positioning.” The examiner notes (answer, page 4) that
focal spot dislocation “is determined by taking (A-B)/(A+B)
where A and B are the outputs of detectors located side-by-
side in the slice direction (column 7, lines 4-17).” The
examiner concludes (answer, page 4) that “[g]iven this
equation and the explicit statement that the detector can be
used for position detecting, the main detecting unit must be a
multi slice array.” With respect to the alleged missing
teaching in Yamazaki, the examiner indicates (answer, page 4)
that “Dobbs et al. teach that it is well known in the X-ray CT
art to correct for focal spot positioning by adjusting a
prepatient collimator instead of moving the X-ray source.”
Based upon the teachings of Dobbs, the examiner reaches the
conclusion (answer, page 4) that “[i]t would have been obvious
to one of ordinary skill in the art to move the collimator
instead of the source motivated by the inherent benefits to
moving the lighter and more easily manipulated structure of
the collimator.”
Although we agree with appellants’ argument (supplemental
brief, pages 16 and 17) that Yamazaki fails to disclose
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