Appeal No. 1999-0997
Application No. 08/397,141
According to Guillon:
The colored pigments or colored polymers used in the compositions
of the present invention are obtained by reacting . . . a solution of
an acid dye or a salt thereof and a solution or dispersion of a
polymer . . . so that the dye is fixed on the basic sites of the
polymer.
. . .
After the reaction, the resulting product is filtered and washed. . . .
The resulting colored pigment is dried and before use in a cosmetic
composition, it can be previously ground to an appropriate
granulometry.
Column 6, line 60 to column 7, line 9.
“Under 35 U.S.C. § 102, every limitation of a claim must identically appear
in a single prior art reference for it to anticipate the claim.” Gechter v. Davidson,
116 F.3d 1454, 1457, 43 USPQ2d 1030, 1032 (Fed. Cir. 1997). “Every element
of the claimed invention must be literally present, arranged as in the claim.”
Richardson v. Suzuki Motor Co., Ltd., 868 F.2d 1226, 1236, 9 USPQ2d 1913,
1920 (Fed. Cir. 1989).
We do not agree that Guillon discloses every limitation of the instant
claims. Guillon’s disclosure makes clear that the pigment particles disclosed
therein are homogeneous mixtures of pigment molecules and polymer. This
structure is inherent in the disclosed method of making what Guillon discloses as
“colored pigments or colored polymers.” Column 6, line 60. That is, the dye is
reacted with the polymer “so that the dye is fixed o n the basic sites of the
polymer;” i.e., the dye molecules are chemically bonded to reactive sites along
the length of the polymer. The “colored polymer” is then dried and ground,
producing what could only be homogenous particles of “colored polymer.”
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