Appeal No. 1999-1728 Page 3
Application No. 08/750,041
(Paper No. 15, filed March 1, 1999) for the arguments
thereagainst.
OPINION
In reaching our decision in this appeal, we have given
careful consideration to the appellants' specification and
claims, to the applied prior art references, and to the
respective positions articulated by the appellants and the
examiner. Upon evaluation of all the evidence before us, it
is our conclusion that the evidence adduced by the examiner is
insufficient to establish a prima facie case of obviousness
with respect to the claims under appeal. Accordingly, we will
not sustain the examiner's rejection of claims 1 through 12
under 35 U.S.C. ' 103. Our reasoning for this determination
follows.
In rejecting claims under 35 U.S.C. ' 103, the examiner
bears the initial burden of presenting a prima facie case of
obviousness. See In re Rijckaert, 9 F.3d 1531, 1532, 28
USPQ2d 1955, 1956 (Fed. Cir. 1993). A prima facie case of
obviousness is established when the teachings of the prior art
itself would appear to have suggested the claimed subject
matter to one of ordinary skill in the art. See In re Bell,
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