Appeal No. 2000-0356 Page 16
Application No. 08/825,424
persuaded that teachings from the prior art would have
suggested the teachings of the various embodiments."
I believe the majority misapprehends the rejection. The
rejection is that Karam teaches stamped ridges, and discloses
in Figure 8 that ridges may be located to extend over the edge
of the support member (two separate teachings) and, therefore,
would have suggested to one skilled in the art locating
stamped ridges in the first section of NHK Spring. I do not
perceive the rejection to be based on modifying Figure 8 to
use stamped ridges and then using that to modify NHK Spring
(although, in my opinion, this also would have been obvious).
Karam teaches "micro-stiffening" of the suspension by
placing small distortions in the metal of the suspension.
"Micro-stiffening can be formed in the metal in numerous ways"
(col. 9, lines 36-37), such as by crimps (Figure 5), spot
welding (Figure 6), stamping (Figure 7), or elastic
deformation against a form (Figure 8). "The above examples
represent but a small fraction of the many potential ways
micro-stiffening can be implemented." (Col. 10, lines 18-20.)
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