Appeal No. 2002-0358
Application No. 09/076,356
shaped yoke 2 and an attachment support clip 3. The yoke,
which is made of spring sheet metal, includes a back 6, sides
4 and 5 extending from the back so as to be resiliently biased
or converged toward one another (see Figure 1), and bosses 7
and 8 disposed on the sides for rotatably engaging the ends of
a roll. The inward bias of the sides applies a restraining
force to the roll which prevents unintentional unwinding.
In proposing to combine Kannankeril and Adams to reject
claim 1, the examiner concludes that it would have been
obvious to modify the dispenser disclosed by Kannankeril “by
making the sidewalls converge and [making] the axle into
opposed axle stubs, in order to provide a frictional restraint
on the stored material . . . and/or to provide easy removal of
the material roll as taught by Adams” (answer, pages 3 and 4).
The examiner does not explain, however, nor is it evident, why
a person having ordinary skill in the art would find it
desirable to increase the frictional restraint capability
already embodied in the Kannankeril dispenser. Too much
frictional restraint would be counterproductive since it would
unduly hinder rotation of the roll. Similarly, the addition
6
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next
Last modified: November 3, 2007