Appeal No. 1999-1959 Page 6
Application No. 08/881,586
be easily confirmed” (page 3). This language suggests that
the plastic layer 4 is provided with radiopaque material over
its entire length. However, we also observe that Miyano
stresses that the significance of the radiopaque material is
that the position of the front portion of the guide wire can
easily be confirmed.
Miyano evidences that a radiopaque member at the distal
end of a core of a guide wire and the incorporation of
radiopaque
material in the plastic layer covering the core were
recognized in the art at the time of the present invention as
interchangeable alternatives for permitting the confirmation
of the position of the front portion of the guide wire using
X-ray techniques, the same objective taught by De Toledo.
Thus, from our perspective, the incorporation of radiopaque
material in the sleeve 32 of De Toledo would have been obvious
to one skilled in the art as an alternate equivalent to the
platinum of coil 19 for permitting the distal end of the De
Toledo guide wire to be confirmed using X-ray techniques, in
light of the teachings of Miyano. Further, one skilled in the
art would have appreciated that it would be unnecessary to
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