Appeal No. 2002-0249
Application No. 09/321,390
assembly, such as decreasing pressure loss, improving high heat
resistance, small heat capacity and maximum conversion of
unreacted gases and enhancing porosity. See column 1, lines 40-
47 and column 2, lines 35-44.
Given the above teachings, we determine that one of ordinary
skill in the art would have been led to employ the claimed open
cell foam catalyst bed taught in Narumiya in the reforming zone
of the autothermal reformer assembly described in Clawson,
motivated by a reasonable expectation of successfully reducing
the size and weight of the assembly and enhancing the heat
transfer, gas mixing and distribution, and gas conversion during
the autothermal reforming process.
In reaching this determination, we recognize that Narumiya
is directed to a purification device, rather than an autothermal
reformer assembly as argued by the appellant. However, as
indicated supra, the appellant acknowledges that it is known in
the autothermal reforming art that reducing the size and weight
of an autothermal reformer assembly via selecting particular
catalyst shapes and/or configurations is desirable. Thus, from
our perspective, one of ordinary skill in the art interested in
reducing the size and weight of an autothermal reformer assembly
would have looked to the teachings of Narumiya to accomplish the
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