Appeal No. 2003-0144 Page 9
Application No. 09/400,932
art suggested the desirability of the modification. See In re Gordon, 773 F.2d 900, 902,
221 USPQ 1125, 1127 (Fed. Cir. 1984). In our view, the only suggestion for modifying
Metzger in the manner proposed by the examiner to meet the above-noted method
limitations stems from hindsight knowledge derived from the appellant's own disclosure.
The use of such hindsight knowledge to support an obviousness rejection under
35 U.S.C. § 103 is, of course, impermissible. See, for example, W. L. Gore and
Assocs., Inc. v. Garlock, Inc., 721 F.2d 1540, 1553, 220 USPQ 303, 312-13 (Fed. Cir.
1983), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 851 (1984).
For the reasons set forth above, the decision of the examiner to reject claim 20,
and claims 13 and 16 to 19 dependent thereon, under 35 U.S.C. § 103 is reversed.
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