Appeal No. 2003-0306 Page 4
Application No. 08/967,043
of growing media in which seeds 8 are evenly distributed) to below the seed layer, as
called for in claim 23. The examiner points out that Muldner teaches a vegetation
element comprising a carrier layer 13 positioned below a seed mat 15 to provide
structural integrity to the mat and determines from this disclosure that “[i]t would have
been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was made
to position the vegetation carrier layer of Allen below the seed mat of Muldner in order
to provide structural integrity to the vegetation element of Allen” (final rejection, pages
2-3).
The “carrier layer” (base sheet 13) of Muldner comprises a biodegradable
material which is preferably a light tissue paper which “deteriorates rapidly, losing a
substantial portion of its strength upon initial wetting” (column 3, lines 7-9). The cover
layer 9 of Allen, on the other hand, comprises loose fibres, such as natural fibres,
synthetic plastic, glass wool or the like, “capable of felting and subsequently suffering
gradual disintegration on exposure” (column 2, lines 15-17; emphasis ours) and serves
to protect the seed from wind, rain and birds and other garden pests (column 2, lines
61-64).
We fail to perceive any teaching or suggestion in the applied references to
modify Allen’s seed planting mat as proposed by the examiner by moving the cover
layer 9 to a location below the seed layer. First, the cover layer 9 of Allen is located
above the seed layer 6 to protect the seed in layer 6 from wind, rain and birds and other
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