Appeal No. 2003-1141
Application 09/572,745
Attention is directed to appellants’ main and reply briefs
(Paper Nos. 15 and 17) and to the examiner’s answer (Paper No.
16) for the respective positions of the appellants and the
examiner regarding the merits of these rejections.2
DISCUSSION
I. The 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) rejection
Muhlhoff discloses a gas friction vacuum pump having a
plurality of differently configured pump stages which can be
detachably connected to one another in various arrangements to
adapt the pump for different applications. The Figure 3
embodiment relied on by the examiner comprises a filling stage 35
and a molecular pump stage 3, 12. The filling stage includes an
outer housing section 36 having a reducer 5 welded thereto and a
rotor section 37 composed of a conically configured central part
38 and webs 39. The molecular pump stage includes an outer
cylinder 3 and a rotor 9 composed of a hub 11, radial webs 22 and
a cylindrical section 12.
2 In the final rejection (Paper No. 8), claims 1, 3 through
11, 13 through 16 and 21 through 29 also stood rejected under 35
U.S.C. § 103(a) as being unpatentable over U.S. Patent No.
3,157,793 to Adkins. Upon consideration of the arguments
advanced in the main brief, the examiner has withdrawn this
rejection (see page 3 in the answer).
3
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