Appeal No. 2003-2136 Page 13
Application No. 09/562,952
amount . . . preferably from 3 wt % to 30 wt %," col. 2, ll. 33-35, would have satisfied the
appellants' requirement for more than 2% wt Rh.
The combined teachings of the references also would have suggested forming a
central electrode from the same alloy that the claim recites. Specifically, the claimed
"center electrode [is] made of a nickel-based alloy. . . ." Similarly, Oshima '198 teaches
a "nickel-alloyed center electrode. . . ." Abs., l. 1.
The combined teachings of the references further would have suggested using
the same type of laser to weld the Ir-Rh alloy chip to the center electrode. Specifically,
a "YAG laser is used," (Spec. at 7), for the appellants’ welding. Likewise, "[t]he laser
beam welding [of Oshima '198] is carried out by using YAG (yttrium, aluminum and
garnet) laser beams (Lb). . . ." Col. 3, ll. 66-67.
Because the combined teachings of the references would have suggested
forming a chip from the same Ir-Rh alloy that the appellants use, forming a central
electrode from the same alloy that the claim recites, and using the same type of laser to
weld the alloy chip to the center electrode, we have reason to believe that the molten
bond formed by the welding would have inherently featured a melting point in a range
from 1,500 to 2,100 °C and a linear expansion coefficient in a range from 8 x 10-6 to
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