Appeal No. 2003-2136 Page 15
Application No. 09/562,952
1. Claim Construction
Claim 16 recites in pertinent part the following limitations: "the Yag laser energy
is in a range of 5.0 J -10.0 J." Giving the representative claim its broadest, reasonable
construction, the limitations require that the laser welding be carried out in an energy
range of 5.0 - 10.0 Joules (J).
2. Obviousness Determination
"In rejecting claims under 35 U.S.C. Section 103, the examiner bears the initial
burden of presenting a prima facie case of obviousness." In re Rijckaert, 9 F.3d 1531,
1532, 28 USPQ2d 1955, 1956 (Fed. Cir. 1993) (citing In re Oetiker, 977 F.2d 1443,
1445, 24 USPQ2d 1443, 1444 (Fed. Cir. 1992)). "'A prima facie case of obviousness is
established when the teachings from the prior art itself would . . . have suggested the
claimed subject matter to a person of ordinary skill in the art.'" In re Bell, 991 F.2d 781,
783, 26 USPQ2d 1529, 1531 (Fed. Cir. 1993) (quoting In re Rinehart, 531 F.2d 1048,
1051, 189 USPQ 143, 147 (CCPA 1976)).
Here, Oshima '198 discloses that its "laser beam welding is carried out by using
YAG (yttrium, aluminum and garnet) laser beams (Lb) with one shot energy as
2 Joules." Col. 3, ll. 66-68 (emphasis added). For its part, Matsutani describes how
"[a] ring-shaped noble metal material 60 is laser-welded to an outer side wall 42 of a
Page: Previous 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Next
Last modified: November 3, 2007