Appeal No. 2004-1869
Application No. 09/738,591
Bentley teaches “a condensing furnace having a thin layer of a corrosion resistant material
adhesively bonded to a metal blank (Brief, p. 3).” The condensing furnace is a heat exchanger
part and the corrosion resistant material is a thermoplastic polymer film (Answer, p. 3). The
Examiner acknowledges that Bentley is silent towards the use of polar particulates on the sheet
material (Answer, p. 3).
The Examiner cites Kaneko for its teaching of applying by lamination a similar corrosion
resistant polymer film to similar heat exchanger parts (Final Rejection, p. 4; see also Answer,
p. 3). In addition, Kaneko teaches applying polar silica particulates, in any convenient manner,
to a polymer coated metal substrate in order to increase the wettability of the surface and hence
increase the process efficiency (Answer, p. 3).
Appellant argues that the combination of the teachings of Bentley and Kaneko does not
render the claims obvious because the Appellant claims applying and adhering the plurality of
polar particulates to the surface of the film prior to applying the film to the heat exchanger
component (Brief, p. 4). Appellant correctly states that Kaneko teaches applying the film to the
heat exchanger component in a solution form, drying it, and then applying a silica solution to the
film to add the silica particulates to the film (Brief, p. 4; Reply Brief, pp. 1-2). Appellant then
argues that using the teachings of Kaneko for the application of the polymer film and silica
particulates to the metal surface in the process of Bentley does not disclose or suggest
Appellant’s claimed process (Brief, p. 4). However, the Examiner has not relied upon Kaneko
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