Appeal No. 2004-1900
Application No. 09/981,350
radical polymerization of the claimed amounts of the claimed
monomers. Compare the Answer in its entirety with the Brief and
the Reply Brief in their entirety. Nor do the appellants dispute
the examiner’s finding that the polymer formed in Yang or
Yamauchi has the claimed glass transition temperature.2 See the
Answer, page 5, with the Brief and the Reply Brief in their
entirety. The appellants only argue that one of ordinary skill
in the art would not have been led to employ the claimed amount
of the claimed free radical initiator in forming the emulsion
polymer disclosed in Yang and/or Yamauchi. See the Brief and the
Reply Brief in their entirety. According to claim 3, the free
radical polymerization is carried out in the presence of 0.01 to
1.0 weight percent of t-alkyl hydroperoxide, t-alkyl peroxide, or
t-alkyl perester (each alkyl representing at least five carbon
atoms) as the free radical initiator.
The dispositive question is, therefore, whether it would
have been obvious to employ the claimed amount of the claimed
2 According to page 4 of the specification, the appellants
also acknowledge that the claimed glass transition temperature is
known to correspond to the monomers employed.
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