Appeal No. 2004-2059
Application No. 10/278,725
Claims 1, 2, 5-11, 14, 16-18 and 22 stand rejected under
35 U.S.C. § 102(b) as being anticipated by Boyd.
Claims 12, 13 and 15 stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a)
as being unpatentable over Boyd in view of Japanese patent
document 1-275,802 to Hayashi.
Reference is made to appellant’s brief (Paper No. 7) and to
the examiner’s answer (Paper No. 8) for the respective positions
of appellant and the examiner regarding the merits of these
rejections.
Discussion
Looking first at the examiner’s anticipation rejection of
claim 1, Boyd pertains to modular hollow floor panels, which in
use are laid in a continuous two-dimensional array over a
supporting sub-surface to form a hollow floor, wall or ceiling
suitable for reticulating electrical, optic-fiber, hydraulic and
other conduit. Figures 1-3 illustrate a first modular floor
panel embodiment. In the words of Boyd:
This panel has a flat upper surface, and the
underside is criss-crossed with a series of “vaults”
(1) which define channels through which the cabling may
be laid. The channels occur in at least two
directions: a first set of channels runs laterally from
one side of the panel to the other, and a second set of
channels runs longitudinally from one end of the panel
to the other. Diagonal and vertical channels are also
possible, and formations with these features will be
3
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