Appeal No. 2004-1950
Application 09/352,612
1. A grid comprising drawn polymeric strips in at least two different directions, with the
strips being bonded together in at least one zone of overlap, wherein said at least one zone of
overlap comprises at least two spatially separated bonding points or bonding lines.
4. A grid according to claim 1, wherein a width of the bonding points or lines is 5 mm or
less.
6. A grid according to claim 1, wherein the bonding points or lines are welded by means
of a laser.
16. A grid comprising drawn polymeric strips in at least two different directions,
wherein the strips have a higher tensile strength in a lengthwise direction of the strips compared
to a tensile strength in a width direction of the strips, wherein the strips are bonded together in at
least one zone of overlap, wherein said at least one zone of overlap comprises at least two
spatially separated bonding points or bonding lines, and wherein the grid has a strength about
equal to the higher tensile strength in the lengthwise direction of the strips.
The references relied on by the examiner are:
Foglia et al. (Foglia) 3,560,291 Feb, 2, 1971
Romanek 4,265,954 May 5, 1981
Kobiella 4,483,438 Nov. 20, 1984
Hoechst 1,506,163 Dec. 15, 1967
(published FR Patent Application, France)
Saito 1206522 Feb. 21, 1978
(Canadian Patent)
Van Vliet et al. (Van Vliet) 2,162,686 Nov. 11, 1994
(published Canadian Patent Application)
The examiner has rejected appealed claims 1 through 5, 7 and 13 through 19 under
35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as being unpatentable over Van Vliet in view of Kobiella, Romanek and
Saito (answer, pages 5-9), and appealed claims 6 and 19 through 23 under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as
being unpatentable over Van Vliet in view of Kobiella, Romanek and Saito as applied to claim 1
above, and further in view of Hoechst and Foglia (answer, pages 9-11).
Appellants group the appealed claims into four groups (brief, page 9). Thus, we decide
this appeal based on appealed claims 1, 4, 6 and 16 as representative of the groupings of
appealed claims and the two grounds of rejection. 37 CFR § 1.192(c)(7) (2003); see also 37
CFR § 41.37(c)(1)(vii) (effective September 13, 2004; 69 Fed. Reg. 49960 (August 12,
2004);
1286 Off. Gaz. Pat. Office 21 (September 7, 2004)).
We affirm.
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