Ex Parte Malhotra - Page 4



          Appeal No. 2005-0581                                                        
          Application No. 10/228,124                                                  

          the art to incorporate proline, or other conventional ink drying            
          agents, in the coating composition of Miyabe.  We find no                   
          teaching in either of the applied references, and appellant has             
          pointed to none, that drying agents such as proline would be                
          unsuitable for the coating layer of Miyabe.                                 
               Appellant maintains that "Miyabe is directed to synthetic              
          papers, and that the reference teaches at column 2, lines 4 to              
          35, that coatings suitable for real papers are not necessarily              
          suitable for use with synthetic papers" (page 12 of principal               
          brief, penultimate paragraph).  Appellant urges, therefore, that            
          claim 9, which defines the substrate as paper, is particularly              
          allowable.  However, this argument does not speak to the                    
          obviousness of using a known ink drying agent disclosed by                  
          Isganitis in the coating layer of Miyabe.  As stated by the                 
          examiner, "[t]here is no teaching in Miyabe that the coating of             
          the reference is unsuitable for use on cellulosic paper supports"           
          (page 7 of Answer, first paragraph).  Also, we agree with the               
          examiner that the broadly recited "paper" of claim 9 encompasses            
          synthetic paper, particularly since appellant's specification               
          refers to different types of materials as paper, including filled           
          plastics for making "never-tear paper" (page 18 of specification,           
          first paragraph).                                                           

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