Appeal No. 2005-0659
Application 09/799,134
at least two actuators which affect the CD moisture profile and means for controlling
the web elongation by said CD moisture actuator, said CD moisture actuators being
situated at different stages in the web manufacturing process, and the means for
measuring the web elongation profile and moisture profile situated after the CD
moisture actuators. [Col. 2, ll. 1-9; see also col. 2, ll. 10-23, and col. 3, ll. 43-65.]
Shakespeare would have taught that profile controllers are used to govern the CD moisture
actuators to control the web profile measured by the measurement devices (e.g., col. 5, ll. 43-51),
and that additional web characteristics may be similarly measured and controlled (e.g., col. 5, l.
66, to col. 6, l. 62, and col. 7, ll. 16- 23). Additional actuators and measurement devices can be
used as well (e.g., col. 6, l. 63, to col. 7, l. 15). Shakespeare would have further taught that the
control of certain profiles during manufacture prevent dimensional problems during manufacture
and use (col. 7, ll. 23-31).
Shakespeare would also have disclosed that the “at least two actuators which affect the
CD moisture profile . . . [can be] situated at different stages in the web manufacturing process or
subsequent processing such as . . . printing” (col. 5, ll. 21-42). We find that one of ordinary skill
in this art would have inferred from Shakespeare as a whole that the application of the disclosed
invention to printing processes would have involve the same profile controllers governing
actuators based on paper web profile measurements by measurement devices positioned after the
actuators as disclosed for the paper web manufacturing processes.
Thus, we find that Shakespeare would not have taught one of ordinary skill in this art to
transmit paper web profile information measured by the measurement devices during the paper
web manufacturing process to compensate a printing process using the same paper web, because
indeed, the information obtained by the profile measurement devices is used as feedback to a
controller to control upstream actuators. In this respect, we point out that contrary to the
examiner’s findings (answer, e.g., pages 4-5 and 12-13), the use of actuator, profile measuring
device and controller combinations in the printing process would control the profile of the paper
web in that process without regard to the profile information of the paper web obtained and used
during its manufacture.
On the basis of the disclosure that we find in Shakespeare, we are of the opinion that the
examiner has not established as a matter of fact that, prima facie, Shakespeare identically
describes each and every element of the claimed method of manufacturing and processing paper,
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