Appeal No. 2005-1435
Application No. 09/906,564
been led to use such plastic waste (randomly shaped masses of
clear and tinted plastic) as paper-weight materials (decorative
articles).3 See In re Clinton, 527 F.2d 1226, 1229, 188 USPQ
365, 367 (CCPA 1976)(“Economics alone would [have] motivate[d] a
person of ordinary skill in the art” to arrive at the claimed
invention). To form the paperweights that can be sold, as
indicated by the examiner (Answer, page 4), the randomly shaped
mass of clear and tinted plastic (polycarbonate) must necessarily
be prepared (bent and trimmed) so that at least a portion thereof
can form a shape that can be fitted into the hole of the
rectangular base as taught by Lanyon.
Moreover, with respect to claims 4, 5, 9 and 10, as
correctly found by the examiner (Id.), combining and/or bending
the randomly shaped masses of clear and tinted plastic to produce
an another aesthetically pleasing irregular shaped paper-weight
is well within the ambit of one of ordinary skill in the art.4
See In re Sovish, 769 F.2d 738, 743, 226 USPQ 771, 774 (Fed. Cir.
3 An old adage “one’s trash is another’s treasure” is
relevant in this case, especially since the popularity of
abstract art is well known.
4 An old adage “beauty is in the eye of a beholder” holds
true in this case. With the advent of abstract art, beauty has
always been in the eye of a beholder.
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