Appeal No. 2005-1635
Application No. 09/782,036
OPINION
We have carefully reviewed the claims, specification,
applied prior art, and the appellants’ arguments for
patentability. However, we concur with the examiner that the
claimed subject matter as a whole would have been obvious to one
of ordinary skill in the art within the meaning of Section 103
in view of the applied prior art. Accordingly, we will sustain
the examiner’s Section 103 rejections. Our reasons for these
determinations follow.
The appellants have not challenged the examiner’s findings
at pages 4 and 5 of the Answer that:
Brinkmann et al[.] discloses a method for making
sheeting using a twin belt press, which in the past
has been employed for example for smoothing out of
thin synthetic resin films. See col. 4[,] lines 8-14.
The sheeting may be used as a floor covering. See col.
2[,] line 64. The method for making a sheet
comprises:
applying thermoplastic resin in the form of
particles such as shreds, crumbs, cuttings, pieces,
chips or the like on the lower belt 11 of a “low
pressure” twin belt press (dual belt press) to form a
raw material layer;
preheating the thermoplastic particles of the raw
material layer on the lower belt 11 using infrared
radiators 19, 20;
5
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Next
Last modified: November 3, 2007