Appeal No. 2005-2543
Application 08/637,894
further argues that Scarella “discloses three ring-shaped seals 7 (and at 8),” and that “all of the
seals 12 (at least three) in Locke are ‘bulbous annular curved shaped’ (like those in Scarella) as
illustrated in Fig. 1, albeit closer in visual appearance to the seals disclosed by appellant” (id.,
page 7).
Appellant states in the brief that “Locke teaches a drain cleaning device having a cup (3)
with a side wall portion (11) that . . . forms a series of annular corrugations (12), which exhibits
progressively smaller diameters towards the bottom of the device” and “allow its lower end to be
wedged into a drain opening to seal it when water pressure is applied (see Col. 2, lines 69-79 and
lines 105-109)” (pages 11-12). Appellant submits “that Locke, while perhaps teaching a
continuous series of seals does not teach the claimed three sealing ring configuration with its
bulbous annular curved shaped second sealing ring” (id., page 12). Appellant further submits in
the reply brief, that there is no motivation to modify the drain plunger of Scarella with the
corrugated structure of Locke (page, 3).
We cannot agree with appellant that side wall 11 of cup 3 as shown in Locke Fig. 1, falls
outside of the seal ring arrangement specified in appealed claim 1 because the second of the
series of annular, corrugations 12, which are smaller in diameter in the lower edge than in the
upper portion, as described at page 1, ll. 69-79, is not “bulbous” as specified. Indeed, we find
that each of the corrugations 12 can be characterized as having a bulb-like rounded projection,
which falls within this term. In this respect, we find no basis in either the language of appealed
claim 1 or in the written description in the specification, including specification Figs. 3 and 5, to
read the shape of the second seal ring shown in the specification figures into the claim as a
limitation. Furthermore, Locke discloses that the lower end of the corrugations 12 can be
wedged into a drain, as shown in Locke Fig. 4, either by the internal pressure created by water in
the cup or by conically tapered head 6 being wedged into the cup, thus causing the cup walls to
clamp and hold against the drain, forming a seal preventing leakage (page 1, ll. 77-79, and page
2, ll. 4-17).
However, the examiner has not provided a showing establishing that objective teaching,
suggestion or motivation in the applied prior art or knowledge generally available to one of
ordinary skill in the art would have led that person to substitute the corrugations 12 of Locke for
cone 6 of Scarella because we find little, if any, structural similarity between these two structures
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