Ex Parte Messina et al - Page 3



         Appeal No. 2006-1098                                                       
         Application No. 09/990,115                                                 

         of § 103 in view of the applied prior art.  Accordingly, we will           
         sustain the examiner’s rejection for the reasons set forth in              
         the Answer, which we incorporate herein, and we add the                    
         following primarily for emphasis.                                          
              De Winter, like appellants, discloses a method of applying            
         polyurethane on a substrate, e.g., the interior trim of an                 
         automobile, only in identified areas of the substrate.  As                 
         recognized by the examiner, De Winter does not disclose that the           
         method of applying polyurethane on the interior of an automobile           
         is for the purpose of attenuating sound.  However, appellants do           
         not dispute the examiner’s factual determination that Leenslag             
         discloses the application of polyurethane for providing sound              
         insulation for automobiles.  To wit, Leenslag discloses that               
         “[t]he foams of the present invention may be used . . . as foams           
         for sound insulation in automotive applications” (column 8,                
         lines 35-39).  Accordingly, based on the collective teachings of           
         De Winter and Leenslag, we fully concur with the examiner that             
         one of ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to            
         apply polyurethane to the interior of an automobile for the                
         purpose of effecting sound insulation.  While Leenslag does not            
         expressly teach the claimed steps of ascertaining the acoustic             
         properties of an article and applying polyurethane only in the             
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