a hygienic condition, and that it was well known to reuse the wrapping for disposal of
used articles. (See Burrow, col. 1, lines 23-30). We further find that one of ordinary sk ill
in the art was familiar with using a slider device to open and close resealable packages
and that such slider device was common in packaging applications. (See May, pa ge 1,
paras. [0002] a nd [0003]). We further find that the packaging and closure arts deal
generally wi th straightforward and simple technology.
In add ition to our review of the Graham factors, we also considered the
requirement of a showing of a “teaching, suggestion, or motivation” to modify or
combine the prior art teachings. This requirement was recently described in In re Kahn,
441 F.3d 977 , 988, 78 USPQ2d 1329, 1337 (Fed. Cir. 2006),
[T]he “motivation-suggestion-teaching” test asks not merely
what the references disclose, but whether a person of ordinary
skill in the art, possessed with the understandings and
knowledge reflected in the prior art, and motivated by the
general problem facing the inventor, would have been led to
make the combination recited in the claims. From this it may
be determined whether the overall disclosures, teachings, and
suggestions of the prior art, and the level of skill in the art – i.e.,
the understandings and knowledge of persons having ordinary
skill in the art at the time of the invention-support the legal
conclus ion of obviousness. (internal citations omitted).
For the reasons discussed below, we hold that a person of ordinary skill in the art,
possessed with the understandings and knowledge reflected in the prior art, and
motivated by the general problem facing the inventor, would have been led to make the
combination recited in the claims.
“In considering motivation in the obviousness analysis, the problem examined is
not the specific problem solved by the inventi on but the general problem that confronted
the inventor before the invention was made. Kahn, 441 F.3d at 988, 78 USPQ2d at 1336
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