Appeal 2007-0269
Application 10/799,095
1 Reply Brief2. We agree. In our view, it would not have been obvious to one of
2 ordinary skill to have used plastic in the invention of Brockenbrough. The
3 Examiner states as a possible motivation providing less expensive, lighter, and
4 easier to manufacture material for the energy absorber. However, Brockenbrough
5 is very specific about the requirement for a high strength steel with specific
6 minimum yield strength and minimum elongation (Brockenbrough, col. 3, ll. 26-
7 27). It is unclear from the Welygan patent whether plastic would be suitable in
8 providing the requisite yield strength and ductility necessary in the side guard
9 beam in a vehicle door. There is no reasonable expectation of success that any of
10 the plastic or extrudable materials disclosed in Welygan could perform the function
11 of a high strength steel beam in Brockenbrough. The results of substituting plastic
12 for the steel beams would not have been predictable, nor is this a matter of a simple
13 substitution of one known substance for another that yields predictable results.
14 Additionally, it appears that the sizes of the rib extrusions in Welygan,
15 which are listed as up to 26 mm, is another indication that the materials of
16 Welygan would not be suitable as a door guard beam. (Welygan col. 8, l. 5). A rib
17 extrusion that can only be made up to 26 mm is apparently too small. There is no
18 indication in Welygan that these ribs could be scaled-up or the extrusion process
2 Appellants make this argument in a section of the Reply Brief entitled “Differing
Compositions.” It is unclear whether this argument is meant to apply only to
claims 9, 17, and 23, and the claims that depend therefrom, or to all claims on
appeal. At some portions of page 8, Appellants appear to be applying this
argument to all the appealed claims. In spite of this lack of clarity on the part of
the Appellants, we will treat this argument as an argument respecting all the
appealed claims.
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