Appeal 2007-0505
Application 10/402,476
‘lost core;’” and the metal or salt forming the “core” was removed, thus
destroying the “core” (Quinlan col. 1, ll. 17-28). Quinlan would have
disclosed to one of ordinary skill in this art that a method such as the “lost
core method” does “not provide the molding of an article having an irregular
internal surface or passage by utilizing a polymer, preferably a thermoplastic
preform or the utilization of a generally incompressible material within the
preform during molding of the article” (id. col. 2,
ll. 13-17).
In this respect, Quinlan discloses a molding process in which a hollow
polymer preform is filled with a relatively incompressible material; the filled
preform assembled into a final configuration in a mold; and a layer of
polymer material is molded about the filled preform to form a shell thereon
resulting in an article of which the filled preform is an integral part; and the
incompressible material then removed from the incorporated preform to
define an internal passage in the final article (id., e.g., col. 1,
ll. 20-41; col. 3, ll. 19-29; col. 3, l. 60, to col. 4, l. 3; col. 4, l. 32, to col. 5,
l. 3; and col. 5, ll. 47-59). The relatively incompressible material filler for
the preform “permits the preform to resist collapsing under the pressure
normally associated with forming the shell about the preform,” and is any
conventional filler, e.g., liquids and powders (id., col. 3, l. 60, to col. 4,
l. 19). Quinlan does not disclose that the incompressible material is molded
into the preform.
We find Marx would have disclosed to one of ordinary skill in this art
a method of forming a molded object by injection molding using a sacrificial
insert which can be removed from the molded object without substantially
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