Appeal 2007-1565
Application 10/682,951
an amino alcohol, respectively. However, Drewes’s composition 33 also
contains a zinc stearate. Appellants challenge the Examiner’s finding that it
would have been obvious to have prepared composition 33, but without zinc
(Br. 6).
An obviousness determination requires consideration of the entirety of
the disclosure for what it fairly suggests to the person of ordinary skill in the
art. In re Hedges, 783 F.2d 1038, 1039, 228 USPQ 685, 687 (Fed. Cir.
1986); In re Rinehart, 531 F.2d 1048, 1051, 189 USPQ 143, 146-47 (CCPA
1976).
In this case, Drewes describes metal soaps as an optional additive to
its stabilizer compositions (Drewes, col. 11, ll. 3-5; col. 12, ll. 60 and 62;
col. 13, 35-37 (FF 6, 7)). Zinc stearate is an example of a metal soap
(Drewes, col. 12, l. 62; col. 13, 35-37; col. 26, l. 6 (FF 7, 8)). Both
compositions which contain zinc stearate (col. 24, ll. 35-47, Examples 19-22
(FF 9)) and which do not contain it (Drewes, col. 24, ll. 35-47; col. 24, l. 60
to col. 25, l. 14 (FF 10)) are disclosed by Drewes. Neither a metal soap, not
zinc stearate in particular, is described by Drewes as essential to stabilize
PVC. For example, for composition 33 which contains all three required
components of claim 1, and in addition zinc stearate, Drewes concludes that
perchlorate (the halogen-containing oxy acid salt) and the polyol (THEIC, an
amino alcohol) “give particularly good stabilization” (Drewes, col. 26, (ll.
22-23 (FF 12)). Drewes also states that the “addition of polyol [THEIC, an
amino alcohol] has a particularly favourable effect” (Drewes, col. 25, ll. 50-
55 (FF 11)). Zinc stearate is not characterized in these examples as essential
or as contributing to the composition’s stabilizer properties.
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