Appeal 2007-2133
Application 10/790,502
(UV/electron beam) activate certain cationic photoinitiators that
decompose to yield an acid catalyst that propagates the cross-
linking reaction. For the purposes of this disclosure,
“thermally-cured” or “heat cured” refers to coating precursors
cross-linked using heating processes dominated by convection
and/or conduction.
Id. 6:13 to 7:7.
Appellants disclose “[e]xamples of reactive precursors that can be
cured using high energy radiation (ultraviolet, electron beam, and so on)
include, but are not limited to the acrylate resins,” including acrylated
epoxies (Specification 7:9-10). Examples of acrylate resin compositions
were “cured by successive exposure to . . . UV lamps . . . at line speeds of
15-25 feet per minute” (id. 22:10-12). The use of this curing mechanism
with other kinds of reactive precursors is not disclosed.
We determine one of ordinary skill in this art would find in this
disclosure the teachings that the epoxy nitrile reactive precursor coating
composition embodiments are “thermally cured” or “heat cured,” and no
disclosure with respect thereto involves high energy radiation curing.
Indeed, the disclosure equates radiant heating by infrared radiation with
convection heating, and distinguishes this form of curing from high energy
radiation curing, which latter disclosure does not include reference to
infrared radiation. In this respect, this person would have been aware that
epoxy functional polymers, acid functional polymers, and polyfunctional
amines are known in the art to comprise thermally curable polymer systems
which can be cured with heat from infrared radiation, that does not include
ultraviolet and visible light energy irradiation or photocuring of coat
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