Ex Parte Matsuoka et al - Page 4

              Appeal 2007-2207                                                                     
              Application 10/181,810                                                               
              have found it obvious to incorporate such elements in the alloy composition          
              in view of the expressed teaching of JP '131.  In our view, the combined             
              teachings of the prior art, as a whole, lead to an affirmative answer to the         
              question.                                                                            
                    Appellants make the argument that "according to the present                    
              invention, high strength and high r-value are achieved by establishing a ratio       
              of V and Ti and/or Nb contents in relation to C contents [and] [t]here is no         
              need to conduct complicated annealing processes as required by JP '226 and           
              JP '131" (Br. 7, third para.).  However, as properly explained by the                
              Examiner, this argument is not germane to the subject matter presently on            
              appeal.  The claimed subject matter is not directed to a process for forming         
              cold rolled steel, with or without particular annealing steps, but, rather, the      
              appealed claims define the composition and properties of the steel sheet             
              itself.  It is Appellants' burden to demonstrate that steel sheets within the        
              broad scope of the appealed claims are unexpectedly different from, and              
              nonobvious over, the cold rolled steel sheets that one of ordinary skill in the      
              art would have formulated from the combined teachings of the applied                 
              references.  This Appellants have not done.  We also note that the appealed          
              claims encompass steel sheets formed by the annealing processes of JP '226           
              and JP '131.                                                                         
                    As for separately argued claim 27, the claimed ranges for the amounts          
              of C and Mn, 0.038 - 0.05 and 2.49 - 2.8, respectively, are totally embraced         
              by the ranges disclosed by JP '226, namely, 0.005 - 0.15 and 1.6 - 3.0,              
              respectively.                                                                        
                    Regarding Appellants' arguments with respect to examples of JP '226            
              comprising certain elements outside the claimed ranges, it is well settled that      

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