Appeal 2007-2315
Application 10/095,265
(Gedeon) and wood/iron clubs (Herber), supporting the Examiner’s position
that lengthening the grip is applicable to any club.
Appellant in his own application admits that golfers choke down on
wood and/or clubs and that the existing grip length is inadequate: “Because
wood and iron grips are approximately 10 ½ inches long, the latter choking
down method often requires the golfer to grip the club partially on the grip
and partially on the exposed shaft thereby altering feel and potentially
accuracy” (Spec. 3: 6-8). The common sense solution to this problem is to
extend the grip length, which indeed is suggested in Heber and Gedeon. “A
person of ordinary skill is also a person of ordinary creativity, not an
automaton.” KSR Int’l Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 127 S. Ct. 1727, 1742, 82
USPQ2d 1385, 1397 (2007). Obviousness is viewed through the lens of a
person of ordinary skill in the art with consideration of common knowledge
and common sense. Dystar Textilfarben GMBH & Co. Deutschland KG v.
C.H. Patrick Co., 464 F.3d 1356, 1367, 80 USPQ2d 1641, 1650 (Fed. Cir.
2006). “A court can take account of the inferences and creative steps that a
person of ordinary skill in the art would employ.” KSR, at 1741, 82 USPQ2d
at 1389. Thus, we are not convinced by Appellant’s assertion that because
“putters have entirely different swing characteristics than iron or wood type
golf clubs” (Suppl. Br. 13), there would have been no reason to have
extended a grip past 15 inches on an iron or wood type club. While a golfer
may not assume the same stance in swinging a putter (Reply Br. 4), their
own Specification admits that golfers choke down on iron and wood type
clubs (Spec. 3: 6-8). As the Examiner notes: “Players come in all sizes and
are custom fitted with all sort of different clubs resulting in a variety of hand
locations along a grip of a club” (Answer 12).
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