Ex Parte Hamper et al

Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Dec 31, 2014

12968989 (P.T.A.B. Dec. 31, 2014)

UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Address: COMMISSIONER FOR PATENTS
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450
www.uspto.gov
APPLICATION NO. FILING DATE FIRST NAMED INVENTOR ATTORNEY DOCKET NO. CONFIRMATION NO.
12/968,989 12/15/2010 Simon Hamper COS-1036 CON 3386
25264 7590 12/31/2014
FINA TECHNOLOGY INC
PO BOX 674412
HOUSTON, TX 77267-4412
EXAMINER
SINGH, PREM C
ART UNIT PAPER NUMBER
1771
MAIL DATE DELIVERY MODE
12/31/2014 PAPER
Please find below and/or attached an Office communication concerning this application or proceeding.
The time period for reply, if any, is set in the attached communication.
PTOL-90A (Rev. 04/07)

UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
____________________

BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
____________________

Ex parte SIMON HAMPER and JAMES R. BUTLER
____________________

Appeal 2012-008716
Application 12/968,989
Technology Center 1700
____________________

Before CHARLES F. WARREN, CATHERINE Q. TIMM, and
JEFFREY T. SMITH, Administrative Patent Judges.

TIMM, Administrative Patent Judge.

DECISION ON APPEAL

STATEMENT OF CASE
Appellants appeal under 35 U.S.C. § 134 from the Examiner’s
decision to reject claims 21, 22, 24–26, and 28 under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as
obvious over Le,1 claim 23 as obvious over Le in view of Foley,2 and claim

1 Le et al., US 5,100,534, patented Mar. 31, 1992.
2 Foley et al., US 6,407,301 B1, patented, Jun. 18, 2002.
Appeal 2012-008716
Application 12/968,989

2
27 as obvious over Le in view of Markley.3 We have jurisdiction under
35 U.S.C. § 6(b).
We REVERSE.
The claims are directed to a petrochemical process. Claim 21, with a
key limitation at issue in the appeal italicized, is illustrative:
21. A petrochemical process comprising:
introducing a first input stream to a cracking unit,
wherein the first input stream comprises a virgin naphtha
feedstock, wherein said virgin naphtha feedstock is a former
reformer input stream;
cracking the virgin naphtha feedstock within the cracking
unit to form a first output stream comprising light olefins and
pygas;
passing the pygas from the cracking unit to an extraction
unit;
separating benzene and toluene from the pygas within the
extraction unit;
recovering a raffinate from the extraction unit having a
higher N+2A than the virgin naphtha feedstock;
passing the raffinate from the extraction unit to a
reforming unit having a reforming catalyst disposed therein;
contacting the raffinate with the reforming catalyst to
form a second output stream; and
recovering the second output stream from the reforming
unit.
Claims Appendix at Appeal Br. 19.

3 Markley, US 4,440,627, patented Apr. 3, 1984.
Appeal 2012-008716
Application 12/968,989

3
OPINION
We agree with Appellants that their claims exclude Le’s process of
forming stream 36 (see Le, Fig. 1). Stream 36 contains C5 olefins. As
argued by Appellants, the C5 fraction is part of the pygas. Reply Br. 6;
Spec. ¶¶ 36-37. Therefore, Appellants’ claims exclude any process that
separates the C5 fraction from the cracking unit output before the stream is
passed to the extraction unit that separates benzene and toluene.
The Examiner’s determination that the claims do not exclude the
separation step 30 of Le that separates the C4–C5 fraction 36 from stream 32
that leads to the reformer 60 led to a reversible error. Le’s process including
such a step does not meet the passing step of claim 21, the only independent
claim.
The Examiner’s reliance on Foley and Markley does not cure the
defect discussed above.

CONCLUSION
We do not sustain the Examiner’s rejection.

DECISION
The Examiner’s decision is reversed.

REVERSED
lp