Ex Parte WU et al

Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Dec 26, 2017

12830077 (P.T.A.B. Dec. 26, 2017)

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.
12/830,077 07/02/2010 Shawn Xiang WU B07-099A 9782
26683 7590 12/26/2017
OATFS torpor atton
EXAMINER
IP LAW DEPT. 10-A3 COLE, ELIZABETH M
1551 WEWATTA STREET
DENVER, CO 80202 ART UNIT PAPER NUMBER
1789
MAIL DATE DELIVERY MODE
12/26/2017 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 SHAWN XIANG WU, CLIFFORD WALKER,
and KEVIN WARD
Appeal 2017-004035
Application 12/830,077
Technology Center 1700
Before LINDA M. GAUDETTE, DONNA M. PRAISS,
and MICHAEL G. McMANUS, Administrative Patent Judges.
McMANUS, Administrative Patent Judge.
DECISION ON APPEAL
The Examiner finally rejected claims 1—11, 13, 14, and 18 of
Application 12/830,077 under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as obvious. Final Act.
(Sept. 4, 2015) 2—5. Appellant1 seeks reversal of these rejections pursuant to
35 U.S.C. § 134(a). We have jurisdiction under 35 U.S.C. § 6.
For the reasons set forth below, we REVERSE.
1 Appellant is the applicant, Gates Corporation, which is also identified as
the real party in interest. Appeal Br. 3.
Appeal 2017-004035
Application 12/830,077
BACKGROUND
The present application generally relates to a fabric for reinforcing a
power transmission belt including fibers of polyarylene sulfide and a belt
utilizing the fabric. Spec. 1 6. The fibers at issue are “textured” to increase
their ability to stretch. Id. ]f 25.
Claim 1 is representative of the pending claims and is reproduced
below:
1. A woven stretch fabric for reinforcing a power
transmission belt consisting of textured continuous fibers of
polyarylene sulfide and optionally some textured continuous
fibers of polyamide.
Appeal Br. 19 (Claims App.).
REJECTIONS
On appeal, the Examiner maintains the following rejections:
1. Claims 1—6, 10, 11, 13, 14, and 182 are rejected under 35
U.S.C. § 103(a) as obvious over Japanese Patent Application JP 08312724,
published Nov. 26, 1996) (hereinafter “JP ’724”)3 in view of Billings et al.
(US 6,470,944 Bl, Oct. 29, 2002) (hereinafter “Billings”) and the Complete
Textile Glossary, Celanese Acetate LLC, 2001 (hereinafter “Textile
Glossary”) entry for “textured yams.” Final Act. 2—3.
2. Claims 7—9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as obvious
over JP ’724 in view of Billings and further in view of Schwung et al. (US
2 In the Final Rejection, the Examiner indicates that claim 16, inter alia,
stands rejected. Final Act. 2. Claim 16 was canceled by amendment dated
June 26, 2015, accordingly, we constme references to claim 16 in the Final
Rejection to refer to claim 18.
3 Referred to in certain sources as JPH08312724 A.
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Appeal 2017-004035
Application 12/830,077
2007/0169458 Al, published July 26, 2007) (hereinafter “Schwung”). Id. at
3^4.
DISCUSSION
Rejection 1. The Examiner rejected claims 1—6, 10, 11, 13, 14, and
18 as obvious over JP ’724, Billings, and the Textile Glossary. Final Act. 2—
3. In making such rejection, the Examiner found that JP ’724 teaches to
make a toothed power transmission belt having textured fibers of nylon in
the longitudinal direction (weft). Final Act. 2. The Examiner further found
that JP ’724 teaches to use textured fibers of nylon and aramid fibers in the
transverse direction (warp). Id. The Examiner additionally found that
Billings teaches that “polyphenylene sulphide fibers are useful in forming
woven fabrics where high strength and high temperature resistance are
desirable.” Id. at 3. Asa result, the Examiner finds, it would have been
obvious for a person of ordinary skill in the art to use polyphenylene sulfide
fibers (as taught by Billings) in place of the aramid fibers of JP ’724. Id.
Appellant argues that the rejection was made in error. Appeal Br. 10-
16. Appellant asserts that textured (“woolly finish”) nylon can be used to
impart the ability to stretch in the longitudinal direction (extensibility) and
that JP ’724 teaches a belt that can be stretched only in the longitudinal
direction (weft). Id. at 11.
Appellant argues that JP ’724 teaches to use aramid fibers in the
transverse direction (warp) but does not teach textured aramid fibers. Id. at
11—12. Appellant cites to U.S. Patent No. 5,529,545 to Isshiki for its
teaching that aramid yams do not texturize suitably for use in toothed belt
fabrics. Id. (citing Isshiki 1:57—59).
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Appeal 2017-004035
Application 12/830,077
Appellant additionally argues that the Examiner’s proposed
substitution of polyphenylene sulfide fiber for the aramid fiber of JP ’724
would yield a fabric having polyphenylene sulfide “only in the fabric warp
or belt transverse direction where stretchability is not needed, and in a
normal fiber state without a woolly/texturized finish.” Id. at 13.
In the Answer, the Examiner notes Appellant’s view that JP ’724 does
not teach to use textured (and therefore able to be stretched) fibers in the
transverse direction (warp). Answer 4. In response, the Examiner finds that
“JP ’724 teaches employing twisted yams in both warp and weft and that
such twisted yams can comprise both nylon and aramid yams” citing to
Paragraphs 8, 9, and 44 of JP ’724 in support. Id.
The cited paragraphs provide as follows:
[0008] The toothed belt which the tooth cloth made to
arrange so that warp may extend the tooth part side surface of a
belt body to a belt width direction and weft may extend it in the
belt length direction covers by this invention specifically is a
premise.
[0009] And the weft of the above-mentioned tooth cloth
shall comprise twisted yam which carries out upper twisting of
the lower twisting thread which consists of two or more woolly
finish thread in the direction contrary to the direction of
twisting of the lower twisting thread.
* * *
[0044] [Effect of the Invention] In the toothed belt which
the tooth cloth made to arrange so that warp may extend the
tooth part side surface of a belt body to a belt width direction
and weft may extend it in the belt length direction covers in the
invention of Claim 1 as described above[.] Weft of the above-
mentioned tooth cloth is constituted from twisted yam which
carries out upper twisting of the lower twisting thread which
consists of two or more woolly finish thread in the direction
contrary to the direction of lower twisting[.] In spite of having
had the high strength in outstanding abrasion resistance and a
weft direction according to the number of twists, it enabled it to
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Appeal 2017-004035
Application 12/830,077
demonstrate a stretch of the above-mentioned woolly finish
thread sufficiently.
Therefore, both abrasion resistance applied to a root of
tooth from a bottom and fatigue resistance in a root of tooth can
be improved, and a life of a toothed belt can be prolonged.
JP ’724 11 8, 9, and 44.
Although the above-quoted paragraphs support the Examiner’s
finding that JP ’724 discloses using twisted yam in both the warp and weft
directions, and that the yam is stretchable in the weft direction, they do not
support the Examiner’s finding that twisted yam used in the weft direction
may comprise aramid fibers.4 Nor do the cited paragraphs teach to use
textured (stretchable) fibers in the warp (transverse) direction. In other
words, JP ’724 only clearly teaches the use of aramid fibers in the warp
direction where stretchability is not required. Accordingly, the Examiner
has not shown that JP ’724 teaches the use of textured aramid fibers. As a
result, the proposed hypothetical combination, made by substituting the
polyphenylene sulfide5 of Billings for the aramid of JP ’724 would have
textured nylon in the weft (longitudinal) direction and untextured
polyphenylene sulfide in the warp (transverse) direction. Thus, the proposed
combination lacks a teaching of a textured polyarylene sulfide.
4 We note that the Specification states that “[tjexturing may be achieved by
any known texturing method, such as false twisting . . . .” Spec. 125. This
falls short of a teaching that a twisted yam of the type described in JP ’724 is
a textured fiber as claimed.
5 Polyphenylene sulfide is a type of polyarylene sulfide as required by claim
1. Spec. Para 6
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Appeal 2017-004035
Application 12/830,077
Accordingly, Appellant has shown reversible error in the Examiner’s
determination of obviousness of claims 1—6, 10, 11, 13, 14, and 18 as
obvious over JP ’724, Billings, and the Textile Glossary.
Rejection 2. The Examiner rejected claims 7 and 9 as obvious over
JP ’724 in view of Billings, the Textile Glossary, and Schwung. Final Act.
3^4. Appellant argues that the claims are patentable for the same reasons as
claim 5. Appeal Br. 17. Claims 7 and 9 each depend from claim 5 which
requires “a woven stretch fabric consisting of textured continuous fibers of
polyarylene sulfide and optionally some textured continuous fibers of
nylon.” Appeal Br. 19 (Claims App.). Appellant argues that the Examiner
has not cited to any teaching “to use PAS or PPS fiber in a textured state for
the high-stretch or longitudinal direction in a power transmission belt.”
Appeal Br. 13. As above, the proposed combination lacks a teaching of a
textured polyarylene sulfide fiber.
In view of the foregoing, the rejection of claims 7 and 9 will be
reversed.
CONCLUSION
The rejections of claims 1—11, 13, 14, and 18 are reversed.
REVERSED
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