What Do a Resealable Cartridge for Low Pressure Liquid Chromatography and a Soda-Pop Bottle and Cap Have In Common?
| September 23, 2014
Scientific Plastic Products, Inc., v. Biotage AB.
September 10, 2014
Panel: Newman, Moore and Wallach. Opinion by Newman. Dissent by Moore.
Summary
The CAFC affirmed the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s decision that all claims of the three disputed patents held by Scientific Plastic Products, Inc. (SPP) would have been obvious.
The CAFC held that the cited references, King and Strassheimer, both of which related to the sealing of a beverage container, were available as prior art against the claimed resealable cartridge for low pressure liquid chromatography (LPLC).
The CAFC held that although the cited reference Yamada failed to explicitly disclose a leakage problem, by “providing for the presence of an O-ring,” Yamada implicitly acknowledged that there is the potential for a leak. Further, the CAFC concluded that the inventors, in the patents in question, identified that the potential for leaks is a “known problem.”
Accordingly, the CAFC found adequate reason for one of ordinary skill in the art to turn to King or Strassheimer to improve the sealing arrangement set forth in Yamada.
Did the CAFC Extrapolate From the Teachings of the References to Reach the Conclusion of Obviousness?
| August 12, 2013
In re Adler
July 18, 2013
Panel: Prost, Reyna and Wallach. Opinion by Wallach
Summary
The Examiner rejected all of the pending claims under 35 U.S.C. §103 as obvious over several prior art references, including International Patent Publication WO 00/22975 (“Meron”) in view of Masaru Hirata et al., Study of New Prognostic Factors of Esophageal Variceal Rupture By Use of Image Processing With a Video Endoscope, 116 Surgery 8–16 (1994) (“Hirata”).
The Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (“the Board”) affirmed the Examiner’s rejection of all pending claims of U.S. Patent Application No. 10/097,096 (the ‘096 application) under 35 U.S.C. §103 as being obvious over a combination of prior art references. Adler appealed the Board’s decision to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC). The CAFC affirms holding that the Board did not err in rejecting the pending claims as obvious and did not rely on new grounds for rejection.
