Fletcher YoderMotivation to combine references will not be extinguished based only on preferred or selected embodiments. To successfully argue that prior art references teach away from combination, there needs to be a showing that a person of ordinary skill in the art would not have been motivated to combine the prior art to reach any of the embodiments within the scope of the challenged claims.
Decisions by Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences finding that prior art references would motivate person of ordinary skill in art to make inventions of applications at issue are affirmed in action in which applicants have not identified any legal error affecting board’s obviousness analysis, or any factual grounds sufficient to question its findings as to teachings of prior art and motivation that references would impart to skilled artisan.