KSR cited in IBM case Ex parte CHALLENER

KSR is invoked in Ex parte CHALLENER
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Notwithstanding Appellants’ arguments (see also Reply Br 2-3), our reviewing court guides that “when a patent ‘simply arranges old elements with each performing the same function it had been known to perform’ and yields no more than one would expect from such an arrangement, the combination is obvious.” KSR Int’l Co. v. Teleflex, Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 417 (2007) (quoting Sakraida v. Ag Pro, Inc., 425 U.S. 273, 282 (1976)).

This reasoning is applicable here, given that we find a security protocol would be desirable after the call (dialing action) is authorized to secure the communication. Thus, we are not persuaded of error regarding the Examiner’s proffered rationale that “it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to use the specific security features of Rao with the system of Voit to achieve a secure and encrypted communication line between two parties.