In re Faunce

75 F.2d 211, 22 C.C.P.A. 915, 1935 CCPA LEXIS 100
Court of Customs and Patent Appeals·Decided February 4, 1935·No. No. 3415·Published

Opinion

Graham, Presiding Judge,

delivered the opinion of the court:

Benjamin Bice Faunce, the appellant, filed an application in the United States Patent Office for a patent upon certain improvements in pharmaceutical preparations and dentifrices.

The application and specification disclose that the product which the appellant has made consists of the combination and treatment of animal - bile and glycerine for use, preferably, in a dentifrice [916]*916form. In his process the appellant takes equal quantities of bile and glycerine, mixes them together and puts them into a container wherein fermentation may take place. This mixture is permitted to stand for a period of approximately three months at a temperature of from 70° to 80° F., “ until the apparent fermentation has ended.” The appellant discloses that during this period bacteria have been produced, by means of which the apparent fermentation has been stopped, and discloses further that if this reaction had not taken place, the use of the material in medicine might have harmful effects.

Further, the specification discloses that the use of 50 per centum glycerine in the mixture is material and essential. After the seasoning period, the glyceride of bile liquid is filtered through talc, and again through any approved type of bacterial filter, by which process the live and dead bacterial cells are removed. Thereupon the glyceride of bile is sterilized by heat at approximately a temperature of 220° F.

This glyceride of bile may be used as a prophylactic, anticongestive or analgesic, but is preferably used as a dentifrice. In the preparation of dentifrice, substantially 8 fluid ounces of the glyceride of bile is combined with 24 fluid ounces of glycerine, and then with some excipient or massing agent to give the dentifrice the proper consistence. Precipitated chalk or other base vehicle is used to give a paste form, to which flavoring matter may be added to give the proper flavor.

The specification further recites that this dentifrice, due to the glyceride of bile composition, will reduce congestion, act as a prophylactic, prevent the formation of tartar, prevent bleeding gums, cure halitosis, and keep toothbrushes clean and sanitary.

In support of this application, the appellant presented his affidavit in which he shows that the proportion of glycerine to be added to the bile is material and critical. For instance he says:

* * * Deponent has made extensive experiments which conclusively demonstrate that the bile constituent will lose its identity, as such, by decomposition and putrefaction if a proportion of less than 30% of glycerine is utilized with the bile. Deponent states, on the other hand, that if the proportion of glycerine very appreciably overbalances the bile constituent the said glycerine will act as a preservative for the toxins and other poisons which should be destroyed by bacterial process, so that a safe pharmaceutical preparation could never be produced.

Attached to said affidavit, as exhibits, are the statements of several dental surgeons who state the valuable results which have followed the use of the appellant’s dentrifrice, in pyorrhea, infected gums, and diseased mouth conditions, and to which is also attached certain [917]*917clinical records of Dr. George C. Speirs and Dr. Oliver B>. Campbell, both of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which clinical records fairly demonstrate, we believe, that the dentifrice of the appellant, as used by these dental surgeons, had a useful medicinal effect.

The Board of Appeals rejected all the claims, 1 to 18, inclusive. Claims 4, 9, and 14 are typical, and are as follows:

4. The process of preparing a remedial medicine which consists in mixing fresh bile with glycerine, permitting the same to stand for a period of fermentation, subsequently removing therefrom cellular and foreign pathogenic matter, and sterilizing the glyceride of bile by subjection to heat treatment.
9. As an article of manufacture a dentifrice comprising an excipient, a cleansing and polishing agent, and glyceride of bile admixed therewith.
14. The process of manufacturing a toothpaste which consists in mixing fresh ox-gall and glycerine in substantially equal proportions, permitting the same to stand at a temperature of from 70° F. to 80° F. until the period of fermentation has substantially ended, filtering and removing cellular and pathogenic bacterial matter, adding to the residue glyceride of bile an amount of glycerine substantially three times the amount by weight of the glyceride of bile, and adding suitable flavoring and a polishing agent.

The claims originally rejected were numbered 1 to 18, inclusive. Attached to appellant’s brief is a motion to dismiss the appeal as to claims 1, 2, 3, 12, 16, and 18. In addition to this, upon the hearing here, counsel for appellant moved to dismiss claim 5. These motions are allowed and the appeal will be accordingly dismissed as to said claims, 1, 2, 3, 5, 12, 16, and 18. This leaves for consideration claims 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10,11,13, 14, 15, and 17.

The Board of Appeals cited the following references:

Nichols, 249,478, Nov. 16, 1881.
Deikman, 807,748, Nov. 11, 1884.
Altwegg, 1,483,152, Feb. 12, 1924.
Baron, 1,621,186, Mar. 16, 1927.
Hiss & Ebert, New Standard Formulary, 1920, Page 199, TJ. S. Dispensa-tory, 21st Edition, Pages 526-27, article on Glycerita.
Textbook of Bacteriology by Hans Zinsser, 1930, Pages 133, 118.

Without going into the details, the Board of Appeals affirmed the action of the examiner in rejecting said claims for the reasons stated by him, which reasons, as stated by the board, were as follows:

The Examiner rejected claims 3, 4, 6-8 and 12-16 as disclosing a process obvious to one skilled in the art and he calls attention to the step of filtering bacteria disclosed on page 118 of the Textbook of Bacteriology.
Claims 2, 8, 9 and 10-18 are rejected on the ground that there is no invention in using appellant’s preparation of glycerine and bile as a dentifrice. We agree with this holding of the Examiner.
The final rejection by the Examiner of claims 2, 9, 10, 11, 17 and 18 as covering an aggregation of substances since there is no coaction or interdependence between the chalk, flavoring matter and other ingredients specified is also well taken. See ex parte Walker, 313 O. G. 231.

[918]*918The references disclose the following:

The patentee Nichols shows an improved soft soap which he makes by compounding ox gall with glycerine and nine other substances, including such substances as alcohol, sal-soda and can-tharides.

The patent to Deikman is for a liniment which contains a large number of constituents, two of which are beef’s gall and glycerine.

The patent to Altwegg shows an improved method of producing a solution of volatile oil's. In the specification of this patent it is stated: “All these solutions combine the properties of the bile salts of. dissolving pus, mucus, and lipoid matter with the antiseptic effect of the volatile oils.”

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In re Faunce, 75 F.2d 211, 22 C.C.P.A. 915, 1935 CCPA LEXIS 100 (ccpa 1935).

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