Federal Circuit Clarifies Use of Common Sense to Support the Combination of References to Arrive at Obviousness and the Role of “Secondary” Considerations in the Obviousness Inquiry
The Federal Circuit recently expanded the role of secondary considerations, or objective indicia, of non-obviousness in the obviousness calculus. In Plantronics, Inc. v. Aliph, Inc., the district court held claims directed to a headset stabilizer invalid as obvious. No. C09-1714, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 40172 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 23, 2012). On appeal, the Federal Circuit…