1, Kerry Azelton, declare:
`
`I am currently Associate Research Fellow for The Clorox Company (“Clorox”). This
`
`declaration is based upon my personal knowledge and, if called as a witness, I could and
`
`would testify to these facts. This declaration is in support of Clorox’s petition for inter
`
`partes review (the “Petition”) of Auto-Kaps Patent No. 7,490,743 (the “ ’7-43 Patent”).
`
`Although I work for Clorox, the opinions herein are my own, and I have no stake in the
`
`outcome of the review proceeding. My compensation does not depend in any way on the
`
`success of this petition.
`
`I have been with Clorox since 2007. At Clorox, I have served as a design engineer, the
`
`senior design engineer, and the project leader on teams to develop new products. Prior to
`
`2007, I was employed at Logitech, where I was also a design engineer working to
`
`develop new products. Many of the projects I have worked on relate to packaging and in
`
`particular, the development of new containers that can be used for the storage,
`
`transportation and dispensing of liquid products such as cleaners. For example, for
`
`several years, I was senior design engineer on the design of Clorox’s current “Smart
`
`Tube" spray bottle, a dispensing container Clorox uses for many of its liquid cleaner
`
`products. Attached hereto as Exhibit A is a true and correct copy of my Curriculum
`
`Vitae describing my background and experience.
`
`I am familiar with the background and training of people who participate in the design
`
`and development of new product containers at Clorox and in similar positions at other
`
`companies. Typically, at least a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering or a closely
`
`related field is required for an entry level job. Typically, those working in the field have
`
`such a degree and also several years of experience. (At Clorox and any other company
`
`Declaration of Kerry Azelton Re. "/43 IPR.
`
`PETITIONER - THE CLOROX COMPANY - EXHIBIT 1017 - Page 1
`
`

`
`that I know, those who only have bachelor’s degrees and no experience would need to
`
`work with more experienced people on the development of a new dispensing container
`
`project.) I therefore believe that a person of ordinary skill in the development of new
`
`commercial dispensing containers would have, at a minimum, a bachelors degree in
`
`mechanical engineering or its equivalent.
`
`In the design of spray bottles used for cleaning solutions, we typically look for ideas in
`
`the designs used for manually dispensing other liquids, whether cleaning products or non-
`
`cleaning products (e. g. perfumes or cosmetic/personal care products). Among the
`
`features to be considered are whether to mount a pump or spray trigger on the cap, how
`
`such a cap should be mounted to the container, and how to ensure a reliable fluid conduit
`
`from the container reservoir to the pump. I have interpreted the content of the prior art
`
`references described below the way a person of ordinary skill in the art would have
`
`interpreted the prior art references at the time of the assumed effective filing date of the
`
`’743 Patent — October 22, 2004 (the “Priority Date”).
`
`I am familiar with the patents to Guss and Bartimes referred to in the Petition. Both
`
`disclose spray bottles for dispensing liquid solutions. Both have certain limitations in the
`
`design. Guss requires a significant molded projection in the container and corresponding
`
`receptacle for that projection in the cap in order to ensure alignment of the fluid
`
`paths. Bartirnes places downward projecting tabs on the cap that fit into correspondingly
`
`shaped cavities in the container and then a complex system of rings, washers and
`
`conduits for the same purpose. These mechanisms are complex, somewhat bulky, are
`
`likely to be expensive to manufacture, and may be perceived as unaesthetic.
`
`Declaration of Kerry Azelton Re. "/'43 IPR.
`
`PETITIONER - THE CLOROX COMPANY - EXHIBIT 1017 - Page 2
`
`

`
`A person of skill in the art looking to improve the design of either of Guss or Bartirnes
`
`would look at other spray bottle or pump dispenser designs such as Ho, Campagnolo,
`
`Barriac, Gardner, Battegazzore, Bonneyrat, Densler and Bacheller for ideas as to how to
`
`improve the connections between the various fluid passages required to transport liquid
`
`from the container to the pump or spray trigger and how to couple the cap to the
`
`container in a manner that ensured that the pump mechanism had reliable access to the
`
`liquid in the container. This is especially true as between references that incorporate an
`
`integral container dip—tube, such as Ho, Gardner and Campagnolo. In addition, Barri ac
`
`and Battegazore teach generic components of spray bottles (a flexible fluid path
`
`connector and a cap coupling design, respectively) that one of skill in the art would
`
`recognize as having application to a spray bottle with an integrated container dip-tube
`
`design such as the Guss or Bartimes designs.
`
`I agree with the following constructions of claim terms in Auto-Kaps Patent No.
`
`7,490,743 set forth in the Petition:
`
`The term “coupling arrangement” means: any non-circular mechanism, device,
`
`construction, and/or shape on a pump cap body that permits the pump cap to detachably
`
`couple to the container only if a container passageway is aligned with a pump
`
`passageway.
`
`The term “mating arrangement” means: any non~circular mechanism, device,
`
`construction, and/or shape on a container that permits the pump cap to detachably couple
`
`to the container only if a container passageway is aligned with a pump passageway.
`
`Declaration of Kerry Azelton Re. ’743 IPR.
`
`PETITIONER - THE CLOROX COMPANY - EXHIBIT 1017 - Page 3
`
`

`
`The term “pump passageway is non-axial with respect to the pump mechanism” means:
`
`the axis of the pump passageway is radially offset from the vertical center axis of the
`
`pump mechanism axis at the plane where the cap meets the container.
`
`I believe the following combinations of references as set forth in the Petition are obvious,
`
`with reference to the Grounds in the Petition:
`
`Ground 3. One of ordinary skill in the art would have considered the Campagnolo design
`
`in attempting to modify the Guss design to eliminate the projection 34 of Guss, used to
`
`prevent misalignment. Guss relates to “containers and pump assemblies for liquids such
`
`as liquid cleaners and the like” (1 : 10-12) and Carnpagnolo describes a perfume bottle.
`
`These uses are similar.
`
`Further, both Guss and Campagnolo teach integral dip tubes and both relate to providing
`
`a mechanism to attach the pump cap in a limited orientation, as discussed above. For all
`
`these reasons, it is obvious to combine Guss and Campagnolo. In combination, Guss and
`
`Campagnolo teach every element of claim 1, even with the narrower definition of “non-
`
`circular” described above.
`
`Campagnolo deals with pump alignment by providing an oval-shaped container mouth
`
`and a dip tube protruding above the top of the container. The dispensing head couples to
`
`the container with an interference fit. This geometry ensures the pump connection
`
`always aligns with the dip tube. The person of ordinary skill would have found it
`
`obvious to use an oval—shaped container mouth and protruding dip tube as in Campagnolo
`
`and to interference-fit an adapted Guss pump assembly onto the oval—shaped container
`
`mouth.
`
`Declaration of Kerry Azclton Re. ’743 IPR.
`
`PETITIONER - THE CLOROX COMPANY - EXHIBIT 1017 - Page 4
`
`

`
`Ground 4. A skilled artisan would look to the press fit mechanism of Ho for details of
`
`connecting the pump passageway to the container passageway, since Ho, like Guss and
`
`Campagnolo, is directed to a container for pumping liquids. All three are also directed to
`
`containers having integral dip tubes as part of the container, requiring the attachment.
`
`Ground 5. One of skill in the art would look to Ho’s simple funnel connection as a way
`
`to provide an inexpensive junction of the two pump passageway 58 and container
`
`passageway 36 in Bartimes that avoids the necessity of the backup disk and gasket
`
`structures of Bartirnes.
`
`It would be a matter of design choice to reverse which is wider.
`
`Both Bartimes and Ho are referenced in the ’743 Patent; both relate to containers with dip
`
`tubes. One of ordinary skill would look to both to develop an optimum design.
`
`Ground 6. Barriac teaches a flexible delivery tube 41 in a spray bottle cap that connects
`
`to a narrower, rigid dip tube 66 that extends into the container. It would be obvious to
`
`combine Barriac with Guss or Ho since all relate to dispenser containers with dip tubes.
`
`Baniac provides the design details lefi out of Guss and Ho regarding how the connection
`
`can be made. It is obvious to use a flexible tube to provide a press—fit connection with a
`
`rigid tube.
`
`Ground 7. As discussed above, Barriac discloses a coupling between fluid passageways
`
`that uses a resilient, flexible material. It would have been obvious to use the resilient
`
`materials of Barriac in the coupling between the container passageway to the pump
`
`passageway in the combination of Bartimes and Ho for the same reasons it would be
`
`obvious to combine with Guss, discussed above.
`
`Ground 8. It would have been obvious to one skilled in the art to modify the connection
`
`between the supply passage 56 of Guss and the dip tube from the container to include a
`
`Declaration of Kerry Azelton Re. ’743 IPR.
`
`PETITIONER - THE CLOROX COMPANY - EXHIBIT 1017 - Page 5
`
`

`
`flexible insert to ensure a good seal. Also, the skilled artisan would recognize that an O-
`
`ring needs to be an elastic, flexible material. The skilled artisan would look to Gardner,
`
`because it also describes a container with a pump, and shows the need to align the pump
`
`cap passageway with the container dip tubes.
`
`Ground 9. It would be obvious to add the O-ring of Gardner to Bartimes for the same
`
`reasons discussed above with respect to a combination with Guss or and Guss and
`
`Campagnolo. The skilled artisan would look to Gardner, as did the Examiner, because it
`
`also describes a container with a pump, and shows the need to align and connect the
`
`pump cap passageway with the container dip tubes, like Bartimes.
`
`Ground 10. As discussed above in Ground 3, Campagnolo shows a protrusion, and it
`
`would be obvious to add the protrusion of Campagnolo to Bartimes for the same reasons
`
`that it would be obvious to combine with Guss, as discussed above in Ground 3.
`
`In
`
`addition, whether the container tube extends above or below its mouth is simply a matter
`
`of design choice — it depends on the amount of room needed by the pump mechanism and
`
`thus whether the pump passageway is recessed, or needs to extend downward into the
`
`container.
`
`Ground 1 1. Pump dispenser connectors having both snap-fit and threaded features in a
`
`single design were not novel on the Priority Date. Battegazzore, filed in 1991, is
`
`representative of such prior art connectors. A threaded connector provides easy removal
`
`for a user while a snap-fit connection provides ease of assembly. Having both a threaded
`
`and snap-fit connector provides both ease of use and ease of assembly. Whether to use a
`
`threaded or snap-fit connection, or both, is a simple substitution of one known element
`
`for another to obtain predictable results.
`
`Declaration of Kerry Azelton Re. ’743 IPR.
`
`PETITIONER - THE CLOROX COMPANY - EXHIBIT 1017 - Page 6
`
`

`
`Battegazzore describes “[a] device for releasably connecting a generic liquid sprayer,
`
`e. g. for detergents and the like” (Abstract). Thus, it is the same type of product as
`
`Bartimes and a skilled artisan would look to such a similar product to improve the
`
`method of attachment, or simply to provide a simpler, less expensive manner of
`
`attaclunent. The manner of attachment using threads and a snap fit was notoriously
`
`common as of the Priority Date.
`
`Ground 12. It would be obvious to combine Battegazzore with Guss for the same reasons
`
`it would be obvious to combine with Bartimes as discussed above. Battegazzore is the
`
`same type of product as Guss and Campagnolo, and a skilled artisan would look to such a
`
`similar product to improve the method of attachment, or simply to provide a simpler, less
`
`expensive manner of attachment.
`
`Ground 13. A skilled artisan would have found it obvious to improve Guss or
`
`Campagnolo by replacing the dip tube with transparent, concentric cylinders as in
`
`Bonneyrat. Adapting Guss or Campagnolo for use with an annular gap between
`
`concentric walls is straightforward. Connecting the Campagnolo pump to the annular
`
`gap in Bonneyrat is easy because the gap hugs the wall. The combination results in an
`
`improved bottle without a distracting dip tube.
`
`The combined teachings of Campagnolo and Bonneyrat remove the dip tube and
`
`predictably provide the same functionality with concentric walls. This combination
`
`involves the simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable
`
`results.
`
`Ground 14. It would be obvious to combine Bonneyrat with Bartimes for the reasons set
`
`forth above for a combination with Campagnolo and Guss. Bonneyrat, similar to
`
`Declaration of Kerry Azelton Re. ’743 IPR.
`
`PETITIONER - THE CLOROX COMPANY - EXHIBIT 1017 - Page 7
`
`

`
`Bartimes, shows an integral passageway in the container for pulling liquid from the
`
`bottom of the container to the top. Perfume and cleaner containers are relevant
`
`technology, and thus a skilled artisan would be motivated to look to Bonneyrat for a
`
`different type of passageway for a look that provides a marketing differentiation from the
`
`competition.
`
`Ground 15. The problem presented with Bonneyrat is the perfume dispenser is fragile
`
`and, in transit, the containers may forcefully make contact and break. An obvious
`
`solution is to addflexible spacers between the containers to prevent breakage. Also,
`
`although the details aren’t shown in Bonneyrat, it would likely need braces to mount the
`
`inner container.
`
`Denzler teaches rubber projections that act as spacers for concentric containers to buffer
`
`shocks to the inner container. A skilled artisan would have found it obvious to add the
`
`Denzler rubber projections to Bonneyral. The advantage gained by the combination is
`
`preventing breakage of a frangible product. Also, the skilled artisan would be motivated
`
`to look to Denzler for details omitted in Bonneyrat on how to mount the inner container.
`
`This combination would apply a known technique (spacer) to a known product (double-
`
`walled bottle) ready for improvement to yield predictable results (prevent breakage).
`
`Ground 16.
`
`It would be obvious to combine Denzler with Bonneyrat for the same
`
`reasons as discussed above.
`
`I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct and that this declaration
`
`was executed on Marchéfl, 2016 at Oakland, California.
`/
`
`Z)
`zelton
`
`err
`
`Declaration of Kerry Azelton Re. ’743 IPR.
`
`PETITIONER - THE CLOROX COMPANY - EXHIBIT 1017 - Page 8
`
`

`
`EXHIBIT A
`
`PETITIONER - THE CLOROX COMPANY - EXHIBIT 1017 - Page 9
`
`PETITIONER - THE CLOROX COMPANY - EXHIBIT 1017 - Page 9
`
`

`
`Kerry D. Azelton
`_________________________________________________________________________________
`
`PROFILE
`A Packaging Professional, with extensive experience and knowledge of package development, design,
`engineering, purchasing and global manufacturing practices for a wide variety of consumer products.
`
`PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
`Clorox Services Company, Pleasanton, CA
`
`
`
`Associate Research Fellow
` As a member of the Packaging Leadership Team I am a visible and active expert providing trusted
`technical perspective for all SBU’s, functional leaders and project teams. I am responsible for the
`flawless execution of multiple new technical innovation programs across all business units. Lead
`teams in executing the development and commercialization of innovative products into the market
`place. Liaise with global brand managers and marketing to initiate proper strategies for packaging
`objectives. I have responsibility for building and maintaining effective business/supplier
`relationships. Manage packaging vendors for creative design concepts and rapid prototyping.
`Influence the development, creation and utilization of prototype thru production tools for injection
`molding, blow molding systems, thermoformed plastics, carton and corrugated products.
`Responsible for managing the creation of technical specifications and ECR requests in SAP/PDM.
`As the technical lead for injection molding I build organizational technical knowledge and
`understanding through effective mentoring and training of junior scientists. Outstanding ability to
`negotiate and assess purchasing and manufacturing requirements for all products and designs.
`Coordinate negotiations for the delivery logistics of products and services.
`
`
`
`Nov. 2007-Present
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
` June 2004-Nov.2007
`
`
`Logitech International SA, Fremont, CA
`Senior Packaging Engineer
` Reporting to the Director of Engineering Services I was responsible for owning the remote control,
`mouse and keyboard BU’s packaging. Responsible for the timely design, development and
`commercialization of retail packaging. Liaise with Global Brand managers and product marketing
`teams to ensure accurate and cost effective packaging solutions. I was responsible for the creation
`of innovative package structures using state of the art and environmentally conscience materials.
`Manage the design and development of complex tooling and molding for ridged plastics, and paper
`materials. I manage the creation of prototypes of the designs for representation and testing per
`SPC specifications. Created and transferred mechanical drawings and electronic files for graphics
`and manufacturing specifications. Coordinate with and drove international manufacturing centers to
`ensure optimized manufacturability and quality of products. Set up, manage and grow global
`vendor and supply chain base partners. Participate in demanding vendor evaluations and audits to
`ensure quality production and efficient pricing.
`
`
` Technical Knowledge: Extensive knowledge in packaging materials and manufacturing systems.
`Dispensing technologies spray and pump technologies. Sampling and prototyping systems. Testing
`equipment and practices. GMP practices.
`
`
`Packaging Innovators Corporation, Livermore, CA
`Packaging Engineer/Sales Representative
`
`Mark Container Corporation, San Leandro, CA
`Design Manager
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
` October 2003-June 2004
`
` March 2000–October 2003
`
`
`
`EDUCATION
`
`California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA
`B. S. Industrial Technology – Production Management Concentration, Packaging Minor
`
`
`
`PETITIONER - THE CLOROX COMPANY - EXHIBIT 1017 - Page 10