Prosecution Insights
Last updated: July 17, 2026
Application No. 17/068,686

BATTERY CELL AND BATTERY

Non-Final OA §112
Filed
Oct 12, 2020
Priority
Apr 11, 2018 — continuation of PCTCN2018082716
Examiner
WALLS, CYNTHIA KYUNG SOO
Art Unit
1751
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
Ningde Amperex Technology Limited
OA Round
7 (Non-Final)
72%
Grant Probability
Favorable
7-8
OA Rounds
0m
Est. Remaining
71%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 72% — above average
72%
Career Allowance Rate
654 granted / 912 resolved
+6.7% vs TC avg
Minimal -1% lift
Without
With
+-0.6%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 5m
Avg Prosecution
45 currently pending
Career history
968
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§103
81.5%
+41.5% vs TC avg
§102
7.1%
-32.9% vs TC avg
§112
8.2%
-31.8% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 912 resolved cases

Office Action

§112
Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA . Response to Arguments This Office Action is responsive to the amendment filed on 5/13/2026. Claims 1-6, 9-16, 19-22 are pending. Applicant’s arguments have been fully considered and are persuasive. However, upon further consideration, the instant claims are rejected under new grounds of rejection. Claims 1-6, 9-16, 19-22 are non-finally rejected for reasons of stated herein below. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 The following is a quotation of the second paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112: The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention. Claims 1-6, 9-16, 19-22 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112, second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which applicant regards as the invention. Regarding claims 1 and 11, the limitation “wherein in the first lateral part and the second lateral part, at least a side of one the first current collector and/or at least a side of one the second current collector in the outermost layer of the battery cell are coated with active substances, respectively” is not supported by the disclosure as originally filed. Applicant refers to its instant USPGPUB [0031] and figure 1 for support. However, the instant Specification states: [0031] In this embodiment, the first current collector 16 forms the outermost layer of the battery cell 10, Therefore, the formed opposite uncoated region is surrounded inside the first current collector 16 that is the outermost layer. In this way, the opposite uncoated region is not visible from outside the battery cell 10. Therefore, this structure may also be referred to as “hidden opposite uncoated region”. Hence, it is noted that the outermost layer of the battery cell is not coated with active substances. Applicant is required to cancel the new matter in reply to this Office Action. Response to Arguments Applicant’s arguments dated 5/13/2026 are moot in view of the new grounds of rejection. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CYNTHIA KYUNG SOO WALLS whose telephone number is (571)272-8699. The examiner can normally be reached on M-F until 5pm. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jonathan Leong can be reached at 571-270-1292. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of an application may be obtained from the Patent Application Information Retrieval (PAIR) system. Status information for published applications may be obtained from either Private PAIR or Public PAIR. Status information for unpublished applications is available through Private PAIR only. For more information about the PAIR system, see http://pair-direct.uspto.gov. Should you have questions on access to the Private PAIR system, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative or access to the automated information system, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /CYNTHIA K WALLS/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1751
Read full office action

Prosecution Timeline

Show 15 earlier events
Jun 11, 2025
Response after Non-Final Action
Oct 24, 2025
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112
Jan 20, 2026
Examiner Interview Summary
Jan 20, 2026
Applicant Interview (Telephonic)
Jan 23, 2026
Response Filed
Mar 11, 2026
Final Rejection mailed — §112
May 13, 2026
Response after Non-Final Action
May 21, 2026
Non-Final Rejection mailed — §112 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

Patent 12676383
SEPARATOR, PREPARATION METHOD THEREOF, AND SECONDARY BATTERY, BATTERY MODULE, BATTERY PACK, AND APPARATUS RELATED THERETO
3y 12m to grant Granted Jul 07, 2026
Patent 12665258
SEPARATOR, PREPARATION METHOD THEREFOR AND RELATED SECONDARY BATTERY, BATTERY MODULE, BATTERY PACK AND DEVICE
3y 9m to grant Granted Jun 23, 2026
Patent 12651744
ANODE MATERIAL, ELECTROCHEMICAL DEVICE AND ELECTRONIC DEVICE COMPRISING THE SAME
4y 0m to grant Granted Jun 09, 2026
Patent 12646714
LITHIUM SUPPLEMENTING MATERIAL AND POSITIVE ELECTRODE CONTAINING SAME
4y 2m to grant Granted Jun 02, 2026
Patent 12640404
ELECTROMAGNETIC STIMULATED RECHARGEABLE BATTERY
3y 0m to grant Granted May 26, 2026
Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

7-8
Expected OA Rounds
72%
Grant Probability
71%
With Interview (-0.6%)
3y 5m (~0m remaining)
Median Time to Grant
High
PTA Risk
Based on 912 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allowance rate.

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