DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 04/03/2026 has been entered.
Status of Claims
Claim 1 is amended. Claims 1-21 are currently pending.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claims 1-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention.
Claim 1 recites in part “the composite solid electrolyte is not infused into any cavity of the insulating member”. However, this limitation constitutes a negative limitation which does not have any basis in the instant specification. In fact, paragraph [0036] discloses that “when a thickness of the composite solid electrolyte 30 and a thickness of the insulating member 31 are the substantially the same, the composite solid electrolyte 30 would not be visible in the cross-sectional view” in fig. 1. Accordingly, this passage implies that the composite solid electrolyte 30 is infused into a cavity of the insulating member since it would otherwise be impossible for the composite solid electrolyte to not be visible in cross-sectional view when the composite solid electrolyte and the insulating member have substantially the same thickness. It is noted that the instant specification clearly explains that the thickness of the composite solid electrolyte 30 in fig. 1 (which is the same as the figures shown in figs. 2A-B) is exaggerated to illustrate the arrangement sate of the composite solid electrolyte ([0036]). Moreover, fig. 3 and paragraph [0040] illustrate that the insulating member may frame the composite solid electrolyte which corresponds to the arrangements of the cited art (Miyake and Klaasen). Furthermore, the limitation “an entirety of the composite solid electrolyte overlaps the insulating member in the plan view” is not supported by the instant specification and constitutes new matter. The only description in the instant specification regarding a plan view relates to a description of the area of the composite solid electrolyte which may be greater than an area of the insulating member in plan view ([0038]). It is noted that figs. 1 and 2A-B illustrate a cross-sectional view of the combined structure of the composite solid electrolyte and the insulating member. Paragraph [0038] further provides evidence that the composite solid electrolyte is provided in a cavity or hollow space at the center of the frame shaped insulating member since the insulating member is described as surrounding the outer surfaces of the composite solid electrolyte. As such, the instant specification does not provide any support for the above cited claim limitations.
Claims 2-21 are rejected as being dependent on claim 1.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim 1 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. As noted in the above updated 35 U.S.C. 112(a) rejection of claim 1, the newly recited subject matter in claim 1 constitutes new matter.
Thus, in view of the foregoing, claims 1-21 stand rejected.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NATHANAEL T ZEMUI whose telephone number is (571)272-4894. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8am-5pm (EST).
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, BARBARA GILLIAM can be reached on (571)272-1330. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/NATHANAEL T ZEMUI/Examiner, Art Unit 1727
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