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 .
Election/Restrictions
Newly submitted claim 34 is directed to an invention that is independent or distinct from the invention originally claimed for the following reasons:
The invention of Claim 34, and the invention of claims 1, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12-15, 21-23, 26, and 28-33 are related as process of making and product made. The inventions are distinct if either or both of the following can be shown: (1) that the process as claimed can be used to make another and materially different product or (2) that the product as claimed can be made by another and materially different process (MPEP § 806.05(f)). In the instant case the product as claimed can be made by another and materially different process.
Here, the process of claim 34 comprises a step wherein the assembled battery array is inserted into an enclosure assembly. In comparison, independent claims 1 and 30 only require structure wherein the battery array is housed within the enclosure assembly, without any requirement that the battery array be placed in the enclosure assembly in an assembled state. Accordingly, the battery pack of the product could be made by a process where the battery array is assembled inside the enclosure assembly, in a process which is therefore another and materially different process from the process of claim 34.
Since applicant has received an action on the merits for the originally presented invention, this invention has been constructively elected by original presentation for prosecution on the merits. Accordingly, claim 34 is withdrawn from consideration as being directed to a non-elected invention. See 37 CFR 1.142(b) and MPEP § 821.03.
To preserve a right to petition, the reply to this action must distinctly and specifically point out supposed errors in the restriction requirement. Otherwise, the election shall be treated as a final election without traverse. Traversal must be timely. Failure to timely traverse the requirement will result in the loss of right to petition under 37 CFR 1.144. If claims are subsequently added, applicant must indicate which of the subsequently added claims are readable upon the elected invention.
Should applicant traverse on the ground that the inventions are not patentably distinct, applicant should submit evidence or identify such evidence now of record showing the inventions to be obvious variants or clearly admit on the record that this is the case. In either instance, if the examiner finds one of the inventions unpatentable over the prior art, the evidence or admission may be used in a rejection under 35 U.S.C. 103 or pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 103(a) of the other invention.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 06/23/2026. These drawings are acceptable.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1, 5-6, 8, 10, 12-15, 21-23, 25, 26, 28-33 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.
Here, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Schieler in view of Montgomery, Paramasivam, and Su, presented below.
Additionally, the applicant’s revised drawing sheets are accepted, and the drawing objection in regards to figure 6 is withdrawn.
Additionally, the applicant’s amendments have resolved the issues discussed in the 112(b) rejections of claims 1, 5-6, 8, 10, 12-15, 21-23, and 26-33, and the rejections of those claims on the grounds of indefiniteness are withdrawn.
Additionally, in regards to claim 15, the applicant asserts that the injection holes of Ahn are not equivalent to the claimed fill ports, and are not designed for the controlled injection of thermal interface material into voids between structural plates and battery cells. This has been fully considered but is not persuasive.
Ahn discloses that their injection holes are designed for the injection of a thermal interface material, which is a thermally conductive adhesive (Paragraph 0061, “and the thermal conductive adhesive 30 may be injected into the module housing 20 through the injection holes to evenly spread onto the upper surface of the bottom plate 21.”), as well as disclosing that the injection target of said thermal interface material is a void between the cell stack and adjacent structural plates (Paragraph 0062, “By using the thermal conductive adhesive 30 in this way, the cell stack 10 and the bottom plate 21 may be bonded and fixed to each other in a simple way.”). Accordingly, Ahn’s injection holes are designed for the controlled injection of thermal interface material into voids between structural plates and battery cells.
Claim Interpretation
The relative term "about" that is used in conjunction with numerical ranges in claims 1, 29, and 30 is being treated in the broadest reasonable interpretation. The instant specification does not describe the degree of the term nor provide a definition for the term. As such, the term "about" will be interpreted as ±30% of the stated value as evidenced by Kim (US 2019/0198865 A1), which provides a standard of degree for the term "about" in the art (see about, [0022]).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 103 which forms the basis for all obviousness rejections set forth in this Office action:
A patent for a claimed invention may not be obtained, notwithstanding that the claimed invention is not identically disclosed as set forth in section 102, if the differences between the claimed invention and the prior art are such that the claimed invention as a whole would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the claimed invention pertains. Patentability shall not be negated by the manner in which the invention was made.
The factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or nonobviousness.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 1, 6, 13, 14, 21, 23, 26, 28, and 29 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schieler (US PGPUB 2020/0343609) in view of Montgomery (US 2019/0202307 A1), in further view of Paramasivam (US 10468731), and in further view of Su (US 2020/0212387 A1).
Regarding Claim 1, Schieler is an analogous art to the instant invention, disclosing a traction battery pack (Paragraph 0008, “The high-voltage energy storage device can be designed, for example, as a battery, i.e., as a high-voltage battery (HV battery), so that then the high-voltage energy storage device is referred to, for example, as a traction battery.”) comprising a battery array (Paragraph 0044, “storage modules 12 a-c and 14 a-c are arranged in a receptacle space 16 of a storage box 18 , also referred to as a battery box.”) comprising a support structure which comprises a top plate, here the cover plate 24 depicted in Schieler’s figure 1 (Paragraph 0045, “It is apparent from FIG. 1 that the base cooling structure 20 comprises a first cover element 22 and a second cover element 24,”), and a bottom plate, here the base element 52 of the lower cooling structure 20 depicted in Schieler’s figure 1 (Paragraph 0053, “In the second embodiment comprising the third step S3′, for example, precisely one base element 52 of the base cooling structure 20”), as well as a first side plate and a second side plate, here instances of Schieler’s side walls 38 (Paragraph 0047, “Furthermore, the side wall structure 32 comprises second side walls 40 , which are spaced apart from one another along the third direction and delimit the receptacle space 16 along the third direction. The side walls 38 and 40 are connected to one another.”).
Additionally, Schieler discloses structure which comprises a battery cell arranged between the top plate and the bottom plate (Paragraph 0049, “in which the storage modules 12a-c and 14a-c”), further comprising a thermal interface material disposed between the top plate and the battery cell (Paragraph 0051, “A heat-conductive adhesive 48 is used for this purpose, by means of which the storage modules 12a-c and 14a-c are adhesively bonded to the at least one cover element 22 or 24, respectively,”), as well as structure where the battery cell is arranged between the first side plate and second side plate, depicted in Schieler’s figure 4.
Additionally, Schieler discloses a second thermal interface material disposed between the bottom plate and the battery cell (Paragraph 0052, “In the first embodiment comprising the third step S3, for example, the base cooling structure 20 comprises precisely one base element 50 per storage module 12a-c, which is adhesively bonded to precisely one of the storage modules 12a-c by means of the adhesive 48.”).
Here, in regards to the limitation which requires an enclosure assembly including a mounting structure, Schieler fails to disclose said structure. Therefore we look to Montgomery, which is an analogous art to the instant application, being directed towards the art of traction battery packs (Paragraph 0001, “This disclosure relates to electrified vehicle battery packs”). Here, Montgomery discloses a traction battery pack comprising an enclosure assembly 58, depicted in their figure 2, which entirely contains a battery array 25A/25B disposed within an interior of the enclosure assembly (Paragraph 0051, “An enclosure assembly 58 houses each battery assembly 25A, 25B of the battery pack 24.”). Here, where their enclosure assembly includes a tray 60 which the battery array is positioned over, the surface that the array is mounted on is therefore a mounting structure (Paragraph 0051, “In an embodiment, the first and second battery assemblies 25A, 25B are both positioned over the tray 60 of the enclosure assembly 58”). Here, Montgomery further discloses that their enclosure assembly is a sealed enclosure (Paragraph 0051, “the enclosure assembly 58 is a sealed enclosure”). Here, where Schieler discloses that a goal of their invention is to achieve sealing of their battery array against moisture and other environmental influences, and to mitigate accidents (Paragraph 0015, “Modern high-voltage battery storage systems, in particular for electric vehicles (BEVs) are to meet high accident requirements and thus have a particularly advantageous accident behavior, are to be sealed against environmental influences such as moisture”), it would therefore be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to contain the battery array of Schieler inside the sealed enclosure assembly of Montgomery, thereby reading upon the limitation which requires that the traction battery pack comprise an enclosure assembly including a mounting structure, and that the battery array is housed within the enclosure assembly, and that the support structure is disposed entirely within an interior of the enclosure assembly.
Additionally, in regards to the limitation which requires a first mounting flange that protrudes laterally outward from a body of the first side plate in a direction opposite from the second side plate modified Schieler fails to disclose said structure. Therefore we look to Paramasivam, which is an analogous art to the instant application, being directed towards the art of battery packs (Abstract). Here, Paramasivam discloses a laterally protruding mounting flange 81 (disclosed as being a mounting foot), which protrudes laterally outwards from a body of a first side plate, in a direction away from a second side plate, as depicted in their figures 3 and 4, where the mounting flange 81 is attached to a support structure 96 of an enclosure assembly (Column 7 lines 19-22, “The array frame 58 may be secured relative to a support structure 96 of the battery pack 24. In a non-limiting embodiment, the support structure 96 is a portion of a tray of an enclosure assembly of the battery pack 24.”), shown in their figure 6 by means of a mechanical fastener 98 (Column 6 lines 7-10, “The second opening 82 is configured to receive a fastener 98 for mounting the array frame 58 to a support structure (see, e.g., FIG. 6).”). Here, where Paramasivam teaches that their mounting apparatus is a known method in the art to connect a battery side plate to a surrounding enclosure assembly, and where their fastening method allows for an attachment of the battery assembly to the enclosure assembly while limiting compression (Column 7 lines 36-38, “The fastener 98 functions as a compression limiter for retaining the battery assembly 25 to the support structure 96 inside the battery pack 24.”), it would be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to make use of Paramasivam’s mounting flange and mechanical fastener to attach the support structure to Montgomery’s enclosure assembly, thereby making obvious the limitations which require that the first side plate includes a first mounting flange that protrudes laterally outward from a body of the first side plate in a direction away from the second side plate, and where a mechanical fastener secures the first mounting flange to the mounting structure.
Additionally, in regards to the limitation which requires that the first mounting flange is spaced at about an equal distance from both the top plate and the bottom plate, the prior art as discussed above fails to teach or make obvious said structure.
Therefore, we look to Su, which is an analogous art to the instant application, directed towards the art of battery pack structure (Abstract). Here, Su discusses the placement of an attachment lug 112, which connects to a support beam 21, shown in their figure 4. Here, Su discusses that the attachment lug, which protrudes from an end plate 11, is positioned at a middle portion of the end plate, being in a center in the height direction of the plate (Paragraph 0052, “In some embodiments, the position of lug 112 of end plate 11 in the height direction H can be located at a middle portion in the height direction H of main body portion 111 of end plate 11. The middle portion can refer to a position including the center in the height direction H of main body portion 111 of end plate 11 and a position in the vicinity thereof”). Su teaches that embodiments which have an attachment point between a support structure and a surrounding enclosure located at a bottom of the body portion of a plate are subject to shaking environments and external forces, with the lower position of the supporting connection resulting in the amplitude of force on the top of the battery being large, causing increased damage and battery failure (Paragraph 0052, “When the battery module is subjected to a horizontal impact force, the support force from the casing of the battery pack to the battery module is at a lower position, such that the moving amplitude of the upper portion of the battery module is relatively large, and the resulting large deformation degree would cause the electrical connection piece (not shown) on the battery of the battery module 1 to fall off, causing the battery to fail.”). Su further teaches that in comparison, when connective elements are located at a middle of a plate, the amplitude of forces exerted on components in the batteries is reduced, thereby reducing the effects of impact and other damage (Paragraph 0052, “the present disclosure, end plate 11 and the plurality of batteries 12 can be assembled together to form battery module 1 and the force applied at the position where lug 112 of end plate 11 and support beam 21 of casing 2 are fixedly connected to each other can be located close to the middle position in the height direction H of battery module 1, so as to reduce the moving amplitude of battery module 1 when an impact is applied thereon, thereby preventing the components on battery 12 from falling off due to a large moving amplitude.”).
Accordingly, it would be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to modify the invention of Schieler in view of Montgomery and Paramasivam, such that the mounting flange is located at a middle of the plates, thereby reducing the effects of impact and other damage, and making obvious the limitation which requires that the first mounting flange is spaced at about an equal distance from both the top plate and the bottom plate.
Regarding Claim 6, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, Schieler discloses structure which comprises a heat exchanger plate positioned atop the top plate, here the heat exchanger plate 22 depicted in Schieler’s figure 1 (Paragraph 0046, “The respective cover element 22 or 24 is, for example, a plate. In particular, the respective cover element 22 and 24 can be formed from a sheet-metal plate, so that, for example, the cover element 22 is a base sheet-metal plate and the cover element 24 is a cooling sheet-metal plate of the base cooling structure 20.”).
Additionally, Schieler discloses structure which comprises a third thermal interface material which is disposed between the heat exchanger plate and the top plate, here being the cooling ducts 30 as depicted in Schieler’s figure 1 (Paragraph 0046, “The cooling ducts 30 are, for example, fluidically connected to one another, so that the cooling ducts 30 form a continuous overall cooling duct through which coolant fluid can flow.”) which are surrounded by the top plate 24 and the heat exchanger plate 22 (Paragraph 0046, “In particular, the cooling ducts 30 are at least partially, in particular completely, formed and/or delimited by the cover elements 22 and 24, so that, for example, the coolant fluid flowing through the cooling ducts 30 can flow directly against the cover elements 22 and 24 and can thus directly touch and/or contact them.”).
Regarding Claim 13, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, Schieler discloses structure which comprises a bent fold disposed between the bottom plate and a surface of the battery cell (Paragraph 0064, “In particular, one seal element 54 is provided per base element 50 or 52, respectively, to be able to seal off the respective base element 50 or 52 and thus the base cooling structure 20 as a whole particularly advantageously in relation to the side wall structure 32.”), as depicted in Schieler’s figure 5, where the seal 54 folds beneath the bottom surface of the battery. Additionally, as depicted in Schieler’s figure 3, the bend fold seal is located above the bottom plate 52 and below the bottom surface of the batteries. Additionally, Schieler discloses structure which comprises a thermal adhesive between the bent fold and the surface of the battery (Paragraph 0052, “In the first embodiment comprising the third step S3, for example, the base cooling structure 20 comprises precisely one base element 50 per storage module 12a-c, which is adhesively bonded to precisely one of the storage modules 12a-c by means of the adhesive 48.”).
Regarding Claim 14, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 13. Additionally, Schieler discloses structure wherein the battery cell includes a fold accommodated within a relief opening of the bottom plate (Paragraph 0064, “In particular, one seal element 54 is provided per base element 50 or 52, respectively, to be able to seal off the respective base element 50 or 52 and thus the base cooling structure 20 as a whole particularly advantageously in relation to the side wall structure 32.”), where the fold is located in a space above the bottom plate as depicted in Schieler’s figure 3.
Regarding Claim 21, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, Schieler discloses structure where the first and second thermal interface materially are applied internally of the top plate and the bottom plate, respectively, as depicted in Schieler’s figure 1, wherein the first thermal interface material is bonded to the top plate 24 (Paragraph 0051, “A heat-conductive adhesive 48 is used for this purpose, by means of which the storage modules 12a-c and 14a-c are adhesively bonded to the at least one cover element 22 or 24, respectively,”), and the second thermal adhesive is bonded to the bottom plate (Paragraph 0052, “In the first embodiment comprising the third step S3, for example, the base cooling structure 20 comprises precisely one base element 50 per storage module 12a-c, which is adhesively bonded to precisely one of the storage modules 12a-c by means of the adhesive 48.”). Therefore, the first and second thermal interface material are therefore applied internally to the top and bottom plates, respectively.
Regarding Claim 23, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, Schieler discloses structure wherein the battery cell is stacked side by side with a plurality of additional battery cells to establish a cell stack of the battery array, as depicted in Schieler’s figure 4, where a plurality of battery cells 12 and 14 (Paragraph 0049, “the storage modules 12a-c and 14a-c “) are stacked in an array, side-by-side, so as to establish a cell stack of the battery array.
Regarding Claim 26 modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, in regards to the limitation of the instant claim which requires structure wherein the mounting structure is integral with a heat exchanger plate of the battery pack, where the modified Schieler makes obvious an enclosure assembly where the portion of the enclosure assembly that the mounting flange is mounted on is mounting structure, Schieler’s figure 1 shows that a heat exchanger plate 20 is located on the bottom face of the structure of Schieler (Paragraph 0063, “the base cooling structure 20”). Accordingly, where the battery pack is mounted within the enclosure assembly by the mounting flange being in contact with the mounting structure, this would result in the heat exchanger plate 20 being transitively in contact with the mounting structure via the mounting of the battery array, and therefore integrally attached to the enclosure assembly.
Additionally, this results in structure where the battery packs of Schieler are located above the heat exchanger plate 20, as shown in Schieler’s figure 1, which is located inside the enclosure assembly, as discussed above in regards to claim 1, thereby resulting in structure where the heat exchanger plate is positioned between the battery array and the enclosure assembly.
Regarding Claim 28, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, Schieler discloses structure wherein the battery array includes a symmetrical configuration in which either the top plate or the bottom plate may establish a base of the battery array, through their disclosure where the top plate 24 and bottom plate 52 are both positioned adjacent to the battery array as depicted in their figure 1, and are therefore both capable of providing support as the base of the battery array.
Regarding Claim 29, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, Paramasivam, in making obvious their first mounting flange, further make obvious a second mounting flange that protrudes laterally from a second body of the second side plate in a direction opposite from the first side plate, as depicted in their figures 3 and 4, where their mounting flanges 81 are located on both sides of their batteries, on a first plate and a second plate, thereby resulting in a second mounting flange that protrudes outward from a second body of the second side plate in a direction opposite from the first side plate. Additionally, where the rationale discussed above in regards to the placement of Su applies to both the first and second mounting flanges, the second mounting flange is spaced at about an equal distance from both the top plate and the bottom plate. Additionally, Paramasivam depicts structure where each side has a mechanical fastener 98, thereby resulting in structure where the second mounting flange is secured to the mounting structure by a second mechanical fastener.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schieler (US PGPUB 20200343609) in view of Montgomery (US 2019/0202307 A1), Paramasivam (US 10468731), and Su (US 2020/0212387 A1), in further view of Maryanski (US 20200148065 A1).
Regarding Claim 5, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, in regards to the limitation of the instant claim which requires that the mounting structure is a cross-member bracket of the traction battery pack, this limitation is interpreted based on the definition of cross-member bracket which requires that such a bracket be a bracket by which a battery is secured to a vehicle body.
The mounting structure of modified Schieler fails to meet said limitation, as they are silent in regards to the specific elements through which their battery support structure is fastened to a vehicle body. Therefore, we look to Maryanski, which is an analogous art to the instant application, being directed towards the art of vehicle batteries (Abstract, “A battery tray for a vehicle includes a tub having a base, a first side wall connected to the base, and a second side wall connected to the base and disposed opposite the first side wall.”). Maryanski discloses structure wherein a centermost portion of their battery tray includes a mounting flange 20 which connects to a mounting structure that is a cross-member bracket 14, shown in their figures 1 and 2 (Paragraph 0033, “The battery tray assembly 10 is mounted to a frame 14 of the battery powered vehicle 12.”). Additionally, Maryanski depicts structure in their figure 3 where their mounting flange which connects to the cross-member bracket is located at an upper end of a bottom side of a battery support structure tray. Therefore, where Maryanski discloses the connection of mounting flanges to cross-member brackets to connect the vehicle battery pack to the vehicle housing, it would be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to make use of said vehicle structure, thereby including the vehicle cross-member bracket 14 in the join of the mounting flange and the spacer, thereby resulting in structure wherein the cross-member bracket is a part of the mounting structure, accordingly making obvious structure wherein the mounting structure is a cross-member bracket of the traction battery pack.
Claim(s) 8, 10, and 22 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schieler (US PGPUB 20200343609) in view of Montgomery (US 2019/0202307 A1), Paramasivam (US 10468731), and Su (US 2020/0212387 A1), as applied to claim 1 above, and in view of Jiang (US PGPUB 20210320349).
Regarding Claim 8, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, where the instant Claim requires structure which comprises a heat exchanger plate positioned between the bottom plate, Schieler fails to disclose structure which comprises such a plate.
Accordingly, we look to Jiang, which is an analogous art to the instant application, disclosing a heat exchange system for a traction battery (Paragraph 0003, “Heat exchange systems of current traction batteries are mostly air heat exchange and water heat exchange systems.”). Here, Jiang discloses structure which includes a heat exchanger plate located beneath the battery assembly of their invention (Paragraph 0032 “The first plate 11 includes a bottom wall 111 and a peripheral wall 112 that is connected to the peripheral edge of the bottom wall 111 and extending upwards, where the bottom wall 111 and the peripheral wall 112 together form an accommodating space 114 that opens upwards along a height direction H.”; Paragraph 0032, “The battery group 2 may be in thermally conductive contact with the bottom wall 111 of the first plate 11 by using a thermally conductive pad, thermally conductive glue, or the like, so that a main flow path F3 can heat or cool the battery group 2.”).
Additionally, Jiang discloses that the heat exchanger plate of their invention is integrated into the overall housing of the structure, having the benefit of reducing weight and manufacturing costs, and further providing cooling benefits while partially distancing cooling elements from the battery cells thereby improving the safety of the battery array (Paragraph 0017, “The box body and the heat exchange flow path are integrated together, thereby reducing an overall weight and manufacturing costs. In addition, the heat exchange flow path is provided externally, thereby effectively avoiding impact of leakage from the heat exchange flow path on components such as batteries inside the battery box, and improving safety of the battery box.”). Accordingly, based on these benefits, it would be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to combine the heat exchanger housing structure of Jiang with the invention of Schieler, thereby enabling structure which comprises a heat exchanger plate positioned beneath the bottom plate.
Additionally, Jiang discloses structure where their heat exchanger plate is connected to the battery assembly by means of a thermal interface material which is disposed above the heat exchanger plate (Paragraph 0032, “The battery group 2 may be in thermally conductive contact with the bottom wall 111 of the first plate 11 by using a thermally conductive pad, thermally conductive glue, or the like, so that a main flow path F3 can heat or cool the battery group 2.”) and below the bottom plate of Schieler in the combined invention.
Regarding Claim 10, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, Schieler discloses structure which comprises a heat exchanger plate positioned atop the top plate, here the heat exchanger plate 22 depicted in Schieler’s figure 1 (Paragraph 0046, “The respective cover element 22 or 24 is, for example, a plate. In particular, the respective cover element 22 and 24 can be formed from a sheet-metal plate, so that, for example, the cover element 22 is a base sheet-metal plate and the cover element 24 is a cooling sheet-metal plate of the base cooling structure 20.”).
Additionally, where the instant Claim requires structure which comprises a heat exchanger plate positioned between the bottom plate, Schieler fails to disclose structure which comprises such a plate. Accordingly, we look to Jiang, which is an analogous art to the instant application, disclosing a heat exchange system for a traction battery (Paragraph 0003, “Heat exchange systems of current traction batteries are mostly air heat exchange and water heat exchange systems.”). Here, Jiang discloses structure which includes a heat exchanger plate located beneath the battery assembly of their invention (Paragraph 0032 “The first plate 11 includes a bottom wall 111 and a peripheral wall 112 that is connected to the peripheral edge of the bottom wall 111 and extending upwards, where the bottom wall 111 and the peripheral wall 112 together form an accommodating space 114 that opens upwards along a height direction H.”; Paragraph 0032, “The battery group 2 may be in thermally conductive contact with the bottom wall 111 of the first plate 11 by using a thermally conductive pad, thermally conductive glue, or the like, so that a main flow path F3 can heat or cool the battery group 2.”). Additionally, Jiang discloses that the heat exchanger plate of their invention is integrated into the overall housing of the structure, having the benefit of reducing weight and manufacturing costs, and further providing cooling benefits while partially distancing cooling elements from the battery cells thereby improving the safety of the battery array (Paragraph 0017, “The box body and the heat exchange flow path are integrated together, thereby reducing an overall weight and manufacturing costs. In addition, the heat exchange flow path is provided externally, thereby effectively avoiding impact of leakage from the heat exchange flow path on components such as batteries inside the battery box, and improving safety of the battery box.”). Accordingly, based on these benefits, it would be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to combine the heat exchanger housing structure of Jiang with the invention of Schieler, thereby enabling structure which comprises a heat exchanger plate positioned beneath the bottom plate.
Additionally, Schieler discloses structure which comprises a third thermal interface material which is disposed between the heat exchanger plate and the top plate, here being the cooling ducts 30 as depicted in Schieler’s figure 1 (Paragraph 0046, “The cooling ducts 30 are, for example, fluidically connected to one another, so that the cooling ducts 30 form a continuous overall cooling duct through which coolant fluid can flow.”) which are surrounded by the top plate 24 and the heat exchanger plate 22 (Paragraph 0046, “In particular, the cooling ducts 30 are at least partially, in particular completely, formed and/or delimited by the cover elements 22 and 24, so that, for example, the coolant fluid flowing through the cooling ducts 30 can flow directly against the cover elements 22 and 24 and can thus directly touch and/or contact them.”).
Additionally, Jiang discloses structure where their heat exchanger plate is connected to the battery assembly by means of a thermal interface material which is disposed above the heat exchanger plate (Paragraph 0032, “The battery group 2 may be in thermally conductive contact with the bottom wall 111 of the first plate 11 by using a thermally conductive pad, thermally conductive glue, or the like, so that a main flow path F3 can heat or cool the battery group 2.”) and below the bottom plate of Schieler in the combined invention.
Regarding Claim 22, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 10. Additionally, Schieler discloses structure where the second heat exchanger plate is a separate component from the top plate. Here, as depicted in Schieler’s figure 1, the top plate is plate 24, located above the battery cell block, while the second heat exchanger plate, motivated by the combination of Jiang and Schieler, is located below the battery cell, as discussed above in regards to Claim 10. Accordingly, where the top plate is located above the battery cell block, and the second heat exchanger plate is located below the battery cell block, said components are separate components.
Claim(s) 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schieler (US PGPUB 20200343609) in view of Montgomery (US 2019/0202307 A1), Paramasivam (US 10468731), and Su (US 2020/0212387 A1), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Subramanian (US Patent 9356270 B2) .
Regarding Claim 12, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, regarding the limitation of the instant claim which requires the structure of a second battery array positioned over the top of the top plate of the battery array to establish a multi-tier configuration, Schieler fails to disclose said structure. Therefore, we look towards Subramanian, which is an analogous art, disclosing the structure of a multi-tier traction battery (Column 1 lines 6-7, “The present disclosure relates to a traction battery system for an automotive vehicle.”). Here, Subramanian discloses the structure of a multi-tiered array of battery cells comprising an upper tier (Column 4 lines 8-10, “The battery assembly 100 also includes an upper battery tier 118 having a left cell array 120 and a right cell array 122 connected together.”) and a lower tier (Column 4 lines 26-30, “The battery assembly 100 is correctly assembled when the front end 133 of the lower tier 112 is adjacent to the front end 143 of the upper tier 118 and when the rear end 135 of the lower tier 112 is adjacent to the rear end 145 of the upper tier 118.”). Additionally, Subramanian discloses that the traction battery provides high voltage direct current from stacks of battery cells (Column 2 lines 33-38, “A traction battery or battery pack 24 stores energy that can be used by the electric machines 14. The traction battery 24 typically provides a high voltage direct current (DC) output from one or more battery cell arrays, sometimes referred to as battery cell stacks, within the traction battery 24. The battery cell arrays may include one or more battery cells.”). Accordingly, based on this benefit, it would be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to apply this teaching of Subramanian to the invention of Schieler, making use of a multi-tiered battery array configuration to supply more high voltage direct current output, thereby reading upon and making obvious the limitation of the instant claim which requires structure which comprises a second battery array positioned over the top of the top plate of the battery array to establish a multi-tier configuration. Here, where two assemblies of Schieler are stacked, the assembly on top would be defined as the second battery array which is positioned over the top of the top plate of the bottom battery array.
Additionally, where the structure of a tiered array is present, the invention of Schieler comprises a heat exchanger plate disposed above the top plate of the battery array, and below the location of the bottom plate of the second battery array, where the heat exchanger plate is the heat exchanger plate 22 depicted in Schieler’s figure 1 (Paragraph 0046, “The respective cover element 22 or 24 is, for example, a plate. In particular, the respective cover element 22 and 24 can be formed from a sheet-metal plate, so that, for example, the cover element 22 is a base sheet-metal plate and the cover element 24 is a cooling sheet-metal plate of the base cooling structure 20.”).
Claim(s) 15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schieler (US PGPUB 20200343609) in view of Montgomery (US 2019/0202307 A1), Paramasivam (US 10468731), and Su (US 2020/0212387 A1), as in regards to Claim 1 above, in view of Ahn (US 20220093986 A1).
Regarding Claim 15, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, regarding the limitation of the instant Claim that requires that the top plate or bottom plate include a plurality of fill ports, Schieler fails to disclose such structure. Therefore, we look to Ahn, which is an analogous art to the instant application, disclosing the use of a silicone-based thermal adhesive thermal interface material (Paragraph 0063, “The thermal conductive adhesive 30 may employ various organic and/or inorganic resins such as a thermal conductive epoxy adhesive, a thermal conductive silicone adhesive,”).
Here, Ahn discloses that their invention comprises structure where the thermal conductive adhesive is injected into the battery via small injection holes (Paragraph 0061, “In this case, the bottom plate 21 may have small injection holes, and the thermal conductive adhesive 30 may be injected into the module housing 20 through the injection holes”), where said injection holes allow the injection and even spreading of the thermal conductive adhesive (Paragraph 0061, “and the thermal conductive adhesive 30 may be injected into the module housing 20 through the injection holes to evenly spread onto the upper surface of the bottom plate 21.”), as well as facilitating a low complexity bonding process between the cell stack and adjacent plates (Paragraph 0062, “By using the thermal conductive adhesive 30 in this way, the cell stack 10 and the bottom plate 21 may be bonded and fixed to each other in a simple way.”), as well as that the injection process allows for the thermal adhesive to fill spaces, eliminating an air layer or gap, so as to allow for quick heat transfer (Paragraph 0062, “In addition, since the thermal conductive adhesive 30 is filled in the space between the lower edge of all pouch-type secondary batteries 11 of the cell stack 10 and the bottom plate 21 to eliminate the air layer, heat of the secondary batteries 11 may be quickly transferred to the bottom plate 21.”).
Accordingly, based on these teachings of Ahn, it would be obvious for one ordinarily skilled at the art to make use of said small fill hole/injection port structure in the invention of Schieler, so as to achieve structure wherein the top plate or the bottom plate includes a plurality of fill ports, and further wherein each of the plurality of fill ports is configured to inject a first thermal interface material or a second thermal interface material into a void between the top plate and the battery cell or between the bottom plate and the battery cell, thereby reading and making obvious the limitations of the instant Claim.
Claim(s) 30-33 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Schieler (US PGPUB 20200343609) in view of Montgomery (US 2019/0202307 A1), Paramasivam (US 10468731), and Su (US 2020/0212387 A1), in further view of Maryanski (US 20200148065 A1).
Regarding Claim 30, Schieler is an analogous art to the instant invention, disclosing a traction battery pack (Paragraph 0008, “The high-voltage energy storage device can be designed, for example, as a battery, i.e., as a high-voltage battery (HV battery), so that then the high-voltage energy storage device is referred to, for example, as a traction battery.”) comprising a battery array (Paragraph 0044, “storage modules 12 a-c and 14 a-c are arranged in a receptacle space 16 of a storage box 18 , also referred to as a battery box.”) comprising a support structure which comprises a top plate, here the cover plate 24 depicted in Schieler’s figure 1 (Paragraph 0045, “It is apparent from FIG. 1 that the base cooling structure 20 comprises a first cover element 22 and a second cover element 24,”), and a bottom plate, here the base element 52 of the lower cooling structure 20 depicted in Schieler’s figure 1 (Paragraph 0053, “In the second embodiment comprising the third step S3′, for example, precisely one base element 52 of the base cooling structure 20”), as well as a first side plate and a second side plate, here instances of Schieler’s side walls 38 (Paragraph 0047, “Furthermore, the side wall structure 32 comprises second side walls 40 , which are spaced apart from one another along the third direction and delimit the receptacle space 16 along the third direction. The side walls 38 and 40 are connected to one another.”).
Here, in regards to the limitation which requires an enclosure assembly including a mounting structure, Schieler fails to disclose said structure. Therefore we look to Montgomery, which is an analogous art to the instant application, being directed towards the art of traction battery packs (Paragraph 0001, “This disclosure relates to electrified vehicle battery packs”). Here, Montgomery discloses a traction battery pack comprising an enclosure assembly 58, depicted in their figure 2, which entirely contains a battery array 25A/25B disposed within an interior of the enclosure assembly (Paragraph 0051, “An enclosure assembly 58 houses each battery assembly 25A, 25B of the battery pack 24.”). Here, where their enclosure assembly includes a tray 60 which the battery array is positioned over, the surface that the array is mounted on is therefore a mounting structure (Paragraph 0051, “In an embodiment, the first and second battery assemblies 25A, 25B are both positioned over the tray 60 of the enclosure assembly 58”). Here, Montgomery further discloses that their enclosure assembly is a sealed enclosure (Paragraph 0051, “the enclosure assembly 58 is a sealed enclosure”). Here, where Schieler discloses that a goal of their invention is to achieve sealing of their battery array against moisture and other environmental influences, and to mitigate accidents (Paragraph 0015, “Modern high-voltage battery storage systems, in particular for electric vehicles (BEVs) are to meet high accident requirements and thus have a particularly advantageous accident behavior, are to be sealed against environmental influences such as moisture”), it would therefore be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to contain the battery array of Schieler inside the sealed enclosure assembly of Montgomery, thereby reading upon the limitation which requires that the traction battery pack comprise an enclosure assembly including a mounting structure, and that the battery array is housed within the enclosure assembly, and that the support structure is disposed entirely within an interior of the enclosure assembly.
Additionally, in regards to the limitation which requires a first mounting flange that protrudes laterally outward from a body of the first side plate in a direction opposite from the second side plate modified Schieler fails to disclose said structure. Therefore we look to Paramasivam, which is an analogous art to the instant application, being directed towards the art of battery packs (Abstract). Here, Paramasivam discloses a laterally protruding mounting flange 81 (disclosed as being a mounting foot), which protrudes laterally outwards from a body of a first side plate, in a direction away from a second side plate, as depicted in their figures 3 and 4, where the mounting flange 81 is attached to a support structure 96 of an enclosure assembly (Column 7 lines 19-22, “The array frame 58 may be secured relative to a support structure 96 of the battery pack 24. In a non-limiting embodiment, the support structure 96 is a portion of a tray of an enclosure assembly of the battery pack 24.”), shown in their figure 6 by means of a bolt 98 (Column 6 lines 7-10, “The second opening 82 is configured to receive a fastener 98 for mounting the array frame 58 to a support structure (see, e.g., FIG. 6).”). Here, where Paramasivam teaches that their mounting apparatus is a known method in the art to connect a battery side plate to a surrounding enclosure assembly, and where their fastening method allows for an attachment of the battery assembly to the enclosure assembly while limiting compression (Column 7 lines 36-38, “The fastener 98 functions as a compression limiter for retaining the battery assembly 25 to the support structure 96 inside the battery pack 24.”, Column 7 lines 33-34, “the fastener 98 is a shoulder bolt”), it would be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to make use of Paramasivam’s mounting flange and bolt to attach the support structure to Montgomery’s enclosure assembly, thereby making obvious the limitations which require that the first side plate includes a first mounting flange that protrudes laterally outward from a body of the first side plate in a direction away from the second side plate, and where a bolt secures the first mounting flange to the mounting structure.
Additionally, in regards to the limitation which requires that the first mounting flange is spaced at about an equal distance from both the top plate and the bottom plate, the prior art as discussed above fails to teach or make obvious said structure.
Therefore, we look to Su, which is an analogous art to the instant application, directed towards the art of battery pack structure (Abstract). Here, Su discusses the placement of an attachment lug 112, which connects to a support beam 21, shown in their figure 4. Here, Su discusses that the attachment lug, which protrudes from an end plate 11, is positioned at a middle portion of the end plate, being in a center in the height direction of the plate (Paragraph 0052, “In some embodiments, the position of lug 112 of end plate 11 in the height direction H can be located at a middle portion in the height direction H of main body portion 111 of end plate 11. The middle portion can refer to a position including the center in the height direction H of main body portion 111 of end plate 11 and a position in the vicinity thereof”). Su teaches that embodiments which have an attachment point between a support structure and a surrounding enclosure located at a bottom of the body portion of a plate are subject to shaking environments and external forces, with the lower position of the supporting connection resulting in the amplitude of force on the top of the battery being large, causing increased damage and battery failure (Paragraph 0052, “When the battery module is subjected to a horizontal impact force, the support force from the casing of the battery pack to the battery module is at a lower position, such that the moving amplitude of the upper portion of the battery module is relatively large, and the resulting large deformation degree would cause the electrical connection piece (not shown) on the battery of the battery module 1 to fall off, causing the battery to fail.”). Su further teaches that in comparison, when connective elements are located at a middle of a plate, the amplitude of forces exerted on components in the batteries is reduced, thereby reducing the effects of impact and other damage (Paragraph 0052, “the present disclosure, end plate 11 and the plurality of batteries 12 can be assembled together to form battery module 1 and the force applied at the position where lug 112 of end plate 11 and support beam 21 of casing 2 are fixedly connected to each other can be located close to the middle position in the height direction H of battery module 1, so as to reduce the moving amplitude of battery module 1 when an impact is applied thereon, thereby preventing the components on battery 12 from falling off due to a large moving amplitude.”).
Accordingly, it would be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to modify the invention of Schieler in view of Montgomery and Paramasivam, such that the mounting flange is located at a middle of the plates, thereby reducing the effects of impact and other damage, and making obvious the limitation which requires that the first mounting flange is spaced at about an equal distance from both the top plate and the bottom plate.
Additionally, in regards to the limitation of the instant claim which requires a bolt or screw that secures the first mounting flange to the cross member bracket at a location inside the enclosure assembly, as well as wherein the enclosure assembly includes a cross-member bracket, these limitations are interpreted based on the definition of cross-member bracket which requires that such a bracket be a bracket by which a battery is secured to a vehicle body.
The mounting structure of modified Schieler fails to meet said limitation in regards to the cross-member bracket, as they are silent in regards to the specific elements through which their battery support structure is fastened to a vehicle body. Therefore, we look to Maryanski, which is an analogous art to the instant application, being directed towards the art of vehicle batteries (Abstract, “A battery tray for a vehicle includes a tub having a base, a first side wall connected to the base, and a second side wall connected to the base and disposed opposite the first side wall.”). Maryanski discloses structure wherein a centermost portion of their battery tray includes a mounting flange 20 which connects to a mounting structure that is a cross-member bracket 14, shown in their figures 1 and 2 (Paragraph 0033, “The battery tray assembly 10 is mounted to a frame 14 of the battery powered vehicle 12.”). Additionally, Maryanski depicts structure in their figure 3 where their mounting flange which connects to the cross-member bracket is located at an upper end of a bottom side of a battery support structure tray. Therefore, where Maryanski discloses the connection of mounting flanges to cross-member brackets to connect the vehicle battery pack to the vehicle housing, it would be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to make use of said vehicle structure, thereby including the vehicle cross-member bracket 14 in the join of the mounting flange and the spacer, thereby resulting in structure wherein the cross-member bracket is a part of the mounting structure, accordingly making obvious structure wherein the mounting structure is a cross-member bracket of the traction battery pack.
Additionally, the bolt 98 of Paramasivam which secures the mounting flange to the enclosure assembly which includes the spacer as discussed in view of Maryanski in regards to the cross member bracket is located inside the enclosure assembly, thereby resulting in structure wherein a bolt secures the first mounting flange to the cross-member bracket at a location inside the enclosure assembly.
Regarding Claim 31, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 30. Additionally, where Su teaches that the purpose of the positioning of the support structure at a middle height of the side plates is to reduce the amplitude of forces exerted on components in the batteries, thereby reducing the effects of impact and other damage (Paragraph 0052, “the present disclosure, end plate 11 and the plurality of batteries 12 can be assembled together to form battery module 1 and the force applied at the position where lug 112 of end plate 11 and support beam 21 of casing 2 are fixedly connected to each other can be located close to the middle position in the height direction H of battery module 1, so as to reduce the moving amplitude of battery module 1 when an impact is applied thereon, thereby preventing the components on battery 12 from falling off due to a large moving amplitude.”), the modification made in view of Su therefore results in the mounting structure and mounting flange being located at a middle of the side plates, which surround and axially constrain the cell stack.
Regarding Claim 32, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 30. Additionally, as discussed above where the mounting flange is made obvious as being located at a middle of the side plate, the position of the mounting flange is at a height less than the full height of the side plate, as the claim does not place any structural limitations on the scope of what height of the first side plate is the second height.
Regarding Claim 33, modified Schieler makes obvious the invention of Claim 30. Additionally, the first mounting flange extends over a top of an upper portion of the cross-member bracket, based on the figure 1 of Maryanski, which depicts their mounting flange 20 extending over a top of an upper portion of the cross member bracket 14. Additionally, as discussed above, the bolt 98 of Paramasivam extends through the first mounting flange and the cross member bracket. Based on Maryanski’s depiction of the first mounting flange being positioned above an upper portion of the cross member bracket, the bolt would therefore extend through the first mounting flange and then into the upper portion of the cross-member bracket, reading upon the limitation of the instant claim.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JONATHAN W ESTES whose telephone number is (571)272-4820. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00 - 5:30.
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, Basia Ridley can be reached at 5712721453. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/J.W.E./Examiner, Art Unit 1725
/Sean P Cullen, Ph.D./Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1725
Prosecution Insights