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 .
Withdrawn Rejection
The 35 U.S.C. §103 rejection of claims 1-2, 4-8, 10, 28-33 and 35 as over Sato et al. (JP 2018-172255) in view of Okamoto et al. (US 2017/0331107), made of record in the office action mailed on 03/10/2026, page 2 has been withdrawn due to Applicant’s amendment in the response filed on 06/09/2026.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 1-2, 4-5, 8, 10 and 28-33 and 35 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sato et al. (JP 2018-172255) in view of Okamoto et al. (US 2017/0331107) and Liu et al. (CN 109449391).
Regarding claims 1-2, 4-5, 8, 10, 28-33 and 35 Sato discloses method for producing a lithium nickel composite oxide represented by the following general formula (I) (page 1-2) (In formula (I), 0 <x <0.2, 0 <y< 0.5, 0 <z< 0.8, 0 < w < 0.1, y + z + w <1, M is Fe, Cu, Ti Mg, Al, W, B, Mo, Nb, Zn, Sn, Zr, Ga, and V represent one or more metals selected from the group consisting of V. (pages 1-2), where the formula 1 corresponds to the formula 1 of claim 4). Sato discloses a cathode active material for a lithium secondary battery is formed by mixing a coating material raw material and a lithium nickel composite metal oxide and forming a coating layer on the surface of secondary particles of the lithium nickel composite metal oxide by heat treatment as necessary is obtained (page 7). Coating layer comprises a metal composite oxide of Li and M .sup.2. M .sup.2 is at least one selected from Al, Ti, Zr, and W, and is preferably Al. Furthermore, the coating layer is preferably lithium aluminate, more preferably lithium aluminate. In the present embodiment, the coating layer may contain one or more metals selected from the group consisting of Mn, Fe, Co, and Ni (page 9). Sato discloses a coating process Washed and dried powder 1 and aluminum oxide (Alumina C manufactured by Nippon Aerosil Co., Ltd., average primary particle size 13 nm, content of Ni, Co, Mn and Al in washed and dried powder 1 is 1 mol (page 18). The crystal structure of the lithium nickel composite oxide is a layered structure, and more preferably a hexagonal crystal structure or a monoclinic crystal structure (page 9).
However, Sato fails to disclose that the lithium nickel composite oxide comprises an additional element selected from the group consisting of Ca, Cr and Si and the coating material contains a lithium containing compound such as lithium-boron-oxygen compound.
Whereas, Okamoto discloses positive electrode active material for a nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery, wherein one or both of an organic phosphite compound represented by the following chemical formula (1) and an organic phosphate compound represented by the following chemical formula (2) adhere(s) to a part or an entire of a particle surface of a lithium-manganese-nickel composite oxide represented by general formula: Li.sub.tMn.sub.2-x-yNi.sub.xM.sub.yO.sub.4 (wherein 0.96<t≦1.25, 0.40≦x≦0.60, 0≦y≦0.20, and M represents at least one element selected from Si, Cr) [abstract].
Whereas, Liu discloses high capacity type monocrystalline wafer nickel-cobalt lithium silicate positive electrode material and preparation method thereof, comprising the following steps: 1) preparation of the monocrystalline wafer nickel cobalt aluminate precursor; 2) preparing monocrystalline wafer nickel cobalt lithium silicate positive electrode material; 3) coating the modified monocrystalline wafer positive electrode material nickel cobalt aluminate (abstract). The coating layer is the lithium containing compound such as Li-B-O (claim 10).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to include element such as Cr or Si as taught by Okamoto in the lithium nickel composite oxide of Sato and include lithium-boron-oxygen as taught by Liu in the coating layer of Sato motivated by the desire to avoid reduction in battery capacity and to produce high capacity battery.
As Sato in view of Okamoto and Liu discloses a cathode active material comprising a lithium nickel composite metal oxide having a layered structure as presently claimed, it therefore would be obvious that cumulative frequency distribution curve of R which ranges from 0-100% as a whole, R(90) that is a value of R at a point where a cumulative frequency from a small side of the R would intrinsically reaches 90% in the range of 1.5-3.7.
Claim(s) 9 and 34 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sato et al. (JP 2018-172255) in view of Okamoto et al. (US 2017/0331107) and Liu et al. (CN 109449391) as applied to claim 1, further in view of Sato et al. (WO 2018/021453).
Regarding claims 9 and 34, Sato fails to disclose that the claimed D50 diameter and D90 and D10 satisfying the relationship of formula (A).
Whereas, Sato’453 discloses method for producing lithium nickel composite oxide (title). In order to improve the handling property of the nickel-containing metal composite compound, the 50% cumulative volume particle size D.sub.50 of the nickel-containing metal composite compound produced by this step is preferably 1 μm or more and preferably 30 μm or less. In the present embodiment, (D.sub.90 -D.sub.10) / D.sub.50” is preferably 1.65 or less, more preferably 1.6 or less, and particularly preferably 1.5 or less. (D.sub.90 -D.sub.10) / D.sub.50 s preferably as small as possible, but is practically 0.2 or more (page 7).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to form lithium metal composite of Sato having D50 in the range of 1-30 microns and satisfying the relationship of (D.sub.90 -D.sub.10) / D.sub.50 in the range of 0.2-1.5 as taught by Sato’453 motivated by the desire to have improved handling properties.
Claim(s) 48 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sato et al. (JP 2018-172255) in view of Okamoto et al. (US 2017/0331107) and Liu et al. (CN 109449391) as applied to claim 1, further in view of Uchitomi et al. (JP 2013-020975).
Regarding claim 48, Sato in view of Okamoto discloses element X is selected from Mg, Si, but fails to disclose that X is one or more element selected from Mg, Al and one or more element from Ca, Sr, Ba.
Whereas, Uchitomi discloses nonaqueous electrolyte secondary battery comprises a positive electrode comprising a positive electrode mixture layer which contains an active material containing a layered lithium-manganese-nickel-cobalt complex oxide containing at least Mn, Ni, and Co (abstract). The positive electrode active material, the composition formula Li .sub.(1 + δ) Mn .sub.x Ni .sub.y Co .sub.(1-xyz) M .sub.z O .sub.2 (M is Ti, Zr, Nb, Mo, W, Al) , Si, Ga, Ge and Sn, at least one element selected from the group consisting of -0.15 <δ <0.15, 0.1 <x ≦ 0.5, 0.6 <x + y + z ≦ 1 0.0, 0 ≦ z ≦ 0.1), a layered lithium-manganese-nickel-cobalt composite oxide (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as “layered composite oxide”), and a composition formula Li .sub.(1 + η) Mn .sub.(2-W) M ′ .sub.W O .sub.4 (M ′ is at least one element selected from the group consisting of Mg, Ca, Sr, Al, Ga, Zn, and Cu, and 0 ≦ η ≦ 0.2, 0 ≦ w ≦ 0.1) [pages 1-2].
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to include element such as Ca or Sr as taught by Uchitomi in the lithium nickel composite oxide of Sato motivated by the desire to have high capacity and excellent safety and excellent charge/discharge cycle characteristics.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments filed on 02/02/2026 have been fully considered, but they are moot in view of new grounds of rejections as stated above.
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.
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/RONAK C PATEL/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1788
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