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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 01/08/2026 has been entered.
Status of the Claims
The amendment/remarks submitted 01/08/2026 have been entered and fully considered. Claims 1-4, 7-11, and 14-20 are pending. Claims 5-6, 12-13, and 21 are cancelled. Claims 1 and 18 are amended. Claims 1-4, 7-11, and 14-20 are examined herein.
Drawings
The drawings were received on 01/08/2026. These drawings are acceptable.
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.
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.
Claims 1-4, 11, 14-15, and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 2019/0148802 A1 (“Lim”) in view of KR 10-2016-0077871 A (“Lee ‘871” – machine translation cited herein).
Regarding claim 1, Lim discloses a battery module 200 (Figs. 3, 5) comprising a module case comprising an upper plate 21 (“upper cover plate”) and a lower plate 22 (“lower cover plate”); and at least two pouch cells 10 accommodated in the module case (Figs. 2, 3). As shown in Fig. 4, each pouch cell 10 is sealed on at least three sides ([0040]-[0042]).
A sealed portion from which no electrode lead protrudes (at the top and bottom of the cells as shown in Figs. 2, 3, 6) is folded in one direction and the folded sealed portion is positioned on a side of the upper plate 21 or the lower plate 22.
A thermal conductive adhesive 23 is attached directly to a pouch side of at least one of the two pouch cells located in a direction opposite to a folding direction of the folded sealed portion. See, for example, the annotated Fig. 3, below.
As shown in Fig. 3, the thermal conductive adhesive 23 is in contact with the upper plate 21 and the lower plate 22. As shown in the annotated Fig. 3 below, the upper plate 21 comprises an engraved plate having protruding sections protruding downward from the upper plate 21.
Lim does not expressly disclose the folded sealed portion is fixed by an insulating tape portion attached thereto, and wherein one end of the insulating tape portion is on a surface of the folded sealed portion.
Lee ‘871 discloses a pouch type secondary battery having a pouch which accommodates the electrode assembly, the pouch having a sealed portion that is folded (Abstract; Fig. 5b). The folded sealing portion is fixed to one side of the pouch by insulating tape. The insulating tape is positioned between the folded sealing portion and one side of the pouch (i.e. an end of the insulating tape is on a surface of the folded sealed portion). The insulating tape has an outermost layer made of a material selected from a polyolefin polymer, a polyester polymer, and nylon and fixed with an epoxy or acrylic adhesive ([0028]). It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention incorporate the insulating tape of Lee ‘871 to fix the folded sealing portion to one side of the pouch. Furthermore, one would expect the combination to yield practicable results in view of Lim and Lee ‘871.
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Fig. 3 of Lim
Regarding claim 2, Lim discloses the battery module of claim 1. As shown in Figs. 3 and 6, the sealed portion is folded by 90°.
Regarding claim 3, Lim discloses the battery module of claim 1. As shown in Figs. 3 and 6, the adjacent two pouch cells have sealed portions folded in opposite directions.
Regarding claim 4, Lim discloses the battery module of claim 3. As shown in Fig. 6, the thermal conductive adhesive 23 directly contacts the adjacent two pouch cells.
Regarding claim 11, Lim discloses the battery module of claim 1. As shown in Fig. 3, the thermal conductive adhesive 23 comprises a first conductive adhesive 23 attached to an inner surface of the upper plate 21 and a second conductive adhesive 23 attached to the lower plate 22.
Regarding claim 14, Lim discloses the battery module of claim 12. It is deemed that the adhesion and shear stress are inherent characteristics and/or properties of the specifically disclosed insulating tape. See the sections of MPEP 2112 cited above.
Regarding claim 18, Lim discloses a battery module 200 (Figs. 3, 5) comprising a module case comprising an upper plate 21 (“upper cover plate”) and a lower plate 22 (“lower cover plate”); and adjacent two pouch cells 10 accommodated in the module case (Figs. 2, 3). As shown in Fig. 4, the adjacent two pouch cells 10 include sealed portions ([0040]-[0042]).
Sealed portions of the adjacent two pouch cells 10 from which no electrode lead protrudes (at the top and bottom of the cells as shown in Figs. 2, 3, 6) are folded in opposite directions on upper surfaces of the adjacent two pouch cells 10.
A first thermal conductive adhesive 23 directly connects upper surfaces of the adjacent two pouch cells 10 to the upper plate 21 (Fig. 3).
A second thermal conductive adhesive 23 connects lower surfaces of the adjacent two pouch cells 10 to the lower plate 22 (Fig. 3).
It is deemed that the bidirectional cooling is an inherent characteristic and/or property of the specifically disclosed first and second thermal adhesives. In this respect, MPEP 2112 sets forth the following:
Where the claimed and prior art products are identical or substantially identical in structure or composition, or are produced by identical or substantially identical processes, a prima facie case of either anticipation or obviousness has been established. In re Best, 562 F.2d 1252, 1255, 195 USPQ 430, 433 (CCPA 1977).
“When the PTO shows a sound basis for believing that the products of the applicant and the prior art are the same, the applicant has the burden of showing that they are not.” In re Spada, 911 F.2d 705, 709, 15 USPQ2d 1655, 1658 (Fed. Cir. 1990).
“Products of identical chemical composition cannot have mutually exclusive properties.” In re Spada, 911 F.2d 705, 709, 15 USPQ2d 1655, 1658 (Fed. Cir. 1990). A chemical composition and its properties are inseparable. Therefore, if the prior art teaches the identical chemical structure, the properties applicant discloses and/or claims are necessarily present. Id.
Lim does not expressly disclose the folded sealed portion is fixed by an insulating tape portion attached thereto, and wherein one end of the insulating tape portion is on a surface of the folded sealed portion.
Lee ‘871 discloses a pouch type secondary battery having a pouch which accommodates the electrode assembly, the pouch having a sealed portion that is folded (Abstract; Fig. 5b). The folded sealing portion is fixed to one side of the pouch by insulating tape. The insulating tape has an outermost layer made of a material selected from a polyolefin polymer, a polyester polymer, and nylon and fixed with an epoxy or acrylic adhesive ([0028]). It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention incorporate the insulating tape of Lee ‘871 to fix the folded sealing portion to one side of the pouch. Furthermore, one would expect the combination to yield practicable results in view of Lim and Lee ‘871.
Claims 7-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 2019/0148802 A1 (“Lim”) in view of KR 10-2016-0077871 A (“Lee ‘871” – machine translation cited herein) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of US 2018/0183117 A1 (“Cho”).
Regarding claims 7-10, Lim discloses the battery module of claim 1. Lim discloses the thermal conductive adhesive 23 is an adhesive having excellent electrical insulating properties while having high thermal conductivity, and may include any of various known materials that satisfy required electrical insulation and heat dissipation specifications ([0046]). Lim does not expressly disclose the thermal adhesive comprises at least one selected from the group consisting of a polyurethane-based adhesive, a silicone-based adhesive, and an epoxy-based adhesive [claim 7]; the thermal adhesive has a thermal conductivity of 1.0 W/mK or more [claim 8]; the thermal adhesive comprises a thermally conductive filler [claim 9], wherein the thermally conductive filler comprises at least one selected from the group consisting of alumina, aluminum hydroxide, and silica [claim 10].
Cho discloses a battery module comprising a thermally conductive resin layer (Abstract). The resin layer has a thermal conductivity of about 2 W/MK or more ([0036]); is electrically insulating ([0040]); comprises a urethane adhesive, an epoxy adhesive, or a silicone adhesive ([0051], [0083]); and comprises a thermally conductive filler, such as alumina ([0054]). It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to provide the claimed composition of the thermal adhesive because Cho teaches it affects the adhesive force of the layer and the thermal conductivity of the layer ([0036], [0038], [0054]).
Claims 16-17 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 2019/0148802 A1 (“Lim”) in view of KR 10-2016-0077871 A (“Lee ‘871” – machine translation cited herein) as applied to claims 1 and 18 above, and further in view of US 2021/0257690 A1 (“Kilhenny”).
Regarding claims 16-17 and 19, Lim discloses the battery module of claims 1 and 18. Lim does not expressly disclose an elastic pad included between adjacent two pouch cells.
Kilhenny discloses a thermal management multilayer sheet disposed on a surface of an electrochemical cell, the thermal management multilayer sheet 400, 401 including a thermally-insulating layer 62, a first heat-spreading layer 61 disposed on a first side of the thermally-insulating layer, and a second heat-spreading layer 63 disposed on a second side of the thermally-insulating layer (Abstract; Figs. 2, 3, 6). The thermally-insulating layer 62 comprises a material such as a polymer foam, in particular an elastomeric polymer foam (“elastic pad”) ([0043]-[0044], [0047]-[0050]). As shown in Fig. 5, the thermally-insulating layer 62 (part of assembly 1000 as shown in Fig. 3) is disposed between adjacent cells 102. As shown in Figs. 3 and 5, the thermal management multilayer sheet 400 (including the thermally-insulating layer 62) is in full contact with a main surface of the cell 102 and extends past an edge of the cell ([0033], [0076]). Therefore, an area of the thermally-insulating layer 62 is greater than an area of a main body of the cells 102. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the thermal management multilayer sheet of Kilhenny to delay thermal runaway ([0042]) and to provide pressure management to accommodate cell expansion ([0058]).
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over US 2019/0148802 A1 (“Lim”) in view of KR 10-2016-0077871 A (“Lee ‘871” – machine translation cited herein) as applied to claim 18 above, and further in view of US 2018/0019508 A1 (“Lee ‘508”).
Regarding claim 20, Lim discloses the battery module of claim 18. Lim does not expressly disclose a gap filler filling a space between lower surfaces of the adjacent two pouch cells.
Lee ‘508 discloses a battery module comprising a plurality of pouch-type secondary batteries 100 and a cartridge 200 (“gap filler”) (Abstract). As shown in Figs. 6 and 7, the cartridge fills a space between lower surfaces of the adjacent two pouch cells between an adhesive B and cooling plate 300. The cartridge protects an outer side of the pouch-type secondary batteries 100, particularly an outer side of a rim portion thereof where a sealing portion is located, guides the pouch-type secondary batteries 100 to be arranged, and prevents the stacked assembly from moving ([0055]). For these reasons, it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to incorporate the cartridge of Lee ‘508.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments, see pp. 11-17, filed 08/14/2025, with respect to the rejection of claims 1 and 18 (via incorporation of the subject matter of claims 5 and 6) have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
In response to applicant's argument that the references fail to show certain features of the invention (pp. 11-13), it is noted that the features upon which applicant relies (i.e., a spatial relationship between the folded sealed portion and the upper or lower cover plates, for example, a void between the two; or specific means for protecting the folded sealed portions) are not recited in the rejected claim(s). Although the claims are interpreted in light of the specification, limitations from the specification are not read into the claims. See In re Van Geuns, 988 F.2d 1181, 26 USPQ2d 1057 (Fed. Cir. 1993).
It is noted that in Lim, while a portion of the protruding sections of the upper cover plate appear to be in contact with the folded sealed portions in Fig. 3, given the disclosure in [0043]-[0044] at least some of the thermal conductive adhesive 23 is disposed between the upper cover plate and the folded sealed portions. “In the assembly process, the thermal conductive adhesives 23 may be previously applied to a certain thickness on the lower surface of the upper plate 21 and the upper surface of the lower plate 22, and the upper and lower plates 21 and 22 may be disposed above and under the cell-stacked structure 100 and be attached thereto such that the thermal conductive adhesives 23 are in direct contact with the cells 10.” Lim at [0043]. “[T]he constituent battery cells 10 of the battery may be directly attached to the upper and lower plates 21 and 22, provided as external covers, without using medium other than the thermal conductive adhesives 23. In other words, the thermal conductive adhesives 23 may be in direct contact with the upper portions of the cells 10 and the lower surface of the upper plate 21 and with the lower portions of the cells 10 and the upper surface of the lower plate 22.” Lim at [0044].
It is noted that Cho, Lee ‘508, and Kilhenny are not relied upon for teaching structural features of the independent claims and that Cho and Lee ‘508 are not relied upon for the rejection of claims 1 or 18. Cho is relied upon for its teachings of thermal adhesive composition and characteristics (as in instant claims 7-10). Lee ‘508 is relied upon for its teaching of a cartridge (as in instant claim 20). Kilhenny is relied upon for its teaching of an elastic pad (as in instant claims 16-17 and 19).
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Robert Scott Carrico whose telephone number is (571)270-5504. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9:15AM-6PM ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Barbara Gilliam can be reached at 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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Robert Scott Carrico
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1727
/Robert S Carrico/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1727