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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 08/28/2025 has been entered.
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 the combination of references applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. The new ground of rejection does not rely on Kaiser or Han to teach compression pads.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claims 1-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hettrich (WO 2019/017994 A1, cited in the IDS filed 12/19/2022) in view of Reinshagen (US 2017/0279088 A1, previously cited) and Lee (US 2021/0184303 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Hettrich discloses a battery module (200, FIG. 2, [66]) comprising:
a module case (214, FIG. 2, [66]);
a battery cell stack comprising n battery cells (212, FIG. 2, [66]), the battery cell stack (formed by cells 212) being accommodated in the module case (214);
a tube (210, FIG. 2, [66]) configured to flow a fluid ([34]), the tube (210) stacked on one surface of the battery cell stack (formed by cells 212) and positioned between the battery cell stack (formed by cells 212) and the module case (212);
a fluid supply device (206, FIG. 1, [66]) connected to the tube (210) and configured to supply the fluid to the tube (210); and
a fluid control device (202, FIG. 2, [66]) connected to the tube (210) and to the fluid supply device (206), and configured to control inflow of the fluid into the tube (210) ([70] on p. 20), and configured to maintain a constant surface pressure of the n battery cells (212) accommodated in the module case (214) ([8]),
wherein the n is an integer equal to or greater than 2 (one or more cells, [66]; n = 12 in FIG. 2).
Hettrich does not disclose the fluid being in a gel state, wherein the fluid control device includes a valve, wherein compression pads are between battery cells in the battery cell stack such that 3 to 10 battery cells are between each of the compression pads, and wherein the compression pads are made of a polyurethane material.
Reinshagen teaches a battery module (20, Fig. 2, [0043]) comprising a battery cell stack comprising battery cells (100, Fig. 2, [0044]), a tube (300, Figs. 2 and 7, [0058]) configured to flow a fluid, the tube (300) stacked on one surface of the battery cell stack (formed by cells 100), the fluid being in a gel state ([0022]), and a fluid control valve (395, Fig. 7, [0058]) connected to the tube (300) and configured to control inflow of the fluid into the tube (300). A person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention would have found it obvious to have modified the battery module of Hettrich by using gel as the fluid and a fluid control valve as part of the fluid control device with a reasonable expectation of successfully applying constant pressure to the cells as taught by Reinshagen ([0008]).
Hettrich in view of Reinshagen does not teach wherein compression pads are between battery cells in the battery cell stack such that 3 to 10 battery cells are between each of the compression pads, and wherein the compression pads are made of a polyurethane material.
Lee teaches a battery module (100, FIG. 2, [0039]) comprising a battery cell stack (110, FIG. 2, [0039]) comprising battery cells (120, FIG. 2, [0057]), wherein compression pads (127, FIG. 4, [0057]) are between battery cells (120) in the battery cell stack (110) such that 3 to 10 battery cells (120) are between each of the compression pads (127) (6 cells 120 in FIG. 4), and wherein the compression pads (127) are made of a polyurethane material ([0057]). A person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention would have found it obvious to modify the battery module of Hettrich in view of Reinshagen by adding polyurethane compression pads between cells in the battery cell stack such that 3 to 10 battery cells in the are between each of the compression pads because Lee teaches that the compression pads may elastically deform when a specific battery cell swells, thereby preventing an overall volume increase of the battery cell stack ([0057]).
Regarding claim 2, Hettrich in view of Reinshagen and Lee teaches (see Hettrich) a pressure sensor (208, Fig. 2, [66]) connected to the tube (210) and the fluid control valve (202, modified in the rejection of claim 1 to include a valve), and configured to measure a pressure of the tube (210).
Regarding claim 3, Hettrich in view of Reinshagen and Lee teaches wherein the tube is made of a soft or elastic material (Hettrich: rubber, [34]).
Regarding claim 4, Hettrich in view of Reinshagen and Lee teaches wherein the fluid supply device (208) comprises a fluid pump (Hettrich: [66]).
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hettrich (WO 2019/017994 A1) in view of Reinshagen (US 2017/0279088 A1) and Lee (US 2021/0184303 A1), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Hermann (US 2014/0093760 A1; previously cited) and Kogami (US 2022/0255182 A1; previously cited).
Regarding claim 6, Hettrich in view of Reinshagen and Lee teaches an elastic tube (Hettrich: rubber [34]; Reinshagen: elastic [0045]), but does not disclose a pressing plate stacked on one surface of the battery cell stack and wherein one or more stopper blocks are between the pressing plate and one surface of the module case so as to limit movement of the pressing plate in a stacking direction of the battery cell stack.
Hermann discloses a pressing plate (1204/1206, FIG. 12, [0167]). A person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention would have found it obvious to have modified the battery module of Hettrich in view of Reinshagen and Lee by adding a pressing plate stacked on one surface of the battery cell stack because Hettrich teaches that doing so promotes uniform application of pressure to a battery cell ([0159]).
Hettrich in view of Reinshagen, Lee, and Hermann does not teach wherein one or more stopper blocks are between the pressing plate and one surface of the module case so as to limit movement of the pressing plate in a stacking direction of the battery cell stack.
Kogami teaches a battery module (10, FIG. 2, [0050]) comprising a stopper block (7, FIG. 17, [0065]) to limit movement of an elastic layer (6, FIG. 17, [0065]) that presses on a battery cell (1, Fig. 2, [0050]). A person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention would have found it obvious to have modified the battery module of Hettrich in view of Reinshagen and Lee by adding one or more stopper blocks are between the pressing plate and one surface of the module case so as to limit movement of the pressing plate in a stacking direction of the battery cell stack because Kogami teaches that doing so would extend the lifetime of the battery module by preventing deterioration of the elastic tube ([0033]-[0034]).
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hettrich (WO 2019/017994 A1) in view of Reinshagen (US 2017/0279088 A1) and Lee (US 2021/0184303 A1), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Han (US 2016/0164061 A1, previously cited).
Regarding claim 8, Hettrich in view of Reinshagen and Lee does not disclose wherein the battery cell stack further includes a bus bar assembly that electrically connects m battery cells, and wherein the m is an integer equal to or greater than 2.
Han teaches a battery module (100, FIG. 2, [0031]) comprising a battery cell stack (formed by cells 10, FIG. 2, [0031]), wherein the battery cell stack (formed by cells 10) further includes a bus bar assembly (18, FIG. 2, [0034]) that electrically connects m battery cells (10), and wherein the m is an integer equal to 2.
A person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention would have found it obvious to have added a bus bar assembly that electrically connects m battery cells to the battery module of Hettrich in view of Reinshagen and Lee, and wherein the m is an integer equal to 2, because Han teaches that battery cells can be electrically connected to one another through a bus bar because Han teaches that a bus bar may be used to electrically connected neighboring battery cells in series or parallel to each other ([0034]).
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hettrich (WO 2019/017994 A1) in view of Reinshagen (US 2017/0279088 A1) and Lee (US 2021/0184303 A1), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Gehlhausen (US 2019/0137037 A1, previously cited).
Regarding claim 15, Hettrich in view of Reinshagen and Lee teaches wherein the fluid being in the gel state is a compressible gel (Reinshagen: [0022]), but does not disclose wherein the fluid being in the gel state is a hydrogel.
Gehlhausen teaches a battery housing ([0093]) comprising a hydrogel ([0024]). A person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention would have found it obvious to have tried using a hydrogel as the fluid in the battery module of Hettrich in view of Reinshagen and Lee because Gehlhausen teaches that the hydrogel is compressible ([0024]) and can remove heat from the battery ([0146]).
Conclusion
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/C.C.D./Examiner, Art Unit 1723 /TIFFANY LEGETTE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1723