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 (RCE) 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and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114.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 09/17/2025 has been entered.
Response to Amendment
The amendment filed 09/17/2025 has been entered. Support is found at least in the specification at paragraphs [59] and [70] as filed 05/10/2022.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments, see Remarks pages 6-13, filed 08/22/2025, with respect to the rejection(s) of claim(s) 1 and its dependent claims under 35 USC 103 relying on Yamamoto as the primary reference have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of the amendment and RCE.
Further, the Claim Objection presented in the 05/23/2025 is withdrawn.
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.
Claim(s) 1-2, 4, 6-7, 11-14, and 16-17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cho et al. (US 20150207117 A1) in view of Sakagami et al. (US 20200168866 A1), Grotz et al. (US 20180317334 A1) and Hill et al. (US 5643693 A).
Regarding claim 1, Cho teaches a battery pack (rechargeable battery pack 100, Cho Figs. 1-2) comprising: a plurality of battery cells coupled to a busbar plate (tab 50 coupling the unit battery cells 10, [0051] and Figs. 3-5); and a battery pack case configured to receive the plurality of battery cells (lower case 30 and upper case 40 enclosing cells 10 and their holder 20, Figs. 2-3 and 6),
wherein an external coupling portion of the busbar plate is disposed at an outer surface of the battery pack case so as to be exposed therefrom (drawn-out end portion 53 of the tab 50 is bent outside the upper case 40 to be located on the outer surface thereof, [0069, 0077] and Figs. 1-2),
wherein the battery pack case is provided with a punched portion directly formed and recessed in the battery pack case (recessed portion, at location of plate-shaped supporting portion 43, is provided at the upper case 40; [0082] and Figs. 1-2), and
the punched portion having an exposed portion (corresponding location of the first supporting protrusion 441 and the first insertion groove 451 within 40 at recessed 43, [0098-0100] and Figs. 8-10) that is recessed and receiving an entirety of a terminal (terminal 60 entirely within recess 43 in bounds of 441/451; Figs. 1-2 and 8-10, see also [0090, 0095, 0099]), coupled to the external coupling portion (terminal 60 is located on the bent end portion 53 of the tab 50 so as to be electrically coupled thereto, [0078]; terminal 60 includes a tab connection portion 61 that is overlapping the end portion 53 of the tab 50 above the supporting portion 43 for surface contact, [00833]; see also Figs. 1-2, 7-10), and
wherein terminal coupling portions of the busbar plate are coupled to the plurality of battery cells (tab 50 couples the unit battery cells 10 in series or in parallel by welding, [0064]; tab 50 is formed with a 4-cell reception tab 51 for coupling four unit battery cells 10 and a 2-cell reception tab 52 for coupling two unit battery cells 10, [0066]; two 2-cell reception tabs 52 electrically couple the two unit battery cells 10, and are drawn out of the through-holes 42 of the upper case 40 such that they are outside of the upper case 40 on the outer surface thereof as a bent end portion 53, [0069]; see also Figs. 2 and 5), and
the external coupling portion of the busbar plate is coupled to the terminal on the outer surface of the battery pack case (terminal 60 includes a tab connection portion 61 that is overlapping the end portion 53 of the tab 50 above the supporting portion 43 for surface contact, [0083] and Figs. 1-2, 7) by fastening without being deformed (the fastening member 70 penetrates through the tab connection portion 61 of the terminal 60 and the end portion 53 of the tab 50 such that the end portion 53 of the tab 50 is fastened to the supporting portion 43 of the upper case 40, [0086]; 60 appears undeformed in fastened state of Fig. 1: i.e., thickness/shape of 60 from Figs. 1 and 7 is maintained once fastened with 70 as shown in Fig. 2; see also [0088]: 50 and 60 able to form and maintain a structure for stable electrical connection).
wherein the terminal (60 in Cho) comprises:
a ring portion (tab connection portion 61 within 60, having a circle/ring-shaped opening; Fig. 7) configured to allow the {fastening member} to be coupled thereto (the fastening member 70 penetrates through the tab connection portion 61 of the terminal 60, [0086] and Figs. 2, 7); and
a connection portion (the terminal 60 further includes a load connection portion 6, [0084]) having a downwardly inclined structure or a stepped structure (bent in vertical direction, [0084]; shape of 62 stepping downwardly from 61 toward 621 shown in Fig. 7 – see also Figs. 1-2)
an area at a periphery of an opening formed in the external coupling portion (periphery around opening within 53, Fig. 7) is less than a shortest length from an inner diameter of the ring portion (circular hole in 61, cited above) to the connection portion (to where 62 steps from 61, Fig. 7 as cited above) (periphery of opening within 53 is indeed shorter than this distance/length between hole of 61 to 62 such that 53 fits within the bounds of 60 to be connected at 61 but does not inhibit the bending structure of 61 – see [0084-0085] and Figs. 2 and 7, where this the claimed length is in the y-direction of Fig. 7).
Cho fails to explicitly teach that the terminal is “a ring terminal” nor that fastening is done “using a rivet“, nor specifically wherein “the ring terminal comprises: a ring portion configured to allow the rivet to be coupled thereto; a pressing portion configured to press a wire; and a connection portion configured to connect the ring portion and the pressing portion to each other, wherein a width of an area at a periphery of an opening formed in the external coupling portion is less than a shortest length from an inner diameter of the ring portion to the connection portion, and wherein the connection portion has a downwardly inclined structure or a stepped structure” (however, similar structural features are mapped to Cho as cited above, but lacking the specific “ring terminal” configuration as claimed).
Sakagami is analogous in the art of battery packs (lithium-ion battery 14 includes plural lithium-ion battery cells that are connected in series, Sakagami [0035]) and pertinent to the problem of electrically connecting a battery to an external load (62 is load connection portion of terminal 60 per Cho [0084]; lithium-ion battery 14 has to be electrically connected to terminals of high-voltage electric load 20 / low-voltage electric load 21 within Sakagami [0035]). Sakagami teaches accomplishing such electrical connection using a ring terminal connected to a wire (connection terminal 22a of the wire harness 22 connected to a positive electrode terminal 14a of lithium-ion battery 14, Sakagami [0047]; 22a is ring-shaped per Sakagami Fig. 4 of the lithium-ion battery 14). Sakagami teaches the entirety of the ring terminal 22a being fitted within a recessed portion of a battery case 46 ([0043] and Fig. 4). Therefore, it is known in the art for connection terminals, for connection of external loads to batteries, can be ring terminals which are able to be received entirely by a recessed portion of a battery pack case. As such, a person having ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to change the shape of the externally-connecting terminal 60 within Cho to be a ring terminal as taught by Sakagami and expect predictably suitable functionality of said terminal. Changes in shape are a matter of design choice within the ambit of a skilled artisan per MPEP 2144.04 IV B, and the simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results is obvious per MPEP 2143 I B.
Grotz is analogous in the art of ring terminals (contact regions 36 with boreholes 38, thus being ring-shaped as shown in Grotz Fig. 3) and pertinent to the problem of electrical connection to a power supply (Groitz abstract, [0047], and Fig. 1). Grotz teaches that a fastening member for penetrating such ring terminal can be a rivet (per Grotz [0009, 0054] and Fig. 10), which is thus a known alternative that is equivalent to a screw (per Grotz [0009, 0049]) in terms of sufficiently serving as a penetrating fastening member. Specifically, Grotz shows a ring portion configured to allow the rivet to be coupled thereto (rivet 366 penetrating the passage holes of eye-shaped/ring-shaped contact regions 36, Grotz [0054] and Fig. 10, in view of Grotz Fig. 1 showing 36 as terminals). Since Cho teaches that fastening member 70 penetrates through the tab connection portion 61 of the terminal 60 and the end portion 53 of the tab 50 to thus exert a fastening force thereon (Cho [0086-0088] and Figs. 2, 7, 9), but is silent toward the type of fastener (although 70 appears in Cho Figs. 2, 7, 9 to have the structure of a screw), and since Sakagami also teaches a screw 56a penetrating the ring terminal 22a (Sakagami [0047] and Fig. 4) it would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to further modify Cho in view of Grotz to select a rivet to serve as the fastening member. Selecting a rivet would have been obvious because a person having ordinary skill in the art would have expected sufficient functionality of the rivet to penetrate the ring terminal in order to securely electrically connect such to a power source, as taught by Grotz, which is the common goal of modified Cho. The simple substitution of one known element for another (i.e., rivet for screw) to obtain predictable results is obvious per MPEP 2143 I B.
Hill is analogous in the art of ring terminals used for external connection to a battery bus bar (ring-shaped terminals 67a,68a connected to bus bar 25 of battery 70; Hill Figs. 3-4) and teaches the ring terminal (67a,68a as cited above) which comprises:
a ring portion configured to allow {a fastening member} to be coupled thereto (ring-shaped holes of 67a,68a – within their horizontal portions – penetrated by respective fastening bolts 55,21b; Hill Fig. 4);
a pressing portion configured to press a wire (vertically lower portions where each 67a,68a are crimped around respective cables 67b,68b; Fig. 4); and
a connection portion configured to connect the ring portion and the pressing portion to each other (angular portion of each 67a,68a between their ring-shaped holes and respective cable-crimping portions, Fig. 4 – i.e. between horizontal and vertical portions),
wherein a width of an area at a periphery of an opening (around hole 28a in battery connecting terminal 28 of bus bar 25 to which 67a is attached by 55, and around hole in fuse 60 to which 68a is attached by 21b; Figs. 3-4) formed in an external coupling portion (held within battery terminal connecting assembly 12 and fuse mounting area 16, which are within battery connecting block 20 on battery 70; C3L61-66,C4L17-19 and Fig. 4) is less than a shortest length (necessarily shorter so that angled portion of 67a rests outside 28 and beyond 24a to be bent downward, as shown per Figs. 2-4 – similarly, angled portion of 68a extends beyond the peripheral area around the hole in fuse 60 to also be bent downward outside 16/12, as shown in Figs. 2-4) from an inner diameter of the ring portion to the connection portion (e.g. length from hole in 67a to angled portion of 67a, Fig. 4; and hole in 68a to its angled portion – each extended beyond respective 28,60 and wall of 12 as shown in the cited Hill figures), and
wherein the connection portion has a downwardly inclined structure or a stepped structure (angled portions of 67a,68a are each downwardly stepped from horizontal portion to vertical portion, between hole toward crimping portion at 67b,68b; Figs. 2 and 4).
Hill shows in exemplary Fig. 3 that connected ring terminals 67a,68a having such downwardly bent shapes allow for connection to an external load (i.e., via cable attachments 67b,67b connected at the cited pressing portions) while keeping a small/tight footprints close to the edges of the battery 70’s exterior. Hill teaches that such configuration of their power distribution module is positioned essentially against and over the battery top surface and is low-profile so as to extend only marginally above the battery terminals imposes no adverse load on the battery terminals and makes efficient use of space in the battery-mounting area (Hill C2L5-12), and is thus a beneficially space-saving design.
Changes in shape, and rearrangement of parts, are matters of design choice within the ambit of a skilled artisan per MPEP 2144.04 IV B and VI C. As such, a person having ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious, in view of Hill, to further modify the ring terminal(s) within modified Cho to have the pressing portion configured to press a wire (to allow for connection to an external load, which can be a wire also per Sakagami as applied to modified Cho above), the downwardly stepped connecting portion (see also the stepped shape of 62 as cited to Cho Fig. 7 above) between the ring portion and pressing portion, and to ensure that the width of an area at a periphery of an opening formed in the external coupling portion was less than a shortest length from an inner diameter of the ring portion to the connection portion (as taught by Hill above) to ensure that the downwardly stepped connection portion(s) cleared the edge of the external coupling portion (see Cho Figs. 1-2,7 in view of Hill Figs. 2-4 as cited above), and thus be able to achieve desirable external load connection while maintaining a relatively small footprint/low profile around the outside of the battery, with the motivation to yield an efficient, space-saving design like that of Hill.
Thereby, all limitations of claim 1 are rendered obvious.
Regarding claim 2, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above and wherein the busbar plate (50 of Cho Figs. 2 and 4) comprises: the terminal coupling portions configured to allow the plurality of battery cells to be coupled thereto (51 and 52 connected to cells 10, Cho Fig. 4; the tab 50 is formed with a 4-cell reception tab 51 for coupling four unit battery cells 10 and a 2-cell reception tab 52 for coupling two unit battery cells 10, Cho [0066]); and the external coupling portion (bent end portion 53, Cho Figs. 2 and 4) provided with an opening, through which the rivet (fastening member 70 of Cho modified to be a rivet, in view of Grotx [0009, 0054] and Fig. 10 as cited above) is inserted (fastening member 70 penetrates through the tab connection portion 61 of the terminal 60 and the end portion 53 of the tab 50, Cho [0086] and Figs. 2 and 7).
Regarding claim 4, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above and wherein the ring terminal is configured such that one of a first surface of the ring portion and a second surface of the ring portion, which is opposite the first surface (see upper and lower surfaces of tab connecting portion 61 of terminal 60 in Cho Figs. 2, 7,9 – as modified in view of Sakagami to be “a ring terminal” like 22a in Sakagami Fig. 4, and to have additional features of Hill: see upper and lower surfaces of 67a,68a ring terminals in Hill Figs. 2 and 4), is coupled to the external coupling portion of the busbar plate (lower surface of 61 couples to 53 in Cho Fig. 7, modified in view of Hill which shows lower surfaces of 57a,68a coupling to 28 and 60 which are electrically integral to bus bar 25 – see Hill Figs. 2-4).
Regarding claim 6, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above but fails to yet teach wherein the pressing portion of the ring terminal is inserted into the punched portion so as not to protrude more than the outer surface of the battery pack case such that the pressing portion is disposed inside the battery pack case.
Hill, as applied to modified Cho above, taught toward the ring terminal including the pressing portion to connect to a wire (where 67a,68a are pressed/crimped around wires of cables 67b,68b respectively as shown in Hill Figs. 2-4). Hill also teaches in C2L5-12 the overall power distribution model having a low profile to make efficient use of space in the battery mounting area, and teaches in Fig. 3 the respective pressing portions at 67b,68b being within the footprint of cable terminal covers 51a,51b which protect said terminals and add only a slightly greater thickness to the profile (Hill C7L17-25). Sakagami, as also applied to modified Cho above, teaches that a connection poring between wire 22 and ring terminal 22a (i.e., corresponding to the pressing portion of Hill) is received in its entirety within the recessed/punched portion (wire connection section 48 is provided on a bottom surface at a front end of the battery case 46, Sakagami [0043]), such as to be disposed inside the battery pack case and not to protrude more than the outer surface of the battery pack case (connection point of 22/22a at 48 is fully within the boundaries of case 46, Sakagami Figs. 3-4).
Therefore, in view of the modifications above in regards to claim 1 and motivated by teachings towards a space-saving design, it would have further been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art to ensure that the pressing portion of the ring terminal was inserted into the punched portion so as not to protrude more than the outer surface of the battery pack case such that the pressing portion is disposed inside the battery pack case as taught by Sakagami. Thereby, claim 6 is rendered obvious.
Regarding claim 7, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above and wherein coupling surfaces of the external coupling portion and the ring terminal are flat surfaces (see Cho Figs. 1,7,9; see Sakagami Fig. 4; see Hill Figs. 2,4) such that the coupling surfaces are brought into tight contact with each other (via fastening member: see Cho Figs. 1,7,9; see Sakagami Fig. 4; see Grotz Fig. 10).
That is, the flat surface of the ring terminal abutting the flat surface of the bus bar achieves tight contact via the rivet penetrating and connecting therethrough. (Cho [0087] teaches: By a fastening force of the fastening member 70, the end portion 53 of the tab 50 and the tab connection portion 61 of the terminal 60 may make surface contact with each other. Hill C6L17-18 teaches: bolts 55, 21a respectively to secure terminals. Grotz [0054] teaches: The contact regions 36 are moved so they are congruent one on top of another and are permanently articulated with one another or optionally also fixedly mechanically and electrically conductively connected to one another by means of a rivet 366 penetrating the passage holes.)
Regarding claim 11, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above and a device (vehicle, Cho [0010]) comprising the battery pack according to claim 1 (see rejection of claim 1 above) as an energy source (a rechargeable battery pack utilized for starting an engine of a two (2)-wheel or four (4)-wheel vehicle, Cho [0010]).
Regarding claim 12, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above and wherein a distance from the connection portion to the rivet (distance from bent portion between 61 and 62 to fastening member 70, Cho Figs. 1 and 7 {where 70 was modified above to be a rivet, in view of Grotz}; in view of distance between downward angled/bent portions of in 67a,68a to bolts 55,21 in Hill Figs. 2-4) is the same or greater (greater – see cited Figs.) than a distance from the connection portion to the external coupling portion (distance from bent portion between 61 and 62 to outer surface/holes in 62, Cho Figs. 1 and 7; in view of distance between downward angled/bent portions of in 67a,68a to edges of 28/60 – which are relatively closer to the angled portions – in Hill Figs. 2-4).
Regarding claim 13, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above and the external coupling portion is not deformed (50+60 maintain a structure for stable electrical connection, Cho [0088]), when the external coupling portion is entirely parallel with the ring portion (53 parallel to 61 along z-direction, Cho Figs. 7 and 9; in view of ring portion 22a and 14a horizontally parallel in Sakagami Fig. 4; in view of horizontal portion of 67a parallel to 28 and horizontal portion of 68a parallel to 60 in Hill Figs. 2 and 4).
Regarding claim 14, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above and wherein the external coupling portion does not physically contact the connection portion (53 spatially separate from 53 in Cho Fig. 7; in view of 67b being spatially separate from 28 and 68b being spatially separate from 60 beyond perimeter of bus bar 25 in Hill Figs. 2-3).
Regarding claim 16, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above and wherein a distal end of the busbar plate that is distal from the external coupling portion of the busbar plate is bent downwards (52 bent downwards from 53, Cho Figs. 2,4,7,9), and is inserted into the punched portion (50 drawn through hole 42 to support location 43, Cho [0076, 0080-0083, 0090-0091] and Figs. 1-2, 6, 8-9).
Regarding claim 17, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above but fails to teach wherein the exposed portion has a length that is greater than lengths of the pressing portion and the connection portion.
However, Sakagami, as applied to modified Cho above, does teach that wire connection section 48 – where ring terminal 22a connects to wire harness 22 (thus corresponding to the location of instantly claimed pressing portion and connection portion) – is seated within the exposed/recessed portion of battery case 46 (Sakagami Figs. 3-4), such that the exposed portion in 46 is longer than connection section 48 (including where 22a connects to 22). Further, Hill teaches that the exposed portion of bus bar 25 extending to 28, and to 60 at 29, that is exposed from the top of 20 (Hill Figs. 2 and 4) is longer (in the horizontal direction) than the lengths of both the pressing portion where 67b,68b connect to 67a,68a and the respective bent connecting portions within 67a,68a (see Hill Figs. 3-4).
Changes in size and shape are matters of design choice within the ambit of a skilled artisan per MPEP 2144.04 IV A-B, such that a person having ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to adjust the length of exposed portion to be than lengths of the pressing portion and the connection portion within modified Cho, and still expect desired functionality of exposed portion, the pressing portion, and the connection portion for connecting the battery bus bar to an external load (per Cho), and also staying within the inventive goal of Hill (toward a space-efficient profile, as cited above).
Thereby, claim 17 is obvious.
Claim(s) 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cho et al. (US 20150207117 A1) in view of Sakagami et al. (US 20200168866 A1), Grotz et al. (US 20180317334 A1) and Hill et al. (US 5643693 A), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Larkin et al. (US 5236792 A).
Regarding claim 8, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above but fails to explicitly teach that the battery pack case is made of an insulative material.
However, Cho does teach 53 and 60 being conductively connected, and 62 being for external connection to a load (Cho [0078, 0084]) which are exposed from upper case 40 (Cho Figs. 1-2), such that it appears only locations 60 would necessarily be conductive, not 40. Cho also teaches toward insulating tapes 80 above and below the bus bars 50 to prevent inflow of alien materials and short circuiting of cells 10 (Cho [0070-0074] and Figs. 5-6). Hill also teaches the Battery connecting block 20 comprises an electrically non-conductive case preferably made of an injection molded synthetic resin (Hill C3L61-63).
Larkin is analogous in the art of batteries and their external connections (battery 10, terminals 52/53; Larkin Fig. 1) and teaches an electric battery comprising an insulative container 11 for the cells of the battery, whereby the container is a plastic molded article constituted of epoxy resin or other suitable synthetic resinous material (Larkin C2L38-41 and Fig. 1) and having an insulative horizontal top closure plate 30 which extends longitudinally and laterally across the top of container 11 to close it (C2L60-62 and Fig. 2). Larkin teaches toward the ability of stacking an assemblage of multiple batteries (Larkin C8L40-60 and Fig. 8), which would not be possible if the container cases were conductive due to risk of short-circuiting or damage to terminals.
Since Cho and Hill teach toward the use of insulating materials for preventing short circuit and since Larkin teaches the use of insulative material such as resin being useful in forming container/case for cells of a battery, a person having ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to select such insulating resin material to form the battery pack case of modified Cho in order to protect the cells therein from short circuiting (i.e., via unintended electrical contact with outside materials, other than the intended load connection points 60), and further motivated by the added benefit of being able to stack multiple batteries into an assemblage as taught by Larkin in order to expectedly increase power output as needed. The selection of a known material based on its suitability for its intended use (i.e., insulative material for a battery container and cover) supports a prima facie obviousness determination per MPEP 2144.07.
Thereby, claim 8 is rendered obvious.
Claim(s) 9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Cho et al. (US 20150207117 A1) in view of Sakagami et al. (US 20200168866 A1), Grotz et al. (US 20180317334 A1) and Hill et al. (US 5643693 A), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Rodenburg et al. (US 2020/0147673 A1, cited in the 09/19/2023 IDS and previous Office actions).
Regarding claim 9, modified Cho teaches the limitations of claim 1 above but fails to explicitly teach that the rivet is a blind rivet.
Rodenburg, which is pertinent to the problem of connecting external conductive members to bus bars, teaches an improved mechanism for attaching a sensor wire to a bus bar in a battery module, the sensor wire comprising a terminal end, and teaches using a blind rivet inserted into a bus bar hole and the sensor wire terminal end in order to achieve coupling therebetween (Rodenburg abstract, [0004]). Rodenburg Figs. 2A, 3, and 4 show the sensor wire terminal end being in the shape of a ring terminal which forms an electrically conductive bond with the bus bar when coupled and compressed by the blind rivet (Rodenburg [0005]), where the rivet head 408 is deformed upon fastening but ring terminal end 406 maintains a constant thickness and is not deformed upon activation (shown in Rodenburg Fig. 4). Rodenburg [0008-0009, 0022, 0028] teach that such sensor wire terminal end, as an external conductive member coupled to the bus bar which is also coupled to battery cells within the battery module, is beneficial in order to connect to a voltage sensor (i.e., for desired voltage monitoring of the battery module). Rodenburg teaches that the ring terminal end of the voltage sensor wire is beneficially coupled by the blind rivet to a hole in the bus bar, achieving fast connection with good compression to ensure conductive connection while also saving space and eliminating the need to access both side of the bus bar (Rodenburg abstract and [0004, 0028-0029]).
It would have been obvious utilize the specific “blind rivet” taught by Rodenburg as the rivet fastening member within modified Cho, with the motivation to achieve the benefit of fast connection, space-saving, and only needing to access one side of the bus bar to connect the external terminal to the bus bar. Per MPEP 2143 I(B), the simple substitution of one known element for another to obtain predictable results supports a conclusion of obviousness, such that substituting the blind rivet of Rodenburg for rivet of modified Cho was obvious.
Thereby, claim 9 is rendered obvious.
Conclusion
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/JESSIE WALLS-MURRAY/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1728