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 .
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 7-23-2025 and 9-17-2025 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. The rejection of claim(s) 1, 4 and 10 remains rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable Asano et al, (US 2020/0328464 or WO 2019135346 A1) in view of Ro et al. (JP 2009-81110, machine translation) because since Asano et al. teaches that the current collector comprises Al foil and an insulation outer cylinder that cannot comprise copper because copper is not considered an insulating material, then inherently the exterior body and the current collector having at least a partial region where the copper content of less than 50 mass% as claimed in claim 1 and a copper content of less than 3.5 mass%; the current collector is in contact with the mixture layer and the exterior body facing the electrolyte layer and the first electrode layer must also be obtained.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election of Invention I, a battery comprising a first electrode layer comprising a copper-Al alloy current collector and an active material comprising LiNiCoMnO2 and a solid electrolyte material comprising LiYCl; an electrolyte layer comprising LiYCl and a second electrode layer, claims 1-7 and 10 in the reply filed on 4-8-2025 is acknowledged. Because applicant did not distinctly and specifically point out the supposed errors in the restriction requirement, the election has been treated as an election without traverse (MPEP § 818.01(a)).
Claims 8-9 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 4-8-2025.
Applicant’s election without traverse of the battery further comprising an exterior body and the current collector having at least a partial region where the copper content of less than 50 mass% as claimed in claim 1 and a copper content of less than 3.5 mass% and the partial region includes an aluminum alloy but does not further comprise an electrode lead in the reply filed on 9-17-2025 is acknowledged.
Claim 5 is withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 9-17-2025.
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, 4 and 10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable Asano et al, (US 2020/0328464 or WO 2019135346 A1) in view of Ro et al. (JP 2009-81110, machine translation).
Asano et al. ‘464 teaches in Example 1, a positive active material layer comprising a positive electrode comprises an active material comprising LiCoO2 and a solid electrolyte material comprising Li3YCl6 on a current collector comprising an Al foil current collector. Asano et al. ‘464 teaches in [0186-0192], a solid electrolyte layer comprising Li3yCl6; an anode layer and an insulating outer cylinder. Asano et al. teaches in [0138, 0165 and 0190], that current collecting leads were connected to the current collectors. Since Asano et al. teaches that the current collector comprises Al foil and an insulation outer cylinder that cannot comprise copper because copper is not considered an insulating material, then inherently the exterior body and the current collector having at least a partial region where the copper content of less than 50 mass% as claimed in claim 1 and a copper content of less than 3.5 mass%; the current collector is in contact with the mixture layer and the exterior body facing the electrolyte layer and the first electrode layer must also be obtained.
In addition, the presently claimed property of the exterior body and the current collector having at least a partial region where the copper content of less than 50 mass% as claimed in claim 1 and a copper content of less than 3.5 mass%; the current collector is in contact with the mixture layer and the exterior body facing the electrolyte layer and the first electrode layer would have obviously been present once the Asano et al. product is provided. In re Best, 195 USPQ 433 (CCPA 1977).
Asano et al. teaches the claimed invention but does not teach that the current collector layer comprises an aluminum alloy instead of an aluminum layer.
Ro et al. teaches providing an aluminum alloy foil for a current collector of which corrosion resistance is not degraded compared with pure aluminum foil and which is free from being fractured in a manufacturing process of an electrode. Ro et al. teaches that the current collector comprising an aluminum alloy includes 0.1-1.5 wt% Mn; 0.1-1.8 wt% Fe; 0.01-0.5 wt% Zr; 0.001-0.5 wt% Ti and 0.1 wt% silicone and the balance of the aluminum alloy includes aluminum.
Asano et al. and Ro et al. are considered analogous arts in the area of electrodes and batteries.
It would have been obvious to a one having ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to modify the current collector of Asano et al. to include the aluminum alloy material taught by Ro et al. comprising aluminum as a main component; comprising other elements other than aluminum and contain a copper content of less than 50 wt% or less than 3.5 wt%, because such modification would increase the corrosion resistance of the current collector.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention. Claim 10 is rejected because the claim does not further limit claim 1 from which the claim depends from. Claim 1 already claims the claimed information.
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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/LAURA S. WEINER/
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1723
/Laura Weiner/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1723
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