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 with respect to claim(s) 1-3, 9-10 and 12-16 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of a battery comprising: A) a negative electrode comprising a carbon electrode material and an alkali-ion conductive solid electrolyte comprising an oxide comprising Na3Zr2Si2PO12 and further comprising a conductive agent AND B) a solid electrolyte layer comprising Na3Zr2Si2PO12 in the replies filed on 8-7-2025 and 10-3-2025 are acknowledged.
Claims 6-8 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.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 8-7-2025 and 10-3-2025 are acknowledged.
Claims 17-38 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.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 8-7-2025.
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, 3, 9-10 and 12-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ahn et al. (WO 2019/226020, machine translation). Ahn et al. teaches in Figure 2, a negative electrode (100) comprising composite particles (110) comprising a graphite particle (113), a solid electrolyte (112) and a conductive material (111) that has been spherically shaped having a diameter 10 um or less or 7 um or more. Ahn et al. teaches Example 1, a negative electrode comprising a mixture of graphite particles having an average particle diameter of D50 = 9 um; solid electrolyte comprising Li7La3Zr2O12 and carbon black. The particle diameter of the obtained composite particle was about 15 um. Ahn et al. teaches Example 5, a negative electrode comprising a mixture of graphite particles having an average particle diameter of D50 = 9 um; solid electrolyte and carbon black. The particle diameter of the obtained composite particle was about 11 um. Ahn et al. teaches an all-solid-state battery comprising a positive electrode, the negative electrode and a solid electrolyte membrane. The solid electrolyte membrane comprises a polymer material and/or inorganic material exhibiting ion conducting properties. Ahn et al. teaches that the solid electrolyte membrane is 70 um (0.07 mm). Ahn et al. teaches the claimed invention as explained above but does not specifically teach that the mixture is formed of particles having an average particle diameter of 10 um or less. It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to form a mixture formed of particles having an average particle diameter of 10 um or less, since it has been held that where general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art, discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art and since it has been held that discovering an optimum value of a result effective variable involves only routine skill in the art. See MPEP 2144.05.
When Ahn et al. teaches the same sintered body electrode containing a carbon active material comprising graphite and an alkali ion conductive solid electrolyte, then inherently the sintered body electrode being capable of absorbing and releasing alkali ions at 30°C after being thermally treated and an inert atmosphere at 500°C and being capable of being reversibly charged and discharged with a charge/discharge efficiency of 90% or more during charge and discharge at a cutoff voltage of 9V to 0.001 V must also be obtained.
In addition, the presently claimed property of the sintered body electrode being capable of absorbing and releasing alkali ions at 30°C after being thermally treated and an inert atmosphere at 500°C and being capable of being reversibly charged and discharged with a charge/discharge efficiency of 90% or more during charge and discharge at a cutoff voltage of 9V to 0.001 V would have obviously been present once the Ahn et al. product is provided. See MPEP 2112.01,I.
Claim(s) 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Ahn et al. (WO 2019/226020, machine translation) in view of Frischmann et al. (US 2019/0326578). Ahn et al. teaches in Figure 2, a negative electrode (100) comprising composite particles (110) comprising a graphite particle (113), a solid electrolyte (112) and a conductive material (111) that has been spherically shaped having a diameter 10 um or less or 7 um or more. Ahn et al. teaches Example 1, a negative electrode comprising a mixture of graphite particles having an average particle diameter of D50 = 9 um; solid electrolyte comprising Li7La3Zr2O12 and carbon black. Ahn et al. discloses the claimed invention except for specifically teaching that the alkali-ion conductive solid electrolyte has a sodium-ion conductivity. Frischmann et al. teaches in [0068], that inorganic solid electrolytes may include Li7La3Zr2O12, Na1+xZr2SixP3-xO12, etc. It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to use Na1+xZr2SixP3-xO12 instead of Li7La3Zr2O12 as the alkali-ion conductive solid electrolyte because Frischmann et al. teaches that both these alkali-ion conductive solid electrolyte materials can be used in the anode as explained above and one would expect therefore that these alkali-ion conductive solid electrolyte materials would function in a similar way and give similar results.
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