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 .
Status of Claims
Claim 1 is amended. Claim 3 is cancelled. Claims 9-12 stand withdrawn. Claims 1-2 and 4-8, as filed 15 September 2025, are examined herein. No new matter is included.
Response to Arguments
Regarding the rejection under 35 USC 103, Applicant argues that Examiner used incorrect legal reasoning with respect to claim 3, and that equating Heo’s fixing member with Wang’s wrapping separator is unsupported by the art, because the functions and structures of the components differ materially. New citations from Wang, Ryu, and Heo are provided herein.
Regarding the Provisional Nonstatutory Double Patenting rejections and the Nonstatutory Double Patenting rejection, Applicant argues that the instant amended claims overcome this rejection. This is persuasive. The Nonstatutory Double Patenting rejections are withdrawn.
The instant office action is a non-final rejection.
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.
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, and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang (US 20210043881 A) in view of Ryu (US 20070218355 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Wang teaches an electrode assembly (Abstract: electrode stack) comprising:
a stack in which a plurality of electrodes ([0009] electrode stack including anode and cathode) and a plurality of separators are alternately stacked on each other (FIG. 4C, FIG. 4D separator 405, wrap 410) wherein edges of the separators protrude further outward than the electrodes in a width dimension orthogonal to a stacking dimension of the stack (as shown FIG. 4C, FIG. 4D); and
a wrapping separator configured to surround the stack (FIG. 4C, FIG. 4D wrap 410, [0049] the wrapping 410 may fully encase or enclose the electrode stack on all exterior surfaces), Examiner notes that the broadest reasonable interpretation of “surround” does not require every surface to be covered, because a gap in the wrapping at least large enough for tabs is required for successful battery operation.
wherein the edges of at least some of the plurality of separators are fused with the wrapping separator to form fused portions ([0054] (emphasis added) “in some embodiments adhesive may be applied on a portion of the wrapping 410, such as on an exterior portion that may constitute a region to be coupled with second surface 429, such as in a window frame type of coverage, for example, although in other embodiments adhesive may be applied in a more uniform pattern along the surface of the wrapping in contact with the electrode stack. Exemplary adhesives may include a variety of adhesive materials that may couple or bond with electrode active materials, current collector materials, and separator materials.”) Examiner notes that the broadest reasonable interpretation of fused with the wrapping separator to form fused portions” is determined to include laser welding (as disclosed in the instant specification at [0019]), heat fusing, and solvent fusing. All three of these methods result in the joining of two similar materials with at most an insignificant addition of an additional material.
Wang at [0054] teaches the use of adhesive on a portion of wrapping 410, to bond to the separator materials, however Wang does not explicitly teach wherein the wrapping separator surrounds the stack such that: a pair of unfused surfaces of the wrapping separator is configured to cover opposing surfaces of the stack in the stacking dimension and a pair of fused surfaces of the wrapping separator is configured to cover opposing sides of the stack in the width dimension and connect the pair of unfused surfaces to each other, wherein the fused portions are formed along the fused surfaces.
Ryu, in the field of (Abstract) thermal welding of separators and separation film, discloses [0009] that the separators of the unit cells are secured to the separation film by thermal welding. At [0016] “Preferably, the thermal welding is performed at one side or opposite sides of each unit cell.” At [0038-0039] and Table 1 Ryu demonstrates that separators welded to the separation film at opposites sides (Example 1) is superior to thermally welding at lower ends of the bicells and superior to no thermal welding, producing fewer short circuits. Ryu at [0042-0043] contemplates that “The present invention has the effect of preventing the electrodes of the stacked electrodes from being separated from the separation film or from being twisted due to external impacts and vibrations, thereby restraining the electrochemical cell from generating heat or catching fire.”
A person of ordinary skill in the art would have been motivated, as of before the effective filing date of the instant invention, to modify Wang’s wrapping separator with the thermal welding at opposite sides of each unit cell of Ryu, with a reasonable expectation of successfully improving battery safety during exposure to impacts or vibration.
Regarding claim 2, Wang in view of Ryu teaches all of the limitations as set forth above, and Wang further teaches wherein the wrapping and the separators comprise the same material. ([0051] “same or a similar material”)
Regarding claim 4, Wang in view of Ryu teaches all of the limitations as set forth above, and Wang further teaches wherein the fused portions are in contact with or adjacent to ends of at least some of the plurality of electrodes. ([0008] the wrapping may be coupled about an exterior surface of the electrode stack, as shown FIG. 4D)
Regarding claim 5, Wang in view of Ryu teaches all of the limitations as set forth above, and Wang further teaches wherein a width of the fused portions in the width dimension parallel to the width dimension of the stack are not uniform along a stacking direction of the stack. (As shown FIG. 4D)
Regarding claim 6, Wang in view of Ryu teaches all of the limitations as set forth above, and Wang further teaches at FIG. 5C and [0063] a wrapping 520 covering the entire length of the cell, thus meeting the instant claim limitation “wherein a length of the wrapping separator in a longitudinal dimension of the stack is greater than or equal to about 0.5 times a length of the stack in the longitudinal dimension, the longitudinal dimension being orthogonal to both the width dimension and the stacking dimension.”
Regarding claim 8, Wang in view of Ryu teaches all of the limitations as set forth above. Wang does not explicitly teach wherein a respective length of each of the fused portions in a longitudinal dimension of the stack is less than or equal to a length of the wrapping separator in the longitudinal dimension, the longitudinal dimension being orthogonal to both the width dimension and the stacking dimension. Wang at [0056] discloses discontinuous coatings to create a non-uniform coating of the adhesive affording increased porosity and permeability.
Claim(s) 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Wang (US 20210043881 A) in view of Ryu (US 20070218355 A1), as set forth in claim 1, above, and in further view of Heo (US 20200161617 A1).
Regarding claim 7, Wang in view of Ryu teaches all of the limitations as set forth above. Wang does not explicitly teach wherein the wrapping separator is provided in a plurality, and the plurality of wrapping separators are spaced apart from each other in a longitudinal dimension of the stack, the longitudinal dimension being orthogonal to both the width dimension and the stacking dimension.
Heo, in the field of [0010] of minimizing or reducing misalignment of the stacked electrode assembly, discloses [0024-0025] a plurality of fixing members, spaced apart from each other in a longitudinal direction of the stack, and adhered to a sidewall of the electrode assembly (stack of electrodes), as shown at FIG. 10 (fixing member 205.) At [0027] Heo discloses that the fixing member reduces distortion of the alignment.
A person of ordinary skill in the art would have recognized that the fixing member of Heo and the wrapping separator of modified Wang carry out the same function – to help maintain an aligned state of the stack. The person of ordinary skill is therefore motivated, as of before the effective filing date of the instant invention, to use multiple instances of modified Wang’s wrapping separator spaced apart from each other in a longitudinal direction of the stack, based on Heo’s teaching that multiple fixing members may be used, with a reasonable expectation of successfully maintaining the electrode stack in an aligned state, and reducing the risk of shorting.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CLAIRE A RUTISER whose telephone number is (571)272-1969. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM M-F.
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CLAIRE A. RUTISER
Examiner
Art Unit 1751
/C.A.R./ Examiner, Art Unit 1751
/JONATHAN G LEONG/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1751 1/9/2026