DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Priority
Acknowledgement has been made of applicant’s claim for priority under 35 USC 119 (a-d). The certified copy has been filed on 11/07/2022.
Information Disclosure Statement
The Information Disclosure Statements (IDS) filed 09/16/2022 and 03/05/2026 have been placed in the application file and the information referred to therein has been considered.
Drawings
The drawings received 09/16/2022 are acceptable for examination purposes
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Species B, claims 9-16 in the reply filed on 12/08/2025 is acknowledged.
Claims Status.
This Office Action is responsive to the amendment filed on 12/08/2025. Claims 1-18 were pending. Claims 6-8 are withdrawn from examination as being drawn to non-elected Species. Claims 1-18 are now pending. Claims 1-5 and 9-18 are presented for examination.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraphs of 35 U.S.C. 102 that form the basis for the rejections under this section made in this Office action:
A person shall be entitled to a patent unless –
(a)(1) the claimed invention was patented, described in a printed publication, or in public use, on sale, or otherwise available to the public before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1, 2, 4, 5, 9, 10, 17 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as anticipated by or, in the alternative, under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over US 2012/0064383 to Tonomura (Tonomura) as evidenced by KR 20210149483 to Park (US 2022/0393293 is used as English language equivalent).
Regarding claim 1, Tonomura discloses a battery pack comprising: a cell unit including a plurality of battery cells aligned and disposed in a lateral direction (Fig. 9), and a connection terminal exposed in a longitudinal direction of each battery cell; and a busbar disposed at each side of the cell unit, forming an electrical connection with each battery cell through the connection terminal, and including an exposed terminal portion (see marked Fig. 2, or 31-2 and 31-1, Fig. 6A) formed at an upper side to switch a signal transmission direction of the connection terminal in a direction perpendicular to each battery cell. Even if Tonomura does not expressly disclose a vehicle since Tonomura teaches that battery pack may be connected to external device such a vehicle as evidenced by Tonomura (Title, Abstract).
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Regarding claim 2, Tonomura discloses wherein the cell unit includes two battery cells aligned and disposed in the lateral direction (Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 4, Tonomura discloses wherein the busbar is bent and extends from a lateral surface thereof to an upper surface, and includes an exposed terminal portion formed on the upper surface to switch the signal transmission direction of the connection terminal to a direction perpendicular to each battery cell (Fig. 2, Fig. 6, para 138).
Regarding claim 5, Tonomura discloses a busbar housing coupled to an internal side of the busbar, and protruding in a widthwise direction of each battery cell, and supporting the busbar (Fig. 2, 6, 7, the bracket (13) protruded to the width direction of battery cells (12-1, 12-2) and supports the bus bar).
Regarding claim 9, Tonomura discloses a battery cover 55 and side walls 94-1 and 94-2 (Fig. 9 and 18).
Regarding claim 10, Tonomura discloses the invention as discussed above as applied to claim 9 and incorporated therein. Regarding the limitation: wherein the side wall is configured to apply pressure toward the batter pack while being in surface-contact with each end portion of the batter pack: since all structural limitation of Tonomura are substantially similar to that as claimed in the instant claim 9, claimed functions are inherently present. MPEP 2112 V states that "once a reference teaching product appearing to be substantially identical is made the basis of a rejection, and the Examiner presents evidence or reasoning tending to show inherency, the burden shifts to the Applicant to show an unobvious difference."
Regarding claim 17, Tonomura discloses wherein the busbar includes a plurality of exposed terminal portions to which each battery cell is respectively connected, the exposed terminal portions extending upward and including an end portion bent in a longitudinal direction of each battery cell (Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 18, Tonomura discloses the busbar housing includes a first end portion formed with a central separator so that each battery cell is respectively accommodated at opposite sides of the separator, and a second end portion to which the busbar is coupled (14-1, Fig. 2).
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over US 2012/0064383 to Tonomura (Tonomura) as evidenced by KR 20210149483 to Park (US 2022/0393293 is used as English language equivalent) in view of US 20200266403 to Stuetz (Stuetz).
Regarding claim 3, Tonomura discloses the invention as discussed above as applied to claim 2 and incorporated therein. Tonomura does not expressly disclose a compression pad between two neighboring battery cells to connect the battery cells.
Stuetz teaches a battery system for electric vehicle, wherein a battery pack comprising a compression pad, disposed between battery cells to prevent battery from damage as a result of swelling or mechanical vibration (para 5). It would have been obvious to one or ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the battery pack of Tonomura with the compression pad between battery cells , as taught by Stuetz, in order to prevent battery from damage as a result of swelling or mechanical vibration (para 5).
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over US 2012/0064383 to Tonomura (Tonomura) as evidenced by KR 20210149483 to Park (US 2022/0393293 is used as English language equivalent).
Regarding claim 10, Tonomura discloses the invention as discussed above as applied to claim 9 and incorporated therein. Tonomura does not expressly disclose a wherein the cell cover is made of an aluminum material. However, It would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art at the time the invention was filed to choose aluminium based material for the cell cover since it has been held to be within the general skill of a worker in the art to select a known material on the basis of its suitability for the intended use as a matter of obvious design choice. In re Leshin, 125 USPQ 416.
Claims 12, 13, 14 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over US 2012/0064383 to Tonomura (Tonomura) in view of KR 20210149483 to Park (US 2022/0393293 is used as English language equivalent).
Regarding claim 12, Tonomura discloses the invention as discussed above as applied to claim 9 and incorporated therein. Tonomura does not expressly disclose wherein the cell cover is bent and extends from the upper surface to a lateral surface, and formed with a fastening portion at a lengthwise end portion thereof to couple with the side wall by a bolt.
Park teaches a battery pack for an electric vehicle , the pack includes a pack cover including an upper cover and a lower cover and having an empty space inside edge portions of each of the upper cover and the lower cover being coupled to each other by bolts (para 39) and a battery module including a plurality of battery cells (Fig. 3), a module case in which the plurality of battery cells is received, and a side frame having one side coupled to the module case and the other side interposed between the upper cover and the lower cover and configured to be coupled to the edge portions of each of the upper cover and the lower cover by bolts (Fig. 3, para 39).It would have been obvious to one or ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the battery pack (module) of Tonomura with the bent cover fixed by bots, as taught by Park, in order secure protect battery cells. Regarding the limitation:” bent and extends from the upper surface to a lateral surface”: the courts have held that changes in shape are a matter of choice which a person of ordinary skill in the art would have found obvious absent persuasive evidence that the particular configuration of the claimed invention was significant. In re Dailey, 357 F.2d 669, 149 USPQ 47 (CCPA 1966). See MPEP 2144.04.
Regarding claim 13, Tonomura discloses the invention as discussed above as applied to claim 9 and incorporated therein. Tonomura does not expressly disclose a sensing panel provided on the cell cover, and coupling with a connection busbar to be electrically connected in series to a plurality of cell units and the battery pack.
Park teaches a battery pack for an electric vehicle, comprising a sensing panel (BMS, a current sensor, para 88). provided on the cell cover (para 89. and coupling with a connection busbar to be electrically connected in series to a plurality of cell units and the battery pack. It would have been obvious to one or ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the battery pack of Tonomura with the sensing panel, as taught by Park, in order reliably control a state of the battery pack in real time.
Regarding claim 14, modified Tonomura discloses the invention as discussed above as applied to claim 13 and incorporated therein. Regarding the limitation “the connection busbar is welded to the sensing panel by a laser welding method”: In accordance to MPEP 2113, the method of forming the device is not germane to the issue of patentability of the device itself. Therefore, this limitation has not been given patentable weight. Please note that even though product-by-process claims are limited by and defined by the process, determination of patentability is based on the product itself. The patentability of a product, i.e. vehicle battery pack comprising sensing panel, does not depend on the method of attachment of the sensing panel, i.e. welding. In re Thorpe, 227 USPQ 964, 966 (Federal Circuit 1985).
Regarding claim 16, modified Tonomura discloses the invention as discussed above as applied to claim 13 and incorporated therein. Regarding the limitation: “wherein the sensing panel includes a connector formed to transmit voltage and collected temperature data of the cell unit to a cell management unit” since Park teaches a display (para 89) claimed connector is inherently present. PEP 2112 V states that "once a reference teaching product appearing to be substantially identical is made the basis of a rejection, and the Examiner presents evidence or reasoning tending to show inherency, the burden shifts to the Applicant to show an unobvious difference."
Claims 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over US 2012/0064383 to Tonomura in view of KR 20210149483 to Park (US 2022/0393293 is used as English language equivalent) and further in view of US 20160181675 to Inoue (Inoue)
Regarding claim 15, modified Tonomura discloses the invention as discussed above as applied to claim 13 (including a fuse) and incorporated therein. Modified Tonomura des not expressly disclose wherein the sensing panel includes a temperature sensor formed to collect temperature data of the cell unit.
Inoue teaches a battery pack for vehicle (para 12) wherein a battery management unit comprises a temperature sensor and the battery management control operations of cooling devices based on temperature data collected by the temperature sensor (para 98).It would have been obvious to one or ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the BMS of modified Tonomura of temperature sensor taught by Inoue, in order to avoid overheating of the battery pack and, as such improve safety of use of the battery pack.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ALEXANDER USYATINSKY whose telephone number is (571)270-7703. The examiner can normally be reached IFP.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jonathan Leong can be reached at (571) 270-1292. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/Alexander Usyatinsky/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1751
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