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 Amendment
The amendments filed on November 6, 2025 in response to the Non-Final Office Action mailed on August 7, 2025 have been received and entered. Claim 1 was amended to incorporate similar features of claim 9, which was cancelled. Claims 2-5, 8, 10, 11, 15-18 and 20 have been amended. Claim 21 have been added. Claims 1-8 and 10-21 are pending in this application.
Regarding claim 11 rejection under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) for reciting the limitation “base portion” which was not recited on independent claim 1.
Claim 11 was amended to recite “wherein the current collecting member comprises a base portion located between the electrode assembly and the end cover, the end cover has a surface facing the electrode assembly and a depression portion recessed relative to the surface, and the base portion is at least partly accommodated in the depression portion”, having in this way an antecedent basis for the “base portion” limitation.
The 35 U.S.C. 112(b) rejection of claim 11 is withdrawn.
Response to Arguments
Regarding claim 1 rejection under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Ikushima, H. (JP H10340737 A, see machine translation for citation).
Applicant argues that as shown in Fig. 2 and 6B of Khakhalev (applied to cancelled claim 9), the projection of the aperture 25 (second hole) on a plane perpendicular to the thickness direction of the collector plate 28 and the projection of the ports 27 (electrolyte injection hole) on the plane perpendicular to the thickness direction of the collector plate 28 do not overlap with each other. Therefore, Khakhalev does not disclose or suggest that "a projection of the electrolyte injection hole on a plane perpendicular to the thickness direction of the current collecting member is located within a projection of the second hole on the plane perpendicular to the thickness direction of the current collecting member," as recited in amended claim 1 and thus does not cure the deficiencies of Ikushima [Remarks p. 10 and 11].
As was stated on the mailed Non-Final Office Action, Ikushima fail to teach the referred limitation. Khakhalev, as applied to claim 9 (cancelled), fails to teach the referred feature because from Fig. 2 the location of the port (27) (electrolyte injection hole) it will not be “located within a projection of the collector plate aperture (25) (second hole). It is taught by Khakhalev that its container (20) may comprise one or more ports (27) for injecting the electrolyte (40) into container (20). Port (27) may extend through a portion of the lid (51), as shown in FIG. 2, or may be situated in base (22), sidewall (24) or elsewhere in container (20) [0044]. Despite that from the teachings of Khakhalev the ports (27) (electrolyte injection hole) can be located on the lid (51) in such a way that it met the claimed limitation, no motivation is given to do that, therefore Khakhalev is not able to cure the teaching deficiencies of Ikushima.
Applicant’s arguments, see page 10-11, filed on November 6, 2025, with respect to claim 1 have been fully considered and are persuasive. The 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) rejection of claim 1 has been withdrawn.
Because of the direct or indirect dependency of claims 2, 3, 7, 8 and 10-14 on claim 1 the 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) rejections applied to these claims have been withdrawn.
Because of the direct or indirect dependency of claims 4-6 and 15-19 on claim 1 the 35 U.S.C. 103 rejections applied to these claims have been withdrawn.
Independent claim 20 was amended to recite similar features as on claim 1, therefore based on the reason explained for claim 1, the 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) rejection of claim 20 was withdrawn.
Upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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.
Claims 1, 2, 5, 8, 10, 13 and 14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Miyahisa teaches a battery cell including a case (1) in which an electrode plate group (2) (electrode assembly) is accommodated. The case (1) further comprises a sealing member (8) (end cover) that air-tightly closes an opening of the battery case (1) with an insulation gasket (12) interposed therebetween [0058 and Fig. 1].
A positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is welded to the positive electrode plate (3) by resistance welding while eight burring projections (18a-18d), which belongs to four openings (14) (first holes), intersect with the end (3a) of the positive electrode plate (3) and partially bite into the end (3a). In addition, the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is connected to the filter portion (21) of the sealing member (8) (end cover) by the positive lead (17) [0062, 0063, Fig. 1, 2B, 6 and 7B]. Based on the previous description the feature “a current collecting member configured to electrically couple the electrode assembly to the end cover, the current collecting member being at least partly located between the electrode assembly and the end cover and abutting against the electrode assembly, the current collecting member having a first hole, and the electrode assembly being partly accommodated in the first hole and contacting a hole wall of the first hole” could be considered met. The positive collector (11) (current collecting member) further comprises a circular electrolyte-injection hole (13) (second hole) at its center [0062]. The feature where the “second hole runs through the current collecting member along a thickness direction of the current collecting member” could be considered met based on the scheme of Fig. 7B.
The filler portion (21), which is part of the sealing member (8) (end cover), has a vent opening (21a) [0064 and Fig. 1]. This vent opening (21a) can be considered an electrolyte injection hole as well because from the battery manufacturing method as shown on Fig. 11A it is employed to inject the electrolyte into the battery case (1). From the above description of the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) electrolyte-injection hole (13) (second hole) and the filer portion (21) vent opening (21a) (electrolyte injection hole) [Fig. 1 and 11A], the feature “a projection of the electrolyte injection hole on a plane perpendicular to the thickness direction of the current collecting member is located within a projection of the second hole on the plane perpendicular to the thickness direction of the current collecting member” is met.
Regarding claim 2, Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1. As discussed for claim 1, Miyahisa teaches that its positive collector (11) (current collecting member) comprises four openings (14) (first holes).
Regarding claim 5, Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1. From claim 1 discussion and Miyahisa Fig. 2A, the surface of the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is located between the electrode assembly and the end cover, is abutting against the electrode assembly and has a first hole being formed at it. Based on the descriptions above the surface of the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) could be considered the “base portion” feature. Furthermore, the burring projections 18a-18d, as discussed for claim 1, are protrusions coupled to the surface of the positive collector (11) (base portion), protruding relative to the surface of the positive collector (11) (base portion) towards the electrode assembly and being inserted in the electrode assembly [0062 and Fig. 7B].
Regarding claim 8, Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1. Miyahisa further teaches that its electrode plate group (2) comprises a strip-shaped positive electrode plate (3) and a strip-shaped negative electrode plate (4) spirally wound with a separator (7) interposed therebetween (body portion) [0058]. The positive electrode plate (3) comprises one end (3a) to which the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is welded [0059]. From the previous description, the end (3a) can be considered a “tab portion”. The surface positive collector (11) (current collecting member) can be considered “the base portion” which has the four openings (14) (first holes) and the burring projections (18a-d) (protrusion portions), formed by bending sides of the respective openings (14) (first holes) downward and perpendicularly [0062]. From the previous description the burring projections (18a-d) (protrusion portions) protrude “relative to the base portion towards the body portion and surrounding the tab portion”. The positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is welded to the positive electrode plate (3) by resistance welding while eight burring projections (18a-18d), which belongs to four openings (14) (first holes), intersect with the end (3a) of the positive electrode plate (3) and partially bite into the end (3a) [0062]. From the previous description the feature “the tab portion partly extending into the first hole and contacting the hole wall of the first hole“ is met.
Regarding claim 10, Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1. From Miyahisa Fig. 2B the feature where the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) openings (14) (first holes) “runs through the current collecting member along a thickness direction of the current collecting member” can be considered met.
Regarding claim 13, Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1. Miyahisa further teaches that a positive lead (17) is welded to the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) and the sealing member (8) (end cover) [0063-0064].
Regarding claim 14, Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1. As discussed for claim 1, Miyahisa teaches that its positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is welded to the positive electrode plate (3) by resistance welding [0062]. Based on this description, “the current collecting member abuts against the electrode assembly via a conductive medium”.
Claim 20 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1).
Regarding claim 20, Miyahisa teaches a method for preparing a battery cell which provides a cylindrical metal battery case (1) (housing) having an opening, an electrode plate group (2), a positive collector (11) (current collecting member) and a sealing member (8) (end cover) [0058, 0061, 0062 and Fig. 1]. The positive collector (11) (current collecting member) comprises four openings (14) (first holes) and a circular electrolyte-injection hole (13) (second hole) at its center [0062]. The feature where the “second hole runs through the current collecting member along a thickness direction of the current collecting member” could be considered met based on the scheme of Fig. 7B. The filer portion (21), which is part of the sealing member (8) (end cover), has a vent opening (21a) [0064 and Fig. 1]. This vent opening (21a) can be considered an electrolyte injection hole as well because from the battery manufacturing method as shown on Fig. 11A it is employed to inject the electrolyte into the battery case (1). From the above description of the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) electrolyte-injection hole (13) (second hole) and the filer portion (21) vent opening (21a) (electrolyte injection hole) [Fig. 1 and 11A], the feature “a projection of the electrolyte injection hole on a plane perpendicular to the thickness direction of the current collecting member is located within a projection of the second hole on the plane perpendicular to the thickness direction of the current collecting member” is met.
The taught method include the steps of: accommodate the electrode plate group (2) inside the case (1) and weld the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is to the positive electrode plate (3) by resistance welding while eight burring projections (18a-18d), which belongs to four openings (14) (first holes), intersect with the end (3a) of the positive electrode plate (3) and partially bite into the end (3a) [0058, 0062 and Fig. 2A]. From the description above the feature “the electrode assembly is partly accommodated in the first hole and contacts a hole wall of the first hole” is met. In addition, the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is connected to the filter portion (21) of the sealing member (8) (end cover) by the positive lead (17) [0062, 0063, Fig. 1, 2B, 6 and 7B]. Finally, as shown in Fig. 11B, the filter portion (21) and the cap-shaped positive terminal (22) of the sealing member (8) (end cover) are welded to each other. Thus, assembly of the sealing member (8) (end cover) has been completed, and it completely seals the opening of the battery case (1) (housing) [0089]. From the above description the feature “wherein the current collecting member is at least partly located between the electrode assembly and the end cover and abuts against the electrode assembly” is met.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
In the event the determination of the status of the application as subject to AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103 (or as subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 102 and 103) is incorrect, any correction of the statutory basis (i.e., changing from AIA to pre-AIA ) for the rejection will not be considered a new ground of rejection if the prior art relied upon, and the rationale supporting the rejection, would be the same under either status.
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 factual inquiries for establishing a background for determining obviousness under 35 U.S.C. 103 are summarized as follows:
1. Determining the scope and contents of the prior art.
2. Ascertaining the differences between the prior art and the claims at issue.
3. Resolving the level of ordinary skill in the pertinent art.
4. Considering objective evidence present in the application indicating obviousness or non-obviousness.
Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1) as applied to claim 2, further in view of Khakhalev, A. (US 20180182560 A1).
Regarding claim 3, Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 2, except “wherein the plurality of first holes are equally spaced along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member”.
Khakhalev teaches different embodiments of collector plates (current collecting members analogous) having apertures that are configured to allow a portion of a free end of a current collector (tabs analogous) of a spirally wound or stacked electrode for an energy storage device (battery cell) to extend into the one or more apertures, analogous in function to the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) taught by Miyahisa [Abstract, 008 and Fig. 2 and 6b]. Referring to the collector plate (100b) (current collecting member analogous), it include one or more apertures (106b) (holes analogous) within four support members (102 b) positioned therebetween [0061]. From Fig. 6b can be observed that “the plurality of first holes are equally spaced along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member”, therefore if the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is modified to have a similar structure it would met the claimed limitations. It is taught by Khakhalev that apertures (106) (holes analogous), with the referred characteristics, can help to increase the reliability of the attachment of the collector plate (100) (current collecting member analogous) to the jelly roll (30) (electrode assembly) [0056].
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the positive collector (current collecting member) of Miyahisa to include the feature “wherein the plurality of first holes are equally spaced along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member”, because Khakhalev teaches that that it can help to increase the reliability of the attachment of the current collecting member to the electrode assembly.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1) as applied to claim 1, further in view of Khakhalev, A. (US 20140308554 A1).
Regarding claim 4, Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1, except “wherein a size of the first hole along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member gradually increases from inside outwards in a radial direction of the current collecting member”.
Khakhalev teaches collector plates for an energy storage device having one or more apertures extend into the body. The apertures are configured to allow a portion of a free end of a spirally wound current collector of a spirally wound electrode for an energy storage device to extend into the one or more apertures [Abstract]. The collector plates taught by Khakhalev are analogous in function to the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) taught by Miyahisa. On Fig. 6b a collector plate (100b) (current collecting member analogous) having four apertures (106b) (first hole analogous) and a central aperture (25) (second hole analogous) is presented [0063]. If the structure of the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) taught by Miyahisa is modified to be as the collector plate (100b), the feature “wherein a size of the first hole along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member gradually increases from inside outwards in a radial direction of the current collecting member” would be met. It is taught by Khakhalev that apertures (106) (holes analogous), with the referred characteristics, can help to increase the reliability of the attachment of the collector plate (100) (current collecting member analogous) to the jelly roll (30) (electrode assembly) [0058].
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify positive collector (current collecting member) of Miyahisa to include the feature “wherein a size of the first hole along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member gradually increases from inside outwards in a radial direction of the current collecting member”, because Khakhalev teaches that it can help to increase the reliability of the attachment of the current collecting member to the electrode assembly.
Claim 6 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1) as applied to claim 5, further in view of Nakanishi et al. (JP 2004119330 A, see machine translation for citation).
Regarding claim 6, Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 5, except “wherein a cross-sectional area, perpendicular to a thickness direction of the base portion, of the protrusion portion gradually decreases along a direction leaving the base portion”.
Nakanishi teaches a cylindrical lithium-ion secondary battery having an aluminum lid body (12) is fixed to an opening of an aluminum cylindrical body (11) by laser welding to form a battery can (1) (housing), and a winding electrode body (4) (assembly) is accommodated inside the battery can (1) (housing) (same field of endeavor of Miyahisa) [0003 and Fig. 1]. Additionally, it is taught a current collector plate (6) (current collecting member) facing the electrode body (4), and the guide member (7) has multiple sharp portions (71) protruding toward the electrode body (4) repeatedly formed in the arrangement direction of the core body at intervals greater than the arrangement pitch [0011 and Fig. 1-7]. From Nakanishi’s Fig. 7, given that the sharp portions (71) (protrusion portions) have a triangular shape, the feature “wherein a cross-sectional area, perpendicular to a thickness direction of the base portion, of the protrusion portion gradually decreases along a direction leaving the base portion” is met. It is taught that employing the referred protrusions sharp portions (71) (protrusion portions) the collector plate (6) (current collecting member) is joined to the wound electrode body (4) (assembly) by laser welding from outside the collector plate (6) (current collecting member). With these features, laser welding is performed reliably without causing melting and as a result, the internal resistance is reduced and the battery performance is improved [0026].
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the burring projections (18a-18d) (protrusions) of Miyahisa to include the feature “wherein a cross-sectional area, perpendicular to a thickness direction of the base portion, of the protrusion portion gradually decreases along a direction leaving the base portion”, because Nakanishi teaches that sharp protruding portions meeting the referred features and that employing these protruding portions the collector plate is joined to the wound electrode body by laser welding from outside the collector plate, where laser welding is performed reliably without causing melting and as a result the internal resistance is reduced and the battery performance is improved.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1) as applied to claim 5, further in view of Khakhalev, A. (US 20180182560 A1).
Regarding claim 7, Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 5, except “wherein the protrusion portion is annular”.
Khakhalev teaches different embodiments of collector plates (current collecting members analogous) having apertures that are configured to allow a portion of a free end of a current collector (tabs analogous) of a spirally wound or stacked electrode for an energy storage device (battery cell) to extend into the one or more apertures, analogous in function to the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) taught by Miyahisa [Abstract, 008 and Fig. 2 and 6b]. Referring to the collector plate (100) (current collecting member analogous), it include one or more apertures (106) (holes analogous) and a side wall (104), which extends from an outer perimeter of body (101) [0046 and Fig. 3]. From Fig. 4 it can be observed that the side wall (104) acts as a protrusion, therefore it can be considered an annular protrusion. It is taught by Khakhalev that the side wall (104) (annular protrusion) is employed to engage the collector plate (100) (current collecting member analogous) with the electrode assembly and/or the lid (51) (end cover analogous) [0046].
If the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is modified to have a disk shape with the abode described side wall (104) (annular protrusion), the claimed features would be met.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the battery cell positive collector (current collecting member) of Miyahisa to include the feature “wherein the protrusion portion is annular”, because Khakhalev teaches that it serves to engage the collector plate (current collecting member analogous) with the electrode assembly and/or the lid (end cover analogous).
Claims 11 and 12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1) as applied to claim 1, further in view of Kitaoka et al. (US 6465122 B1).
Regarding claim 11 and 12 (depends on 11), Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1. From claim 1 discussion and Miyahisa’s Fig. 2A, the surface of the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is located between the electrode assembly and the end cover, is abutting against the electrode assembly and has a first hole being formed at it. Based on the descriptions above the surface of the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) could be considered the “base portion” feature. Using Fig. 6 embodiment as reference, the filter portion (21), which is part of the sealing member (8) (end cover), has a surface facing the electrode assembly and a vent opening (21a) which can be considered a “a depression portion recessed relative to the surface” [0064].
Miyahisa does not teach where the “the base portion is at least partly accommodated in the depression portion” (claim 11) and “wherein the current collecting member and the depression portion are interference fitted to each other” (claim 12).
Kitaoka teaches a storage battery having a battery case (16), a spiral electrode group, a positive electrode current collecting body (14) (current collecting member analogous) and a port-sealing body (17) (end cover analogous) [col. 7; line 61-63 and Fig. 2]. The positive electrode current collecting body (14) (current collecting member analogous) have a number of openings to the positive electrode core, which can be considered analogous to the first and second holes [col. 7; line 50-52 and Fig. 1]. The port-sealing body (17) (end cover analogous), on its lid body (17a) has a vent hole, which can be considered analogous to the depression portion [col. 8; line 54 and Fig. 2]. The port-sealing body (17) (end cover analogous) lid body (17a) is facing the positive electrode current collecting body (14) (current collecting member analogous) and therefore the electrode assembly. Kitaoka teaches the employment of a hollow cylindrical body (20) to connect the positive electrode current collecting body (14) (current collecting member analogous) with the port-sealing body (17) (end cover analogous) by welding (interference fitting) [col. 7; line 61-63, col. 8; line 66-67, col. 9; line 1-3 and Fig. 2]. It is taught that this previous described approach facilitates the operation for sealing the opening of the port-sealing body and makes easy the fabrication of the storage battery of this type [col. 3; line 18-25].
If the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) taught by Miyahisa is modified to comprise the hollow cylindrical body (20) of Kitaoka and it is welded to the vent opening (21a) of the sealing member (8) (end cover) the claimed features would be met.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the positive collector (current collecting member) of Miyahisa to meet the features where “the base portion is at least partly accommodated in the depression portion” (claim 11) and “wherein the current collecting member and the depression portion are interference fitted to each other” (claim 12), because Kitaoka teaches that approach facilitates the operation for sealing the opening of the port-sealing body and makes easy the fabrication of the storage battery of this type.
Claims 15, 16 and 19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1) as applied to claim 1, further in view of Hallac et al. (US 20150221977 A1).
Regarding claims 15 and 19 (depends on claim 15), Miyahisa teaches all the elements of the current invention in claim 1, except “a battery, comprising the battery cell” (claim 15) and “an electric device, comprising the battery, the battery being configured to supply electrical energy” (claim 19).
Hallac teaches a vehicle (10) having a battery system (12) comprising an energy storage component (14) (battery) which includes lithium-ion battery module (28) and the lead-acid module (30). Both battery modules (28 and 30) may include one or more battery cells (40) connected, which among other possibilities may have a cylindrical shape [0051, 0053, 0059-0062 and Fig. 1-2]. Because the battery taught buy Miyahisa is a general battery [0022], it may serve to be employed on Hallac’s invention, therefore being on the same field of endeavor. The energy storage component (14) (battery) may capture/store electrical energy generated in the vehicle (10) and it may be coupled to the vehicle's electric system via a bus (26). This connection may enable the energy storage component (14) (battery) to receive electrical energy generated by the alternator (18) and/or the electric motor (22). Additionally, the bus (26) may enable the energy storage component (14) to output electrical energy to the ignition system (16) and/or the vehicle console (20) [0053 and 0056]. It is taught that the battery system (12) (through the energy storage component (14) (battery)) may supply power to components of the vehicle's electrical and ignition system, which are indispensable for the proper functioning of the car [0053 and 0054].
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the battery cell of Miyahisa to include the features “a battery, comprising the battery cell” (claim 15) and “an electric device, comprising the battery, the battery being configured to supply electrical energy” (claim 19), because Hallac teaches that a battery system with the referred features may supply power to components of the vehicle's electrical and ignition system, which are indispensable for the proper functioning of the car.
Regarding claim 16, Miyahisa and Hallac teach all the elements of the current invention in claim 15. Miyahisa further teaches that its positive collector (11) (current collecting member) comprises four openings (14) (first holes) [0062].
Claim 17 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1) in view of Hallac et al. (US 20150221977 A1) as applied to claim 16 above, further in view of Khakhalev, A. (US 20180182560 A1).
Regarding claim 17, Miyahisa and Hallac teach all the elements of the current invention in claim 16, except “wherein the plurality of first holes are equally spaced along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member”.
Khakhalev teaches different embodiments of collector plates (current collecting members analogous) having apertures that are configured to allow a portion of a free end of a current collector (tabs analogous) of a spirally wound or stacked electrode for an energy storage device (battery cell) to extend into the one or more apertures, analogous in function to the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) taught by Miyahisa [Abstract, 008 and Fig. 2 and 6b]. Referring to the collector plate (100b) (current collecting member analogous), it include one or more apertures (106b) (holes analogous) within four support members (102 b) positioned therebetween [0061]. From Fig. 6b can be observed that “the plurality of first holes are equally spaced along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member”, therefore if the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is modified to have a similar structure it would met the claimed limitations. It is taught by Khakhalev that apertures (106) (holes analogous), with the referred characteristics, can help to increase the reliability of the attachment of the collector plate (100) (current collecting member analogous) to the jelly roll (30) (electrode assembly) [0056].
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the battery of Miyahisa and Hallac for its positive collector (current collecting member) to include the feature “wherein the plurality of first holes are equally spaced along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member”, because Khakhalev teaches that that it can help to increase the reliability of the attachment of the current collecting member to the electrode assembly.
Claim 18 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1) in view of Hallac et al. (US 20150221977 A1) as applied to claim 15 above, further in view of Khakhalev, A. (US 20140308554 A1).
Regarding claim 18, Miyahisa and Hallac teach all the elements of the current invention in claim 15, except “wherein a size of the first hole along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member gradually increases from inside outwards in a radial direction of the current collecting member”.
Khakhalev teaches collector plates for an energy storage device having one or more apertures extend into the body. The apertures are configured to allow a portion of a free end of a spirally wound current collector of a spirally wound electrode for an energy storage device to extend into the one or more apertures [Abstract]. The collector plates taught by Khakhalev are analogous in function to the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) taught by Miyahisa. On Fig. 6b a collector plate (100b) (current collecting member analogous) having four apertures (106b) (first hole analogous) and a central aperture (25) (second hole analogous) is presented [0063]. If the structure of the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) taught by Miyahisa is modified to be as the collector plate (100b), the feature “wherein a size of the first hole along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member gradually increases from inside outwards in a radial direction of the current collecting member” would be met. It is taught by Khakhalev that apertures (106) (holes analogous), with the referred characteristics, can help to increase the reliability of the attachment of the collector plate (100) (current collecting member analogous) to the jelly roll (30) (electrode assembly) [0058].
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the battery of Miyahisa and Hallac for its positive collector (current collecting member) to include the feature “wherein a size of the first hole along a circumferential direction of the current collecting member gradually increases from inside outwards in a radial direction of the current collecting member”, because Khakhalev teaches that it can help to increase the reliability of the attachment of the current collecting member to the electrode assembly.
Claim 21 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Miyahisa et al. (US 20050147878 A1) in view of Kitaoka et al. (US 6465122 B1).
Regarding claim 21, Miyahisa teaches a battery cell including a case (1) in which an electrode plate group (2) (electrode assembly) is accommodated. The case (1) further comprises a sealing member (8) (end cover) that air-tightly closes an opening of the battery case (1) with an insulation gasket (12) interposed therebetween [0058 and Fig. 1].
The filler portion (21), which is part of the sealing member (8) (end cover), has a lower surface (first surface) which faces the electrode assembly and a vent opening (21a) [0064 and Fig. 1]. This vent opening (21a) can be considered “a depression portion recessed relative to the first surface, being a blind hole” and its safety vent body (23) (closing cap) lower surface considered as the “a second surface facing the electrode assembly” [0061].
The battery cell further comprise a positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is welded to the positive electrode plate (3) by resistance welding while eight burring projections (18a-18d), which belongs to four openings (14) (first holes), intersect with the end (3a) of the positive electrode plate (3) and partially bite into the end (3a). In addition, the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) is connected to the filter portion (21) of the sealing member (8) (end cover) by the positive lead (17) [0062, 0063, Fig. 1, 2B, 6 and 7B]. Based on the previous description the feature “a current collecting member configured to electrically couple the electrode assembly to the end cover, the current collecting member being at least partly located between the electrode assembly and the end cover and the electrode assembly being partly accommodated in the hole and contacting a hole wall of the hole” could be considered met. The upper surface of the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) can be considered the “third surface” because it is facing the sealing member (8) (end cover) [Fig. 1].
Miyahisa does not teach where the current collecting member is “at least partly accommodated in the depression portion and the third surface being in contact with the second surface of the depression portion”
Kitaoka teaches a storage battery having a battery case (16), a spiral electrode group, a positive electrode current collecting body (14) (current collecting member analogous) and a port-sealing body (17) (end cover analogous) [col. 7; line 61-63 and Fig. 2]. The positive electrode current collecting body (14) (current collecting member analogous) have a number of openings to the positive electrode core, which can be considered analogous to the first and second holes [col. 7; line 50-52 and Fig. 1]. The port-sealing body (17) (end cover analogous), on its lid body (17a) has a vent hole, which can be considered analogous to the depression portion [col. 8; line 54 and Fig. 2]. The port-sealing body (17) (end cover analogous) lid body (17a) is facing the positive electrode current collecting body (14) (current collecting member analogous) and therefore the electrode assembly. Kitaoka teaches the employment of a hollow cylindrical body (20) to connect the positive electrode current collecting body (14) (current collecting member analogous) with the port-sealing body (17) (end cover analogous) by welding (interference fitting) [col. 7; line 61-63, col. 8; line 66-67, col. 9; line 1-3 and Fig. 2]. It is taught that this previous described approach facilitates the operation for sealing the opening of the port-sealing body and makes easy the fabrication of the storage battery of this type [col. 3; line 18-25].
If the positive collector (11) (current collecting member) taught by Miyahisa is modified to comprise the hollow cylindrical body (20) of Kitaoka and it is welded to the vent opening (21a) of the sealing member (8) (end cover) the claimed features would be met.
It would have been prima facie obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the
effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the positive collector (current collecting member) of Miyahisa to meet the features where “at least partly accommodated in the depression portion and the third surface being in contact with the second surface of the depression portion”, because Kitaoka teaches that approach facilitates the operation for sealing the opening of the port-sealing body and makes easy the fabrication of the storage battery of this type.
Conclusion
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/G.R./Examiner, Art Unit 1725
/JAMES M ERWIN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1725 01/21/2026