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 .
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.
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.
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.
Claims 1-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim et al. (US 2017/0222244), and further in view of Yoon et al. (US 2019/0355952), cited in the Information Disclosure Statement dated December 30, 2022.
Regarding independent claim 1, claim 11, and new claim 12, Kim et al. disclose an electrode assembly of a lithium-ion secondary battery (paragraphs [0014]-[0016], [0035]-[0042], [0057]-[0061], [0070]-[0075], [0107]-[0110], [0125], and [0132]; and Figures 5-7), in which the electrode assembly consists of the following structural features:
a negative electrode (400);
a positive electrode (100); and
an electrolyte (200) of the lithium-ion battery (500), wherein the electrolyte (200) is impregnated in the positive electrode (100) and the negative electrode (400) of the electrode assembly.
Kim et al. fail to teach that the negative electrode comprises a current collector with a negative electrode active material layer positioned thereon and an organic-inorganic composite layer integrated with the negative electrode material layer, in combination with the new limitation “wherein the negative electrode active material and the organic-inorganic composite layer are combined at an interface between the organic-inorganic composite layer and the negative electrode active material layer”.
However, Yoon et al. disclose an electrode assembly (abstract; paragraphs [0022]-[0025], [0034], and [0039]-[0047]; and Figure 1), in which the electrode assembly (see Figure 1) includes a negative electrode (12) comprising the following features:
an insulating layer, which is an organic-inorganic composite layer (52) – see paragraphs [0022], [0039]-[0041], [0046], and [0047]);
a negative electrode material active layer (42) – see paragraphs [0022], [0024], [0038], [0046], and [0047]; and
a current collecting layer (32) – see paragraphs [0022]-[0024],
wherein the negative electrode active material layer (42) and the organic-inorganic composite layer (52) are combined at an interface between the organic-inorganic composite layer (52) and the negative electrode active material layer (42), as shown in Figure 1 (see paragraphs [0038]-[0047]), for the purpose of providing a lithium-ion secondary battery with excellent charge and discharge characteristics while greatly improving stability (see paragraphs [0025] and [0041]-[0043]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the applicants’ invention was made to include the different features of the negative electrode taught by Yoon et al., into the electrode assembly disclosed by Kim et al., in order to provide a lithium-ion secondary battery with excellent charge and discharge characteristics while greatly improving stability (Yoon et al.; paragraphs [0025] and [0041]-[0043]).
Regarding claims 2 and 3, the organic layer and the inorganic layer are positioned to contact the negative electrode material layer (see Figures 5 and 6 of Kim et al.).
Regarding claim 4, the organic layer comprises at least one of polyethylene and polypropylene (see paragraph [0042] of Kim et al.).
Regarding claims 5 and 7, the inorganic layer comprises at least one of alumina, silica, and titanium oxide, optionally as a dense layer (see paragraphs [0059]-[0061] of Kim et al.).
Regarding claim 6, the organic layer is optionally of a woven type (see paragraph [0125] of Kim et al.).
Regarding claim 8, the negative electrode active material comprises a crystalline carbon (see paragraphs [0105] and [0109] of Kim et al.).
Regarding claims 9, 10, and new claim 13, the thickness of each of the organic layer and the inorganic layer is between 1 and 25 µm (including a lower limit of 0.01 millimeter (mm), or 10 µm – see paragraph [0040] of Kim et al.).
Response to Arguments
The examiner acknowledges the applicants’ amendment provided with the request for continued examination received by the USPTO on January 10, 2026. Although the amendments to independent claim 1 overcome the prior 35 USC 102(a)(1) rejection in view of Kim et al. (US 2017/0222244), a new 35 USC 103 rejection is provided due to the combination of Kim et al. and a new secondary reference to Yoon et al. (US 2019/0355952) – see above section 4. The applicants have added new claims 12 and 13. Claims 1-13 are currently under consideration in the application.
Applicants’ arguments with respect to claims 1-13 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection includes a new reference to Yoon et al. (US 2019/0355952) including in the newly underlined portions of the 35 USC 103 rejection above, and thus does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KEVIN P KERNS whose telephone number is (571)272-1178. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8am-430pm.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Keith Walker can be reached at (571)272-3458. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/KEVIN P KERNS/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1735 February 19, 2026