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 .
2. The Applicant's amendments filed on June 4, 2026, were received. Claims 1, 3, 8, 14 and 16 have been amended. Claims 6, 7 and 11 have been cancelled. None of the Claims have been withdrawn from consideration. Claims 17-18 have been added as new. Therefore, Claims 1-5, 8-10 and 12-18 are pending in this office action.
3. The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S.C. code not included in this action can be found in the prior Office Action issued on March 4, 2026.
Information Disclosure Statement
4. Information disclosure statement (IDS), submitted June 15, 2026, has been received and considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
5. 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.
6. 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.
7. Claims 1, 3, 4, 8, 12, 14, 15 and 18 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Takahata et al. (JP 2012-252909 A).
With regard to Claim 1, Takahata et al. disclose in Figures 1-2, a battery pack (1) comprising: at least one battery module housing, called an inner casing (14), configured to receive a plurality of battery cells (11); a battery pack case, called an outer casing (13), configured to receive the at least one battery module housing (14); and a water tank, called an inner container (15), located on a first surface of the at least one battery module housing (14), the water tank (15) being configured to receive a coolant, called a fire extinguishing agent (12), wherein the at least one battery module housing (14) is configured to wrap outer surfaces of the plurality of battery cells (11), wherein a preexisting through-hole, called a nozzle (16), is formed in a first surface of the water tank (15) that faces the at least one battery module housing (14), wherein a sealing member, called a stopper (17), is added to the preexisting through-hole (16), wherein the sealing member (17) is made of a material that is melted by high-temperature gas or sparks discharged from the plurality of battery cells (11), wherein the preexisting through-hole (16) is filled with the sealing member (17), wherein the sealing member (17) comprises an extension portion having a width that is greater than a circumference of the preexisting through-hole (16), and wherein the extension portion and the sealing member (17) are inherently configured to sequentially melt due to the nature of exposure, for example, the extension portion receiving the battery exhaust gases before the portion of the stopper that is located inside the nozzle (paragraphs 0014-0022).
With regard to Claim 3, Takahata et al. disclose in Figures 1-2, wherein the water tank (15) is configured to have a size that covers the first surface of the at least one battery module housing (14) (paragraphs 0016-0018; See Figures).
With regard to Claim 4, Takahata et al. disclose in Figures 1-2, wherein the water tank (15) is attached to an inside of an upper surface of the battery pack case (13) (paragraph 0022; See Figures).
With regard to Claim 8, Takahata et al. disclose in Figures 1-2, wherein the preexisting through-hole (16) is opened as a result of melting of the sealing member (17), and wherein the coolant (12) received in the water tank (14) is sprayed to the first surface of the at least one battery module housing (14) through the preexisting through-hole (16) (paragraph 0022).
With regard to Claim 12, Takahata et al. disclose in Figures 1-2, wherein each of the battery cells is a pouch-shaped battery cell, a prismatic battery cell, or a cylindrical battery cell (See Figures).
With regard to Claims 14-15, the recitation "wherein, when a temperature of the at least one battery module housing exceeds a predetermined temperature, the coolant received in the water tank is evaporated and transformed into a high pressure state, the sealing member is melted by exceeding the predetermined temperature, and the coolant is sprayed on an outer surface of the at least one battery module housing through the preexisting through-hole due to the high pressure state of the coolant; wherein the predetermined temperature is about 200°C or less", is considered a contingent limitation. A contingent limitation requires only those limitations that must be performed and does not include limitations or given patentable weight to limitations that are not required to be performed because the condition(s) precedent are not met. See MPEP 2111.04.
With regard to Claim 18, Takahata et al. disclose wherein the extension portion extends along the direction of at least the first surface of the water tank (15), the first surface being an outer surface of the water tank (15) (paragraph 0019).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
8. The rejection of Claims 1-5, 8-9, 11-12 and 14-16 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Roh et al. (US 2016/0087319 A1) in view of Wang et al. (CN 112448066 A), has been overcome based on the amendments to the Claims and the arguments presented on pages 6-8 of the Remarks dated June 4, 2026.
9. The rejection of Claims 10 and 13 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Roh et al. (US 2016/0087319 A1) in view of Wang et al. (CN 112448066 A), as applied to Claims 1-5, 8-9, 11-12 and 14-16 above, and further in view of Champagne et al. (US 2018/0337433 A1), has been overcome based on the amendments to the Claims and the arguments presented on pages 6-8 of the Remarks dated June 4, 2026.
10. Claims 2, 9 and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Takahata et al. (JP 2012-252909 A), as applied to Claims 1, 3, 4, 8, 12, 14, 15 and 18 above, and in further view of Roh et al. (US 2016/0087319 A1).
With regard to Claim 2, Takahata et al. disclose the battery pack in paragraph 7 above, but do not specifically disclose wherein the water tank is integrated with a heat sink, and wherein a flow path configured to guide flow of the coolant introduced into and discharged from the water tank is formed in the water tank.
Roh et al. disclose in Figures 1, 3 and 7, a battery pack (100) comprising: at least one battery module housing (150) configured to receive a plurality of battery cells (120) (paragraphs 0049-0053; Figure 3); a battery pack case (110) configured to receive the at least one module housing (150/102a) (paragraphs 0049-0053; Figure 1); a water tank, called a first case member (610), located on a surface of the at least one battery module housing (as illustrated) (paragraph 0064; Figure 7); wherein at least one battery module housing (150/102a) is configured to wrap outer surfaces of the plurality of battery cells (120) (as illustrated in Figure 3). Roh et al. disclose in Figure 7, wherein the water tank (610) is integrated with a heat sink, called a second case member (612), and wherein a flow path, called a refrigerant channel (not shown), configured to guide flow of the coolant, or refrigerant, introduced into inlet port (630) and discharged from outlet port (632) from the water tank (610) is formed in the water tank (610) (paragraph 0064). Before the effective filing date of the invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the battery pack of Takahata et al. to include the water tank being integrated with a heat sink, and wherein a flow path configured to guide flow of the coolant introduced into and discharged from the water tank is formed in the water tank, because Roh et al. teach that this configuration improves cooling efficiency in consideration of the amount of heat generated from the battery pack based on the size and capacity of the battery pack (paragraph 0065).
With regard to Claim 9, Takahata et al. disclose wherein the preexisting through-hole (16) is a plurality of holes in the first surface of the water tank (15) so as to be uniformly dispersed (paragraphs 0018, 0043; See Figure 1).
With regard to Claim 13, neither Takahata et al. nor Roh et al. disclose wherein the plurality of holes are disposed to not overlap the flow path. Before the effective filing date of the invention it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to arrange the plurality of holes to not overlap the flow path, since it has been held in the art that rearranging parts of an invention involves only routine skill in the art. See MPEP 2144.04 (VI).
11. Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Takahata et al. (JP 2012-252909 A), as applied to Claims 1, 3, 4, 8, 12, 14, 15 and 18 above.
With regard to Claim 5, Takahata et al. disclose all claim limitations as set forth in paragraph 7 above, but do not specifically disclose wherein an upper part of the battery pack case is open, and wherein the water tank is coupled to the battery pack case so as to cover the open upper part of the battery pack case. Before the effective filing date of the invention it would have been an obvious matter of design choice to manufacture the upper part of the battery pack case to be open, and wherein the water tank is coupled to the battery pack case so as to cover the open upper part of the battery pack case, since such a modification would only involve a mere change in the shape of a component. A change in shape is generally recognized as being within the level of ordinary skill in the art. See MPEP 2144.04(IV).
12. Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Takahata et al. (JP 2012-252909 A), as applied to Claims 1, 3, 4, 8, 12, 14, 15 and 18 above, and in further view of Champagne et al. (US 2018/0337433 A1).
With regard to Claim 10, Takahata et al. disclose all claim limitations as set forth in paragraph 7 above, including wherein the at least one battery module housing (14) is a plurality of module housings (as illustrated in Figure 1), but Takahata et al. do not specifically disclose wherein a partition wall is added between the plurality of battery module housings (14).
Champagne et al. disclose a plurality of battery modules (10) (Figure 2) wherein each battery module comprises a housing (14), and wherein a partition wall, called a cooling plate (22), is added between the plurality of battery module housings (14) in order to provide a cooling mechanism in-between the battery modules and help prevent damage due to thermal-runaway (paragraph 0020). Before the effective filing date of the invention it would have been obvious to one having ordinary skill in the art to provide a partition wall between the plurality of battery module housings of Takahata et al., as taught by Champagne et al., in order to provide a cooling mechanism in between the battery modules and help prevent damage due to thermal-runaway.
13. Claims 16-17 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Takahata et al. (JP 2012-252909 A) in view of Roh et al. (US 2016/0087319 A1).
With regard to Claim 16, Takahata et al. disclose in Figures 1-2, a battery pack (1) comprising: at least one battery module housing, called an inner casing (14), configured to receive a plurality of battery cells (11); a battery pack case, called an outer casing (13), configured to receive the at least one battery module housing (14); and a water tank, called an inner container (15), located on a first surface of the at least one battery module housing (14), the water tank (15) being configured to receive a coolant, called a fire extinguishing agent (12), wherein the at least one battery module housing (14) is configured to wrap outer surfaces of the plurality of battery cells (11), wherein a preexisting through-hole, called a nozzle (16), is formed in a first surface of the water tank (15) that faces the at least one battery module housing (14), wherein a sealing member, called a stopper (17), is added to the preexisting through-hole (16), wherein the sealing member (17) is made of a material that is melted by high-temperature gas or sparks discharged from the plurality of battery cells (11), wherein the preexisting through-hole (16) is filled with the sealing member (17), wherein the sealing member (17) comprises an extension portion having a width that is greater than a circumference of the preexisting through-hole (16), and wherein the extension portion and the sealing member (17) are inherently configured to sequentially melt due to the nature of exposure, for example, the extension portion receiving the battery exhaust gases before the portion of the stopper that is located inside the nozzle (paragraphs 0014-0022). Takahata et al. do not specifically disclose wherein the water tank is integrated with a heat sink; wherein a flow path is configured to guide flow of the coolant introduced into and discharge from the water tank is formed in the water tank.
Roh et al. disclose in Figures 1, 3 and 7, a battery pack (100) comprising: at least one battery module housing (150) configured to receive a plurality of battery cells (120) (paragraphs 0049-0053; Figure 3); a battery pack case (110) configured to receive the at least one module housing (150/102a) (paragraphs 0049-0053; Figure 1); a water tank, called a first case member (610), located on a surface of the at least one battery module housing (as illustrated) (paragraph 0064; Figure 7); wherein at least one battery module housing (150/102a) is configured to wrap outer surfaces of the plurality of battery cells (120) (as illustrated in Figure 3). Roh et al. disclose in Figure 7, wherein the water tank (610) is integrated with a heat sink, called a second case member (612), and wherein a flow path, called a refrigerant channel (not shown), configured to guide flow of the coolant, or refrigerant, introduced into inlet port (630) and discharged from outlet port (632) from the water tank (610) is formed in the water tank (610) (paragraph 0064). Before the effective filing date of the invention it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify the battery pack of Takahata et al. to include the water tank being integrated with a heat sink, and wherein a flow path configured to guide flow of the coolant introduced into and discharged from the water tank is formed in the water tank, because Roh et al. teach that this configuration improves cooling efficiency in consideration of the amount of heat generated from the battery pack based on the size and capacity of the battery pack (paragraph 0065).
With regard to Claim 17, Takahata et al. disclose wherein the extension portion extends along the direction of at least the first surface of the water tank (15), the first surface being an outer surface of the water tank (15) (paragraph 0019).
Response to Arguments
14. Applicant’s arguments, see pages 6-8, filed June 4, 2026, with respect to the rejection(s) of Claims 1-5, 8-9, 11-12 and 14-16 under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Roh et al. (US 2016/0087319 A1) in view of Wang et al. (CN 112448066 A), have been fully considered and are persuasive. Therefore, the rejection has been withdrawn. However, upon further consideration, a new ground(s) of rejection is made in view of Takahata et al. (JP 2012-252909 A).
Conclusion
15. 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.
16. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KARIE O APICELLA whose telephone number is (571)272-8614. The examiner can normally be reached Monday thru Friday; 8:00AM to 5:00PM EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nicole Buie-Hatcher can be reached at 571-270-3879. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/KARIE O'NEILL APICELLA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1725
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