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 .
Election/Restrictions
Claims 8-10 withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I, claims 1-7 and 11-15 in the reply filed on 04/28/2026 is acknowledged.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDSs) submitted on 02/02/2023, 03/18/2024, 03/11/2025, and 03/14/2025, are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings received on 02/02/2023 were reviewed and are acceptable.
Specification
The specification filed on 02/02/2023 was reviewed and is acceptable.
Claim Objections
Claim 2 is objected to because of the following informalities: “2 to -50 nm” in line 2 should be replaced with –2 to 50 nm--.
Claim 3 is objected to because of the following informalities: “0.5 to -5 µm” in line 2 should be replaced with –0.5 to 5 µm--.
Appropriate correction is required.
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 nonobviousness.
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.
Claim(s) 1-7 and 11-15 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Xu et al. (US 20190288331 A1, hereinafter Xu, cited in Notice of References Cited dated 03/06/2026).
Regarding Claim 1, Xu discloses the limitations for a solid electrolyte membrane (Xu, solid-state electrolyte composite membrane, [0028]) for a solid-state battery (Xu, Li-battery, [0030]), the solid electrolyte membrane comprising
composite particles and a polymeric solid electrolyte material (Xu, the solid-state electrolyte includes a composite synthesized from an MOF material soaked in a liquid electrolyte, and may include a polyethylene oxide (PEO) binder, [0012, 0027]), wherein
the composite particles comprise porous particles having a plurality of pores (Xu, the solid-state electrolyte comprises MOF, wherein the MOFs being a class of crystalline porous solid constructed from metal cluster nodes and organic linkers, [0012]) and a phase transformation material (Xu, the non-aqueous liquid electrolyte solvents comprise ethylene carbonate (EC), [0016]; as evidenced in Instant Specification Page 14, Lines 5-10, ethylene carbonate may be the phase transformation material),
the phase transformation material exists in a solid state at room temperature or lower and undergoes a phase change into a liquid state by an increase in temperature, and all or at least a part of the pores are filled with the phase transformation material (Xu, the electrolyte infiltrates into at least some of the pores of the MOFs, and become immobilized therein to form the ionic conducting channels, [0023]).
it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to recognize that the ethylene carbonate of Xu would also phase change, as claimed, since the phase change material may be ethylene carbonate, as noted above.
Regarding Claim 2, Xu discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Xu discloses the limitations regarding a solid electrolyte membrane (Xu, solid-state electrolyte composite membrane, [0028]) wherein the porous particles have a pore diameter in a range of from 2 to 50 nm (Xu, MIL-100-Al has a pore size of 2.5, 2.9 nm, Table 1; the disclosed pore sizes of 2.5 and 2.9 nm falls within the claimed range of 2 to 50 nm).
Regarding Claim 3, Xu discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Xu discloses the limitations regarding a solid electrolyte membrane (Xu, solid-state electrolyte composite membrane, [0028]), wherein the porous particles have a diameter in a range of from 0.5 to 5 µm (Xu, SEM image of MIL-100-Al shows that the particle diameter is approximately 0.8 µm, [0051], Annotated Figure 10F below; the disclosed particle diameter of approximately 0.8 µm falls within the claimed range of 0.5 to 5 µm).
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Regarding Claim 4, Xu discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Xu discloses the limitations regarding a solid electrolyte membrane (Xu, solid-state electrolyte composite membrane, [0028]), wherein the porous particles comprise a metal organic framework, which comprises of at least one or more selected from the group consisting of MIL-100 (Xu, MIL-100-Al, Table 1) and Cu-BTC (Xu, HKUST-1 is a MOF constructed from Cu (II) paddle wheels and benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylate (BTC) ligands (linkers), [0090]).
Regarding Claim 5, Xu discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Xu discloses the limitations regarding a solid electrolyte membrane (Xu, solid-state electrolyte composite membrane, [0028]) wherein the phase transformation material comprises at least one or more selected from the group consisting of ethylene carbonate (Xu, the non-aqueous liquid electrolyte solvents comprise ethylene carbonate (EC), [0016]).
Regarding Claim 6, Xu discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Xu discloses the limitations regarding a solid electrolyte membrane (Xu, solid-state electrolyte composite membrane, [0028]) wherein the polymeric solid electrolyte material (Xu, a binder mixed with the solid-state electrolyte, [0105]) comprises a polymer resin (Xu, the binder comprises polyethylene oxide (PEO), polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), or copolymers thereof, [0107]) and a lithium salt (Xu, the liquid electrolyte comprises a metal salt dissolved in one or more non-aqueous solvents, wherein the metal salt may be a lithium salt, [0095, 0097]).
As evidenced in Instant Specification Page 9, Lines 16-17, the polymer resin may be polyethylene oxide.
Regarding Claim 7 and 11-15, Xu discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Xu discloses the limitations regarding a solid-state battery (Xu, a lithium battery, [0108-0109]) comprising a negative electrode, a positive electrode and a solid electrolyte membrane (Xu, a composite electrolyte membrane; a positive electrode; and a negative electrode, wherein the composite electrolyte membrane is disposed between the positive electrode and the negative electrode, [0108]).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
US 20190348657 A1 discloses a membrane layer comprising a metal-organic framework [0084].
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KEVIN NGUYEN whose telephone number is (703)756-1745. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 9:50 - 7:50 ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, NICHOLAS A SMITH can be reached at (571) 272-8760. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/K.N./Examiner, Art Unit 1752
/OSEI K AMPONSAH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1752
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