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 .
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 09/17/2025 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Status of Claims
The Applicant’s amendment and arguments, filed 10/27/2025, has been entered. Claims 1, 4, and 10 are amended; claims 5-9 stand as originally or previously presented; claim 2-3 is cancelled; and claims 11-16 are new. Support for the amendments is found in the original filing, and there is no new matter.
Upon considered said amendments and arguments, the previous 35 U.S.C.103 rejection set forth in Office Action mailed 09/05/2025 has been maintained (and altered as required by amendment), as set forth below.
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, 4, and 6-16 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Choi et al. (KR 20170050092 A, hereinafter Choi, filed in IDS dated 02/16/2023), in view of Kaneshiro (US 20110117792 A1), and further in view of PennEngineering (“PEM® RT™ Free-Running Locknuts“).
Regarding claim 1, Choi discloses the limitations regarding a battery pack (Choi, battery pack, [0026]), comprising:
a cell module having at least one battery cell (Choi, cell module with a predetermined number of cells, [0027]); and
a module including a battery management system (BMS) configured to control charging and discharging of the cell module (Choi, a BMS board for providing a charge/discharge control function for the cell module, [0016]),
a terminal block on the BMS board (Choi, a fuse terminal block having a first and second terminal mounted on the BMS board, [0016, 0018]) and configured such that a connection terminal is thereon and to have a connection hole (Choi, The first terminal 112a and the second terminal 112b are disposed so as to overlap with the corresponding connecting pieces 113a and 113b respectively and are coupled to the fastening bolt 105 in a state in which the fuse 111 is raised, [0032], Figure 2), and
a terminal bolt inserted into the connection hole (Choi, the fastening bolt 105 is inserted into the through holes 114a and 114b formed in the first terminal 112a and the second terminal 112b through both ends of the fuse 111, [0032], Figure 2).
Choi is silent regarding a press-in nut having a body portion with a bolt hole into which a body of the terminal bolt is inserted, the bolt hole having a thread formed at an inner surface thereof, and a protruding portion protruding outward from an outer circumference of the bolt hole and bonded to an outer circumference of the connection hole of the terminal block.
Kaneshiro discloses a terminal block comprising a housing, and at least one nut accommodating recess formed in the housing for holding at least one nut to be mounted (Kaneshiro, Claim 1), and a body portion with a bolt hole into which a body of the terminal bolt is inserted, the bolt hole having a thread formed at an inner surface thereof (Kaneshiro, the terminal block is fixed to a device by inserting one or more bolts into the respective mounting holes and fastening the bolts, [0028])
Kaneshiro teaches that the nut accommodating recess prevents the nut from turning (Kaneshiro, [0007]), and the terminal block is fixed to a device by fastening a bolt (Kaneshiro, [0028]).
Choi and Kaneshiro are analogous to the current invention as they are directed towards a terminal block.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention for the terminal block of Choi to have a bolt and nut configuration and a nut accommodating recess of Kaneshiro, in order to prevent the nut from turning and to securely fix a terminal block to a device.
Modified Choi is silent regarding a press-in nut having a body portion with a bolt hole into which a body of the terminal bolt is inserted, the bolt hole having a thread formed at an inner surface thereof, and a protruding portion protruding outward from an outer circumference of the bolt hole and bonded to an outer circumference of the connection hole of the terminal block.
PennEngineering discloses a press-in nut (PennEngineering, locknuts, Title) having a body portion with a bolt hole into which a body of the terminal bolt is inserted (PennEngineering, threaded bolt hole, Annotated Figure 1 below), the bolt hole having a thread formed at an inner surface thereof (PennEngineering, threaded bolt hole, Annotated Figure 1 below), and
a protruding portion protruding outward from an outer circumference of the bolt hole and bonded to an outer circumference of the connection hole of the terminal block (PennEngineering, protruding portion, Annotated Figure 1 below).
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PennEngineering discloses that the locknuts are resistant to vibrational loosening (PennEngineering, Description).
Modified Choi and PennEngineering are analogous to the current invention as they are all directed towards fastening.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention for the battery pack of modified Choi to include the locknuts of PennEngineering, in order to prevent the bolt from loosening from vibrations.
Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding the battery pack (Choi, battery pack, [0026]), wherein the terminal block includes:
a loading portion having a plate shape so that a head portion of the terminal bolt is loaded thereon (Choi, plate shaped loading portion, [0032], Annotated Figure 2 below),
the connection hole being at a part of the loading portion (Choi, through hole, [0032], Annotated Figure 2 below); and
a mounting portion downward from an end of the loading portion (Choi, mounting portion, Annotated Figure 2 below) and to be partially fixed to the BMS board (Choi, terminal block is mounted on the BMS board, [0026]),
wherein the press-in nut includes an upper portion facing a lower surface of the loading portion (PennEngineering, Upper portion of the locknut is contacting the lower surface of the loading portion, Annotated Figure 3 below), wherein
the protruding portion at least partially pass through the connection hole of the loading portion (PennEngineering, Protruding portion passes through the collection hole and bonded to the loading portion, Annotated Figure 3 below), and wherein
the protruding portion includes a protruding end bonded to an upper surface of the loading portion (PennEngineering, Protruding portion passes through the collection hole and bonded to the loading portion, Annotated Figure 3 below).
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Regarding Claim 4, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding the battery pack (Choi, battery pack, [0026]), wherein the terminal block includes a concave portion having a recessed space at the outer circumference of the connection hole (Kaneshiro, a terminal block comprising a housing, and at least one nut accommodating recess formed in the housing for holding at least one nut to be mounted, Claim 1), and
wherein the protruding portion (PennEngineering, protruding portion, Annotated Figure 1 below) is accommodated in the recessed space of the concave portion of the terminal block in the form of being bent at least once (Kaneshiro, at least one nut accommodating recess formed in the housing for holding at least one nut to be mounted, Claim 1).
Regarding Claim 6, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding the battery pack (Choi, battery pack, [0026]), wherein the press-in nut includes a fixing protrusion at an upper portion thereof to be spaced apart from the protruding portion by a predetermined distance (PennEngineering, fixing protrusion, Annotated Figure 1 above) and at least partially press-fitted to the terminal block (PennEngineering, Fixing protrusion is fitted to the loading portion of the terminal block, Annotated Figure 3 above).
Regarding Claim 7, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding the battery pack (Choi, battery pack, [0026]), wherein the terminal block includes a fixing rib protruding downward from the outer circumference of the connection hole and interposed between the protruding portion and the fixing protrusion (PennEngineering, Fixing rib interposed between the protruding portion and fixing protrusion, Annotated Figure 3 above).
Regarding Claim 8, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding an electronic device (Choi, medium or large devices, such as laptop computers, [0005]), comprising at least one battery pack (Choi, battery pack, [0005]).
Regarding Claim 9, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding a vehicle (Choi, electric vehicle, [0005]), comprising at least one battery pack (Choi, battery pack, [0005]).
Regarding Claim 10, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding a battery management system module (Choi, fuse assembly structure, [0016]), comprising:
a BMS board having a circuit board to control charging and discharging of a plurality of battery cells (Choi, a BMS board for providing a charge/discharge control function for the cell module, [0016]);
a terminal block on the BMS board (Choi, a fuse terminal block having a first and second terminal mounted on the BMS board, [0016, 0018]) and having a connection hole (Choi, The first terminal 112a and the second terminal 112b are disposed so as to overlap with the corresponding connecting pieces 113a and 113b respectively and are coupled to the fastening bolt 105 in a state in which the fuse 111 is raised, [0032], Figure 2);
a terminal bolt inserted into and fixed to the connection hole (Choi, the fastening bolt 105 is inserted into the through holes 114a and 114b formed in the first terminal 112a and the second terminal 112b through both ends of the fuse 111, [0032], Figure 2); and
a press-in nut (PennEngineering, locknuts, Title) having a body portion with a bolt hole into which a body of the terminal bolt is inserted (PennEngineering, threaded bolt hole, Annotated Figure 1 below),
the bolt hole having a thread formed at an inner surface thereof (PennEngineering, threaded bolt hole, Annotated Figure 1 below),
a protruding portion protruding outward from an outer circumference of the bolt hole and bonded to an outer circumference of the connection hole of the terminal block (PennEngineering, protruding portion, Annotated Figure 1 below).
Regarding Claim 11, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding the battery pack (Choi, battery pack, [0026]), wherein the protruding end of the protruding portion is bent (PennEngineering, protruding end of the protruding portion is bent to be horizontal, Annotated Figure 4 below) to be in contact with the upper surface of the loading portion (PennEngineering, upper surface of protruding portion is in contact with upper portion of PANEL, or claimed loading portion, Annotated Figure 3 above).
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Regarding Claim 12, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding the battery pack (Choi, battery pack, [0026]), wherein the upper surface of the loading portion is horizontal and parallel to the BMS board (Choi, terminal block is mounted on the BMS board 120, [0026], Annotated Figure 2 above; the Examiner notes that the upper surface of the terminal block, or loading portion, is horizontal and parallel to the BMS board).
Regarding Claim 13, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding the battery pack (Choi, battery pack, [0026]), wherein the protruding end of the protruding portion is horizontally bent (PennEngineering, protruding end of the protruding portion is bent to be horizontal, Annotated Figure 4 below) to be in contact with the upper surface of the loading portion (PennEngineering, upper surface of protruding portion is in contact with upper portion of PANEL, or claimed loading portion, Annotated Figure 3 above).
Regarding Claim 14, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding a battery management system module (Choi, fuse assembly structure, [0016]), wherein the protruding end of the protruding portion is bent (PennEngineering, protruding end of the protruding portion is bent to be horizontal, Annotated Figure 4 above) to be in contact with the upper surface of the loading portion (PennEngineering, upper surface of protruding portion is in contact with upper portion of PANEL, or claimed loading portion, Annotated Figure 3 above).
Regarding Claim 15, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding a battery management system module (Choi, fuse assembly structure, [0016]), wherein the upper surface of the loading portion is horizontal and parallel to the BMS board (Choi, terminal block is mounted on the BMS board 120, [0026], Annotated Figure 2 above; the Examiner notes that the upper surface of the terminal block, or loading portion, is horizontal and parallel to the BMS board).
Regarding Claim 16, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding a battery management system module (Choi, fuse assembly structure, [0016]), wherein the protruding end of the protruding portion is horizontally bent (PennEngineering, protruding end of the protruding portion is bent to be horizontal, Annotated Figure 4 below) to be in contact with the upper surface of the loading portion (PennEngineering, upper surface of protruding portion is in contact with upper portion of PANEL, or claimed loading portion, Annotated Figure 3 above).
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Choi et al. (KR 20170050092 A, hereinafter Choi, filed in IDS dated 02/16/2023), in view of Kaneshiro (US 20110117792 A1) and PennEngineering (“PEM® RT™ Free-Running Locknuts”), as applied to Claim 1 above, and further in view of PemNet (“All Metal, RT® Free-Running Locknuts,”), Schumacher et al. (US 20120155988 A1, hereinafter Schumacher), and Bailey (US 3795891 A).
Regarding Claim 5, modified Choi discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Modified Choi discloses the limitations regarding the battery pack (Choi, battery pack, [0026]). Modified Choi is silent regarding the terminal bolt and the press-in nut have a first metal, and the terminal block has a second metal that is different from the first metal.
PemNet discloses that the press-in nut has a first metal (Pemnet, locknut is made from Hardened Carbon Steel).
Schumacher discloses that a bolt and a nut may each be formed from alloyed carbon steel (Schumacher, [0018]). Schumacher teaches that alloyed carbon steel is a strong material (Schumacher, [0018]).
Modified Choi, PemNet, and Schumacher are analogous to the current invention as they are all directed towards fastening.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention for the nuts and bolts of modified Choi to be made of carbon steel, or a first metal, as taught by PemNet and Schumacher, in order for the nuts and bolts to be strong.
Bailey discloses that terminal blocks may be formed from brass (Bailey, col. 4, lines 10-13). Bailey teaches that the battery terminal block can prevent corrosion (Bailey, col. 1, lines 35-49).
Modified Choi and Bailey are analogous to the current invention as they are all directed towards a terminal block.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention for the terminal block of modified Choi to be made of brass, or a second metal, as taught by Bailey in order to prevent corrosion.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments (filed 10/27/2025) with respect to Claims 1-4 and 6-10 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Applicant argues that the Pem-RT nut does not include a protrusion bonded to an upper surface of the PANEL.
The Examiner respectfully disagrees and submits that the Pem-RT nut comprises a protrusion, as noted above, and the PANEL is punched onto the Pem-RT nut, creating the claimed bond between the Pem-RT nut and the upper surface of the panel, which is further demonstrated in Annotated Figure 3 above.
Conclusion
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.
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.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
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
/NICHOLAS A SMITH/Supervisory Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1752