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 .
Status of Application
Claims 1-6 are currently pending. Claim 1 is currently amended.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 1 have been considered but are not found persuasive because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Yuki (WO2019098023A1, US equivalent US20200350634A1 was used for citation).
Regarding claim 1, Yuki discloses a secondary battery cylindrical secondary battery 100 [0089]) comprising:
a metallic case body having an opening (cylindrical battery casing 20 having an opening [0095-0097]);
a sealing assembly (sealing member 40 [0099-0102]) sealing the opening of the metallic case body; and
an electrode assembly (wound electrode group 10 [0089]) housed in the metallic case body,
the electrode assembly including a positive electrode (positive electrode 11), a negative electrode (negative electrode 12), and a separator (separator 13) [0029],
the positive electrode and the negative electrode that are wound with the separator interposed between the positive electrode and the negative electrode (Fig 1; [0029]),
the negative electrode (negative electrode 12) including a negative electrode current collector (negative electrode current collector 121) and a negative electrode active material layer (negative electrode mixture layer 122) formed on the negative electrode current collector [0035],
the negative electrode having an exposed part (exposed part 121 a; [0036-0037] ) in which the negative electrode active material layer is not formed and the negative electrode current collector is exposed,
the exposed part disposed at a winding end of the negative electrode (see the exposed part 121 a in Fig 1, 3; [0036]),
the electrode assembly having a stacked part in which metal foils formed from the exposed part which is wound more than one turn in a direction from a winding end to a winding start of the electrode assembly are stacked (see Fig 1 having exposed part 121a which is wound more than one turn and are stacked),
the stacked part welded to the metallic case body (i.e., the exposed 121a comprising a negative electrode current collection lead 70, wherein the lead 70 is welded to the inner wall of the battery casing 20 at a welding point 70 c to provide electrical connection between the negative electrode 12 and the battery casing 20 with the negative electrode current collection lead 70 [0092]; see Figs 3, 4, 6).
Regarding claim 2, Yuki discloses the secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein the stacked part is disposed in an entire circumference of an outermost periphery of the electrode assembly (i.e., the stacked exposed part 121a is disposed within outermost surface of the electrode group 10 in Fig 1).
Regarding claims 3-4, Yuki discloses the secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein the stacked part includes the exposed part forming at least two turns in the direction from the winding end to the winding start of the electrode assembly (see exposed part 121a in Fig 1), which is “more than one turn” as claimed in claim 3 and “two or more turns” as claimed in claim 4.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
The text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
Claim(s) 5,6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yuki (WO2019098023A1, US equivalent US20200350634A1 was used for citation).
Regarding claim 5, Yuki discloses the secondary battery according to claim 2, wherein the stacked part is welded to the metallic case body at welding point 70c (in Fig 6). Yuki discloses that the welding point 70c provides an electrical connection between the negative electrode 12 and the battery casing 20 such that the casing serves as an outer negative terminal [0092].
Therefore, while Yuki does not disclose an embodiment wherein the stacked part is welded continuously over an entire circumference of a side surface of the metallic case body, it would have been obvious for a person having ordinary skill in the art to have modified the welding point 70c of Yuki, such that it extends continuous over an entire circumference of a side surface of the metallic case body, with a reasonable expectation to provide appropriate electrical connection between the negative electrode and the battery casing, such that the casing can still successfully serve as an outer negative terminal [0092].
Regarding claim 6, Yuki discloses the secondary battery according to claim 1, wherein a thickness of the negative current collector including the negative electrode mixture layer is for example 80 to 250 μm [0074], wherein the thickness of the negative electrode mixture layer may be 20 to 120 μm or 35 to 100 μm [0074] (i.e., thickness of the negative current collector is 60-130 μm or 55-150 μm).
Since Yuki discloses wherein the stacked part has 2 turns of current collector exposed part 121a (see Fig 1), a person having ordinary skill in the art would envisage that the stacked part has a thickness of between 120-260 μm or 110-300 μm, which overlaps with the claimed range of “20 μm or more and 200 μm or less”. It would have been obvious for a person having ordinary skill in the art to have selected the overlapping thickness of exposed part 121a, with a reasonable expectation to provide an outermost periphery of the electrode group 10 and also a surface for welding the negative electrode current collection lead 70 [0042].
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.
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/T.S./Examiner, Art Unit 1751
/JONATHAN G LEONG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1751 3/5/2026