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 .
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 4/28/2023 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner. Chuang was disclosed in the IDS filed on 4/28/2023.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, in claim 4, “the connecting element coupled to one of a first surface of the first member and a second surface of the second member” which must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
The drawings are objected to under 37 CFR 1.83(a). The drawings must show every feature of the invention specified in the claims. Therefore, in claim 6, “second surface of the first member coupled to housing via fasteners” which must be shown or the feature(s) canceled from the claim(s). No new matter should be entered.
Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 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.
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a) (1) as being anticipated by Chuang (U.S 2014/0065455 A1).
In regards to Claim 8, Chuang discloses a method of retaining each of a plurality of cells within a battery pack (Fig.1, #100), the method comprising: positioning a first end (Fig.1,#112) of each of the plurality of cells (Fig.1, #11) within a first set of through holes (Fig.1, #121) defined on a first member (Fig.1, #12) of a cell holder unit and a second end (Fig.1, #111) of each of the plurality of cells within a second set of through holes (Fig.1, #131) defined on a second member (Fig.1, #13) of the cell holder unit; applying adhesive via at least one groove (Paragraphs [0035-0036] and see annotated figure 4), the at least one groove defined at a first end of the first set of through holes (Fig.4, #121 has a groove at the first end of #121) and a second end of the second set of through holes (Fig.1-3, #131 has a second groove at the second end), and the at least one groove defined along an internal portion of the first set of through holes (Fig.4, #121 includes a groove along an internal portion of #121) and the second set of through holes (Fig.1 and 3, #131 includes grooves at the internal portion to properly secure cell #11 within the cell holder unit #100); curing of the adhesive applied within the at least one groove (Paragraphs [0035-0036], which discloses an adhesive composition is placed between the outer deck #122 and #123 to fill the sealed spaces between the cells and holes #121); and retaining each of the plurality of cells within the first and the second set of through holes of the cell holder unit of a cell retainer assembly (Fig.1-3, cells #11 are retained with #100).
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.
Claims 1-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Chuang (U.S 2014/0065455 A1) in view of Ryu (U.S 2019/0267684 A1).
In regards to Claim 1, Chuang discloses a cell retainer assembly for a battery pack (Fig.1), the cell retainer assembly comprising: a cell holder unit (Fig.1, #100) within a housing (Fig.1, #17 in conjunction with #100 creates a housing) of the battery pack, the cell holder unit comprising: a first member (Fig.1, #12) having a first set of through holes (Fig.1, #121) adapted to receive and position a first end (Fig.1, #112) of a plurality of cells (Fig.1, #11) therein; and a second member (Fig.1, #13) coupled to a periphery of the first member (Fig.1-3), the second member having a second set of through holes (Fig.1, #131) adapted to receive and position a second end (Fig.1, #111) of the plurality of cells (Fig.1-3) therein; and at least one groove (Fig.4, #121 includes one groove, see annotated figure 4) formed at one of a first end of the first set of through holes (Fig.4) and a second end of the second set of through holes (Fig.1 & 3, #131 includes grooves to accommodate the second end of cell #11), the at least one groove formed along an internal portion of one of the first set of through holes (Fig.4, #121 includes a groove along an internal portion of #121) and the second set of through holes (Fig.1 and 3, #131 includes grooves at the internal portion to properly secure cell #11 within the cell holder unit #100), the at least one groove having a length lesser than a length of each of the first and the second through holes (Fig.4, the groove has a length smaller than the length of each opening #121 and #131) the at least one groove adapted to receive adhesive therein to retain each of the plurality of cells within the first and the second set of through holes (Abstract and Paragraph [0016 & 0036], which discloses an adhesive composition is placed between the outer deck #122 and #123 to fill the sealed spaces (spaces between the cell and holes #121/131) between the cells and holes #121).
Chuang fails to explicitly disclose: Cell holder unit disposed within a housing.
However, Ryu discloses: Cell holder unit disposed within a housing (Fig.2, #300/400 disposed within #200, as such the office notes that with the combination of Chuang in view of Ryu, the cell holder unit (as taught by Chuang) would be placed within a housing (as taught by Ryu) to protect the cells from external forces).
Therefore, it would of have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art at the time the application was filed to have modified the cell holder unit (as taught by Chuang) would be placed within a housing (as taught by Ryu) to enclose the cells. By including cells within a housing, would protect the cells from damage caused by external forces such as water, dust, and/or other contaminants.
Annotated Figure 4 of Chuang:
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In regards to Claim 2, Chuang in view of Ryu disclose the cell retainer assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the first set of through holes (Chuang Fig.1 and 4, #121) is defined between a first surface and a second surface of the first member (Chuang Fig.1 and 4, #121 are defined between a first and second surface of #12), and each of the first set of through holes is equidistant from each other (Fig.1 and 4, #121 are equidistant from each other).
In regards to Claim 3, Chuang in view of Ryu disclose the cell retainer assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the second set of through holes is defined between a first surface and the second surface of the second member (Chuang Fig.1, #131 are defined between a first and second surface of #13), and each of the second set of through hole is aligned in line with each of the first set of through holes (Chuang Fig.1, 3 and 6, #121 and #131 are aligned in line in order for each cell #11 to be properly positioned within #100).
In regards to Claim 4, Chuang in view of Ryu disclose the cell retainer assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of cells are interconnected to each other via at least one connecting element, the at least one connecting element coupled to one of a first surface of the first member and a second surface of the second member (Chuang Fig.1, #15 is connected to the plurality of cells #11 on the first surface (top surface) and coupled to the second surface of #13 through cells #11).
In regards to Claim 5, Chuang in view of Ryu disclose the cell retainer assembly as claimed in claim 1 comprises a cooling plate (Chuang Fig.1, #17) positioned adjacent to the second surface of the first member of the cell holder unit to aid in one of thermal conduction (Chuang Fig.1, #17 is adjacent to the second surface of #12 to provide thermal conduction, see paragraph [0038]), electrical isolation, and a combination thereof of the plurality of cells.
In regards to Claim 6, Chuang in view of Ryu disclose the cell retainer assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second surface of the first member of the cell holder unit is coupled to the housing via fasteners (Chuang, discloses in Fig.5, #12 second surface (top) coupled to Lid #17 and #13 via #30, as such the office notes that with the combination of Chuang in view of Ryu, the cell holder unit placed within the housing having a cover (as taught by Chuang in view of Ryu) would be secured via fasteners (as taught by Chuang) to hold the cells in place).
In regards to Claim 7, Chuang in view of Ryu disclose the cell retainer assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first and the second member are coupled to each other (Chuang Fig.1 and 2, discloses #12 and #13 are coupled via the respective protrusion and slots, see paragraph [0034]), via one of, but not limited to, welding, ultrasonic welding, and applying adhesives to form an integrated unit (Additionally, to the rejection set forth above, claim 7 is classified as a product by process claim, which MPEP 2113 notes "Even though product-by-process claims are limited by and defined by the process, determination of patentability is based on the product itself. The patentability of a product does not depend on its method of production. If the product in the product-by-process claim is the same as or obvious from a product of the prior art, the claim is unpatentable even though the prior product was made by a different process." In re Thorpe, 777 F.2d 695,698,227 USPQ 964, 966 (Fed. Cir.1985), thus the limitation provided above is given no patentable weight since Chuang disclose first and second member #12 and #13 coupled to each other, see figure 3).
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Lee (U.S 2019/0372069 A1) – Discloses a cell holder unit comprising a first and second member having a plurality of holes aligned with each other in order to contain a plurality of cells.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MANDEEP S BUTTAR whose telephone number is (571)272-4768. The examiner can normally be reached 7:00AM-4:00PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jayprakash Gandhi can be reached at 5712723740. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MANDEEP S BUTTAR/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 2835