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
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I, claims 1-7 in the reply filed on 07/02/2025 is acknowledged.
Claims 8-13 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 07/02/2025.
Claims 1-7 are pending examination as discussed below.
Priority
Applicant' s claim for the benefit of a prior-filed application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) or under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, or 365(c) is acknowledged.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements filed on 11/22/23 & 12/6/22 have been placed in the application file and the information referred to therein has been considered as to the merits.
Drawings
The drawings received on 12/6/22 are acceptable for examination purposes.
Claim Interpretation
Regarding claim 1 and the “mixed layer”, this layer is claimed only as being present “…when the composite paste and the insulation paste mix …” As such, the “mixed layer” is conditional and not positively required if the composite paste and insulation paste don’t mix.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
The last two lines of the claim that state, “the insulation layer does not extend beyond a range where the composite slope is formed into an area below the composite layer.” are indefinite since it is unclear how the insulation layer does not extend into an area below the composite layer since the insulation layer has to be “below the composite layer”, in order for the insulation layer to be overlapped by the composite layer. This limitation will be interpreted to mean that some of the active material does not have the insulation layer under it.
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.
Claims 1-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by JP2020167067 (Sato), using US 2022/0166023 (Sato) as the English translation and citation.
Regarding claims 1, 6 & 7, Sato teaches lithium battery with a positive electrode having a current collector substrate (9), an insulation layer on the substrate (12), and a composite layer of active material (11) overlapping each of the current collector and the insulation layer (Abstract, Fig. 1). As discussed above, the mixed layer is only required as a conditional limitation and as such isn’t currently required.
Regarding claims 2 & 3, these limitations only further limit the mixed layer, which as stated before is conditional and as such isn’t required.
Regarding claim 4, the composite layer has a slope to it, over the part that overlaps with the insulation layer. The composite layer also has an area where the layer directly touches the current collector and as such the insulation layer does not extend into an area below the composite layer.
Regarding claim 5, the insulation layer has more binder content ratio than the composite layer (Abstract).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KEITH WALKER whose telephone number is (571)272-3458. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8am - 4pm.
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/KEITH WALKER/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1735
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