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 2/24/23 has been considered by the examiner.
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I, claims 1-7, in the reply filed on 10/31/25 is acknowledged.
Claims 8-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim.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 10/31/25.
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.
Claims 1-7 are 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.
Claim 1 recites the limitation "a porous substrate" in line 7. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 1 recites the limitation "a self-standing electrode" in line 7. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 1 recites “the electrode active material” and “the conductive material” in lines 8-9. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Examiner suggests “the aerosolized electrode active material” and “the aerosolized conductive material”. See also claim 2 that recites “an amount of conductive material”. Examiner suggests “an amount of the aerosolized conductive material”.
Claim 2 recites “an amount of conductive material…is determined by an electrical conductivity percolation point of the conductive material”, which is indefinite. The electrical conductivity percolation point (or threshold) is the critical concentration of conductive fillers in an insulating material where a continuous pathway for electricity forms, causing a sudden, sharp increase in conductivity from an insulating state to a conductive one. It is unclear how the electrical conductivity percolation point of the conductive material is determined as the claim does not recite a conductive material within an insulating material.
Claim 4 recites the limitation "an aerosolized electrode active material" in line 4. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 4 recites the limitation "an aerosolized conductive material" in line 7. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claims Analysis
At least claim 1 recites a “conductive material”, which has been given the broadest reasonable interpretation by the Examiner. A “conductive material” may be any material that is electrically conductive, ionically conductive and/or thermally conductive.
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) 1-7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Pierce et al., US 2019/0036103 A1.
Pierce teaches a method of making a composite product that may be used as a flexible self-standing electrode. An aerosolized mixture of nanotubes and an electrode active material is collected on a porous substrate, such as a filter, until it reaches a desired thickness. The resulting self-standing electrode may then be removed from the porous substrate and may operate as a battery electrode (abstract). The self-standing electrode is free of binder and a metal-based current collector [0003-0007]. The type of nanotubes used are not limited. The nanotubes may be entirely carbon, or they made be substituted, that it is, have non-carbon lattice atoms. In some aspects, carbon and inorganic nanotubes include additional components such as metals or metalloids (conductive material), incorporated into the structure of the nanotube [0031].
The aerosolizing of the electrode active material comprises distributing an aerosolizing gas through a first porous frit and a bed of an electrode active material, in an aerosolizing chamber, to produce the aerosolized electrode active material powder. The aerosolizing chamber may be constructed with an appropriately sized porous material such that gas can pass through to enable aerosolization but that does not permit the active material to fall through the pores. The aerosolizing chamber is not limited to any particular configuration. Suitable aerosolizing gases include, but are not limited to, argon, helium, or nitrogen. In some embodiments, the aerosolizing gas may be the same as the carrier gas [0041].
The nanotubes and the electrode active material may be individually aerosolized before mixing. For example, the nanotubes may be provided in the vessel 10A and the electrode active material may be provided in the vessel 10B. One or more carrier gases 20A may be introduced to the vessel 10A to aerosolize the nanotubes, and one or more carrier gases 20B may be introduced to the vessel 10B to aerosolize the electrode active materials. An aerosolized stream 25A comprises the nanotubes entrained in the carrier gas 20A introduced to the vessel 10A, and an aerosolized stream 25B comprises the electrode active materials entrained in the carrier gas 20B introduced to the vessel 10B. The aerosolized stream 25A is mixed with the aerosolized stream 25B at junction 27. The mixed aerosolized stream 30 (deposited stream) is directed to the porous substrate 40. The carrier gas passes through the porous substrate 40 as gas stream 50 while the mixture of the nanotubes and the electrode active material is captured on the surface of the porous substrate 40 to form the self-standing electrode 60. The self-standing electrode 60 can be removed from the porous substrate 40 when it reaches the desired thickness. The carrier gases 20A and 20B may be the same, or different, and may be introduced at the same or different flow rates. For example, the flow rates of the carrier gases 20A and 20B may be tailored to feed the nanotubes and the electrode active material to the junction 27 at the individual flow rates necessary to achieve the desired ratio of nanotubes to electrode active material in the resulting self-standing electrode 60 [0027]. The nanotubes may be formed in a nanotube synthesis reactor [0006;0028].
Thus, the claims are anticipated. Pierce further teaches catalysts are used for the production of carbon nanotubes. The catalyst particles (conductive particles) are present as an aerosol [0034-0036]. The self-standing electrode can be used with or without a metal-based current collector (typically alumina or copper) [0022].
Conclusion
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/TRACY M DOVE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1725