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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d).
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 6/22/23, 6/27/23, 12/20/23 are considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings submitted on 6/22/23 has been considered.
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 1-9 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. The limitation “type” is unknown if it is referring to intrinsic or extrinsic properties of LGPS. Appropriate corrections are required.
Claim Analysis
Table 1 of Applicant’s specification discloses comparative examples and examples of the claimed invention comprising the same structure but different intrinsic properties. The specification discloses the change in rpm and temperature will yield different properties, however, since the specification does not disclose the specific comparative example rpm and temperature, one of skill in the art would not have enough evidence to conclude that the prior art does not also teach the claimed invention. As best understood, please see the claim rejections below.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102/103
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 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.
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.
Claim(s) 1-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as anticipated by or, in the alternative, under 35 U.S.C. 103 as obvious over Kato et al. (US 10,388,985).
Regarding claims 1-6, the Kato et al. reference discloses a process comprising starting materials, a lithium sulfide (Li2S, from Nippon Chemical Industrial Co., Ltd.), phosphorous pentasulfide (P2S5, from Aldrich), and a tin sulfide (SnS2, from Kojundo Chemical Laboratory Co., Ltd.) were used. The powders were mixed in a glove box under argon atmosphere at a ratio the same as the Applicants. The raw material was put in a zirconia pot together with zirconia ball and hermetically seal the post with an argon atmosphere and mixed by ball milling at 40 hrs at 370 rpm. The Kato et al. reference also disclose milling at rpms between 250 to 400 rpm can be used in the process.
Next, powder of the obtained ion conductive material was put in a carbon-coated quartz tube and vacuum-sealed. The pressure of the quartz tube for vacuum-sealing was approximately 30 Pa. Next, the quartz tube was placed in a burning furnace, heated from room temperature to 550° C. over 6 hours, maintained at 550° C. for 8 hours, and thereafter slowly cooled to room temperature. Thus, a crystalline sulfide solid electrolyte material having a composition of Li3.275Sn0.275P0.725S4 was obtained.
The Kato reference does not explicitly disclose the intrinsic properties of 31P-NMR measurement, when y (ppm) designates a half value width of a peak having an apex at a position of 77ppm± 1ppm, and x (%) designates a rate of impurity phase wherein x is 10 or more, the sulfide solid electrolytes satisfies a formula (1): y≤-0.0431x+4.28 (1), satisfies a formula (2) y≤-0.0489x+4.09 (2), satisfies a formula (3) y≤-0.156x+4.57 (3) and further satisfies (4) y≤-0.00431x+3.30 (4), however, these intrinsic properties are inherently disclosed by the Kato reference, since the process of making the solid electrolyte disclosed by the Applicant is the same as the prior art. Where the claimed and prior art products are identical or substantially identical in structure or composition, or are produced by identical or substantially identical processes, a prima facie case of either anticipation or obviousness has been established (Please see MPEP2112.01).
Regarding claim 7, the Kato et al. reference disclose the sulfide solid electrolyte contains at least a Sn element as the M element.
Regarding claim 8, the Kato reference does not explicitly disclose the ion conductivity of the sulfide solid electrolyte at 25°C is 1.0 mS/cm or more which would include 5.0 mS/cm.
Regarding claim 9, the Kato et al. reference discloses a solid state battery comprising a cathode layer containing a cathode active material, an anode layer containing an anode active material, and a solid electrolyte layer arranged between the cathode layer and the anode layer wherein at least one of the cathode layer, the anode layer and the solid electrolyte layer contains the sulfide solid electrolyte according to claim 1.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to HELEN OI CONLEY whose telephone number is (571)272-5162. The examiner can normally be reached 8:30 am - 5:00 pm.
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/Helen Oi K CONLEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1752