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 .
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)(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, 2, and 7-9 are is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2021/0242501 to Sakamoto (“Sakamoto”). Regarding claims 1, 8, and 9, Sakamoto discloses lithium ion secondary batteries comprising a cathode, an anode, and an electrolyte solution including anthraquinone in accordance with recited formula (1) where R1-R8 are all hydrogen. Sakamoto at Abstract. The electrolyte further includes a solvent system that may include mixtures of various carbonates including reactive cyclic carbonic acid esters such as ethylene carbonate (EC), propylene carbonate (PC) and butylene carbonate. Id. at [0027].
Further regarding claim 2, while the claim narrows the acid metal salt groups which may be used in positions R1-R8, it does not require that any of R1-R8 be the acid metal salt group. Thus, claim 2 is anticipated for the same reasons as claim 1.
Further regarding claim 7, in some embodiments Sakamoto discloses use of a polyacrylonitrile in the electrolyte solution as a gelling agent.
. Kodama discloses lithium ion secondary batteries comprising positive electrode, negative electrode, and an electrolyte. Kodama at paragraphs [0003] and [0013]-[0015]. The electrolyte of Kodama includes a compound B that include various substituted anthraquinone compounds
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim(s) 3-6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Sakamoto in view of U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015/0132639 to Kodama (“Kodama”). Regarding claim 3, like Sakamoto, Kodama is also directed to lithium ion batteries comprising anthraquinone in the electrolyte solution. Kodama discloses that such anthraquinone compounds may also include various substituents, including those generally considered to be electron donating such as alkoxy. Kodama at paragraph [0068]. Thus, use of the alkoxy-substituted anthraquinone variants in Sakamoto is considered to be nothing more than the use of a commonly known alternative anthraquinone compound in its electrolyte.
Regarding claim 4, Sakamoto discloses in Example 1 including the anthraquinone at a lowest amount of 50 mmolar concentration in an EC/DMC solvent system. The density of EC is 1.32 g/cc and that of DMC is 1.07 g/cc. 50 millimoles of anthraquinone is equal to 10.4 grams, resulting in a weight percent of approximately 0.008 weight percent. It also discloses example 2 anthraquinone at 30 weight percent. Thus, Sakamoto discloses that the working range of anthraquinone includes the recited range, rendering that range obvious.
Regarding the amount of the reactive cyclic carbonic acid ester compound, Sakamoto discloses that the relative amounts of the various solvent components may vary. Kamoda discloses that the balance between linear carbonates and cyclic carbonates such as the ethylene/propylene/butylene carbonates disclosed in Sakamoto should be chosen based on a desire to balance viscosity, dielectric constant, and ion mobility. Kamoda at paragraph [0076]. Thus, the choice of the amount of ethylene/propylene/butylene carbonate is considered to be a result effective variable rendering the recited amount obvious. Alternatively, Kamoda also discloses the use of the very common electrolyte additive vinylene carbonate in an amount of 0.01-5 mass percent in line with its commonly used amount. Vinylene carbonate is also a reactive cyclic carbonic acid ester.
Regarding claim 5, Sakamoto discloses gamma butyrolactone as a solvent option in its system. Kamoda discloses that ethylene carbonate and propylene carbonate are known to have a dielectric constant greater than 30. Id. Regarding the amount of the lactone, as noted above, the relative amounts of the various solvent components is a known result effective variable.
Regarding claim 6, Kamoda further discloses that sulfonic acid esters were commonly known additives to include in lithium ion electrolyte systems and thus their inclusion in Sakamoto are considered to be nothing more than the obvious addition of a commonly known additive in its customary way to achieve the customarily expected result. Kamoda at paragraph [0083].
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WYATT P MCCONNELL whose telephone number is (571)270-7531. The examiner can normally be reached 9am to 5pm M-F.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Barbara Gilliam can be reached at 571-272-1330. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/WYATT P MCCONNELL/ Examiner, Art Unit 1727 Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to WYATT P MCCONNELL whose telephone number is (571)270-7531. The examiner can normally be reached 9am to 5pm M-F.
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Barbara Gilliam can be reached at 571-272-1330. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/WYATT P MCCONNELL/ Examiner, Art Unit 1727