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
Claims 7-15 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant’s election without traverse of Group I, Claims 1-6 in the reply filed on 05/19/2026 is acknowledged.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDSs) submitted on 06/26/2023 and 06/02/2025 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings received on 06/26/2023 were reviewed and are acceptable.
Specification
The specification filed on 06/26/2023 was reviewed and is acceptable.
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.
(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) 1-4 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Suh et al. (US 20150171382 A1, hereinafter Suh, filed in IDS dated 06/26/2023).
Regarding Claim 1, Suh discloses the limitations for a secondary battery (Suh, flexible secondary battery, Abstract) comprising: an electrode assembly (Suh, an electrode assembly, Abstract); and
a pouch configured to accommodate the electrode assembly (Suh, external material surrounding the electrode assembly, Abstract), wherein the pouch comprises:
two first covers provided on both surfaces of the electrode assembly in a thickness direction, respectively (Suh, a pair of third sealing sheets that respectively surround a pair of side surfaces of the electrode assembly, [0011]);
two second covers provided on both surfaces of the electrode assembly in a full-width direction, respectively (Suh, a first sealing sheet on a first surface of the electrode assembly; a second sealing sheet on a second surface of the electrode assembly that is opposite to the first surface, [0011]), wherein
edge surfaces of the two first covers and the two second covers, which face each other, are sealed by a first sealing part, end surfaces of the two first covers and the two second covers, which are directed in the same direction, are sealed by a second sealing part (Suh, the at least one bonding portion may include: a first bonding portion at which an edge of the first sealing sheet and an edge of at least one of the pair of third sealing sheets are bonded to each other; and a second bonding portion at which an edge of the second sealing sheet and an edge of at least one of the pair of third sealing sheets are bonded to each other, [0011]), and
the two second covers are in close contact with on both the surfaces of the electrode assembly in the full-width direction (Suh, the second insulating layer of the first sealing sheet may be on the first surface of the electrode assembly, and the second insulating layer of the second sealing sheet may be on the second surface of the electrode assembly, [0016]).
Regarding Claim 2, Suh discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Suh discloses the limitations regarding a secondary battery (Suh, flexible secondary battery, Abstract), wherein the first sealing part is provided by sealing the edge surfaces of the two first covers with the edge surfaces of the two second covers which face each other, and the first sealing part is bent to be in close contact with a surface of the first cover (Suh, Annotated Figure 2 below).
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Regarding Claim 3, Suh discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Suh discloses the limitations regarding a secondary battery (Suh, flexible secondary battery, Abstract), further comprising an adhesive layer through which the first sealing part adheres to the surface of the first cover (Suh, the first bonding portion P1 may be formed where each of the pair of third sealing sheets 130 overlaps an edge of the first sealing sheet 120A, and the second bonding portion P2 may be formed where each of the pair of third sealing sheets 130 overlaps an edge of the second sealing sheet 120B. Thus, the pair of third sealing sheets 130 together with the first sealing sheet 120A and the second sealing sheet 120B may seal the electrode assembly 110, and when layers formed of the same materials are bonded to each other, the layers have an excellent bonding property and have the same thermal expansion coefficient, [0058, 0062], Figure 2 and Annotated Figure 2 above).
Regarding Claim 4, Suh discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Suh discloses the limitations regarding a secondary battery (Suh, flexible secondary battery, Abstract), wherein the second sealing part is provided by sealing the end surfaces of the two first covers (Suh, Second bonding portion with the second sealing part, Annotated Figure 2 above), wherein
the end surfaces of the two second covers are inserted between the end surfaces of the two first covers so as to be sealed together with the end surfaces of the first covers (Suh, end surfaces of the second cover (130) and the first cover (120A/B) are sealed together, Annotated Figure 2 above).
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claim(s) 5 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Suh et al. (US 20150171382 A1, hereinafter Suh, filed in IDS dated 06/26/2023), as applied to Claim 1 above.
Regarding Claim 5, Suh discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Suh discloses the limitations regarding a secondary battery (Suh, flexible secondary battery, Abstract), wherein the two first covers have a structure in which a first protective layer, a first metal layer, and a first insulating layer are sequentially disposed from the inside to the outside (Suh, the first sealing sheet 120A may include a first insulating layer 122, a metal layer 124, and a second insulating layer 126, which are sequentially stacked, [0053]), and
the two second covers have a structure in which a second protective layer, a second metal layer, and a second insulating layer are sequentially disposed from the inside to the outside (Suh, each of the third sealing sheets 130 may include a first insulating layer 132, a metal layer 134, and a second insulating layer 136, which are sequentially stacked, and the third sealing sheet 130 may have the same or substantially the same configuration as that of the first sealing sheet 120A and the second sealing sheet 120, [0059], Figure 2; the Examiner notes that the first cover and second covers do not need to have the same configuration), wherein
the second metal layer has thermal conductivity greater than that of the first metal layer (Suh, the metal layer may be formed of aluminum, steel, or stainless steel, and the third sealing sheet 130 may have the same or substantially the same configuration as that of the first sealing sheet 120A and the second sealing sheet 120, [0054, 0059], Figure 2).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to routinely design the external material of Suh to try different combinations of metals disclosed by Suh for the metal layer, such that a third sealing sheet, or first cover, may have a steel metal layer and the first sealing sheet, or second cover, may have an aluminum layer. See MPEP 2143 I(E).
Claim(s) 6 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Suh et al. (US 20150171382 A1, hereinafter Suh, filed in IDS dated 06/26/2023), as applied to Claim 5 above, in view of Nagata et al. (US 20180294473 A1, hereinafter Nagata).
Regarding Claim 6, Suh discloses all of the claim limitations as set forth above. Suh discloses the limitations regarding a secondary battery (Suh, flexible secondary battery, Abstract). Suh discloses that the metal layer may be formed of aluminum, steel, or stainless steel, and the third sealing sheet 130 may have the same or substantially the same configuration as that of the first sealing sheet 120A and the second sealing sheet 120 (Suh, [0054, 0059], Figure 2). Suh discloses a negative electrode comprising a copper plate and a positive electrode comprising an aluminum plate (Suh, [0049-0050]).
Suh further discloses that the current collector 616 formed on each of the positive electrode plate and the negative electrode plate may be coupled to (e.g., connected to) a first electrode tab 612 or a second electrode tab 614 and the first electrode tab 112 and the second electrode tab 114 may be exposed to outside the flexible secondary battery 100 through a sealing portion 115 at which the first sealing sheet 120A and the second sealing sheet 120B are bonded to each other (Suh, [0052, 0095], Figure 1).
Suh is silent regarding the first metal layer is made of copper (Cu), and the second metal layer is made of aluminum (Al).
Nagata discloses a secondary battery (Nagata, power storage device, [0046]) comprising a pouch (Nagata, packaging material, [0046]), wherein the packaging metal comprises a first metal foil 11 and the positive electrode current collector 71a are made of the same kind of metal, and the second metal foil 21 and the negative electrode current collector 72a are made of the same kind of metal (Nagata, [0046], Figure 1), and the first metal foil and positive electrode current collector are made of aluminum and the second metal foil and negative electrode current collector are made of copper (Nagata, [0019-0020]).
Nagata teaches that the same kind of metal is used as the material of the metal foil of the packaging member and the current collector of the electrode body to reduce the electrode potential difference so that the corrosion due to the potential difference is suppressed to thereby suppress the increase in the internal resistance (Nagata, [0047]).
Suh and Nagata are analogous to the current invention as they are all directed towards a battery packaging.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the invention to such that a third sealing sheet and first sealing sheet of Suh to have an aluminum metal layer and a copper metal layer, respectively, as taught by Nagata, in order to reduce the electrode potential difference so that the corrosion due to the potential difference is suppressed to thereby suppress the increase in the internal resistance.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure:
US 20200144609 A1 discloses a battery outer package may be formed of, for example, a laminate film. The laminate film may be, for example, a laminate film of a resin film such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film, a foil of metal such as aluminum, copper and stainless steel, and a sealant layer of polypropylene or the like, which are stacked in this order [0031].
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KEVIN NGUYEN whose telephone number is (703)756-1745. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 9:50 - 7:50 ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, NICHOLAS A SMITH can be reached at (571) 272-8760. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/K.N./Examiner, Art Unit 1752
/OSEI K AMPONSAH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1752
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