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 with traverse of Group I, claims 1-19, 22 and 23 in the reply filed on April 17, 2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that there is no undue burden to examine all of the claims in the application. This is not found persuasive because burden is not a consideration in restriction practice under the requirement of unity of invention as provided in 37 CFR 1.475.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
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) 1-6, 10-13, 16-19, 22 and 23 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bae (U.S. Pub. No. 2020/0083494 A1, cited by Applicant) in view of Shin et al. (hereinafter “Shin”) (U.S. Pub. No. 2019/0386272 A1, cited by Applicant).
Regarding claims 1, 2 and 19, Bae teaches a secondary battery 100 including an electrode assembly 110, a case 120 (battery can) accommodating the electrode assembly 110, a cap assembly 130 (top cap) coupled to the a top opening of the case 120, a gasket 140 allowing the case 120 and the cap assembly 130 to be tightly contacted with each other, a conductive cover 150 (conductive washer) coupled to an upper part of the case 120 and the cap assembly 130, and an insulation member 160 (insulative washer) positioned between the upper part of the case 120 and the conductive cover 150 (see paragraph 25; FIGS. 2 and 3). A first electrode tab 114 is connected to the cap assembly 130 at an upper part of the electrode assembly 110, and a second electrode tab 115 is connected to a bottom plate 122 of the case 120 at a lower part of the electrode assembly 110 (see paragraph 26).
Bae is silent as to a fixing member located between the conductive washer and the insulative washer.
Shin teaches a battery cell cap assembly in which a thermoplastic adhesive layer 221 which is used to couple a washer 211 to an upper surface of a gasket 205 (see paragraphs 46 and 47). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have adapted the adhesive layer of Shin to the cap assembly of Bae in order to fix the conductive cover to the insulation member and thereby maintain a functional position of the insulation member.
Regarding claims 3 and 4, Shin teaches that the thermoplastic adhesive layer may comprise epoxy resin (see paragraph 23).
Regarding claim 5, FIG. 2 of Shin suggests that the thermoplastic adhesive polymer may be utilized to cover the entire interface between the conductive cover and the insulation member.
Regarding claim 6, Bae teaches that the case may have a cylinder shape (see paragraph 30).
Regarding claims 10-12, Bae teaches that the cap assembly 130 includes a cap-up 131 including a terminal part 131a having an upwardly convex portion positioned at its center (see paragraphs 31 and 32). The terminal part 131a is exposed through a central hole 151a in the conductive cover 150 and a hole 161 positioned at the center of the insulation member 160 (see paragraphs 41 and 47).
Regarding claim 16, although Bae teaches that a vent 132 is provided in the cap assembly 130 rather than in a lower surface as claimed, the courts have held that the rearrangement of parts is likely to be obvious when doing so would not have modified the operation of the device. See In re Japikse 181 F.2d 1019, 86 USPQ 70 (CCPA 195) (see MPEP § 2144.04).
Regarding claims 17 and 18, although Bae does not explicitly teach that the first and second electrode tabs are uncoated portions of their respective electrode current collectors, this arrangement is conventional in the art as it permits a metal current collector to be welded directly to the cap assembly and bottom plate of the battery.
Regarding claims 22 and 23, Shin teaches that secondary batteries are commonly utilized as energy sources for electric vehicles and hybrid electric vehicles (see paragraph 3). In these applications, it is common for a plurality of individual cells to be grouped into modules or battery packs in order to provide adequate capacity for long distance travel.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 7-9, 14 and 15 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to STEPHAN J ESSEX whose telephone number is (571)270-7866. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday, 8:30 am - 6:00 pm.
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.
/STEPHAN J ESSEX/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1727
Prosecution Insights