Prosecution Insights
Last updated: April 19, 2026
Application No. 18/279,188

BATTERY MODULE HAVING IMPROVED WATERPROOF AND ANTIVIBRATION PERFORMANCE AND BATTERY PACK INCLUDING THE SAME

Non-Final OA §102
Filed
Aug 28, 2023
Examiner
DOVE, TRACY MAE
Art Unit
1725
Tech Center
1700 — Chemical & Materials Engineering
Assignee
LG Energy Solution, Ltd.
OA Round
1 (Non-Final)
69%
Grant Probability
Favorable
1-2
OA Rounds
3y 6m
To Grant
79%
With Interview

Examiner Intelligence

Grants 69% — above average
69%
Career Allow Rate
480 granted / 695 resolved
+4.1% vs TC avg
Moderate +10% lift
Without
With
+10.1%
Interview Lift
resolved cases with interview
Typical timeline
3y 6m
Avg Prosecution
56 currently pending
Career history
751
Total Applications
across all art units

Statute-Specific Performance

§101
0.2%
-39.8% vs TC avg
§103
35.6%
-4.4% vs TC avg
§102
26.8%
-13.2% vs TC avg
§112
29.8%
-10.2% vs TC avg
Black line = Tech Center average estimate • Based on career data from 695 resolved cases

Office Action

§102
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 Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55. Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 8/28/23, 11/25/24, 2/4/25, 6/9/25 and 12/2/25 have been considered by the examiner. 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. Claim(s) 1- 3 and 7-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (1)(2) as being anticipated by Baek, US 2010/0178548 A1 . Baek teaches a battery pack that improves the assembling efficiency thereof when a first case 500 and a second case 600 are coupled to each other (in contact with each other) . The battery pack has a plurality of cells 101,102 . The battery pack comprises a first case that has a first perimeter and at least one first rib 531 disposed inward from the first perimeter, a second case that has at least one second rib 630 , wherein an upper portion of the first perimeter corresponding to an upper portion of the first rib is truncated with respect to the first rib [0008-0012]. Other embodiments of Baek are taught at [0013] and [0014]. One embodiment of Baek is illustrated by Figure 7: . Figure 7 shows the coupling between the first rib and the second rib includes one face contact and one or more line contacts. Each of the first ribs 530 includes a first upper rib 531 located on the upper side of the coupling holes 530a and a first lower rib 532 located on the lower side of the coupling holes 530a according to the positions of the coupling holes 530a [0043]. Each of the first upper ribs 531 includes a first sub-rib 531a located on the upper side of the coupling holes 530a, a second or interconnecting sub-rib 531b located on the upper side of the first sub-rib 531a and whose thickness becomes smaller (inclined) as it goes toward the inner side of the battery pack 10, and a third or extending sub-rib 531c located on the upper side of the second sub-rib 531b [0045]. See also [0052] , [0057] and the Figures . The battery pack is applied to an external device [0005]. The connector 330 functions as an electrical passage connected to an external electronic device. Regarding claim s 8- 9, Examiner notes the battery pack does not comprise the device. Thus, the limitation “the device is a robot” of claim 9 is not given patentable weight as it does not further limit the claimed battery pack. The “the device is a robot” is considered an intended use limitation that has not been given patentable weight. Only limitations of the claimed battery pack of claims 8-9 are given patentable weight. Thus, the claims are anticipated. Allowable Subject Matter Claims 4-6 and 10-11 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. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the claims are directed toward a battery module comprising a lower case, an upper case, a battery cell, a lower rib and an upper rib as recited by claim 1. T he lower rib of the lower case has a shape configured such that a first lower surface located h orizontally based on a bottom surface of the lower case, a second lower surface inclined downwards toward an outside of the lower case by a predetermined angle, a third lower surface having a larger angle of inclination than the second lower surface, a fourth lower surface inclined upwards toward the outside of the lower case by a predetermined angle, and a fifth lower surface extending in a vertical direction are continuously connected to each other, and wherein the upper rib of the upper case has a shape configured such that a first upper surface located horizontally so as to be brought into face contact with the first lower surface of the lower case, a second upper surface inclined downwards toward an inside of the upper case by a predetermined angle so as to be brought into line contact with the third lower surface of the lower case, a third upper surface inclined downwards toward an outside of the upper case by a predetermined angle, and a fourth upper surface extending in a direction toward the outside of the upper case so as to be brought into line contact with the lower case at a position at which the fourth lower surface and the fifth lower surface join each other are continuously connected to each other. Baek ( US2010/0178548A1 ) does not teaches the specific structure of the lower rib of the lower case and the upper rib of the upper case as recited by claim 4. Baek does not teach the battery module of claim 1 having the connection structure required by claim 10. Ono (US2021/0367296A1) teaches a sealing structure for a battery case. The sealing structure (100,200) is a gasket for a battery case 10 and cover 20 which covers the battery case 10. However, the gasket is not a rib located at an end of the battery case 10 or a rib located at an end of the battery cover 20. The gasket (110,210) is a separate structure. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to FILLIN "Examiner name" \* MERGEFORMAT TRACY DOVE whose telephone number is FILLIN "Phone number" \* MERGEFORMAT (571)272-1285 . The examiner can normally be reached FILLIN "Work Schedule?" \* MERGEFORMAT M-F 9:00-3:00 . 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, FILLIN "SPE Name?" \* MERGEFORMAT Nicole Buie-Hatcher can be reached at FILLIN "SPE Phone?" \* MERGEFORMAT 571-270-3879 . 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. /TRACY M DOVE/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1725
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Prosecution Timeline

Aug 28, 2023
Application Filed
Mar 03, 2026
Non-Final Rejection — §102 (current)

Precedent Cases

Applications granted by this same examiner with similar technology

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Study what changed to get past this examiner. Based on 5 most recent grants.

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Prosecution Projections

1-2
Expected OA Rounds
69%
Grant Probability
79%
With Interview (+10.1%)
3y 6m
Median Time to Grant
Low
PTA Risk
Based on 695 resolved cases by this examiner. Grant probability derived from career allow rate.

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