CTNF 18/288,632 CTNF 97502 Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA. Priority 02-26 AIA Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55. Information Disclosure Statement The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 08/01/2025, 12/17/2024, and 10/27/2023 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner. Drawings 06-22 AIA The drawings are objected to because the drawings are not in compliance with 37 C.F.R. 1.84(u)(1), which requires that view numbers must be preceded by the abbreviation “FIG.” (“(1) The different views must be numbered in consecutive Arabic numerals, starting with 1, independent of the numbering of the sheets and, if possible, in the order in which they appear on the drawing sheet(s). Partial views intended to form one complete view, on one or several sheets, must be identified by the same number followed by a capital letter. View numbers must be preceded by the abbreviation "FIG." Where only a single view is used in an application to illustrate the claimed invention, it must not be numbered and the abbreviation "FIG." must not appear.”). In the drawings submitted on 10/27/2023, the view numbers are preceded by “Figure”, which is noncompliant. Additionally, the drawings are not in compliance with 37 C.F.R. 1.84(u)(2), which requires that the view numbers must be larger than the numbers used for reference characters, and that the numbers and letters identifying the views must not be used in association with brackets. In the drawings’ figure 1, the view numbers are the same size as the numbers used for reference characters and are additionally presented in association with brackets. Additionally, figure 2 is not in compliance with 37 C.F.R. 1.84(p)(3), which requires that numbers, letters, and reference characters should be at least 0.32 cm in height. The letters in figure 2 are smaller than this required standard . Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112 07-30-02 AIA 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. 07-34-01 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. 07-34-03 AIA The term “ high-rate charging ” in claim 1 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “ high-rate charging ” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. It is not clear what the scope of rates of charging can constitute high-rate charging . 07-34-03 AIA The term “ low-rate charging ” in claim 1 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “ low-rate charging ” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. It is not clear what the scope of rates of charging can constitute low-rate charging . Claim 1 recites the limitation "the SOC 25% charging" in line 11 of the claim. There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. Here, it is noted that the claim does provide antecedent basis for “first charging up to state of charge (SOC) 25%”. For the purpose of examination the SOC 25% charging is interpreted as referring to the “first charging”. Additionally, it is noted that the term “the SOC 25% charging” is present in claim 3, and claim 3 should be amended in accordance with any amendments to claim 1. Additionally, Claim 5 is indefinite, as it presents limitations within parentheses: (x=0) and (0<x<2), as it is unclear if the limitations within the parentheses are a part of the claim. For the purpose of examination, the claims are interpreted as the parenthetical features being a part of the claims. Claims 2-9 are indefinite as a result of their dependence on an indefinite claim . Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-06 AIA 15-10-15 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. 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-23-aia AIA 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. 07-20-02-aia AIA 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim (s) 1-2 and 4-9 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim (WO 2021015488 A1, with US equivalent 20220255150 A1 used for citation purposes) and further in view of Guo (CN 113363422 A with EPO translation used for citation purposes), Oh et al (Effect of current rate on the formation of the solid electrolyte interface layer at the graphite anode in lithium-ion batteries) . Regarding Claims 1, and 2, Kim is an analogous art to the instant application, being directed towards the art of secondary battery manufacturing methods (Abstract, “The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a secondary battery”). Kim discloses a method of manufacturing a lithium secondary battery (Paragraph 0020, “The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a secondary battery, and particularly, to a method of manufacturing a lithium secondary battery.”) comprising providing a lithium secondary battery comprising an electrode assembly comprising a negative electrode a positive electrode and a separator (Paragraph 0021, “Specifically, the method of manufacturing a secondary battery of the present invention comprises the steps of forming a secondary battery structure comprising an electrode assembly comprising a negative electrode, a positive electrode, and a separator”) where the negative electrode is a silicon-based negative electrode (Paragraph 0021, “wherein the negative electrode comprises a silicon-based active material.”). Additionally, Kim’s method comprises activating the lithium secondary battery, where activating comprises charging and discharging the lithium secondary battery (Paragraph 0083, “The method of manufacturing a secondary battery of the present invention comprises activating a secondary battery structure by charging and discharging for at least one cycle). Additionally, in regards to the limitation which requires that the charging comprises multi-stage charging from high-rate charging to low-rate charging, this limitation is interpreted as requiring that the charging comprise multiple stages, where each of the stages require charging that is characterized as high-rate charging or low-rate charging. Accordingly, where high rate charging and low rate charging are not provided with definitions in the claim, any charging would therefore constitute high rate charging or low rate charging. Here, in regards to the limitation which requires that the multi-stage charging first comprise charging up to an SOC of 25% and a second charging after the SOC 25% charging, Kim fails to disclose this structure. Therefore we look to Guo which is an analogous art to the instant application, being directed towards the art of lithium ion batteries and preparation methods (Abstract, “The invention relates to the technical field of lithium ion batteries, and discloses a preparation method of a lithium ion battery”). Here, Guo discloses a method of preparation of a lithium secondary battery which comprises a multi-stage charging, comprising first charging up to 25% (Paragraph 0021, “Further, the specific process of the first charging by increasing the pressure step by step is as follows: charging at a pressure of 0.07 ～ 0.14Mpa to 25-35% SOC”) and a second charging after the SOC 25% charging (Paragraph 0021, “and then charging at a pressure of 0.25 ～ 0.35Mpa to 65 ～ 75 % SOC”). Here, Guo discloses that their charging steps, when performed at different pressures optimizes SEI formation in the early stage of charging (Paragraph 0020, “In the 0-30% SOC stage, the main changes that occur in the lithium-ion battery are the formation of the SEI film on the negative electrode surface and the generation of gas. At this stage, the use of a smaller pressure is beneficial to exhaust gas, and it is between the pole pieces and the pole pieces”) through promoting gas exhaust, and at later charging stages, the high pressure suppresses volume expansion of the negative electrode active material (Paragraph 0020, “in the 30-70% SOC and 70-100% SOC stages, the main change in the lithium ion battery is the negative electrode lithiation reaction. In this stage, a larger The pressure is beneficial to suppress the volume expansion of the negative electrode material.”). Based on this, it would be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to implement the multi-stage charging which comprises a first charging up to SOC 25% and a second charging after the SOC 25% charging. Additionally, in regards to the limitation which requires that the first charging comprises performing charging at a constant current of 0.5C or higher, Kim discloses the use of a constant current for their charging conditions (Paragraph 0120, “constant current”), however, Kim in view of Guo fail to disclose or make obvious the C-rate being of the first charging 0.5C or higher. Therefore we look to Oh, which is a publication directed towards the effects of current levels on SEI formation in negative electrodes of lithium ion batteries (Abstract, “In this study, SEI layers were formed at various current rates using a full cell, and their chemical and electrochemical properties were investigated.”). Here, Oh discusses the benefits of high current conditions, specifically discussing a charge rate of 1.0 C (Page 3, “the anode used at 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0 C”), where a high current condition is disclosed as producing a larger inorganic solid electrolyte interface teaching that the high current inorganic SEI layer comprises high conductivity components such as Li 2 CO 3 and Li 2 O (Page 6, “Li 2 CO 3 and Li 2 O have high ionic conductivities similar to those of graphite. The amount and composition of the SEI component affect to the electrochemical properties of the anode due to their respective electrochemical properties.”). Accordingly, based on this disclosure of Oh, the C-rating of the first charge step can be identified as a result effective variable, having the recognized result of promoting high conductivity SEI formation. Accordingly, where Oh presents a finite number of possible C-ratings (0.1, 0.5, and 1.0), routine experimentation within this set of values which represents a workable range means that it would be obvious to try each value, thereby resulting in an initial charging step which has a C-rate value of 1.0C. Accordingly, this makes obvious a method wherein the first charging comprises performing charging at a constant current of Oh’s 1.0C , which satisfies the 0.5C requirement of claim 1, and the 0.9C requirement of claim 2. Regarding Claim 4, modified Kim makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, in regards to the limitation which requires that an activation time of the activating is 10 hours or shorter, Kim discloses a discharging rate of 0.2 C, which is a rate which will take 5 hours to fully discharge. Accordingly, where the charging conditions take .25 hours to reach 25% at 1.0C (where 1.0C for the initial charging condition is made obvious by Oh, as discussed above) and 3.75 hours to go from 25% to 100% at 0.2C as per Kim (Paragraph 0120, “charging conditions: 0.2 C”), the charging takes 4 hours and the discharging takes 5 hours, a single activation cycle of charging and discharging takes 9 hours, which falls into the scope of the instant claim which requires that an activation time of the activating is 10 hours or shorter. Regarding Claims 5 and 6, modified Kim makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, Kim discloses that their silicon-based negative electrode comprises a negative electrode current collector layer and a negative electrode active material provided on a surface of the negative electrode current collector layer, where the negative electrode active material layer comprises a negative electrode active material layer composition comprising a silicon-based active material (Paragraph 0030, “The negative electrode may comprise a negative electrode current collector and a negative electrode active material layer formed on the negative electrode current collector. In this case, the silicon-based active material may be comprised in the negative electrode active material layer.”). Additionally, the silicon-based active material comprises SiO 0 (Si) in an amount of 75 parts by weight on the basis of 100 parts by weight of the silicon-based active material (Paragraph 0105, “Si (average particle diameter (D50 ): 2.5 μm) as a silicon-based active material,”; Paragraph 0105, “The silicon-based active material, the negative electrode conductive material, and the negative electrode binder were mixed at a weight ratio of 75:10:15.”), which satisfies the requirement of claim 5 that the silicon based active material comprise Si in an amount of 50 parts by weight or more on the basis of 100 parts, and the requirement of claim 6 that the active material comprise Si in an amount of 60 party by weight or more on the basis of 100 parts. Regarding Claim 7, modified Kim makes obvious the invention of Claim 5. Additionally, Kim discloses that their negative electrode active material comprises a negative electrode conductive material (Paragraph 0105, “carbon black (product name: Super C65, manufacturer: TIMCAL), as a negative electrode conductive material,”) and a binder (Paragraph 0105, “and a mixture (weight average molecular weight: about 360,000 g/mol) obtained by mixing polyvinyl alcohol and polyacrylic acid in a weight ratio of 66:34 as a negative electrode binder”). Regarding Claim 8, modified Kim makes obvious the invention of Claim 7. Additionally, Kim discloses that their negative electrode conductive material comprises a linear conductive material (Paragraph 0052, “a conductive tube such as carbon nanotubes or the like;”) and a planar conductive material (Paragraph 0041, “Specifically, the conductive material may comprise at least one selected from the group consisting of natural graphite, artificial graphite,”). Regarding Claim 9, modified Kim makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, modified Kim makes obvious a lithium secondary battery manufactured according to the manufacturing method of a lithium secondary battery according to claim 1 (Paragraph 0102, “The secondary battery manufactured by the method of manufacturing a secondary battery of the present invention”) . 07-22-aia AIA Claim (s) 3 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kim (WO 2021015488 A1, with US equivalent 20220255150 A1 used for citation purposes) in view of Guo (CN 113363422 A with EPO translation used for citation purposes), Oh et al (Effect of current rate on the formation of the solid electrolyte interface layer at the graphite anode in lithium-ion batteries) as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Schramm (US 20190027736 A1) . Regarding Claim 3 , modified Kim makes obvious the invention of Claim 1. Additionally, in regards to the limitation of Claim 3 which requires that the second charging after the SOC 25% charging comprises performing charging at a constant current of 0.5C or lower, Kim in view of Guo and Oh fail to teach or disclose this method. Therefore we look to Schramm, which is an analogous art to the instant application, being directed towards the art of manufacturing silicon-based negative electrodes and the formation of batteries using said electrodes (Abstract, “The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a silicon-based negative electrode, a method for manufacturing a lithium-ion battery from a preformed silicon-based negative electrode, and a lithium-ion battery thus obtained.”). Specifically, Schramm discloses that their selection of C-rate values is to counteract the effects of silicon electrolyte expansion during charging and discharging (Paragraph 0010, “Therefore, a fundamental challenge to the commercial application of silicon-containing negative electrodes is the enormous change in volume, i.e., the breathing, of the material during the lithiation and delithiation processes”; Paragraph 0010, “In addition, it results in constant fracturing and growth of the SEI. This in turn results in continuous Li ion consumption and increasing internal resistance in the cell, and thus a lower coulombic efficiency (CE) and inadequate cycle stability.”; Paragraph 0015, “The technical object of the present invention is to provide electrodes and batteries that do not have the above-mentioned disadvantages, and that in particular allow a reduction in the initial irreversible capacity loss and a reduction in the time required for the SEI formation.”). Specifically, in regards to Guo, they disclose that the majority of volume fluctuation occurs in the second and third charging steps of their process (Paragraph 0020, “in the 30-70% SOC and 70-100% SOC stages, the main change in the lithium ion battery is the negative electrode lithiation reaction. In this stage, a larger The pressure is beneficial to suppress the volume expansion of the negative electrode material.”). Accordingly, based on this, it would be obvious to one ordinarily skilled in the art to apply the C-rate values of Schramm, which are disclosed as being 0.2 (Paragraph 0048, “In one preferred embodiment, the current applied in method step b) corresponds to a C-rate of C/5”) for the second and third charging steps, thereby reading upon and making obvious a method where the second charging after the SOC 25% charging comprises performing charging at a constant current of 0.5C or lower, as is required by claim 3. Conclusion Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to JONATHAN W ESTES whose telephone number is (571)272-4820. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:00 - 5:30. 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, Basia Ridley can be reached at 5712721453. 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. /J.W.E./ Examiner, Art Unit 1725 /Sean P Cullen, Ph.D./Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 2 Art Unit: 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 3 Art Unit: 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 4 Art Unit: 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 5 Art Unit: 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 6 Art Unit: 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 7 Art Unit: 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 8 Art Unit: 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 9 Art Unit: 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 10 Art Unit: 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 11 Art Unit: 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 12 Art Unit: 1725 Application/Control Number: 18/288,632 Page 13 Art Unit: 1725
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