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 without traverse of Species A1 in the reply filed on 08/26/2026 is acknowledged.
Claims 7 and 8 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected Species A2 and A3, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 08/26/2026.
Claim Objections
Claim 4 is objected to because of the following informalities:
The claim limitation “separating from the rid” should read “separating from the lid”, as is consistent with and reasonable in view of [0061] of the instant specification.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
Claims 1-3 and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Kajiwara (US20140120396A1, cited in IDS filed 01/22/2024).
Regarding claim 1, Kajiwara discloses a secondary battery (i.e. rechargeable battery, [0010]) in which a storage element that charges and discharges electricity (i.e. lump of flat electrodes, [0010]) is housed in an exterior body (i.e. battery pack configured to accommodate lump of flat electrodes, [0010], Fig. 2, 11), the secondary battery comprising:
a box body configuring the exterior body (Fig. 2, 11), and opened on one surface side, and a lid (i.e. battery lid configured to seal the battery pack, [0010], Fig. 2, 12) that closes the surface side of the box body, as shown in annotated Kajiwara Fig. 2 below.
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Annotated Kajiwara Fig. 2
Kajiwara further discloses an external terminal attached to the lid to expose at least a part thereof to an outside from the lid (Fig. 2, 14, 15); and a current collector (i.e. cathode and anode electricity collector, Fig. 2, 120, 130) that electrically connects the storage element and the external terminal (i.e. anode electricity collector connected to anode external terminal and raising portions extending towards bottom surface of battery pack, [0057]).
Kajiwara further discloses wherein the current collector includes an extending section electrically connected to the storage element (i.e. lump of electrodes inserted between pair of joint plates, [0049];[0052], Fig. 4, 127, 137); and a plate-like base disposed along the lid (Fig. 4, 121, 131) and electrically connected to the external terminal (i.e. panel-shaped mounting plate to which anode external terminal is connected; panel shaped mounting plate to which cathode external terminal is connected, [0057], Fig. 2, 14, 15).
Kajiwara further discloses wherein the base includes: a first base constituent section that is a part that forms one end side in a longitudinal direction of the base and continues from the extending section; and a second base constituent section that forms another end side in the longitudinal direction of the base and is connected to the external terminal (i.e. panel-shaped mounting plate to which anode external terminal is connected, Fig. 5, 121, [0057]), and the second base constituent section is formed thinner than the first base constituent section, as shown below in annotated Kajiwara Fig. 5 and Fig. 2.
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Annotated Kajiwara Fig. 5 (left) and Fig. 2 (right)
Regarding claim 2, Kajiwara discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Kajiwara further discloses wherein the second base constituent is formed thinner than the first base constituent section in an entire region in the longitudinal direction of the base, as shown below in Kajiwara Fig. 5 below.
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Annotated Kajiwara Fig. 5
Regarding claim 3, Kajiwara discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Kajiwara further discloses wherein the second base constituent section is thinned such that a surface facing the storage element is located in a direction in which the surface further separates from the storage element than a surface facing the storage element in the first base constituent section, as shown below in annotated Kajiwara Fig. 5 below.
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Annotated Kajiwara Fig. 5
Regarding claim 6, Kajiwara discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Kajiwara further discloses wherein the base further comprises a third base constituent section provided between the first base constituent section and the second base constituent section of the base, at least one surface side of the third base constituent section being formed in a taper shape including from the first base constituent section toward the second base constituent section, as shown below in annotated Kajiwara Fig. 5
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Annotated Kajiwara Fig. 5
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 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kajiwara (US20140120396A1) as applied to claim 1 above, and in further view of Byun et al. (US20120100419A1).
Regarding claim 4, Kajiwara discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Kajiwara discloses a first surface facing the lid (Fig. 2, 12) and a second surface on an opposite side of the first surface in the second base constituent section, in addition to a combining hole, as shown below in annotated Kajiwara Fig. 4.
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Annotated Kajiwara Fig. 4
Kajiwara further discloses desiring to improve rigidity of the electricity collector (i.e. current collector) as when increasing mass of the lump of electrode to achieve a greater capacity, the probability of deformation of the electricity collector also increases ([0009]).
However, Kajiwara does not disclose a rib projecting in a direction separating from the lid provided on a second surface on an opposite side of the first surface in the second base constituent section.
Byun teaches a similar battery with a collector plate including an electrode region coupled to the electrode assembly and a terminal region coupled to the terminal ([0013]). Byun further teaches the terminal region of the collector plate (i.e. second base constituent region) comprises a combining hole and a protruded region (i.e. rib, Fig. 6, 254) which may be disposed around the combining hole and is thicker than other regions of the terminal region ([0076]). See annotated Byun Fig. 6 below. Furthermore, Byun teaches the protruded region (i.e. rib) may further increase stiffness of the collector plate around the combining hole ([0077]).
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Annotated Byun Fig. 6
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have utilized the protruded region taught by Byun as a rib provided on a second surface of the second base constituent section for the benefit of increasing stiffness of the collector plate around the combining hole, as desired by Kajiwara.
Claim 5 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kajiwara (US20140120396A1) and Byun et al. (US20120100419A1) as applied to claim 4 above, and further in view of Wakimoto et al. (US 20160155998 A1).
Regarding claim 5, modified Kajiwara discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Modified Kajiwara discloses wherein a thickness of the first base constituent section is greater than a thickness of the second base constituent section (Kajiwara, Fig. 5).
A skilled artisan would recognize that in the first base constituent section being thicker than the second base constituent section, the thickness ratio between the first and second base constituent sections is greater than 1:1, and that making either section too thick would result in reduced energy density as relative active material volume would decrease. However, modified Kajiwara does not explicitly disclose a ratio of the thickness of the first base constituent section and a thickness of the second base consistent section to be 5:2 or higher and 5:3 or lower,
Neverthless, Wakimoto teaches a similar battery wherein the positive electrode and negative electrode current collectors include a terminal connection portion (Fig. 5, 6a, Fig, 6, 8a, [0039]-[0040]). Wakimoto further discloses wherein the positive electrode current collector terminal connection portion has a thickness T1 of 1.4 mm (i.e. first base constituent section), while the recessed portion (i.e. second base constituent section) has a remaining thickness T3 of 0.8 mm ([0050], Fig. 5). This yields a ratio of a thickness of the first base constituent section and a thickness of a second base constituent section of 5:2.86, which is within the claimed range of 5:2 or higher and 5:3 or lower.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, that each of Kajiwara’s base constituent sections must necessarily possess a certain thickness, with the first base constituent section having a greater thickness, and, as demonstrated by Wakamoto, to have arrived within the claimed range for the thickness ratio, with reasonable expectation of achieving a successful current collector.
Claim 9 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kajiwara et al. (US20140120396A1), as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Wakimoto et al. (US20160155998A1).
Regarding claim 9, Kajiwara discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Kajiwara further discloses wherein the current collector includes a positive electrode current collector (Fig. 2, 130) connected to a positive electrode of the storage element (i.e. cathode external terminal is electrically connected to the electrode of the cathode of the lump of wound electrodes via the cathode electricity collector, [0041]) and a negative electrode current collector (Fig. 2, 120) connected to the negative electrode of the storage element (i.e. the anode external terminal is electrically connected to the electrode of the anode of the lump of the wound electrodes via the anode electricity collector, [0041]),
The external terminal includes a positive electrode external terminal (Fig. 2, 15) connected to the positive electrode current collector ([0041]) and a negative electrode external terminal (Fig. 2, 14) connected to the negative electrode current collector ([0041]).
Kajiwara further discloses that the cathode external terminal and cathode electricity collector are both formed from copper while the anode external terminal and anode electricity collector are both formed from aluminum ([0040]). {Examiner Note: The translation regarding the cathode/anode appears to be incorrect, as evidenced by JP2013008559A, see [0018] of examiner provided machine translation}
However, Kajiwara does not disclose wherein a thickness of the second base constituent section of the base in the positive electrode current collector is larger than a thickness of the second base constituent section of the base in the negative electrode current collector.
Wakimoto teaches a similar battery wherein the positive electrode and negative electrode current collectors include a terminal connection portion (Fig. 5, 6a, Fig. 6, 8a, [0039]-[0040]). Wakimoto further teaches the thickness of the positive electrode terminal connection portion is greater than that of the negative electrode terminal connection portion ([0011]), with the positive electrode current collector being made of aluminum, and the negative electrode current collector being made of copper ([0011]). Furthermore, Wakimoto teaches that the specific gravity of aluminum is smaller than that of copper and by increasing the thickness of the positive electrode current collector by a larger amount than by evenly increasing the thickness of both positive and negative electrode current collector, it is possible to suppress the decreasing of the specific energy of the battery ([0011]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have improved the current collectors of Kajiwara such that a thickness of the positive electrode current collector second base constituent section is larger than the thickness of the negative electrode current collector second base constituent section, for the benefit of suppressing the decrease of specific energy of the battery, as taught by Wakimoto.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ESTHER J TAN whose telephone number is (571)272-3479. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 7:30 AM-4:00 PM.
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/E.J.T./Examiner, Art Unit 1751
/JONATHAN G LEONG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1751 9/18/2026
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