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 .
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
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.
Claims 1-8 and 10-13 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.
Claim 1 has incorporated similar claim language as was previously included in claim 9 with claim 9 now being canceled. Claim 9 was previously rejected as indefinite and the Examiner gave specifically suggested claim language which Applicant has chosen to ignore. The adjusted claim language Applicant has used for amended claim 1 still leads to an indefinite claim.
Specifically, it is unclear what is meant by “to another direction which the first tab portion is wound outward away from the wound core body”. On its face, this seems to be attempting to define the radial direction, but if Applicant intends this to be the radial direction than “radial direction” must be used rather than defining a new term for something already recited in the claim. Moreover, it is unclear how a tab would have a varying width starting at the portion of the tab connecting to the wound body and extending along the radial direction since the tab will have the same width along that entire direction.
Instead, it appears Applicant again intends to claim “a width of the one of the at least two first tabs is gradually reduced from one end of the first tab portion connected to the wound body to a second end of the first tab portion extended away from the first end” which is how the claim will be interpreted and how the Office suggests Applicant consider amending the claim to read.
Additionally, there appear to be some copy/paste errors with the definition of the width of the second tab portion since it is defined in terms of positions of the first tab portion. Correction is required as it is unclear how the second tab portion can have a width at a point of the first tab portion.
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.
Claims 1-8 and 10-13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Chinese Patent Publication No. CN115036585, relying on English language equivalent U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2023/0402724 (“Lu”) for citation/translation purposes. Regarding claims 1-8 and 10, Lu discloses cylindrical batteries, comprising a wound electrode assembly. Lu at Abstract. The wound electrode assembly is considered to correspond to the recited wound body. The wound electrode assembly is formed by stacking a first electrode plate of a first polarity, a separator, and a second electrode plate of an opposite polarity, followed by winding the stacked assembly. Id.
The first electrode plate includes tabs (21) comprised of a plurality of tabs all extending from one side of the wound battery cell, each of the plurality of tabs comprised of a plurality of sub-tabs. Id. at paragraph [0006]. This group of tabs is considered to correspond to the recited first tab portion.
Regarding the plurality of tabs of which the group of tabs (21) is comprised, Lu states that the plurality of tabs is comprised of adjacent tabs, where adjacent tabs are arranged adjacent in the radial direction, with successive tab is located further from the winding center of the wound body. Id. at paragraphs [0006] and [0008] and Figure 10. Each of these adjacent tabs is then itself comprised of a plurality of sub-tabs. Id. at paragraph [0006] and Figures 9 and 10. Looking at the annotated version of Figure 10 provided in the previous Office Action, the two sub-tabs of the inner-most plurality of tabs labeled “1” are considered to correspond to two first tabs making up the first tab set, the three sub-tabs of the middle plurality of tabs labeled “2” are considered to correspond to three second tabs making up the second tab set, and the two sub-tabs of the outer-most plurality of tabs labeled “3” are considered to corresdpond to the two third tabs making up the third set of tabs recited in claim 6.
Looking at Figure 9, it is clear that each of these tabs is trapezoidal in shape, having a widest portion at the point where the tab connects with the wound body and gradually narrowing in width towards the top end of the tab that is extended away from the end of the tab connected to the wound body, with both the top end and the end connected to the wound body being parallel.
The sub-tabs of any one plurality of tabs are arranged with a gap between neighboring sub-tabs where this gap is 1 to 20mm. Lu at paragraph [0062]. Moreover, the subtabs of adjacent plurality of tabs (i.e., the sub-tabs of adjacent winding layers) are staggered with respect to one another, such that one of the second tabs overlaps with the one of the first tabs and the gap formed between two adjacent first tabs. Similarly, one of the first tabs overlaps with both one of the second tabs and the gap formed between that second tab and the second tab adjacent to it. Finally, one of the third tabs overlaps with one of the second tabs and the gap formed between two adjacent second tabs. Lu at Paragraph 6 and the annotated version of Figure 10 shown in the previous Action. While figure 10 of Lu shows all of these sub-tabs having been folded over, prior to folding this staggering will result in the described overlap in the orthogonal proection of the tabs and gaps between tabs in the radial direction.
Regarding the winding core hole, the Office notes that in winding a tri-laminated sheet, at least a small gap necessarily forms in the center, and this hole is shown in the radial center and extending along the longitudinal battery axis in Figures 8 and 10 of Lu.
Further regarding claim 11, it is first noted that any three points on the three lines will by definition form a plane and thus each line will lie at least in part on this plane. Moreover, it is noted that claim 11 depends from claim 1, which allows for all sub-tabs of the inner-most plurality of tabs to comprise a first tab set and all of the sub-tabs of the middle plurality of tabs to comprise a second tab set, and thus the center of those two sets defined in that manner will align on the same radial plane extending out from the longitudinal axis of the battery.
Further regarding claims 12 and 13, the second electrode plate also includes a corresponding set of tabs (22) having opposite polarity to the tabs (21) of the first electrode late. Moreover, the second tab portion (22) as drawn out from the same side of the battery as the first tab portion (21). Id at paragraph [0048]. As shown in Figure 10, both tab portions (21) and (22) are spaced apart from the hole at the winding axis of the wound body.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 1/26/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Applicant alleges that the tabs of Lu are rectangular, with sides parallel to one another and thus not gradually reducing in width. This is contrary to what is shown in Figure 9 where the tabs are clearly tapered in width forming trapezoids. While this reduction in width is not as evident in Figure 10, it is still present, with all exposed sides of folded over tabs extending along the radial axis of the battery as would only happen if the tabs reduced in width as they extended from the point of contact with the wound body to the top end of the tab.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
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/WYATT P MCCONNELL/Examiner, Art Unit 1727