DETAILED ACTION
This office action is in response to communication filed on 8/7/2026.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 9/9/2026 is in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Response to Amendment
Applicant’s amendments with respect to claims filed on 8/7/2026 has been entered. Claims 1-16 remain pending in this application and are currently under consideration for patentability under 37 CFR 1.104. Claims 17-20 are cancelled.
The amendments and remarks filed on 8/7/2026 are sufficient to cure the previous 35 U.S.C. 112(b) rejections set forth in the Non-Final office action mailed on 5/8/2026.
Claim Objections
Claims 1 and 11 are objected to because “the accommodate portion” appears to read “the pair of accommodation portions”.
Claim 9 is objected to because “the accommodate portion” appears to read “each of the pair of accommodation portions”.
Appropriate correction is required.
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 1-16 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.
Claims 1 and 11 recite the limitation "the width direction of the pouch sheet". There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim. For examination purposes, the aforementioned recitation has been interpreted as “a width direction of the pouch sheet”.
Claims 2-10 are rejected as they depend from claim 1, claims 12-16 are rejected as they depend from claim 11, and therefore incorporate the claimed subject matter from claims rejected under this statute.
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.
Claims 1-5 and 9-14 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kwon et al. (US 20190044106 A1) (evidenced by Kwon et al. (CN 108780857 A)) in view of Lee et al. (US 20230207933 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Kwon et al. teaches a pouch unit (200, Fig. 2) comprising:
a pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2) having an inner surface (inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2) and an outer surface (surface opposite inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2) opposite the inner surface (inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2);
a pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2) formed on the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2), each of the pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2) forming an accommodation space (211/221, Fig. 2) that is open in a direction (direction, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2) in which the inner surface faces (both 211/221 are open in the “direction”, which is the same direction inner surface faces, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2);
a connecting portion (202, Fig. 2) formed foldably (see Fig. 2) on the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2) and positioned between (202 is between 211 and 221, see Fig. 2) the pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2);
a perimeter portion (201/201’, Fig. 2) formed on the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2), the perimeter portion (201/201’, Fig. 2) being positioned between a perimeter (outline of 210/220, Fig. 2) of the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2) and the pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2); and
a notch portion (212/222, Fig. 2) formed alongside a side (left side of 211 adjacent to 212/right side of 221 adjacent to 222, see Fig. 2 ) of the pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2) at the perimeter portion (201/201’, Fig. 2), the notch portion (see 212/222, Fig. 3) being concave (see highlighted section of machine translation of CN 108780857 A) on the inner surface (inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2),
wherein the connecting portion (202, Fig. 2), the accommodation portion (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2), and the perimeter portion (201/201’, Fig. 2) are arranged sequentially spaced apart (when folded, 221 is at the same cross section of 211, 201’ is at the same location of 201, therefore they are spaced apart in the sequential order of 202, bottom 211/bottom 221 and 201/201’, see bottom part of Fig. 2) along the width direction (direction of L1 and L2, see Fig. 2) of the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2).
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However, Kwon et al. does not teach wherein the accommodation portion, the notch portion and the perimeter portion are arranged sequentially spaced apart along the width direction of the pouch sheet.
Lee et al. teaches wherein the accommodation portion (121, Fig. 3), the notch portion (142, Fig. 4; note: 142 includes concave part 142a and convex part 142b, see Fig. 4) and the perimeter portion (the bottom portion of 122 spaced apart from 140, see Fig. 3) are arranged sequentially spaced apart (see Fig. 3) along the width direction (the direction in which 111 and 130 are extending down, see Fig. 3) of the pouch sheet (120, Fig. 3).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the electrode leads taught by Kwon et al. by adding the lead pattern layer taught by Lee et al.; and to modify the electrode lead grooves taught by Kwon et al. to be the sealing pattern layer taught by Lee et al. to increase the bonding force and sealing force between the lead and the sealing part of the battery case to prevent the venting from occurring (see Lee et al. Abstract, [0021] and [0050]). When the electrode lead grooves of Kwon has been modified to be the sealing pattern layer of Lee, the connecting portion (the predetermined portion of Kwon), the accommodation portion (bottom of the first and second receiving parts of Kwon), the notch portion (the sealing pattern layer of Lee) and the perimeter portion (the peripheral portion of Kwon) are arranged sequentially spaced apart, and the shape of the electrode lead groove becomes the sealing pattern with concave part and convex part.
Regarding claim 2, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. teaches wherein a thickness (thickness 1, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3) of the pouch sheet in the notch portion is smaller (thickness 1 smaller than thickness 2, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3) than a thickness (thickness 2, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3) of the pouch sheet in another area of the pouch sheet.
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Regarding claim 3, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. teaches wherein the notch portion (212/222 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2) includes:
a first notch portion (212 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2) formed alongside a first side (a side of 211, Kwon Fig. 2) of each of the pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Kwon Fig. 2) at the perimeter portion (201/201’, Kwon Fig. 2), the first notch portion (212 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2) being concave (see Lee Fig. 4) on the inner surface (inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2); and
a second notch portion (222 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2) formed alongside a second side (a side of 221, Kwon Fig. 2) of each of the pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Kwon Fig. 2) at the perimeter portion (201/201’, Kwon Fig. 2), the second notch portion (222 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2) being concave (see Lee Fig. 4) on the inner surface (inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2),
wherein each of the pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall 211/bottom wall 221, Kwon Fig. 2) is positioned between the first notch portion (212 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2) and the second notch portion (222 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 4, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. teaches wherein the pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Kwon Fig. 2) includes:
a first accommodation portion (bottom wall of 211, Kwon Fig. 2) formed on the pouch sheet (210/220, Kwon Fig. 2), the first accommodation portion (bottom wall of 211, Kwon Fig. 2) forming a first accommodation space (211, Kwon Fig. 2) that is open in the direction (direction, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2) in which the inner surface faces (211 is open in direction, which is the same direction inner surface faces, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2), the first accommodation portion (bottom wall of 211, Kwon Fig. 2) being adjacent to the first notch portion (212 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2); and
a second accommodation portion (bottom wall of 221, Kwon Fig. 2) formed on the pouch sheet (210/220, Kwon Fig. 2), the second accommodation portion (bottom wall of 221, Kwon Fig. 2) forming a second accommodation space (221, Kwon Fig. 2) that is open in the direction (direction, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2) in which the inner surface faces (221 is open in direction, which is the same direction inner surface faces, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2), the second accommodation portion (bottom wall of 221, Kwon Fig. 2) being adjacent to the second notch portion (222 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 5, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. teaches wherein the first accommodation portion (bottom wall of 211, Kwon Fig. 2) is positioned between the second accommodation portion (bottom wall of 221, Kwon Fig. 2) and the first notch portion (212 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2), and
wherein the second accommodation portion (bottom wall of 221, Kwon Fig. 2) is positioned between the first accommodation portion (bottom wall of 211, Kwon Fig. 2) and the second notch portion (222 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2).
Regarding claim 9, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. teaches wherein the notch portion (212/222 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2; note: structure of the notch see Lee Fig. 9) includes a first notch segment (first notch segment, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9; note: it’s a 142b of 140, see Lee Figs 2 and 9) and a second notch segment (second notch segment, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9; note: it’s a 142b of 140, see Lee Figs 2 and 9) that are disposed between the side of the accommodation portion (left side of 211; right side of 221, see Kwon Fig. 2) and an edge of the perimeter portion (outline of 201/outline of 201’, see Kwon Fig. 2),
wherein the first notch segment (first notch segment, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9; note: first notch segment is closer to 211/221 compared to second notch segment, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9) is positioned between the second notch segment (second notch segment, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9) and the accommodation portion (bottom wall of 221, see Kwon Fig. 2), and
wherein a thickness of the pouch sheet in the first notch segment (thickness 1, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9) is smaller than a thickness of the pouch sheet in the second notch segment (thickness 2, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9).
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Regarding claim 10, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. teaches wherein the notch portion (212/222 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 2; note: structure of the notch see Lee Fig. 9) includes a first notch pattern (first notch pattern, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9 (claim 10); note: it’s formed by three of 142b in 140, see Lee Figs 2 and 9) and a second notch pattern (second notch pattern, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9 (claim 10); note: it’s formed by two of 142b in the 140, see Figs 2 and 9) that are disposed between the side of each of the pair of accommodation portions (left side of 211; right side of 221, see Kwon Fig. 2) and an edge of the perimeter portion (outline of 201/outline of 201’, see Kwon Fig. 2),
wherein each of the first notch pattern (first notch pattern, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9 (claim 10)) and the second notch pattern (second notch pattern, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9 (claim 10)) includes a plurality of notch segments (142b, see Fig. 9) that are concave (see concave part 142b, Fig. 9) on the inner surface (inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2),
wherein the first notch pattern (first notch pattern, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9 (claim 10); note: first notch pattern is closer to 211/221 compared to second notch pattern, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9 (claim 10)) is positioned between the second notch pattern (second notch pattern, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9 (claim 10)) and each of the pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, see Kwon Fig. 2), and
wherein a number density of the plurality of notch segments (three of 142b, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9 (claim 10)) in the first notch pattern (first notch pattern, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9 (claim 10)) is greater than a number density of the plurality of notch segments (two of 142b, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9 (claim 10)) in the second notch pattern (second notch pattern, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 9 (claim 10)).
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Regarding claim 11, Kwon et al. teaches a battery cell (100, Fig. 1) comprising:
an electrode assembly (130, Fig. 1); and
a pouch unit (200, Fig. 2) accommodating the electrode assembly (130, Fig. 1), the pouch unit being sealed (sealed by thermal fusion, see Abstract),
wherein the pouch unit (200, Fig. 2) includes:
a pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2) having an inner surface (inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2) contacting the electrode assembly (130, Fig. 1) and an outer surface (surface opposite inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2) opposite the inner surface (inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2);
a pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2) formed on the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2) and accommodating (when 210 and 220 are folded, also see [0022]) the electrode assembly (130, Fig. 1), the pair of accommodation portions (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2) including a first accommodation portion (bottom wall of 211, Fig. 2) facing a surface (bottom surface of electrode assembly 130, Fig. 1) of the electrode assembly and a second accommodation portion (bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2) facing (when 221 folded to face down the top surface of 130, see Fig. 2) another surface (top surface of electrode assembly 130, Fig. 1) of the electrode assembly (when 210 and 220 are folded, 211 faces the bottom surface of 130, 221 faces the top surface of 130, see Figs. 1-2 and [0065]);
a connecting portion (202, Fig. 2) formed foldably (see Fig. 2) on the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2) and positioned between (202 is between 211 and 221, see Fig. 2) the first accommodation portion (bottom wall of 211, Fig. 2) and the second accommodation portion (bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2);
a first perimeter portion (201, Fig. 2) formed on the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2), the first perimeter portion (201, Fig. 2) extending from the first accommodation portion (bottom wall of 211, Fig. 2) and leading to a first pouch side (left side of 201, Fig. 2) of a perimeter (outline of 210/220, Fig. 2) of the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2);
a second perimeter portion (201’, Fig. 2) formed on the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2), the second perimeter portion (201’, Fig. 2) extending from the second accommodation portion (bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2) and leading to a second pouch side (right side of 201’, Fig. 2) of the perimeter (outline of 210/220, Fig. 2) of the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2), the second perimeter portion (201’, Fig. 2) facing and contacting the first perimeter portion (201, Fig. 2) (when 210/220 folded, 201’ faces and contacts 201, see folding arrow in Fig. 2 and [0065]);
a first notch portion (212, Fig. 2) extending alongside a side (a side of 211, Fig. 2) of the first accommodation portion (bottom wall of 211, Fig. 2) at the first perimeter portion (201, Fig. 2), the first notch portion (212, Fig. 2) being concave (see highlighted section of machine translation of CN 108780857 A) on the inner surface (inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2) of the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2); and
a second notch portion (222, Fig. 2) extending alongside a side (a side of 221, Fig. 2) of the second accommodation portion (bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2) at the second perimeter portion (201’, Fig. 2), the second notch portion (222, Fig. 2) being concave (see highlighted section of machine translation of CN 108780857 A) on the inner surface (inner surface, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 2) of the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2),
wherein the connecting portion (202, Fig. 2), the accommodation portion (bottom wall of 211/bottom wall of 221, Fig. 2), and the perimeter portion (201/201’, Fig. 2) are arranged sequentially spaced apart (when folded, 221 is at the same cross section of 211, 201’ is at the same location of 201, therefore they are spaced apart in the sequential order of 202, bottom 211/bottom 221 and 201/201’, see bottom part of Fig. 2) along the width direction (direction of L1 and L2, see Fig. 2) of the pouch sheet (210/220, Fig. 2).
However, Kwon et al. does not teach wherein the accommodation portion, the notch portion and the perimeter portion are arranged sequentially spaced apart along the width direction of the pouch sheet.
Lee et al. teaches wherein the accommodation portion (121, Fig. 3), the notch portion (142, Fig. 4; note: 142 includes concave part 142a and convex part 142b, see Fig. 4) and the perimeter portion (the bottom portion of 122 spaced apart from 140, see Fig. 3) are arranged sequentially spaced apart (see Fig. 3) along the width direction (the direction in which 111 and 130 are extending down, see Fig. 3) of the pouch sheet (120, Fig. 3).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the electrode leads taught by Kwon et al. by adding the lead pattern layer taught by Lee et al.; and to modify the electrode lead grooves taught by Kwon et al. to be the sealing pattern layer taught by Lee et al. to increase the bonding force and sealing force between the lead and the sealing part of the battery case to prevent the venting from occurring (see Lee et al. Abstract, [0021] and [0050]). When the electrode lead grooves of Kwon has been modified to be the sealing pattern layer of Lee, the connecting portion (the predetermined portion of Kwon), the accommodation portion (bottom of the first and second receiving parts of Kwon), the notch portion (the sealing pattern layer of Lee) and the perimeter portion (the peripheral portion of Kwon) are arranged sequentially spaced apart, and the shape of the electrode lead groove becomes the sealing pattern with concave part and convex part.
Regarding claim 12, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. teaches wherein the first notch portion (212 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 3) and the second notch portion (222 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 3) face each other (212 and 222 face each other, see Kwon Fig. 3).
Regarding claim 13, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. teaches wherein the first perimeter portion (201, Kwon Fig. 2) and the second perimeter portion (201’, Kwon Fig. 2) face each other and are coupled to each other (see Kwon [0065]).
Regarding claim 14, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. teaches wherein the first notch portion (212 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 3) is concave (see Lee Fig. 4) with reference to the second notch portion (222, modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 3), and
wherein the second notch portion (222, modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 3) is concave (see Lee Fig. 4) with reference to the first notch portion (212 modified by Lee, Kwon Fig. 3).
Claims 6-7 and 15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kwon et al. (US 20190044106 A1) (evidenced by Kwon et al. (CN 108780857 A)) in view of Lee et al. (US 20230207933 A1) in view of Jo (US 20200373535 A1, provided on the IDs filed on 6/13/2024).
Regarding claim 6, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. does not teach further comprising:
a first gas chamber portion formed at the perimeter portion and adjacent to the first accommodation portion, the first gas chamber portion forming a first hollow portion that is open in the direction in which the inner surface faces; and
a second gas chamber portion formed at the perimeter portion and adjacent to the second accommodation portion, the second gas chamber portion forming a second hollow portion that is open in the direction in which the inner surface faces.
Jo teaches further comprising:
a first gas chamber portion (first gas chamber portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) formed at the perimeter portion (first perimeter portion/second perimeter portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 7) and adjacent to the first accommodation portion (11a, Fig. 7), the first gas chamber portion (first gas chamber portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) forming a first hollow portion (first gas chamber portion is hollow, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) that is open in the direction (direction 1, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) in which the inner surface (the surface of first perimeter portion and second perimeter portion facing towards us, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 7) faces; and
a second gas chamber portion (124, Fig. 1) formed at the perimeter portion (first perimeter portion/second perimeter portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 7) and adjacent to the second accommodation portion (12a, Fig. 7), the second gas chamber portion (124, Fig. 1) forming a second hollow portion (see 124 in Fig. 3) that is open in the direction (direction 2, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) in which the inner surface (the surface of first perimeter portion and second perimeter portion facing towards us, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 7) faces.
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It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. by adding the gas pocket parts taught by Jo to collect a gas generated in the accommodation part (see Jo [0047]).
Regarding claim 7, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. in view of Jo does not teach wherein the first gas chamber portion is positioned between the first notch portion and the first accommodation portion, and
wherein the second gas chamber portion is positioned between the second notch portion and the second accommodation portion.
Jo teaches wherein the first gas chamber portion (first gas chamber portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) is positioned between the first notch portion (first notch portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) and the first accommodation portion (11a of 121, Fig. 7; 121 see Figs. 3 and 8), and
wherein the second gas chamber portion (124, Fig. 1) is positioned between the second notch portion (second notch portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) and the second accommodation portion (12a of 121, Fig. 7; 121 see Figs. 3 and 8).
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify the location of the gas pocket parts taught by Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. in view of Jo by placing them to the same location (the gas pocket part is between the notch portion and the accommodation part) as taught by Jo because such configuration is known in the art (see Jo Fig. 3) and it would have yielded predictable results for collecting a gas generated in the accommodation part(see Jo [0047]).
Regarding claim 15, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. does not teach wherein the pouch unit further includes: a first gas chamber portion formed at the first perimeter portion and concave with reference to the second perimeter portion, the first gas chamber portion being positioned between the first accommodation portion and the first notch portion on the pouch sheet; and a second gas chamber portion formed at the second perimeter portion and concave with reference to the first gas chamber portion, the second gas chamber portion being positioned between the second accommodation portion and the second notch portion on the pouch sheet.
Jo teaches wherein the pouch unit further includes:
a first gas chamber portion (first gas chamber portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) formed at the first perimeter portion (first perimeter portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 7) and concave with reference to the second perimeter portion (second perimeter portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 7), the first gas chamber portion (first gas chamber portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) being positioned between the first accommodation portion (11a of 121, Fig. 7; 121 see Figs. 3 and 8) and the first notch portion (first notch portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) on the pouch sheet; and
a second gas chamber portion (124, Fig. 3) formed at the second perimeter portion (second perimeter portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 7) and concave with reference to the first gas chamber portion (first gas chamber portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)), the second gas chamber portion (124, Fig. 3) being positioned between the second accommodation portion (12a of 121, Fig. 7; 121 see Figs. 3 and 8) and the second notch portion (second notch portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (claim 6)) on the pouch sheet.
It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. by adding the gas pocket parts and to have the first gas chamber portion between the first notch portion and the upper accommodation part and to have the second gas chamber portion between the second notch portion and the lower accommodation part as taught by Jo to collect a gas generated in the accommodation part (see Jo [0047]).
Claim 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kwon et al. (US 20190044106 A1) (evidenced by Kwon et al. (CN 108780857 A)) in view of Lee et al. (US 20230207933 A1) in view of Jo (US 20200373535 A1, provided on the IDs filed on 6/13/2024) in view of Son et al. (KR 101936058 B1, citation see machine translation, provided on IDS).
Regarding claim 8, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. in view of Jo does not teach wherein the first notch portion is positioned between the first accommodation portion and the first gas chamber portion, and
wherein the second notch portion is positioned between the second accommodation portion and the second gas chamber portion.
Son et al. teaches wherein a first notch portion (first notch portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 6) is positioned between the first accommodation portion (first accommodation portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 6) and the first gas chamber portion (first gas chamber portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 6), and
wherein a second notch portion (second notch portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 6) is positioned between the second accommodation portion (130, Fig. 6) and the second gas chamber portion (140, Fig. 6).
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It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to rearrange the locations of the gas pocket parts taught by Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. in view of Jo and configure them in the same place (notch portion is between electrode assembly receiving part and the gas collecting part) as taught by Son et al. because such configuration is known in the art (see Son et al. Fig. 6) and would have yielded predictable results to collect the gas (see Son et al. [0043]). Furthermore, it’s been held that rearrangement of parts is an obvious matter of design choice (see MPEP 2144.04-VI-C).
Claim 16 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kwon et al. (US 20190044106 A1) (evidenced by Kwon et al. (CN 108780857 A)) in view of Lee et al. (US 20230207933 A1) in view of Son et al. (KR 101936058 B1, citation see machine translation).
Regarding claim 16, Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. does not teach wherein the pouch unit further includes:
a first gas chamber portion formed at the first perimeter portion and concave with reference to the second perimeter portion; and
a second gas chamber portion formed at the second perimeter portion and concave with reference to the first perimeter portion,
wherein the first notch portion is positioned between the first accommodation portion and the first gas chamber portion on the pouch sheet, and
wherein the second notch portion is positioned between the second accommodation portion and the second gas chamber portion on the pouch sheet.
Son et al. teaches wherein the pouch unit (100, Fig. 6) further includes:
a first gas chamber portion (first gas chamber portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 6) formed at the first perimeter portion (first perimeter portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (Son)) and concave (see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 6) with reference to the second perimeter portion (second perimeter portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (Son)); and
a second gas chamber portion (140, Fig. 6) formed at the second perimeter portion (second perimeter portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (Son)) and concave (see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 6) with reference to the first perimeter portion (first perimeter portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 3 (Son)),
wherein the first notch portion (first notch portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 6) is positioned between the first accommodation portion (first accommodation portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 6) and the first gas chamber portion (first gas chamber portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 6) on the pouch sheet, and
wherein the second notch portion (second notch portion, see Examiner’s Annotated Fig. 6) is positioned between the second accommodation portion (130, Fig. 6) and the second gas chamber portion (140, Fig. 6) on the pouch sheet.
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It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filling date of the claimed invention to modify Kwon et al. in view of Lee et al. by adding the gas collecting parts and placing them at the same location (notch portion is between electrode assembly receiving part and the gas collecting part) taught by Son et al. to collect the gas (see Son et al. [0043]).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim 1 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection of claims 1 and 11 rely on the combination of Kwon et al. (US 20190044106 A1) in view of Lee et al. (US 20230207933 A1), which does not rely on the combination of references applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure.
Hwang (US 20230318119 A1): Figs. 1-4.
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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/NING CHEN/
Examiner, Art Unit 1723 /TIFFANY LEGETTE/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1723
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