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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of Group II, claims 7-10, in the reply filed on February 12, 2026 is acknowledged. Claims 1-6 and 11-15 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on February 12, 2026.
Status of Application
Claims 1-15 are pending. Claims 1-6 and 11-15 are withdrawn, submitted on February 12, 2026. Claims 7-10 are presented for examination.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
1. 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.
2. The factual inquiries set forth in Graham v. John Deere Co., 383 U.S. 1, 148 USPQ 459 (1966), that are applied 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.
3. 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.
4. Claims 7-10 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Abdelsalam(US 20150280221 A1).
Regarding claim 7, Abdelsalam discloses an electrode (anode, [0103] and FIG. 2a) comprising: a metal current collector (current collector layer 201, [0103] and FIG. 2a) and a multi-layered active material coated thereon (anode layer 203a and 203b, [0103] and FIG. 2a), and each of composite anode layers 203a and 203b contains at least a binder and particles of one or more electroactive materials ([0104]); the first and second active materials may be selected from graphite-containing and silicon-containing active materials ([0109]); and both of the composite anode layers 203a and 203b appear to be a discrete layer (FIG. 2a).
Abdelsalam discloses a layer or sub-layer comprising up to 80 wt% of an electroactive component comprising 10 wt% of silicon and 90 wt% of graphite may comprise a binder comprising 10 wt% NaPAA and 90 wt% of PVDF by mixing each component with a solution of its compatible binder to form a slurry and then mixing the two slurries for form a slurry comprising a mixture of both the active materials and the binders ([0222]), which anticipates the claimed “a discrete layer of graphite particles suspended in a crosslinked binder”; and “the layer of graphite particles being at least 85 wt% graphite”, in light of graphite particle being the major active component suspended in a crosslinked binder NaPAA in this layer.
Specifically, Abdelsalam expressly teaches using different major active materials [0105] in these layers wherein the active materials can be present in an amount up to 100% [0105] and can be graphite or silicon, respectively [0109] when taken in context with [0105]. Abdelsalam further discloses the same overall active material may be present in both composite anode layers 203a and 203b, provided that the material is present as a major active component in one anode layer and present only as a minor active component in the other anode layer, and a minor active component may make up 0.5-20 weight% of the active materials of a layer ([0106]). A skilled artisan would reasonably envisage in the other anode layer of the multi-layers of 203a and 203b (FIG. 2a), graphite may be the minor active component with 0.5-20 weight%, thus silicon is present as the major active component in the range of 80-99.5 weight% falling within the range as claimed “the layer of silicon-based material particles being at least 15 wt% silicon-based material”.
Since both of the discrete layers 203a and 203b containing silicon-based material particles suspended in a crosslinked binder NaPAA, as set forth above, the FIG. 2a of Abdelsalam anticipates the claim limitation “a discrete layer of silicon-based material particles suspended in a crosslinked binder and disposed between the metal current collector and the layer of graphite particles” because the layer 203a corresponds to the discrete layer of silicon-based material and the layer 203b correspond to the discrete layer of graphite particles.
While Abdelsalam discloses composite anode layers 203a and 203b are in direct contact with each other (FIG. 2a), Abdelsalam does not explicitly disclose the layers defining an interface region in which presence of the silicon-based material particles disrupts in-plane alignment of the graphite particles.
However, Abdelsalam further discloses pillared silicon particles ([0204]) grown on or out of starting particle core ([0195-0197] and FIG. 3) and the particles of the starting material may have any shape, for example, cuboid, cuboidal, substantially spherical or spheroid or flake-like in shape, the particle surface may be rough or angular and the particles may be multi-facets or have a single continuously curved surface, and the particle may be porous or non-porous ([0197]). A skilled artisan would have found it obvious to modify the morphology of silicon-based material particles with pillars grown on selected various shapes of silicon cores particles taught by Abdelsalam, in this fashion, the layers of lower surface of 203b layer and the upper surfaces of 203a layer defining an interfacial region, in which in-plane alignment of graphite particles would necessarily and inherently be disrupted by the presence of the uneven surfaces of silicon-based material particles due to pillar spikes formed on a variety of silicon core particles of a variety of selected particle morphology including different shapes with rough or angular and porous particle surfaces.
It would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the silicon-based particles to have pillared silicon formed on various morphology of silicon-based particles as taught by Abdelsalam, thus would necessarily and inherently arrive at the claimed “the layers defining an interface region in which presence of the silicon-based material particles disrupts in-plane alignment of the graphite particles” due to pillar spikes formed on a variety of silicon core particles of a variety of selected particle morphology including different shapes with rough or angular and porous particle surfaces in the interfacial region of layers 203a and 203b, without undue experimentation.
Regarding claim 8, modified Abdelsalam discloses all of the limitations as set forth above. Modified Abdelsalam has rendered obvious silicon is present as the majored active component in the range of 80-99.5 weight% in the layer of silicon-based material particles, which falls within the range of at least 20 wt% as claimed.
Regarding claim 9, modified Abdelsalam discloses all of the limitations as set forth above. Modified Abdelsalam includes 90 wt% of graphite in the layer of graphite and 10 wt% of silicon ([0222]), not free of silicon-based material as claimed.
However, modified Abdelsalam further discloses the major active components of the anode layers 203a and 203b be up to 100 weight% of the active material(s) in that layer ([0105]), which renders obvious the layer of graphite particles can be modified to be free of silicon-based materials. It would have been obvious to a skilled artisan before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to modify the layer of graphite to be free of silicon as taught by Abdelsalam.
Regarding claim 10, modified Abdelsalam discloses all of the limitations as set forth above. Modified Abdelsalam discloses the metal current collector is a metal foil (a layer of metal, [0103]).
Conclusion
5. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KAN LUO whose telephone number is (571)270-5753. The examiner can normally be reached 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM ET.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Jonathan Leong can be reached on (571)270-1292. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/K. L./Examiner, Art Unit 1751 3/16/2026
/JONATHAN G LEONG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1751 3/16/2026