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 .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d).
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statements (IDS) submitted on 02/21/2023 and 04/01/2025 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statements are being considered by the examiner.
Claim Objections
Claims 1-2 are objected to because of the following informalities: Claim 1 recites “closing and “welding” in Lines 9 and 12 respectively, which are introduced as nouns and not clearly tied to a closing step or a welding step. Claim 2 recites “and the closing is to insert the closing plate” in line 15 which appears to reference “closing” recited in claim 1 as a noun, not clearly tied to a closing step. Appropriate correction of the wording to make the claim language clear 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 1-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102 (a)(1) as being anticipated by Lee et al. (US 20160049623 A1), hereinafter "Lee".
In regard to Claim 1, Lee et al. discloses a manufacturing method for a power storage device, which comprises an electrode body, a case made of metal for housing the electrode body, and a closing plate made of metal (Lee, 0044-0045]). Lee et al. also discloses the shape of the case and closing plate as not particularly limited but that it includes a first surface; a second surface parallel to the first surface; a third surface coupling the first and second surfaces which is shown to be a rectangular and that the closing plate is configured to be inserted in an opening of the case for closing the opening (Lee, [0009, 0044], Figures 2-3).
Lee et al. further discloses the power storage device being welded over entire circumferences of an opening wall portion of the case surrounding the opening and an outer peripheral edge portion of the closing plate, and closing to close the opening by the closing plate in a manner that the electrode body is housed inside the case and the closing plate is inserted into the opening of the case; and welding to laser-weld the outer peripheral edge portion of the closing plate and the opening wall portion of the case over the entire circumferences in a state where the opening of the case has been closed by the closing plate, as is common practice (Lee, [0009, 0045], Figure 3).
Lee et al. discloses the opening wall portion of the case used for the closing is of a rectangular annular shape and includes a pair of opening long-side portions arranged in parallel to each other, a pair of opening short-side portions arranged in parallel to each other, and four opening corner portions of arcuate circular shape connecting the opening long-side portions and the opening short-side portions (Lee, Abstract, Annotated Figure 4). Additionally, Lee discloses the closing plate used for the closing is configured such that: the outer peripheral edge portion is of a rectangular annular shape and includes a pair of closing long-side portions arranged in parallel to each other, a pair of closing short-side portions arranged in parallel to each other, and four closing corner portions of arcuate circular shape connecting the closing long-side portions and the closing short-side portions (See Annotated Figure 4).
Finally, Lee et al. discloses an outer circumferential end face positioned on an outermost side of an outer circumferential surface of the closing plate is formed to extend in parallel to a thickwise direction of the closing plate wherein a length in the thickwise direction of a corner-portion end face included in each of the closing corner portions is represented as LK and a length in the thickwise direction of a long-side end face included in each of the closing long-side portions is represented as LL, the length LK is shorter than the length LL (Lee, Figures 5-6, [0011-0018]).
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Annotated Figure 4
In regard to Claim 2, Lee et al. discloses the manufacturing method for the power storage device according to claim 1. Lee et al. also discloses wherein the closing plate used for the closing is configured such that: the closing plate has a front face facing one side in the thickwise direction and a rear face facing the other side in the thickwise direction; a portion located on a rear face side of the outer peripheral edge portion is chamfered over an entire circumference; the closing corner portions are chamfered more largely than the closing long-side portions to make the length LK shorter than the length LL; and the closing is to insert the closing plate into the opening of the case from the side of the rear face (Lee, [0009-0019], Figure 3).
In regard to Claims 3-4, Lee et al. discloses the manufacturing method for the power storage device according to claim 1 and 2. Lee et al. also discloses the tilt of the chamfer is not particularly limited and may be variable or constant and can gradually increase toward short side portions, corner portions from the long side portions (Lee, [0011-0014]) wherein in a particular embodiment LS=LK and LK<LL (Lee, [0061-0062]), which by definition means LS<LL.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KENNETH MAX OTERO whose telephone number is (571)272-2559. The examiner can normally be reached M-F Generally 7:30-430.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nicole Buie-Hatcher can be reached at (571) 270-3879. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/K.M.O./Examiner, Art Unit 1725
/JONATHAN CREPEAU/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1725