DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Claims 1-20 are pending.
The foreign priority document No.202111062600.7 filed on September 10, 2021 in China has been received and it is acknowledged.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
The following is a quotation of the appropriate paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 102 that forms 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, 4, 11, and 13-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Yu et al. (CN 212810367 U, with attached machine translation).
With regard to claims 1, 19, and 20, Yu et al. teach the electrode assembly of fig.15:
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The electrode assembly comprises the negative electrode (1301), the positive electrode (1302), the separator (1303), and multiple barrier layers (1304).The separator (1303) is located between the negative electrode (1301) and the positive electrode (1302), the negative electrode (1301), the positive electrode (1302), the separator (1303) are stacked and wound around a winding axis to form a flat winding structure (par.0152). The winding structure includes a flat region (13A), and a first bending region (13B1) and a second bending region (13B2) located on both sides of the flat region (13a)(par.0154).
The innermost surfaces of the separator (1303) at the first bending region (13B1) and a second bending region (13B2) are provided with a barrier layer (1304)(par.0156).
The barrier layer (1304) is equivalent to the “second separator” in claims 1, 19, and 20.
The positive electrode (1302), the negative electrode (1301), the separator (1303), and the barrier layer (1304) of Yu et al. meet the limitation of claim 1 for “a first electrode sheet and a second electrode sheet having opposite polarities, and a first separator configured to separate the first electrode sheet and the second electrode sheet, wherein the first electrode sheet, the second electrode sheet, and the first electrode sheet, the second electrode sheet, and the first separator are wound in a winding direction, the electrode assembly has a bending region, the bending region being provided with a second separator that is laminated with the first separator and configured to separate the first electrode sheet and the second electrode sheet adjacent to each other”.
The positive electrode (1302), the negative electrode (1301), the separator (1303), and the barrier layer (1304) of Yu et al. imply the steps of claim 19 for “providing a first electrode sheet, a second electrode sheet, a first separator, and a second separator, winding the first electrode sheet, the second electrode sheet, and the first separator in a winding direction and forming a bending region, wherein the first electrode sheet and the second electrode sheet are of opposite polarities, and the first separator is configured to separate the first electrode sheet and the second electrode sheet, the bending region is provided with the second separator that is laminated with the first separator and configured to separate the first electrode sheet and the second electrode sheet adjacent to each other”.
Yu et al. further teach the first providing device (231) that supplies the positive electrode sheet, the second supplying device (232) that supplies the negative electrode sheet, the suppling device (233) that supplies the barrier layer, the supplying device (235) that supplies the separator, and the assembly device (234) for winding the electrode assembly (fig.25, par.0212-0218)
Therefore, Yu et al. teach the system of claim 20 which comprises “a provision apparatus configured to provide a first electrode sheet, a second electrode sheet, a first separator, and a second separator, and a winding apparatus configured to wind the first electrode sheet, the second electrode sheet, and the first separator in a winding direction and form a bending region, wherein the first electrode sheet and the second electrode sheet are of opposite polarities, and the first separator is configured to separate the first electrode sheet and the second electrode sheet, the bending region is provided with the second separator that is laminated with the first separator and configured to separate the first electrode sheet and the second electrode sheet adjacent to each other”.
Yu et al. further teach that the barrier layer prevents at least a part of the ions removed from the positive electrode active material layer from being embedded into the negative electrode active material layer (abstract). This means that “at least part of the ions deintercalated from the first electrode sheet are able to pass through the first separator and the second separator and be intercalated in the second electrode sheet” in claims 1,19, and 20.
The electrode assembly in fig.15 of Yu et al. anticipates the electrode assembly in claim 1, the method in claim 19, and the manufacturing system in claim 20 of the instant application.
With regard to claims 3 and 4, Yu et al. teach that the barrier layer may be a tape comprising an adhesive and a substrate (par.0077). The adhesive and the substrate meet the limitations of claim 3 for “a plurality of separation layers, the plurality of separation layers being laminated in a thickness direction of the second separator”.
The adhesive and the substrate meet the limitations of claim 4 for “adjacent ones of the separation layers are bonded to each other”.
With regard to claim 11, fig.15 of Yu et al. shows that the barrier layer (1304) is placed on the innermost surface of the separator (1303) between the positive electrode (1302) and the negative electrode (1301).
With regard to claim 13, Yu et al. teach that both ends of the barrier/blocking layer may be in the flat region positioned between the bending regions (par.0158, par.0086, fig.3).
With regard to claim 14, Yu et al. teach that the barrier layer may be placed on one or both surfaces of a separator (par.0083).
When the barrier layer is attached on both surfaces of the separator, a barrier layer will be attached to the outer surface of the separator.
With regard to claim 15, fig.15 of Yu et al. shows the barrier layer (1304) attached to an outer surface of the negative electrode (1301). This meets the limitations of claim 15 for “the second electrode sheet is a negative electrode sheet, and the second separator is attached to an outer surface of the second electrode sheet”.
With regard to claim 16, Yu et al. teach a battery cell comprising a shell and an electrode assembly accommodated in the shell (fig.20, par.0194).
With regard to claim 17, Yu et al. teach a battery comprising a plurality of battery cells (fig.21).
With regard to claim 18, Yu et al. teach an electrical apparatus comprising a battery cell, the battery cell being used to provide electrical energy (claim 16).
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yu et al. (CN 212810367 U, with attached machine translation) in view of Pascaly et al. (US 2008/0190841).
With regard to claim 2, Yu et al. teach the electrode assembly of claim 1 (see paragraph 5 above), and further teach that a barrier layer may have a thickness of 2-200 microns (par.0096).
Yu et al. teach that the separator may comprise a base layer and a functional layer comprising a binder and ceramic oxides (par.0071), but fail to teach the thickness of the separator.
Pascaly et al. teach a flexible membrane used as separator for batteries, wherein the separator comprises a polymeric non-woven and a ceramic coating n the non-woven. The ceramic comprises ceramic oxides (abstract). The separator is very safe in the event of internal short circuit due to an accident (par.0059).
Pascaly et al. further teach that the separator with shutdown function may have a thickness of less than 50 microns (par.0089).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to use a separator comprising a polymeric base and ceramic coating and having a thickness of less than 50 microns of Pascaly et al. in the electrode assembly of Yu et al., in order to take advantage of its safety in the event of internal short circuit due to an accident.
The barrier layer of Yu modified by Pascaly may have a thickness higher than the thickness of the separator.
Claim 12 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yu et al. (CN 212810367 U, with attached machine translation).
With regard to claim 12, Yu et al. teach the electrode assembly of claim 1 (see paragraph 5 above).
Fig.15 of Yu et al. shows a plurality of barrier layers (1304) provided in the bending regions, adjacent barrier layer (1304) being separated by positive electrodes (1302) and negative electrodes (1301).
Yu et al. do not specifically teach that the thickness of one adjacent barrier layer (1304) on the inner side of an electrode is greater than the thickness of one adjacent barrier layer (1304) on the outer side.
However, there are only three possibilities: the adjacent barrier layers (1304) have the same thickness, the thickness of one adjacent barrier layer (1304) on the inner side of an electrode is greater than the thickness of one adjacent barrier layer (1304) on the outer side, or thickness of one adjacent barrier layer (1304) on the inner side of an electrode is less than the thickness of one adjacent barrier layer (1304) on the outer side.
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the filing date of the claimed invention to make the electrode assembly in fig.15 of Yu et al. wherein the thickness of one adjacent barrier layer (1304) on an inner side of an electrode is greater than the thickness of one adjacent barrier layer (1304) on the outer side.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-10 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
Yu et al. (CN 212810367 U) fail to teach the electrode assemblies in claims 5 and 9.
There are no prior art teachings that would motivate one of ordinary skill to modify Yu et al. and obtain the electrode assemblies in claims 5 and 9 of the instant application.
Yu et al. (CN 212810367 U, with attached machine translation) teach that the porosity of the barrier layer is less than the porosity of the separator (claim 3).
One of ordinary skill would not have been motivated to modify Yu et al. and obtain the electrode assembly in claim 10 of the instant application.
Conclusion
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/ANCA EOFF/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1722