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, 4, 5, and 6 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.
The term “about” in claims 1, 4, 5, and 6 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “about” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. The specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the scope of the term.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claims 1-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(2) as being anticipated by Cho, C. et al. (WO 2021225321 A1), hereinafter Cho.
Regarding claim 1, Cho teaches a negative electrode for a rechargeable lithium battery ([0071], rechargeable lithium battery 100) comprising:
lithium titanium oxide having an aspect ratio of about 10:1 to about 2:1 (Claim 4);
a needle-type carbon-based material (Claim 2-3);
a negative active material ([0022]).
Regarding claim 2, Cho teaches Lithium titanium oxide is represented by Li4+x Tiy Mz Ot in where 0≤x≤3, 1≤y≤5, 0≤z≤3, 3≤t≤12, and M is selected from Mg, La, Tb, Gd, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Ba, Sr, Ca, or combinations thereof ([0014-0015], Formula 1)
Regarding claim 3, Cho teaches a needle-type carbon-based material comprises carbon nanotube, carbon nano fiber, or combinations thereof ([0009]).
Regarding claim 4, Cho teaches a needle-type carbon-based material has an average length of about 0.5 μm to about 20 μm ([0010]). Specifically, Cho teaches a range of length of 5 μm to 200 μm. It is well established that the claimed ranges overlap or lie within the ranges disclosed by the prior art, a prima facie case of obviousness exists. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skills in the art to select thickness within the claimed ranges as a matter of routine optimization of a result-effective variable.
Regarding claim 5, Cho teaches the mixing ratio of lithium titanium oxide and the needle-type carbon-based material is about 2:1 to about 199:1 by weight ratio ([0028], [0039], [0059]). Specifically, Cho teaches a range of 0.002:1 to 45:1 by weight ratio. It is well established that the claimed ranges overlap or lie within the ranges disclosed by the prior art, a prima facie case of obviousness exists. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skills in the art to select thickness within the claimed ranges as a matter of routine optimization of a result-effective variable.
Regarding claim 6, Cho teaches the mixing ratio of lithium titanium oxide and the needle-type carbon-based material is about 2:1 to about 100:1 by weight ratio ([0028], [0039], [0059]). Specifically, Cho teaches a range of 0.002:1 to 45:1 by weight ratio. It is well established that the claimed ranges overlap or lie within the ranges disclosed by the prior art, a prima facie case of obviousness exists. Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of the ordinary skills in the art to select thickness within the claimed ranges as a matter of routine optimization of a result-effective variable.
Regarding claim 7, Cho teaches a negative active material that comprises a silicon-based active material, a carbon-based active material or combinations thereof (Claim 10).
Regarding claim 8, Cho teaches a rechargeable lithium battery ([0071], rechargeable lithium battery 100), comprising:
a negative electrode (Claim 1, Claim 11);
a positive electrode (Claim 11);
an electrolyte (Claim 11).
Conclusion
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/TAMARA ORDUNA/Examiner, Art Unit 1776
/Jennifer Dieterle/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1776