M 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 .
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2 and 4-6 are allowable over the prior art of record.
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.
1. Claims 1-6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112, second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which applicant regards as the invention.
2. In claim 1, the limitation “the main restraining member” lacks antecedent basis.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
(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.
3. Claim 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Bruder et al. (US20230109910, Filed 10/8/2021)
4. Regarding claim 1, Bruder teaches cell assembly (see Fig. below) for structural observation for observing an internal structure of a cell by X-ray CT (A battery cell such as the cell 10 may be imaged when in various deformation states according to any desired imaging technique. For example, battery cells can be imaged using tomography, such as…x-ray computed tomography (CT) [0050]; An imaging assembly such as a direct x-ray tomography assembly 34 is positioned and oriented to image at least part of the battery cell), the cell assembly comprising: a pair of main restraining members which restrain the cell serving as an observation target by sandwiching from both sides thereof; and an auxiliary restraining member which is relatively thinner than the main restraining member, and is interposed between each of the pair of the main restraining members and the cell, wherein each of the pair of the main restraining members is configured by a plurality of partial restraining members disposed with a predetermined gap, and wherein the auxiliary restraining member is disposed to overlap the gap of the main restraining members when viewed in a restraining direction of the cell (see Fig. below).
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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 of this title, 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.
5. Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bruder et al. (US20230109910, Filed 10/8/2021) in view of Heo et al. (US 20200363344).
6. Heo teaches wherein the auxiliary restraining member is an insulator (The encapsulant is configured in the form of an aluminum laminated film having a multilayer structure including an outer layer film, a bonding agent, an aluminum foil, an adhesive, and an inner layer film so as to have electrical insulation [0005]) for the benefit of battery cells stacked in the order of 1, 2, . . . , N−1, and N, and then inspected by the radiographic inspection equipment using X-rays [0064]
7. It would have been obvious to a person having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified Bruder with Heo’s teachings for the benefit of battery cells stacked in the order of 1, 2, . . . , N−1, and N, and then inspected by the radiographic inspection equipment using X-rays.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to OLATUNJI GODO whose telephone number is (571)272-3104. The examiner can normally be reached 8:00 am - 5:30 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nicholas Smith can be reached on 571-272-8760. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/OLATUNJI A GODO/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1752
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