CTNF 18/414,331 CTNF 101941 DETAILED ACTION Notice of Pre-AIA or AIA Status 07-03-aia AIA 15-10-aia 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 07-30-02 AIA 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. 07-34-01 Claims 1-4 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. Claim 1 recites: A negative electrode active material comprising; a porous silicon particle; and a carbon material, wherein the porous silicon particle has a plurality of pores, the carbon material covers at least a part of an inner surface of each of the pores and, a ratio of a specific surface area of the negative electrode active material to a specific surface area of the porous silicon particle is 40% or more and 99% or less. Emphasis added. Claim 1 is indefinite because it is unclear if “the porous silicon particle” refers to the porous silicon particle including the carbon material covering the inner surfaces of the pores, or the porous silicon particle alone without the carbon material. Claims 2-4 are indefinite because they depend from claim 1. Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103 07-20-aia AIA 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. 07-23-aia AIA The factual inquiries 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. 07-21-aia AIA Claim s 1, 2, and 4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Feaver et al., (US 2019/0097222 A1) . Regarding claim 1 , Feaver teaches silicon-carbon composite materials as anode materials ([0001]) and the anode comprising the silicon-carbon composite ([0276]) (i.e., a negative electrode active material). Feaver also teaches porous silicon particles combined with carbon materials ([0158]) (i.e., a porous silicon particle and a carbon material). Feaver further teaches making pores directly into a solid silicon particle to make a porous silicon particle ([0121]-[0122]) (i.e., the porous silicon particle has a plurality of pores). Feaver also teaches that the carbon materials are impregnated within the silicon structure ([0158]) (i.e., the carbon material covers a least a part of an inner surface of each of the pores). Feaver further teaches a composite material comprising porous-nano featured silicon and carbon having a surface area of 10-200m 2 /g ([0300]) (i.e., negative electrode active material) and further teaches porous silicon having a surface area of 30-120m 2 /g ([0499]) (i.e., porous silicon particle). The ranges taught by Feaver include values that produce the claimed ratio of 40-99%, such that a composite surface area of 48m 2 /g and a porous silicon surface area of 120m 2 /g (40%), and a composite surface area of 99 m 2 /g and a porous silicon surface area of 100m 2 /g (99%). The ratio as taught by Feaver overlaps with the claimed ratio establishing a prima facie case of obviousness. Regarding claim 2 , Feaver teaches a composite material comprising porous-nano featured silicon and carbon having a surface area of 10-200m 2 /g ([0300]) (i.e., negative electrode active material) and further teaches porous silicon having a surface area of 30-120m 2 /g ([0499]) (i.e., porous silicon particle). As explained above, the ranges taught by Feaver include values that would yield the claimed ratio of 50% or more and 75% or less. Therefore, the ratio as taught by Feaver overlaps with the claimed ratio establishing a prima facie case of obviousness. Regarding claim 4 , Feaver teaches that the anode comprising the silicon-carbon composite material can be paired with various cathode materials to result in a full cell lithium-ion battery ([0276]) (i.e., a battery comprising a negative electrode, a positive electrode) (i.e., the negative electrode includes the negative electrode active material according to claim 1). Feaver further teaches a pouch cell comprising interwoven electrodes, a separator, and electrolyte ([0448]) (i.e., an electrolyte layer disposed between the negative electrode and the positive electrode) . 07-21-aia AIA Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Feaver et al., (US 2019/0097222 A1) in view of Chu et al., (WO 2020/256440 A1). Chu is a non-English publication, and therefore Chu et al., (US 2022/0320509 A1), which is in the same patent family as Chu is cited as an English-language equivalent . Regarding claim 3 , Feaver teaches the limitations of claim 1, as explained above. Feaver differs from claim 3 because it is silent to a ratio of a volume of the carbon material to a volume of the porous silicon particle. Therefore, the reference fails to provide enough information to teach the ratio to be 0.01% or more and less than 2%. But Chu teaches composite anodes and lithium secondary batteries including silicon containing structures and carbon materials (Abstract). Chu also teaches that varying the relative amounts of silicon-containing composite and carbon materials affect specific capacity ([0199]), conductivity ([200]) and battery lifespan ([205]). Thus, Chu teaches that the carbon to silicon relationship is a result-effect variable that affects battery performance. Therefore, it would have obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to optimize the amounts of carbon materials and porous silicon particles taught by Feaver to obtain suitable battery performance with a reasonable expectation of success . Conclusion 07-96 AIA The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Oh et al., US 2020/0411844 A1 and Kim et al., US 2020/0161634 A1 . Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Sandra M Arias whose telephone number is (571)438-9468. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 8:00-5:00 EST. Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice. If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Insuk Bullock can be reached at 571-272-5954. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300. Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000. /S.M.A./Examiner, Art Unit 1772 /T. BENNETT MCKENZIE/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1776 Application/Control Number: 18/414,331 Page 2 Art Unit: 1772 Application/Control Number: 18/414,331 Page 3 Art Unit: 1772 Application/Control Number: 18/414,331 Page 4 Art Unit: 1772 Application/Control Number: 18/414,331 Page 5 Art Unit: 1772 Application/Control Number: 18/414,331 Page 6 Art Unit: 1772 Application/Control Number: 18/414,331 Page 7 Art Unit: 1772
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