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
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 01/29/2024 and 10/08/2024 are in compliance with the provisions of 37 CFR 1.97. Accordingly, the information disclosure statement is being considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
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.
This application currently names joint inventors. In considering patentability of the claims the examiner presumes that the subject matter of the various claims was commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the claimed invention(s) absent any evidence to the contrary. Applicant is advised of the obligation under 37 CFR 1.56 to point out the inventor and effective filing dates of each claim that was not commonly owned as of the effective filing date of the later invention in order for the examiner to consider the applicability of 35 U.S.C. 102(b)(2)(C) for any potential 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(2) prior art against the later invention.
Claims 1, 5, and 6 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nan (WO 2022204882 A1, citations from enclosed machine translation), and further in view of Fujita (WO 2021020326 A1, citations from enclosed machine translation) and Ninomiya (WO 2022138779 A1, cited in IDS, citations from enclosed machine translation).
Regarding Claim 1, Nan teaches a battery pack comprising:
a plurality of rectangular secondary batteries that are disposed along a predetermined arrangement direction (Fig. 1, p. 4, lines 34-37; battery cells 11 arranged adjacent one another and stacked along first direction X; battery cells 11 may be lithium-ion batteries (p. 4, line 37). As illustrated in Fig. 1, the battery cells 11 have a prismatic/rectangular configuration);
and a spacer that is disposed between the rectangular secondary batteries that are adjacent in the arrangement direction (p. 4, line 35; composite unit 12 corresponds to the claimed spacer arranged at intervals between battery cells),
wherein the spacer includes an elastic part (Fig.2, p. 4, line 39, elastic material layer 121) configured to be elastically deformable in the arrangement direction (p. 5, lines 5-10), and “In a possible embodiment, the elastic material layer is in contact with one of the battery cells, and the heat insulating material layer is in contact with the other battery core. In this embodiment, the elastic material layer and the heat insulating material layer have a double-layer structure, the elastic material layer is mainly used for providing a buffer space” (p. 2, lines 10-13).
Nan does not teach the spacer has a defined elastic modulus or a given range of a compression ratio 1 to 20 % from a compression load-compression ratio curve or a constant load compression ratio, from a compression load-compression ratio curve and a straight line B obtained by multiplying the inclination of the approximation line A by 1.4, is 35% or more and 70% or less.
However, Fujita teaches these limitations of a compressive load on an elastic spacer element and a buffering member made of a cushioning member and a hard portion that is in between secondary cells of a given embodiment where the state of the hard portion allows the buffering member as a whole to cover different ranges of compression ratios (Fig. 7A-C; p. 48, [0062, lines 1-8). The required absorption amount, M1, is determined according the expansion amount of each power storage device and the upper/lower compression loads are determined by the elastic buffer member, 40, and can be modulated by the contact of a third portion, 52, where the overall range of compression ratio can be increased (Fig. 8A-C; p. 48-49, [0063], lines 10-11 & lines 1-12). Fujita further teaches that the lower limit compressive load, N1, is the minimum load required to position the secondary battery cell and is the lower limit restraint load applied to each secondary battery cell. The required range of an elastic buffering member that is covered by the minimum compressive load of the buffering member is shown to be in the bottom range of the graph (p. 49, [0063], lines 1-12).
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Fig. 8A showing the range of compressive load and lines representing 25 and 50 % load marked by examiner in red and green, respectively. In FIG. 8C the relationship between the compressive load and the compressibility of the cushioning member 40 when the hard portion 42 is in the state shown representing the compression ratio of a cushioning member under load (p.48, [0062], lines 1-9).
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In Fig. 8C an approximation line can be drawn in such a way to satisfy the conditions put forth in the instant application (Figure 8C Red and Yellow lines indicate approximations drawn by examiner) while further illustrating extent of the initial and maximum load on the spacer element when only the elastic portion is making contact. The lines can be drawn to satisfy ranges as appropriate. Additionally, Fujita teaches “The load Absorption characteristics are determined based on factors such as the stress-strain curve inherent to the material of the load-bearing member and the shape of the load-bearing member.” (p. 50, [0064, lines 5-7]).
Nan modified by Fujita does not teach performing compression until a compression load becomes 3.9 MPa in the arrangement direction at a compression speed of 12 kPa/min, is 1 MPa or more and 10 MPa or less, only there is a load applied that is variable with charging and discharging and the load absorption characteristics are an inherent property of a material.
Ninomiya teaches “The partition member has a heat insulating portion, and the compressive elastic modulus of the heat insulating portion in the cell stacking direction is 0.5 to 10 MPa (claim 2). Further Ninomiya teaches an evaluation method of the compressibility of the partition member and the heat insulating material where a restraining pressure is applied (2 MPa) and the amount of material bulging is evaluated to determine the performance of a material under load (pages 41-52). This was also completed utilizing different insulating materials to evaluate their responses to compression as well. The speed of compression applied by the hydraulic presses would be the same and as the response is inherent to the material it would be reasonable for a skill artisan to adjust the speed and total pressure as needed.
Further Nan, Fujita, and Ninomiya are considered analogous to the claimed invention because they are all directed to a battery module including spacers with a projection area composed of different materials to manage compressive load on a secondary battery cell during its electrochemical cycle.
Therefore, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one of ordinary skill in the art to: 1) confine the range of the compressive ratio of the spacer to cover a load of compression that falls within the initial operating range of a secondary battery cell that compresses and swells during its charging and discharging cycle 2) to limit the speed of compression and set the compression values to correspond to the desired compressive load and 3) to determine a ratio from the experimental values that are relevant to the known parameters of a secondary battery cell.
Regarding Claim 5, Nan, as modified by Fujita and Ninomiya, teaches all limitations of claim 1 as
stated above. Nan further teaches a heat insulation part disposed between the elastic part and the rectangular secondary battery in the arrangement direction and having lower heat conductivity than the elastic part. The elastic part provides buffering through deformation and absorbs expansion of the battery cells during electrochemical cycling (p. 5, lines 5-10) and a heat insulation part disposed between the elastic part and the rectangular secondary battery in the arrangement direction and having lower heat conductivity than the elastic part (page 4, lines 39-45, heat insulating material 122).
Therefore, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Nan’s porous elastic that is composed of an elastic and heat insulation part to include the plurality of hollow parts/hole portions and lamination of both parts to suppress the propagation of heat and fire (p. 5, lines 31-33) as well as maintain compression of a secondary battery during use.
Regarding Claim 6, Nan as modified by Fujita and Ninomiya, teaches all limitations of claim 1, as stated above wherein the elastic modulus of the elastic part is 1 MPa or more and 3.3 MPa or less. Including, the elastic material layer provides buffering through deformation and absorbs expansion of the battery cells during electrochemical cycling (p. 5, lines 5-10). This includes the given range of compression values that are acceptable for a secondary battery to undergo as taught by Ninomiya and the value of 2 MPa used for testing lies in this range (p. 41, [0051], line 13). So claimed range lies inside the 0.5 MPa to 10 MPa range taught by Ninomiya and the explicit value. It is noted that where the claimed ranges overlap or lie inside ranges disclosed by the prior art, a prima facie case of obviousness exist. See MPEP 2144.05.
Further Nan, Fujita, and Ninomiya are considered analogous inventions as stated above.
Therefore, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one of ordinary skill in the art to combine the combination of a heat insulating and elastic part and confine the range of the compressive load of the spacer to fall within the accepted operating range of a secondary battery cell that compresses and swells during its electrochemical cycle.
Claim 2 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nan as modified by Fujita and Ninomiya, as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Kogami (CN 115053391A citations from machine translation enclosed).
Regarding Claim 2, Nan, as modified by Fujita and Ninomiya, teaches all limitations of claim 1, as
stated above. Modified Nan does not teach a limitation wherein there is a contact region in contact with the rectangular secondary battery, and a ratio (r/S) of an outer peripheral length r (mm) of the contact region to an area S (mm2) of the contact region is 0.6 or more and 2.7 or less. -Ninomiya does teach that adjusting the ratios of the contact area over the insulating area (when viewed from above) or the support part area over the partition area (Table 1, columns 7-9) or adjusting the area of the support part (Ss) affects the amount of deformation observed (Table 1, columns 10-13).
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Kogami teaches the limitation that by adjusting the length of parallel ridges making contact with the secondary battery you can make the separator more elastically deformable by increasing the ratio of length of the shape making contact, L1, (convex portion) divided by the length of the cutout portion, L2 (p. 7, lines 21-37).
Further, modified Nan and Kogami are considered to be analogous in the art because both are directed toward battery modules for secondary batteries including elastic spacers with deformable shapes arranged in the arrangement direction.
Therefore, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one of ordinary skill in the art to adjust the surface area and length of modified the orthographic projection of Nan’s elastic material. As Ninomiya demonstrated that the performance of the deformation characteristics of the partition member is changed by the contact area and Kogami teaches that a similar effect on the deformation characteristics can be achieved by changing the peripheral length of a contact shape (and area of an object has to include the length in its calculation) to adjust the deformation characteristics of the spacer. It would be obvious to determine an optimal range to support the battery cell’s compression requirements during its lifetime.Claim 3 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nan as modified by Fujita and Ninomiya, as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Yoshida (WO 2018207607 A1, citations from enclosed machine translation) and Ataka (JP 2015069873 A, cited in IDS as an enclosed translation).
Regarding Claim 3, Nan, as modified by Fujita and Ninomiya, teaches all limitations of claim 1 as
stated above. Modified Nan does not teach a limitation wherein there are a plurality of hollow parts sectioned by the partition walls and arranged regularly in the arrangement direction or that the elastic part has a honeycomb structure.
Yoshida teaches a limitation wherein the elastic part, one end part of the plurality of hollow parts in the arrangement direction is closed and the other end part thereof is open. Specifically, Yoshida teaches non-penetrating hole portions formed in a separator structure, wherein the hole portions may be opened only on one surface side of the separator (p. 6, lines 11-12, Fig. 4B) to enhance the heat insulation performance and reduce the radiation (p.6, lines 20-22). Specifically, Yoshida teaches forming a heat insulating layer with a material with high heat insulating property while configuring another layer with a material having flexibility (p. 6, lines 45-60; p. 7, lines 1-3). Yoshida teaches that either layer can include holes to improve the workability of the separator (p. 6, lines 45-60). Yoshida further teaches layered separator structures including insulating layers having hole portions formed only on one side of the insulating layer (p. 6, lines 54-56; Fig. 4D). Such non-penetrating hole structures correspond to hollow parts having one open end and one closed end.
Yoshida does not teach the limitation that the protrusions have a honeycomb structure. Yoshida teaches a separator 12, disposed between adjacent prismatic/rectangular secondary battery cells 1 arranged in a stacked direction (Fig. 2; p. 17, [0025], lines 3-4). Yoshida further teaches the hole portions may have different shapes rather than circular shape and multiple shapes can be combined (p. 30, [0041], lines 1-6).
Meanwhile Ataka does teach the limitation that the protrusions have a honeycomb structure. Specifically, Ataka teaches an assembled battery including a plurality of storage elements and separators interposed therebetween (Fig. 1; [0015]). Ataka further teaches the separator 4c formed of a material such as silicon, and a carbon nanotube-containing resin plate or the like ([0018]) having a honeycomb structure including a plurality of through holes for increasing separator strength and promoting heat dissipation ([0027-0029]).
Modified Nan, Yoshida and Ataka are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because all three are directed to battery modules including porous separators/spacers.
40. Therefore, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify modified Nan's elastic layer to employ the honeycomb separator structure taught by Ataka in order to improve heat dissipation, and increase structural strength ([0027-0029]).
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Nan as modified by Fujita and Ninomiya, as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Yoshida (WO 2018207607 A1, citations from enclosed machine translation.
Regarding Claim 4, Nan, as modified by Fujita and Ninomiya, teaches all limitations of claim 1 as
stated above. Modified Nan does not teach the spacer includes a plurality of protrusion parts extending along the arrangement direction or the base part having a flat plate shape. Nan teaches the elastic material layer 121 may comprise foam material including pores distributed within the elastic material layer (p. 5, lines 5-10). The pores of the foam elastic material may constitute hollow parts within the elastic material layer extending through the material in the arrangement direction.
Yoshida does teach these limitations, specifically Yoshida teaches that separator 12 includes a plurality of independently formed hole portions 12x, wherein the hole portions may have different shapes rather than circular shape ([0037] and [0040]). Therefore, Yoshida teaches a plurality of hollow structures having circular or non-circular cross-sectional surfaces that may be through hole or non through hole. Yoshida teaches that the plurality of hole portions improves heat insulation between adjacent battery cells and suppresses propagation of heat and fire (p. 30, [0040] line 4). Yoshida further teaches a limitation wherein the spacer further includes a base part with a flat plate shape (Fig. 4D). Yoshida teaches multilayer separator structures in which additional layers may be added to provide different functions (p.35, [0047], lines 1-13).
Further, modified Nan and Yoshida are considered to be analogous to the claimed invention because both are directed to battery modules including multilayer separators/spacers disposed between adjacent battery cells for buffering, insulation, and modified for deformation absorption characteristics.
Therefore, it would have been obvious before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to one of ordinary skill in the art to modify Nan’s porous elastic part to include the plurality of hollow parts/hole portions with a flat base part as taught by Yoshida in order to suppresses propagation of heat and fire (p. 5, lines 31-33) and to maintain constant compressive load on a secondary cell during its electrochemical cycle.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner
should be directed to WAYNE WALTER VIGIL JR whose telephone number is (571)270-7652. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 8:30 am - 5:00 pm.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Abbas Rashid can be reached at (571) 270-7457. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/WAYNE WALTER VIGIL/Examiner, Art Unit 1748
/JACOB T MINSKEY/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1748
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