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 § 102
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 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.
Claims 1-6, and 8-9 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Guo et al. (US 20190393540 A1).
Regarding claim 1, Guo discloses an electrode assembly (Fig. 3) wherein the electrode assembly is a wound electrode assembly (Fig. 3) and comprises a first and a second separator ([0008]), wherein a difference between a number of winding turns of the first separator and a number of winding turns of the second separator is equal to 1, as shown in annotated Guo Fig. 7 below.
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Annotated Guo Fig. 7
Regarding claim 2, Guo discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Guo further discloses wherein a starting end of the first separator (30) is located inward of the second separator (40) and a finishing end of the second separator is located inward of the first separator, as shown in annotated Guo Fig. 7 below.
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Annotated Guo Fig. 7
Regarding claims 3-4, Guo discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Guo discloses the difference in number of winding turns of the first separator and a number of winding turns of the second separator is 1, as set forth above, which satisfies the claimed range of less than or equal to 5 of claim 3, and the claim limitation in which the difference in number of winding turns of the first separator and a number of winding turns of the second separator is an integer, as claimed in claim 4.
Regarding claim 5, Guo discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Guo further discloses wherein the electrode assembly is flat-shaped ([0057]) and the electrode comprises a flat region and two bent regions, wherein the two bent regions are connected to two ends of the flat region, and both a finishing end of the first separator and the finishing end of the second separator are located at the flat region, as shown in annotated Guo Fig. 7 below.
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Guo Fig. 7
Regarding claim 6, Guo discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Guo further discloses the finishing end of the first separator and the finishing end of the second separator are on a same side of the electrode assembly in a thickness direction, as shown in annotated Guo Fig. 7 below.
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Annotated Guo Fig. 7
Regarding claims 8-9, Guo discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Guo further discloses a battery cell comprising the electrode assembly ([0008]), and a battery comprising the battery cell ([0003]), thus satisfying claims 8 and 9, respectively.
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.
Claim 7 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Guo et al. (US 20190393540 A1) in view of Ohashi (US 20170162913 A1).
Regarding claim 7, Guo discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Guo discloses wherein the finishing end of the second separator is located inward of the finishing end of the first separator, as shown in annotated Guo Fig. 7 below.
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Annotated Guo Fig. 7
Guo further discloses a tail end of the cell provided with a separator tail section consisting of the first and second separator ([0070], Fig. 6, 70), but does not explicitly disclose the finishing end of the first separator is provided with a notch to expose a part of the finishing end of the second separator.
Ohashi discloses a similar wound electrode assembly ([0006]) wherein the finishing end of the first separator (Fig. 10, 50) is shorter such that it exposes part of the finishing end of the second separator (Fig. 10, 40) due to a difference in circumferential length. This reads on the limitation “the finishing end of the first separator is provided with a notch to expose a part of the finishing end of the second separator” of claim 7.
Ohashi further discloses that having such a configuration with the finishing ends of the separators, the first and second separator can be cut at the same place during manufacturing and the lengths of the separators are equal to each other despite the difference in circumferential length in the finished spirally-wound electrode ([0100]-[0101]). Ohashi further discloses that by cutting the separators as such, it is possible to reduce burden and cost in manufacturing of the electrode ([0099]). Furthermore, Ohashi discloses the end of the first separator (Fig. 10, 54) disposed at a position in a phase displaced toward a side opposite to the central side of the spiral relative to the end of the second separator (Fig. 10, 44), as shown in annotated Ohashi Fig. 10 below, allows the separators to be fastened by an adhesive tape (60) ([0073-0075]).
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Annotated Ohashi Fig. 10
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have improved the wound electrode assembly of Guo with the notch exposing a part of the finishing end of the second separator for the benefit of reducing manufacturing costs, as well as for fastening of the ends of the separators by an adhesion tape, as taught by Ohashi.
Claim 10 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Guo et al. (US 20190393540 A1) in view of Kobayashi et al. (US 20140178731 A1).
Regarding claim 10, Guo discloses all limitations as set forth above.
Guo discloses a cell comprising of the flat electrode assembly ([0008]) and its use in secondary batteries ([0003]), but does not explicitly disclose the battery cell being used in an electric device. However, one of ordinary skill in the art would recognize that such secondary batteries are commonly used in electric devices.
Nevertheless, Kobayashi discloses a similar flat wound electrode body for a battery ([0011]) and that such secondary batteries are used as driving power supplies for vehicles and portable electric components such as computers, video camcorders and the like ([0002]).
Therefore, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, before the effective filing date of the claimed invention, to have an electric device comprising the battery cell disclosed by Guo, as this it is common use of wound batteries in the art, as taught by Kobayashi.
Conclusion
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/E.J.T./Examiner, Art Unit 1751
/Haroon S. Sheikh/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1751
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