DETAILED ACTION
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 .
Election/Restrictions
Applicant’s election without traverse of invention I in the reply filed on 5/20/26 is acknowledged.
Claims 8-11 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b) as being drawn to a nonelected invention, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Election was made without traverse in the reply filed on 5/20/26.
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.
Claim(s) 1-4 and 7 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Takahashi et al. (2013/0076363).
Regarding claim 1, Takahashi et al. disclose a processing method for a battery comprising determining whether a target battery (10; see paragraph 63) is regenerable (see paragraph 78) without separating an electrode active material serving as a positive electrode active material and an electrode active material serving as a negative electrode active material of the target battery from an electrode group (see paragraphs 78-82; the determination is made based on external measurements), based on analysis result of measurement data for the target battery (supra).
Regarding claim 2, Takahashi et al. disclose the processing method according to claim 1, further comprising, if it is determined that the target battery is not regenerable in a state where the electrode active material is not separated from the electrode group, determining whether each of the electrode active material of the target battery is reusable based on the analysis result of the measurement data for the target battery (see paragraphs 78-82).
Regarding claim 3, Takahashi et al. disclose the processing method according to claim 2, further comprising reusing the electrode active material determined to be reusable in the target battery without being decomposed (see paragraphs 79 and 139).
Regarding claim 4, Takahashi et al. disclose the processing method according to claim 2, further comprising extracting an element included in the electrode active material or a compound or a mixture of the element by decomposing the electrode active material determined to be non-reusable in the target battery (see paragraphs 78-79, 139, and 220).
Regarding claim 7, Takahashi et al. disclose the processing method according to claim 1, further comprising:
determining whether the target battery is reusable as it is based on the analysis result of the measurement data for the target battery (see paragraphs 78-79, 139, and 158); and
reusing the target battery determined to be reusable as it is without separating the electrode active material from the electrode group and regenerating the target battery (see paragraph 79).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 5-6 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The prior art does not disclose or suggest, "regenerating the target battery determined ... regenerable by adjusting the positive ... and the negative electrode electric potential, by adjusting the positive ... and the negative electrode electric potential in a state where the electrode active material is not separated from the electrode group", in combination with the remaining claim elements as set forth in claim 5, and claim 6 depending therefrom.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to GEOFFREY T EVANS whose telephone number is (571)272-2369. The examiner can normally be reached M-F, 9 AM - 5:30 PM.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Walter Lindsay can be reached at (571) 272-1674. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/WALTER L LINDSAY JR/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 2852
/GEOFFREY T EVANS/Examiner, Art Unit 2852
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