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 .
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 1-7 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Shinoda et al. (WO2020/071336 (corresponding US PGPub 2021/0376319 used for citation purposes)) and further in view of Cho et al. (US PGPub 2020/0388883).
Considering Claim 1, Shinoda discloses a positive electrode mixture (positive electrode mixture [Abstract]) comprising:
a polyvinylidene fluoride (A) (polyvinylidene fluoride [Abstract, 0049]);
a positive electrode active material (C) represented by the general formula (C): LiyNi1-XMxO2 (LiyNi1-XMxO2 [0029] with same formula parameters).
The copolymer includes a fluorinated monomer unit such that the VdF unit is excluded from the fluorinated monomer unit [0049], and may preferably include HFP as the component [0050] such that tetrafluoroethylene is not necessarily included [0050]. A non-fluorinated monomer may also be included with a polar group [0056]. Because examples may include VdF/HFP copolymer as well as VdF/HfP/(meth)acrylic acid copolymer [0068] for the purposes of higher density and more difficulty winding cracking [0050], using both copolymers and providing both A2 and A3 to achieve the same predicted results would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art.
However, Shinoda is silent to a sulfur-containing or oxalate complex additive compound.
Cho discloses an analogous cathode active material that comprises a lithium nickel metal composite oxide [0090] that is combined with an electrolytic solution [0091]. The solution contains additional additives such as 1,3-propane sultone, lithium bis(oxalato)borate, or ethylene sulfate [0091] in order to significantly improve high-temperature storage stability and lifespan characteristics at a high voltage [0092, 0091]. The binder may comprise polyvinylidene fluoride or polyhexafluoropropylene-polyvinylidene fluoride copolymer [0096].
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to combine the positive electrode mixture of Shinoda with the additive of Cho in order to significantly improve high-temperature storage stability and lifespan characteristics at a high voltage [0092, 0091].
Considering Claim 2, Shinoda discloses that the fluorinated monomer unit contained in the polyvinylidene fluoride A2 and the polyvinylidene fluoride A4 is hexafluoropropylene unit ([0050, 0068]).
Considering Claim 3, because the Shinoda examples may include VdF/HFP copolymer as well as VdF/HfP/(meth)acrylic acid copolymer [0068] for the purposes of higher density and more difficulty winding cracking [0050], using both copolymers and providing both A2 and A3 at a broad range of 95/5 to 5/95 such as 50/50 to achieve the same predicted results would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art.
Considering Claim 4, the combined teachings of Shinoda and Cho are as applied in claim 1. Cho discloses an analogous cathode active material that comprises a lithium nickel metal composite oxide [0090] that is combined with an electrolytic solution [0091]. The solution contains additional additives such as 1,3-propane sultone, lithium bis(oxalato)borate, or ethylene sulfate [0091] in order to significantly improve high-temperature storage stability and lifespan characteristics at a high voltage [0092, 0091]. The binder may comprise polyvinylidene fluoride or polyhexafluoropropylene-polyvinylidene fluoride copolymer [0096]. The additive is contained within an amount of 0.1 to 10 wt% to solution [0035] such as 0.5 to 4 wt% [0076] for the sake of improving high-temperature characteristics such as stability, storage, and lifespan [0076], so routinely experimenting with and coming up with a mass within the range of 0.001 to 5% by mass based on a total mass of the polyvinylidene fluoride A and the positive electrode active material C for such predicted results would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the art.
Considering Claim 5, Shinoda discloses an organic solvent (mixture contains organic solvent [0011]).
Considering Claim 6, Shinoda discloses a positive electrode (positive electrode [Abstract]) famed from the positive electrode mixture according to claim 1 (see claim 1).
Considering Claim 7, Shinoda discloses a secondary battery (secondary battery [0001, 0014]) comprising the positive electrode according to claim 6 (see claim 6).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to CHRISTOPHER P DOMONE whose telephone number is (571)270-7582. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8:00-4:30 PM.
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/CHRISTOPHER P DOMONE/Primary Patent Examiner
Art Unit 1725
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