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 with traverse of Group I, claims 1-8 in the reply filed on August 4, 2026 is acknowledged. The traversal is on the ground(s) that the restriction between Group I and Group II is improper, that a design with three plates necessarily includes two plates, and claims 1 and 9 are not mutually exclusive. The traversal is persuasive, and Groups I and II are examined below. However, Group III is properly restricted from Groups I and II.
The requirement is still deemed proper and is therefore made FINAL.
Claims 17-20 are withdrawn from further consideration pursuant to 37 CFR 1.142(b), as being drawn to a nonelected invention or species, there being no allowable generic or linking claim. Applicant timely traversed the restriction (election) requirement in the reply filed on August 4, 2026.
Priority
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
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.
Claims 1-2 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jo (US Pub. No. 2019/0044201) in view of Hamlett (US Pub. No. 2013/0288098).
Regarding claim 1, Jo teaches a battery module assembly (title) comprising a first paste injection hole H1 (paragraph [0034]), a cooling plate 20 (claimed cooling channel) disposed below the battery module 10 and joined to a lower side of the battery module, wherein the cooling channel is configured to allow a coolant to flow therethrough, and the cooling channel comprises an upper cooling channel plate disposed below the battery cell, and a lower cooling channel plate disposed below the upper cooling channel plate and joined to the upper cooling channel plate to define a plurality of cooling passages, and a connection tube 23 serving as a spacer disposed on the upper cooling channel plate, where the spacer is configured to contact the lower side of the battery module to support the battery module and to maintain a distance between the upper cooling channel plate and the lower side of the battery module (paragraphs [0018] and [0034]-[0041]; figure 6). Jo does not specifically disclose that the cooling channel and spacer contact the battery cell. Hamlett teaches a compression limiting device 316 (claimed spacer) arranged between the lower side of the battery cells 304 and the upper side of the cooling plate 308 (paragraph [0028]; figure 3B). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to directly connect the cooling channel/spacer with the battery cells as taught by Hamlett in the battery module assembly of Jo as a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results (see MPEP at 2143 I A).
Regarding claim 2, Jo teaches a first paste injection hole H1 (claimed penetrating portion) at a portion where the upper and lower cooling channel plates are joined together, and the penetrating portion is configured to inject a gap filler into a space between the battery cell and the cooling channel (paragraph [0034]; figure 6).
Claims 9-11 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jo (US Pub. No. 2019/0044201) in view of Hamlett (US Pub. No. 2013/0288098) and Reeves (US Pub. No. 2016/0338222).
Regarding claim 9-10, Jo teaches a battery module assembly (title) comprising a first paste injection hole H1 (paragraph [0034]), a cooling plate 20 (claimed cooling channel) disposed below the battery module 10 and joined to a lower side of the battery module, wherein the cooling channel is configured to allow a coolant to flow therethrough, and the cooling channel comprises an upper cooling channel plate disposed below the battery cell, and a lower cooling channel plate disposed below the upper cooling channel plate and joined to the upper cooling channel plate to define a plurality of cooling passages, and a connection tube 23 serving as a spacer disposed on the upper cooling channel plate, where the spacer is configured to contact the lower side of the battery module to support the battery module and to maintain a distance between the upper cooling channel plate and the lower side of the battery module (paragraphs [0018] and [0034]-[0041]; figure 6). Jo does not specifically disclose that the cooling channel and spacer contact the battery cell. Hamlett teaches a compression limiting device 316 (claimed spacers) arranged between the lower side of the battery cells 304 and the upper side of the cooling plate 308 (paragraph [0028]; figure 3B). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to directly connect the cooling channel/spacers with the battery cells as taught by Hamlett in the battery module assembly of Jo as a combination of prior art elements according to known methods to yield predictable results (see MPEP at 2143 I A). Jo (combined) does not specifically disclose a plurality of upper cooling channel plates and an intermediate cooling channel plate disposed between the upper cooling channel plates, a plurality of openings in the intermediate cooling channel plate to correspond to the upper cooling channel plates and edges of the upper cooling channel plates are seated on the intermediate cooling channel plate at edges of the openings. Reeves teaches a liquid cooled coldplate 900 (taken to be the claimed intermediate cooling channel plate) with a plurality of plates 902 (claimed upper cooling channel plates) that are received in pockets 913 with a ledge 914 around the perimeter of the pocket (paragraphs [0068]-[0077]; figures 9A-11). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to use an intermediate cooling channel plate and a plurality of upper cooling channel plates as taught by Reeves in the battery module assembly of Jo (combined) in order to provide balanced parallel cooling (see Reeves at paragraph [0074]).
Regarding claim 11, Jo teaches first paste injection holes H1 (claimed penetrating portions) at a portion where the upper and lower cooling channel plates are joined together, and the penetrating portion is configured to inject a gap filler into a space between the battery cell and the cooling channel (paragraph [0034]; figures 5-6).
Claims 3-6 and 12-15 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jo in view of Hamlett as applied to claim 2 above, or Jo in view of Hamlett and Reeves as applied to claim 9 above, and further in view of Gormanns (CN 112310506; machine translation relied upon).
Regarding claims 3-4, 6, 12-13 and 15, Jo does not specifically disclose injection nozzles and gap filler injection pipes. Gormanns teaches a battery gap filling device provided with a conical injection head nozzle and a filling pipe (machine translation at page 4, fourth paragraph). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to use injection nozzles and pipes as taught by Gormanns in the battery module of Jo (combined) in order to simplify the sealing process and/or improve the sealing effect (see Gormanns machine translation at page 4, fourth paragraph).
Regarding claims 5 and 14, Jo teaches that the upper and lower cooling channel plates are joined to each other a joint portions (see figure 6), and “brazing” is a product-by-process limitation which is a well-known and obvious method for connecting cooling channel plates, and holes 20a and 20b (claimed gap filler injection holes) are disposed at joint portions in such a manner as to communicate with each other at the same positions of the upper and lower cooling channel plates (figure 6). “[E]ven though product-by-process claims are limited by and defined by the process, determination of patentability is based on the product itself. The patentability of a product does not depend on its method of production. If the product in the product-by-process claim is the same as or obvious from a product of the prior art, the claim is unpatentable even though the prior product was made by a different process.” MPEP at 2113 citing In re Thorpe, 777 F.2d 695, 698, 227 USPQ 964, 966 (Fed. Cir. 1985).
Claims 7 and 16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jo in view of Hamlett as applied to claim 1 above, or Jo in view of Hamlett and Reeves as applied to claim 9 above, and further in view of Howard (US Pub. No. 2009/0208829).
Regarding claim 7, Hamlett does not teach that the spacers protrude in an oblique direction and is bent to extend in a direction parallel to the lower side of the battery cell. Howard teaches using tabs 706 integral with a plate 702, where the tabs protrude towards the battery cell from the plate in an oblique direction, and is bent to extend in a direction parallel to the side of the battery cell (paragraph [0031]; figures 6A-6B). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to use a tabbed spacer configuration as taught by Howard in the battery module assembly of Jo (combined) in order to hold the battery cell firmly in place (see Howard at paragraph [0029]).
Claims 8 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jo in view of Hamlett as applied to claim 1 above, and further in view of Rhodes (US Pub. No. 2018/0026321).
Regarding claim 8, Jo teaches that the upper cooling plate is partitioned into a plurality of regions (figure 6), but does not specifically disclose that each of the plurality of regions including a gap filler injection hole. Rhodes teaches using a plurality of conduits 158 (claimed injection holes) (paragraphs [0079]-[0081]). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to use multiple injection holes as taught by Rhodes in the battery module assembly of Jo (combined) in order to help control how much gap filler is communicated to each of the cavities (see Rhodes at paragraph [0081]).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to PHILIP N SCHWARTZ whose telephone number is (571)270-1612. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Fri 9:00-5:30.
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/P.N.S/ Examiner, Art Unit 1749 September 26, 2026
/KATELYN W SMITH/ Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1749
