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 Objections
Claim 1 is objected to because of the following informalities: the terms “non-aqueous electrolyte” and “nonaqueous electrolyte” are used in Claim 1. For sake of consistency, a single naming convention should be used. Appropriate correction is required.
Claim 2 is objected to because of the following informalities: (1) while the terms “non-aqueous electrolyte” and “nonaqueous electrolyte” are used in Claim 2, a single naming convention should be used for sake of consistency, and (2) the word “potion” (“…in which the protruding potion is disposed closer”) should be written as “portion.” Appropriate correction is required.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claim 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 1 recites the limitation (emphasis added) "the surface of the core body." There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 1 recites the limitation (emphasis added) "the radial direction of the electrode assembly." There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 1 recites the limitation (emphasis added) "at both ends in the width direction." There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
The term “approximate constant width” in Claim 1 is a relative term which renders the claim indefinite. The term “approximate constant width” is not defined by the claim, the specification does not provide a standard for ascertaining the requisite degree, and one of ordinary skill in the art would not be reasonably apprised of the scope of the invention. In other words, Claim 1 is rendered particularly indefinite insofar as it is unclear (1) if a “constant” width meets the limitation given that a constant width is explicitly unchanging but an “approximate” constant width may explicitly preclude an unchanging width, and (2) how “not” constant a given width may while still being characterized as an “approximate” constant width.
Claims 2-4 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 2 recites the limitation (emphasis added) "the surface of the core body." There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 2 recites the limitation (emphasis added) "the radial direction of the electrode assembly." There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 2 recites the limitation (emphasis added) "at both ends in the width direction." There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 2 recites the limitation (emphasis added) "closet to the center side." There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 2 recites the limitation (emphasis added) "to the current collecting plate." There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim 4 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 4 recites the limitation (emphasis added) "the width W2." There is insufficient antecedent basis for this limitation in the claim.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
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 1 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Mori et al. (US 2014/0113185).
Regarding Claim 1, Mori teaches a cylindrical battery (Abstract, ([0065]-[0069]). As illustrated in Figures 1-2, 4 Mori teaches that the cylindrical battery comprises a battery element (4) (“electrode assembly”) in which a positive electrode (“first electrode”) and a negative electrode (“second electrode”) are wound around each other via a separator (“separator”), a non-aqueous electrolyte (“non-aqueous electrolyte”), an outer packaging case (8) (“bottom cylindrical exterior can”) that accommodates the battery element and the non-aqueous electrolyte, and a “sealing assembly” (i.e. sealing part (22), base part (20), positive terminal (28), and negative terminal (30), in combination, given that in combination, said structures cap and seal the opening of the outer packaging case) that caps an opening of the outer packaging case ([0065]-[0069], [0078]-[0079]). As illustrated in Figures 1-2, 4-6, Mori teaches that the positive electrode comprises a current collector (120) (“core body”) having a positive electrode material (“mixture layer”) laminated on at least a portion of a surface of the current collector, wherein the current collector further comprises a protruding electrode part (12) (“protruding portion”) protruding from one end face in a winding axis direction of the battery element ([0065]-[0069], [0078]-[0079]).
As illustrated in Figures 2, 6-7, 9 (and the annotated Figure 6 below), the protruding electrode part includes a “welding region” (i.e. a region of the protruding electrode part which includes welding therein) arranged along the radial direction of the battery element with an approximate constant width (i.e. the width of the welding region is considered to be approximately constant, especially in the absence of a definition of “approximate”), and an isolation region (16) (“non-welding region”) adjacent to the welding region, wherein the protruding electrode part comprises projecting bars (42) (“projections”) in the welding region projecting from its center portion at both ends in the width direction, wherein the projecting bars at least project from the protruding electrode part at an inner wall/face of the isolation region (“the projections project from the protruding portion in the non-welding region”), wherein the protruding electrode part in the welding region is welded to a current collector plate (32) (“the protruding portion in the welding region is welded to a current collecting plate”) ([0065]-[0071], [0078]-[0079], [0106]). As illustrated in Figures 1-2, the current collector plate is connected to the sealing assembly (via the illustrated connection to the positive and negative terminals).
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Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 2-4 would be allowable if rewritten or amended to overcome the rejection(s) under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), 2nd paragraph, set forth in this Office action.
Claim 2 requires that the method for manufacturing the cylindrical battery (with the cylindrical battery being structured in the instantly claimed manner) comprising folding the protruding portion radially inward of the electrode assembly to form a welding region having projections projecting from its center portion at both ends in the width direction orthogonal to the radial direction of the electrode assembly, and a non-welding region in which the protruding portion is disposed closer to the center side in the winding axis direction of the electrode assembly than the projections, welding said projections in the welding region to a current collecting plate, and connecting said current collecting plate to the exterior can or the sealing assembly.
As previously described in this Office Action, Mori at least teaches a cylindrical battery structured in substantially the same manner as the instantly claimed cylindrical battery (See the rejection of Claim 1 which outlines, in detail, the relevant teachings of Mori). As illustrated in Figure 5, Mori discloses molding (i.e. folding) of the protruding electrode part such that a welding region and an isolation region are formed.
However, Mori neither teaches nor suggests that the molding process forms a welding region having the projecting bars structured in the instantly claimed manner, or forms the isolation region such that the protruding electrode part is disposed closer to the center side in the winding axis direction of the electrode assembly than the projecting bars. Moreover, Mori neither teaches nor suggests welding the projecting bars in the welding region to the current collector plate.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MATTHEW W VAN OUDENAREN whose telephone number is (571)270-7595. The examiner can normally be reached 7AM-3PM EST M-F.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Matthew Martin can be reached at 5712707871. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/MATTHEW W VAN OUDENAREN/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1728
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