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 § 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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 1-8, 14-16, & 19 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Choi (US-20180175343-A1).
Claim 1: Choi ‘343 teaches a battery pack comprising at least one battery module (10) [¶ 0102], a battery pack case that houses the battery module (10) [¶ 0102], and a buffering member {pressure member} (300) [¶ 0074].
It further teaches the buffering member (300) may be provided as a pair [¶ 0076], that the buffering member (300) may be inserted between the battery cells (100) and the sides (230, 250) [¶ 0084] and that in so doing the buffering member (300) may be held by an elastic {pressing} force [¶ 0084].
While Choi ‘343 does not explicitly teach the battery module being forcibly inserted between the buffering members, it has been held that limitations as to a method oof manufacture within a claim directed to a product do not have patentable weight unless the claim limitations requires particular structure. For more on Product by Process claims, see MPEP § 2113.
Claim 2: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 1, as discussed above. It further teaches the buffering member(s) (300) may be made of an elastic material [¶ 0076].
Claim 3: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 1, as discussed above. It further teaches the buffering member(s) (300) may be a leaf spring with at least one bent portion [¶ 0076]. It further teaches the buffer member(s) (300) being biased in a direction towards the battery module [¶ 0099-0100; FIG. 15, 16], namely “the protruding portion of the bent portion 320d may be positioned in contact with the sides 230, 250 of the module cover 200” [¶ 0100].
Claim 4: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 1, as discussed above. It further teaches the buffering member(s) (300) being at an interval equal to a width of the battery module [FIG. 12].
Claim 5: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 1, as discussed above. It further teaches the plurality of battery cells (100) stacked in a stacking direction within the battery module with the buffering member(s) (300) being at opposing sides of the battery module in the stacking direction [FIGs. 12, 14, 16].
Claims 6-7: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 5, as discussed above. While, it does not teach the placement or orientation of the battery module (10) on the bottom part of the disclosed battery pack being parallel or perpendicular to the stacking direction of the battery cells (100), it can be understood that during installation the orientation of each at least one of the battery module (10) of Choi ‘343 would be on a flat side of the module cover (200) – such as the sides (230, 250) or lower plate (270) – in order to provide stability to the overall unit and especially the battery cells (100), as desired by Choi [¶ 0070, 0073, 0091].
A conceptual illustration including FIG. 16 of Choi ‘343 is provided by the Examiner for clarity of the record to demonstrate two obvious permutations of the installation of a battery module (10) to the disclosed battery pack.
PNG
media_image1.png
901
900
media_image1.png
Greyscale
PNG
media_image2.png
825
995
media_image2.png
Greyscale
Claim 8: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 5, as discussed above. It further teaches the module cover (200) having sides {pair of support frames} (230, 250) parallel to the buffer members (300) [FIGs. 12, 14, 16].
Claim 14: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 8, as discussed above. It further teaches the sides (230, 250) are on opposing sides of the module frame in a stacking direction of the plurality of battery cells (100) [FIGs. 12, 14, 16].
Claim 15: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 8, as discussed above. It further teaches the sides (230, 250) are on opposing sides of the module frame in a stacking direction of the plurality of battery cells (100) [FIGs. 12, 14, 16], and that the sides (230, 250) may be coupled {configured to be attached} to the upper plate (210) [¶ 0068].
Claim 16: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 1, as discussed above. It further teaches the module cover (200) having sides {plurality of vertical beams} (230, 250) parallel to the buffer members (300) and battery module that are between said sides [FIGs. 12, 14, 16].
It is understood that by the battery module being within the battery pack, said module cover sides (230, 250) can be considered to be arranged in the pack case.
Claim 19: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 1, as discussed above. It further teaches a vehicle comprising the battery pack [¶ 0028].
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 text of those sections of Title 35, U.S. Code not included in this action can be found in a prior Office action.
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.
Claim(s) 9-13 & 17 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Choi (US-20180175343-A1). as applied to claims 1 and 8 above, and further in view of Yoo (KR-102424745-B1).
Claim 9: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 8, as discussed above. It further teaches that the buffering member (300) is intended to buffer applied shocks either internal or from an external impact [¶ 0076].
Choi ‘343 does not teach the sides (230, 250) having a recessed surface configured to conform to a protruding shape of the buffering members (300).
Yoo ‘745 teaches a battery rack device {battery pack} (100) accommodating a battery module (200) [Abstract], a pair of auxiliary damper vibration damping units {pressure members} (152) in the battery rack device [¶ 0072, 0075; FIG. 11], and that the battery module (200) is located between said auxiliary damper vibration damping units (152) [FIG. 11].
Yoo ‘745 further teaches a paired auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) and auxiliary damper housing (151) {collectively, a support frame} [¶ 0072, 0075; FIG. 11], an auxiliary damper roller part {protruding shape} (153) [¶ 0076; FIG. 11], that the auxiliary damper roller part (153) engages with the auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) on a recessed surface [¶ 0077; FIG. 11], and that the purpose of the present invention is to absorb vibration and shock [¶ 0029-0030].
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the Art prior to the filing date to have modified the battery pack of Choi ‘343 to include the auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) and auxiliary damper housing (151) {support frame unit} and the auxiliary damper roller part (153) of Yoo ‘745 onto which said support frame unit is conformed to fit to in order to improve the overall shock absorption of the battery pack, as suggested by Yoo and desired by Choi.
Claim 10: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 8, as discussed above. It further teaches the lower plate (270) having a coupling groove {recessed surface} (273) [¶ 0071] configured to conform to a protruding shape of the buffering member(s) (300) – such as the second bent portion (350) [¶ 0074] – and that the buffering member (300) is intended to buffer applied shocks either internal or from an external impact [¶ 0076].
Choi ‘343 further teaches the sides (230, 250) having a flat surface facing the plurality of battery cells (100) [FIGs. 12, 14, 16].
Choi ‘343 does not teach the sides (230, 250) having a recessed surface configured to conform to a protruding shape of the buffering members (300).
Yoo ‘745 teaches a battery rack device {battery pack} (100) accommodating a battery module (200) [Abstract], a pair of auxiliary damper vibration damping units {pressure members} (152) in the battery rack device [¶ 0072, 0075; FIG. 11], and that the battery module (200) is located between said auxiliary damper vibration damping units (152) [FIG. 11].
Yoo ‘745 further teaches a paired auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) and auxiliary damper housing (151) {collectively, a support frame} [¶ 0072, 0075; FIG. 11], an auxiliary damper roller part {protruding shape} (153) [¶ 0076; FIG. 11], that the auxiliary damper roller part (153) engages with the auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) on a recessed surface [¶ 0077; FIG. 11], and that the purpose of the present invention is to absorb vibration and shock [¶ 0029-0030].
Yoo ‘745 further teaches the battery module (200) are formed by assembling a plurality of battery cells [¶ 0007], and that the auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) has a flat surface that faces a plurality of battery cells [FIG. 11].
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the Art prior to the filing date to have modified the battery pack of Choi ‘343 to include the auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) and auxiliary damper housing (151) {support frame unit} and the auxiliary damper roller part (153) onto which said support frame unit is conformed to fit to in order to improve the overall shock absorption of the battery pack, as suggested by Yoo and desired by Choi.
Claim 11: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 8, as discussed above. It further teaches that the buffering member (300) is intended to buffer applied shocks either internal or from an external impact [¶ 0076].
Choi ‘343 does not teach the sides (230, 250) having at least one bearing ball.
Yoo ‘745 teaches a battery rack device {battery pack} (100) accommodating a battery module (200) [Abstract], a pair of auxiliary damper vibration damping units {pressure members} (152) in the battery rack device [¶ 0072, 0075; FIG. 11], and that the battery module (200) is located between said auxiliary damper vibration damping units (152) [FIG. 11].
Yoo ‘745 further teaches a paired auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) and auxiliary damper housing (151) {a support frame unit} [¶ 0072, 0075; FIG. 11], an auxiliary damper roller part {protruding shape} (153) [¶ 0076; FIG. 11], that the auxiliary damper roller part (153) engages with the auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) on a recessed surface [¶ 0077; FIG. 11], that the purpose of the present invention is to absorb vibration and shock [¶ 0029-0030], and that the auxiliary damper roller part (153) may be a ball bearing [¶ 0077].
Yoo ‘745 further teaches a damper part (130) comprising a vibration damping part (131) that absorbs vibration and shock and a roller part (132) [¶ 0054], that the roller part (132) may be a bearing [¶ 0059; FIGs. 6, 11], that the bearing is configured to allow the slide part (120) to be removed from the housing (110) by sliding [¶ 0058], and that any configuration that can reduce friction to allow the slide part (120) to move easily may be used [¶ 0059].
While, Yoo ‘745 is silent on the auxiliary damper roller part (153) rotating within the support frame unit (160, 151), the fact that both the auxiliary damper roller part (153) (153) and the roller section (132) may be bearing balls and that said roller section (132) is configured to rotate within the slide part (120) would imply that the auxiliary damper roller part (153) inherently has the capacity to rotate within its mated counterpart, that being the auxiliary damper friction damping part (160).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the Art prior to the filing date to have modified the battery pack of Choi ‘343 to include the auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) and auxiliary damper housing (151) {support frame unit} and the auxiliary damper roller part (153) onto which said support frame unit is conformed to fit to in order to improve the overall shock absorption of the battery pack, as suggested by Yoo and desired by Choi.
Claim 12: Choi ‘343 & Yoo ‘745 teach the limitations of claim 11, as seen above.
Claim 13: Choi ‘343 & Yoo ‘745 teach the limitations of claim 11, as seen above.
The term “forcibly” is functional language and therefore does not have patentable weight. For more on functional limitations, see MPEP § 2144.05 (II).
Claim 17: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 1, as discussed above. It further teaches that the buffering member (300) is intended to buffer applied shocks either internal or from an external impact [¶ 0076].
It does not teach the pressure member(s) (300) having at least one bearing ball.
Yoo ‘745 teaches a battery rack device {battery pack} (100) accommodating a battery module (200) [Abstract], a pair of auxiliary damper vibration damping units {pressure members} (152) in the battery rack device [¶ 0072, 0075; FIG. 11], and that the battery module (200) is located between said auxiliary damper vibration damping units (152) [FIG. 11].
Yoo ‘745 further teaches a paired auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) and auxiliary damper housing (151) {a support frame unit} [¶ 0072, 0075; FIG. 11], an auxiliary damper roller part {protruding shape} (153) [¶ 0076; FIG. 11], that the auxiliary damper roller part (153) engages with the auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) on a recessed surface [¶ 0077; FIG. 11], that the purpose of the present invention is to absorb vibration and shock [¶ 0029-0030], and that the auxiliary damper roller part (153) may be a ball bearing [¶ 0077].
Yoo ‘745 further teaches a damper part (130) comprising a vibration damping part (131) that absorbs vibration and shock and a roller part (132) [¶ 0054], that the roller part (132) may be a bearing [¶ 0059; FIGs. 6, 11], that the bearing is configured to allow the slide part (120) to be removed from the housing (110) by sliding [¶ 0058], and that any configuration that can reduce friction to allow the slide part (120) to move easily may be used [¶ 0059]. It further teaches the auxiliary damper roller part (153) protruding towards the battery module (200) and is configured to make contact with the battery module (200) by means of contacting the damping part (160) [¶ 0074, FIG. 11].
While, Yoo ‘745 is silent on the auxiliary damper roller part (153) rotating within the support frame unit (160, 151), the fact that both the auxiliary damper roller part (153) (153) and the roller section (132) may be bearing balls and that said roller section (132) is configured to rotate within the slide part (120) would imply that the auxiliary damper roller part (153) inherently has the capacity to rotate within its mated counterpart, that being the auxiliary damper friction damping part (160).
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the Art prior to the filing date to have modified the battery pack of Choi ‘343 to include the auxiliary damper friction damping part (160) and auxiliary damper housing (151) {support frame unit} and the auxiliary damper roller part (153) onto which said support frame unit is conformed to fit to in order to improve the overall shock absorption of the battery pack, as suggested by Yoo and desired by Choi.
Claim(s) 18 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Choi (US-20180175343-A1). as applied to claims 1 and 8 above, and further in view of Hermann (US-20140093760-A1).
Claim 18: Choi ‘343 teaches the limitations of claim 1, as discussed above. It further teaches an aim of the invention is to improve energy density [¶ 0105].
Choi ‘343 does not teach the batteries being solid-state.
Hermann ‘760 teaches battery stacks, batteries, and battery packs [Abstract]. It further teaches that said batteries may be one or more flexible pouches [¶ 0006], that the batteries may be solid state [¶ 0062] and that the solid state batteries may have significantly higher energy density than conventional lithium ion batteries [¶ 0063].
It would have been obvious to a person of ordinary skill in the Art prior to the filing date to modify the pouch batteries of Choi ‘343 to be the solid-state pouch batteries of Hermann ‘760 in order to improve the energy density of the invention, as desired by Choi.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to Chris Gagnon whose telephone number is (571)270-0417. The examiner can normally be reached Tuesday through Friday 8:00am-5:00pm (ET) and Saturday 8:00am-12:00pm (ET).
Examiner interviews are available via telephone, in-person, and video conferencing using a USPTO supplied web-based collaboration tool. To schedule an interview, applicant is encouraged to use the USPTO Automated Interview Request (AIR) at http://www.uspto.gov/interviewpractice.
If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Michael Cleveland can be reached at 571-272-1418. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/CHRISTOPHER L GAGNON/Examiner, Art Unit 1712
/MICHAEL B CLEVELAND/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1712
Prosecution Insights