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.
Claims 1-3 and 6-8 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as being anticipated by Yudi et al. (US 2021/0098770).
Regarding Claim 1, Yudi et al. teaches an electrode wherein the binder consists of polytetrafluoroethylene (Para. [0018]), which is a dry fertilizable binder (Para. [0109]) (i.e. an electrode binder comprising a polytetrafluoroethylene powder, wherein the amount of the polytetrafluoroethylene powder is 95.0% by mass or more, the amount of water is 0% and the fluorine-containing compound is 0 ppb).
Regarding Claim 2, Yudi et al. teaches all of the elements of the current invention in claim 1 as explained above.
Yudi et al. further teaches the binder consists of polytetrafluoroethylene (Para. [0018]) (i.e. the amount of each of fluorine-containing compounds represented by the claimed formulas is 0 ppb).
Regarding Claim 3, Yudi et al. teaches all of the elements of the current invention in claim 1 as explained above.
Yudi et al. further teaches the binder consists of polytetrafluoroethylene (Para. [0018]) (i.e. wherein the fluorine-containing compound amounts 0 ppb in the polytetrafluoroethylene powder).
Regarding Claim 6, Yudi et al. teaches all of the elements of the electrode binder in claim 1 as explained above.
Yudi et al. further teaches a dry cathode film including mixing active material and the dry binder (Para. [0005]) (i.e. an electrode mixture comprising the electrode binder according to claim 1 and an electrode active material).
Regarding Claim 7, Yudi et al. teaches all of the elements of the electrode binder in claim 1 as explained above.
Yudi et al. further teaches the electrodes comprising the electrode films comprising the electrode film mixture comprising binder and active material, and each comprise a current collector (Para. [0053]) (i.e. an electrode comprising the electrode binder according to claim 1, an electrode active material and a current collector).
Regarding Claim 8, Yudi et al. teaches all of the elements of the electrode in claim 7 as explained above.
Yudi et al. further teaches a lithium ion (i.e. secondary) battery comprising the electrode (claim 23).
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 4-5 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Yudi et al. (US 2021/0098770) in view of Yoshida et al. (WO2019/172382A). The U.S. version of Yoshida et al. (US 2021/0095054A) is used as the English translation and is referenced below.
Regarding Claim 4, Yudi et al. teaches all of the elements of the current invention in claim 1 as explained above.
Yudi et al. does not teach the polytetrafluoroethylene comprises a tetrafluoroethylene monomer unit based on a modifying monomer copolymerizable with tetrafluoroethylene.
However, Yoshida et al. teaches a binder for electrodes (Para. [1118]) producing a powder of fluoropolymer (Para. [0780]) wherein the production of the TFE polymer (PTFE or polytetrafluoroethylene), a copolymer of TFE (i.e. tetrafluoroethylene) and a modifying monomer are used (Para. [0857]) (i.e. wherein the polytetrafluoroethylene comprises a tetrafluoroethylene unit and a modifying monomer unit based on a modifying monomer copolymerizable with tetrafluoroethylene).
It would have been obvious for one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention to have modified the polymer of Yudi et al. to incorporate the teaching of comprising a tetrafluoroethylene unit and a modifying monomer unit based on a modifying monomer copolymerizable with tetrafluoroethylene as taught by Yoshida et al., as the presence makes it possible to obtain modified PTFE particles having small particle size and thereby obtain a small aspect ratio and excellent stability (Para. [0876]).
Regarding Claim 5, Yudi et al. as modified by Yoshida et al. teaches all of the elements of the current invention in claim 1 as explained above.
Yoshida et al. further teaches the modifying monomer of the modified PTFE is HFP (Para. [0864]) (i.e. wherein the modifying monomer includes at least hexafluoropropylene). See the rejection to claim 1 for full details of the combination, incorporated herein but not reiterated herein for brevity’s sake; this reasoning is applicable to the specific example of Yoshida et al. cited herein.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to ARMINDO CARVALHO JR. whose telephone number is (571)272-5292. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday 7:30a.m.-5p.m..
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/ARMINDO CARVALHO JR./Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1729
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