DETAILED ACTION
The present application, filed on or after March 16, 2013, is being examined under the first inventor to file provisions of the AIA .
Priority
Acknowledgment is made of applicant’s claim for foreign priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 (a)-(d). The certified copy has been filed in parent Application No. 17/783895, filed on 06/09/22.
Information Disclosure Statement
The information disclosure statement (IDS) submitted on 04/01/24, 09/25/24, 12/10/24 and 03/25/25 was considered by the examiner.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because Figures 8a, 8b, 13a, 13b, 14a and 14b are not described in the Brief Description of the Drawings. Corrected drawing sheets in compliance with 37 CFR 1.121(d) are required in reply to the Office action to avoid abandonment of the application. Any amended replacement drawing sheet should include all of the figures appearing on the immediate prior version of the sheet, even if only one figure is being amended. The figure or figure number of an amended drawing should not be labeled as “amended.” If a drawing figure is to be canceled, the appropriate figure must be removed from the replacement sheet, and where necessary, the remaining figures must be renumbered and appropriate changes made to the brief description of the several views of the drawings for consistency. Additional replacement sheets may be necessary to show the renumbering of the remaining figures. Each drawing sheet submitted after the filing date of an application must be labeled in the top margin as either “Replacement Sheet” or “New Sheet” pursuant to 37 CFR 1.121(d). If the changes are not accepted by the examiner, the applicant will be notified and informed of any required corrective action in the next Office action. The objection to the drawings will not be held in abeyance.
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: the current status of the parent application (i.e., whether abandoned or patented/patent #) must be updated. Appropriate correction is required.
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities: Figures 8a, 8b, 13a, 13b, 14a and 14b are not described in the Brief Description of the Drawings. In addition, in the Brief Description of the Drawings, the as-filed specification describes Figures 8 and 13-14 which are not included in the drawings. Appropriate correction is required.
The title of the invention is not descriptive. A new title is required that is clearly indicative of the invention to which the claims are directed. It does not appear to capture the essence of the disclosed/claimed invention.
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(s) 1-3 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102a1 as being anticipated by Anderson 4026000.
As to claims 1-3:
Anderson discloses an apparatus for manufacturing a sealed secondary battery cell comprising pressing rolls which apply heat while pressing cell components and the battery cell wherein an electrode assembly and electrolyte-separator are accommodated in the battery sealing envelope before a secondary aging process and after a primary aging process and charging process; support bodies supporting the pressing rolls including upper/lower pressing rolls configured to press upper and lower portions of the battery cell and to adjust/move the support body to adjust the upper/lower rolls (Abstract; COL 4, line 64 to COL 5, line 54; COL 5, line 55 to COL 6, line 40; see CLAIMS 1-11; see Figures 2-4, 6-8 and 10-13). Note that the sealed battery envelop can be taken to represent applicant’s structurally undefined battery case.
Figures 2-4, 6-8 and 10-13, infra, illustrate the apparatus for producing the battery cell including pressing rollers:
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Thus, the present claims are anticipated.
Allowable Subject Matter
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: a detailed search for the prior art failed to reveal or fairly suggest what is instantly claimed, in particular: the pre-degassing device for manufacturing a secondary battery comprising all of the claimed components/elements satisfying the specific structural and functional interrelationship as recited in dependent claim 4.
Claims 4-5 are objected to as being dependent upon a rejected base claim, but would be allowable if rewritten in independent form including all of the limitations of the base claim and any intervening claims. Note that claim 5 is also allowable by virtue of their dependency upon dependent claim 4.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to RAYMOND ALEJANDRO whose telephone number is (571)272-1282. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Thursday (8:00 am-6:30 pm).
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, Nicholas A. Smith can be reached at (571) 272-8760. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/RAYMOND ALEJANDRO/
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1752
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