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 .
Specification
The disclosure is objected to because of the following informalities:
Paragraph [0011] of the specification filed 05/24/2024 recites “…the space being reduced in response to an external force is define sidewalls.” (emphasis by Examiner).
The emphasized portion appears to be a drafting error included unintentionally; thus, this portion of ¶[0011] is interpreted as being omitted for purposes of examination. Support for this interpretation is found in ¶[0013] (“a distance between the first plate and the second plate is reduced in response to the first connecting part being ruptured by an external force.”) which omits this portion.
Appropriate correction is required.
Drawings
The drawings are objected to because of minor informalities:
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FIG. 8, Applicant Drawings
The fourth partition wall plate (252) in FIG. 8 is depicted with a reference line (circled above) appearing directed to the second partition wall air layer (254, unshaded layer) instead of the intended fourth partition wall plate (shaded layer on the right); paragraph [00123] and FIG. 9 of the specification show the correct labeling of fourth partition wall plate (252).
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.
Claim Objections
Claims 4 and 9 are objected to because of the following informalities:
Claim 4 recites inter alia “…one or more of the first sidewalls and the second sidewalls define a space therebetween, the space being reduced in response to an external force is define sidewalls.” (emphasis by Examiner).
The emphasized portion appears to be a drafting error included unintentionally; thus, this recitation is interpreted as being omitted for purposes of examination. Support for this interpretation is found in ¶[0013] (“a distance between the first plate and the second plate is reduced in response to the first connecting part being ruptured by an external force.”) which omits this portion.
Claim 9 recites “…a first partition wall in the accommodation part and having a [1] hallow shape, the first partition wall being configured to [2] partitioning the accommodation part…”.
Emphasized portion [1] appears to be a typographical error intended to recite “hollow” and portion [2] appears intended to recite “partition”. Portions [1] and [2] are interpreted as reading such, based on claim 13’s recitation of “…a second partition wall positioned to intersect the first partition wall and having a hollow shape, the second partition wall being configured to partition the accommodation part…”.
Appropriate correction is required.
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.
(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.
Claims 1-12 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) and 102(a)(2) as anticipated by Jeon (US-20230231264-A1), as evidenced by Iowa State University Center for Nondestructive Evaluation (Materials and Processes, hereinafter "Iowa"; see attached copy).
Regarding claims 1, 2, and 4, Jeon discloses a cell frame (200, “packing case”) comprising:
a pair of first sidewalls (see annotations) (260a, 260, “duct member”, [0061]) spaced apart from each other in a first direction (an X direction) (see Annotated Jeon FIG. 8 below).
As an intrinsic material property, when a sufficient load is applied to a structural material, it causes the material to change shape, i.e., deform (evidenced by Iowa, p. 1 ¶1); thus, Jeon’s first sidewalls are inherently configured (i.e., capable) to be deformed by at least some degree by an external force as claimed in claim 1.
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Annotated Jeon FIG. 8
The cell frame comprises a pair of second sidewalls (270, “connection duct”) spaced apart from each other in a second direction (a Y-direction) crossing the first direction, coupled to the pair of first sidewalls (260, 260a) ([0107-0108]) and as a material property are configured to be deformed by an external force (Iowa, ¶1), thus fully anticipating claim 1.
An accommodation part (S, “accommodating spaces”) in which a plurality of battery cells (110, “cell stacks”) are accommodated is provided in a space defined by the first sidewalls (260, 260a) and the second sidewalls (270) ([0057], [0108], FIG. 2) as claimed in claim 2.
The first sidewalls (260, 260 a) and the second sidewalls (270) define a space therebetween (P, “flow space” in 260, 260a [0061]; “internal space” in 270, [0103]). In response to an external force (e.g., a compressive force, see dashed arrow in Annotated Jeon FIG. 4 below), the space therebetween (P) would inherently be compressed, i.e., reduced in the direction of compressive force (Iowa p. 2 § Compressive Properties) as claimed in claim 4.
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Annotated Jeon FIG. 4
Regarding claim 3, Jeon discloses the cell frame of claim 2, further comprising a seating plate (220, “bottom member”) coupled to the first and second sidewalls (230, “side wall member”) and configured to cover an opening provided in one surface of the accommodation part (S) and on which the battery cells (110) are seated ([0055], FIG. 1)
Regarding claims 5, 6, Jeon discloses the cell frame of claim 4, wherein each of the first sidewalls comprises:
a first plate (269, “partition wall”); a second plate (269, “partition wall”) spaced apart from the first plate (269) and facing the first plate ([0061-0062], Annotated Jeon FIG. 4),
Furthermore, as the space (P, “flow space”) separating the first/second plates (269) is open to allow the flow of high-temperature gas or flame from the cells ([0061-0062], Annotated Jeon FIG. 4), the space (P) would primarily and necessarily contain air except during the event of a fire and is thus recognized as the first air layer of claim 5.
The cell frame further comprises a first connecting part (261) connecting the first plate (269) and the second plate (269) ([0088], Annotated Jeon FIG. 4) as claimed in claim 5.
Furthermore, when an external compressive force (see dashed arrow) between the first plate (269) and the second plate (269) is larger than the ultimate compressive strength to rupture the first connecting part (261) (Iowa, p. 2 § Compressive Properties, Annotated Jeon FIG. 4), a distance between the first plate and the second plate would be reduced in response to the first connecting part rupturing (i.e., deforming) in the direction of the external (compressive) force as claimed in claim 6.
Regarding claims 7, 8, Jeon discloses the cell frame of claim 4. Each one of the second sidewalls (270) comprises:
a third plate (i.e., the surface facing the cell stack 110);
a fourth plate (i.e., the surface opposite the cell stack 110, [0103]) spaced apart from the third plate and facing the third plate, the third and fourth plates being separated by a second air layer (i.e., the internal space); and a second connecting part connecting the third plate and the fourth plate (see Annotated Jeon FIG. 2 below) as claimed in claim 7.
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Annotated Jeon FIG. 2
Furthermore, when an external compressive force (see dashed arrow) between the third plate and the fourth plate is larger than the compressive strength to rupture the second connecting part, a distance between the third plate and the fourth plate would be reduced in response to second connecting part rupturing in the direction of the external (compressive) force (Iowa, p. 2 § Compressive Properties) as claimed in claim 8.
Regarding claims 9-12, Jeon discloses the cell frame of claim 4, further comprising:
a first partition wall (260, “duct member”, Annotated Jeon FIG. 8) in the accommodation part (S) and having a hollow shape, the first partition wall (260) being configured to partition the accommodation part (S) ([0061], Annotated Jeon FIG. 8) and to be deformed by an external force (Iowa p. 1 ¶1, deformation shown in Annotated Jeon FIG. 4) as claimed in claim 9,
wherein the first partition wall (260) comprises:
a first partition wall plate (269, “partition wall”);
a second partition wall plate (269, “partition wall”) spaced apart from the first partition wall plate (269) and facing the first partition wall plate (269) ([0061-0062], Annotated Jeon FIG. 4).
As the space (P, “flow space”) separating the first/second partition wall plates (269) is open to allow the flow of high-temperature gas or flame from the cells ([0061-0062]), the space (P) would primarily and necessarily contain air except during the event of a fire and is thus recognized as the first partition wall air layer of claim 10.
The cell frame further comprises a first partition wall connecting part (261) connecting the first partition wall plate (269) and the second partition wall plate (269) ([0088], Annotated Jeon FIG. 4) as claimed in claim 10.
Furthermore, when an external compressive force (see dashed arrow) between the first partition wall plate (269) and the second partition wall plate (269) is larger than the ultimate compressive strength to rupture the first partition wall connecting part (261) (Iowa, p. 2 § Compressive Properties, Annotated Jeon FIG. 4), a distance between the first partition wall plate (269) and the second partition wall plate (269) would be reduced in response to the first partition wall connecting part (261) rupturing (i.e., deforming) in the direction of the external (compressive) force as claimed in claim 11.
Additionally, in Jeon’s cell frame, the first partition wall (260) comprises a plurality of first partition walls (260) spaced apart from each other in the first direction ([0061], Annotated Jeon FIG. 8) as claimed in claim 12.
Claims 1, 2, 4, and 17-20 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as anticipated by George et al. (US-20220037717-A1), as evidenced by Iowa State University Center for Nondestructive Evaluation (Materials and Processes, hereinafter "Iowa"; see attached copy).
Regarding claims 1 and 2, George discloses a cell frame (4, “cell tray”) ([0012]) comprising a pair of first sidewalls spaced apart from each other in a first direction (see Annotated George FIG. 4, below).
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Annotated George FIG. 4
When sufficient load is applied to a structural material, it causes the material to change shape, i.e., deform (Iowa, p. 1 ¶1); thus, as an intrinsic material property, George’s first sidewalls are configured (i.e., capable) to be deformed by an external force as claimed in claim 1.
George’s cell frame (4) further comprises a pair of second sidewalls spaced apart from each other in a second direction crossing the first direction, coupled to the pair of first sidewalls, and are configured to be deformed by an external force (Annotated George FIG. 4, Iowa, p. 1 ¶1) thus fully anticipating claim 1;
Additionally, an accommodation part (6, “cell holes”) in which a plurality of battery cells are accommodated is provided in a space defined by the first sidewalls and the second sidewalls ([0037], Annotated George FIG. 4) as claimed in claim 2.
Regarding claim 4, George discloses the cell frame of claim 4, wherein the first sidewalls define a space (35 to 40, “through-holes”) therebetween ([0061]), the space being reduced in response to an external force (i.e., a compressive impact, Iowa, p. 2 § Compressive Properties) as claimed in claim 4.
Regarding claim 17, George discloses an energy storage system (2, “battery module”) comprising a container (3a, 3b, “module housing”, [0044], FIG. 2),
the cell frame (“cell tray”) of claim 1 is located in a cell cavity defined by the container (“housing”) ([0006, 0012], FIG. 2), and is thus accommodated in the container (“housing”) as claimed in claim 17;
a plurality of battery cells (7) accommodated in the cell frame (4) ([0040], FIG. 5); and
a cooling fluid (“coolant”) configured to be injected into the container (“into a region enclosed by the housing”) ([0061]) and in which the plurality of the battery cells are immersed (“bathed in coolant”) ([0057]) as claimed in claim 17.
Regarding claims 18-20, George discloses the energy storage system of claim 17, wherein a first portion of one of the battery cells (7) is configured to be inserted into the cell frame (4); and a second portion of the one of the battery cells (“the portion of the cell 7 comprising the positive terminal and the portion of the cell 7 comprising the negative terminal”) is exposed from the cell frame (4) ([0043], FIG. 5) as claimed in claim 18.
Additionally, the second portion (“portions of each cell which protrude from the cell tray”) is configured to be immersed in the cooling fluid (“directly contacted by coolant”) ([0057]). The cell frame (“cell tray”) which acts as a fluid partition limiting the regions containing the cooling fluid ([0012]) is not immersed in the cooling fluid, thus anticipating claim 19.
Furthermore, George’s plurality of battery cells comprise a vent (“vent port”) to allow cell fluids escaping the cell to be quenched by the surrounding cooling fluid (“coolant”) ([0065]). George fails to expressly indicate the vent’s location on the cell; however, the vent is necessarily in the second portion of the cell as only the second portion (“portions […] which protrude from the cell tray”) of George’s cells are surrounded (“directly contacted”) by cooling fluid which functions to quench the escaping cell fluids ([0057]); thus, the second portion comprises a vent as claimed in claim 20.
The second portion comprises a cell terminal ([0043], [0057]) as claimed in claim 20.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 13-16 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Jeon (US-20230231264-A1) as evidenced by Iowa (Materials and Processes) as applied to claim 9 in view of Seo et al. (US-20240266660-A1).
Regarding claims 13-15, Jeon discloses the cell frame of claim 9, further comprising a second partition wall (130, “heat insulating member”), which is disposed between battery cells (120) aligned in the first (X) direction ([0079], Annotated Jeon FIG. 8, see below) and is thus positioned to intersect the first partition wall (260), which is aligned in the second (Y) direction ([0079], Annotated Jeon FIG. 8), reading on a portion of claim 13.
Jeon’s second partition wall (130, “heat insulating member”) functions to prevent heat and/or flame propagation ([0080]), and Jeon also suggests integrating a structure of the second partition wall (130) with a compressible pad to suppress volume expansion of the cells ([0083]). While Jeon is not necessarily limited to a specific second partition wall (130) structure to perform these functions ([0080, 0083]), Jeon fails to expressly disclose a structure where the second partition wall has a hollow shape as claimed in claim 13.
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Annotated Jeon FIG. 8
Seo, analogous as a battery pack (Seo [0053], FIGs. 1-3), teaches a structure of second partition wall (200, 400) including a support plate (200) fixed by fixing members (400), which supports the front and rear sides of the cells (100, “battery cell assembly”) (Seo [0064], FIGs. 7, 13). The second partition wall (200, 400) comprises a gap (S), i.e., a hollow shape ([0063], FIG. 6), which allows for controlling the swelling of battery cells (110) ([0068]) while also preventing flame or thermal runaway from propagating between cells ([0069]). Seo’s structure of second partition wall (200, 400) having a hollow shape (gap S) (Seo FIG. 6) would have utility in as Jeon’s second partition wall (130, “heat insulating member”), which Jeon suggests integrating in function with a compressible pad to suppress battery swelling (Jeon [0083]).
Thus, in seeking to enable Seo’s second partition wall to prevent thermal propagation and also mitigate cell swelling, it would be obvious before the effective filing date of the instant application for one having ordinary skill in the art to select Seo’s structure of a second partition wall having a hollow shape for use as Jeon’s second partition wall. Such a selection would be made with a reasonable expectation of success, as Jeon does not appear limited to a specific internal structure of the second partition wall, and discloses a suitability of integrating both the thermal propagation and swelling functions into a single second partition wall (MPEP 2144.07).
Modified Jeon’s second partition wall (130) is configured to partition the accommodation part (Jeon [0081], FIG. 3), and to be deformed by an external force (i.e., a swelling cell, Seo [0118]) as claimed in claim 13.
Jeon, modified in view of Seo, comprises a second partition wall (200, 400, Seo FIG. 6) comprising a third partition wall plate (200, “support plate”); a fourth partition wall plate (200, “support plate”) spaced apart from the third partition wall plate (by gap S) and facing (“adjacent [to]”) the third partition wall plate (200) (Seo [0063], FIG. 6); and a second partition wall connecting part (400, “fixing member”) connecting the third and fourth partition wall plates (200, “mutually adjacent support plates”) (Seo [0063], FIG. 6) as claimed in claim 14.
Furthermore, a distance between modified Jeon’s third partition wall plate (200) and fourth partition wall plate (200) would be reduced in response to the second partition wall connecting part (400) being ruptured by an external force as claimed in claim 15, e.g., by a sufficiently large external force compressing the adjacent third and fourth partition wall plates (200) to damage the second partition wall connecting part (400) ([0063]).
Regarding claim 16, modified Jeon discloses the cell frame of claim 13, wherein the second partition wall (130) comprises a plurality of second partition walls (130, between cell groups 111, 112, 113…; [0081], FIG. 3) spaced apart from each other in the second (Y) direction (see Annotated Jeon FIG. 8).
Conclusion
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/E.C./Examiner, Art Unit 1751
/JONATHAN G LEONG/Supervisory Patent Examiner, Art Unit 1751 8/9/2026
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