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
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 1-6 and 9-14 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2022/0231345 to Hwangbo (“Hwangbo”).
Regarding claims 1, 4, 9, and 12, Hwangbo discloses a cylindrical battery (1) comprising a battery can (20), an electrode assembly (10) placed inside the can. At paragraph [0161]. The electrode assembly includes a positive electrode and negative electrode with a separator located therebetween and assembled in a jelly-roll fashion. Id. at paragraphs [0162] and [0163].
The battery further includes a second current collector (80) to which the electrode assembly is coupled. Id. at paragraph [0261].
The second current collector includes a contact portion (83a) considered to correspond to the recited inner periphery. Can coupling portions (83) extend from this first contact portion radially towards a first support portion (81) located at a center of the circular second current collector. These can coupling portions are considered to correspond to the recited arms. Id. at paragraphs [0261]-[0263] and Figure 15. The figures show four of these radially-arranged can coupling portions that create four empty quadrants/slits therebetween. Id.
In those four quadrants are located uncoated region coupling portions (82) connected via the first support portion to the contact portion (83a). These uncoated region coupling portions connect to uncoated portions of the electrode assembly of the battery, are not in contact with the can coupling portions (83) and are out of plane with the can coupling portions (83) specifically to reduce the possibility that shock from contact with the battery can/housing from being transmitted to the electrode assembly. Id at paragraphs [0258]-[0261] and Figure 15.
Further regarding claims 2 and 10, the battery and current collector are part of a freely rotatably structure thus without further definition of directions, above/below/upper/lower are arbitrary directions and any out of plane arrangement will meet the claim terms.
Further regarding claims 3, 5, 6, 11, 13, and 14, the can coupling portions are connected to the first support portion via protruding/stepped legs that place the can coupling portions out of plane with the uncoated region coupling portions.
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.
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) 7 and 8 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Hwangbo. Hwangbo is applied as described above. Regarding claim 7, Hwangbo does not disclose the material from which its second current collector is made. Nonetheless, the Office finds that common materials for such structures, including steel, aluminum, or copper, would have been considered to be nothing more than the obvious use of commonly known materials for their intended purpose to achieve a predictable result.
Further regarding claim 8, Hwangbo is silent regarding a thickness of the current collector. Nonetheless, absent a showing of unexpected result the Office finds that choosing a thickness of a current collector is well within the common engineering practices of battery design, with the person of ordinary skill in the art finding it obvious to adjust the thickness in order to achieve sufficient structural integrity and conductivity without adding unnecessary bulk, weight, and/or expense to the battery.
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/WYATT P MCCONNELL/ Examiner, Art Unit 1727
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