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 § 112
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112(b):
(b) CONCLUSION.—The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor regards as the invention.
Claims 10 and 13 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(b) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph, as being indefinite for failing to particularly point out and distinctly claim the subject matter which the inventor or a joint inventor (or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the applicant), regards as the invention.
Claim 10 recites an electrode having components providing a peak weight percentage “starting from the substrate”. However, it is unclear whether “starting from the substrate” is defined as a midpoint, an inner surface, an outer surface, or some other distance of the substrate in relation to the substrate’s thickness.
Claim 10 recites “with a ZAF correction”. However, ZAF is not defined, is not a routine term used in the art, and is not followed by any metric, number, or range relating to said ZAF correction.
Due to the clarity issues relating to claim 10, the examiner cannot provide an interpretation for the purposes of a prior-art rejection.
Claim 13 recites a method using an electrode without any active, positive steps delimiting how the use is actually practiced. It is unclear whether applicant intends to provide a ‘use-claim’ without those elements necessary to delimit how the use is actually practiced, whether applicant omitted positive steps of the method, or some other alternative.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 1-9 and 11-12 are allowed.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the closest prior art of record does not anticipate or render obvious the novel subject matter of applicant’s invention, namely a method of forming an electrode comprising the elements recited in claim 10, where application of a coating according to steps I and II are performed with a final coating comprising step a).
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to DIRK R BASS whose telephone number is (571)270-7370. The examiner can normally be reached 8-4:30 EST Monday-Friday.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Bobby Ramdhanie can be reached at (571) 270-3240. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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DIRK R. BASS
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 1779
/DIRK R BASS/ Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1779
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