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 .
Response to Amendment
The response filed on August 12th, 2026 is acknowledged. Four pages of amended claims were received on 8/12/2026. Claims 1, 6, 8, 10, and 12 have been amended. Claim 7 has been cancelled and Claims 14-21 are newly presented. The claims have been amended to overcome previous claim objections in the non-final rejection mailed 5/13/2026, however Claims 1-5 and 9-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as noted below.
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 1-5 and 9-21 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by WO-2021091328-A1 to Jung et al. (“Jung”).
As to Claim 1, Jung discloses a battery rack (See #10 in Figs. 1-4) comprising:
at least one battery module (See multiple battery modules #100);
a rack frame (#200) configured to accommodate the at least one battery module (See Machine Translation of Description Paragraph 0035);
a fire extinguishing agent supplier (#300, See machine Translation of Description Paragraph 0034) extending vertically on a first side of the rack frame (See Annotated Fig. 4) and connected to the at least one battery module (See Annotated Fig. 11 and Machine Translation of Description Paragraph 0042);
a support (#400) coupled to the first side of the rack frame (See Annotated Fig. 11) and configured to support the fire extinguishing agent supplier such that the fire extinguishing agent supplier faces the at least one battery module (See Annotated Fig. 11 and Machine Translation of Description Paragraph 0053); and
a rigid reinforcement portion extending horizontally on the first side of the rack frame to reinforce a rigidity of the rack frame (See Annotated Fig. 3, the rigid reinforcement portion RRP acts to at least reinforce a rigidity of the rack frame to some extent),
wherein a top edge of the rigid reinforcement portion is positioned below a top edge of the support and a bottom edge of the reinforcement portion is positioned above a bottom edge of the support (See Annotated Fig. 3 and Annotated Fig. 8).
As to Claim 2, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 1 above, Jung further discloses wherein the fire extinguishing agent supplier comprises:
at least one nozzle (See multiple nozzles #353 in Fig. 11); and
a fire extinguishing pipe (See Annotated Fig. 11, the pipe is made up of #330, #351, and #135) coupled to the support and connected to the at least one nozzle to supply a fire extinguishing agent to the at least one nozzle (See Figs. 10-11), and
wherein the support comprises:
a pipe support portion (#410) configured to support the fire extinguishing pipe (See Fig. 11 and Machine Translation of Description Paragraph 0063); and
a frame coupling portion (#355 and #430) extending from a side of the pipe support portion so as to face the rack frame and coupled to the first side of the rack frame (See Annotated Fig. 11 and Machine Translation of Description Paragraphs 0069-0070. The frame coupling portion is coupled to the first side of the rack frame via #355).
As to Claim 3, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 2 above, Jung further discloses wherein the frame coupling portion is configured to come into contact with the first side of the rack frame (See Annotated Fig. 4, Annotated Fig. 11, and Machine Translation of Description Paragraph 0059).
As to Claim 4, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 3 above, Jung further discloses wherein the frame coupling portion is formed to extend in a vertical direction and is configured such that an upper end and a lower end are coupled to the first side of the rack frame (See Annotated Fig. 4).
As to Claim 5, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 2 above, Jung further discloses wherein the pipe support portion is configured to surround at least a portion of the fire extinguishing pipe (See Figs. 10-11 and Machine Translation of Description Paragraph 0063).
As to Claim 9, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 2 above, Jung further discloses wherein the at least one battery module is a plurality of battery modules (See Fig. 3),
wherein the at least one nozzle is a plurality of nozzles (See Fig. 11), and
wherein the plurality of nozzles are configured to respectively correspond to the plurality of battery modules (See Fig. 11).
As to Claim 10, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 1 above, Jung further discloses wherein the at least one battery module is a plurality of battery modules (See Fig. 3), and
wherein the battery rack further comprises a pipe connection member (See Annotated Fig. 10) configured to adjust a position of the fire extinguishing agent supplier so as to correspond to a height of the rack frame when the fire extinguishing agent supplier is coupled to the rack frame (See Fig. 4, the pipe connection member is capable of being moved to adjust a position of the fire extinguishing agent supplier to correspond to a height of #400 when being coupled).
As to Claim 11, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 10 above, Jung further discloses wherein the pipe connection member comprises a fire extinguishing pipe connection member configured to connect different fire extinguishing agent suppliers disposed on the first side of the rack frame (See Figs. 10-11, the pipe connection member is a portion of #400 that connects fire extinguishing pipe #300 and is capable of connecting other fire extinguishing agent suppliers on a first side of #400), and
wherein the fire extinguishing pipe connection member is bendable (See Annotated Fig. 10, the pipe connection member is made of some frame material such that it is capable of being bent at least to some extent when some amount of force is applied).
As to Claim 12, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 10 above, Jung further discloses wherein the pipe connection member further comprises:
a supply pipe connection member configured to connect a supply pipe that supplies a fire extinguishing agent to the fire extinguishing agent supplier (See Annotated Fig. 10, the supply pipe connection member is a portion of #400 that the supply pipe is supported and connected at); and
a discharge pipe connection member configured to connect a discharge pipe that receives the fire extinguishing agent from the fire extinguishing agent supplier (See Annotated Fig. 10, the discharge pipe connection member is a portion of #400 that the discharge pipe is supported and connected at), and
wherein at least one of the supply pipe connection member and the discharge pipe connection member is bendable when the fire extinguishing agent supplier is coupled to the rack frame (See Annotated Fig. 10, the supply pipe connection member and the discharge pipe connection member are both made of some frame material such that they are capable of being bent at least to some extent when some amount of force is applied).
As to Claim 13, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 1 above, Jung further discloses an electric power storage system comprising at least one battery rack (See #1 in Fig. 12).
As to Claim 14, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 1 above, Jung further discloses wherein the fire extinguishing agent supplier comprises:
a first section and a second section spaced from each other in a vertical direction (See connectors S1 and S2 in Annotated Fig. 5); and
a first fire extinguishing pipe connection member connected between the first section and the second section and offset from the first section and the second section in a horizontal direction (See a pipe portion M1 in Annotated Fig. 5, which is between S1 and S2 and horizontally offset from both S1 and S2).
As to Claim 15, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 14 above, Jung further discloses wherein the first fire extinguishing pipe connection member is flexible (See Annotated Fig. 5. The first fire extinguishing pipe connection member M1 is made of some material such that it is flexible to some extent).
As to Claim 16, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 14 above, Jung further discloses the battery rack comprising:
a second fire extinguishing pipe connection member at a top of the first section and spaced from the first section in the horizontal direction (See a nozzle at M2 in Annotated Fig. 5); and
a third fire extinguishing pipe connection member at a bottom of the second section and spaced from the second section in the horizontal direction (See a nozzle at M3 in Annotated Fig. 5).
As to Claim 17, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 14 above, Jung further discloses wherein the fire extinguishing agent supplier extends along a vertical edge of the first side of the rack frame (See Annotated Fig. 3 and Annotated Fig. 4, the fire extinguishing agent supplier extends along a vertical edge portion of the rack frame).
As to Claim 18, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 1 above, Jung further discloses wherein the support comprises a recess (See Annotated Fig. 10), the rigid reinforcement portion fitting within the recess (See Annotated Fig. 3 and Annotated Fig. 3), and
wherein the support has a pair of flanges overlapping the rigid reinforcement portion in a horizontal direction (See F1 and F2 in Annotated Fig. 10).
As to Claim 19, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 18 above, Jung further discloses wherein a first flange of the pair of flanges extends downward from an upper edge of the recess (See F1 in Annotated Fig. 10, which can be considered to extend both down from an upper edge of the recess and up from a lower edge of the recess), and
wherein a second flange of the pair of flanges extends upward from a lower edge of the recess (See F2 in Annotated Fig. 10, which can be considered to extend up from a lower edge of the recess and down from an upper edge of the recess).
As to Claim 20, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 1 above, Jung further discloses wherein the fire extinguishing agent supplier comprises a plurality of nozzles (See Annotated Fig. 11 showing multiple nozzles), and
wherein at least one nozzle of the plurality of nozzles is above the rigid reinforcement portion and at least one nozzle of the plurality of nozzles is below the rigid reinforcement portion (See Annotated Fig. 3 and Annotated Fig. 10, half of the nozzles are above RRP and half of the nozzles are below RRP).
As to Claim 21, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 1 above, Jung further discloses wherein the rigid reinforcement portion extends across an entire width of the first side of the rack frame and passes between the support and the at least one battery module (See Annotated Fig. 4), and
wherein the support comprises a recess, the rigid reinforcement portion fitting within the recess (See Annotated Fig. 4 and Annotated Fig. 10. The component that is RRP fits within the recess of the support).
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Allowable Subject Matter
Claims 6 and 8 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.
The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter:
The prior art fails to teach, disclose, or suggest, in combination with other limitations recited in dependent Claim 6: “wherein the fire extinguishing pipe comprises a fixing member protruding from a side surface of the fire extinguishing pipe facing the at least one battery module and extending into the rigid reinforcement portion.”.
Regarding Claim 6, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 2 above, Jung further discloses wherein the fire extinguishing pipe comprises a fixing member protruding from a side surface of the fire extinguishing pipe facing the at least one battery module (See #135 in Fig. 11). However, Jung does not disclose wherein the fixing member extends into the rigid reinforcement portion as claimed (See Annotated Fig. 3, the rigid reinforcement portion RRP has nozzles on both sides but no nozzles go through RRP such that none of the fixing members #135 extend into the rigid reinforcement portion). One having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would not be motivated to reconfigure the battery rack of Jung such that the fixing member extends into the rigid reinforcement portion as required by Claim 6, as there is no apparent benefit to making such a modification and making such a modification would change the overall configuration of the battery rack of Jung. Furthermore, there is no prior teaching in Jung or other prior art that indicates that making such a modification would be an obvious design choice without utilizing improper hindsight.
The prior art also fails to teach, disclose, or suggest, in combination with other limitations recited in dependent Claim 8: “wherein the at least one nozzle faces the rigid reinforcement portion and is configured to be connected to the at least one battery module by passing through the rigid reinforcement portion”.
Regarding Claim 8, in reference to the battery rack of Jung as applied to Claim 2 above, Jung does not disclose wherein the at least one nozzle faces the rigid reinforcement portion and is configured to be connected to the at least one battery module by passing through the rigid reinforcement portion (See Annotated Fig. 3 and Annotated Fig. 10, the rigid reinforcement portion RRP has nozzles on both sides but no nozzles go through RRP, thus none of the nozzles face RRP or pass through RRP). One having ordinary skill in the art before the effective filing date of the claimed invention would not be motivated to reconfigure the battery rack of Jung such the at least one nozzle faces the rigid reinforcement portion and is configured to be connected to the at least one battery module by passing through the rigid reinforcement portion as required by Claim 8, as there is no apparent benefit to making such a modification and making such a modification would change the overall configuration of the battery rack of Jung. Furthermore, there is no prior teaching in Jung or other prior art that indicates that making such a modification would be an obvious design choice without utilizing improper hindsight.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 8/12/2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. Regarding Claim 1 being rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Jung, applicant argues that Jung does not disclose the rigid reinforcement portion as now claimed.
This argument is not found persuasive. In accordance with MPEP 2111.01, during examination the claims must be interpreted as broadly as their terms reasonably allow. In re Prater, 415 F.2d 1393, 1404-05, 162 USPQ 541, 550-51 (CCPA 1969). The portion RRP shown in Annotated Fig. 3 is equivalent to a rigid reinforcement portion that extends horizontally on the first side of the rack frame to reinforce a rigidity of the rack frame, such that a top edge of the rigid reinforcement portion is positioned below a top edge of the support and a bottom edge of the rigid reinforcement portion is positioned above a bottom edge of the support as claimed. Therefore, the disclosed battery rack of Jung still reads on a broadest reasonable interpretation of Claim 1, and Claim 1 remains rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1).
Conclusion
THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. Applicant is reminded of the extension of time policy as set forth in 37 CFR 1.136(a).
A shortened statutory period for reply to this final action is set to expire THREE MONTHS from the mailing date of this action. In the event a first reply is filed within TWO MONTHS of the mailing date of this final action and the advisory action is not mailed until after the end of the THREE-MONTH shortened statutory period, then the shortened statutory period will expire on the date the advisory action is mailed, and any nonprovisional extension fee (37 CFR 1.17(a)) pursuant to 37 CFR 1.136(a) will be calculated from the mailing date of the advisory action. In no event, however, will the statutory period for reply expire later than SIX MONTHS from the mailing date of this final action.
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KEVIN E SCHWARTZ whose telephone number is (571)272-1770. The examiner can normally be reached Monday - Friday 9:00AM - 5:00PM MST.
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, Arthur O Hall can be reached at (571)-270-1814. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/KEVIN EDWARD SCHWARTZ/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 3752 September 29, 2026
