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 .
Priority
This application claims priority to JP 2021-214258 (filed 12/28/21).
Receipt is acknowledged of certified copies of papers required by 37 CFR 1.55.
Amendment(s)
The Preliminary Amendment filed 06/24/26 is entered.
Claims 1-14 are pending.
The amendment to the specification (update CON data) is entered.
Drawings
The Drawings filed 06/26/24 are approved by the examiner.
Information Disclosure Statement
The IDS statements filed 06/26/24, 01/09/26 and 04/22/26 have been considered. Initialed copies accompany this action.
The listing of references in the specification is not a proper information disclosure statement. 37 CFR 1.98(b) requires a list of all patents, publications, or other information submitted for consideration by the Office, and MPEP § 609.04(a) states, "the list may not be incorporated into the specification but must be submitted in a separate paper." Therefore, unless the references have been cited by the examiner on form PTO-892 or by applicant on form PTO-1449, they have not been considered.
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.
The following is a quotation of 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), second paragraph:
The specification shall conclude with one or more claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which the applicant regards as his invention.
Claims 1-14 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.
The instant claims are indefinite in that the variable “b2” in Equation (2) is undefined. The claims do not specify a numerical range, or the relative amount(s) of such (in relation to the other defined variables).
It appears from the instant specification (page 22, lines 20-25) that “b2 in Equation (2) is less than b1 in Equation (1)”. Applicant is suggested to amend the instant independent claim to include such language to overcome the above rejection.
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim Construction
Applicant’s discussion/definition of the claim limitations “through a least-squares method” at pages 12-17 is acknowledged.
With respect to the prior art, Each of Yamamoto et al US 10,784,502 B2 and Matsumura et al US 11,955,641 B2 disclose binder composition for non-aqueous secondary batteries (Abstract). Each reference discloses a graph relationship between electrical conductivity vs cumulative amount of hydrochloric acid:
PNG
media_image1.png
914
942
media_image1.png
Greyscale
Likewise, Kobatashi US 2012/0295159 A1 disclose binder composition for non-aqueous secondary batteries (Abstract). Each reference discloses a graph relationship between electrical conductivity vs cumulative amount of hydrochloric acid:
PNG
media_image2.png
812
946
media_image2.png
Greyscale
None of the above prior art, however, discloses or fairly suggests the instant “only two linear functions” as specified by Equations (1) and (2). The reference, in fact, each contain multiple inflection points relating to the linear functions.
The remaining references cited on forms PTO-1449 and PTO-892 are considered cumulative to the prior art discussed above.
Conclusion
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to MARK T KOPEC whose telephone number is (571)272-1319. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 9:00a-5:00p EST.
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, Robert Jones can be reached at 5712707733. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
Information regarding the status of published or unpublished applications may be obtained from Patent Center. Unpublished application information in Patent Center is available to registered users. To file and manage patent submissions in Patent Center, visit: https://patentcenter.uspto.gov. Visit https://www.uspto.gov/patents/apply/patent-center for more information about Patent Center and https://www.uspto.gov/patents/docx for information about filing in DOCX format. For additional questions, contact the Electronic Business Center (EBC) at 866-217-9197 (toll-free). If you would like assistance from a USPTO Customer Service Representative, call 800-786-9199 (IN USA OR CANADA) or 571-272-1000.
/MARK KOPEC/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1762
MK
August 5, 2026
Prosecution Insights