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 .
2. Claims 1-19 are pending in this office action.
Priority
3. Applicant’s claim for the benefit of a prior-filed application under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) or under 35 U.S.C. 120, 121, or 365(c) is acknowledged.
Information Disclosure Statement
4. Information disclosure statements (IDS), submitted July 5, 2024, and September 23, 2025, have been received and considered by the examiner.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 102
5. 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.
6. 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.
7. Claims 1-4 and 18-19 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1) as being anticipated by Bai et al. (CN208256795U).
With regard to Claim 1, Bai et al. disclose in Figures 4-6, a connecting assembly (1) for a battery cell electrode assembly (2), comprising; a connector (1), comprising a first connecting portion (1123) for connecting a tab (22, 23) of an electrode assembly (1), a second connecting portion (111) for connecting an electrode terminal (31), and a third connecting portion (1121) for connecting the first connecting portion (1123) and the second connecting portion (111), wherein a fusing portion (1122) is formed between the first connecting portion (1123) and the third connecting portion (1121), the first connecting portion (1123), the fusing portion (1122) and the third connecting portion (1121) are arranged in a first direction, and the third connecting portion (1121) has a first surface facing the electrode assembly (2); a first insulator (121), wrapping the fusing portion (1122); and a second insulator (122), covering at least a portion of the first surface, wherein the second insulator (122) and the first insulator (121) are integrally formed (paragraphs 0036-0039).
With regard to Claim 2, Bai et al. disclose in Figures 4-6, wherein the first insulator (122) surrounds an outer circumference of the fusing portion (1122) (paragraph 0039).
With regard to Claim 3, Bai et al. disclose in Figures 4-6, wherein the connector (1) has a gap (G), the gap (G) is located on at least one side of the fusing portion (1122) in a second direction, an inner wall of the first insulator (121) is provided with a first convex portion corresponding to the gap (G), the first convex portion is configured to fill the gap (G), and the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction and a thickness direction of the connector (1) (paragraph 0047).
With regard to Claim 4, Bai et al. disclose in Figures 4-6, wherein the third connecting portion (1121) further has a second surface away from the electrode assembly (2) and an outer circumferential surface (corner edge) connecting the first surface and the second surface, the second insulator (122) comprises a bottom wall and a side wall, the side wall protrudes from an edge of the bottom wall in a direction away from the electrode assembly (2), the bottom wall covers at least a portion of the first surface, and the side wall covers at least a portion of the outer circumferential surface (paragraphs 0036-0039).
With regard to Claim 18, Bai et al. disclose in Figures 1 and 4-6, battery cell, comprising: a shell (4), comprising a wall portion; an electrode assembly (2), disposed inside the shell (4); an electrode terminal (31), disposed on the wall portion; and the connecting assembly (1) noted above, wherein the first connecting portion (1123) is connected to a lug of the electrode assembly (2), and the second connecting portion (111) is connected to the electrode terminal (22, 23) (paragraphs 0037-0038).
With regard to Claim 19, Bai et al. disclose in Figures 1 and 4-6, a battery, comprising the battery cell noted above (paragraph 0034).
Allowable Subject Matter
8. Claims 5-17 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.
9. The following is a statement of reasons for the indication of allowable subject matter: the closest prior at, Bai et al. (CN208256795U), do not teach or fairly suggest the connecting assembly, wherein in the first direction, the outer circumferential surface comprises a first sub outer circumferential surface and a second sub outer circumferential surface disposed oppositely, the fusing portion is connected to the first sub outer circumferential surface, and the side wall covers at least a portion of the second sub outer circumferential surface; wherein in the second direction, the outer circumferential surface comprises a third sub outer circumferential surface and a fourth sub outer circumferential surface disposed oppositely, the side wall covers the third sub outer circumferential surface and the fourth sub outer circumferential surface, and the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction and a thickness direction of the connector; wherein an end, away from the bottom wall, of the side wall does not exceed the second surface; wherein an angle between the outer circumferential surface and the first surface is an acute angle; wherein the third connecting portion is provided with a concave portion, the second insulator is provided with a second convex portion, and the second convex portion is embedded with the concave portion; wherein the concave portion is a through hole penetrating the first surface and the second surface; wherein the through hole comprises a first hole segment, and a cross-sectional area of the first hole segment gradually increases from the first surface to the second surface; wherein two first connecting portions are provided, the two first connecting portions are spaced in the second direction, the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction and a thickness direction of the connector, two through holes are provided, the two through holes are spaced in the second direction, the second connecting portion protrudes from the second surface, and the second connecting portion is located between the two through holes; wherein in the first direction, a minimum distance between a wall portion of the through hole and the fusing portion is greater than that between the second connecting portion and the fusing portion; wherein the concave portion is a groove formed on the outer circumferential surface, and the second convex portion is a protrusion formed on an inner circumferential surface of the side wall; wherein in the first direction, the outer circumferential surface comprises a first sub outer circumferential surface and a second sub outer circumferential surface disposed oppositely, the fusing portion is connected to the first sub outer circumferential surface, and the groove is formed on the second sub outer circumferential surface; wherein the groove comprises a first groove segment, and a cross-sectional area of the first groove segment gradually increases from an opening of the groove to a bottom of the groove; and, wherein a plurality of grooves are provided to be spaced in a circumferential direction of the third connecting portion.
Conclusion
10. Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to KARIE O APICELLA whose telephone number is (571)272-8614. The examiner can normally be reached Monday thru Friday; 8:00AM to 5:00PM EST.
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If attempts to reach the examiner by telephone are unsuccessful, the examiner’s supervisor, Nicole Buie-Hatcher can be reached at 571-270-3879. The fax phone number for the organization where this application or proceeding is assigned is 571-273-8300.
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/KARIE O'NEILL APICELLA/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1725
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