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 .
Summary
This is the response to the Amendment/Request for Reconsideration filed on 06/29/2026.
Claims 21-41 remain pending in the application.
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.
(a)(2) the claimed invention was described in a patent issued under section 151, or in an application for patent published or deemed published under section 122(b), in which the patent or application, as the case may be, names another inventor and was effectively filed before the effective filing date of the claimed invention.
Claim(s) 21-22 and 34-41 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 102(a)(1)/(a)(2) as being anticipated by Bonhomme et al. (US 2018/0198114).
Addressing claims 21-22, Bonhomme discloses a method of forming a battery, the method comprising:
providing a battery comprising a cathode [0188], an electrolyte [0188], and an anode [0188], wherein the anode comprises a current collector (copper foil, [0065, 0153]) and an active material on the current collector [0075], and wherein the active material comprises 50% or more silicon ([0075], between 30% to 80%, Examples 5 and 6 in paragraphs [0092 and 0094], respectively, include 76% silicon and 73.7% silicon by weight);
applying a formation process to the battery ([0132], initial formation, e.g. first charge, and initial cycling as the procedural equivalence to the step of applying a formation process to the battery); and
configuring at least the formation process based on at least one battery performance criterion (the expansion in the x-y dimension as the claimed at least one battery performance criterion as described in paragraph [0153]),
wherein the at least one battery performance criterion comprises an expansion of the anode [0153], and
wherein configuring the formation process comprises setting a charge rate used during a formation process (the charge rate used during the initial formation, e.g first charge, and initial cycling disclosed by Bonhomme corresponds to the claimed charge rate since the claim does not recite any particular charge rate to differentiate the claimed charge rate from that of the prior art) to achieve a particular lateral expansion of the anode (paragraph [0153] that during charging, the anode expands in the x-y direction that corresponds to the claimed lateral expansion of the anode; therefore, during the initial charging and initial cycling of the anode as described in paragraph [132], the anode of Bonhomme undergoes lateral expansion that corresponds to the claimed a particular lateral expansion since the claim does not recite any numerical values associated with the lateral expansion to differentiate the claimed lateral expansion from that of the prior art), the lateral expansion comprises an expansion of the anode in lateral directions perpendicular to a thickness of the anode (x-y expansion, which corresponds to the claimed lateral expansion).
Addressing claim 34, Bonhomme discloses in paragraph [0110] that the attachment substance is absorbed into the porosity of the anode active material and once dried leaving the attachment substance within the porosity of the film. The attachment substance extend through the entire thickness of the film as a continuous phase, which satisfies the claimed step of applying the active material directly on the current collector without adhesive between the active material and the current collector. This is analogous to the method of current application where the binder material, such as PAI as the same substance as that of Bonhomme, is mixed with the anode active material and is deposited on the current collector (paragraphs [0040-0041, 0045] of the specification). The adhesive is part of the anode active material in teaching of Bonhomme similarly to that of current application.
Addressing claim 35, Bonhomme discloses in paragraph [0024] that the anode active material is rolled pressed onto the current collector.
Addressing claims 36-39, Bonhomme disclose in paragraph [0145] the selection of copper foil dimension, including the thickness of 8 µm, that meets the limitations of current claims. Additionally, Bonhomme discloses the lateral expansion of the anode that falls within the range of current application; therefore, the selection of the current collector material is attributed to the reduction in lateral expansion as claimed.
Addressing claims 40-41, Bonhomme discloses the selection of nickel as an alternative to copper as the current collector in paragraph [0177] that meets the limitations of current claims. Additionally, Bonhomme discloses the lateral expansion of the anode that falls within the range of current application; therefore, the selection of the current collector material is attributed to the reduction in lateral expansion as claimed.
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) 25-33 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Bonhomme et al. (US 2018/0198114) in view of Busacca et al. (US 2019/0372150).
Addressing claims 25-33, Bonhomme is silent regarding the limitations of current claims.
Busacca discloses a method of forming a battery comprising applying a formation process to the battery [0009-0010]. The formation process includes configuring the formation process by setting a charge rate used during a formation process to achieve a particular lateral expansion of the anode [0009-0010], the lateral expansion comprising an expansion of the anode in lateral directions (widthwise direction shown in figs. 2A-2C) perpendicular to a thickness of the anode (figs. 2A-2C). Busacca further discloses the configuring the formation process by setting the charge rate such that the lateral expansion of the anode is higher than 1.5% or less than 3.5% as required by claims 24-27 and 31-33 (paragraph [0068] discloses the ratio of the width of the anode in the charged state WA1, which occurs during charging cycle of the formation process, to the width in the discharged state WA2 is 1.01:1 to 3:1, which includes values that fall within the claimed ranges of claims 25-27 and 31-33 or ). Paragraph [0121] discloses the formation process includes c-rate between 1 C and C/10, which includes the c-rate within the claimed range. Paragraphs [0099-0100] discloses the width of the anode in the charged state, or laterally expanded state, is preferably between 150 µm to 1000 µm and the width of the anode in the discharged state is between 60 µm to 1000 µm, which includes values of the width in the charged or laterally expanded state to the width in the discharged state that fall within the range of less than 1.0% as required by claims 28-30.
At the time of the effective filing date of the invention, one with ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the method of Bonhomme with the formation process by setting the charge rate to exact the desired lateral expansion of the anode as disclosed by Busacca in order to improve the energy density, reliability and cycle life of batteries (Busacca, [0007]). Therefore, one would have arrived at the claimed lateral expansion range and charge rate range when perform routine experimentation with the lateral expansion rate and charge rate in the ranges disclosed by Busacca in order to optimize the energy density, reliability and cycle life of the batteries.
Claim(s) 21-33 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Busacca et al. (US 2019/0372150) in view of Bonhomme et al. (US 2018/0198114).
Addressing claims 21-22, Busacca discloses a method of forming a battery, the method comprising:
providing a battery comprising a cathode (cathode structures 112), an electrolyte (non-aqueous liquid electrolyte), and an anode (anode structures 112) [0049], wherein the anode comprises a current collector 136 [0104] and an active material 132 [0104] on the current ;collector (figs. 4a-4b and 7), and wherein the active material comprises silicon [0051, 0251];
applying a formation process to the battery [0009-0010]; and
configuring at least the formation process based on at least one battery performance criterion (lateral expansion of the anode),
wherein the at least one battery performance criterion comprise an expansion of the anode [0009], and
wherein configuring the formation process comprises setting a charge rate used during a formation process to achieve a particular lateral expansion of the anode [0009-0010], the lateral expansion comprising an expansion of the anode in lateral directions (widthwise direction shown in figs. 2A-2C) perpendicular to a thickness of the anode (figs. 2A-2C).
Busacca is silent regarding the anode active material comprises 50% or more silicon.
Bonhomme discloses a method of forming a battery comprising an anode active material comprises 50% or more silicon ([0075], between 30% to 80%, Examples 5 and 6 in paragraphs [0092 and 0094], respectively, include 76% silicon and 73.7% silicon by weight).
At the time of the effective filing date of the invention, one with ordinary skill in the art would have found it obvious to modify the anode active material of Busacca by perform routine experimentation with the amount of silicon in the active material in the range disclosed by Bonhomme in order to optimize the capacity of the composite material to improve life of the battery (Bonhomme, [0082]). Therefore, one would have arrived at the claimed percentage of silicon in the anode active material when perform routine experimentation with the amount of silicon in the active material in the range disclosed by Bonhomme in order to optimize the capacity of the composite material to improve life of the battery (Bonhomme, [0082]).
Addressing claim 23, paragraph [0121] of Busacca discloses values of C-rate that fall within the claimed range.
Addressing claim 24, paragraph [0121] discloses C-rate from 1C to 5C that includes the claimed value; therefore, at the time of the effective filing date of the invention, one with ordinary skill in the art would have arrived at the claimed 4C charge rate when perform routine experimentation with the C-rate of the formation in the range disclosed by Busacca in order to optimize the rate capability of the secondary battery (Busacca, [0121]).
Addressing claims 25-33, Busacca further discloses the configuring the formation process by setting the charge rate such that the lateral expansion of the anode is higher than 1.5% or less than 3.5% as required by claims 24-27 and 31-33 (paragraph [0068] discloses the ratio of the width of the anode in the charged state WA1, which occurs during charging cycle of the formation process, to the width in the discharged state WA2 is 1.01:1 to 3:1, which includes values that fall within the claimed ranges of claims 25-27 and 31-33 or ). Paragraph [0121] discloses the formation process includes c-rate between 1 C and C/10, which includes the c-rate within the claimed range. Paragraphs [0099-0100] discloses the width of the anode in the charged state, or laterally expanded state, is preferably between 150 µm to 1000 µm and the width of the anode in the discharged state is between 60 µm to 1000 µm, which includes values of the width in the charged or laterally expanded state to the width in the discharged state that fall within the range of less than 1.0% as required by claims 28-30. Therefore, at the time of the effective filing date of the invention, one with ordinary skill in the art would have arrived at the limitation of claims 25-33 by perform routine experimentation with the c-rate to achieve the desired lateral expansion of the anode in order to improve the energy density, reliability and cycle life of batteries (Busacca, [0007]).
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claim(s) 21-41 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any combination of references (Busacca in view of Bonhomme, which is a new ground of rejection as necessitated by Applicants’ amendment to claim 1) applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument.
Applicant's arguments filed 06/29/2026 regarding the 35 USC 102 rejection of claims 21-22 and 34-41 as being anticipated by Bonhomme have been fully considered but they are not persuasive. The Applicants argued that Bonhomme does not disclose the limitation “configuring at least the formation process based on at least one battery performance criterion” and “configuring the formation process comprises setting a charge rate used during a formation process to achieve a particular lateral expansion of the anode”. The argument is not persuasive because Bonhomme discloses:
applying a formation process to the battery ([0132], initial formation, e.g. first charge, and initial cycling as the procedural equivalence to the step of applying a formation process to the battery); and
configuring at least the formation process based on at least one battery performance criterion (the expansion in the x-y dimension as the claimed at least one battery performance criterion as described in paragraph [0153]),
wherein configuring the formation process comprises setting a charge rate used during a formation process (the charge rate used during the initial formation, e.g first charge, and initial cycling disclosed by Bonhomme corresponds to the claimed charge rate since the claim does not recite any particular charge rate to differentiate the claimed charge rate from that of the prior art) to achieve a particular lateral expansion of the anode (paragraph [0153] that during charging, the anode expands in the x-y direction that corresponds to the claimed lateral expansion of the anode; therefore, during the initial charging and initial cycling of the anode as described in paragraph [132], the anode of Bonhomme undergoes lateral expansion that corresponds to the claimed a particular lateral expansion since the claim does not recite any numerical values associated with the lateral expansion to differentiate the claimed lateral expansion from that of the prior art).
For the reasons above, Examiner maintains the position that claims 21-22, 34-38 and 40-41 are anticipated by Bonhomme.
Conclusion
Applicant's amendment necessitated the new ground(s) of rejection presented in this Office action. Accordingly, THIS ACTION IS MADE FINAL. See MPEP § 706.07(a). 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 BACH T DINH whose telephone number is (571)270-5118. The examiner can normally be reached Mon-Friday 8:00 - 4:30 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, Jeffrey Barton can be reached at (571)-272-1307. 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.
/BACH T DINH/Primary Examiner, Art Unit 1726 08/04/2026
Prosecution Insights