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 .
This office action is in response to the amendment filed 11 September 2026, in which claims 1, 5, and 6 were amended, claims 3 and 4 were canceled, and claims 9-16 were added.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 112
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of 35 U.S.C. 112(a):
(a) IN GENERAL.—The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor or joint inventor of carrying out the invention.
The following is a quotation of the first paragraph of pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112:
The specification shall contain a written description of the invention, and of the manner and process of making and using it, in such full, clear, concise, and exact terms as to enable any person skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and use the same, and shall set forth the best mode contemplated by the inventor of carrying out his invention.
Claim 15 is rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112(a) or 35 U.S.C. 112 (pre-AIA ), first paragraph, as failing to comply with the written description requirement and as failing to comply with the enablement requirement. The claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to reasonably convey to one skilled in the relevant art that the inventor or a joint inventor, or for applications subject to pre-AIA 35 U.S.C. 112, the inventor(s), at the time the application was filed, had possession of the claimed invention. Also, the claim(s) contains subject matter which was not described in the specification in such a way as to enable one skilled in the art to which it pertains, or with which it is most nearly connected, to make and/or use the invention. The limitations of claim 15, including a third sound absorbing layer stacked in the thickness direction and made of a third sound absorbing material for a third frequency band lower than the second frequency band, are not supported by the originally filed specification, and thus constitute new matter.
Claim Rejections - 35 USC § 103
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 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.
Claim(s) 1, 2, 9-11, and 14-16 are is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kawazu (US 2023/0211583 A1) in view of Kato et al. (US 10109896 B2), and Hakuta et al. (US 11654841 B2). Kawazu discloses a battery cover (battery case including composite material laminate #1) comprising:
(claim 1) a cover wall (including composite material laminate #1; figure 1);
wherein a sound absorbing surface is provided on the cover wall (#1), the sound absorbing surface comprising a first sound absorbing layer (metal substrate #4) and a second sound absorbing layer (foamed body layer #2) that are stacked in a thickness direction (figure 1; paragraph 0047);
wherein the first sound absorbing layer (#4) is made of a first sound absorbing material (metal substrate, “preferably aluminum plate, an aluminum alloy plate, a magnesium plate, or a magnesium alloy plate, for example…iron, iron and steel materials, stainless steel, copper, a copper alloy, manganese, a manganese alloy, titanium, or a titanium alloy…magnesium, a magnesium alloy, an iron-based alloy, a copper alloy, a manganese alloy, or the like”; paragraph 0143);
wherein the second sound absorbing layer (#2) is made of a second sound absorbing material (foamed body layer; “preferably a closed-cell foam” and “preferably a thermoplastic resin”; paragraphs 0061, 0087-0117);
wherein the first sound absorbing layer (#4) is disposed “outwardly” of the second sound absorbing layer (#2; figure 1);
(claim 9) wherein the first sound absorbing material is a metal film (metal substrate, “preferably aluminum plate, an aluminum alloy plate, a magnesium plate, or a magnesium alloy plate, for example…iron, iron and steel materials, stainless steel, copper, a copper alloy, manganese, a manganese alloy, titanium, or a titanium alloy…magnesium, a magnesium alloy, an iron-based alloy, a copper alloy, a manganese alloy, or the like”; paragraph 0143), and the second sound absorbing material is a foamed material or a rubber material (foamed body layer; “preferably a closed-cell foam” and “preferably a thermoplastic resin”; paragraphs 0061, 0087-0117);
(claim 10) wherein the metal film is an aluminum film (paragraph 0143), and the foamed material is urethane (paragraph 0090);
(claim 11) wherein the second sound absorbing layer (#2) is thicker than the first sound absorbing layer (#4; figure 1; paragraphs 0075, 0076, 0144);
(claim 15) wherein the sound absorbing surface further comprises a third sound absorbing layer (such as, adhesive layer #3 or resin molten layer #5; paragraphs 0047-0049; figure 1) that is stacked in the thickness direction and is made of a third sound absorbing material (materials for adhesive layer discussed in paragraphs 0149-0173; materials for resin molten layer discussed in paragraphs 0125-0131).
Regarding claims 1 and 2, while Kawazu does not specifically disclose the battery cover (battery case including composite material laminate #1) to be disposed in an engine room, or the cover wall (including composite material laminate #1) configured to cover a side surface of a battery, wherein at least a part of the sound absorbing surface is configured to face an engine, Kawazu teaches the composite material laminate (#1) can be used, “as an insulting material, automotive component (for example, an oil pan, an engine cover, a cylinder head cover, other cover shaped components, an intake manifold, an integrated component thereof, a automotive body structure, ducts, an electric devices case, or a battery case), or the like used under high-temperature conditions, such as to exploit the features of the composite material laminate” (paragraph 0416), and thus would likely cover a surface of a battery in the battery case, and be disposed in an engine room with at least a part of the sound absorbing surface configured to face an engine. In addition, Kato et al. teaches a battery cover (#1) to be disposed in an engine room (column 1, lines 21-25; column 10, lines 33-42), the battery cover comprising a cover wall (heat insulating member #100, shielding member #50) configured to cover a side surface of a battery (#31; figures 6-8; column 22, line 10-column 23, line 26), wherein at least a part of an insulating surface is configured to face an engine (figure 12; column 1, lines 21-25; column 10, lines 33-42; column 27, line 20-column 28, line 3). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective fling date of the claimed invention to modify the battery cover of Kawazu to be disposed in an engine room with the cover wall configured to cover a side surface of a battery, as taught by Kato et al., so as to provide both thermal and sound absorbing protection from the engine (discussed throughout Kawazu and Kato et al.), while positioning the battery near the engine, which is exceedingly old and well known in the vehicle art for efficiency and space spacing designs.
Regarding claims 1 and 15, while Kawazu does not specifically disclose the first sound absorbing material (metal substrate #4) for a first frequency band, the second sound absorbing material (foamed body layer #2) for a second frequency band lower than the first frequency band, or the third sound absorbing material (material of adhesive layer #3 or resin molten layer #5) for a third frequency band lower than the second frequency band, Kawazu teaches the first sound absorbing material can include the same materials as set forth in the present application (including aluminum, copper; paragraph 0143), and the second sound absorbing material can include the same materials as set forth in the present application (including urethane, foam; paragraphs 0061, 0087-0117). Accordingly, at least the first and second sound absorbing materials would likely function similarly for the claimed first and second frequency bands. In addition, Hakuta et al. teaches various frequency ranges associated with different sound absorbing materials (discussed throughout specification). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective fling date of the claimed invention to modify the battery cover of Kawazu to include the first, second, and third relative frequency bands associated with the first, second, and third sound absorbing materials, since at least the first and second materials of Kawazu are the same as those set forth in the present application, and so as to provide specific materials associated with specific frequency bands for preferred sound absorption, with an order of the layered arrangement based on location of sound exposure and desired sound absorption characteristics (Hakuta et al.: discussed throughout specification).
Regarding claim 14, Kawazu does not specifically disclose wherein the cover wall comprises a plurality of cover walls configured to cover the side surface of the battery. Kato et al. teaches wherein the cover wall (including walls of battery cover #1) comprises a plurality of cover walls (including side walls #2) configured to cover the side surface of the battery (#31) from a plurality of sides (figures 3, 6-8), and at least one of the plurality of cover walls has the insulating surface (including heat insulating member #100; column 10, line 33-column 11, line 10; column 22, line 10-column 23, line 26). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective fling date of the claimed invention to modify the battery cover of Kawazu to include a plurality of cover walls configured to cover the side surface of the battery, as taught by Kato et al., so as to provide sufficient coverage and protection on all sides of the battery (Kato et al.: columns 24-25).
Regarding claim 16, while Kawazu does not specifically disclose the claimed frequency ranges for the first and second sound absorbing materials, it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective fling date of the claimed invention to modify the battery cover of Kawazu to include the claimed frequency ranges for the first and second sound absorbing materials, since it has been held that where the general conditions of a claim are disclosed in the prior art (Hakuta et al. teaches various frequency ranges associated with different sound absorbing materials), discovering the optimum or workable ranges involves only routine skill in the art (see MPEP 2144.05).
Claim(s) 5-8 and 12 is/are rejected under 35 U.S.C. 103 as being unpatentable over Kawazu (US 2023/0211583 A1) in view of Kato et al. (US 10109896 B2), and Hakuta et al. (US 11654841 B2), and further in view of Mori (US 10421249 B2).
Regarding claims 5-8, Kawazu, as modified by Kato et al. and Hakuta et al., does not disclose a protective layer configured to protect the second sound absorbing layer from a battery liquid. Mori teaches a sound absorbing layered material (#1; figure 2) including a protective layer (including skin material #2 on exterior material layer #8) configured to protect a sound absorbing layer (including sound absorbing material layer #9) from a battery liquid of the battery (Abstract; column 1, line 63-column 2, line 2; column 2, lines 39-46; column 3, lines 26-56; column 5, line 58-column 6, line 13; column 6, line 66-column 7, line 12), wherein an outward sound absorbing layer (lining material #7) and the protective layer (skin material #2) are made of a same material (figure 2; column 5, lines 14-23). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective fling date of the claimed invention to modify the battery cover of Kawazu, as modified by Kato et al. and Hakuta et al., to include a protective layer made of the same material as the first/outward sound absorbing layer, as taught by Mori, so as to protect the sound absorbing layers from rain water, cooling water, battery liquid, window washer liquid, and the like, thereby preventing mold growth and extending the life of the sound absorbing material (Mori: Abstract; column 1, line 63-column 2, line 2; column 2, lines 39-46; column 3, lines 26-56; column 5, lines 14-23; column 5, line 58-column 6, line 13; column 6, line 66-column 7, line 12), with the use of the same material for different layers providing a cost-saving benefit.
Regarding claim 12, Kawazu, as modified by Kato et al. and Hakuta et al., does not disclose the claimed outer and inner members. Mori teaches the sound absorbing layered material (#1; figure 2), wherein the sound absorbing surface comprises outer and inner members (including skin material #2, lining material #7), and the sound absorbing layers (including sound absorbing material #5) are held by the outer and inner members from opposite sides in the thickness direction (figure 2). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective fling date of the claimed invention to modify the battery cover of Kawazu, as modified by Kato et al. and Hakuta et al., to include outer and inner members, as taught by Mori, so as to protect the sound absorbing layers from rain water, cooling water, battery liquid, window washer liquid, and the like, thereby preventing mold growth and extending the life of the sound absorbing material (Mori: Abstract; column 1, line 63-column 2, line 2; column 2, lines 39-46; column 3, lines 26-56; column 5, lines 14-23; column 5, line 58-column 6, line 13; column 6, line 66-column 7, line 12).
Allowable Subject Matter
Claim 13 is 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 allowable subject matter of claim 13 is wherein the outer and inner members are made of a same material, and are larger in a surface direction than the first and second sound absorbing layers, and outer edges of the outer and inner members are joined to each other, in combination with other features of preceding claims 1 and 12. Mori (US 10421249 B2) teaches the outer and inner members are made of a same material, but does not specifically teach the outer and inner members are larger in a surface direction than the first and second sound absorbing layers, or outer edges of the outer and inner members are joined to each other.
Response to Arguments
Applicant's arguments filed 11 September 2026 have been fully considered but they are not persuasive.
Regarding page 6 and amended claim 1, Applicant states that the proposed combination of references lacks a rational motivation and is based on impermissible hindsight.
As set forth above, while Kawazu (US 2023/0211583 A1) does not specifically disclose the battery cover (battery case including composite material laminate #1) to be disposed in an engine room, or the cover wall (including composite material laminate #1) configured to cover a side surface of a battery, wherein at least a part of the sound absorbing surface is configured to face an engine, Kawazu teaches the composite material laminate (#1) can be used, “as an insulting material, automotive component (for example, an oil pan, an engine cover, a cylinder head cover, other cover shaped components, an intake manifold, an integrated component thereof, a automotive body structure, ducts, an electric devices case, or a battery case), or the like used under high-temperature conditions, such as to exploit the features of the composite material laminate” (paragraph 0416), and thus would likely cover a surface of a battery in the battery case, and be disposed in an engine room with at least a part of the sound absorbing surface configured to face an engine. In addition, Kato et al. (US 10109896 B2) teaches a battery cover (#1) to be disposed in an engine room (column 1, lines 21-25; column 10, lines 33-42), the battery cover comprising a cover wall (heat insulating member #100, shielding member #50) configured to cover a side surface of a battery (#31; figures 6-8; column 22, line 10-column 23, line 26), wherein at least a part of an insulating surface is configured to face an engine (figure 12; column 1, lines 21-25; column 10, lines 33-42; column 27, line 20-column 28, line 3). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective fling date of the claimed invention to modify the battery cover of Kawazu to be disposed in an engine room with the cover wall configured to cover a side surface of a battery, as taught by Kato et al., so as to provide both thermal and sound absorbing protection from the engine (discussed throughout Kawazu and Kato et al.), while positioning the battery near the engine, which is exceedingly old and well known in the vehicle art for efficiency and space spacing designs.
As set forth above, while Kawazu does not specifically disclose the first sound absorbing material (metal substrate #4) for a first frequency band, the second sound absorbing material (foamed body layer #2) for a second frequency band lower than the first frequency band, or the third sound absorbing material (material of adhesive layer #3 or resin molten layer #5) for a third frequency band lower than the second frequency band, Kawazu teaches at least the first sound absorbing material can include the same materials as set forth in the present application (including aluminum, copper; paragraph 0143), and the second sound absorbing material can include the same materials as set forth in the present application (including urethane, foam; paragraphs 0061, 0087-0117). Accordingly, at least the first and second sound absorbing materials would likely function similarly for the claimed first and second frequency bands. In addition, Hakuta et al. (US 11654841 B2) teaches various frequency ranges associated with different sound absorbing materials (discussed throughout specification). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective fling date of the claimed invention to modify the battery cover of Kawazu to include the first, second, and third relative frequency bands associated with the first, second, and third sound absorbing materials, since at least the first and second materials of Kawazu are the same as those set forth in the present application, and so as to provide specific materials associated with specific frequency bands for preferred sound absorption, with an order of the layered arrangement based on location of sound exposure and desired sound absorption characteristics (Hakuta et al.: discussed throughout specification).
Accordingly, the motivation provided for the combination of references is both rational and specifically set forth in the teaching references.
Regarding pages 6-7, Applicant states that Kawazu does not characterize layers of the composite material laminate (#1) as including sound absorbing materials. Kawazu specifically discloses sound absorption and insulation properties of the composite material laminate (paragraphs 0061, 0127, 0135, 0186, 0191, 0239, 0240).
Regarding page 7, Applicant states that Hakuta et al. does not teach a sound absorbing surface with sound absorbing material layers for specific frequency bands. As set forth above, while Kawazu does not specifically disclose the first sound absorbing material (metal substrate #4) for a first frequency band, the second sound absorbing material (foamed body layer #2) for a second frequency band lower than the first frequency band, or the third sound absorbing material (material of adhesive layer #3 or resin molten layer #5) for a third frequency band lower than the second frequency band, Kawazu teaches at least the first sound absorbing material can include the same materials as set forth in the present application (including aluminum, copper; paragraph 0143), and the second sound absorbing material can include the same materials as set forth in the present application (including urethane, foam; paragraphs 0061, 0087-0117). Accordingly, at least the first and second sound absorbing materials would likely function similarly for the claimed first and second frequency bands. In addition, Hakuta et al. teaches various frequency ranges associated with different sound absorbing materials (discussed throughout specification). More specifically, a resonator (#20; can be made by laminating two or more layers), frame (#18), container (#17), resonance tube (#19), membrane-like member (#16), and other components of the noise reduction structure can be made of different materials (column 22, line 45-column 26) that correlate to different frequency ranges (different frequency ranges discussed throughout specification). It would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art before the effective fling date of the claimed invention to modify the battery cover of Kawazu to include the first, second, and third relative frequency bands associated with the first, second, and third sound absorbing materials, since at least the first and second materials of Kawazu are the same as those set forth in the present application, and so as to provide specific materials associated with specific frequency bands for preferred sound absorption, with an order of the layered arrangement based on location of sound exposure and desired sound absorption characteristics (Hakuta et al.: discussed throughout specification).
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 LAURA FREEDMAN whose telephone number is (571)272-2442. The examiner can normally be reached Monday-Friday 8am-4:30pm.
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/LAURA FREEDMAN/
Primary Examiner
Art Unit 3614
