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 .
Continued Examination Under 37 CFR 1.114
A request for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, including the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e), was filed in this application after final rejection. Since this application is eligible for continued examination under 37 CFR 1.114, and the fee set forth in 37 CFR 1.17(e) has been timely paid, the finality of the previous Office action has been withdrawn pursuant to 37 CFR 1.114. Applicant's submission filed on 06/17/2026 has been entered.
Status of Claims
Claim 1 is amended. Claims 1-17 are currently pending.
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.
Claims 1-17 are 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. 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.
Claim 1, as presently amended, requires “an amount of the cobalt in the small secondary particles is less than an amount of the cobalt in the large secondary particles”. However, this limitation does not find adequate support in the instant specification as contended by applicant. Specifically, the instant specification merely provides support for a molar content of cobalt in the small secondary particles of 0.01 to 0.05 and a molar content of cobalt in the large secondary particles of 0.01 to 0.08. For the large secondary particles, each exemplary composition provided in the instant specification uses a cobalt molar content which is always less than the cobalt molar content of the small secondary particles used in each exemplary embodiment of the instant specification. Accordingly, the instant specification does not appear to provide any support for “an amount of the cobalt in the small secondary particles is less than an amount of the cobalt in the large secondary particles”. While the maximum molar content of cobalt in the small secondary particles is less than the maximum molar content of cobalt in the large secondary particles, absence any further description in the specification, the above cited limitation is considered to be new matter.
Claims 2-17 are rejected as being dependent on claim 1.
Response to Arguments
Applicant’s arguments with respect to claims 1-17 have been considered but are moot because the new ground of rejection does not rely on any reference applied in the prior rejection of record for any teaching or matter specifically challenged in the argument. As noted in the above 112(a) rejection, the subject matter as presently claimed recited new matter. Applicant is urged to show where in specification the newly amended claim 1 finds support. It is noted that in the absence of adequate support in the specification for “an amount of the cobalt in the small secondary particles is less than an amount of the cobalt in the large secondary particles”, the presently claimed subject matter would be found obvious over the combined teachings of Choi, Shin (as cited in the previous Office Action) and Kawamoto (US 2025/0266441 A1) which discloses an amount of cobalt in small secondary NCM particles which is less than an amount of cobalt in large secondary NCM particles within a positive electrode.
Thus, in view of foregoing, claims 1-17 stand rejected.
Conclusion
The prior art made of record and not relied upon is considered pertinent to applicant's disclosure. Kawamoto (US 2025/0266441 A1) discloses an amount of cobalt in small secondary NCM particles which is less than an amount of cobalt in large secondary NCM particles ([0026]-[0029]). Feng (US 2017/0155139 A1) and Hiratsuka (US 2021/0265627 A1) each disclose a lithium secondary battery comprising a cathode including a Ni-based lithium metal oxide active material having a bimodal particle size distribution including large secondary particles and small secondary particles.
Contact Information
Any inquiry concerning this communication or earlier communications from the examiner should be directed to NATHANAEL T ZEMUI whose telephone number is (571)272-4894. The examiner can normally be reached M-F 8am-5pm (EST).
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/NATHANAEL T ZEMUI/Examiner, Art Unit 1727
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