Ex Parte KODERA et al

Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Jun 13, 2018

13710096 (P.T.A.B. Jun. 13, 2018)

UNITED STA TES p A TENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
APPLICATION NO. FILING DATE
13/710,096 12/10/2012
2292 7590 06/15/2018
BIRCH STEW ART KOLASCH & BIRCH, LLP
8110 Gatehouse Road
Suite 100 East
FALLS CHURCH, VA 22042-1248
FIRST NAMED INVENTOR
YujiKODERA
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Address: COMMISSIONER FOR PATENTS
P.O. Box 1450
Alexandria, Virginia 22313-1450
www .uspto.gov
ATTORNEY DOCKET NO. CONFIRMATION NO.
5271-0271PUS1 3744
EXAMINER
CHMIELECKI, SCOTT J
ART UNIT PAPER NUMBER
1729
NOTIFICATION DATE DELIVERY MODE
06/15/2018 ELECTRONIC
Please find below and/or attached an Office communication concerning this application or proceeding.
The time period for reply, if any, is set in the attached communication.
Notice of the Office communication was sent electronically on above-indicated "Notification Date" to the
following e-mail address(es):
mailroom@bskb.com
PTOL-90A (Rev. 04/07)
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
Ex parte YUJI KODERA,
TATSUYAKAMADA,
and HITOSHI WATANABE
Appeal2017-008509
Application 13/710,096 1
Technology Center 1700
Before ADRIENE LEPIANE HANLON, MONTE T. SQUIRE, and
LILAN REN, Administrative Patent Judges.
HANLON, Administrative Patent Judge.
DECISION ON APPEAL
A. STATEMENT OF THE CASE
The Appellants filed an appeal under 35 U.S.C. § 134(a) from an
Examiner's decision finally rejecting claims 1 and 6-8. 2 We have
jurisdiction under 35 U.S.C. § 6(b).
We AFFIRM.
1 The real party in interest is said to be HITACHI MAXELL, LTD. Appeal
Brief dated September 23, 2016 ("Br."), at 1.
2 Claims 9-17 are also pending but have been withdrawn from
consideration.
Appeal2017-008509
Application 13/710,096
Representative claim 1 is reproduced below from the Claims
Appendix of the Appeal Brief. The limitations at issue are italicized.
1. A battery module comprising three or more thin plate
batteries that are placed one on top of the other, the three or
more thin plate batteries each having a substantially rectangular
shape as viewed from above, wherein
the three or more thin plate batteries each have a front
side, a pair of lateral sides adjacent to the front side, an
electrode laminate, an electrolyte, a laminate sheet, a positive
electrode tab, and a negative electrode tab,
the electrode laminate and the electrolyte are sandwiched
between the laminate sheet, and sides of the laminate sheet
meet and are sealed to form a sealing region,
the positive electrode tab and the negative electrode tab
extend from a front sealing part of the sealing region in which
the laminate sheet is sealed along the front side,
a projecting region that corresponds to the electrode
laminate projects away relative to the front sealing part, thus
creating a level difference between the projecting region and
the front sealing part on one side of each of the three or more
thin plate batteries,
all the three or more thin plate batteries are arranged such
that the front sides thereof face the same side,
the positive electrode tab and the negative electrode tab
of adjacent thin plate batteries face each other,
the positive electrode tab and the negative electrode tab
that extend from the front side and face each other are
electrically connected via a connecting member such that an
electrically conducting path is formed to connect the three or
more thin plate batteries in series, and
the electrically conducting path between the adjacent thin
plate batteries, which includes the positive electrode tab and the
negative electrode tab extending from the front side, is folded at
the connecting member along a first folding line that is parallel
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to the lateral side adjacent to the front side and is folded at the
positive electrode tab and the negative electrode tab along a
second folding line that is parallel to the front side such that the
connecting member faces the front sealing part and is
accommodated in a space created by the level difference.
Br., Claims Appendix 1-2.
The following grounds of rejection are maintained on appeal:
(1) claims 1 and 6 under 35 U.S.C. § I03(a) as unpatentable over
Kodama et al. 3 in view of Yoon et al. 4 and N ortoft et al.; 5
(2) claim 8 under 35 U.S.C. § I03(a) as unpatentable over Kodama
in view of Yoon and N ortoft, and further in view of Sanada et al.; 6 and
(3) claim 7 under 35 U.S.C. § I03(a) as unpatentable over Kodama
in view of Yoon and N ortoft, and further in view of Houchin-Miller et al. 7
B. DISCUSSION
The Appellants' Figures 3B and 3C, reproduced below, illustrate a
battery module comprising three thin plate batteries according to one
embodiment of the invention.
3 US 2007 /0224499 Al, published September 27, 2007 ("Kodama").
4 US 2009/0211082 Al, published August 27, 2009 ("Yoon").
5 US 6,773,848 Bl, issued August 10, 2004 ("Nortoft").
6 US 2006/0275658 Al, published December 7, 2006 ("Sanada").
7 US 2010/0047682 Al, published February 25, 2010 ("Houchin-Miller").
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FIG. 3B
Appellants' Figure 3B is a perspective view
of a battery module.
According to the Appellants:
[T]he positive electrode tab (11 p) and the negative electrode tab
(1 ln) that face each other are electrically connected via the
connecting member (30a, 30b) such that three or more thin
plate batteries (10) are connected in series. The electrically
conducting path between the adjacent thin plate batteries is
folded along thefirstfolding line (42, 43)[, shown in
Appellants' Figure 3C, reproduced below,] and the second
folding line (41, 44)[, shown in Appellants' Figure 3B,
reproduced above,] such that the connecting member (30a, 30b)
faces the front sealing part (15f) and is accommodated in a
space created by the level difference [, shown in Appellants'
Figure 3C, reproduced below].
Br. 6 ( emphasis added).
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Application 13/710,096
Br. 6.
Flt JC
Appellants' Figure 3C is a perspective view of a
battery module wherein connecting member (30b)
is folded along folding line 41.
The Appellants disclose:
The first folding line ( 42, 43) is parallel to the lateral side (14s ),
and the connecting member (30a, 30b) of the electrically
conducting path is folded along the first folding line ( 42, 43).
The second folding line ( 41, 44) is parallel to the front side
(14 f), and the positive electrode tab (11 p) and the negative
electrode tab (1 ln) of the electrically conducting path are
folded along the second folding line (41, 44).
The Examiner does not find that Kodama or Yoon discloses the first
and second folding lines recited in claim 1. Rather, the Examiner finds that
Kodama discloses a thin plate battery comprising, inter alia, positive and
negative electrode tabs (31, 32) extending from a front sealing part (1 Ob).
Final Act. 3. 8 Kodama Figure 1 is reproduced below.
8 Final Office Action dated April 21, 2016.
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Kodama Figure 1 is a perspective view of a
battery according to one embodiment of the invention.
The Examiner also finds Kodama discloses that a level difference is
created between a projecting region (10a) and the front sealing part (10b) on
one side of the thin plate battery. Final Act. 3.
The Examiner finds Kodama does not disclose a battery assembly
comprising three or more thin plate batteries as recited in claim 1. Final Act.
3. The Examiner, however, finds Yoon discloses a battery assembly
comprising three thin plate batteries wherein "the negative tab of one cell
faces the positive tab of an adjacent cell and ... the adjacent tabs are
electrically connected via a conducting path that connects all of the thin
plate batteries in series." Final Act. 3. More specifically, the Examiner
finds Yoon discloses that bus bars 50 are welded to adjacent cathode and
anode terminals to form the conducting path and connect the batteries in
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senes. Final Act. 3--4. Yoon Figure 4, reproduced below, illustrates a
battery assembly according to the disclosed invention.
Yoon Figure 4 illustrates three batteries electrically
connected in series via bus bars 50.
The Examiner finds that "[ o ]ne with ordinary skill in the art would
realize that providing three thin plate batteries in series would increase the
battery module's output and capacity and facilitat[ e] powering medium- and
large-sized devices." Final Act. 4 ( citing Yoon ,r 4). Therefore, the
Examiner concludes that it would have been obvious to one of ordinary skill
in the art to connect three of the single thin plate batteries disclosed in
Kodama via bus bars as disclosed in Yoon "to facilitate powering medium-
and large-sized devices." Final Act. 4.
As for the first and second folding lines recited in claim 1, the
Examiner finds Nortoft discloses a stack of thin plate batteries wherein
connecting members are folded to save space. Final Act. 4--5 ( citing
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Nortoft, col. 4, 11. 28-39; annotated Nortoft Fig. 4e). 9 Based on the
teachings in N ortoft, the Examiner concludes that it would have been
obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art to fold the conducting paths in
Kodama's modified battery assembly, which include bus bars 50, to save
space. Final Act. 5.
The Appellants argue:
Nortoft ... discloses that the positive electrode tab and the
negative electrode tab are folded only along a folding line that
is parallel to a front side, from which the positive electrode tab
and the negative electrode tab extend (i.e., the "second folding
line" in the present invention) (see FIG. 4e ... ).
Br. 8 ( emphasis omitted). The Appellants argue that Nortoft "does not
disclose that the connecting member [ that connects the positive and negative
electrode tabs] faces a front sealing part and ... is accommodated in a space
created by a level difference between a projecting region and the front
sealing part" as recited in claim 1. Br. 8 ( emphasis omitted).
The Appellants also argue:
Nortoft ... does not disclose that the connecting member (see
FIGS. 4b to 4d ... ) that electrically connects the positive
electrode tab and the negative electrode tab is folded along a
folding line that is parallel to a lateral side adjacent to the front
side (i.e., the "first folding line" in the present invention).
Br. 8 ( emphasis omitted).
Significantly, the Appellants' arguments do not consider the prior art
as a whole. See In re Keller, 642 F.2d 413,425 (CCPA 1981) (the test for
obviousness is what the combined teachings of the references would have
9 Annotated Nortoft Figure 4e is reproduced on page 6 of the Final Office
Action.
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suggested to one of ordinary skill in the art). There is no dispute on this
record that Nortoft discloses a second folding line as recited in claim 1 (i.e.,
a line that is parallel to the front side of the battery). See Br. 8. In the
modification proposed by the Examiner, when the conducting path 10 of
Kodama's modified battery assembly is folded along the second folding line
disclosed in Nortoft, the conducting path faces Kodama's front sealing part
( 1 Ob) and is accommodated in a space created by the level difference
between Kodama's projecting region (10a) and front sealing part (10b).
Likewise, when two adjacent batteries in Kodama's modified battery
assembly are folded along the first folding line disclosed in Nortoft (i.e., a
line that is parallel to the lateral side adjacent to the front side of the
battery), 11 bus bar 50 in Kodama's modified battery assembly is also folded
along the first folding line because the conducting path bridges the two
adjacent batteries. See Yoon Fig. 4.
The Appellants also argue that the battery assembly disclosed in
Nortoft includes a circuit board 5 that prevents Nortoft's assembly from
being folded as recited in claim 1. Br. 8-9. As explained by the Examiner,
"[t]he rejection in no way states or even suggests including the circuit board
in the structure [of Kodama]." Ans. 8. 12 In that regard, we note that in the
§ 103(a) rejection on appeal, the Examiner modifies Kodama's battery, not
Nortoft's battery assembly, to include the first and second folding lines
disclosed in N ortoft and recited in claim 1.
10 The conducting path comprises the positive and negative electrode tabs
and the connecting member (e.g., Yoon's bus bar 50).
11 See Nortoft Figs. 3a, 3b.
12 Examiner's Answer dated December 22, 2016.
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Finally, the Appellants summarily argue that the Examiner "has
indulged in impermissible hindsight in making the obviousness rejection."
Br. 9. The Appellants, however, do not direct us to any error in the
Examiner's reasons for modifying Kodama as proposed.
For the reasons set forth above, the § 103(a) rejection of claim 1 is
sustained.
The Appellants do not present arguments in support of the separate
patentability of any of claims 6-8. Therefore, the§ 103(a) rejections of
claims 6-8 also are sustained.
C. DECISION
The Examiner's decision is affirmed.
No time period for taking any subsequent action in connection with
this appeal maybe extended under 37 C.F.R. § 1.136(a)(l).
AFFIRMED
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