Ex Parte Lee

Patent Trial and Appeal BoardApr 28, 2016

12487898 (P.T.A.B. Apr. 28, 2016)

UNITED STA TES p A TENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE APPLICATION NO. FILING DATE 12/487,898 06/19/2009 58027 7590 05/02/2016 RC PARK & ASSOCIATES, PLC 1894 PRESTON WHITE DRIVE RESTON, VA 20191 FIRST NAMED INVENTOR Hyung Bok Lee 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. 61610679Cl 8212 EXAMINER EGGERDING, ALIX ECHELMEYER ART UNIT PAPER NUMBER 1729 NOTIFICATION DATE DELIVERY MODE 05/02/2016 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): PATENT@PARK-LAW.COM PTOL-90A (Rev. 04/07) UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD Ex parte HYUNG BOK LEE Appeal2014-006863 Application 12/487,898 Technology Center 1700 Before TERRY J. OWENS, MARK NAGUMO, and CHRISTOPHER C. KENNEDY, Administrative Patent Judges. OWENS, Administrative Patent Judge. DECISION ON APPEAL STATEMENT OF THE CASE The Appellant appeals under 35 U.S.C. Â§ 134(a) from the Examiner's rejection of claims 1, 6-18, 20-22, 24, and 25. We have jurisdiction under 35 U.S.C. Â§ 6(b). The Invention The Appellant claims a pouch case and a pouch-type rechargeable battery comprising the pouch case. Claim 1 is illustrative: 1. A pouch case, comprising: a case body having a space to receive an electrode assembly and a sealing part formed around the space; and a case cover attached to the case body at the sealing part, Appeal2014-006863 Application 12/487,898 wherein the attached portions of the case cover and the case body comprise side sealing sections that are folded towards the space, wherein the width of each side sealing section is one half to one quarter the depth of the space, such that the side sealing section is configured to emit gas generated by the electrode assembly to outside the sealing part, wherein one side of the case cover is formed with one side of the case body, wherein the case body comprises a first side, a second side opposing the first side, a third side, and a fourth side opposing the third side, wherein the electrode assembly has a first electrode tab and a second electrode tab being drawn out through the third side, wherein the folded side sealing sections are respectively disposed at the first side and the second side, wherein the sealing part is not disposed at the fourth side, wherein a molding resin is formed between an outer portion of the space of the case body and the side sealing part, and wherein the side sealing sections each comprise a first end and a second end, the first and the second end of each side sealing section being one of curved and beveled. Hasegawa Chang Mitchell Bourque Hong Takahashi The References US 6,319,630 Bl US 6,451,476 Bl US 2003/0232236 Al US 2004/0118710 Al US 2005/0069763 Al US 2005/0069766 Al The Rejections Nov. 20, 2001 Sep. 17,2002 Dec. 18, 2003 June 24, 2004 Mar. 31, 2005 Mar. 31, 2005 The claims stand rejected under 35 U.S.C. Â§ 103 as follows: claims 1, 12-18, 20-22, 24, and 25 over Chang in view of Mitchell, Hasegawa and 2 Appeal2014-006863 Application 12/487,898 Hong, 1 and claims 6-11 over Chang in view of Mitchell, Hasegawa, Hong, Takahashi and Bourque. OPINION We affirm the rejections. The Appellant argues only the independent claims ( 1, 18 and 20) (Br. 8-10). Although additional references are applied in the rejection of some of the dependent claims, the Appellant does not provide a substantive argument as to the separate patentability of those claims (Br. 10-11 ). We therefore limit our discussion to the independent claims. The dependent claims stand or fall with the independent claim from which they depend. See 37 C.F.R. Â§ 41.37(c)(l)(iv) (2012). Claims 1, 18, and 20 require a pouch case comprising a space (125)-containing case body (124) and a case cover (122) attached to the case body (124) such that attached portions of the case cover (122) and the case body (124) comprise side sealing sections (124a) folded toward the space (125), wherein the width (d) of each side sealing section (124a) is one half to one quarter of the depth (h) of the space (125) such that the side sealing section ( 124a) is configured to emit gas generated inside the space to outside a sealing region (124a, 124b) (Spec. i-f 34; Figs. 2a, 2b ). Chang discloses a secondary battery case comprising a lower case body (200) having a battery (24)-containing space (210) and a notched (32) lower sealing portion (200a), and an upper case body (29) having a notched (31) upper sealing portion (29a), the lower case body (200) and the 1 The Examiner's statement of the rejection incorrectly includes canceled claims 2-5 and 19 (Ans. 2). 3 Appeal2014-006863 Application 12/487,898 upper case body (29) being hermetically sealed to each other at the lower (200a) and upper (29a) sealing portions (col. 3, 11. 25--45; col. 3, 1. 65 - col. 4, 1. 21; col. 4, 11. 27-30; Fig. 3). The upper (29a) and lower (200a) sealing portions are folded at the notches (31, 32) and adhered to the lower case body (200) to reduce the battery's volume (col. 4, 11. 30--40; Fig. 4). Mitchell discloses a secondary battery case comprising an upper container member ( 106a) including a body ( 108a) and a flange-like member (112a ), and a lower container member (106b) including a body ( 108b) and a flange-like member ( 112b ), the flange-like members (112a, 112b) being air-tight and water-tight sealed together by a sealing material ( 118) which, at or below a temperature at which excessive volumes of gas evolve inside the case, softens or melts such that the gas vents to the ambient atmosphere, and which, after the battery temperature has dropped sufficiently due to the gas having been vented, hardens such that the original seal is substantially reformed (i-fi-f 30, 32, 33, 42; Fig. 3, 4, 9). The Appellant asserts that "Chang fails to teach or suggest adjusting the widths of the side sections to be any width other than a width sufficient to hermetically seal the pouch" (Br. 9). The widths (i.e., lengths of Chang's Fig. 4's folded-down upper (29a) and lower (200a) sealing portions) sufficient to hermetically seal Chang's secondary battery case appear to include widths corresponding to the range required by the Appellant's independent claims, i.e., one quarter to one half the depth of the space (210) in the lower case body (200). 4 Appeal2014-006863 Application 12/487,898 The Appellant asserts that "Chang fails to teach or suggest that the width of the side sealing sections was recognized to be a result-effective variable for the purpose of emitting gas" (Br. 9). Establishing a prima facie case of obviousness does not require that references solve the same problem solved by the Appellant. See In re Kemps, 97 F.3d 1427, 1430 (Fed. Cir. 1996); In re Beattie, 974 F.2d 1309, 1312 (Fed. Cir. 1992); In re Dillon, 919 F.2d 688, 693 (Fed. Cir. 1990) (en bane); In re Lintner, 458 F.2d 1013, 1016 (CCPA 1972). Chang would have led one of ordinary skill in the art, through no more than ordinary creativity, to make the upper (29a)/lower (200a) sealing portion length sufficient to hermetically seal Chang's secondary battery case, e.g., a length of one quarter to one half the depth of the space (210) in the lower case body (200). See KSR Int'! Co. v. Teleflex Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 418 (2007) (in making an obviousness determination one "can take account of the inferences and creative steps that a person of ordinary skill in the art would employ"). The Appellant asserts that "Mitchell teaches an entirely different configuration for forming a vent" (Br. 10). Chang does not disclose how the secondary battery case is vented. Mitchell would have led one of ordinary skill in the art, through no more than ordinary creativity, to vent Chang's case by placing Mitchell's heat sensitive sealing material (118) at the position corresponding to Mitchell's position between flange-like members (112a, 112b ), i.e., between Chang's upper (29a) and lower (200a) sealing portions. Hence, we are not persuaded of reversible error in the rejections. 5 Appeal2014-006863 Application 12/487,898 DECISION/ORDER The rejections under 35 U.S.C. Â§ 103 of claims 1, 12-18, 22, 24 and 25 over Chang in view of Mitchell, Hasegawa and Hong, and claims 6- 11 over Chang in view of Mitchell, Hasegawa, Hong, Takahashi, and Bourque are affirmed. It is ordered that the Examiner's decision is affirmed. No time period for taking any subsequent action in connection with this appeal may be extended under 37 C.F.R. Â§ 1.136(a). AFFIRMED 6