IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`
`Art Unit
`Examiner
`Serial No.
`Filed
`Inventors
`
`Title
`
`: 1726
`: Julian Anthony
`: 13/146,669
`> July 28, 2071
`> Eduard Pytlik
`> Stirgen Lindner
`: Ulrich Barenthin
`: Winfried Gaugtier
`: BUTTON CELLS AND METHOD
`: FOR PRODUCING SAME
`
`RESPONSE
`
`Customer No.: 035811
`
`Docket Noe.: RUF-11-1270
`
`Confirmation No.: 6273
`
`Dated: May 2, 2014
`
`Mail Stop Amendment
`Commissioner for Patents
`P.O. Box 1450
`Alexandria, VA 22313-1450
`
`Sir:
`
`In response to the Official Action dated March 27, 2014,
`
`the Applicants amend the
`
`application as follows:
`
`EASTV73846501.1
`
`VARTA Ex. 2058 Page 1 of 8
`PEAG/Audio Partnership v. VARTA
`IPR2020-01212
`
`VARTA Ex. 2058 Page 1 of 8
`PEAG/Audio Partnership v. VARTA
`IPR2020-01212
`
`
`
`Art Unit
`Examiner
`Serial No.
`Filed
`Inventors
`
`Title
`
`: 1726
`: Julian Anthony
`: 13/146,669
`> July 28, 2071
`> Eduard Pytlik
`> Stirgen Lindner
`: Ulrich Barenthin
`: Winfried Gaugtier
`: BUTTON CELLS AND METHOD
`: FOR PRODUCING SAME
`
`RESPONSE
`
`Customer No.: 035811
`
`Docket Noe.: RUF-11-1270
`
`Confirmation No.: 6273
`
`Dated: May 2, 2014
`
`Mail Stop Amendment
`Commissioner for Patents
`P.O. Box 1450
`Alexandria, VA 22313-1450
`
`Sir:
`
`In response to the Official Action dated March 27, 2014,
`
`the Applicants amend the
`
`application as follows:
`
`EASTV73846501.1
`
`VARTA Ex. 2058 Page 1 of 8
`PEAG/Audio Partnership v. VARTA
`IPR2020-01212
`
`VARTA Ex. 2058 Page 1 of 8
`PEAG/Audio Partnership v. VARTA
`IPR2020-01212
`
`
`
`In the Claims
`
`1,
`
`(Currently Amended) A button cell comprising:
`
`a housing cup and a housing top separated from one another by anelectrically
`
`insulating seat and which form a housing with a flat bottom arca and a flat top area
`
`parallel to it, and
`
`an electrode-separator assembly within the housing comprising at
`
`least one
`
`positive and at least one negative electrode in the form offlat layers and connected to one
`
`another byat least one flat separator,
`
`wherein the electrode layers are aligned essentially at right angles to the flat
`
`botiom and top areas and the button cell is closed without being beaded over, and the electrode-
`
`separator assemblyis in the form ofa spiral windingwhose end faces face in a direction of the
`
`flat bottom area and the flattop area.
`
`ame
`2
`
`(Previously Presented) The button cell as claimed in claim I, wherein the
`
`electrodes and/or the separatorare/is in the form of strips or ribbons.
`
`3.
`
`4,
`
`(Cancelled)
`
`(Currently Amended) The button cell as claimed in claim [{3]] L wherein the
`
`winding has an axial cavity in its center, which axial cavity is at least partially filled by a
`
`winding core.
`
`EAST\75846501.1
`
`2
`
`VARTAEx. 2058 Page 2 of 8
`
`VARTA Ex. 2058 Page 2 of 8
`
`
`
`5.
`
`(Previously Presented) The button ceil as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
`
`electrode-separator assembly has one ofthe following layer sequences:
`
`negative electrode/separator/positive electrode/separator and
`
`positive electrode/separator/negative electrode/separator.
`
`6.
`
`(Previously Presented) The button cell as claimed in claim 1, wherein the positive
`
`electrode and/orthe negative electrode are/is connected via an output conductor to the housing in
`
`an area of the flat bottom area and/or ofthe flat top area.
`
`7.
`
`(Currently Amended) The button cell as claimed in claim [[3j] 1,
`
`further
`
`comprising at Jeast one insulator which prevents direct mechanical and electrical contact between
`
`the end faces of the winding and the flat bottom and top areas.
`
`8.
`
`(Previously Presented) The button cell as claimed in claim 7, wherein the at least
`
`one insulatoris a flat layer composed of plastic arranged between the end faces of the winding
`
`and the flat bottom and top areas.
`
`9.
`
`(Previously Presented) The button cell as claimed in claim 1, which is
`
`rechargeable.
`
`18,
`
`(Previously Presented) The button cell as claimed in claim 1, having a
`
`height:diameter ratio of < 1.
`
`EAST\75846501.1
`
`ta
`
`VARTAEx. 2058 Page 3 of 8
`
`VARTA Ex. 2058 Page 3 of 8
`
`
`
`11.
`
`(Previously Presented) A method for producing a button ceil according to claim 1,
`
`comprising inserting an electrode-separator assembly with electrodes in the form ofa flat layer
`
`into the housing such that the electrode layers are aligned essentially at right angles to the flat
`
`bottom and top areas, wherein the housing comprises a metallic cup part and a metallic top part.
`
`12,
`
`(Previously Presented) The method as claimed in claim i1, wherein the electrode-
`
`separator assembly is inserted as a winding.
`
`13.
`
`(Previously Presented) The method as claimed in claim 12, further comprising:
`
`inserting the winding into the metallic top part, and
`
`inserting the metallic top part with the winding into a metallic cup part.
`
`14.
`
`(Previously Presented) The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the winding
`
`is heat-treated on its end faces before being installed, with it being at least for a short time
`
`subjected to a temperature at which the separatoris thermoplastically deformable.
`
`EASTV75846350 11
`
`4
`
`VARTAEx. 2058 Page 4 of 8
`
`VARTA Ex. 2058 Page 4 of 8
`
`
`
`Remarks
`
`The Applicants have amended Claim1 to include the subject matter of Claim3,
`
`Claim 3 has been cancelled in view ofthe inclusion of that subject matter into Claim 1.
`
`Claim 4 has also been amended to depend from Claim 1
`
`in view ofthe cancellation of
`
`Claim 3.
`
`Finally, Claim 7 has similarly been amendedin viewofthe cancellation of Claim 3.
`
`Entry of the above amendments and cancellation into the official file and consideration
`
`on the merits is respectfully requested.
`
`The Applicants enclose a new Fig. 4 and respectfully request that it be entered into the
`
`official file.
`
`The drawings stand objected to with respect to the claimed insulator which prevenis
`
`direct mechanical and electrical contacts between the end faces of the winding and the flat
`
`bottom of top areas must be shown. The Applicants note that original Claim 4 shows such an
`
`insulator with respect to reference numbers 411 and 412. However,the originally submitted Fig.
`
`4 shows a button cell that is closed in a classical manner with an edge of the cell cup 401 being
`
`beaded inward over an edge of the cell top 402. New Fig. 4 has been modified such that the
`
`button cell 400 is closed without being beaded over in accordance with Claim | and, also, in
`
`accordance with the claimed feature wherein the insulator prevents direct and electrical contact
`
`between the end faces of the winding in the flat bottom and top areas. Withdrawal of the
`
`objections to the drawings is respectfully requested.
`
`Claims ], 2, 6, 10 and 11 stand rejected under 35 USC §102 as being anticipated by
`
`Nakayama. The Applicants respectfully submit that the rejection is moot in view of the addition
`
`EAST\75846501.1
`
`5
`
`VARTAEx. 2058 Page 5 of 8
`
`VARTA Ex. 2058 Page 5 of 8
`
`
`
`+
`of the subject matter of Claim 3 into Claim 1. Withdrawal ofthe rejection is respectfully
`
`requested.
`
`Claims 3-5. 9. 12 and 13 stand rejected under 35 USC §103 over the combination of
`
`Suzuki with Nakayama. The Applicants note that the rejection is technically moot with respect
`
`to cancelled Claim 3. Nonetheless, the Applicants will address the substance ofthat rejection as
`
`it could theoretically apply to Claims } and 11,
`
`The rejection frankly acknowledges that Nakayama does not disclose a spiral winding.
`
`Henee, the rejection turns to Suzuki for such disclosure. However, the Applicants respectfully
`
`submit that importing the teachings of Suzuki
`
`into Nakayama would still result in a different
`
`button cel! and a different method of producing a button cell as recited in Claims 1 ana 11.
`
`respectively.
`
`Suzuki indeed discloses a spiral winding (Fig. 2). However, the end faces of the winding
`
`in Fig. 2 of Suzuki do not face in the direction of the flat bottom area and the flat top area. This
`
`difference is important. The Applicants explain in para. [0020] of their specification that a right-
`
`angled alignment of electrode layers (to the flat bottom and top areas)
`
`is unexpectedly
`
`advantageous. Lithium electrodes have a volume expansion and shrink during charging and
`
`discharging. Ifa lithium electrode is in the form ofa flat layer, in particular in the form ofa flat
`
`layer being spirally winded,
`
`the expansion/shrink is directional. Mechanical forces resulting
`
`from the expansion/shrink do act in this case in a radial direction much stronger than in an axial
`
`direction.
`
`This allows the use of a housing of a housing cup and a housing top whichis closed
`
`without being beaded over. All mechanical forces resulting fromthe charging and discharging
`
`processes can be absorbed bythe (radial) casing area and not bythe flat bottom and top areas.
`
`EASTV75846501,1
`
`6
`
`VARTAEx. 2058 Page 6 of 8
`
`VARTA Ex. 2058 Page 6 of 8
`
`
`
`The Applicants respectfully submit that Suzuki (as well as Nakayama) fails to disclose,
`
`teach or suggest this unexpected advantage and inherentlyfails to disclose, teach or suggest the
`
`structure which results in this advantage. Hence, even fone skilled in the art were to importihe
`
`teachings of Suzuki into Nakayamaasset forth in the rejection, both the resulting button cells
`
`and the method of making such a button cell would be different from the subject matter of
`
`independent Claim 1. Withdrawal ofthe rejection is accordingly respecttully requested.
`
`Claims 7, 8 and 14 stand rejected under 34 USC $103 over the farther combination of
`
`Cantave with Suzuki and Nakayama. The Applicants respectfully submit that Cantave fails to
`
`cure the deficiencies set forth above with respect to the combination ef Suzuki with Nakayama,
`
`Withdrawal of the rejection is respectfully requested.
`
`In Hpht of the foregoing, the AppHcants respectfully submit that the entire application is
`
`now in condition for allowance, whichis respectfully submiiied.
`
`x
`Ry submitted,
`Respecth
`
`‘Y. Daniel Christenbury
`Reg. No. 31,750
`
`TDCivp
`(21S) 656-3381
`
`TASTATS 846501 |
`
`7
`
`VARTAEx. 2058 Page 7 of 8
`
`VARTA Ex. 2058 Page 7 of 8
`
`
`
`NEW SHEET
`
`baudhedahddlKeddieLEEEEebetre 403
`ehobeticialhchedededeeeeesONSAT
`oeeeeeerTr.iy
`
`404
`
`401
`
`werited
`
`PALALTEAEEETEES
`
`409
`
`412
`
`Fig. 4
`
`VARTAEx. 2058 Page 8 of 8
`
`VARTA Ex. 2058 Page 8 of 8
`
`
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