The United Nations’ World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has published “Patent Landscape Report – Hydrogen Fuel Cells in Transportation,” a report on patents in the hydrogen fuel cell industry for transportation.
The number of patent applications in the sector grew by over a quarter between 2016 and 2020. (23.4 percent ). In 2020, Chinese inventors filed 7261 applications, accounting for 69% of all applications, followed by Japan (1186 applications, 11.3 percent), Germany (646, 6.2 percent), and South Korea (583.5.6%), and the United States (583.5.6%). (403, 3.8 percent ).
The report’s main points are as follows:
China, which placed sixth in terms of the number of applications filed 10 years ago, has recently surpassed the United States as the world leader in this metric.
Companies have filed about 80% of all patent applications for fuel cells for transportation. Patent applications from the top 30 corporations account for 40% of all patent applications.
The Chinese Academy of Sciences is the only university/research organization among the top 30 candidates.
The greatest portfolios of active corporate patents are currently held by companies in Japan, the United States, South Korea, and Germany, but the Chinese are expected to overtake them in the coming years.
The Japanese were the most common candidates in the first decade, but their number of applications has dropped dramatically in subsequent years.
The road transport sector makes up the majority of the patent dataset, with shipping, aviation, and special vehicles accounting for only a minor portion. The research, on the other hand, shows fast progress in specialized sectors such as construction trucks, forklifts, and airport tugs.
