3000
1000
2500
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2000
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With recent government emphasis on fuel economy, which will be
discussed in more detail in the Hot Topics section, and a growing
market for hybrid and alternately powered vehicles, it is no
surprise that propulsion is a category of high interest to the auto
industry. Generally, all of the categories are seeing growth, but
none has experienced the rapid rise seen in propulsion.
Se
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ta
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ug
Pe
en
in
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M
its
ub
is
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ai
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Figure 4—Top Ten Patent Assignees from Publication Year 2009 to 2013 Based
on Number of Individual Inventions for the Propulsion Category
Source: Thomson Innovation & Thomson Reuters Derwent World Patents Index
Many of the companies in the top ten here are also in the
top ten overall since propulsion is the largest of all of the
categories. Notably, Hyundai is seventh in this category but
third overall, suggesting that propulsion may not be the major
focus of its portfolio.
In Navigation, Japanese electronics company Seiko Epson is
at the top of the field, joined by other electronics companies
including Semiconductor Energy Lab, Panasonic, Fujitsu
and Aisin.
FIGURE 6: TOP 10 HANDLING ASSIGNEES
2000
1500
1000
In addition to developing categories within the automotive
industry, this study also looks at the organizations generating
the most innovations in each field. The companies that file
the most automotive patents represent the groups that are
investing the most in new technology, and provide a glimpse
into the areas of innovation in which they are most interested.
Figure 3 shows a chart of the top 25 most frequent invention
filers in the automotive industry.
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a
500
H
TOP AUTOMOTIVE INNOVATORS
There are representatives from Japan (Toyota, Honda, Denso,
Seiko Epson, Mitsubishi), Korea (Hyundai), Germany (Bosch,
Daimler, Continental) and the United States (GM) in the top 10.
These companies represent 20 percent of all the filings that
take place within the automotive industry.
m
Figure 2—Automotive Patent Filings Reduced to One Document per DWPI Family
Charted by Category and the Publication Year of the Earliest Family Member
Source: Thomson Innovation & Thomson Reuters Derwent World Patents Index
500
H
2013
da
2012
ai
2011
Figure 5—Top Ten Patent Assignees from Publication Year 2009 to 2013 Based
on Number of Individual Inventions for the Navigation Category
Source: Thomson Innovation & Thomson Reuters Derwent World Patents Index
1000
on
2010
Figure 3—Top Automotive Patent Assignees from Publication Year 2009 to
2013 Based on Number of Individual Inventions
Source: Thomson Innovation & Thomson Reuters Derwent World Patents Index
1500
D
2009
0
H
2000
500
GM
To
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H da
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o
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Pat i n e i s h i
na nt
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ug ic
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e
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i
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to en en
li a
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o
4000
0
2000
1500
Figure 6—Top Ten Patent Assignees from Publication Year 2009 to 2013 Based
on Number of Individual Inventions for the Handling Category
Source: Thomson Innovation & Thomson Reuters Derwent World Patents Index
While Toyota is the top filer overall, and leads many of the
individual categories, it is listed fourth for the handling
category. This is contrasted with Hyundai, which is the top
inventive company in this category and plays a prominent role
in most of the other categories as well.
5
The State of Innovation in the Automotive Industry: 2015
The State of Innovation in the Automotive Industry: 2015
6
GENERAL INDUSTRY OBSERVATIONS
GENERAL INDUSTRY OBSERVATIONS
6000
3500
2000
1000
so
8000
3000
h
Entertainment
4000
en
Safety & Security
4000
sc
Handling
D
Navigation
10000
FIGURE 4: TOP 10 PROPULSION ASSIGNEES
a
Propulsion
5000
ot
12000
6000
2500
Bo
FIGURE 2: AUTOMOTIVE INVENTIONS BY
PUBLICATION YEAR
Returning to the individual categories, it is also possible to
identify the top companies in each of the more detailed areas
in the automotive industry. Figures 4 through 8 highlight the
top 10 companies within each category.
Bo
7000
FIGURE 5: TOP 10 NAVIGATION ASSIGNEES
a
8000
TOP INNOVATORS BY CATEGORY
en
(2009 - 2013)
D
FIGURE 3: TOP AUTOMOTIVE PATENT ASSIGNEES
To
y
Looking at these categories over the past five years, as
seen in Figure 2, it can be determined that the main driver
for technology development in the automotive industry is
investment in propulsion systems.