State of innovation in electric vehicles, design challenges
and opportunities uncovered by combining the power of unified IP
with global research data insights
LONDON, July 8, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Clarivate
Plc (NYSE:CLVT), a global leader in providing trusted
information and insights to accelerate the pace of innovation,
today released a new report, The road ahead: sustainable
vehicles today and in the future, that reveals the state
of innovation in electric vehicles (EVs), the changing competitive
landscape and geographic trends. Despite impressive strides
in innovation in the last two decades, vehicle charge time and
battery capacity are unsolved, critical design issues and
overcoming them is vital to unlocking the market potential for
electric vehicles.
Based on global journal publication data from Clarivate, the
report finds that the annual number of academic research papers on
EVs has risen exponentially since the mid-1990s. Although the first
paper appeared more than a century ago, almost three quarters (74%)
were published between 2011 and 2020.1
Evolving design challenges for electric vehicles
However, there are barriers holding back greater adoption of
electric vehicles and a recent survey highlighted consumer concerns
regarding EVs' range and inadequate charging
infrastructure.2 EV3 inventive activity
in the last two decades to the present has been centered on cost,
reliability and safety, based on advanced patent intelligence from
Clarivate4. In comparison, there are low levels of
inventive activity to reduce EVs' charging time and improve battery
capacity. Overcoming these key challenges is critical to unlocking
mass-market adoption of EVs.
Trademark research data from Clarivate5 reinforces
the unsolved state of charging technology. Trademark applications
at the major IP offices, including the United States Patent and
Trademark Office (USPTO) and European Union Intellectual Property
Office (EUIPO) showed that applications covering chargers and
charging station services for EVs lag other EV applications, and
only started to increase substantially since 2017.
Gordon Samson, President, IP
Group, Clarivate, said, "Since the launch of the world's first mass
production hybrid electric vehicle ushered in a new era in the
automotive industry, we've witnessed impressive technological
advancement of electric vehicles. However, its full market
potential is yet to be realized. As our report shows, key design
issues must be overcome to unlock the sector's full potential. We
believe human ingenuity can change the world and EV innovation will
accelerate societal progress in building a better and more
sustainable future."
Dissecting geographic trends
While innovation is often
associated with where ideas are produced, the report reveals that
tracking geographic innovation trends has another facet – where
ideas are protected as intellectual property assets. The highest
volumes of inventive activity come from research and development
(R&D) centers of major innovators, primarily in Japan, Mainland China, South Korea, Germany and the
United States, homes to the world's leading EV
producers. Filing locations speak to where EV car sales will
mostly take place, showing the influx of Japanese and European
protection in the United States,
Europe and Mainland China.
The growing popularity of EVs has a significant impact on
litigation activity. Most EV litigation is taking place in
Europe, Mainland China and
Japan. This contrasts with
litigation concerning traditional automotive technologies, which
historically have taken place mostly in the United States and Europe, with little activity in Asia.
Other key findings from the report include:
- Branding in a digital world – there is a lack of common "left
of the dot" strings across auto companies' .brand TLDs, indicating
that each auto manufacturer is deploying a unique .brand strategy
and reflecting the various options available to .brand TLD
owners.
- Top 75 entities in the EV space – the list includes car
manufacturers such as Toyota and Volkswagen, component suppliers
including Bosch and Denso and technology enablers such as LG Chem
and Panasonic.
Samson concluded, "Sustainability has become a strategic
imperative, not just for the automotive sector, but for the world.
As the transition to electric vehicles and sustainable
transportation intensifies, it is our mission to provide businesses
with integrated solutions that drive meaningful and impactful
progress towards solving one of the world's most complex
challenges."
The road ahead: sustainable vehicles today and in the
future report can be found here.
About Clarivate
Clarivate™ is a global leader in
providing solutions to accelerate the lifecycle of innovation. Our
bold mission is to help customers solve some of the world's most
complex problems by providing actionable information and insights
that reduce the time from new ideas to life-changing inventions in
the areas of science and intellectual property. We help customers
discover, protect and commercialize their inventions using our
trusted subscription and technology-based solutions coupled with
deep domain expertise. For more information, please
visit clarivate.com.
Clarivate media contact
Sofia
Nogues, Senior External Communications Manager
media.enquiries@clarivate.com
1 Source: The Web of Science™ global citation
index, identified papers that contained the phrase 'electric car'
in their titles, abstracts or keywords, which constitute
substantive, original academic research.
2 Consumer Reports, "Consumer Reports survey shows
strong interest in electric cars", Dec
2020
3 For the report, EVs encompass battery electric
vehicles (BEVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), plug-in hybrid
electric vehicles (PHEVs) and fuel cell electric vehicles
(FCEVs).
4 Source: Derwent World Patents Index™
5 Source: CompuMark™
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