The automotive industry continues to be a hotbed of innovation. Activity is driven by cost, engine performance, fuel efficiency, and durability, and growing importance of technologies such as electric, connected and autonomous vehicles. In the last three years alone, there have been over 1.2 million patents filed and granted in the automotive industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Environmental sustainability in Automotive: Fuel cell-battery combination.  Buy the report here.

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According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which uses over 619,000 patents to analyse innovation intensity for the automotive industry, there are 290+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry. 

Fuel cell-battery combination is a key innovation area in environmental sustainability 

A hydrogen-based fuel cell produces electricity to charge batteries in vehicles in addition to supplying energy to the drivetrain. Like lithium batteries, hydrogen itself serves as an energy carrier and storage mechanism.

GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies. According to GlobalData, there are 140+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established automotive companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of fuel cell-battery combination. 

Key players in fuel cell-battery combination – a disruptive innovation in the automotive industry  

‘Application diversity’ measures the number of different applications identified for each relevant patent. It broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators. 

‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of different countries each relevant patent is registered in. It reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’. 

Patent volumes related to fuel cell-battery combination

Toyota is a leading patent filer in the fuel cell-battery combination market with 1,047 patent applications. Toyota is continuing to develop fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) as they are one of the most promising technologies for achieving sustainable mobility and energy diversification. Nissan, Panasonic, and Hyundai are a few of the other top patent filers in the same field.  

To further understand how environmental sustainability is disrupting the automotive industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Automotive. 

GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.

GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.