The automotive industry continues to be a hotbed of innovation, with activity driven by the demand for sustainable products, focus on reducing waste and use of key resources, and growing importance of technologies such as metal hydride and carbon nanotube adsorption. 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: H2 storage fuel cells. Buy the report here.
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However, not all innovations are equal and nor do they follow a constant upward trend. Instead, their evolution takes the form of an S-shaped curve that reflects their typical lifecycle from early emergence to accelerating adoption, before finally stabilising and reaching maturity.
Identifying where a particular innovation is on this journey, especially those that are in the emerging and accelerating stages, is essential for understanding their current level of adoption and the likely future trajectory and impact they will have.
290+ innovations will shape the automotive industry
According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which plots the S-curve for the automotive industry using innovation intensity models built on over 619,000 patents, there are 290+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.
Within the emerging innovation stage, EV discharge prediction, fuel cell ion exchange membranes, and hydrogen ICE fuel tanks are disruptive technologies that are in the early stages of application and should be tracked closely. V2G smart metering, silicon-air batteries, and zeolites for exhaust filtering are some of the accelerating innovation areas, where adoption has been steadily increasing. Among maturing innovation areas are HEV propulsion systems and wind-powered vehicles, which are now well established in the industry.
Innovation S-curve for environmental sustainability in the automotive industry
H2 storage fuel cells is a key innovation area in environmental sustainability
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles utilise a hydrogen fuel cell to power their on-board electric motor. Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles possess high potential to reduce emissions related to the transportation sector. The physical storage of hydrogen in the automotive sector is in the form of compressed gas or cold/cryo-compressed.
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 50+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established automotive companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of H2 storage fuel cells.
Key players in H2 storage fuel cells – a disruptive innovation in the automotive industry
‘Application diversity’ measures the number of different applications identified for each relevant patent and broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.
‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of different countries each relevant patent is registered in and reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.
Patent volumes related to H2 storage fuel cells
| Company | Total patents (2010 - 2021) | Premium intelligence on the world's largest companies |
| Meditor European Master Fund | 129 | Unlock company profile |
| CEA | 75 | Unlock company profile |
| Toyota Motor | 59 | Unlock company profile |
| Hyundai Motor Group | 54 | Unlock company profile |
| Shanghai Huapeng Explosion Proof Technology | 45 | Unlock company profile |
| Kia | 36 | Unlock company profile |
| Societe BIC | 33 | Unlock company profile |
| McPhy Energy | 29 | Unlock company profile |
| Porsche Automobil Holding | 27 | Unlock company profile |
| BASF | 27 | Unlock company profile |
| Alternative Fuel Containers | 24 | Unlock company profile |
| Panasonic | 22 | Unlock company profile |
| Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique | 22 | Unlock company profile |
| H2GO Power | 19 | Unlock company profile |
| Hydrexia | 19 | Unlock company profile |
| Energizer Holdings | 19 | Unlock company profile |
| General Motors | 17 | Unlock company profile |
| CLEAN PLANET ENTERPRISES | 16 | Unlock company profile |
| Entegris | 16 | Unlock company profile |
| China Petrochemical | 16 | Unlock company profile |
| Encite | 16 | Unlock company profile |
| Compagnie Generale des Etablissements Michelin | 16 | Unlock company profile |
| Robert Bosch Stiftung | 14 | Unlock company profile |
| Burelle | 14 | Unlock company profile |
| Linde | 14 | Unlock company profile |
| Honeywell International | 14 | Unlock company profile |
| Ingevity | 13 | Unlock company profile |
| Japan Steel Works | 13 | Unlock company profile |
| Chiyoda | 13 | Unlock company profile |
| Honda Motor | 13 | Unlock company profile |
| Siemens | 12 | Unlock company profile |
| KYB | 12 | Unlock company profile |
| Toray Industries | 11 | Unlock company profile |
| Suzuki Motor | 11 | Unlock company profile |
| Airedale Chemical Holdings Group | 11 | Unlock company profile |
| Ford Motor | 10 | Unlock company profile |
| Hydrogenious LOHC Technologies | 10 | Unlock company profile |
| ArianeGroup | 10 | Unlock company profile |
| RDA Holdings Private | 9 | Unlock company profile |
| Air Products and Chemicals | 9 | Unlock company profile |
| Mcalister Technologies | 9 | Unlock company profile |
| Hensoldt | 8 | Unlock company profile |
| ThyssenKrupp | 8 | Unlock company profile |
| Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation | 8 | Unlock company profile |
| Korea Development Bank | 8 | Unlock company profile |
| Hitachi Plant Mechanics | 8 | Unlock company profile |
| Amminex | 8 | Unlock company profile |
| Brother Industries | 6 | Unlock company profile |
| Asemblon | 6 | Unlock company profile |
| Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft | 6 | Unlock company profile |
Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics
Meditor European Master Fund is a key player in the H2 storage fuel cells innovation area. The company is investing in fuel-cell developer Intelligent Energy and has invested more than $150m to date. Toyota, CEA, Hyundai and BASF are the other key players in the innovation area.
To further understand how environmental sustainability is disrupting the automotive industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Automotive.
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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.
