Global patent development
In order to give an overview of the key technological trends that will define the future of land transport, we have collected all patent families that were assigned to both land transport technologies (cars, trucks, trains, busses etc.) and to any of the four key technology trends (Sustainable Propulsion / efficient ship design, Communication and Security, Automation and Circularity, and Human-Machine Interface).
The significant advances in land transport technologies are evident through the sharp increase in patent activity. Since the start of the millennium, the number of patent family publications per year has risen from approximately 8,800 in 2000 to more than 99,500 in 2023 (Figure A4). Consequently, land transport represents by far the largest segment in terms of patent numbers among the four transport modalities.
Overview of the four technology trends
In terms of the four technology trends, the majority of research activity in the field of land transport is focused on Sustainable Propulsion and Communication and Security technologies. In both of these technology trends, the number of published patent families has increased significantly to more than 50,500 in the field of Sustainable Propulsion, and around 35,800 in 2023 in Communication and Security technologies (Figure A5). Another key research area is Automation and Circularity. In this field, the number of annual patent family publications has increased from 1,200 to more than 16,600 since 2000. Research activity in Human–Machine Interface (HMI) technologies increased strongly between 2013 and 2019, plateaued between 2020 and 2022, and has recently picked up speed again, with patent family publications of almost 8,500 in 2023.
Patent growth has been very dynamic and almost identical in all four technology trends (Figure A6). Between 2000 and 2023, the number of patent families published increased at a compound annual growth rate of around 12% in HMI and Automation and Circularity technologies and around 11% in the fields of Sustainable Propulsion and Communication and Security.
Patent Coverage
An analysis based on filing authorities of patent families in land transport technologies provides an overview of global filing strategies. Members of patent families can be filed directly in one or more countries, via national patent offices, the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) route administered by WIPO or via the European Patent Convention (EP) route administered by the European Patent Office (EPO).
Figure A7 below shows that China is the top country in terms of patent filings. Between 2000 and 2023, more than 500,000 patent families in land transport technologies were filed in China for seeking patent protection. Japan, the United States and Germany have also attracted many patent filings since 2000.
It is also worth noting that the PCT and the European Patent Convention (EP) are relevant routes for inventors to seek patent protection. Since 2000, there have been almost 190,000 patent filings under the PCT administered by WIPO and more than 143,000 patent filings under the European Patent Convention administered by the EPO.
