Korean Automakers Focusing More on Hydrogen Vehicles
Automakers’ patent applications related to electric vehicle batteries and hydrogen vehicle fuel cells are on the increase with the market paradigm shifting.
The Korean Intellectual Property Office announced on Nov. 9 that the number of such patent applications was 4,435 in the 2010s, the annual number increased from 277 to 433 from 2010 to 2019 and the ratio of such patent applications to the total patent applications in the automotive industry rose from 7 percent to 9.1 percent from 2010 to 2019.
Hyundai Motor Group accounted for 56.4 percent of such applications, followed by Toyota (27.6 percent), Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance (11.5 percent) and Volkswagen Group (2.4 percent).
More specifically, global automakers’ average annual electric vehicle battery and hydrogen vehicle fuel cell patent applications were 263 and 180 in the 2010s, respectively. The ratios were 43.2:56.8 in South Korean automakers and 80.4:19.6 in the others. In other words, South Korean automakers are focusing more on hydrogen vehicles as the core of future mobility.