Patent Applications in the Zero-Energy Building Sector for 'Carbon Neutrality' Increase by 6.6% Yearly

Image of a zero-energy building. Provided by the Korean Intellectual Property Office (Source=Clipart Korea)

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] As interest in ‘zero-energy buildings’ rises, patent applications in related fields are also increasing significantly.

Zero-energy buildings focus on ultimately ‘zeroing out’ carbon emissions by self-supplying the energy needed within the building through insulation, solar power, and other means.

Recently, an eco-friendly building constructed by domestic Company A using this method gained attention by winning an architectural award at a prestigious global architectural conference, surpassing renowned overseas skyscrapers.

Company A’s building reduces carbon emissions by integrating solar panels into windows and exterior materials to self-generate electricity used inside the building.

Patent applications related to zero-energy buildings increased 2.16 times from 259 cases in 2008 to 560 cases in 2020. This corresponds to an average annual growth rate of 6.6%.

The increase in patent applications for zero-energy buildings is attributed to steady technological development within the construction industry, influenced by strengthened insulation performance standards for buildings (2008) and the implementation of the zero-energy building certification system (2017).

From 2008 to 2020, the share of patent applications by technology type related to zero-energy buildings was highest for high-efficiency insulation systems (34.2%), followed by high-performance window systems (36.3%), solar power (23.5%), and geothermal (6.0%).

By applicant type, small and medium-sized enterprises accounted for the largest share at 39.3% of total applications, followed by individuals (34.0%), large corporations (14.5%), and universities and research institutes (9.5%). The Korean Intellectual Property Office analyzes that specialized SMEs in zero-energy building materials such as windows and insulation materials are steadily developing technologies and filing patents.

Conceptual diagram of zero energy building. Provided by the Korean Intellectual Property Office

In particular, recently there is a noticeable trend of increasing interest in developing building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) system technologies to overcome the limitation that achieving zero energy consumption is difficult with ‘active technology’ that installs solar panels only in limited spaces such as rooftops.

Building-integrated photovoltaic systems are convergence and fusion technologies that integrate solar panels into windows and exterior materials forming the building’s outer surface. The Korean Intellectual Property Office explains that patent applications in this area have tripled over the past five years.

The movement to achieve carbon neutrality through zero-energy buildings is detected not only in Korea but also worldwide. For example, Korea, the United States, and Europe are already promoting mandatory zero-energy building regulations to increase adoption rates.

Considering these trends, the global market size for zero-energy buildings is projected to expand more than twice from $600 billion last year to $1.4 trillion by 2035. For the same reason, the Korean construction industry must simultaneously secure intellectual property rights such as patents to increase its global market share in the zero-energy building sector, the Korean Intellectual Property Office emphasizes.

Ryu Je-jun, an examiner at the Residential Infrastructure Examination Division of the Korean Intellectual Property Office, said, “Zero-energy buildings are one of the core tasks of the Green New Deal,” adding, “For example, Korea is promoting a ‘Zero-Energy Building Roadmap’ that gradually mandates zero-energy buildings starting with public buildings last year.”

He advised, “To preoccupy the expanding zero-energy building market in the future, domestic industries must also strive to secure intellectual property rights that can protect related technologies alongside their development.”

Meanwhile, the Zero-Energy Building Roadmap aims to first apply to public buildings of 1000㎡ or more starting in 2020, expand to private buildings of the same scale from 2025, and mandate zero-energy buildings for both private and public buildings from 2030.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.