'Autonomous Vehicle Technology Trend' Driver Assistance System Patent Applications Surge

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] As autonomous driving technology that supports drivers according to driving conditions emerges as a major trend in the automotive industry, patent applications related to Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) are also rapidly increasing.

ADAS refers to technology that recognizes driving situations through sensing devices such as cameras, radar, and LiDAR, and conveys risk situations to the driver while automating some driving functions such as speed control.

The ADAS market is expected to grow from $13 billion in 2020 at an annual rate of 13%, reaching a market size of $43 billion by 2030. The increase in patent applications for this technology indicates companies’ efforts to secure competitiveness in the market.

According to the Korean Intellectual Property Office on the 12th, ADAS-related patents filed annually in advanced patent countries such as Korea, the United States, Japan, China, and Europe increased from about 2,000 cases in 2013 to about 6,000 cases in 2019.

By country, China (30.7%), the United States (27.6%), Japan (20.8%), Korea (10.6%), and Europe (10.3%) accounted for the largest shares of patent applications.

However, by applicant nationality, Japan accounted for the largest share at 38.4%, followed by China (16.5%), Europe (15.9%), Korea (14.9%), and the United States (11.8%).

In terms of company filings, Toyota, Hyundai, Honda, and Nissan ranked highest in the number of patent applications, indicating a high level of interest in ADAS among Japanese and Korean automakers. Additionally, automotive parts companies such as Bosch, Denso, Mando, and Hitachi have also actively filed ADAS-related patents.

Among Korean companies, in addition to automakers, electronic companies such as LG and Samsung are increasing their filings, and especially small and medium-sized enterprises like StradVision and Thinkware have been steadily continuing their ADAS patent applications.

Based on U.S. registered patents, an analysis of patent competitiveness shows that the United States has a high technology impact index (the average number of times a patent holder’s registered patents are cited by subsequent patents), indicating that it is leading in technologies for developing fully autonomous vehicles.

Japan has a high market penetration index (the number of countries entered in the patent family relative to the number of registered patents held by the patent holder), suggesting a focus on market dominance through improvements in convenience and safety.

Korea shows an average level in the market penetration index but is evaluated relatively low in the technology impact index, indicating that more research and investment are needed to improve technological capabilities in preparation for the autonomous vehicle era.

Lee In-sil, Commissioner of the Korean Intellectual Property Office, said, “As the ADAS market grows, related applications are expected to continue increasing. The Patent Office will actively support domestic companies’ ADAS technology development through prompt and accurate examination.”

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