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COAL SEAM METHANE. Latest granted patents 2014-2016. Coal bed methane
Summary
Coal Bed Methane (CBM), which is extracted from coal seams previously not included in the mining process, is an important energy resource, particularly as its measured reserves greatly exceed other hydrocarbon resources. The increased interest in coal bed methane is not only due to its relatively high calorific value, but also because of methane being one of the main producers of CO2. Accordingly, it is of paramount importance to invent and employ new technologies for coal bed methane utilisation, especially in view of the possibilities its exploitation could engender. To design suitable production technologies, however, many factors need to be carefully deliberated, including geological characteristics of the coal seams, gas content, water saturation, and reservoir depth and thickness, which require cutting-edge technology and highly qualified personnel. Most of the recent technical developments in this area are documented in patents published by the leading patent offices worldwide and play an important role in propagating innovative technologies.
The present bulletin reviews patents granted by patent offices around the globe in 2014-2016 in the field related to Coal Bed Methane. General research methodology can be found on the Advanced Energy Technologies website. 722 patent documents from 21 patent offices around the world are represented in the bulletin. In total, 546 applicants from 25 countries and 754 subgroups of the International Patent Classification are mentioned.
Key Highlights
Statistical information presented in the bulletin includes distribution of patent documents by years, by patent offices and by applicant countries, applicant-related data (residents and non-residents), and data on the most frequently mentioned International Patent Classification divisions (sections, classes, subclasses, groups, and subgroups). The largest number of patents during the period of time under revision was granted by the patent office of the USA (USPTO) and the patent office of China (CNIPA).
Based on the analysis of each of the patents, internal characteristics of unified indicators (technical problems, types of inventive solutions, belonging to one or other technological segment) were found, which allowed specific features for each of the indicators for the entire array of documents to be defined, for instance, to define the leading problems or technical solution types that were disclosed by the inventors the most. Document lists are provided for the ten most popular groups of patent documents with identical unified indicators, including their ID numbers and applicant names.
A list of the top applicants by the number of patents includes: ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company (US), Shell Internationale Research Maatschappij B.V. (NL), Baker Hughes Incorporated (US), Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. (US), ExxonMobil Chemical Patents Inc. (US), Schlumberger Technology Corporation (US), Shell Oil Company (US), Johnson Matthey Plc (GB), Oren Technologies, LLC (US), PetroChina Company Limited (CN). Data representing the share in the established intellectual property market, distribution of patent documents by problems, IPC sections, patent offices and technology indicators is provided in the form of tables and diagrams for them.
The prominent documents pages contain the top patents with the highest bibliographical rating, the most extensive coverage of IPC sections, and the shortest patent pending time.
A list of all of the documents reviewed, arranged by the top groups of patent documents with identical unified indicators and by patent offices with the indication of the ID numbers of the granted patents are provided in the conclusive part of the bulletin.
Who needs this bulletin?
The statistics bulletin under examination serves as one of the variants to monitor advanced technical achievements in the specified industrial sector. The statistical data, rating evaluations and carefully selected patent documents provided in the bulletin can be of interest for inventors, students and educators, engineers, as well as for businessmen and investors, who in one way or another are concerned with the problems of the development of unconventional gas production technologies.
