Archive
WIND ENERGY. Latest granted patents 2016-2018. Bearing and housing structures
Summary
In a number of countries wind power occupies a leading position in the balance of renewable energy and is widespread. In the field of onshore wind energy there is a tendency to install larger wind turbines that can generate electricity even in less windy regions. Such wind turbines, with a rotor diameter of more than 100m and a hub height of more than 130m, require a strong, durable and inexpensive foundation. The potential of offshore wind energy is huge, and modern floating structures must also be 100% stable and reliable to support a multi-ton hub height of about 150m. The efficiency of the turbine depends on the optimal design of the structure and its structural elements, including such elements as nacelles, shrouds, etc. New patent solutions in the field of bearing and housing structures are an important component of the further development of both offshore and onshore wind energy. Access to detailed and structured patent information can help to track progressive technical trends in the industry.
The present bulletin reviews patents granted by patent offices around the globe in 2016-2018 in the field related to structural elements and aerodynamic casings of windfarms. General research methodology can be found at Advanced Energy Technologies website. 811 patent documents from 24 patent offices around the world are represented in the bulletin. In total, 277 applicants from 24 countries and 422 subgroups of the International Patent Classification are mentioned.
Key Highlights
The bulletin provides general statistical figures, including the overall distribution of patent documents by years, by patent offices and by applicant countries, applicant-related data (residents and non-residents), data on the most frequently mentioned International Patent Classification divisions (sections, classes, subclasses, groups, and subgroups). The most popular patent offices among the applicants were: EPO, USPTO (US), CNIPA (CN), KIPO (KR), JPO (JP), CIPO (CA), IP Australia, TIPO (TW), Rospatent (RU), CIPC (ZA) and IMPI (MX).
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.
The following information can be found for the top 10 applicants: breakdown of documents by problems, IPC sections, patent offices, as well as the estimation of their share in the established intellectual property market. The 10 leading applicants by the number of patent documents were: Wobben Properties GmbH (Germany), Siemens AG (Denmark), Vestas Wind Systems A/S (Denmark), MHI Vestas Offshore Wind A/S (Denmark), Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd (Japan), Senvion Deutschland GmbH (Germany), General Electric (USA), Acciona Windpower (Spain), Principle Power Inc (USA). Sea Wind Towers S.L. (Spain).
The bulletin contains lists of the top 10 prominent patents having the highest bibliographical rating, the most extensive coverage of IPC sections, the shortest patent pending time.
The patent bulletin also includes a list of all of the documents reviewed, arranged by patent offices and indicated by the ID numbers of the granted patents.
Who needs this bulletin?
The data provided in the proposed bulletin is a timely reflection of the transformations that take place in the intellectual property sector of the industrial direction concerned. Thoroughly edited selection of patent documents can become a good complement to your library of available technical solutions. The bulletin is targeted at inventors, engineers, researchers, managers and business administrators involved in the development of wind energy production technologies.
