From the era of traditional fuel vehicles to the era of new energy intelligent vehicles, with the continuous improvement of the depth and breadth of electrification and intelligence, the automotive industry is ushering in profound changes. Electric assembly, intelligent cockpit and intelligent driving system gradually replace the engine, gearbox and chassis, becoming the three core supports of the car, also known as the "new three parts". Coupled with the intensification of intellectual property competition, the patent accumulation of core technologies such as the new three major pieces will become a killer tool for car companies to cope with competition and achieve high-quality and sustainable development in the future.
The quantity and quality of patents are the touchstone of an enterprise's scientific and technological innovation strength and achievements. With the acceleration of the conversion of new and old kinetic energy, whoever masters the relevant patents and technologies of the "new three pieces" will master the first hand chess for future development. So what is the current position of China's automobile patents? Which of the three new automobile patents is stronger? The 2023 China Automotive Intellectual Property Annual Conference held in Wuhan not long ago brought the answer, allowing the patent "king" of the automotive circle to surface, and also refreshing the acceleration of Dongfeng's transformation and upgrading.
Master the core science and technology and double champion of invention patents
At the 2023 China Automotive Intellectual Property Annual Conference, as one of the organizers, Dongfeng, together with Legal Daily, Hubei Center for Patent Examination Cooperation of the Patent Office of the State Intellectual Property Office, and Beijing IP Research Institute, jointly released the "2022 New Generation Automotive Patent Development Report", unveiling the world map of automobile patents in the new era. The report shows that Continental has become the new focus of innovation in the global automotive industry and the largest source of effective patents for the new generation of automobiles in the world, with 70% of the top 20 patent applicants/patentees of the new generation of automotive patents being Chinese enterprises. Taking Dongfeng as an example, as of 2022, Dongfeng's main related companies have 17,381 valid patents, including 4,635 authorized invention patents, 9,443 effective utility models and 3,303 valid designs. In 2022, Dongfeng Company released the "426 Intellectual Property Strong Enterprise Action", with 6,069 invention patents published throughout the year, a year-on-year increase of 24.11%, and 2,357 authorized invention patents, a year-on-year increase of 127.51%, both ranking first in the automotive industry, and forming 52 high-value patent groups, which have improved in quantity and quality, and have become a veritable patent "king", which is also an important achievement of Dongfeng's transformation and upgrading.
As a representative of future-oriented technical strength, Dongfeng has planned the layout very early. Since the release of the "Oriental Wind Rising" plan and the "scientific and technological innovation" leapfrog action in 2021, starting a new journey of transformation into a technology-based enterprise, Dongfeng's scientific and technological innovation has continued to accelerate and bear fruit, and has basically realized its independent control of core technologies and resources such as the new three major pieces. In terms of electric assembly only, Dongfeng has built the industry's first ten-in-one flat wire electric drive assembly, the industry's first hybrid special engine with a thermal efficiency of 45.18%, the industry's first four-speed intelligent hybrid transmission that integrates series-parallel connection and power shunting, and the industry's first two-speed gearbox with a power of 400kw, peak torque of 8100N•m and integrated differential lock. In terms of intelligent cockpit, Dongfeng independently developed China's first new generation of centralized SOA electronic and electrical architecture, WindLink os cockpit control system, and I-SPACE intelligent cockpit, which has already entered the first echelon in terms of ecological richness, diversity and experience. The new generation of Dongfeng's intelligent cockpit with the theme of "Deep Sea Adventure" became an Internet celebrity check-in point as soon as it was unveiled at the 2023 Shanghai Auto Show; In terms of intelligent driving system, Dongfeng has laid out a total of 1,480 invention patents and achieved large-scale demonstration applications, the cumulative operating mileage of 5G robotaxi demonstration operation has exceeded 2 million kilometers, and the demonstration operation of the first batch of 20 Dongfeng L4 driverless sharing buses (Sharing-Bus) in Xiong'an New Area has attracted CCTV reports and widespread social attention; Dongfeng unmanned truck has been in trial operation in Xiamen, Wuhan and other ports, and it is estimated that each Dongfeng unmanned truck can save about 200,000 yuan / year in labor costs and about 180,000 yuan / year in energy costs, accelerating the construction of smart ports.
Continue to invest hundreds of billions to consolidate patent barriers and accelerate transformation and upgrading
With the intensification of competition in the automobile market, technology-driven global competition will become the general trend, scattered single patents or technologies are difficult to support the sustainable development of enterprises, and the systematic construction of high-quality patent pools is a key part of enterprises to build a technology moat.
While pursuing the comprehensive improvement of the number and quality of patents based on the new three major pieces, Dongfeng is constantly increasing R&D investment from the overall situation to provide continuous impetus for transformation and upgrading. According to Dongfeng's plan, during the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, it will invest 100 billion yuan in scientific and technological innovation, vigorously implement the intellectual property strategy, continue to build a high-value invention patent group, and reach more than 6,000 invention patents by 2025, master core technologies including L5 intelligent networked vehicles, and build more than 100 high-value patent groups to build a world-leading patent pool.
It is worth mentioning that technology is the primary productive force, and patents are like the crown jewel of scientific and technological innovation, but also the cornerstone of determining product quality and user experience. Relying on massive patented technology and high-value patent pool, Dongfeng can not only respond quickly and assemble more high-quality and high-value products according to future market and user demand changes, but also carry out sustainable iterative upgrading of existing products to meet the growing needs of users. Not long ago, the Mengshi 917, which successfully challenged the direct Alxa sinkhole, as an example, integrated more than 500 patents of Dongfeng Company, the wheel side torque exceeded 16,000 Nm, and the zero hundred acceleration was only 4.2 seconds, refreshing a new height of luxury electric off-road performance, allowing off-road enthusiasts to ride horizontally and horizontally, such as walking on the ground; Lantu's first mass-produced sedan chasing light, the whole car has more than 270 invention patents, covering power, battery and safety and other fields, bringing users super performance, ultra-low energy consumption, Superior experience such as long battery life and ultra-high safety.
Thanks to years of independent positive research and development, self-reliance in science and technology and continuous investment, Dongfeng has achieved good results in the transition of new energy and intelligent driving. In addition to leading the patent technology industry, according to the latest product manual of scientific and technological innovation achievements of central enterprises (2022 edition) released by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, Dongfeng has a total of 8 scientific and technological innovation achievements on the list, ranking among the top 1 car companies in the number of achievements on the list. In April this year, Dongfeng officially announced the "three-year action for transformation and upgrading" at the spring press conference and the opening ceremony of the 7th Science and Technology Innovation Week, and released three major technology brands to sound the clarion call to accelerate transformation and upgrading. It is foreseeable that with Dongfeng's continuous research and development and mastery of more key core technologies, as well as the continuous expansion of the high-value patented technology resource pool, it will not only provide consumers with a more anticipated smart travel experience, but also contribute more to the high-quality development of China's automotive intellectual property power and automobile industry.
(This article is provided by the enterprise)