The power industry continues to be a hotbed of patent innovation. Activity is driven by highly efficient renewable energy technology, environmentally clean and cost-effective systems for heating and cooling, and growing importance of technologies such as closed-loop systems, open-loop systems and hybrid systems. In the last three years alone, there have been over 695,000 patents filed and granted in the power industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Innovation in power: geothermal heat pumps. Buy the report here.

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However, not all innovations are equal and nor do they follow a constant upward trend. Instead, their evolution takes the form of an S-shaped curve that reflects their typical lifecycle from early emergence to accelerating adoption, before finally stabilizing and reaching maturity.

Identifying where a particular innovation is on this journey, especially those that are in the emerging and accelerating stages, is essential for understanding their current level of adoption and the likely future trajectory and impact they will have.

45+ innovations will shape the power industry

According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which plots the S-curve for the power industry using innovation intensity models built on over 83,000 patents, there are 45+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.

Within the emerging innovation stage, variable speed gas turbines and HVDC transmission are the disruptive technologies that are in the early stages of application and should be tracked closely. Perovskite photoactive layering, multi-port power converters, and power distribution control system are some of the accelerating innovation areas, where adoption has been steadily increasing. Among maturing innovation areas are wind turbine gearbox and offshore wind turbine pre-assembly, which are now well established in the industry. 

Innovation S-curve for the power industry

Geothermal heat pumps is a key innovation area in power

Geothermal heat pumps are devices that use the earth’s natural heat to provide heating and cooling for buildings.

GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies. According to GlobalData, there are 60+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established power companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of geothermal heat pumps.

Key players in geothermal heat pumps – a disruptive innovation in the power industry

‘Application diversity’ measures the number of applications identified for each patent. It broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.

‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of countries each patent is registered in. It reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.

Patent volumes related to geothermal heat pumps

Leaders in geothermal heat pump patent filing include Mitsubishi Electric, Paloma Industries, Lennox International, Basic, and Teijin.

Mitsubishi Electric’s Ecodan CRHV ground / water source heat pump monobloc system provides a renewable heating solution capable of delivering the highest levels of COP efficiency throughout the year, while Quantitative Heat has developed a unique solution for medium-deep heat wells.

In terms of application diversity, Amhold leads the pack, while Efficient Energy and Mitsubishi Electric stood in the second and third positions, respectively. By means of geographic reach, Commissariat General a l'Energie Atomique held the top position, followed by Green Matters and Taewon.

To further understand the key themes and technologies disrupting the power industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Power.

GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.

GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.