Fiscal Year 2015 Study on Trends in Technology Patent Filings

(Preventive Safety Technology for Automobiles)

Abstract

Although the number of patent applications filed by Japanese companies is the largest in the world, it must be assumed that regarding patent applications, German companies are comparable to Japanese companies when taking German’s GDP etc. into consideration. In addition they are fiercely competing with each other in developing automobile preventive safety technologies. The competition is expected to become fiercer because IT companies will also be involved in developing such technologies. Japanese automakers must work out technology development strategies for their core technologies in which they have advantage over others, in order to be well prepared for the future.