Analysis of WPT-related patents in the US

Among the 645 WPT-related patent applications in the US, most of them are under the H02J and H01F directories. Qualcomm Inc. is the No.1 in overall patent accumulation. Using “wireless energy,” “power keywords, Boolean search of the USPTO Database generates search results showing that Qualcomm Inc. has 79 published patents in the WPT area, with the earliest application date being November 2008. This indicates that Qualcomm Inc. is by far leading in the patent landscaping. The company also achieved outstanding performance results in Japan and is ranked third in overall strength in WPT-related patent applications. This helps explain why it joined hands with Samsung Electronics to create the A4WP. Second place is taken by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the third place by Broadcom Corporation, and the fourth place by WiTricity, a venture enterprise created by the MIT. The MIT and Broadcom Corporation have patent applications filed in Japan, but no such applications have been found from WiTricity.

A good representation of the average Qualcomm Inc., for example, has one WPT-related patent numbered US8401595 “Systems and methods for detecting and identifying a wireless power device.” This patent discloses a system and method for detecting and identifying power absorbers positioned within a charging region of a wireless power transmitter. The application date was on May 4th, 2012, and it was also filed with the European Union and the World Intellectual Property Organization. This indicates that the related technology is an essential patent, which may be incorporated into the wireless power specifications developed by the A4WP that has been joined and dominated by Qualcomm Inc.

Exhibit 8 WPT-related patent applicants and technical categories in the United States

Analysis of WPT-related patents in the European Union

The European patent database contains 102 published WPT-related patents. An analysis of the data shows that larger companies, headed by Qualcomm Inc. and Samsung Electronics, have and continue to deploy a large number of patents in the WPT area. The following exhibi t shows that Qualcomm Inc. and Samsung Electronics have had significant WPT-related patents in Europe.

For example, the patent numbered KR20110091491 of Samsung Electronics, filed on September 8th, 2011, discloses a method for transmitting signals from multiple wireless power receiving apparatuses to a wireless power supplier apparatus. The patent was first filed in South Korea, and thereafter deployed in the European Union and the United States. This indicates that the patent is essential to Samsung Electronics in the WPT area. It should have our sufficient attention, as it may be incorporated into the specifications developed by the A4WP that is also dominated by Samsung Electronics.

Exhibit 9 WPT-related patent applicants and technical categories in the European Union

IV. Patent licensing policies concerning main technical standards

Patent licensing policies of the WPC

The public information shows that none of the company members of the WPC declares to charge for patent licensing. Presently, the WPC charges no fee for patent licensing for low power-consuming receivers, including mobile phones, batteries and other consumer products that receive power of 5W or less from wireless power transmitters. These patents will be free until 2014; if the base stations installed exceed 50 million in the terminal device market by the end of 2014, such patents will continue to be free thereafter. Any patent license fee will be charged by following the reasonable and non-discriminatory terms (RAND).

Patent licensing policies of the A4WP The A4WP, which was established in May 2012, has never led and developed any published standards. The white paper shows that its members should follow the RAND terms internally; but for external licensing, it does not mandate any rules, but allows its members to decide according to their own rules.

V. Conclusion

To sum up, the WPT area has been growing fast, and in the past three years, Qualcomm Inc. of the US, Samsung Electronics of South Korea, Panasonic Corporation of Japan, the Tianjin Polytechnic University and Shanghai Jiao Tong University of China have engaged in deploying their related patents. Globally, the WPC and the A4WP also engage to develop their standards. But, there is no organization that declares any judgment rules concerning what constitutes essential or core patents in the WPT area. Chinese enterprises and research institutions should lose no time in deploying their essential patents in WPT-related apparatuses, conversion efficiency and transmitting and receiving systems for consumer electronics and automobiles, in order to obtain a say in related patented technologies in the future.

(Translated by Ren Qingtao)