The aerospace and defence industry continues to be a hotbed of innovation, with activity driven by the use of big data, and artificial intelligence, and growing importance of technologies such as machine learning and edge computing. In the last three years alone, there have been over 174,000 patents filed and granted in the aerospace and defence industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Cloud in Aerospace, Defence & Security: EV charging smart grids.
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 stabilising 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.
180+ innovations will shape the aerospace and defence industry
According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which plots the S-curve for the aerospace and defence industry using innovation intensity models built on over 262,000 patents, there are 180+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.
Within the emerging innovation stage, beamforming antennas, route guidance sensor networks, and V2V enabled autonomous vehicles are disruptive technologies that are in the early stages of application and should be tracked closely. Drone launching techniques, EV charging smart grids, and location-based network services are some of the accelerating innovation areas, where adoption has been steadily increasing. Among maturing innovation areas are indoor navigation systems and indoor positioning systems, which is now well established in the industry.
Innovation S-curve for cloud in the aerospace and defence industry
EV charging smart grids is a key innovation area in cloud
The smart grid refers to an electricity supply network that functions through digital cloud technology detecting and reacting to local changes in usage. This will facilitate increased EV adoption, and the use of the existing energy grid in powering the future of transport.
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 70+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established aerospace and defence companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of EV charging smart grids.
Key players in EV charging smart grids – a disruptive innovation in the aerospace and defence industry
‘Application diversity’ measures the number of different applications identified for each relevant patent and broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.
‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of different countries each relevant patent is registered in and reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.
Patent volumes related to EV charging smart grids
Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics
SZ DJI Technology is a leading patent filer in EV charging smart grids. The company is a key manufacturer of commercial drones for use across various industries, and is investing in EV charging smart grids to enhance the usability of its products across everyday life. Boeing is also a major patent filer and has installed the technology across four US states in order to track energy costs and environmental impacts. Other Key patent filers include Wing Aviation and IHI.
In terms of application diversity, Nio leads the pack. Kibbutz Yizreel Holdings and Deutsche Poststood are in the second and third positions, respectively. Regarding geographic reach, Semiconductor Energy Laboratory holds the most widely relevant patents, followed by Deutsche Post and Kawasaki Heavy Industries.
Mass use of small, unmanned platforms for roles such as delivery and logistics requires underlying supporting infrastructure including efficient recharging grids.
To further understand how cloud is disrupting the aerospace and defence industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Thematic Research: Cloud Computing in Defense.
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.
