The aerospace and defense industry continues to be a hotbed of patent innovation. Activity is driven by environmental sustainability, electrification, and operational efficiency, and the growing importance of technologies such as hydrogen and electric aircraft and advanced materials. In the last three years alone, there have been over 237,000 patents filed and granted in the aerospace and defense industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Environmental sustainability in defense: hybrid electric aircraft. Buy the report here.
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According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which uses over 206,000 patents to analyze innovation intensity for the aerospace and defense industry, there are 110 innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.
Hybrid electric aircraft is a key innovation area in environmental sustainability
A hybrid electric aircraft is an aircraft that uses a combination of internal combustion engines and electric motors for propulsion. It typically includes an engine, a generator, a battery, and a motor. The engine powers the generator, which produces electric power that is stored in the battery. The electric power is then used to drive the motor, which provides propulsion to the aircraft. The aircraft may have different modes of operation, such as a silence mode where only the stored electric power is used, or a normal mode where power from the generator is also utilized.
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 defense companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of hybrid electric aircraft.
Key players in hybrid electric aircraft – a disruptive innovation in the aerospace and defense 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 hybrid electric aircraft
Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics
Raytheon Technologies (RTX) is one of the leading patent filers in hybrid electric aircraft. The company, through its subsidiary Hamilton Sundstrand (now Collins Aerospace), filed patents related to hybrid propulsion systems, electrical powertrain, DC-DC converter system for battery-powered electric propulsion, and electrical motor power control systems for aircraft.
RTX completed the first engine run of its regional hybrid-electric flight demonstrator at Pratt & Whitney's innovation facility in Longueuil, Quebec, Canada, in December 2022. The propulsion system of the flight demonstrator integrates a 1MW electric motor developed by Collins Aerospace with a highly efficient thermal engine from Pratt & Whitney, another business unit of RTX. The rated power test of the electric motor was completed in June 2023.
As part of the demonstrator project, which is supported by the governments of Canada and Quebec, the hybrid-electric propulsion system and batteries will be integrated on a Dash 8-100 experimental aircraft. With flight testing scheduled to begin in 2024, the aircraft is targeted to demonstrate a 30% improvement in fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions compared to the most advanced regional turboprop aircraft operating today.
Some other key patent filers in the hybrid electric aircraft space include Airbus, Rolls-Royce, and Safran.
In terms of application diversity Wright Electric, Wisk Aero, and Zunum Aero are some of the leading innovators. By means of geographic reach, the leading patent filers include VoltAero, Safran, and Airbus.
To further understand the key themes and technologies disrupting the aerospace and defense industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Sustainability in Aerospace and Defense.
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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.
