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nanotimes Reports

11-09 :: September 2011

IPO U.K. – An Analysis of Worldwide Patent Filings Relating to Graphene

October 2011, 12 Pages, Text & Illustrations/Tables http://www.tgtechno.com/nanotech/resources/patent-maps/finish/2-patentmaps/2-ipo-graphene-patent-analysis/0 http://www.ipo.gov.uk/

The Patent Informatics Team of the Intellectual Property Office (IPO, U.K.) have recently released a report on graphene.

The patenting of graphene-related technology took off rapidly in the 2000s. The largest patent portfolio is held by Samsung, and the top two applicants have only been active in the field since 2007. Half of the applicants hold patents relating to fewer than five inventions, illustrating the youth of this emerging technology.

Developments are still relatively research-based, with a large portion of academic participation, although consumer applica- tions such as flexible touchscreen displays are getting closer to reality. A range of different research strategies are evident from patent collaborations; Samsung exhibits a reasonable amount of collaboration whilst other top applicants show none. In contrast to the specialism evident from most applicants, Samsung is active in a very diverse range of graphene-related technology.

Inventions are classified in a wide range of International Patent Classifications (IPCs), though the majority of these relate to its chemistry and processing; the others define a varying range of potential applications for gra- phene. Though this is a rapidly emerging technology, the trends in the current patent data indicate that it will not prove to be disruptive in itself.