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According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which uses over 83,000 patents to analyze innovation intensity for the power industry, there are 45+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.

Cloud-enabled power grids is a key innovation area in Internet of Things

Power grid systems that have been integrated with cloud computing technologies to improve their management, monitoring, and control are referred to as cloud-enabled power grids. This entails processing, analyzing, and storing huge amounts of data gathered from numerous devices and sensors within the power grid using cloud servers and data centers. Power grid operators can enhance energy efficiency, optimize grid performance, support advanced applications such as demand response and grid integration of renewable energy sources, and enable real-time monitoring and control by utilizing the scalability, flexibility, and computational power of the cloud.

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 205+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established power companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of cloud-enabled power grids.

Key players in cloud-enabled power grids – a disruptive innovation in the power 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 cloud-enabled power grids

The State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC) is one of the leading patent filers in cloud-enabled power grids. The company’s core business includes the construction and operation of power grids. It focuses on research and development of ultra-high-voltage (UHV) transmission and smart grid technologies. SGCC owns proprietary intellectual property rights and promotes the export of technology and related equipment. It also operates large-scale commercial UHV projects. SGCC supplies power to municipalities, provinces, and autonomous regions, servicing most of the territory in China. Some other key patent filers in the space include China Southern Power Grid, Samsung Group, and Shell.

In terms of application diversity, Masco and Electro Industries/GaugeTech are the key patent filers. By means of geographic reach, Samsung Group held the top position, followed by Alphabet and Shell.

To further understand the key themes and technologies disrupting the power industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Internet of Things in Power (2021).

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.