While it is unclear which firm will win the race to place solid-state batteries in a manufacturing automotive, Toyota and analysis associate Panasonic at the moment have the lead in patents associated to the know-how, Nikkei Asia reported Thursday.
Along with Tokyo-based analysis agency Patent Consult, Nikkei studied patent functions for solid-state battery tech in ten nations and territories filed from 2000 by means of the tip of March of this 12 months.
Toyota was the clear chief with 1,331 recognized patents, adopted by Panasonic with 445 patents. In comparability, the third-place firm—Idemitsu Kosan—holds 272 patents, in line with the report.
2023 Toyota bZ4X Limited AWD
It’s value noting that patents are a great way to guage analysis and improvement exercise, however they’re no sturdy indication of how far alongside an organization really is in bringing a specific know-how to manufacturing. Many different automakers and battery suppliers are additionally investing in solid-state battery analysis, lured by claims of higher power density.
Toyota started researching solid-state batteries within the Nineties, in line with Nikkei. It partnered with Panasonic for joint improvement of the tech in 2019. Just previous to that, Panasonic had stated solid-state cells weren’t going to reach till 2028 or later. Panasonic has after all additionally been a longtime enterprise associate with Tesla.
Toyota has confirmed at a few factors that the tech is beneath improvement and scheduled for a manufacturing mannequin across the center of the last decade. Earlier this 12 months it revealed the primary software might be a hybrid, not an EV.

2022 Toyota Prius Nightshade
Meanwhile, Nissan is trying to solid-state batteries as a key to creating inexpensive EVs viable throughout a broader vary of car sorts, together with pickup vehicles and SUVs. Earlier this 12 months it introduced a prototype manufacturing facility for solid-state battery cells—with plans to ascertain a pilot manufacturing line as quickly as 2024 in Japan, and market availability in an EV in 2028.
Other automakers—together with Honda, BMW, Ford, and Volkswagen—have mentioned utilizing solid-state batteries in vehicles. But thus far the one sensible use has been in a distinct kind of car. Solid-state cells are already being put in into metropolis buses in Germany, however they require some very particular situations—like high-temperatures—that are not sensible for passenger autos
Source: www.greencarreports.com