Even as the big legacy automakers start to enter the electric vehicle (EV) market, Tesla maintains their dominance in North America and around the world.
Many have wondered why that is, and part of the reason is the company innovates like no other auto manufacturer.
In fact, according to Tokyo analytics company Intellectual Property Landscape, since Tesla’s launch in 2003 and through March 2021, they have accumulated over 580 patents.
The vast majority of the patents, 281, can be classified under electrical machinery. In comparison, 168 patents fall under transportation, which includes user operation. Semiconductors round out the top three and represent 71 of the companies patents.
Semiconductor patents include solar cell patents, and many of these patents are from SolarCity, which Tesla bought back in 2016.
However, the name that showed up the most in Tesla patents is Franz von Holzhausen. Franz von Holzhausen, of course, is the company’s chief designer and previously worked with Mazda in the early 2000s.
His name is on 80 design patents, which is double that of the second-leading inventor in the company. He led the Model S dashboard display design and was the lead to include the Falcon Wing doors on the Model X.
Source: Nikkei Asia
