Ceramic-Coated Separator Patents: Leaders & Filing Trends 2026
- One leader, then a long tail. the top-ranked assignee holds 13 records against a field where the tenth-ranked company holds just 1.
- Filing peaked in 2024 at 9 records before the most recent year, which is still incomplete due to publication lag.
- Battery-class claims dominate the corpus H01M appears on 57.6% of the 33 records in scope, with ceramics (C04B) and coating chemistry (C09D, C08L) trailing well behind.
What this patent landscape covers
Ceramic-coated separators sit at the intersection of battery safety and materials science: a thin polyolefin membrane is coated with alumina, boehmite or other ceramic particles to resist thermal shrinkage at high temperature and reduce the risk of internal short circuits. The claims in this corpus concentrate on three practical trade-offs — coating adhesion versus particle shedding, ceramic loading versus air permeability and ionic resistance penalty, and binder chemistry versus puncture strength. This is a narrow, applied field: 33 published records match the search criteria across a filing window that opens in 2015 and runs to the 2026 data cut-off.
Because publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, the 2025 and 2026 figures in this dataset understate real filing activity; treat the 2024 peak as the most reliable recent read on where the field stands.
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Filing trend and technology composition
The chart below tracks published records by year against the IPC subclasses those records carry. Because a single record can carry several classes, the subclass shares sum to more than the record total — that is expected and is the same denominator used throughout this page.
Filing trend: 2017 to 2026
Filings were effectively zero in 2017, rose gradually, and peaked at 9 records in 2024. The 2026 count of 4 reflects a partial year and should not be read as a decline.
Technology composition by IPC subclass
H01M (batteries, cells & fuel cells) appears on 57.6% of the 33 records in scope, confirming that most filings frame the invention as a battery-safety component rather than a standalone coating or ceramics innovation. C04B (ceramics, cement & refractories) and C09B (organic dyes & pigments) follow at 27.3% and 24.2% respectively, with coating-specific classes C08L and C09D each at 18.2%.
Shares are the percentage of the 33 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on Ceramic-Coated Separators for Cell Safety with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about ceramic-coated separators for cell safety and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaThe most-cited records in this corpus
Ceramic binder composition for ceramic coated separator for lithium ion batteries, methods of producing same, and uses thereof
A ceramic binder composition is disclosed as well as a method of making and using the same. Additionally, a ceramic coated separator used in, for example but without limitation, lithium ion batteries is disclosed.Filed by Hercules LLC, published 2018-01-18, and the single most-cited record in this dataset at 33 citations.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US20180019457A1 | Ceramic binder composition for ceramic coated separator for lithium ion batteries, methods of producing same,… | 33 |
| 2 | WO2014093519A1 | Ceramic coating on battery separators | 25 |
| 3 | CN109817870A | 聚酰亚胺微球浆料、复合隔膜及锂离子电池 | 23 |
| 4 | WO2016123404A1 | Ceramic binder composition for ceramic coated separator for lithium ion batteries, methods of producing same,… | 23 |
| 5 | US20150325828A1 | Ceramic coating on battery separators | 17 |
| 6 | CN108417761A | 一次混合涂布陶瓷PVDF涂覆隔膜的制备方法 | 11 |
| 7 | WO2025059094A1 | Slurry compositions comprising modified maleated natural oil containing a lactam moiety, salts, method of pre… | 1 |
| 8 | WO2025059059A1 | Slurry compositions comprising modified natural oil salts, processes for preparing, and applications thereof | 1 |
| 9 | US20240243435A1 | Ceramic binder composition for ceramic coated separator for lithium ion batteries, methods of producing same,… | 1 |
| 10 | US10193116B2 | Ceramic coating on battery separators | 1 |
Citation counts favour older records simply because they have had more time to accumulate citations within the searched corpus; treat them as a signal of influence, not of current technical importance.
Patent titles are shown in the language they were filed in, not translated, so that each record stays verifiable against the original filing — a translated title will not match in Eureka or in any national register. Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
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Browse MCP servers →What the filing pattern signals
Three read-throughs follow directly from the ranking, the trend, and the class composition given above — without extrapolating beyond what the dataset supports.
One clear leader, then a steep drop-off
The ranked leader holds 13 records while the tenth-placed company holds only 1, and fifth place sits at 2. That gap suggests one organisation has built sustained claim depth in this niche while the rest of the field files opportunistically or has entered recently.
Recent activity is narrow, not broad
In the most recent year, the leading assignee logged 4 filings while several previously active assignees recorded zero, some down 100% year-on-year. That pattern points to consolidation of near-term activity around one filer rather than field-wide acceleration.
Framed as a battery problem, not a coatings problem
The dominance of H01M classification, ahead of ceramics (C04B) and coating chemistry (C09D, C08L), shows most applicants position these inventions as cell-safety components integrated into a battery claim rather than as freestanding materials patents.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to ceramic-coated separators for cell safety, with the prior art for and against each one.
| Assignee | Co-assignee | Shared families |
|---|---|---|
| SK IE Technology Co., Ltd. | SK Innovation Co., Ltd. | 2 |
Only one co-assignee pairing appears in the corpus, linking two related SK entities — a sign that most work here is filed by a single owner rather than through joint development.
Who holds the claims, and where the field is still open
The assignee ranking below covers the 10 companies the data endpoint returns for this search — not a top-50 or top-100 cut, the full ranked set for this topic.
Sustained filing depth at the top
The leading assignee's record count is more than six times the tenth-ranked entrant's single filing, indicating a deliberate, multi-year filing programme rather than a one-off application.
Some prior filers have gone quiet
Two assignees linked through the dataset's one co-filing pair show zero filings in the latest year after prior activity, a -100% year-on-year change that may reflect a completed filing programme or a shift in R&D priority rather than exit from the field.
Filing is split across Europe and the US
Europe and the United States each account for 7 records, with WIPO/PCT filings at 6 close behind, suggesting applicants are pursuing parallel protection across major markets rather than concentrating in a single jurisdiction.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| ISP Investments LLC | 4 | — |
| HERCULES LLC | 0 | — |
| Applied Materials, Inc. | 0 | — |
| SK IE Technology Co., Ltd. | 0 | -100% |
| SK Innovation Co., Ltd. | 0 | -100% |
| Chongqing Yuntianhua Newmi-Tech Co., Ltd. | 0 | — |
| Hercules Inc. | 0 | — |
| Dongguan Dongyangguang Sci-Tech R&D Co., Ltd. | 0 | — |
Where to take this analysis
The figures above establish the shape of the field. Turning that into a freedom-to-operate view or a first-claim draft requires drilling into specific documents and claim language.
Check claim scope before filing
Run the specific coating chemistry or binder system you plan to claim against the most-cited records in this corpus to see how close prior art sits to your intended claim language.
Explore claims in EurekaTrack the leading assignee's filing programme
The concentration at the top of the ranking suggests one organisation is actively building a patent thicket around ceramic binder chemistry; monitoring its continuations and family filings is worth doing directly.
Set up monitoring in EurekaTest white-space claims before committing R&D spend
The under-claimed branches identified above are starting points, not guarantees of open space; a targeted search against those specific terms will confirm how clear the space really is.
Run a white-space search in EurekaCommon questions about ceramic-coated separator patents
In this dataset, one assignee leads the ranked field with 13 records, well ahead of the rest of the ranked companies. The gap between the leader and the remaining entrants is steep: by the tenth position in the ranking, the count drops to a single record. This pattern indicates a concentrated filing programme at the top rather than even competition across the field, though the ranking covers only the 10 companies returned for this search and should not be read as a complete industry census.
The core problem is thermal shrinkage: uncoated polyolefin separators can shrink or melt at elevated temperature, risking direct contact between electrodes and internal short circuits. Ceramic coatings, typically alumina or boehmite particles bound to the separator surface, resist that shrinkage while trying to preserve air permeability and ionic conductivity. Most patent claims in this corpus balance that safety benefit against practical manufacturing trade-offs such as coating adhesion, particle shedding, and puncture strength.
Filing activity rose from zero in 2017 to a peak of 9 records in 2024, the most recent complete year in this dataset. The 2025 and 2026 counts appear lower, but that is expected: publication typically lags actual filing by around 18 months, so the most recent one to two years in any patent trend understate real activity. Based on the 2024 peak, the field was still active heading into the most recent complete filing year.
US20180019457A1, filed by Hercules LLC and published in January 2018, covers a ceramic binder composition together with methods of making and using it, and its application in ceramic-coated separators for lithium-ion batteries. It is the most-cited record in this dataset, with 33 citations, which signals it has been treated as a reference point by later applicants working on ceramic binder chemistry. Anyone drafting claims in this space should review its binder composition claims closely before finalising similar chemistry.
Based on the IPC composition in this dataset, claim density is heaviest in battery-integration classes (H01M) and ceramics (C04B), with comparatively lighter direct coverage of specific coating-process mechanics such as binder-free deposition, particle-shedding mitigation, and the ionic-resistance trade-off at very thin coating thicknesses. These adjacent branches are not confirmed as empty, but they show less concentrated claim activity in this corpus and are worth a targeted search before committing R&D or filing resources.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from Patsnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
Nothing on this page constitutes an exhaustive prior-art, novelty, freedom-to-operate, or validity search, nor does it constitute legal, financial, investment, or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon as such. Any patent, commercial, or strategic decision should be verified independently and reviewed with qualified patent, legal, and domain professionals. Patsnap makes no warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness, or fitness for any particular purpose of the information presented.
Machine translation. Assignee and organisation names originally recorded in Chinese, Japanese or Korean have been rendered into English by an AI translation step so that the tables stay readable. These renderings are best-effort and may not match a company’s registered English name; the original name is what the underlying patent record carries, and it is what any Eureka query launched from this page uses.