Dual-Clutch Transmission Patents: Who Leads, Where Filings Stalled 2026
- Filings peaked in 2017 at 5 and have not recovered, with the 2022 midpoint back at 0 — the technology's core claim space was staked out early and largely left alone since.
- F16H gearing dominates the composition at 180 of 209 records, against only 62 for F16D clutch hardware itself, meaning most recent activity refines gear-train integration rather than the clutch mechanism.
- The US Patent Office receives 125 of 209 filings, more than five times the next single office (Europe at 32), concentrating enforcement risk heavily on the US market.
Filing growth compares 2021 (1 records) with 2024 (0) — a three-year span. 2024 is the most recent year we treat as complete: publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, so 2025 onwards are still filling in and any growth rate that ends there would understate the field. Top-5 share is the combined record count of the five largest assignees divided by all 209 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
What the dual-clutch transmission patent record shows
Dual-clutch transmission (DCT) patenting in this dataset spans 2015 through mid-2026, covering clutch actuation, torque handoff, wet-clutch operation, shift timing and thermal management — the mechanical and control problems that separate a DCT from a conventional automatic. The record is dominated by F16H gearing and transmission claims, with F16D clutch and brake hardware a distant second, and hybrid drive control (B60W) and propulsion (B60K) appearing as smaller adjacent categories rather than a separate wave of activity.
Filing activity rose to a peak of 5 in 2017 and has not matched that level since; the 2022 midpoint sits at 0, and 2026 is a partial year by definition. Because publication typically lags filing by around 18 months, the most recent one to two years understate true filing activity — but the flat trajectory through the middle of the range is not an artefact of that lag alone.
Filing trend and technology composition
Two views of the same 209-family dataset: the year-by-year filing count, and the IPC subclasses that activity falls under.
A single peak year, then a plateau
2017 is the peak on record at 5 filings; the 2022 midpoint reads 0, and the trend does not show a second wave of filing building toward 2026. Read the most recent one to two years as understated given publication lag, not as a resumed decline.
Gearing claims outnumber clutch claims three to one
F16H (gearing and transmissions) carries 180 of 209 records, F16D (clutches and brakes) 62, and B60W (hybrid/joint vehicle control) 22. The gap between the top two subclasses indicates that most recent inventive effort sits in how the DCT integrates with the gear train and vehicle controller, not in the clutch pack itself.
Shares are the percentage of the 209 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on Dual-Clutch Transmission Technology with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about dual-clutch transmission technology and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaThe most-cited records in this corpus
Concentric slave cylinders to actuate clutches on a dual clutch transmission
A clutch actuation device is provided for dual clutches of a Dual Clutch Transmission. The clutch actuation device includes, but is not limited to a cylinder assembly that is substantially fixed to a clutch casing. The cylinder assembly includes, but is not limited to an inner annular chamber, an outer annular chamber, an inner annular piston, and an outer annular piston. The inner annular chamber is intended for receiving liquid under pressure and includes, but is not limited to an inner inlet. Similarly, the outer annular chamber is intended for receiving liquid under pressure and includes, but is not limited to an outer inlet. The outer annular chamber surrounds a portion of the inner annular chamber.Filed by GM Global Technology Operations, published 2011-11-24 — predates this dataset's 2015 window but is the representative actuation architecture the later corpus builds on.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US7073407B2 | Integrated control module for use in a dual clutch transmission having integrated shift actuator position sen… | 66 |
| 2 | US7127961B2 | Integrated control module for a dual clutch transmission | 65 |
| 3 | US20060009326A1 | Integrated control module for use in a dual clutch transmission having integrated shift actuator position sen… | 63 |
| 4 | US20080188342A1 | Dual clutch transmission with multiple range gearing | 59 |
| 5 | US7231843B2 | Double clutch transmission | 52 |
| 6 | US20100294057A1 | Seven speed dual clutch transmission | 42 |
| 7 | US20040166992A1 | Method of controlling a dual clutch transmission | 42 |
| 8 | US20050247147A1 | Double clutch transmission | 41 |
| 9 | US6698304B2 | Method for controlling a dual clutch transmission | 41 |
| 10 | US7621839B2 | Dual clutch transmission with multiple range gearing | 28 |
Citation counts are measured within this searched corpus and skew toward older filings by construction; treat them as a signal of influence on later filers, not as a measure of current commercial relevance.
Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
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Four patterns stand out once the raw counts are put in context.
The peak is behind, not ahead
A 2017 high point followed by a flat-to-zero midpoint suggests the core mechanical claim space around clutch actuation was staked out early in the dataset's window. New filings now compete against art that is nearly a decade old in places.
Gearing integration, not clutch hardware, is where the volume sits
F16H outnumbers F16D by close to three to one. Recent effort concentrates on how the dual-clutch unit interfaces with gear selection and range shifting rather than on the clutch pack, seals or actuation cylinder itself.
Enforcement exposure is concentrated in the US
The US receives well over half of all filings in this set, with Europe a distant second at 32 and China, WIPO, Germany and India each in single or low double digits. A freedom-to-operate check that skips the US misses most of the record.
Influence clusters around integrated control modules
The most-cited records in the corpus are integrated control-module patents for shift actuator position sensing, not the clutch mechanism itself. That pattern points later filers toward control integration as the area with the deepest prior-art trail to search around.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to dual-clutch transmission technology, with the prior art for and against each one.
Who holds the ground, and where it is thin
Recent-year momentum across the tracked assignees reads flat: every one of the named entities shows 0 filings in the latest year, consistent with the dataset's overall plateau since its 2017 peak rather than any single company's retreat. Co-assignee pairs are sparse — 10 pairs total, the strongest linking individual inventors rather than two large OEMs — indicating most work here is filed by a single assignee rather than through joint development.
Joint filing is the exception, not the rule
Only 10 co-assignee pairs exist across 209 families. The strongest pair links two named inventors rather than two corporate assignees, and the next-strongest pairs (Hyundai with Kia, BorgWarner with Volkswagen) reflect intra-group or supplier-OEM filing rather than broad industry collaboration.
No assignee is currently accelerating
GM Global Technology Operations, BorgWarner, Hyundai, Volvo Trucks, Isuzu and Eaton all show zero filings in the most recent year in this dataset. Read this alongside the ~18-month publication lag before concluding the field has gone quiet.
Filing strategy is US-first, Europe-second
The gap between the top two offices is wide enough that a company building a DCT clearance strategy around European filings alone would still be missing the majority of the documented art.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| GM Global Technology Operations LLC | 0 | — |
| BorgWarner Inc. | 0 | — |
| Hyundai Motor Company | 0 | — |
| Volvo Truck Corporation | 0 | — |
| Isuzu Motors Limited | 0 | — |
| Eaton Corporation | 0 | — |
| SINGH TEJINDER | 0 | — |
| PORTELL PATRICK S | 0 | — |
Where to take this analysis
The dataset points to specific next steps depending on whether the goal is clearance, monitoring or filing strategy.
Run a freedom-to-operate check on the top-cited control-module claims
The highest-citation records in this corpus are integrated control modules for shift actuator sensing. Any new actuation or sensing design should be checked against that specific claim family before filing.
Explore in EurekaTrack assignee momentum past the data cut-off
Every tracked assignee shows zero filings in the latest year captured here, but the ~18-month publication lag means 2025-2026 activity is still arriving. Set up ongoing monitoring rather than treating the current flat trend as final.
Explore in EurekaScope a claim around under-claimed thermal and sealing branches
Wet-clutch thermal load sensing and concentric actuator sealing show thinner density than the core gearing and control-module claims. These are candidate areas for a first-mover filing.
Explore in EurekaFrequently asked questions
The most-cited records in this corpus are integrated control-module patents covering shift actuator position sensing, led by filings such as US7073407B2 and US7127961B2, both filed for dual-clutch transmission control modules. Citation count within a searched corpus is a signal of influence on later filers rather than a direct measure of market share, so it should be read alongside filing volume and recency, not on its own. Several of the highest-cited records date to the mid-2000s, ahead of this dataset's 2015 window, which is typical for foundational architecture patents that later filings build on.
No. Filing activity in this dataset peaked in 2017 at 5 and the 2022 midpoint reads 0, indicating a flat-to-declining trend rather than continued growth. Because publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, the final one to two years of any patent dataset are always undercounted, so the most recent years should not be read as a hard stop. Even accounting for that lag, the plateau through the middle of the tracked period suggests the core mechanical claim space was largely settled early rather than still expanding.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office receives the largest share by a wide margin, with 125 of 209 records in this dataset, followed by the European Patent Office at 32. China, the WIPO PCT route, Germany and India each account for single-digit to low-double-digit counts. A clearance or licensing strategy focused only on Europe or China would miss the majority of the documented filings.
The bulk of filings sit under F16H (gearing and transmissions), with 180 of 209 records, followed by F16D (clutches and brakes) at 62. Smaller but present categories include B60W (hybrid and joint vehicle control) and B60K (vehicle propulsion and drive), reflecting how DCT systems now interact with electrified drivetrains. The gap between F16H and F16D indicates that recent inventive effort concentrates more on gear-train integration and control logic than on the clutch mechanism itself.
Within the searched scope, sub-areas such as wet-clutch thermal load sensing, torque-handoff control during launch, shift-time calibration under load, and concentric actuator sealing schemes show comparatively thin claim density relative to the dominant gearing and control-module claims. That does not guarantee those branches are unclaimed elsewhere, but it does mean a new filing there faces less directly on-point prior art within this corpus. Any white-space read should be paired with a live search before committing to a claim strategy, since gaps in a bounded dataset can reflect search scope as much as market reality.
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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.