EDLC Manufacturing Scale-Up Patent Landscape 2026
The EDLC manufacturing scale-up patent space is moderately concentrated, with a small cluster of US-based innovators — led by Nanotek Instruments Group and FastCap — holding commanding positions in graphene- and nanotechnology-driven electrode fabrication. Annual filing volume peaked in 2017 and has since eased substantially, signaling a maturing field where remaining white space lies in adjacent process and coating branches rather than the core capacitor classification.
Nanotek Instruments leads a US-centric, modestly concentrated field
Nanotek Instruments Group holds the top position among ranked filers, followed by FastCap Ultracapacitors and FastCap Systems Corp — entities sharing a common technology lineage in carbon-nanotube and graphene electrode manufacturing. The top five filers account for 28% of the combined total among the hundred largest filers, indicating a moderately concentrated but not monopolized competitive structure.
A clear tier gap separates the top two applicants from the remainder of the ranking. Below the top three, patent record counts drop into single digits, with Nippon Chemi-Con Corp, ILIT Tech, Honeycomb Battery Co, and Pocell Tech forming a secondary tier, and a long tail of universities and smaller companies beyond that.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nanotek Instruments Group LLC | 25 | |
| 2 | FastCap Ultracapacitors LLC | 21 | |
| 3 | FastCap Systems Corp | 11 | |
| 4 | Nippon Chemi-Con Corporation | 10 | |
| 5 | ILIT Tech | 9 | |
| 6 | Honeycomb Battery Co | 8 | |
| 7 | Pocell Tech Ltd | 8 | |
| 8 | NEC Corporation | 7 | |
| 9 | Skeleton Technologies GmbH | 7 | |
| 10 | Ivan Araujo Dayrell | 6 |
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Panasonic Holdings Corporation | 4 | |
| 12 | Shanghai University of Engineering Science | 4 | |
| 13 | Yazaki Corporation | 4 | |
| 14 | Shandong University | 4 | |
| 15 | CEA (French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission) | 4 | |
| 16 | Zhejiang University of Technology | 3 | |
| 17 | Ivan Araujo Dayrell | 3 | |
| 18 | The Hong Kong Polytechnic University | 3 | |
| 19 | Farad Power Inc | 3 | |
| 20 | CY Cergy Paris University | 3 |
The leaders’ positions are built primarily on electrode material innovation — particularly graphene foam and carbon-nanotube architectures — and continuous manufacturing processes. This suggests that any new entrant aiming to challenge them must either advance novel electrode chemistries or target scale-up process steps (coating, assembly, printing) where coverage is thinner.
Filing counts for 2024 and 2025 are likely under-reported due to standard patent publication lags of 18–24 months; the apparent decline in those years should not be taken as definitive. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
A 2017 peak followed by sustained easing; capacitor patents dominate the technology mix
The annual filing trend and the IPC technology composition together reveal a field that expanded sharply through 2017 and has since contracted, while the technology base remains heavily anchored in the core capacitor classification with several smaller adjacent branches.
Annual filing trend
Annual filings peaked at 45 in 2017 then declined steeply to single digits by 2023–2025. The multi-year window shows a negative recent-growth reading. Figures for 2024 and 2025 are subject to publication lag and will likely revise upward; treat them as floors rather than final counts.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
H01G (Capacitors) dominates the IPC distribution by a wide margin. The next largest branches — H01M (batteries and fuel cells), B82Y (nanotechnology applications), and C01B (non-metallic elements and inorganic compounds) — reflect the material science foundations of EDLC electrode scale-up. Process-adjacent branches such as B01J (chemical/physical processes), C09D (coatings), and B41F (printing machines) are present at low counts, pointing to under-explored manufacturing process territory.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
Electrode, electric double-layer capacitor using s…
Provided is an electrode having excellent capacitance characteristics, in which carbon powder and fibrous carbon are mixed and the electric resistance is reduced by removing the effects of, for example, a binder in the resin system or other system and a conductive assistant, and also provided are an electric double-layer capacitor using the electrode and an… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Supercapacitor with high energy density | 119 |
| 2 | Process for producing graphene foam supercapacitor… | 101 |
| 3 | Supercapacitor having an integral 3D graphene-carb… | 58 |
| 4 | Energy storage media for ultracapacitors | 49 |
| 5 | 一种基于三维石墨烯的超级电容器电极材料制备方法 | 47 |
| 6 | Activated carbon/polyacene material composite, its… | 44 |
| 7 | Process of forming electrodes and products thereof… | 39 |
| 8 | Continuous process for producing electrodes for su… | 38 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
What the competitive structure means for R&D investment decisions
The combination of a declining filing trend, a moderately concentrated leader group, sparse inter-firm collaboration, and US-dominant filing geography shapes the strategic options available to both incumbents and new entrants in EDLC scale-up.
Field in decline from a 2017 peak
The lifecycle assessment classifies this space as Decline, with annual filings easing back from the 2017 peak of 45. The negative recent-growth reading confirms this trajectory. For R&D teams, this means foundational electrode-material patents are increasingly mature, and differentiation must come from process innovation, system integration, or adjacent material classes rather than incremental graphene chemistry.
Lifecycle: DeclineModerate concentration with a clear leader tier
The top five filers hold 28% of the combined total among the hundred largest filers. Nanotek Instruments Group and the FastCap entities together account for a disproportionate share of that top-five block. This creates a meaningful but not insurmountable barrier: the secondary tier (Nippon Chemi-Con, ILIT Tech, Skeleton Technologies) remains within striking distance if activity accelerates, and the long university tail suggests IP assets may be acquirable or licensable.
Concentration: ModerateMinimal co-filing activity recorded
The evidence shows a single recorded co-filing relationship: NEC Corporation and Tokin Corporation filed jointly on one occasion. No broader co-applicant ecosystem is visible in the data. This low collaboration density is consistent with a competitive dynamic where firms protect proprietary manufacturing know-how rather than co-developing it, and may signal opportunity for consortium-based open-innovation approaches in process scale-up.
Collaboration: SparseUS-dominant filings; China and EPO are secondary markets
The United States is the dominant filing jurisdiction, followed by China, the EPO, Israel, Japan, and WIPO PCT routes. South Korea and India are present but at lower coverage. The US-centric pattern reflects the geographic home base of the top applicants. Innovators targeting Asian manufacturing ecosystems — where EDLC production volume is high — may find thinner patent coverage and therefore more room to establish positions.
Geography: US-ledGo beyond the landscape: Eureka’s TRIZ Solution agent breaks down an R&D problem and returns patented concept solutions, each with a technical approach and cited patent & literature evidence.
| Applicant | Collaborator | Co-filings |
|---|---|---|
| NEC Corporation | Tokin Corporation | 1 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
Nanotek Instruments and FastCap define the graphene electrode manufacturing frontier
The two leading entities differ in portfolio breadth and technology emphasis: Nanotek Instruments Group spans both capacitor and battery-adjacent electrode chemistry, while FastCap Ultracapacitors concentrates more narrowly on carbon-nanotube and nanotechnology-classified filings. Both are recorded as new entrants in the momentum data relative to the prior period, suggesting recent filing acceleration from a low base.
Nanotek Instruments Group
Nanotek Instruments Group leads the ranked corpus with 25 patent records, concentrated in H01G 11 (capacitors) and extending into H01M (batteries and fuel cells) — the broadest cross-class coverage among the top applicants. This dual emphasis signals a strategy that monetizes electrode manufacturing know-how across both supercapacitor and battery applications. Momentum data classifies the entity as a new entrant in the recent period, consistent with filing activity resuming after a gap.
patent records: 25FastCap Ultracapacitors LLC
FastCap Ultracapacitors holds 21 patent records, with its technology emphasis split across H01G 11 (capacitors), B82Y 30 (nanotechnology applications), and C01B 32 (non-metallic elements, covering graphene and carbon precursors). This nanotechnology-weighted profile reflects the company’s carbon-nanotube electrode heritage. FastCap Systems Corp — a related entity — adds a further 11 patent records, making the combined FastCap family a formidable cluster at the top of the ranking.
patent records: 21| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| FastCap Systems Corp | 4 | ▲ new entrant |
| Skeleton Technologies GmbH | 7 | ▲ new entrant |
Under-served process and coating branches adjacent to the core capacitor space
Several IPC branches appear at low patent-record counts relative to the dominant H01G class, pointing to areas where EDLC scale-up process steps are less densely covered. Two branches stand out as having plausible technical relevance and realistic entry paths.
H02J · Power supply and grid systems
With 17 patent records, the H02J branch captures work on integrating scaled-up EDLC modules into power supply and grid-level systems — a necessary engineering step between cell-level manufacturing and deployed energy storage. Coverage is sparse relative to materials work, and the increasing deployment of EDLC banks in grid-stabilization and industrial UPS applications creates a realistic entry path for applicants with system-integration expertise. Teams combining cell manufacturing know-how with power electronics architecture are best positioned here.
Search this in Eureka →B01J · Chemical and physical processes and catalysis
The B01J branch, present at only 10 patent records, covers the chemical reactor and process engineering steps underlying electrode material synthesis at scale — activation, chemical vapor deposition, and catalytic carbon formation. This is technically adjacent to the dominant graphene and carbon-nanotube electrode space but is under-protected relative to the material outputs it produces. Entry here requires process chemistry depth rather than electrode design expertise, lowering the barrier for chemical engineering firms or contract manufacturers seeking IP positions in EDLC precursor production.
Search this in Eureka →How leaders differ by technology route across capacitor, nanotechnology, and materials branches
Route coverage across the main technology branches in the current evidence set.
| Player | H01G 11 · Capacitors | H01G 9 · Capacitors | B82Y 30 · Nanotechnology applications | C01B 32 · Non-metallic elements & inorganic compounds | H01M 4 · Batteries, cells & fuel cells |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FastCap Systems Corp | Strong · 23 | Moderate · 7 | Strong · 15 | Strong · 14 | Emerging · 3 |
| FastCap Ultracapacitors LLC | Strong · 11 | Strong · 8 | Strong · 9 | Strong · 9 | Absent |
| Nanotek Instruments Group LLC | Strong · 22 | Absent | Absent | Emerging · 3 | Moderate · 6 |
| NEC Corporation | Strong · 7 | Strong · 7 | Absent | Absent | Moderate · 3 |
| DST Innovations Ltd | Strong · 11 | Absent | Absent | Absent | Moderate · 5 |
| Nippon Chemi-Con Corporation | Strong · 10 | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
Frequently asked questions
The evidence base contains 147 patent families in scope for EDLC manufacturing scale-up.
Nanotek Instruments Group holds the top position with 25 patent records among the ranked applicants, followed by FastCap Ultracapacitors with 21 and FastCap Systems Corp with 11.
No. The lifecycle assessment classifies the field as Decline. Annual filings peaked at 45 in 2017 and have eased substantially since, reaching single digits by 2023–2025. Figures for the most recent two years are subject to publication lag and may revise upward, but the overall trend is clearly past its peak.
The United States leads by a wide margin, followed by China, the EPO, Israel, Japan, and WIPO PCT routes. South Korea and India are also represented but at lower coverage levels.
The most-cited work relates to high energy density supercapacitors and graphene-foam-based electrode manufacturing processes. The top-cited patent on supercapacitors with high energy density has 119 citing records, and a process patent for producing graphene foam supercapacitors has 101 citing records.
The H02J (power supply and grid systems) and B01J (chemical and physical processes) branches show the most plausible entry points: both are technically adjacent to EDLC manufacturing, present at low record counts relative to H01G, and address scale-up process steps — grid integration and electrode precursor chemistry respectively — that are distinct from the material design work already well-covered by the leading applicants.
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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.
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