HVDC Transmission Patent Landscape 2026
HVDC Transmission Patent Landscape in 2026
The HVDC transmission patent space is mature and moderately concentrated, with GE Technology, Hitachi Energy, and the ABB family collectively dominating the top tier among the hundred largest filers. Activity has plateaued near its 2017 peak with annual volume easing since, while power conversion and grid-systems branches continue to absorb the bulk of filings.
GE Technology leads a concentrated but multi-tiered competitive field
General Electric Tech GmbH holds the top position among the hundred largest filers with 800 patent records, followed by Hitachi Energy Ltd at 485 and ABB (Schweiz) AG at 402—establishing a clear first tier well ahead of the rest of the ranked field.
The top five filers together account for 29% of the combined total across the hundred largest filers, a level of concentration that signals meaningful leadership without absolute lock-in. China (382 records) and General Electric Co (356 records) complete that top tier, reflecting both Western industrial incumbents and Chinese state-backed actors as primary forces.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | General Electric Technology GmbH | 800 | |
| 2 | Hitachi Energy Ltd | 485 | |
| 3 | ABB (Schweiz) AG | 402 | |
| 4 | State Grid Corporation of China | 382 | |
| 5 | General Electric Company | 356 | |
| 6 | LSIS Co. Ltd | 277 | |
| 7 | Mitsubishi Electric Corporation | 274 | |
| 8 | Siemens AG | 244 | |
| 9 | Alstom Technology Ltd | 199 | |
| 10 | NR Electric Co. Ltd | 198 |
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | NR Engineering Co. Ltd | 197 | |
| 12 | ABB Technology AG | 191 | |
| 13 | North China Electric Power University | 174 | |
| 14 | ABB Power Grids Switzerland AG | 162 | |
| 15 | Ford Global Technologies LLC | 154 | |
| 16 | Hyosung Heavy Industries Corporation | 150 | |
| 17 | GE Energy Power Conversion Technology Ltd | 148 | |
| 18 | SIEMENS ENERGY GLOBAL GMBH & CO KG | 142 | |
| 19 | ABB Technology Ltd | 131 | |
| 20 | BorgWarner US Technologies LLC | 129 |
The depth of GE Technology’s lead—nearly 65% more records than the second-ranked Hitachi Energy—suggests sustained prior investment in converter and grid-systems IP that would be difficult for challengers to close quickly. However, the presence of multiple ABB-affiliated entities (ABB Schweiz, ABB Technology AG, ABB Power Grids Switzerland) in the ranking implies that consolidation accounting would further concentrate the effective ABB position.
Filings from approximately 2024 onward are subject to publication lag and will undercount actual activity; trend reads for those years should be treated as provisional. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Annual volume has eased from its 2017 peak; power conversion dominates the technology mix
The filing trend chart tracks annual activity from 2017 through 2026, while the technology composition chart breaks down the IPC branch distribution across all patent records in scope.
Annual filing trend
Activity peaked in 2017 at 691 records and has trended lower since, with oscillation in the 473–559 range through 2022–2023 before easing further. The 2024 and 2025 bars are significantly under-counted due to publication lag and should not be read as a structural decline; the multi-year baseline remains well above pre-2017 levels.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
H02J (Power supply and grid systems) and H02M (Power conversion, AC/DC) are the two dominant branches and together represent the core of HVDC converter and control IP. H02H (Protective circuit arrangements) is a distant third, while branches such as B60L (electric vehicle propulsion), G01R (measurement), and H02P (motor/generator control) each hold smaller but non-trivial shares, reflecting the adjacency of HVDC technology to electrified transport and renewable integration.
↗ 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.
High voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission sy…
A high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system is provided. The high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system includes: an integrated measurement panel; and an HVDC transmission device, wherein the HVDC transmission device is configured to: receive, from the integrated measurement panel, compensation values for compensating for the… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Power system method and apparatus | 441 |
| 2 | System, method, rotating machine and computer prog… | 333 |
| 3 | Resonant power supplies | 316 |
| 4 | Convertor plant roller contact connector for conve… | 250 |
| 5 | Universal Power Converter | 237 |
| 6 | System and method for protection during inverter s… | 225 |
| 7 | Collection of electric power from renewable energy… | 211 |
| 8 | DC connection scheme for windfarm with internal MV… | 196 |
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 HVDC R&D investment
Four structural observations—maturity stage, concentration dynamics, ecosystem collaboration patterns, and geographic filing spread—shape the investment calculus for any entrant or incumbent in HVDC.
Field is in a mature, plateau phase following a 2017 peak
The lifecycle evidence positions HVDC transmission at the Maturity stage: annual filings have plateaued near their 2017 peak of 691 records and have not returned to that level. For R&D teams, this means the easiest differentiation windows in core converter and grid-control IP have largely closed; incremental improvement patents face a crowded prior-art landscape. Investment strategy should tilt toward adjacent branches or application-specific sub-fields where density is lower.
Lifecycle: MatureTop-five filers hold 29% of the hundred largest filers’ combined output
Moderate concentration—29% held by five entities among the top hundred—means the field is competitive but not monopolized. The GE Technology, Hitachi Energy, and ABB grouping form a durable first tier, with State Grid and GE Co completing it. A second tier including LSIS, Mitsubishi Electric, and Siemens holds meaningful positions. New entrants face a high bar in core H02M/H02J space but can compete more effectively in adjacent or application-specific branches where incumbents are thinner.
Concentration: ModerateState Grid drives the most active co-filing ecosystem in the field
The most frequent co-filing pairs are all anchored by State Grid Corporation of China. Its most active partnerships are with State Grid Smart Grid Research Institute (68 joint records), China Electric Power Research Institute (64), and State Grid Economic & Technology Research Institute (30). XJ Electric, State Grid Jiangsu, and Zhongdian Purei Electric Power Engineering each co-filed 26 records with State Grid, while North China Electric Power University contributed 23 co-filings—indicating that China’s R&D ecosystem operates as a tightly coordinated network around a single state anchor.
Collaboration: State-anchoredUS leads filing destinations; China and Europe are close behind
The United States is the leading jurisdiction by patent records, followed by China and the EPO region. PCT filings indicate applicants pursuing broad international coverage. Germany, India, Canada, and Japan each represent meaningful secondary markets. The geographic spread reflects both the global infrastructure deployment of HVDC technology and the regulatory environments—particularly in Europe and the US—that drive IP protection decisions. India’s presence in the top ten jurisdictions signals growing market relevance for HVDC in large emerging grids.
Geography: US-led, broadGo 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 |
|---|---|---|
| State Grid Corporation of China | State Grid Smart Grid Research Institute Co. Ltd | 68 |
| State Grid Corporation of China | China Electric Power Research Institute Co. Ltd | 64 |
| State Grid Corporation of China | State Grid Economic and Technology Research Institute Co. Ltd | 30 |
| State Grid Corporation of China | XJ Electric Co. Ltd | 26 |
| State Grid Corporation of China | State Grid Jiangsu Electric Power Co. Ltd | 26 |
| State Grid Corporation of China | Zhongdian Purei Electric Power Engineering Co. Ltd | 26 |
| State Grid Corporation of China | XJ Group Corporation | 23 |
| State Grid Corporation of China | North China Electric Power University | 23 |
| State Grid Corporation of China | State Grid Zhejiang Electric Power Co. Ltd | 20 |
| State Grid Corporation of China | State Grid Shanghai Municipal Electric Power Company | 17 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
GE Technology and Hitachi Energy lead; ABB entities and State Grid form a durable second tier
The top applicants share a heavy emphasis on H02M power conversion and H02J grid-systems IPC classes, but differ in relative emphasis and recent filing trajectory. All leading incumbents show declining recent momentum, consistent with a maturing field.
General Electric Tech GmbH
The top-ranked filer with 800 patent records, GE Technology’s portfolio is concentrated in H02M 7 (AC/DC power conversion, 431 records), H02J 3 (grid systems, 387 records), and H02M 1 (general conversion, 331 records)—a profile that spans both converter hardware and grid integration IP. Recent filing trend shows a decline of 52% versus the prior period, consistent with the field’s overall maturation rather than a strategic retreat.
families: 800State Grid Corporation of China
Ranked fourth overall with 382 patent records, State Grid is distinctively grid-systems-focused: H02J 3 (324 records) accounts for the majority of its output, with H02M 7 (62 records) and H02M 1 (34 records) far behind—a markedly different profile from the Western converter-hardware leaders. State Grid is also the hub of the field’s most active co-filing network. Its recent trend shows a 22% decline, the shallowest drop among the five applicants for which momentum data is available, suggesting relatively sustained output compared to peers.
families: 382| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| General Electric Technology GmbH | 76 | ▼ -52% |
| General Electric Company | 4 | ▲ new entrant |
| ABB (Schweiz) AG | 14 | ▼ -58% |
| State Grid Corporation of China | 70 | ▼ -22% |
| Mitsubishi Electric Corporation | 43 | ▼ -65% |
Under-served branches adjacent to core HVDC IP worth monitoring
Several IPC branches appear at lower density relative to the dominant H02J and H02M classes. These represent observations of relative sparsity; where technical overlap with HVDC applications is plausible and an entry path exists, they may warrant further investigation.
H02H · Protective circuit arrangements
With 1,057 patent records, H02H is the third-largest branch but holds only 5% share—substantially below the two dominant classes. HVDC fault detection and DC circuit-breaker protection are active engineering challenges, particularly for multi-terminal and offshore HVDC grids where AC protection conventions do not apply. The gap between the technical importance of protection and the relatively sparse IP footprint suggests room for differentiated filings in DC fault current interruption, overvoltage protection coordination, and converter-station protection schemes.
Search this in Eureka →G01R · Electric and magnetic measurement
G01R appears at 445 patent records and a 2% share, despite measurement and monitoring being foundational to HVDC grid observability—covering current sensing in high-voltage DC environments, partial-discharge monitoring in converter transformers, and real-time state estimation for long-distance links. The sparse footprint relative to the operational importance of these functions points to an adjacent area where instrumentation specialists and system integrators could file with limited overlap against the dominant H02M/H02J incumbents.
Search this in Eureka →How leaders differ by technology route across H02M and H02J sub-classes
Strength of each leader across the main technology routes.
| Player | H02J 3 · Power supply & grid systems | H02M 7 · Power conversion (AC/DC etc.) | H02M 1 · Power conversion (AC/DC etc.) | H02M 3 · Power conversion (AC/DC etc.) | H02J 7 · Power supply & grid systems |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Electric Technology GmbH | Strong · 387 | Strong · 431 | Strong · 331 | Emerging · 32 | Absent |
| ABB Brown Boveri Ltd (Sweden) | Strong · 353 | Strong · 276 | Moderate · 93 | Emerging · 36 | Absent |
| ABB Technology Ltd | Strong · 264 | Strong · 199 | Moderate · 83 | Emerging · 20 | Absent |
| ABB (Schweiz) AG | Strong · 168 | Strong · 224 | Strong · 147 | Emerging · 18 | Absent |
| Siemens AG | Strong · 245 | Strong · 195 | Moderate · 113 | Absent | Absent |
| General Electric Company | Strong · 192 | Strong · 214 | Moderate · 101 | Moderate · 43 | Absent |
| Alstom Technology Ltd | Absent | Strong · 197 | Strong · 127 | Emerging · 32 | Absent |
Frequently asked questions
The corpus covers 4,633 patent families. Applicant rankings within the report are based on patent records, which can exceed the family count because a single family may be counted across multiple applicants or jurisdictions.
General Electric Tech GmbH leads the applicant ranking with 800 patent records among the hundred largest filers, followed by Hitachi Energy Ltd at 485 and ABB (Schweiz) AG at 402.
The field is classified as Mature. Annual filings peaked in 2017 at 691 records and have plateaued near that level since, without returning to the peak. This indicates that the core IP space is well-established rather than rapidly expanding.
The United States leads by patent records, followed by China and the EPO region. PCT (WIPO) filings rank fourth, reflecting broad international protection strategies. Germany, India, Canada, and Japan are significant secondary filing destinations.
State Grid Corporation of China is the hub of the most active co-filing network. Its most frequent partner is State Grid Smart Grid Research Institute (68 joint records), followed by China Electric Power Research Institute (64) and State Grid Economic and Technology Research Institute (30). All top-10 collaboration pairs identified in the evidence involve State Grid as one party.
Two branches appear relatively sparse given their technical relevance: H02H (Protective circuit arrangements) at 5% share—important for DC fault protection and circuit-breaker design—and G01R (Electric and magnetic measurement) at 2% share, relevant to HVDC grid monitoring and sensing. These are observations of relative sparsity; their value as entry points depends on a team’s specific technical capabilities and freedom-to-operate situation.
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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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