Zinc-Air Battery Patent Landscape 2026
Zinc-Air Battery Patent Landscape in 2026
Samsung Electronics leads a moderately concentrated field of 3,803 patent families, holding the top position among the hundred largest filers. Annual filings peaked in 2019 and have eased since, though LG Energy Solution and Form Energy are among the players still building portfolio momentum.
Samsung leads a moderately concentrated field with a visible tier gap
Samsung Electronics CO LTD is the clear leader, ranking first among the hundred largest filers in this space. Phinergy, LG Energy Solution, Toyota Motor Corporation, and Form Energy round out the top five, together accounting for 27% of the combined output of those hundred filers.
The top-five share of 27% signals moderate-to-high concentration at the apex of the ranking, with a meaningful gap between Samsung’s position and the challengers immediately below it. Below the top five, the field fragments across a long tail that includes consumer-electronics incumbents, utilities, startups, and research institutions.
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Samsung Electronics Co Ltd | 337 | |
| 2 | Phinergy Ltd | 209 | |
| 3 | LG Energy Solution Ltd | 199 | |
| 4 | Toyota Motor Corporation | 193 | |
| 5 | Form Energy Inc | 167 | |
| 6 | NGK Insulators Ltd | 140 | |
| 7 | Asahi Kasei Battery Separator Corporation | 95 | |
| 8 | The Gillette Company | 94 | |
| 9 | Electricite de France | 89 | |
| 10 | Honeycomb Battery Company | 86 |
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Sharp Corporation | 85 | |
| 12 | Cabot Corporation | 84 | |
| 13 | Blue Current Inc | 79 | |
| 14 | NIPPON TELEGRAPH & TELEPHONE CORP | 67 | |
| 15 | Panasonic Holdings Corporation | 66 | |
| 16 | Semicon Energy Lab Co Ltd | 60 | |
| 17 | Duracell US Operations Inc | 58 | |
| 18 | The Regents of the University of California | 58 | |
| 19 | AER Energy Resources Inc | 56 | |
| 20 | Toshiba Corporation | 52 |
Samsung’s breadth across electrode materials, cell design, and battery management — combined with its collaboration ties to Samsung SDI and Seoul National University — suggests a platform strategy rather than a niche focus. Phinergy and Form Energy, by contrast, are specialists whose portfolios are tightly aligned with metal-air and grid-scale applications respectively.
Filings from 2024 onward are subject to publication lag and will undercount true activity; the apparent recent drop should not be read as a structural exit from the field. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Filing volume eased after a 2019 peak; cell chemistry dominates the technology mix
The two charts together reveal a field that built quickly through 2019 but has since moderated, while the IPC mix confirms that core electrochemistry still absorbs the vast majority of inventive effort, leaving several adjacent branches relatively sparse.
Annual filing trend
Filings climbed from 414 families in 2017 to a peak of 534 in 2019, then stepped down progressively through 2023. The 2024 and 2025 data points are materially under-counted due to patent publication lag and should not be interpreted as a continuation of decline.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
H01M (batteries, cells, and fuel cells) is by far the dominant class, reflecting the core electrochemistry focus of the field. Adjacent branches — including H01G (capacitors), B01J (catalysis), C01B (inorganic compounds), C25B (electrolytic processes), and H02J (power supply systems) — each represent roughly 3% of IPC-level records, indicating that innovation at the boundaries of zinc-air chemistry with catalysis, grid integration, and nanomaterials remains comparatively sparse.
↗ 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.
Electrically rechargeable, metal-air battery syste…
The invention provides for a fully electrically rechargeable metal-air battery systems and methods of achieving such systems. A rechargeable metal air battery cell may comprise a metal electrode an air electrode, and an aqueous electrolyte separating the metal electrode and the air electrode. In some embodiments, the metal electrode may directly contact the… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Metal-air accumulator with air electrode protectio… | 1,068 |
| 2 | Battery pack design for metal-air battery cells | 378 |
| 3 | Method of producing membrane electrode assemblies … | 344 |
| 4 | Traction motor drive system | 314 |
| 5 | Rechargeable battery | 268 |
| 6 | Thin carbon-cloth-based electrocatalytic gas diffu… | 267 |
| 7 | Parallel battery charging device | 252 |
| 8 | Conductive graphene polymer binder for electrochem… | 240 |
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
Four structural observations — maturity, concentration, collaboration, and geography — shape the risk-reward calculus for any new entrant or incumbent deciding where to direct zinc-air R&D resources.
Post-peak, but selectively active
The lifecycle stage is classified as Decline, with annual filings easing back from the 2019 peak of 534 families. This does not signal universal retreat: LG Energy Solution’s portfolio grew at 4.7× its prior three-year rate and Form Energy’s rose 43%, indicating that specific application niches — particularly grid storage — remain investable. New entrants face a maturing core but open flanks in adjacent branches.
Lifecycle: DeclineModerate apex concentration with a fragmented mid-tier
The top five filers hold 27% of the combined output of the hundred largest filers, a level that is concentrated enough to create citation and blocking-patent risk but not so dominant that the field is closed. Below the top five, the ranking spreads across a wide set of consumer, industrial, and academic actors, offering differentiation paths through specialisation in electrode materials, electrolytes, or system integration.
Top-5 share: 27%Corporate-academic co-filing is structurally active
The most frequent co-filing pairs include Samsung Electronics with Samsung SDI (25 joint families) and with Seoul National University R&DB Foundation (13), LG Energy Solution with the University of California Board of Regents (12), and Samsung Electronics with MIT (11). Toyota Motor Corporation collaborates with the University of St Andrews (10) and Shizuoka University (6). Électricité de France co-files with the University of Bordeaux (7) and Safti Group (7). These partnerships signal that academic catalyst and materials science expertise is being actively folded into commercial portfolios.
Active co-filing ecosystemUS is the primary filing jurisdiction; China and Europe are substantial secondary markets
The United States leads all jurisdictions by a wide margin, followed by China, the EPO, WIPO (PCT), Japan, and South Korea. Germany, India, and Australia also appear as meaningful secondary destinations. The spread across PCT and EPO channels confirms that leading applicants are pursuing broad international protection, raising the freedom-to-operate burden for later entrants in all major markets.
Lead office: United StatesGo 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Samsung Electronics Co Ltd | Samsung SDI Co Ltd | 25 |
| Samsung Electronics Co Ltd | Seoul National University R&DB Foundation | 13 |
| LG Energy Solution Ltd | The Regents of the University of California | 12 |
| Samsung Electronics Co Ltd | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 11 |
| Toyota Motor Corporation | University Court of the University of St Andrews | 10 |
| LG Energy Solution Ltd | Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) | 7 |
| Electricite de France | University of Bordeaux | 7 |
| Electricite de France | Safti Group | 7 |
| Toyota Motor Corporation | Shizuoka University | 6 |
| Phinergy Ltd | Alcan International Ltd | 5 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
Samsung leads on volume; LG Energy Solution and Form Energy show the strongest recent momentum
The top two players by patent families are Samsung Electronics and Phinergy, but the sharpest recent growth belongs to LG Energy Solution and Form Energy — making the effective competitive frontier more dynamic than the all-time rankings suggest.
Samsung Electronics
Samsung Electronics holds 337 patent families — the largest portfolio in the field — concentrated in electrode materials (H01M 4), metal-air cell design (H01M 12), and battery management (H01M 10). Its recent filing rate has declined 93% from peak, suggesting the core portfolio has been built and attention may have shifted to adjacent technologies or other battery chemistries. Its collaboration ties to Samsung SDI and MIT reinforce a platform rather than point-solution approach.
337 patent familiesLG Energy Solution
LG Energy Solution holds 199 patent families and is the field’s highest-momentum large player, with recent filings running at 4.7× the prior three-year rate. Its technical focus spans battery management (H01M 10), electrode materials (H01M 4), and conductor technology (H01B 1), and it co-files actively with the University of California and UNIST. This combination of surging volume and institutional collaboration signals an aggressive build phase rather than a maintenance posture.
199 patent families| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Samsung Electronics Co Ltd | 9 | ▼ -93% |
| Phinergy Ltd | 1 | ▼ -95% |
| Form Energy Inc | 76 | ▲ +43% |
| NGK Insulators Ltd | 8 | ▼ -47% |
| LG Energy Solution Ltd | 108 | ▲ 4.7× vs prior 3-yr |
| Toyota Motor Corporation | 7 | ▲ new entrant |
| Asahi Kasei Corporation | 25 | ▼ -60% |
Under-served adjacent branches at the boundary of zinc-air chemistry
Five IPC branches each account for roughly 3% of patent-record assignments in this corpus, marking them as adjacent to the dominant H01M core. Two in particular combine relative sparsity with clear technical relevance to zinc-air performance bottlenecks.
B01J · Catalysis and chemical/physical processes
With 392 patent-record assignments — about 3% of IPC-level records — catalysis sits at the heart of oxygen-reduction and oxygen-evolution reaction efficiency, which are primary barriers to rechargeable zinc-air performance. The branch is populated but not dense relative to its technical importance. Teams with expertise in non-precious-metal catalysts or single-atom catalysis could find differentiated filing space here, particularly if linked to grid-storage application contexts where Form Energy and others are actively building.
Search this in Eureka →C25B · Electrolytic production of compounds
C25B covers electrochemical processes for producing compounds, including oxygen and hydroxide chemistry directly relevant to zinc-air cell cycling. Its 313 patent-record assignments represent a sparse footprint given that electrolyte and electrolysis management are recognised failure modes in rechargeable zinc-air systems. Entry paths exist for actors working on alkaline electrolyte engineering, CO2 management in open-air systems, or zinc electrodeposition control — all of which intersect this class without requiring displacement of entrenched H01M portfolios.
Search this in Eureka →How leading applicants differ in their technology route emphasis
Strength of each leader across the main technology routes.
| Player | H01M 4 · Batteries, cells & fuel cells | H01M 12 · Batteries, cells & fuel cells | H01M 10 · Batteries, cells & fuel cells | H01M 50 · Batteries, cells & fuel cells | H01M 8 · Batteries, cells & fuel cells |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samsung Electronics Co Ltd | Strong · 270 | Strong · 246 | Strong · 159 | Emerging · 35 | Moderate · 64 |
| Phinergy Ltd | Strong · 86 | Strong · 159 | Strong · 139 | Moderate · 39 | Emerging · 28 |
| NGK Insulators Ltd | Strong · 100 | Strong · 102 | Strong · 83 | Strong · 99 | Moderate · 26 |
| Form Energy Inc | Strong · 113 | Strong · 102 | Absent | Moderate · 38 | Moderate · 41 |
| LG Energy Solution Ltd | Strong · 81 | Absent | Strong · 124 | Absent | Absent |
| The Gillette Company | Strong · 82 | Strong · 86 | Absent | Moderate · 28 | Absent |
Frequently asked questions
The corpus analysed contains 3,803 patent families filed globally across the tracked period.
Samsung Electronics Co Ltd holds the largest portfolio with 337 patent families, ahead of Phinergy at 209 and LG Energy Solution at 199.
Annual filings peaked in 2019 at 534 families and have eased since. The lifecycle stage is classified as Decline. However, individual players such as LG Energy Solution (4.7× recent growth vs prior three years) and Form Energy (+43%) continue to build actively, suggesting selective application-driven investment rather than a broad market exit.
The United States leads with the highest number of patent-record assignments, followed by China, the EPO, WIPO (PCT), Japan, and South Korea. Germany, India, and Australia are also meaningful secondary destinations.
The most frequent co-filing pairs are Samsung Electronics with Samsung SDI (25 joint families), Samsung Electronics with Seoul National University R&DB Foundation (13), LG Energy Solution with the University of California Board of Regents (12), Samsung Electronics with MIT (11), and Toyota Motor Corporation with the University of St Andrews (10).
B01J (catalysis and chemical/physical processes) and C25B (electrolytic production of compounds) are the two branches with the clearest combination of relative filing sparsity and direct technical relevance to zinc-air performance bottlenecks such as oxygen-reduction kinetics and electrolyte management. C01B, H02J, and H01G are also noted as adjacent branches with lower filing density relative to the core H01M class.
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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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