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The ipIQ’s 2006 Patent Scorecard is an industry-by-industry ranking of corporate innovation that combines a series of indicators to arrive at patent quality, technological strength and breadth of impact.
“Our analysis distinguishes between patent quantity and patent quality, which is the real key to innovation,” said Jim Finnegan, vice president of business development for ipIQ, which released an advance copy of the 2006 Patent Scorecard . “The same analysis demonstrates that U.S. companies have maintained their technological leadership as intellectual property and patenting increase in prominence as drivers of the global economy.”
The Patent Scorecard has historically been published in MIT’s Technology Review and tracks the U.S. patent portfolios of more than 2,500 of the world’s top technology firms. As some of these firms patent in multiple industries, they may appear in more than one ranking.
Industries
* Aerospace & Defense
* Automotive & Transportation
* Biotechnology
* Chemicals
* Consumer Electronics
* Consumer Products
* Electronics & Instruments
* Energy & Environmental
* Industrial Equipment & Materials
* Information Technology
* Medical Devices
* Pharmaceuticals
* Semiconductors
* Telecommunications
Indicators
RANKING & MOVEMENT compares changes in company position within the industry from the previous year. Icons are used to illustrate change in position at a glance.
COMPANY listings, unless otherwise noted, include all subsidiaries and wholly owned companies normalized by industry and for mergers, acquisitions and divestitures.
TECHNOLOGY STRENGTH is the basis of the rankings and provides an overall assessment of a company’s Intellectual Property and innovation strength.
CURRENT-IMPACT INDEX showcases the broader significance of a company’s patents by examining how often its U.S. patents are used as the basis for other innovation in the current year. A value of 100 represents average frequency, therefore a value of 140 would indicate a company’s patents were referenced 40% more often than the industry average.
SCIENCE LINKAGE reflects the core science referenced in a company’s U.S. patents. A high figure indicates a company closer to the cutting edge than its competitors with lower values.
TECHNOLOGY CYCLE TIME indicates a firm’s speed in turning proprietary research and innovation into Intellectual Property.
PATENT COUNT equals the number of U.S. patents awarded, excluding design and other special-case inventions.
Source
ipIQ’s 2006 Patent Scorecard
ipIQ’s Press Release