Intellectual Properties | Innovation | Creating a Safe and Secure Society | Sustainability

Basic Concept

Intellectual property is an extremely important management resource. The Nisshinbo Group's VALUE is "to provide our customers with eco-friendly products and services to create a safer and more secure society with integrity." The Group considers intellectual property to be a significant contribution to its Group's VALUE. In addition, the Nisshinbo Group's Business Conduct Guidelines also clearly states "to continue to innovate through co-creation with stakeholders." Intellectual property plays an extremely important role as a framework that supports, promotes, and even drives innovation.

As technological innovations such as digital transformation (DX) and AI rapidly advance, in order for the Nisshinbo Group to respond to these changes and contribute to solving issues, the Group must not only create value backed by intellectual property, but also utilize the created value and make it useful to society. Of course, the Group must not forget to take into consideration the intellectual property of others.

The Group is engaged in a wide range of businesses and utilizes its creative value in many different ways. Therefore, the Group is committed to providing value to society by implementing strategies for acquiring, protecting, and utilizing intellectual property in accordance with each business. For example, in the Wireless and Communications and Micro Devices businesses, the Group conducts intellectual property activities with a view to licensing and exercising rights to other companies, in addition to its own use, while in other businesses, the Group conducts intellectual property activities focused on securing rights for its own use.

Promotion System

Nisshinbo Holdings Inc. established the Future Innovation Division and the Legal & IP Department as the sections responsible for intellectual property matters.

The Future Innovation Division plans and formulates strategies regarding the creation of intellectual property for the entire group. The Legal & IP Department has an Intellectual Property Group that handles strategic intellectual property management. The Intellectual Property Group works with the business divisions of Nisshinbo Group companies to conduct global intellectual property research and information gathering by promoting strategic and efficient intellectual property activities.

Please refer to "Promotion System for Sustainability Activity" for details regarding the organizational structure for promoting sustainability.

Specific Initiatives of the Nisshinbo Group

The Nisshinbo Group protects and utilizes intellectual property obtained through innovation creation in an appropriate manner according to its characteristics, such as by filing applications or keeping it in-house. The Group also respects the intellectual property of other companies and actively conduct surveys to avoid intellectual property risks. Through the analysis of intellectual property information, the Group supports business direction and the promotion of new businesses.

Intellectual Property Activity Focus Fields

The Nisshinbo Group conducts intellectual property activities with the aim of establishing sustainable competitive advantages by acquiring, protecting, and utilizing intellectual property in the fields of sensing, wireless communication, and information processing, which are core technologies of the Group, and by building a network of rights that are appropriate for business.

Reward System for Inventors (Application, Registration, and Performance Rewards)

The Nisshinbo Group has adopted an incentive system to encourage the acquisition of intellectual property rights. The Group pays incentives to inventors at the time of application and registration, as well as performance incentives based on the status of implementation.

Measures Against Counterfeit Products

The entire Nisshinbo Group works together to monitor counterfeit products. As soon as counterfeit products are detected, the Group takes prompt action to protect its brands and ensures that its customers can use its products with peace of mind.

Intellectual Property Education

The Nisshinbo Group actively conducts intellectual property education for a wide range of employees, not only to acquire basic knowledge of intellectual property, but also to ensure thorough compliance.

Information on Intellectual Property Owned

Number of Intellectual Property Owned

The figure below shows the number of intellectual properties owned^* of Nisshinbo Group as a whole and the number of intellectual properties owned by each segment in Japan and overseas. In this summary, KOKUSAI DENKI Electric Inc. has been added. In addition, the number of holdings of Japan Radio Co., Ltd., has increased, which resulted in a 109% increase in the number of holdings in the Wireless and Communications segment. The total number of holdings for the Nisshinbo Group as a whole has increased by 46% compared to the previous fiscal year. Overseas holdings increased by 187% in the Wireless and Communications segment. Also, overseas holdings in the Micro Devices segment and Businesses Development also increased.

* Number of intellectual properties owned: the total number of registrations, applications and cases under examinations of patents, utility models and designs.

Number of Intellectual Property Owned

Overseas Case Numbers by Segment

Ratio of Intellectual Property Ownership

The Nisshinbo Group is actively acquiring intellectual property rights in the segments of Wireless and Communications, and Micro Devices. As of the end of 2024, the Group held approximately 6,800 intellectual property rights in total. Of these, 57% consists Wireless and Communications segment, 21% Micro Devices segment.

Ratio in Number of Intellectual Properties

Wireless and Communications

Ratio in Number of Intellectual Properties

Intellectual Properties owned by Wireless and Communications segment account for 57% of that of the entire group. As shown in the figure below, Telecommunication accounts for 28%, Solutions 26%, Defense Systems 9%, and Marine Systems 8%. With the addition of KOKUSAI DENKI Electric Inc., the percentage of communications equipment, solutions, and special equipment increased.

Ratio in Number of Intellectual Properties in Wireless and Communications Segment

Trends in Patent Applications

The figure below shows the past filing trends in Wireless and Communications segment. The segment has been actively filing applications to protect radar technology. In addition, many technologies related to wireless positioning, AC digital transmission, traffic control systems, television systems, and alarm systems have been patented.

Application Trends in Wireless and Communications Segment

*1 In-house preparation using BizCruncher, a patent analysis tool of Patent Result Co., Ltd. The vertical axis indicates the classification by Japan Patent Office, and the numbers in the circles indicate the number of applications.

*2 As of the end of 2023, the publication of all 2022 applications has not been completed.

Analysis of Patents Owned

The figure below shows an analysis of patents owned in Wireless and Communications segment.

The vertical axis indicates the overall strength of patents in each technology category, the horizontal axis indicates the score of the strongest patent in each technology category, and the size of the circle indicates the number of patents.

The figure on the left shows that the Wireless and Communications segment has strength in patents related to radar technology. With the participation of KOKUSAI DENKI Electric Inc. in the Nisshinbo Group, the strengths in patents related to television systems, image analysis, and mobile wireless communication systems have increased. The figure on the right shows that the strength of patents related to radar technology is increasing year by year.

Radar products in the Wireless and Communications segment include marine radar and weather radar. The segment has invested aggressively in research and development of these product lines and has protected the results.

Analysis of Patents Owned in Wireless and Communications Segment

* In-house preparation using BizCruncher, a patent analysis tool of Patent Result Co., Ltd. The vertical axis indicates the overall strength of patents in each technology category, the horizontal axis indicates the score of the strongest patent in each technology category, and the size of the circle indicates the number of patents.

Micro Devices

Ratio in Number of Intellectual Properties

Intellectual Properties owned by Micro Devices segment account for 21% of that of the entire group. As shown in the figure below, Energy Management and Signal Processing each account for 31%, Manufacturing Process 10%, Microwave 9%, and Packaging 5%.

Ratio in Number of Intellectual Properties in Micro Devices Segment

Trends in Patent Applications

The figure below shows the past filing trends in Micro Devices segment. The Segment has been actively filing applications to protect energy management technology, DC-DC converters, and signal amplification technology.

In addition, many applications have been filed for micromachines (MEMS), radar systems or details, and microwave tubes.

Application Trends in Micro Devices Segment

*2 As of the end of 2023, the publication of all 2022 applications has not been completed.

Analysis of Patents Owned

The figure below shows an analysis of patents owned in Micro Devices segment.

The figure on the left shows that the Micro Devices segment has strength in patents related to energy management technology, DC-DC converters, signal amplification technology, and clearly, the company has strengths in patents related to continuous control power supplies using transistors. The figure on the right shows that the strength of patents related to DC-DC converters and signal amplification technology is increasing year by year.

Products in the Micro Devices segment include power supply ICs and operational amplifiers. The segment invests aggressively in R&D for these product lines and protects the results.

Analysis of Patents Owned in Micro Devices Segment

Specific Activities of the Group Companies

Initiatives for a Decarbonized Society

As an environmental energy company, the Nisshinbo Group is actively engaged in GX (Green Transformation) initiatives with the goal of contributing to the hydrogen society. Typical examples of our efforts include research and development of fuel cell catalysts and fuel cell separators.

The figure below shows an analysis of patents held in the fuel cell field in the Green Transformation Technology Category Table (GXTI^*) by the Japan Patent Office. This chart shows that the Nisshinbo Group is strong in patents related to fuel cell and catalysts. In addition, the strength of patents in this field is increasing year by year.

* GXTI: A technology classification table created by the Japan Patent Office in June 2022 to provide an overview of technologies related to green transformation (GX).

Analysis of Patents Owned in the fuel cell field (GXTI)

Licensable Patent

Japan Radio Co., Ltd., in the Wireless and Communications segment, has established a system whereby patented technologies, etc. not being used by the company are made available as patents that can be licensed in order to contribute to solving various social issues, so that Nisshinbo's technologies can be widely used outside of the Nisshinbo Group.

The open patents are published in the Licensable Patent Information Database with easy-to-understand examples added.
National Center for Industrial Property Information and Training, Licensable Patent Information Database: https://plidb.inpit.go.jp/english/home