自动驾驶，或"智能"驾驶，在当下与混合动力汽车或电动车一样无处不在。虽然在全面部署方面仍然存在重大监管障碍，但许多人认为广泛的自动驾驶的实现必将到来。对于该行业的老牌玩家或是行业新贵而言，知识产权具有越来越重要的意义。随着各公司在知识产权 "地盘"上走马圈地，以及其他公司试图在这一领域通过专利盈利，知识产权将有助于塑造智能交通的未来。
在智能交通领域，哪些产品或技术可以成为专利？答案是多方面的。无论是将车辆保持在道路上安全位置所需的硬件传感器,抑或是用于车辆安全、高效和至关重要的独立运行所需整合数千个输入的软件,还是将不同的信息输入转化为数百种人类常规驾驶行为的方法，占据颠覆性的以及高利润技术空间的时机已到。
在对最近被授予的一些专利进行研究时发现，有几项值得注意的要点。首先，智能交通领域的专利受让人似乎有两种主要类型：投资生产线内部研发的传统车企，如福特、通用、丰田和特斯拉的团队，以及为其他公司制造车辆所用第三方产品的开发商。其次，最近申请的重点趋势是如何使用自动驾驶传感器，而非自动驾驶传感器所能检测到什么。之所以这样强调，是因为使自动驾驶实现的概念才是技术的创新之处，而用于实现这些系统的雷达、摄像头和计算机系统在技术上往往是已知的，相比之下，创新进步相对较小。
自动驾驶相关专利的前景尚未成熟。当这些在技术发展早期申请的专利（往往是大范围申请的）与成为全行业基础的技术正面相逢时，很可能会出现诉讼纠纷。例如，一些涵盖自动驾驶过程的专利，其优先权日期在2010年代初，可能成为诉讼的导火索。其他类型的早期专利也同样可能对该领域竞争对手提出诉讼而产生价值。正如其他行业（如手机行业）也曾经历过同样的变化发展，智能交通市场的从业者应该认识到，为自身技术申请专利，并以其他方式建立强大的知识产权组合，对于在知识产权战役最初阶段防御和阻击对手至关重要。
更多详情，请阅读下文：
Siri, Take the Wheel: Smart Transportation and Intellectual Property
March 13, 2022
Calcalist
By Elliot C. Cook; Matthew S. Johnson
Autonomous transportation, including so-called “smart” driving, is as ubiquitous a concept at this point as hybrid or electric vehicles. While significant regulatory hurdles still exist to its full deployment, the reality of widespread autonomous transportation is seen by many as inevitable. For the players in this industry—both established and emerging—intellectual property will have increasing importance. As companies stake out their intellectual property “turf,” and others try to monetize patents in this area, intellectual property will help shape the future of smart transportation.
What is, or will be, patented in the area of smart transportation? The answer is multi-faceted. Whether it is the hardware sensors required to maintain a vehicle in a safe position on the road; the software for compiling the thousands of inputs necessary for the vehicle to operate safely, efficiently, and most importantly independently; or methods of allowing disparate inputs of information to be translated into the hundreds of possible behaviors normally done by a human operator, the space for revolutionary and highly profitable technology is ripe for occupying.
In surveying recently granted patents, several takeaways are worth noting. First, there appear to be two predominant types of assignees in the smart transportation space: conventional automakers investing into internal research and development of their product lines, such as the teams at Ford, GM, Toyota, and Tesla; and developers of third-party products for use in a vehicle manufactured by another company. Second, the focus of more recent filings tends to be on how automated driving sensors are used rather than what an automated driving sensor detects. The reason for this emphasis appears to be because the concepts that make automated driving a reality are what make the technology innovative, while the radars, cameras, and computer systems used to implement those systems are well-known in the art with relatively modest advancements by comparison.
The landscape for automated driving-related patents has not yet matured. When the patents filed early in the development of these technologies, which tend to be broad, run squarely into the technologies that become foundational industry-wide, disputes are likely to arise. For instance, patents issued to cover the process of automating driving generally, with priority dates in the early 2010s, may become fodder for litigation. Other types of early-vintage patents may likewise become valuable to assert against those in the field. Just as other industries have faced this same dynamic (including, notably, the mobile phone industry), those in the smart transportation market should appreciate that patenting their own technologies and otherwise building strong intellectual property portfolios will be vital in defending against, or precluding in the first place, intellectual property battles.
A review of currently filed applications and recently issued patents in the smart driving space also demonstrates how much value remains untapped in terms of intellectual property. By recent estimates, automated driving technology is expected to reach multiple billions of dollars in market value as these technologies proliferate. What this market potential strongly suggests is the importance of innovation with a view toward market share growth and protection. There will be continually evolving improvements and breakthroughs in the industry. As the industry expands and matures, so too will the intellectual property underlying it. Wise companies in the field will look to bolster their intellectual property holdings lest competitors do so first. Those who fail to adequately protect their innovations may face the risk of being elbowed out of this growing market.
The day will come when the proverbial and literal wheel is taken out of a driver’s hands. This will have not only societal and technological consequences but also pivotal intellectual property implications. With the increasing level of innovation in this field—and the escalating patent procurement and enforcement that will follow—companies should take care now in protecting their intellectual property. A strong intellectual property position may be an important deciding factor in which companies ride the wave of market growth and which are crushed by it.
原文标题：Siri, Take the Wheel: Smart Transportation and Intellectual Property
本文作者：飞翰律师 Elliot C. Cook 和 Matthew S. Johnson
文章来源：本文由GDOIP海外战略合作单位——美国飞翰律师事务所供稿。
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