A drop of oil transformed into an elegant silk scarf, a helicopter taking off directly from water, a robot playing beautiful melodies on the piano... Recently, the 14th China International Patent Technology and Product Fair was held in Dalian, showcasing a wide range of patented products. With the theme "Patent Commercialization and Application: Empowering Innovative Development," the fair awarded 30 China Patent Gold Awards and 10 Design Gold Awards.
Among the winners were invention patents such as BYD Company Limited’s "Integrated Thermal Management System, Vehicle and Thermal Management Control Method," Nanjing Tech University’s "A Vegetable Oil Polyol, Its Preparation Method and Application," and Yichang Dongyangguang Changjiang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.’s "Oseltamivir Phosphate Granules and Its Preparation Method."
In recent years, China has vigorously promoted the commercialization and application of patents to actively serve high-quality development. Since the launch of the Special Action for Patent Commercialization and Application in 2023, the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) has introduced a series of policies and measures covering industrial innovation, achievement transformation, and financial empowerment, striving to address key difficulties, blockages, and bottlenecks in patent commercialization and application with remarkable results.
Shen Changyu, Party Secretary and Commissioner of CNIPA, stated that by the end of August this year, the cumulative number of patent transfer and licensing registrations nationwide had reached 1.154 million, including 142,000 transfers and licenses from universities and research institutions, showing a sound development momentum.
At the opening ceremony, Antonio Campinos, President of the European Patent Office (EPO), released another set of data in his video speech, which also indirectly confirmed China’s growing innovation capacity: in 2024, the EPO received 200,000 patent applications, of which applications from Chinese applicants accounted for more than 10%. Since 2018, the number of Chinese patent applications has more than doubled, and quadrupled since 2014.
The emergence of numerous scientific and technological achievements is encouraging, but these achievements must be effectively transformed to truly serve the people. "As global competition intensifies, patent commercialization is the key to bringing new technologies to market, driving growth, and improving lives," said Antonio Campinos.
"Its prototype is 116 meters long, capable of stably operating at heights while lifting a 1,000-ton, 40-meter-long giant simply supported box girder. It solves the erection challenge of box girders increasing from 32 meters to 40 meters when China’s high-speed railways reach a speed of 400 km/h," Luo Jiulin, the first inventor of the patent gold award-winning "Bridge Transport and Erection Machine" and a senior engineer from China Railway No.5 Engineering Bureau, enthusiastically introduced to the audience in front of the model of the world’s first 1,000-ton class transport and erection integrated machine "Kunlun."
"Patented technology should not remain on paper; it should be mapped into mountains and rivers and transform them," Luo Jiulin said. It is understood that in 2021, the "Kunlun" equipped with this patent successfully completed the erection of 10 kilometers of bridges in only 218 days. Currently, the "Kunlun" has been promoted and applied on more than 10 high-speed railway lines such as Fuxia and Shenbai, providing reliable equipment support for the construction of China’s 400 km/h high-speed railways.
In recent years, CNIPA has acted as a bridge for innovation, conducting a comprehensive survey of 1.349 million existing patents in universities and research institutions nationwide and organizing more than 16,000 various docking activities. By the end of September, nearly 60,000 valid invention patents from universities and research institutions had been industrialized.
At this year’s Patent Fair, more than 50 cutting-edge patented technologies from universities and research institutions across the country sought cooperation opportunities on-site. Multiple projects, including Dalian University of Technology’s intelligent jellyfish fishing operation platform technology and application service project, reached intentional cooperation agreements with relevant enterprises on-site.
It is reported that since its establishment in 2002, the cumulative transaction volume of the Patent Fair has exceeded 10 billion yuan. "We will continue to make great efforts to revitalize existing patents, do our utmost to optimize incremental patents, implement precise policies and targeted breakthroughs, and further promote the commercialization and application of patents."