Research and innovation in cybersecurity in the ship equipment supply, product and services sector is on the rise.
The most recent figures show that the number of patent applications in the industry stood at nine in the three months ending November – up from four over the same period last year.
Figures for patent grants related to followed a similar pattern to filings – growing from nine in the three months ending November last year to 12 this year.
The figures are compiled by GlobalData, who track patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Using textual analysis, as well as official patent classifications, these patents are grouped into key thematic areas, and linked to key companies across various industries.
is one of the key areas tracked by GlobalData. It has been identified as being a key disruptive force facing companies in the coming years, and is one of the areas that companies investing resources in now are expected to reap rewards from.
The figures also provide an insight into the largest innovators in the sector.
FedEx Corp was the top cybersecurity innovator in the ship equipment supply, product and services sector in the last quarter. The company, which has its headquarters in the United States, filed 12 related patents in the three months ending November. That was up from nine over the same period last year.
It was followed by the United States based Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd with nine patent applications, the United States based Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corp (3 applications), and China based COSCO Shipping Holdings Co Ltd (1 applications).
FedEx Corp has recently ramped up R&D in cybersecurity. It saw growth of 25% in related patent applications in the three months ending November compared to the same period last year - the highest percentage growth out of all companies tracked with more than 10 quarterly patents in the ship equipment supply, product and services sector.
