Apple Has Applied for 248 Car-Related Patents Since 2000

[MacRumors]

Apple has filed for and published a total 248 automobile-related patents since 2000, according to research conducted by Japanese news site Nikkei and Tokyo analytics firm Intellectual Property Landscape.

Patents cover self-driving technology, riding comfort, seats, suspensions, navigation, battery management, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) connectivity for car-to-car communication, and more. Apple has filed the most patents related to communication and navigation, followed by autonomous driving.

After Apple submits a patent application, it takes around 18 months for it to be published. Apple has so far had eight car-related patents published from 2021, but additional patents should be granted later this year, and the number of 2021 patents published is expected to exceed the number of patents Apple had published in 2020.

Car-related patent filings began picking up in 2016 after fewer than 10 per year in the 2010s, with Apple filing for 44. Patent filings ticked up even further in 2017, when Apple filed for a record 66 applications.

News of Apple's work on some kind of self-driving vehicle first surfaced in 2014, and since then, we've heard regular rumors about Apple's progress. The work on the car has shifted several times and there were moments when it looked like a full car was not going to happen, but in recent years, changes to the project indicate Apple is indeed pushing for some kind of electric autonomous vehicle to be released by the end of the decade.

Apple has been speaking with various vehicle manufacturers and part suppliers for the last couple years, but it is still not clear who exactly Apple plans to partner with (if any company) for its electric vehicle. Apple's many patents related to windows, seats, suspension, and other physical car components reinforce speculation that Apple is going to release a car rather than simply focus on autonomous driving software.

Recent rumors indicate that Apple has ambitious plans for its self-driving vehicle, with the aim of changing the car market the way the iPhone changed the smartphone market. Apple is exploring a design with four seats that face inward, with no steering wheel or brake pedal.

There is no word on when the Apple Car will be launching, but reliable sources like Bloomberg's Mark Gurman and Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo have suggested that Apple is aiming for a 2025 release.

Article Link: Apple Has Applied for 248 Car-Related Patents Since 2000

 

[DBZmusicboy01]

That early? 😳

 

[SD449]

"We've patented the hell out of it"
- Steve Jobs Jan 2007

That rounded rectangles patent could come in handy for the wheels…

 

[vercordio]

250 patents and 0 products. That’s some Grade A patent trolling

 

[jz0309]

at that rate - Apple car to be released 2037 ... sounds about right

 

[Slix]

People apparently seem to forget that Apple had partnerships with a dozen or so iPod+car manufacturers in the mid 2000’s, and now have a bunch of CarPlay functionality partnerships with a bunch of car makers too. I still think the Apple Car rumor was just the CarPlay stuff and people let themselves get disappointed cuz Apple didn’t deliver on a promise they never promised.

 

[jz0309]

but reliable sources like Bloomberg's Mark Gurman and Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo have suggested that Apple is aiming for a 2025 release.
ain't happening ...

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

22+ years later and it's still not here. Not nowhere near completion. That's just insane.

Instead of focusing on the hardware. Apple should have focused on the software for the vehicles a long time ago. Things would have been different by now.

Is Apple developing a flying car?

 

[jz0309]

People apparently seem to forget that Apple had partnerships with a dozen or so iPod+car manufacturers in the mid 2000’s, and now have a bunch of CarPlay functionality partnerships with a bunch of car makers too. I still think the Apple Car rumor was just the CarPlay stuff and people let themselves get disappointed cuz Apple didn’t deliver on a promise they never promised.

yup, I plugged my iPod into my 2005 BMW in lieu of a CD changer, I'm sure there was at least 1 patent involved ...

 

[ghanwani]

This means nothing other than that there were some people being paid to think about cars.

 

[jz0309]

22+ years later and it's still not here. Not nowhere near completion. That's just insane.

Instead of focusing on the hardware. Apple should have focused on the software for the vehicles a long time ago. Things would have been different by now.

Is Apple developing a flying car?

remember the Jetsons

 

[BornAgainMac]

Yep, Apple is getting into the Patent Troll business.

 

[dannyyankou]

That early? 😳

Yes. iPod car integration.

 

[Karma*Police]

This is what happens when there is no leadership and/or vision. Constant management turnover is all we’ve heard.

Whatever they put out, if ever, my guess is it will be a Frankenstein of a machine because it will have been built by a committee, not driven by a singular vision… sort of like Apple Music and Apple Watch when they launched, except Apple might not get a second or third chance with cars.

 

[chrisdazzo]

Sigh. Apple is not building a car - they're building car technologies they can license out, like the fully-integrated Carplay functionality demoed at WWDC '22. But, I guess stuff like this continues to get clicks despite words like "suggested" and "aiming to", which I'm sure we're all familiar with from a great many Cybertruck-related articles... curious.

 

[Danoc]

That's a paltry number that confirms to me that there won't be an Apple car. That's a rumour as strong as an Apple TV set.

 

[ArrayDecay]

I predict that...Apple makes a car.

Remember, you heard it here first!

 

[BobSc]

I'm so excited about this. I've already carved out a space for my Apple car in my garage.

 

[lostPod]

I still just cant imagine seeing a white EV driving down the street with a big apple logo on the back haha. I guess its the same as Mitsubishi haha

 

[Ludatyk]

Instead of focusing on the hardware. Apple should have focused on the software for the vehicles a long time ago. Things would have been different by now.

Problem with that… is car manufacturers isn’t willing to give up their entire software to Apple. It was bold of Apple to introduce this latest Car Play concept… because I’ve yet to see any news of car manufacturers willing to embrace it fully.

 

[Analog Kid]

250 patents is not a foundation to build a product on. If that's all they have in the pipe, then they're dabbling.

There's ways to delay public disclosure of an application for quite a while, so it's possible there are more percolating through the system, but this is nothing for a company of Apple's size in a market this competitive.


Anybody know how many patents Apple files annually in other areas? I don't know if these are accurate:
https://www.statista.com/statistics...-patents-by-filing-year-and-status-worldwide/
https://www.ificlaims.com/rankings-top-50-2021.htm

 

[AltJ]

Problem with that… is car manufacturers isn’t willing to give up their entire software to Apple. It was bold of Apple to introduce this latest Car Play concept… because I’ve yet to see any news of car manufacturers willing to embrace it fully.

Now that Apple put out the demo, consumers have heard about it and they can vote with their dollars and hound car makers to implement.

 

[one more]

Instead of focusing on the hardware. Apple should have focused on the software for the vehicles a long time ago. Things would have been different by now.

Considering Apple’s “New CarPlay” announcement at WWDC22, perhaps this is exactly what they are doing, promising first cars supporting it “in late 2023”. Time will tell…

 

[macduke]

I stopped caring about the Apple Car. Have you guys seen car prices lately? No way this thing will be less than $150K. 98% of people won't be able to afford this thing. Therefore I no longer care. As far as I'm concerned they may as well be releasing a new yacht.

 

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

The patents will have expired by the time this thing releases, gwahaha!