More and more patent applications for air cabs are coming from Germany

Start-ups like Lilium and Volocopter are leading the way: Urban air mobility is becoming increasingly important in Germany. This is also shown by a special analysis by the German Patent and Trade Mark Office.

Urban air mobility is becoming an increasingly important business area for German companies: From 2015 to 2020, 319 of a total of 1939 patent applications for air cabs came from Germany. This corresponds to 16.5 percent of all applications for the German market at the German Patent and Trade Mark Office (DPMA) and the European Patent Office. The figures are taken from a special analysis by the DPMA, which the Handelsblatt reported.

With a share of 42.2 percent, US companies currently still hold the most patents for inventions relating to air transportation with effect in Germany. Last year, however, American patent applications fell by 1.3 percent. In Germany, on the other hand, the sector boomed between 2019 and 2020: the patent office recorded an increase of 102.4%, with a total of 121 applications received. China was in third place last year with a total of 43 applications with an impact on the German market.

Most inventions are in energy supply systems for urban aircraft and additional wings. "We estimate that there will be up to 160,000 commercial air cabs in the air by 2050," Roland Berger partner Manfred Hader told Handelsblatt.