Company patents
NIDEC CORPORATION
NIDEC CORPORATION's patent strategy shows a surprising shift away from its core "Electric Motors & Generators" category, which constitutes 54.2% of its portfolio but has seen a significant decline of -74.3% so far in 2026. While categories like "Pumps (Centrifugal)" and "Motor Control" previously showed strong growth, the overall trend across most categories, including "Gearing & Transmissions" (YoY -100.0% in 2026) and "Vehicle Powertrain Arrangement" (YoY -75.0% in 2026), indicates a broad and rapid reduction in patenting activity across its traditional and emerging areas.
Patent Trend by Technology Area
Yearly patent publications since 2023
Product themes
Product-level themes inferred from filings since 2023, with category chips showing where each theme appears. Select a theme to filter the patents below.
650 US filings (since 2023) · 12 categories · 31 themes
Development of novel motor architectures beyond traditional radial flux designs, including linear, axial, or multi-armature configurations, often to optimize for specific performance characteristics like torque density or form factor.
Manufacturing processes and techniques for producing stator cores, windings, and coils, including lamination, impregnation, hairpin winding, and segment coil bending, to improve motor efficiency, power density, or reliability.
Addresses the design and arrangement of electric motors, transmissions, and associated power electronics (like inverters) to form integrated drive units for hybrid or electric vehicles, including specific components like busbars and electric brakes.
Integration of electric motors into larger systems (e.g., vehicles, power tools) and safety features for high-voltage components, including control interfaces, mechanical integration, and environmental protection (e.g., waterproofing).
Methods and components for converting power into mechanical motion to drive pump mechanisms, encompassing electric motors, hydraulic actuators, and specialized motion converters like ball screws or solenoids.
Novel designs and configurations for heat exchangers that improve heat transfer efficiency, compactness, or enable specific phase change or separation processes within refrigeration and heat pump cycles.
Heat transfer devices that utilize the phase change of a working fluid (evaporation and condensation) to efficiently move heat, often incorporating capillary structures, heat pipes, or vapor chambers.
Techniques and structures within heat exchangers designed to enhance heat transfer efficiency by controlling and optimizing fluid flow, including baffle arrangements, jet impingement, and condensate management.
Methods and circuits for controlling the power electronic converters (inverters, bridges) that supply current and voltage to electric motors, including switching strategies, voltage command generation, and multi-phase configurations.
Electronic, hydraulic, or steer-by-wire systems that precisely control vehicle direction, often incorporating feedback loops, compensation, and adaptation for various driving conditions or vehicle types.
Focuses on optimizing the geometry, structure, and internal flow channels of impellers, blades, and housings to improve fluid dynamics, efficiency, or specific performance characteristics of centrifugal pumps and fans.
Pumps and blowers specifically adapted or designed for unique fluid types, challenging environments, or particular industrial, medical, or consumer applications, often involving debris, specific gas mixtures, or precise delivery requirements.
Sophisticated software or hardware-implemented control strategies that optimize motor performance, such as precise speed/torque regulation, vibration reduction, or efficiency, often using model-based, predictive, or adaptive techniques.
Mechanisms and control systems for precise movement of optical lens elements, often for autofocus, zoom, or image stabilization, utilizing various driving principles (e.g., piezoelectric) and low-friction components.
Integrated solutions for dissipating heat generated by high-density semiconductor devices within the package, including embedded cooling structures, cold plates, and optimized fluidic channels.
Systems and methods for monitoring, regulating, and diagnosing the performance and health of pumps and fans, including speed control, flow rate management, abnormality detection, and safety mechanisms like overspeed safeguards.
Mechanical structures and devices designed to support, stabilize, or mount cameras and related photographic equipment, often featuring quick-release mechanisms, damping, or adjustable components.
Techniques for determining the rotor position, speed, or other operational parameters of an electric motor without dedicated physical sensors, often relying on back-EMF, current, or voltage measurements.
Innovations in the mechanical and electromagnetic design of read/write heads, sliders, suspension assemblies, and actuator systems for hard disk drives, focusing on precision, stability, and data integrity.
Design and optimization of fin structures, baffles, and surface textures within heat exchangers to increase heat transfer area, promote turbulence, or manage fluid flow for improved thermal performance.
Designs and components for efficiently supplying, collecting, and managing lubricants (oil, grease) within gearboxes and transmissions to reduce friction, dissipate heat, and extend component operational life.
Technologies for safely and efficiently connecting, stabilizing, and maneuvering trailers, including hitch mechanisms, load sensing, and trailer-specific steering or stabilization.
Strategies and circuits for optimizing the supply and consumption of electrical power for motors, including current limiting, regenerative energy handling, battery integration, and managing power quality.
Development of sophisticated optical lens assemblies and computational methods to achieve high-resolution, precise, or specialized imaging, often for medical or scientific applications.
Methods and systems for identifying anomalies, failures, or impending issues within electric motors or their associated drive and power management circuits, often by monitoring electrical or operational parameters.
Novel configurations and materials for gears and drivetrain components, including specialized profiles, self-aligning features, damping elements, and complex gear train arrangements like planetary, cycloidal, or strain wave gearing.
Mechanisms that convert rotational input (typically from an electric motor) into precise linear output motion, often employing screw-nut assemblies, ball screws, or cam-follower systems for various applications.
Methods and structures for integrating and enclosing electronic components into compact, multi-functional modules, often involving embedded components, multi-layer substrates, and electromagnetic shielding for performance and miniaturization.
Manufacturing processes and material compositions for creating electronic circuits on flexible or conformable substrates, enabling novel form factors, enhanced durability, and new applications beyond rigid PCBs.
Methods and materials used to construct robust and protective enclosures for electronic devices, focusing on structural integrity, impact resistance, thermal dissipation, and specialized material properties for enhanced durability.
Systems and components for projecting images, including light sources (e.g., laser), optical modulation elements (e.g., metasurfaces, spatial modulators), and optical paths for generating and displaying images.
Patents
Showing 1-10 of 74
Internal Flow Path Optimization