An HVAC company wanted to identify high-value areas within the industry where it could invest and pursue future research.
The scope had two restrictions. The client only wanted hotspots within its geography. It also wanted to identify new innovations it could consider while approaching each category.
Most consulting firms identify hotspots by analyzing either patent activity or market activity. GreyB used a multidimensional approach to validate whether the recommended areas were actual hotspots.
The HVAC Industry Was Divided Into Specific Technology Nodes
The team created a bucketing framework to segregate different aspects of an HVAC system, including product type, components, and control systems. Each category was further bifurcated to pinpoint where the true opportunity lay.
The technology categories included:
- Whole-house air AI system: Adaptive AI and zone conditioning
- Sensors: Precision sensors and occupancy sensors
- Purification and sterilization: Odor elimination and microbial disinfection
- Carbon dioxide removal and oxygenation: Membrane-based COâ‚‚ separation and oxygen enrichment systems
These categories gave the client a structured view of the different technical directions available across the HVAC industry.
Eight Patent Metrics and Market Signals Validated Each Technology Node
Each technology node was evaluated using parameters specific to the client’s geography. The assessment combined patent data with available market literature.
The patent assessment covered:
- Overall patenting activity in the client’s geography
- Percentage of patents in the client’s geography for a particular node compared with the global number
- Share of patents originating within the client’s geography
- CAGR of patent filings
- Assignee density for innovations originating within the client’s geography
- Assignee density for innovations filed within the client’s geography
- Filings from academia within the client’s geography
- Filings from companies within the client’s geography
Assignee density helped determine whether innovation within a technology node was driven by one company or multiple entities.
Market activity was assessed by examining new product launches around each technology, the specific innovations being patented and protected, and related market signals.
Product Launches, Patents, and Collaborations Supported AI-Driven Cooling
Market evidence helped determine whether technology activity was translating into relevant products, protected innovations, and industry collaborations.
The top five patent filers identified for the assessed domain were:
- Mitsubishi: 77 patents
- Daikin: 69 patents
- Toyota: 50 patents
- Panasonic: 37 patents
- Fujitsu: 26 patents
The findings highlighted emerging research opportunities in AI-driven air conditioning within the client’s geographic area. The domain focused on energy optimization and adaptive cooling while aligning with sustainability trends and market needs.
By combining patent activity with market validation, the team recommended actual hotspot areas that showed increased patent filing activity as well as market activity.
This enabled the client to make a calculated entry into specific technology areas and assess whether entering a particular domain would be beneficial.
How Can HVAC Companies Identify Technology Hotspots Worth Entering?
HVAC companies should first divide the industry into specific technology nodes. A reliable HVAC technology landscape should then compare geography-specific patent activity, global patent share, innovation origin, filing growth, assignee density, academic participation, company filings, product launches, and market signals.
GreyB uses technology analysis to structure complex domains and compare the strength of different technical directions.
Patent activity can be examined through patent landscape analysis. Market evidence can be validated through strategic market research.
Together, these assessments help R&D and strategy teams move from broad research and patent noise to validated technology areas for investment and future research.
Fill out the form below and connect with our expert today.
Want to Identify HVAC And Similar Technologies Hotspots And Major Players?
Fill out the form below to talk to our experts​
