Toyota is opening up royalty-free use of about 5,680 patents related to hydrogen fuel cell development, Bob Carter, senior vice president of automotive operations at Toyota Motor Sales, USA, told the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this week.
“The list includes approximately 1,970 patents related to fuel cell stacks, 290 associated with high-pressure hydrogen tanks, 3,350 related to fuel cell system software control, and 70 patents related to hydrogen production and supply,” the company said in a release.
“The first generation hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, launched between 2015 and 2020, will be critical, requiring a concerted effort and unconventional collaboration between automakers, government regulators, academia, and energy providers,” Carter said. “By eliminating traditional corporate boundaries, we can speed the development of new technologies and move into the future of mobility more quickly, effectively, and economically.”
