Defining triadic patent families as a measure of technological strength

Abstract

A frequently used indicator for assessing technological strengths of nations are patents registered in the triad region, i.e. in North America, Europe, and Asia. Currently these so-called triadic patents are defined as filed at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the European Patent Office (EPO), and the Japanese Patent Office (JPO). Recent developments suggested that this definition might lack adequacy regarding the offices in Europe and Asia. Our findings propose that in particular Germany and China should be added to this triad definition since in some technology fields patents registered in these countries show the same citation impact as patents registered at the EPO or JPO. Our results also underline that the number of triadic patent families per country is a function of technological specialization and (national) patenting strategies.