Patent Landscape Report on Oil and Gas

Transcription

1 Patent Landscape Report on Oil and Gas April 2015 Pramitha K. Prakash, Analytics Group Manager, USA Samuel Davis, Director or Business Development 1

2 Executive Summary The adoption of new technologies by the Oil and Gas (O&G) industry is not often talked about, but in reality O&G companies allocate a lot of funding to innovative technologies that help them work smarter. The O&G industry has been inventing new technologies since the 19 th century, and it will continue to innovate to adapt to changing circumstances and to produce technologies to fight against challenges that are caused by external factors. The three main challenges that are being faced by O&G companies are: 1. Lack of skilled labor 2. Mitigating risks when operating in remote and hostile environments 3. Reducing the operating cost and time to remain profitable The solution to these challenges being faced by O&G companies is to identify disruptive solutions, maybe including borrowed technologies from other sectors such as big data and analytics, Internet of Things (IoT,) use of micro-organisms to stay environment-friendly. In 2015 and beyond, there will be a lot of collaborative effort among O&G companies. O&G companies might collaborate with each other more than they have in the past; some companies may also fund start-ups to innovate in disruptive solutions tailored for O&G industry. There might also be collaboration between companies and some specialty universities. Technology companies will also play a major role in shaping the industry by making the oilfield more digitized, by connecting different components of the value chain in a smarter way, and by enabling O&G companies to fight security challenges. 2

3 Introduction The oil and gas industry has been employing traditional and well-tested technologies in its processes. However, there have recently been some changes in this trend, with the major oil and gas companies collaborating with other industries and acquiring technology-based companies to introduce parallel technologies in their processes. This report analyzes these changes, using patenting trends to relate to technological advancements in the industry. 3

4 Companies in this Study Nalco LyondellBasell Enhanced Drilling Sandbox Logistics Exxon Mobil Chevron Corporation Phillips 66 Petronas FMC Technologies Statoil Schlumberger Shell Transocean British Petroleum National Oilwell Varco Westlake Kinder Morgan AGR Baker Hughes Conoco Phillips Halliburton Koch Industries Managed Pressure Operations (MHWirth) Team Oil Tools KBR Marathon Oil Total Stena Drilling Apache Corporation Univation Technologies Anadarko Celanese General Electric Air Liquide Aker Solutions M-I Swaco (Schlumberger) Weatherford Safekick Blade Energy Partners Cameron International 4

5 Number of Patent Families Overall Filing Trend Filing Trend - Priority Year Hydraulic fracturing started to be widely utilized in US after Shale Oil Extraction increased significantly in US during this period. Hydraulic fracturing was used Energy Policy Act passed in 2005, which authorized loan guarantees for new environment friendly technology development. 5

6 Overall Filing Trend Top 10 countries (priority filings) vs Priority Year US EP FR GB WO JP DE NO CN AU Filings from BP, Schlumberger declined around Filings from AirLiquide, Total increased till around 2010, then declined. Filings from BP, Schlumberger declined around Filings from AirLiquide, Total increased around BP, Weatherford reduced their first filings in GB drastically in late 1990s. Schlumberger followed after Shell, BP, Exxon increased their filings significantly

7 Domain Distribution - Overall The Patent documents were then organized in three main domains using the International Patent Classification (IPC) codes: Oil and Gas: to identify patents that disclosed traditional technologies used in Oil and Gas industry General: to identify patents that disclosed technologies that are used in many other industries, including the Oil and Gas industry Disruptive Technologies: to identify patents that disclosed new technologies that were not used in the Oil and Gas industries before, but may have been used in other industries If a patent document had classes categorized in two or more of the three domains, the following priority order was followed to identify the domain of the patent: Disruptive Technologies > Oil and Gas > General 7

8 Number of Patent Families Domain Distribution - Overall 2500 Schlumberger, Halliburton, Baker Hughes, Shell are actively innovating in traditional O&G technologies, whereas Exxon and Weatherford have recently reduced the number of filings Shell, Air Liquide, BP, Celanese are top filers in technologies that are used in both O&G and other sectors. However, both Shell and Air Liquide are reducing the total number of filings in the recent years starting Oil & Gas General Technologies Disruptive Technologies Filings by Oil and Gas companies in Disruptive Technologies have been increasing steadily since Shell and Schlumberger have been quite active in contributing to this trend. 8

9 Number of Patent Families Domain Distribution - Overall Schlumberger, Halliburton, Baker Hughes, Shell are actively innovating in traditional O&G technologies. Whereas Exxon and Weatherford have recently reduced the number of filings. There is definitely a need in the current situation to save cost and time. Reducing the total number of filings by strategically selecting technology areas that absolutely need patent coverage -- in other words creating a strategy for keep v. abandon decision making -- is crucial. Shell, Air Liquide, BP, Celanese are top filers in technologies that are used in both O&G and other sectors. However, both Shell and Air Liquide are reducing the total number of filings in the recent years starting Oil & Gas General Technologies Disruptive Technologies To identify top technologies that are trending, we did some deep-dive analysis and the results will be discussed in next slides. Filings by Oil and Gas companies in Disruptive Technologies have been increasing steadily since Shell and Schlumberger have been quite active in contributing to this trend. 9

10 Domain Distribution Oil and Gas There have been many improvements in Oil and Gas technologies. From drilling to refining processes, pipelines and geophysical analysis, the Oil and Gas companies have been active in many technologies. The following Oil and Gas technologies were identified as the main technologies in this space: Drilling Geophysics Processing or refining Separating/Mixing Fuels Lubricating Compounds Liquification of Gases Vessels Valves/Pipes Soil Moving Machines Oil & Gas General Technologies Disruptive Technologies 10

11 Domain Distribution Oil and Gas Separating/Mixi ng, 2127 Processing or refining, 2370 Geophysics, 3047 Lubricating Compounds, 758 Fuels, 777 Liquification of Gases, 698 Vessels, 480 Valves/Pipes, 119 Soil Moving Machines, 4 Drilling, Description of main categories: Drilling includes directional drilling, hydraulic drilling, compositions used while drilling Geophysics includes seismology, magnetic, gravitational and electric field measurement Processing or Refining includes breaking and processing of hydrocarbons by destructive hydrogenation, oligomerisation, polymerization Separating/Mixing includes separating and mixing methods for solids or liquids from/with each other Fuels includes production and treatment of solid, liquid and gaseous fuels 11

12 Domain Distribution Oil and Gas Main technologies: survey of bore wells, equipment used in bore wells, directional drilling, hydraulic drilling Drilling Geophysics Processing or refining Separating/Mixing Fuels Lubricating Compounds Liquification of Gases Vessels Valves/Pipes Schlumberger has more patents in Geophysics than other top 10 companies combined Shell and Exxon are closely competing as top filers. Based on the number of patent filings, Exxon was very active during late 1990s Air Liquide has been consistently filing in this category. Shell has increased its filing almost every year since 1998, and patent filings of General Electric have been sharply increasing during Soil Moving Machines Note: Patents taking priority from 2013 and 2014 may have not been published yet. Thus, the count for these two years may not be complete 12

13 Domain Distribution Oil and Gas With advancements in communication and Main technologies: survey of bore wells, computing technologies, several of these equipment used in bore wells, directional drilling, traditional processes can be replaced using hydraulic drilling robotics and IoT. There is a two-fold benefit in investigating this avenue because: This 709 will 752 reduce the 1128 amount of skilled human labor required; 2. This will reduce the cost by mitigating risk when operating in harsh environments Drilling Geophysics Processing or refining Separating/Mixing Fuels Lubricating Compounds Liquification of Gases Vessels Valves/Pipes Schlumberger has more patents in Geophysics than other top 10 companies combined Shell and Exxon are closely competing as top filers. Based on the number of patent filings, Exxon was very active during late 1990s Air Liquide has been consistently filing in this category. Shell has increased its filing almost every year since 1998, and patent filings of General Electric have been sharply increasing during Soil Moving Machines Note: Patents taking priority from 2013 and 2014 may have not been published yet. Thus, the count for these two years may not be complete 13

14 Domain Distribution General Technologies The filings in General Technologies have not been very consistent. The filings were decreasing during the early 2000s, but improved slightly during This rising-filing trend repeated during and The following technologies were identified as the main technologies in this space: Chemical Processes Organic Compounds Inorganic Compounds Storage and Transportation Chemical Catalysts Materials Medical Measurements Oil & Gas General Technologies Disruptive Technologies 14

15 Domain Distribution General Waterborne Vessels, 1063 Pumps, 1186 Measurements, 1762 Chemical Compounds, 1843 Storage and Transportation, 2421 Fuel Combustion, 602 Control Systems, 674 Separating/Mixi ng, 1088 Semiconductor Devices, 1643 Inorganic Compounds, 2790 Valves/Pipes, 2830 Others, 2278 Chemical Processes, Materials, 4377 Chemical Catalysts, Organic Compounds, Description of main categories: Chemical Processes Processes to obtain certain compositions (mostly hydrocarbons, or tar, pitch) Organic Compounds Organic compounds that may be cyclic, acyclic or other types Chemical Catalysts that may be used in oil and gas industry Materials Analysis of materials by sampling, measuring properties like strength, viscosity, weight, resistance to corrosion 15

16 Domain Distribution General Chemical Processes Organic Compounds Chemical Catalysts Materials Valves/Pipes Food, Medical Measuring physical qualities Inorganic Compounds Storage and Transportation Medical Semiconductor Devices Chemical Compounds Pumps Welding/Soldering Water-borne Vessels Others Note: Patents taking priority from 2013 and 2014 may have not been published yet. Thus, the count for these two years may not be complete 16

17 Domain Distribution - Disruptive The Oil and Gas industry has shown an increased interest in disruptive technologies. The new technologies have made many processes efficient and profitable for these companies. For example, technologies like tele-video are being incorporated more with time. The following technologies were identified as the main technologies in this space: Data Processing Internet of Things (IOT) Communication Water Treatment Enzyme or Macro-organisms Nanoparticle Additives Video/Phone Oil & Gas General Technologies Disruptive Technologies 17

18 Domain Distribution - Disruptive Enzyme or Macroorganisms, 144 Water Treatment, 234 Communication, 276 Nanoparticle Additives, 116 Internet of Things, 566 Video/Phone, 76 Data Processing, 1407 Description of main categories: Data Processing includes analysis of data received from fields, computing methods used Internet of Things includes device-to-device communication, robotics, remote actuators Communication includes networking aspects Water Treatment includes treatment of waste water after it has been used in oil extraction process 18

19 Domain Distribution - Disruptive As the digitization of oil fields is increasing, this category is increasing since Schlumberger has most patents, with almost four times the filings than any of the other top competitors Data Processing IOT Communication Schlumberger leads this category as well, with more than two times the filing of closest competitor - Halliburton Water Treatment Enzyme or Macroorganisms Nanoparticle Additives Video/Phone Shell, BP and Koch are leading this category Shell has been leading this category. It has filed 60% of its patents from 2010 onwards Note: Patents taking priority from 2013 and 2014 may have not been published yet. Thus, the count for these two years may not be complete 19

20 Domain Distribution - Disruptive As the digitization of oil fields is increasing, this category is increasing since Schlumberger has most patents, with almost four times the filings than any of the other top competitors Data Processing Why are companies like Schlumberger, BP, Shell etc., investing in these technologies? We did some market research and analysis to know more, and here is what we found. IOT Communication Water Treatment Enzyme or Macroorganisms Nanoparticle Additives Video/Phone Schlumberger leads this category as well, with more than two times the filing of closest competitor - Halliburton Shell, BP and Koch are leading this category Shell has been leading this category. It has filed 60% of its patents from 2010 onwards Note: Patents taking priority from 2013 and 2014 may have not been published yet. Thus, the count for these two years may not be complete 20

21 We did some market investigation, and here is what we found: Our analysis on patent filing trend supports this: 21

22 Internet of Things - Introduction 22

23 Number of Patent Families IoT - Filing Trend Smart grid is an example of a recent technology that gained popularity pretty quickly. The peak in 2012 in the filing trend of IoT in O&G is an indicator that this technology could be the next big thing just like smart grid Source: Filing Trend Top 12 Companies - Technology v. Oil and Gas General global trend in IoT patent filing Source: Oil and Gas Technology Note: Patents taking priority from 2013 and 2014 may have not been published yet. Thus, the count for these two years may not be complete 23

24 IoT Top Companies identified Oil and Gas Company Technology Company AnSys DT Mobile PTC Telit Baker Hughes Halliburton CNPC Weatherford Schlumberger Oil and Gas Companies Rockwell Automation IBM Technology Companies SAP Microsoft Cisco General Electric Accenture Legend: A B A is Customer of B A B A and B are Collaborating A B A and B have a Joint Venture Shell Conoco Phillips Energy Technology Ventures NRG 24

25 IoT Major contributors Technology v. Oil and Gas Companies Top 12 Technology Companies This chart shows the patent filing distribution between the top 12 Oil and Gas companies and the top 12 technology companies. Clearly, the Oil and Gas companies have a lot of patents in the IoT field, and the technology companies have good share of their patents with applications in the oil and gas industry. Technology, 574 Oil and Gas, 1358 Top 12 Oil and Gas Companies The filings for the technology companies reflect only the patent documents that specifically mention use of the technology in Oil and Gas industry. Such documents may be even classified in Oil and Gas patent classes. However, the actual number of IoTrelated patents for these companies may be much bigger. There might be patents that may be applicable in Oil and Gas industry but do not mention specific applications Top 12 Technology companies Cisco, Honeywell have specific IoT hardware and software solutions for the Oil and Gas industry Microsoft, IBM have software-based IOT solutions for the Oil and Gas industry Microsoft, 111 Cisco, 95 IBM, 197 GE, 36 Accenture, 33 SAP, 25 Renault, 18 Siemens, 14 Airbus, 12 Xact Inc, 12 Honeywell, 10 General Electric, 11 Top 12 Oil and Gas companies Schlumberger, Halliburton and Baker Hughes have been focusing on IoT implementation, and thus have a lot of patents Halliburton, 297 Schlumberger, 510 Chinese companies like CNPC, Sinopec have recently entered the IoT patent space and are gaining in patent strength. Baker Hughes, 174 CNPC, 104 Weatherford, 55 Rockwell, 46 Shell, 44 Cameron, 27 Chevron, 26 Evolution Engineering, 25 Sinopec, 22 BP, 28 25

26 IoT Major contributors Top 12 Technology companies Top 12 Technology Companies This chart shows the patent filing distribution between the top 12 Oil and Gas companies and the top 12 technology companies. Clearly, the Oil and Gas companies have a lot of patents in the IoT field, and the technology companies have good share of their patents with applications in the oil and gas industry. Baker and more digitized. Top 12 Oil and Gas companies Hughes, 174 Cisco, 2. If there are any off the shelf products GE, 36 that these technology companies offer such as an analytics module Honeywell have CNPC, 104 Cisco, 95 Schlumberger, specific IoT etc., O&G companies save a lot of upfront Accenture, investment 33 in terms of both cost and time which is critical in Halliburton and Weatherford, hardware and today s scenario. Baker Hughes 55 software 3. These technology companies are early have been solutions for SAP, implementers 25 of this technology compared to O&G companies focusing on IoT Rockwell, and 46 the Oil and the Gas innovation cycle in IoT is shorter for Renault, these technology 18 implementation, comapnies. Microsoft, 111 Halliburton, industry and thus have a Shell, Siemens, 14 BP, 28 lot of patents Airbus, 12 Cameron, 27 Microsoft, IBM have software-based IOT solutions for the Oil and Gas industry IBM, 197 Technology v. Oil and Gas Companies Technology, 574 Xact Inc, 12 Honeywell, 10 General Electric, 11 Oil and Gas, 1358 Top 12 Oil and Gas Companies Schlumberger, 510 Chinese companies like CNPC, Sinopec have recently entered the IoT patent space and are gaining in patent strength. The filings for the technology companies reflect only the patent documents that specifically mention use of the technology in Oil and Gas industry. Such documents may be even classified in Oil and Gas patent classes. However, the actual number of IoTrelated patents for these companies may be much bigger. There might be patents that may be applicable in Oil and Gas industry but do not mention specific applications O&G companies should consider off the shelf products before investing in these technologies mainly for the following three reasons: 1. Most of the top technology companies identified are well established players and they have several tried and tested security algorithms, which is one of the many challenges that O&G industry will face as it gets more Chevron, 26 Evolution Engineering, 25 Sinopec, 22 26

27 IoT Top technologies User Interface solutions providers: Microsoft Cisco IBM Emerson Sensors solutions providers: Rockwell Automation Siemens ABB Security, 196 User Interface, 745 Security solutions providers: Microsoft Cisco IBM Sensors, 2152 Robotics, 135 Controllers, 2783 Robotics solutions providers: Alstom Liquid Robotics National Oilwell Varco Azo Robotics Controllers solutions providers: Rockwell Automation ABB Siemens Emerson 27

28 IoT Technologies in which top assignees are filing This graph shows the filing trends of the Oil and Gas companies versus the technology companies in the 5 technology areas. The filling interests of these two types of companies in the technology categories over the years can be deduced and compared from this graphic Robotics Sensors Controllers User Interface Security IBM, Cisco lead in Sensors and Controllers category Technology Companies IBM, Microsoft and Cisco lead UI and Security Robotics Sensors Controllers User Interface Security Oil and Gas Companies Halliburton filed for 15% of its patents in 2012 alone The Oil and Gas companies are focusing primarily on sensors and controllers, whereas certain technology companies are focusing equally on software solutions. Integration is possible only when collaboration takes place. 28

29 IoT Technologies in which top assignees are filing Schlumberger Halliburton Baker Hughes CNPC Weatherford Rockwell IBM In Robotics, Oil and Gas companies tend to partner with other companies like Liquid Robotics to develop technologies Robotics Sensors Controllers User Interface Security The technology companies seem to have better User Interface and collaboration techniques that the Oil and Gas companies can benefit from Microsoft Cisco GE Accenture SAP The Oil and Gas companies should collaborate with the technology companies to acquire the security technologies in IOT 29

30 IoT Entry-Exit Analysis Technology entry and exit analysis Internet of Things Row Labels Grand Total Schlumberger 510 Halliburton 297 Baker Hughes 174 CNPC 104 Weatherford 55 Rockwell 46 Shell 44 BP 28 Cameron 27 Chevron 26 Evolution Engineering 25 Sinopec 22 Precision Energy Services 20 FINANSOVAJA KOMPANIJA TS KOSMO 19 Exxon 18 CNOOC 16 BOMCO 15 National Oilwell 15 FMC 14 Complete Production Services 13 Daqing Petroleum Administrative Bureau 13 IBM 197 Microsoft 111 Cisco 95 GE 36 Accenture 33 SAP 25 Renault 18 Siemens 14 The Chinese companies CNPC, Sinopec, CNOOC and Daqing have entered late in the market, but are recently quite active This chart shows the presence of various companies in the Internet of Things for Oil and Gas technology area. The colored bars represent the time at which a particular company entered into the area and when it slowed down their activity. 30

31 Methodology Company Identification Companies active in Oil and Gas technologies were identified Other companies that aid the Oil and Gas companies were identified Patent Extraction Patents assigned to the companies identified in Company Identification step were collected from commercial patent databases Search strings specific to oil and gas technologies were used to capture patents of companies that are also active in other domains Categorization The International Patent Classification of the extracted patent set was analyzed, and categories were assigned to these patent classes The categories were then assigned to three domains: Oil and Gas, General, and Disruptive Technologies 31

32 Methodology Statistical Analysis The patenting trends of the collected and categorized patent documents were analyzed Visuals were created showing the trends, and insights were generated Disruptive Technologies The focus of the study then shifted to analysis of Disruptive Technologies The filing trends in Disruptive Technologies were studied to identify which type of disruptive technologies show interesting trends Analysis - IoT One of the Disruptive Technologies -- Internet of Things (IoT) -- was chosen for further analysis Patenting trends of Oil and Gas companies and other technology companies were identified and studied further 32

33 Citations 1. %20%20Capabilities%20Offered%20by%20the%20Internet%20of%20Things.pdf