Qingdao has achieved an impressive feat in the latest iteration of the China Patent Awards, securing 17 accolades despite a more selective national selection process.

The 26th China Patent Award results, released by the National Intellectual Property Administration, saw Qingdao-based enterprises and institutions shine brightly. Their haul includes one Gold Award, three Silver Awards, and thirteen Awards of Excellence, spanning critical technology sectors like smart home appliances, marine equipment, and advanced manufacturing. According to the Municipal Market Supervision Administration, Qingdao's winning projects account for roughly 40% of the provincial total, solidifying its leading position.

Co-hosted by the National Intellectual Property Administration and the World Intellectual Property Organization, the China Patent Award stands as the nation's highest government honor in the patent field. This year, 697 projects received awards nationwide, comprising 30 Gold, 59 Silver, and 535 Excellence Awards for patents, alongside 10 Gold, 15 Silver, and 48 Excellence Awards for industrial designs. The overall number of awards dropped by 75 compared to the previous cycle, reflecting a higher bar for recognition. Against this backdrop of an increasingly rigorous evaluation, Qingdao not only bucked the trend with a greater number of wins but also enhanced the quality of its patented technologies.

The true value of a patent lies not just in its technical sophistication, but also in how well it aligns with industrial development. Among the 17 awards secured by Qingdao, the single Gold and three Silver recognitions all originate from the city's dominant sectors, including intelligent manufacturing, virtual reality, and smart home appliances. Qingdao Haigao Design & Manufacturing Co., Ltd. and Haier Smart Home Co., Ltd. claimed the China Industrial Design Gold Award for their "Air Conditioning Cabinet Unit" patent. Goertek Inc. received a China Patent Silver Award for its "Head-Mounted Display Device and Data Acquisition Method, Apparatus, and Host Thereof." Additionally, Hisense Refrigerator Co., Ltd. earned a Design Silver Award for its "Washing Machine" patent, while a joint effort between Qingdao Haigao Design & Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Qingdao Haier Smart Life Electric Appliance Co., Ltd., and Haier Smart Home Co., Ltd. earned a similar honor for a "Clothes Steamer" patent.

The smart home appliance cluster in Qingdao continues to lead the pack. Industry giants like Haier and Hisense delivered outstanding performances in this year's selection. Beyond the top honors, several other notable projects received Awards of Excellence. These include the "Unidirectional Flow Divider and Variable Flow Heat Exchanger" by Qingdao Haier Air Conditioner General Corp., Ltd. and Qingdao Haier Air-Conditioning Electric Co., Ltd., the "Condenser for Drying Device and the Drying Device Itself" by Qingdao Haier Washing Machine Co., Ltd., and the "Refrigerator" patent jointly filed by Hisense Ronshen (Guangdong) Refrigerator Co., Ltd. and Hisense Refrigerator Co., Ltd. In recent years, this industrial cluster has consistently generated high-value patents, with many results successfully transitioned into commercial products, providing solid technical support for Qingdao's ambition to build a world-class smart home appliance hub.

This year's winning projects clearly reflect Qingdao's distinctive industrial characteristics. For instance, a joint application from Ocean University of China and Qingdao Guoke Marine Environmental Engineering Technology Co., Ltd. for an "Environmental Monitoring Device for Deep-Sea Polymetallic Nodule Mining Sediments" won an Excellence Award. The Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences was also recognized for its "High-Branched Iron-Based Conjugated Diene Polymer and Preparation Method Thereof." Furthermore, a collaborative submission from China University of Petroleum (East China), Ocean University of China, and other entities, concerning "Intelligent Operation and Maintenance Optimization Methods and Systems for Subsea Oil Production Systems," also garnered an Excellence Award. These projects span specialty fields like marine engineering equipment, marine monitoring technology, and bioenergy, fully demonstrating Qingdao's innovative strength in ocean-focused strategies and green, low-carbon development.

Since the 20th China Patent Award cycle, Qingdao has amassed a total of 12 Gold Awards, 11 Silver Awards, and 123 Awards of Excellence, culminating in 146 wins that account for approximately 40% of the provincial figure. This sustained success is attributed to the continuous optimization of the city's high-value patent cultivation system and innovation ecosystem. In recent years, Qingdao has intensified its efforts in building a comprehensive intellectual property framework spanning creation, protection, and application. It has established provincial-level high-value patent cultivation centers at six local universities, including Ocean University of China, and has guided 14 key universities and research institutes to implement pre-filing evaluation mechanisms for patent applications.

Furthermore, the city operates a national-level intellectual property protection center at a high standard, maintaining a patent pre-examination authorization rate steadily above 90%. As of July this year, Qingdao saw 9,021 new invention patent grants, a year-on-year increase of 24.2%, bringing its total active invention patents to 101,700, both figures ranking first in the province. Additionally, the city filed 528 PCT international patent applications, representing 54% of the province's total. Looking ahead, Qingdao plans to broaden the reach of its high-value patent cultivation centers, promote greater open licensing and public implementation of university-held patents, and launch initiatives to expand and strengthen the base of specialized and innovative entities. The city will also leverage its national-level intellectual property protection center to accelerate the protection of innovative outcomes and deepen financial support for intellectual property through measures like expanding and improving pledge financing.