It's Patently Obvious: Green Energy R&D Is Taking Off

Forget greed. It's green that is good. And by recent reports, things are continuing to just get better for the burgeoning green energy market.

SustainableBusiness.com reports that the number of U.S. patents awarded for inventions and innovations in the arena of clean energy continues to ramp up, and the 274 green power patents awarded during the second quarter of 2009 have set a new record.

The measure of research and development is monitored by Heslin Rothenberg Farley & Mestiti, an intellectual property law firm in New York, and reported in their publication Clean Energy Patent Growth Index (CEPGI).

The record number of clean energy patents awarded within the most recent fiscal quarter continues to favor developments in fuel cell technology, while wind and solar energy patents continue to show growth as well.

And where is most of the recent activity in green energy technology taking place? Better buckle up for the surprising answer: it's car companies that dominate the top three spots. Honda tops the recent list with 17 clean energy patents; GM comes in a close second with 15, followed by Toyota with 12.

Yes, the global economy may continue to cough and sputter as it aims to right itself. But the signs of increasingly vigorous activity in clean energy even during the slowdown strongly suggest that the healthy economy we're moving to re-establish is more and more likely to be fueled by something designed for the long haul.

Photo courtesy of NASA, via Wikimedia Commons