The window is an element of the building system that has always been a field of stylistic and technological experimentation. By virtue of belonging to the envelope, it assumes a non-secondary role in the formal composition of façades and affects levels of thermal, luminous, and acoustic comfort. Recently, the aim of environmental sustainability has encouraged the offer of more efficient solutions, also responding to the circular economy, for example by providing for the use of recycled materials. To intercept both the direction taken by the research sector and the direction that industrial production may take, the purpose of the study was to understand what the innovative features of the window will be in the near future; this was done by analysing published patent applications. The methodological approach required prior investigation of patent types and of the territorial extension of their protection. In order to detect current trends on a global scale, interest was directed to international patent applications (PCT - Patent Cooperation Treaty), which allow for the possible protection of the invention in the 157 Treaty countries and which are published in the PATENTSCOPE database of WIPO. In 2023, the chosen year of observation, 195 patent applications were published in the “window” category and 132 were included in the study, selected according to previously defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The classification was based on the sub-systems identified within the window element (Attachment to the structure; Frame, Sash; Glazing; Screen; Movement and maneuvering; Gasket) and categorised into three innovation areas (A1. Design, A2. Performance, A3. Sustainability), and related sub-areas. The study showed that the area of Sustainability is still lacking; while greater interest on the part of the researchers concerned the area of Performance, and in particular thermal/luminous comfort, with a significant focus on the integration of the smart component in windows.
The innovation imagined for the window: international patents in comparison
Cernaro, Alessandra;Minutoli, Fabio
2025-01-01
Abstract
The window is an element of the building system that has always been a field of stylistic and technological experimentation. By virtue of belonging to the envelope, it assumes a non-secondary role in the formal composition of façades and affects levels of thermal, luminous, and acoustic comfort. Recently, the aim of environmental sustainability has encouraged the offer of more efficient solutions, also responding to the circular economy, for example by providing for the use of recycled materials. To intercept both the direction taken by the research sector and the direction that industrial production may take, the purpose of the study was to understand what the innovative features of the window will be in the near future; this was done by analysing published patent applications. The methodological approach required prior investigation of patent types and of the territorial extension of their protection. In order to detect current trends on a global scale, interest was directed to international patent applications (PCT - Patent Cooperation Treaty), which allow for the possible protection of the invention in the 157 Treaty countries and which are published in the PATENTSCOPE database of WIPO. In 2023, the chosen year of observation, 195 patent applications were published in the “window” category and 132 were included in the study, selected according to previously defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The classification was based on the sub-systems identified within the window element (Attachment to the structure; Frame, Sash; Glazing; Screen; Movement and maneuvering; Gasket) and categorised into three innovation areas (A1. Design, A2. Performance, A3. Sustainability), and related sub-areas. The study showed that the area of Sustainability is still lacking; while greater interest on the part of the researchers concerned the area of Performance, and in particular thermal/luminous comfort, with a significant focus on the integration of the smart component in windows.Pubblicazioni consigliate
I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
