Toyota to offer royalty-free access to hybrid-vehicle patents

Toyota Motor will provide free access to its hybrid-vehicle patents through 2030, it stated on Wednesday, looking to expand use of the lower-emission technology even as the worldwide industry shifts toward completely electric cars.

Toyota stated it would grant licenses on almost 24,000 patents on technologies used in its Prius, the first mass-produced “green” car of the world, and offer to supply rivals with components consisting motors, power converters and batteries utilized in its lower-emissions vehicles.

“We want to look beyond producing finished vehicles,” Toyota Executive Vice President Shigeki Terashi informed reporters.

“We want to contribute to an increase in take-up (of electric cars) by providing not just our technology but our present parts and systems to other vehicle makers.”

The Nikkei Asian Review first reported Toyota’s strategies to give royalty-free access to hybrid-vehicle patents.

Terashi stated that the access excluded patents on its lithium-ion battery technology.