Figure 1. Position and number of RF filters in the RF front-end of mobile terminals
The number of frequency bands currently used in mobile communications has significantly increased from 4 bands in early 2000 to more than 30 bands today. And this number will only rise further, especially after the introduction of 5G and other new wireless technologies. As the number of frequency bands used by the device increases, the number of filters used will increase as well, so the filter becomes one of the most important device devices in the RF communication link. The RF filter industry is expected to have strong growth and is expected to reach $16 billion in revenue by 2022. This growth will be further enhanced by the need for more new antennas (such as MIMO and Massive MIMO) and support for multiple carrier aggregation.
Figure 2. Patent Filing Activity of Industry Acoustic Wave Filters in Recent Years
According to Dr. Paul Leclaire, patent analyst, in this dynamic context, the RF acoustic wave filter has become the best solution for implementing filter operation in the sub-6 GHz band because of the manufacturing cost of the acoustic wave filter. Low, high integration and good performance.
Fig. 3, RF acoustic wave filter includes SAW, TC-SAW, BAW-FBAR, BAW-SMR
RF acoustic wave filters include SAW, TC-SAW, BAW-FBAR, BAW-SMR and other RF acoustic wave filters, which are widely used in mobile terminals and other electronic devices.
From 2000 to 2006, the patent application activity of acoustic wave filters was very active, gradually declining since 2010, and peaked in 2010. The RF acoustic wave filter market is dominated by companies with a strong international position in history, thus greatly reducing the penetration of newcomers to the industry. From 2017 to 2022, the compound annual growth rate of the RF acoustic filter market is expected to reach 8%.
Figure 4, the industry's main RF-wave filter patent IP player
The intellectual property field shows the same development trend. At present, the patents for acoustic wave filters are dominated by big companies such as Broadcom, Skyworks, Taiyo Yuden, and Murata. After the rapid development period of 2000 - 2006, these companies have consolidated their position in the field of acoustic filter. Recently, after numerous mergers and acquisitions, the investment portfolio of some participants has been strengthened. Broadcom's acquisition of Avago Technologies is a good example. In addition, with the formation of the 5G communications protocol, players are now developing new filters to meet the upcoming demand of applications below 6 GHz and future 5G mass market demand.
SAW is the main technology used in mobile communications. Its patent activity began in the early 1990s, and the IP distribution pattern has been established. Intellectual property activities in this area are mainly driven by Murata, thanks to the large number of patents it has obtained and pending patents.
Figure 5. The Industry's RF Devices Giant Extends Monopoly by Integrating RF Acoustic Wave Filters with PAs
Compared with SAW market segments, BAW patent activity shows greater vitality and more intense competition. Due to the acquisition of Avago Technologies, Broadcom has the most powerful product portfolio and its FBAR filtering currently dominates the high-end smartphone application market. The distribution of BAW's intellectual property rights is not as good as that of SAW. Analysts at KnowMade expect that the market structure of this market segment will be reshaped in the next five years due to the competition among major intellectual property challengers. For example, the two companies, Qualcomm and Qorvo, have shown interesting strategies for the 4G to 5G transformation of intellectual property activities. The patent strategy of the leading suppliers of these two mobile phone RF devices may lead to a reshuffle of the BAW intellectual property landscape, and product competition will increase.
In the 1990s, SAW filter patent publications rapidly grew. This activity heralded the strong development of the RF filter market in the 2000s. Since 2010, the market of RF acoustic wave filters (RF acoustic wave filters) has once again strengthened, witnessing the slowdown in the growth of patent activities, but during this period, the intellectual property status of many companies has been strengthened. It is now necessary to understand the patent pattern of RF filters, the key patented technologies and the position of players in the IP landscape. Such knowledge can help predict the upcoming revolution, discover business opportunities, reduce risks and make strategic decisions to strengthen the market position of the company. (Source: cloudioe)
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