Toyota Leads Automakers in U.S. Patents for 2012

According to this article, Toyota beat out all other top automakers in the sheer number of patents granted in the U.S.

"It's really not about the number, but what it means," said Ted Klarich, general sales manager at Burien Toyota. "Toyota is constantly innovating, constantly developing new technologies to better serve the public. We want to meet consumer demands, which are always changing, so the only way to do that is to keep developing and evolving and creating."

Toyota was granted 1,491 patents in 2012, which was a 31 percent increase over the previous year. And, as Klarich noted, it's not about the numbers but about the results. One of the patents was for Toyota's improved communication system...and "material to help repel insect splatter."

That is one I'd like to see. Bugs love my car.

"Since the days of Toyota's founding, innovation has been a cornerstone of Toyota's success," Kristen Tabar, vice president of electrical systems engineering at the Toyota Technical Center, said in a statement. "We're driven to listen to our customers and develop new ways to improve their experience."

Toyota has prided itself on enabling and empowering its employees to be creative and innovative. This is reflected in the fact that two Toyota employees were granted their twentieth patents!

"You can tell a lot about a company by the new ideas they generate," Charan Lota, one of the engineers with 20 patents, said in a statement. "And, what these patents show about Toyota is that we are never going to stop trying to make better cars."

Here at Burien Toyota, we are proud to represent a company that values innovation and constant development. Stop by Burien Toyota today to see what one of the most technologically advanced automakers can do for you!