Recently, the 17th China Patent Award was announced.13 patents of SGCC won the awards, including 1 Gold Award and 12 Memorial Awards, scoring the best result in terms of both the ratings and quantity of prizes. China Patent Award is the most prestigious award for scientific and technological invention in China, and it is divided into Gold Award and Memorial Award. Every year there are only 20 Gold Awards granted. Since the Gold Award is jointly issued by World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and State Intellectual Property Office of the P.R.C (SIPO), it is really a glory.
"A protection method for modular multilevel converter valve" is granted the Gold Award, and it is the only gold medal granted in the electric power industry. Modular multilevel converter valve is the core of flexible DC transmission system, and this protection method enables troubleshooting in inverter valve, and avoids inverter valve failure or damage, thusly guarantees safe and stable operation of the system. The patent has, for the first time, proposed a complete protection method for flexible DC converter valve, and it has significant advantages in system architecture protection, algorithm execution cycle, failure response speed, etc. It facilitates the processing of failures, effectively solves difficulties in data processing and fault localization in protection, alleviates damage to valves, and hence greatly improves their reliability. This technology is the first of its kind in the world.
SGCC attaches great importance to intellectual property rights (IPR). In accordance with the principle of "Strategically deploy patent and quality rules", the number of patents obtained rapidly grows. Now the company has accumulatively got 49435 patents, top the state-owned enterprises four years in a row. Besides, SGCC doubles efforts in innovation, creating an innovative culture, and enhancing staff's awareness of intellectual property rights. Furthermore, the company is improving patent quality, focusing on UHV, smart grid, electrical and electronic technology, and strengthening patent application training and talent cultivation, and patent sorting and evaluation. In the consequence, the R&D capability and IPR pool have been greatly promoted.
To apply for the China Patent Award, under the guidance of Scientific and Technological Achievement Cultivation Plan, Department of Science and Technology of the SGCC has deployed task groups across different subjects and applied from many channels, and finally decided on the application programme as this: 7 institutes ranging from China Electricity Council (CEC) and local Intellectual Property Office applied for 14 core patents successfully. SGCC carefully compiled the application materials and defense materials, organized internal and external expert review and defense exercises. All the efforts finally paid off with this record high achievement.
