Automotive Technology

The automotive industry has undergone remarkable technological advancements over the past decades, shaping how vehicles are designed, manufactured, and used. Modern innovations have increased safety, improved performance, enhanced fuel efficiency and reliability, and expanded connectivity.

COJK’s attorneys have educational background in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, software, and materials science, with many also bringing prior industry experience as engineers, researchers, or designers. We assist automotive manufacturers in protecting innovations related to passenger vehicles, hybrid and autonomous vehicle technology, medium- and heavy-duty over-the-road and off-road trucks, automatic guided vehicles (AGVs), high-speed watercraft, and other vehicle technologies.

We assist our automotive technology clients in the following areas:

• Vehicle stability and control systems; exhaust and emissions systems; differentials, clutches, steering systems, fluid power systems, and aftermarket components
• Powertrain and propulsion technologies, including internal combustion engine design and optimization, piston configurations, superchargers and turbochargers, and gas turbine engines; hybrid electric systems, battery electric vehicles, fuel cell and hydrogen propulsion, advanced transmissions, and energy recovery systems
• Battery, energy storage, and charging, including lithium‑ion and solid‑state batteries; battery management systems; fast‑charging, ultra‑fast‑charging, and wireless charging systems; thermal management for batteries, second‑life and battery recycling technologies
• Autonomous systems, including adaptive cruise control, lane‑keeping assistance, automatic emergency braking, and autonomous navigation systems; vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure connectivity, including cooperative adaptive cruise control; and autonomous vehicle validation platforms
• Electronics and semiconductors, including automotive‑grade microcontrollers, power electronics, image sensors, and actuators; automotive system‑on‑chip platforms, and functional safety electronics
• Materials and manufacturing technologies, including composites, advanced plastics and polymers, structural adhesives, carbon fiber and hybrid materials, additive manufacturing, robotics and automation in assembly, and smart manufacturing
• Safety technologies, including crash‑energy management structures, accident avoidance, advanced airbag systems, active and passive safety integration, and pedestrian safety systems
• Automotive design patents, which protect the unique ornamental visual aesthetics of vehicles and vehicle components, from overall body shape to specific portions such as grilles, wheels, bumpers, headlights, and dashboards