Evolution of the Global Automobile Industry

Abstract

The global automotive industry has undergone significant changes since the invention of the automobile. The industry has transformed from being dominated by the USA in the early 1900s to being divided between a variety of different countries, each with their own unique strengths and weaknesses. The underlying technology has also experienced radical technological innovations, with the increasing popularity of diesel, hybrid and fully electric vehicles helping to diversify the market. Changes in the regulatory environment and internal production processes have also molded the industry, making more efficient cars accessible to the mass public. In years to come, automotive companies in Brazil, India and China (part of the BRIC group) are likely to continue to grow their share of the global market, while concomitant rise in environmental concerns are likely to bring substantial changes in how the industry adapts and evolves in the future. This study has three broad objectives. First, to trace how regulations pertaining to vehicular pollution have changed and what factors caused them to become more stringent over time. Second, how patenting of promising environment-friendly inventions, as a result of continuous technological innovation, promises to ameliorate some environmental concens. Third, in order to relate these two phenomena, an attempt is made to understand the impact of regulatory stringency on the level of patenting of technologies that are both fuel-saving as well as emission-reducing.