Monitoring the Change of Technological Impacts of Technology Sectors Using Patent Information: the Case of Korea

A primary concern of national R&D plans is to encourage technological development in private firms and research institutes. For effective R&D planning and program support, it is necessary to assess technological impacts that may exist both directly and indirectly among technology areas within the whole technology system; however, previous studies analyze only direct impacts among technologies, failing to capture both direct and indirect impacts. Therefore, this study proposes an approach based on decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) to identifying specific characteristics of technology areas, such as technological impact and degree of cause or effect (DCE). The method employs patent co-classification analysis to construct a technological knowledge flow matrix. Next, to capture both direct and indirect effects among technology areas, it incorporates the modified DEMATEL process into patent analysis. The method helps analysts assess the technological impact and DCE of technology areas, and observe their evolving trajectories over time, thereby identifying relevant technological implications. This study presents a case study using Korean patents registered during 2003-2012. We expect our analysis results to be helpful input for R&D planning, as well as the suggested approach to be incorporated into processes for formulating national R&D plans.