Advanced mechanical & systems engineering

Innovation in robotics, automation, and advanced manufacturing is accelerating, driven by AI, digitalisation, and global economic shifts. As systems become smarter and more integrated, protecting intellectual property across hardware and software is more complex and important than ever.

At HGF, we help clients navigate these challenges with commercially-focused IP strategies that keep pace with the speed of change in the sector. The rapid development of control systems is transforming automation, but success still relies on robust hardware platforms, precision sensing, and reliable performance. Our cross-disciplinary team can ensure innovations in both control and mechanical systems are fully protected, individually and in combination.

By taking a holistic and multidisciplinary approach, our mechanical engineering, electronics and software patent specialists work seamlessly together to secure broad and defensible protection for our clients. We support clients in identifying valuable innovation and the best way to protect it, ensuring that our clients capture technical value without ambiguity or unnecessary overlap.

By embedding IP strategy early in the development lifecycle, we help businesses protect their competitive edge while staying flexible for future innovation.

Latest updates

HGF energy and IP

Fuelling IP: Nuclear Fusion Patents – Is 20 Years Enough?

A patent is often described as providing 20 years of exclusivity. For technologies that take many years to develop, test, license and bring to market, the period of commercially meaningful …

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Miniaturisation and Patentability: Why Scaling Down a Product Is Not Enough to Qualify as a Patentable Invention

Miniaturisation has become a defining trend in modern engineering. From consumer electronics to medical devices, companies constantly strive to make products smaller, lighter, and more portable. This evolution is often …

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T 0847/24 – New EPO Case Law Informs Strategy for AI-Assisted Engineering Design Patents

The recent EPO Board of Appeal decision T 0847/24 sets out that, when AI is involved in product design, the patent claims should follow the process through from digital model …

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Fuelling IP: Navigating the Patent Landscape: An Introduction for Energy Innovators

In today’s fast-evolving energy sector, innovation is essential – but so is knowing where to innovate. Understanding the intellectual property (IP) landscape is more than a legal exercise, it’s a …

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AI software

New 'Technical Character' Guidance Formalised by UKIPO Practice Note

The UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) has now released formal guidance for examining UK patent applications directed to software and AI inventions. The practice note comes almost six months since …

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Six Sectors. Six Golds. Financial Times: Europe’s Leading Patent Law Firms 2026

HGF has once again been recognised with ‘Gold’ rankings across all six sectors in the Financial Times Special Report – Europe’s Leading Patent Law Firms 2026. We are one of …

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AI Governance: In Pursuit of a Rapidly Moving Target

1. Introduction: the governance paradox There is a growing paradox in boardrooms and legal teams: everyone is tired of talking about AI—and yet no one can afford to stop. Artificial …

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HGF energy and IP

Fuelling IP: Green Branding and Trade Mark Risk in the Energy Transition

What do the trade marks GREEN STEAM[1], ECO FLOW[2] and [3] have in common?  The answer is that they are all marks that have been refused by the EU Intellectual …

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Let's talk

If you would like to discuss how HGF could help you, contact one of our advanced mechanical & systems engineering specialists.