WIPO China: WIPO Best Case of Using IP for SMEs | Shenzhen Shokz Co., Ltd.
世界知识产权组织(WIPO)一直致力推动知识产权赋能中小企业发展，并开展了一系列活动，包括中小企业使用知识产权案例研究。WIPO中小企业利用知识产权案例研究活动得到各方的大力支持和积极参与，WIPO中国办事处也向总部推荐了一批中小企业利用知识产权将创意转化为商机并创造价值的优秀案例。继亿航智能（广州）有限公司和青岛爱博检测科技有限公司之后，深圳市韶音科技有限公司的故事也在WIPO官网上登载，向全球推广。
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has been committed to empowering the innovation and development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with intellectual property, and has organized a series of campaign events, including the Case Studies on the use of IP for SMEs. WIPO Office in China (WOC) has recommended a number of best cases of SMEs that are using IP rights to turn ideas into business opportunities and generate value to the WIPO Headquarter as well. After Guangzhou EHang Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd. and Qingdao Aibo Detection Technology Co., Ltd., the story of Shenzhen Shokz Co., Ltd. has been published on the WIPO website for global promotion.
深圳韶音：骨传导技术带来全新的聆听体验
Shenzhen Shokz: Bone conduction technology for a new listening experience
大多数人认为，声响或空气在经过耳道传导后，就变成了自己听到的声音。但为什么在塞住或捂住耳朵时仍能听到曲调？或者能够听到刷牙或咀嚼酥脆食物产生的声音？这一切都要归功于骨传导。成立于2004年的深圳市韶音科技有限公司是中国消费电子行业的一家高科技企业。韶音专注于专业通信音频和多媒体音响，其骨传导扬声器已成为该领域全球领先经销商的首选。
Most people equate the sounds they hear to the conduction of noise or air through their ear canal. But why can they still hear a tune when their ears are plugged or covered? Or hear the sound generated by brushing their teeth or eating crunchy food? All this is thanks to bone conduction, a field in which Shenzhen Shokz Co., Ltd., a high-tech company in China’s consumer electronics industry, has been active since 2004. With a focus on professional communication audio and multimedia acoustics, Shokz’s bone conduction speakers have become the preferred choice of leading global distributors in the field.
图：SHOKZ.COM | Photo: SHOKZ.COM
概览Overview
韶音于2004年在深圳成立，致力于研究、开发、设计、生产和销售屡获殊荣的电声产品。自2007年以来，韶音一直专注于骨传导扬声器，通过对内部研发的承诺，已取得突破性的进展。2011年，韶音成功地将该技术应用于消费电子耳机，创建了Aftershokz品牌，并于2021年12月将该品牌更名为韶音（Shokz）。该品牌已成为领先的运动耳机品牌。在过去的七年里，韶音的收入增长了80多倍。
Founded in 2004 in Shenzhen, Shokz researches, develops, designs, produces and sells multi-award-winning electro-acoustic products. Since 2007, it has been focusing on bone conduction speakers to which, through its commitment to in-house research and development, it has made ground-breaking improvements. In 2011, it successfully applied the technology to consumer electronics headphones creating the brand Aftershokz, re-branded as Shokz in December 2021, which has become a leading sports headphone brand. In the last seven years, the company's revenue has increased more than 80-fold.
韶音耳机是如何工作的？
How do Shokz earphones work?
根据韶音网站上的解释，得益于该公司拥有专利的骨传导技术，扬声器“通过颧骨传递声振动”，这有别于传统耳机。
Unlike traditional headphones, the speakers transmit “sound vibrations through the cheekbones,” thanks to the company’s patented bone conduction technology, the Shokz website explains.
图：SHOKZ.COM | Photo: SHOKZ.COM
● 耳机两侧的传感器将音频信号转化为机械能或振动，通过颧骨直接将声音传递到内耳，无需通过鼓膜。这意味着，您在使用这种耳机时，在听音乐的同时也能保持对周围环境的关注，这种耳机也因此成为户外活动时更安全的选择。
Transducers on either side of the headphones convert audio signals into mechanical energy or vibrations, which pass through the cheekbones and deliver sound directly to the inner ear bypassing the eardrum. This means that with these headphones you can listen to music while remaining aware of your surroundings, making them a safer option when outdoors.
● 由于这种耳机采用了开放聆听设计，没有任何设备插入或覆盖用户的耳朵，带来了舒适的无痛体验。这种耳机还让用户在运动时能够以最卫生的方式享受音乐。所有韶音耳机都采用轻质钛合金打造的机身。
The open-ear design of these headphones means that nothing plugs into or covers your ears, offering a comfortable, pain-free experience. It also offers the most hygienic way to enjoy music during sports. All Shokz headphones are mounted on light-weight titanium frames.
核心专利和知识产权：构建不可侵犯的“专利防护墙”
Core patents and intellectual property rights: building an unbreachable “patent moat”
自从开始生产消费品以来，韶音一直瞄准全球市场。因此，该公司已经投资开发了强大的知识产权组合。
Since it began producing consumer goods, Shokz has been targeting the global market. As such, the company has invested in developing a robust portfolio of intellectual property (IP) rights.
截至2022年5月，韶音已申请1,500余项专利，其中570项已经被授予。该公司已在中国、澳大利亚、巴西、欧洲、印度、日本、墨西哥、大韩民国、俄罗斯联邦、美国等国家和地区获得相关的核心专利和工业品外观设计权（外观设计专利），还在哥伦比亚、以色列、南非和越南寻求专利保护。
As of May 2022, Shokz has applied for more than 1500 patents, of which 570 have already been granted. Relevant core patents and industrial design rights (design patents) have been secured in China, Australia, Brazil, Europe, India, Japan, Mexico, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, the USA and other countries. It is also seeking patent protection in Colombia, Israel, South Africa and Viet Nam.
在构建其知识产权组合的过程中，韶音利用了《专利合作条约》（PCT），该条约为其提供了具备成本效益的简化途径，在国际市场上为其尖端技术寻求专利保护。韶音正在通过这种方式力争构建“在骨传导领域不可侵犯的专利防护墙”。这种方法将使韶音能够保护其研发成果，保持其在该领域的领先地位，并使其能够有效地保护自身免受任何侵权行为的影响。
In building up its portfolio of IP rights, Shokz uses the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), which offers a streamlined and cost-effect route to seeking patent protection for its cutting-edge technologies in international markets. In so doing, Shokz is seeking to build an “unbreachable patent moat in the field of bone conduction.” This approach will enable Shokz to safeguard its R&D achievements, maintain its leading position in the field and will enable it to defend itself effectively against any infringement of its rights.
源源不断的新产品：创建“类别概念”
Stream of new products: creating a “category concept”
图：SHOKZ.COM | Photo: SHOKZ.COM
韶音以2011年推出的AfterShokz（韶音的前身）为起点，为运动爱好者提供新的声学聆听体验，在给他们带来更为舒适和安全的聆听体验的同时，也让他们能够有更好的表现。2012年推出的Sportz是第一款骨传导有线耳机，迅速被《个人电脑世界》杂志评为“改变世界的九大产品”之一。随后一年推出的Bluez耳机是第一款骨传导蓝牙耳机。该品牌通过“漏音屠龙™”和“悬浮减震™”进一步发展其独立研发的核心技术，改进产品。用户体验继续获得关注，并在2017年推出升级版的Air运动耳机。2019年，该品牌推出了户外运动系列旗舰Aeropex运动耳机。
The launch of AfterShokz (now Shokz) in 2011, was the start of the new acoustical listening experience for sports enthusiasts, offering them a more comfortable and safe listening experience and allowing them to perform better. Sportz, launched in 2012, was the first bone conduction wired headset and was promptly named one of "Nine Products That Changed the World" by PCWorld magazine. Bluez followed a year later as the first bone-conduction Bluetooth headset. The brand furthered its independently researched and developed core technologies, with “Leak Slayer™” and “PremiumPitch™,” to improve the product. The user experience continued to garner focus, leading to the 2017 launch of the upgraded Air sports headphones. By 2019, the brand had launched the outdoor sports series flagship Aeropex sports earphones.
2020年，该公司推出了户外运动系列入门款OpenMove耳机，环法四冠*克王**里斯·弗鲁姆签约成为产品代言人。这标志着公司整体品牌策略向推出品牌代言人的方向转变。
In 2020, the company launched the outdoor sports series standard Openmove earphones, and four-time Tour de France winner Chris Froome signed on as brand spokesperson. This marked a shift in the company’s overall brand approach towards the inclusion of brand spokespeople.
该品牌继续发展其运动系列，在2021年推出了游泳系列OpenSwim游泳MP3*放播**器，签约50米仰泳世界纪录保持者刘湘为品牌代言人，同年还签约马拉松世界纪录保持者基普乔格，并在全球范围内提交了610项专利申请和170项商标申请。今年，该公司推出了第九代骨传导技术Shokz TurboPitch™，通过低频增强技术为用户带来更佳的聆听体验。
Continuing to develop its sports series, the brand launched the Openswim MP3 player for swimming in 2021, signing women's 50-metre backstroke world-record holder Liu Xiang as brand spokesperson. In the same year, it also signed Marathon world champion Eliud Kipchoge, and filed 610 patent applications and 170 trademarks applications worldwide. This year, the company launched its ninth generation bone conduction technology, Shokz TurboPitch™, which offers users enhanced bass and an improved listening experience.
屡获殊荣的技术Award-winning technology
韶音的技术和外观设计成就为其赢得了诸多著名奖项，包括：
Shokz has won many prestigious awards for its technological and design achievements. They include:
●CES科技创新奖（2020年、2019年、2017年、2014 年和2013年）；
the CES Technology Innovation Award (in 2020, 2019, 2017, 2014 and 2013);
●爱迪生消费电子类金奖（2014年）；
the EDISON Gold Award (2014);
●《一财全球》中国最佳发明奖（2017）；
the Yicai Global China Best Inventions Award (2017);
●IDEA设计奖铜奖（2015）；
the IDEA Bronze Award (2015);
●优良设计奖（2020年、2019年、2017年和2016年）；
the Good Design Award (in 2020, 2019, 2017 and 2016);
●红点设计奖（2021年和2018年）；
the Reddot Design Award (in 2021 and 2018);
●IF设计奖（2021年和2020年）；
the IF Award (in 2021 and 2020);
●第二十二届中国专利金奖和设计银奖（2021年）。the 22nd China Patent Gold Award and Design Silver Awards (2021).
追击知识产权盗版和山寨厂商
Pursuing IP pirates and cottage manufacturers
这些权利也使该公司能够有效地打击非法抄袭其专利技术的山寨制造商。韶音在监测对其权利的滥用方面进行了大量投资。营销人员和专利律师定期检索市场上出现的类似产品，公司的专利人员再就此进行深入调查。公司的专利工程师、技术人员和外聘专利律师共同确认这些产品是否侵犯其专利。对于确实侵权的产品，将要求侵权方停止侵权行为，并通过各种方式赔偿韶音的相关损失。这可能包括删除盗版产品的链接、公司的律师函，或者在更严重的情况下提起诉讼。
These rights have also allowed the company to effectively do battle with cottage manufacturers who illegally copy their patented technology. Shokz invests significantly in monitoring abusive use of its rights. Marketing staff and patent attorneys regularly search for similar products appearing on the market, which the company’s patent staff further investigate. The company’s patent engineers, technical staff and external patent attorneys jointly confirm whether these products infringe its patents. For products that do cross the line, the infringing party will be asked to cease infringement and compensate Shokz through various means for the relevant losses. This may include, for example, removing links to pirated products, a letter from the company’s lawyers, or in more serious cases, litigation.
震慑仿制Deterring copycats
2021年，韶音对20多家侵权厂商提起了200多起专利诉讼，涉及20多项专利。目前，涉及8个被告的29个案件已经结案，累计赔偿金额为40万元人民币。其他案件已达成庭外和解，涉及金额超过100万元人民币。更重要的是，这一过程对山寨厂商起到了强有力的震慑作用；保障了公司的研发投资，捍卫了公司的市场地位。在过去两年中，韶音面临24起专利无效诉讼，其中20起维持有效或部分有效，1起达成和解，充分彰显了公司强大的专利权。
In 2021, Shokz filed more than 200 patent lawsuits against more than 20 infringing manufacturers concerning over 20 patents. So far, 29 cases involving eight defendants have been concluded with a cumulative compensation of RMB 400,000. Other cases have been settled out of court in amounts exceeding 1000,000 RMB. More importantly, this process has been a strong deterrent for copycat cottage manufacturers; it has safeguarded the company’s R&D investment and protected its market position. Shokz has faced 24 patent invalidity lawsuits in the past two years, of which 20 were upheld as valid or partially valid and one was settled, fully demonstrating the robustness of the compagny's patent rights.