Abstract: Based on the patent transfer data, the evolutionary characteristics of the patent transfer network in 41 cities in the Yangtze River Delta from 2010 to 2018 are depicted by using various methods such as spatial analysis and social network analysis, and the influencing factors of city innovation connection are discussed by using spatial measurement method. The results show that :(1）Since 2010, the innovation capability of the Yangtze River Delta has gradually increased. The concentration of patent output is still concentrated in space, but it has gradually changed from Shanghai as the core to a trend of agglomeration in Shanghai, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Nanjing and other cities. The spatial pattern of patent absorption has developed from polarization to balanced development, especially the “core-periphery” pattern with Shanghai as the center has gradually weakened. (2） The urban patent transfer network has shown a significant expansion trend, the multi-center network pattern is prominent, and the spatial dependence is gradually increasing; the path selection of patent transfer has the characteristics of geographical proximity, and path creation and path dependence coexist, peripheral cities enhance their own innovation capabilities by attracting the resource advantages of core cities to establish R&D centers. （3) Using patent transfer data to characterize the strength of urban innovation linkages, empirical study based on spatial measurement found that human capital, industrial development, infrastructure and government support are the key factors affecting the connection of urban innovation, and this process has a significant positive spatial spillover effect. R&D personnel can increase the level of urban innovation output and promote the flow of innovative elements; the technology service industry promotes urban innovation links by improving the communication efficiency between innovation subjects; the upgrading of infrastructure accelerates the flow of elements between cities and significantly improves the efficiency of innovation links; As the promoter of the innovation environment, the government promotes the innovative development of cities through the formulation and implementation of policies. By analyzing the temporal and spatial evolution of the patent transfer network and its driving factors, it not only improves the dynamic measurement method of innovation connection, but also provides a reference for formulating scientific policies in the Yangtze River Delta, improving innovation capabilities, and building a technological innovation community.