Technology Topic
Medical Imaging Patent Classification
Imaging devices classify in A61B, the large diagnosis-and-surgery subclass: ultrasound, endoscopy, X-ray-based systems and the device side of MRI and CT.
The computational half of modern imaging, reconstruction, segmentation, AI-assisted reading, sits in G06T for image data processing, usually combined with G06N when models learn.
The classification codes that matter
DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
Diagnosis and surgery: the device side of medical imaging, from ultrasound probes to CT gantries.
2018 → 2023: 109,493 → 116,730 filings (+7 %)
IMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL
Image data processing: reconstruction, segmentation and the AI reading layer of modern imaging.
2018 → 2023: 57,907 → 103,590 filings (+79 %)
Who files here: top applicants
- 1 SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS COMPANY (KR) 66,669
- 2 IBM (INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION) (US) 62,313
- 3 HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES COMPANY (CN) 46,584
- 4 MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING (US) 41,918
- 5 GOOGLE (US) 32,969
IPC filings 2013–2023, aggregated across the codes above. Source: EPO PATSTAT.
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