The medical devices industry continues to be a hotbed of innovation, with activity driven by increased need for homecare, preventative treatments, early diagnosis, reducing patient recovery times and improving outcomes, as well as a growing importance of technologies such as machine learning, augmented reality, 5G and digitalisation. In the last three years alone, there have been over 450,000 patents filed and granted in the medical devices industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Environment Sustainability in Medical Devices: Robotic 3D Bio-printing.
However, not all innovations are equal and nor do they follow a constant upward trend. Instead, their evolution takes the form of an S-shaped curve that reflects their typical lifecycle from early emergence to accelerating adoption, before finally stabilising and reaching maturity.
Identifying where a particular innovation is on this journey, especially those that are in the emerging and accelerating stages, is essential for understanding their current level of adoption and the likely future trajectory and impact they will have.
150+ innovations will shape the medical devices industry
According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which plots the S-curve for the medical devices industry using innovation intensity models built on over 550,000 patents, there are 150+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.
Within the emerging innovation stage, 3D printed prosthesis and robotic 3D bio-printing are disruptive technologies that are in the early stages of application and should be tracked closely. Sharps disposal containers, therapy compliance monitoring systems, and driver health monitoring are some of the accelerating innovation areas, where adoption has been steadily increasing. Among maturing innovation areas are bio-compatible surgical adjuncts and bio-active prosthesis sealing, which are now well established in the industry.
Innovation S-curve for environmental sustainability in the medical devices industry
Robotic 3D bio-printing is a key innovation area in environmental sustainability
3D bioprinting robot uses 3D printing techniques to create organs or other biomedical materials from their base cells. These organs or materials would then serve as acceptable substitutes for damaged parts within the human body. The basis of bioprinting is the ability to recreate organ shape, texture, and characteristics at the cellular level.
Earlier techniques were carried out manually; however, there are no obvious barriers to carrying out these techniques using robotic manipulators and MIS approaches, such as using the robotic bone milling process for site preparation and the extrusion 3D printing process for damage repair material applications.
GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies. According to GlobalData, there are 10+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established medical devices companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of robotic 3D bio-printing.
Key players in robotic 3D bio-printing – a disruptive innovation in the medical devices industry
‘Application diversity’ measures the number of different applications identified for each relevant patent and broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.
‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of different countries each relevant patent is registered in and reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.
Patent volumes related to robotic 3D bio-printing
| Company | Total patents (2010 - 2021) | Premium intelligence on the world's largest companies |
| ConforMIS | 214 | Unlock company profile |
| Stryker | 163 | Unlock company profile |
| Zimmer Biomet Holdings | 126 | Unlock company profile |
| Johnson & Johnson | 78 | Unlock company profile |
| Corning | 35 | Unlock company profile |
| Smith & Nephew | 23 | Unlock company profile |
| Microport Orthopedics Holdings | 20 | Unlock company profile |
| CommonSpirit Health | 14 | Unlock company profile |
| Intellectual Ventures Management | 14 | Unlock company profile |
| Longeviti Neuro Solutions | 12 | Unlock company profile |
| Karl Leibinger | 12 | Unlock company profile |
| InnerOptic Technology | 11 | Unlock company profile |
| Active Implants | 9 | Unlock company profile |
| Optimized Ortho | 9 | Unlock company profile |
| JMS | 8 | Unlock company profile |
| Planmeca | 6 | Unlock company profile |
| Nucletron Operations | 5 | Unlock company profile |
| Mighty Oak Medical | 5 | Unlock company profile |
Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics
ConforMIS and Stryker are two of the leading patent filers in robotic 3D bio-printing. Some other leading patent filers include Zimmer Biomet, Johnson & Johnson, Corning and Smith & Nephew.
In terms of application diversity, Active Implants leads the pack, followed by Nucletron Operations and Karl Leibinger. By means of geographic reach, Optimized Ortho holds the top position, followed by Karl Leibinger and Planmeca, respectively.
Robotic 3D bioprinting is likely to be in demand due to its medical and pharmaceutical applications, displacing the long-established conventional process of manufacturing models. The technology not only provides customized and personalized implants and prosthetics but also are produce cost-effective patient-specific models which aid healthcare providers in surgery planning or teaching medical concepts. Repairing cells and tissues of different size and thicknesses with digital control and in situ printing of implants and living organs are two important expected applications of robotic 3D Bioprinting in the near future.
To further understand the key themes and technologies disrupting the medical devices industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Medical Devices.
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GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.
GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.
