The medical devices industry continues to be a hotbed of patent innovation. Activity is driven by the 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 digitalization. In the last three years alone, there have been over 710,000 patents filed and granted in the medical devices industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Innovation in medical: ingestible sensors. Buy the report here.
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 stabilizing 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.
30+ 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 155,000 patents, there are 30+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.
Within the emerging innovation stage, neuromodulation implants, shapeable guide catheters, and biopotential signal monitoring are disruptive technologies that are in the early stages of application and should be tracked closely. Fall detection monitoring, ingestible sensors, and biofeedback wearables are some of the accelerating innovation areas, where adoption has been steadily increasing. Among maturing innovation areas are CPR assistance devices and bioabsorbable coated implants, which are now well established in the industry.
Innovation S-curve for the medical devices industry
Indigestible sensors is a key innovation area in medical devices
Ingestible sensors are small, capsuled devices capable of gathering data about the state of gastrointestinal health and associated disorders upon consumption. Images, core temperature values, pH measurements, pressure readings, and chemical components like enzymes, hormones, and metabolites can be captured and sent over the internet to remote monitoring systems. These devices are replacing standard health monitoring devices as they run on less power, while being non-invasive, highly sensitive, reliable, and selective.
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 40+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established medical devices companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of indigestible sensors.
Key players in indigestible sensors – a disruptive innovation in the medical devices industry
‘Application diversity’ measures the number of applications identified for each patent. It broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.
‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of countries each patent is registered in. It reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.
Patent volumes related to ingestible sensors
Company | Total patents (2010 - 2022) | Premium intelligence on the world's largest companies |
Biora Therapeutics Inc | 104 | Unlock Company Profile |
Rani Therapeutics Holdings Inc | 94 | Unlock Company Profile |
Vibrant Ltd | 43 | Unlock Company Profile |
Novo Nordisk Foundation | 33 | Unlock Company Profile |
Dare Bioscience Inc | 28 | Unlock Company Profile |
InCube Labs LLC | 23 | Unlock Company Profile |
Pop Test Abuse Deterrent Technology LLC | 19 | Unlock Company Profile |
International Business Machines Corp | 19 | Unlock Company Profile |
Olympus Corp | 18 | Unlock Company Profile |
Medimetrics Personalized Drug Delivery BV | 17 | Unlock Company Profile |
Koninklijke Philips NV | 16 | Unlock Company Profile |
Intellectual Ventures Management LLC | 16 | Unlock Company Profile |
Johnson & Johnson | 15 | Unlock Company Profile |
EarLens Corp | 14 | Unlock Company Profile |
Sony Group Corp | 12 | Unlock Company Profile |
Stryker Corp | 12 | Unlock Company Profile |
West View Research, LLC | 11 | Unlock Company Profile |
The Corporation For Penn State | 9 | Unlock Company Profile |
Celero Systems Inc | 9 | Unlock Company Profile |
Ptt Holding Aps | 7 | Unlock Company Profile |
Hochschule offenburg | 7 | Unlock Company Profile |
Otsuka Holdings Co Ltd | 7 | Unlock Company Profile |
Rock West Medical Devices LLC | 6 | Unlock Company Profile |
Embracer Group AB | 6 | Unlock Company Profile |
Rainbow Medical Ltd | 5 | Unlock Company Profile |
Kibur Medical, Inc. | 5 | Unlock Company Profile |
Bionaut Labs Inc | 5 | Unlock Company Profile |
Ankon Medical Technologies Co Ltd | 5 | Unlock Company Profile |
NinePoint Medical Inc | 5 | Unlock Company Profile |
Check-Cap Ltd | 5 | Unlock Company Profile |
Insulet Corp | 5 | Unlock Company Profile |
Biograil ApS | 5 | Unlock Company Profile |
Ligalli BV | 4 | Unlock Company Profile |
Veloce Corp | 3 | Unlock Company Profile |
EtectRx Inc | 3 | Unlock Company Profile |
Picolife Technologies | 3 | Unlock Company Profile |
Pop Test LLC | 2 | Unlock Company Profile |
Medtronic Plc | 2 | Unlock Company Profile |
Medibotics LLC | 2 | Unlock Company Profile |
Micropharma Ltd | 2 | Unlock Company Profile |
Schilling | 2 | Unlock Company Profile |
Allurion Technologies, Inc. | 1 | Unlock Company Profile |
Clear Creek Bio Inc | 1 | Unlock Company Profile |
Melcap system Ltd | 1 | Unlock Company Profile |
HP Inc | 1 | Unlock Company Profile |
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd | 1 | Unlock Company Profile |
Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics
Biora Therapeutics is the leading patent filer in the indigestible sensors market. Some other leading patent filers include Rani Therapeutics, Vibrant, and Novo Nordisk Foundation.
In terms of application diversity, PTT leads the pack, followed by Clear Creek Bio and Corporation For Penn State. By means of geographic reach, Rani Therapeutics holds the top position, followed by Pop Test Abuse Deterrent Technology and EarLens in second and third spots, respectively.
The ingestible sensors market is expected to grow throughout the forecast period, due to an increase in population and incidence of gastrointestinal disorders. Additionally, a growing preference for minimally invasive procedures among patients and doctors is also contributing to the growth of this market.
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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