Cobot & Mobile SLAM Navigation Patent Landscape 2026
The cobot and mobile SLAM navigation space is in a Growth stage, with a moderately fragmented field led by Intel Corp, Omron Corp, and Agency for Science, Technology and Research — no single applicant holds a dominant share. Activity expanded sharply on a multi-year basis, though annual volume has eased from its 2023 peak and recent years remain understated by publication lag.
Fragmented field with no runaway leader — Intel heads a shallow hierarchy
Intel Corp leads all filers with 7 patent records, followed by Omron Corp with 6 and Agency for Science, Technology and Research with 5. The top five applicants collectively account for 22% of the hundred largest filers’ combined total, signaling a fragmented competitive structure with no single dominant assignee.
The tier gap between first and fifth place is narrow — just three patent records separating Intel (7) from Kuka Deutschland GmbH and the University of Toronto (4 each) — confirming that no applicant has built a decisive lead. A diverse mix of industrial robotics firms, semiconductor companies, universities, and automotive groups occupies the top tier.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Intel Corporation | 7 | |
| 2 | Omron Corporation | 6 | |
| 3 | AGENCY FOR SCI TECH & RES | 5 | |
| 4 | The Governing Council of the University of Toronto | 4 | |
| 5 | Kuka Deutschland GmbH | 4 | |
| 6 | Hebei University of Technology | 3 | |
| 7 | Nimble Robotics Inc. | 3 | |
| 8 | Hyundai Motor Company | 3 | |
| 9 | Shandong University | 3 | |
| 10 | KUKA Laboratories GmbH | 3 |
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Chengdu Qinchuan IoT Technology Co., Ltd. | 3 | |
| 12 | Northwestern University | 3 | |
| 13 | Rethink Robotics Inc. | 2 | |
| 14 | The Government of the United States of America | 2 | |
| 15 | Airbus SAS | 2 | |
| 16 | Digital Surgery Systems Inc. | 2 | |
| 17 | Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences | 2 | |
| 18 | HighRes Biosolutions Inc. | 2 | |
| 19 | Crosswing Inc. | 2 | |
| 20 | Amazon Technologies Inc. | 2 |
Intel’s position as the numerical leader, combined with its classification focus squarely in manipulator control (B25J 9), suggests a deliberate push to embed computing architecture in robotic systems. Omron’s comparable depth and additional coverage in mobile control (G05D 1) reflects its strength as an integrated automation platform vendor.
Patent counts for 2024–2026 are likely understated due to standard publication lag of 18–24 months; the landscape’s true current activity is higher than indexed figures suggest. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
A 120% multi-year surge dominated by manipulator and control IP
Two charts capture the pace and shape of innovation: annual filing volume from 2017 to 2026, and the IPC class breakdown showing where technical effort is concentrated.
Annual filing trend
Filings grew from 4 records in 2017 to a peak of 22 in 2023 — a sharp multi-year expansion representing 120% recent-window growth. The apparent decline in 2024 and 2025 should be read cautiously, as publication lag typically suppresses counts for the most recent 18–24 months. The underlying growth trajectory remains intact on a multi-year basis.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
B25J (Manipulators & robots) is the commanding class with 105 patent records, far ahead of G05D (Control of non-electric variables) at 17. Downstream classes — G06F, G06Q, B65G, and G05B — each carry fewer than 10 records, confirming that core manipulator mechanics anchor the field while software, logistics, and systems-control branches remain comparatively thin.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
Teaching device for mobile manipulator based on mo…
Provided is a teaching device for a mobile manipulator based on a mobile robot and a collaborative robot. The teaching device includes a communication unit that transmits/receives data to and from the mobile manipulator, a memory that stores a program providing an interface for performing a task of the mobile manipulator, and a processor that operates a… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mobile robot manipulator | 158 |
| 2 | Collaborative robot for visually inspecting an air… | 109 |
| 3 | Storage Systems and Methods for Robotic Picking | 83 |
| 4 | Mobile robot manipulator | 40 |
| 5 | Mobile manipulator and method of controlling the m… | 30 |
| 6 | Mobile manipulator, method for controlling mobile … | 24 |
| 7 | Method of calibrating a mobile manipulator | 19 |
| 8 | System, especially for production, utilizing coope… | 15 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
What the competitive structure means for R&D investment decisions
Four structural dimensions — maturity, concentration, collaboration, and geography — shape where the next defensible positions can be built in cobot and mobile SLAM navigation.
Growth stage: multi-year expansion intact, annual pace easing from 2023 peak
The field is classified as Growth, driven by a 120% increase in recent-window filings versus the prior comparable window. Annual volume peaked in 2023 at 22 records and has eased since, though publication lag means 2024–2026 figures are understated. Entering now still offers meaningful freedom to operate relative to a mature, densely filed domain.
Growth stageLow concentration: top five hold 22% of the hundred largest filers’ combined total
The top five applicants account for 22% of the top-100 filers’ combined patent records, and the rank-one-to-five gap is only three records. This shallow hierarchy means no incumbent has erected a broad blocking position. New entrants and challengers face a landscape where targeted filings in specific sub-areas can achieve meaningful relative coverage quickly.
FragmentedKia Motor and Hyundai Motor are the only confirmed co-filer pair
The sole documented co-applicant relationship in the evidence is between Kia Motor Company and Hyundai Motor Company, who share 3 co-filed patent records — consistent with their corporate integration. No cross-industry or academic-industry collaboration pairs are evidenced, suggesting that consortium-based IP strategies remain underdeveloped in this field and could be a differentiator for early movers.
Low ecosystem depthUS leads filings; China is the primary challenger jurisdiction
The United States is the leading filing jurisdiction with 44 patent records, followed by China at 35 and WIPO (PCT) at 16. India registers 8 records — unusually prominent for this stage, likely reflecting active academic filing. Europe (EPO) at 6 records is modest given the region’s robotics industry base, indicating an underutilized protection route for applicants with European commercial exposure.
US-China bipolarGo beyond the landscape: Eureka’s TRIZ Solution agent breaks down an R&D problem and returns patented concept solutions, each with a technical approach and cited patent & literature evidence.
| Applicant | Collaborator | Co-filings |
|---|---|---|
| Kia Motor Company | Hyundai Motor Company | 3 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
Intel and Omron lead on manipulator IP; Kia/Hyundai own mobile control
The leading applicants divide into two functional clusters: computing and industrial-automation incumbents concentrated in B25J manipulator classes, and automotive entrants focused on mobile platform control via G05D.
Intel Corporation
Intel leads with 7 patent records, concentrated in B25J 9 (manipulator control) with additional coverage in B25J 13 and G05B 19. Its momentum is classified as a new entrant, indicating that substantially all of its records were filed in the recent window — a deliberate, fast-entry posture rather than a long-accumulated portfolio.
7 patent recordsOmron Corporation
Omron holds 6 patent records with a balanced spread across B25J 9 (manipulator mechanics), G05D 1 (mobile platform control), and B25J 13 (sensor-guided manipulation) — the broadest technical coverage among the top filers. This cross-class positioning reflects Omron’s dual capability in fixed cobot arms and autonomous mobile robots, giving it hedged exposure across both segments.
6 patent records| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Intel Corporation | 6 | ▲ new entrant |
| Kia Motor Company | 1 | ▲ new entrant |
| Northwestern University | 2 | ▲ new entrant |
| Hyundai Motor Company | 1 | ▲ new entrant |
| Nimble Robotics Inc. | 1 | ▲ new entrant |
Under-served adjacent branches in navigation sensing and logistics control
Several IPC classes adjacent to the dominant B25J core carry sparse coverage relative to their technical relevance to cobot and mobile SLAM systems. These are observations of relative sparsity; technical and commercial viability should be validated before treating them as investment targets.
G01C · Distance, navigation & gyroscopes
With only 4 patent records and a 2% share among indexed classes, G01C — which directly covers metric SLAM localization, inertial navigation, and map-building sensors — is conspicuously thin given its centrality to mobile robot navigation. The sparse coverage is plausibly explained by most SLAM sensor IP being filed under B25J by system-level assignees rather than component specialists. An entrant with sensor-fusion or LiDAR-SLAM differentiation could file targeted G01C claims with relatively low blocking risk from existing IP.
Search this in Eureka →B65G · Conveying & material handling
B65G holds 6 patent records and a 3% share, despite mobile manipulators being widely deployed in warehouse and intralogistics settings. The top-cited patent ‘Storage Systems and Methods for Robotic Picking’ (83 citations) signals strong commercial interest in this intersection, yet the filing base is thin. A coordinated SLAM-plus-conveying claim set — bridging autonomous navigation and payload handling — represents an adjacent coverage gap with a clear industrial application path.
Search this in Eureka →How top filers differ across technology routes
Route coverage across the main technology branches in the current evidence set.
| Player | B25J 9 · Manipulators & robots | B25J 5 · Manipulators & robots | B25J 19 · Manipulators & robots | G05D 1 · Control of non-electric variables | B25J 13 · Manipulators & robots |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) | Strong · 5 | Moderate · 2 | Absent | Absent | Strong · 5 |
| The Governing Council of the University of Toronto | Strong · 4 | Strong · 3 | Strong · 4 | Absent | Moderate · 1 |
| Nimble Robotics Inc. | Strong · 3 | Strong · 3 | Strong · 3 | Absent | Strong · 3 |
| Omron Corporation | Strong · 6 | Absent | Emerging · 1 | Moderate · 2 | Emerging · 1 |
| Northwestern University | Strong · 3 | Strong · 3 | Absent | Absent | Strong · 3 |
| Intel Corporation | Strong · 6 | Absent | Absent | Absent | Emerging · 1 |
| Chengdu Qinchuan IoT Technology Co., Ltd. | Strong · 3 | Absent | Strong · 3 | Absent | Absent |
Frequently asked questions
The analysis covers 95 patent families in scope. Applicant rankings and IPC class counts are measured at the patent-record level and can exceed the family total because a single family may generate records across multiple jurisdictions or classes.
Intel Corporation leads with 7 patent records among the top 100 filers, followed by Omron Corporation with 6 and Agency for Science, Technology and Research with 5. The top five filers collectively account for 22% of the hundred largest filers’ combined total.
The field is in a Growth lifecycle stage, with a 120% increase in recent-window filings versus the prior comparable period. Annual volume peaked at 22 records in 2023 and has eased since, but the most recent years (2024–2026) are likely further understated by standard 18–24-month publication lag, so the underlying pace of activity is higher than indexed figures show.
The United States is the leading jurisdiction with 44 patent records, followed by China at 35 and WIPO (PCT) at 16. India accounts for 8 records — a notable share for this stage — while Europe (EPO) holds only 6, suggesting it is underutilized relative to the region’s robotics industry presence.
B25J (Manipulators & robots) is the dominant class with 105 patent records, far ahead of G05D (Control of non-electric variables) at 17. G06F, G06Q, B65G, and G05B each carry fewer than 10 records, reflecting the field’s strong concentration in core manipulator mechanics relative to software, logistics, and systems-control branches.
The only documented co-applicant relationship in the evidence is between Kia Motor Company and Hyundai Motor Company, who co-filed 3 patent records — consistent with their corporate integration. Cross-industry and academic-industry co-filing pairs are not evidenced in the current data, indicating that consortium-based IP strategies remain uncommon in this field.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from PatSnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
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