Crop Phenotyping Sensing Patent Snapshot 2026
Crop phenotyping sensing is a nascent but fast-expanding field: filing activity grew substantially on a multi-year basis, though annual volume has eased from its 2022 peak. Two applicants share the top rank and the field remains highly concentrated, with image recognition and spectral analysis as the dominant technical routes.
Two leaders share the top rank in a tightly held field
Agri Victoria Services Pty Ltd and KWS Saat SE & Co. KGaA jointly lead the crop phenotyping sensing evidence snapshot, each holding 6 patent families — the highest count among all ranked applicants. Together with Crocus Labs GmbH (3 patent families) and C-Crop Ltd (2 patent families), these four organizations define the competitive core.
The top five filers account for 75% of the combined total across the ranked applicants visible in this query, signaling a high degree of concentration for a field of this size. A pronounced tier gap separates the top two from the remaining applicants, most of whom hold a single patent family.
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Agri Victoria Services Pty Ltd | 6 | |
| 2 | KWS SAAT SE & CO KGAA | 6 | |
| 3 | Crocus Labs GmbH | 3 | |
| 4 | C-Crop Ltd | 2 | |
| 5 | Shihezi University | 1 | |
| 6 | Dr. Maheswari P | 1 |
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Dr. Jain Jacob M | 1 | |
| 8 | Dr. Arunfred N | 1 | |
| 9 | Purdue Research Foundation | 1 | |
| 10 | Dr. Ganaga Durga Devi R | 1 | |
| 11 | Dr. Krishnan A R | 1 |
The visible position of Agri Victoria Services and KWS Saat — a crop science-focused seed company — suggests that both specialist sensing ventures and established plant breeding firms are staking early claims, increasing the stakes for later entrants.
The most recent 18–24 months of filing data are subject to publication lag and likely understate true recent activity; trends and rankings should be read with this in mind. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Multi-year growth led by image recognition and material analysis
Annual filing volume and technology class composition together reveal both the pace of field development and the technical bets being placed by active filers.
Annual filing trend
The field recorded negligible filings prior to 2018, then saw an early cohort in 2018, a quiet period, and a pronounced surge in 2022 — the highest single-year volume on record. Activity in 2023 and 2024 appears modest, but publication lag means these years are likely undercounted; the apparent easing from the 2022 peak should not be read as a real decline.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
Image and video recognition (G06V) is the leading technical class, followed closely by material analysis and testing (G01N) and bioinformatics (G16B). Horticulture and forestry (A01G) and soil working (A01B) represent meaningful secondary concentrations. Sparser classes — including radar and positioning (G01S), enzyme and DNA testing (C12Q), and AI-based computing (G06N) — indicate where technical coverage thins out.
↗ 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.
Method and system for performing data analysis for…
The invention relates to a method for performing data analysis for plant phenotyping of single plants in a field and a data acquisition and evaluation system for performing data analysis for plant phenotyping of single plants in a field. Further, the invention relates to a mobile platform for use in the data acquisition and evaluation system. The method… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Method and system for performing data analysis for… | 23 |
| 2 | Systems and Methods for Automated Hyperspectral Ve… | 10 |
| 3 | Systems and methods for automated hyperspectral ve… | 9 |
| 4 | Controlled environment agriculture method and syst… | 4 |
| 5 | Method and system for performing data analysis for… | 3 |
| 6 | Method for diurnal variation calibration for plant… | 2 |
| 7 | Plant phenotyping | 2 |
| 8 | Controlled environment agriculture method and syst… | 1 |
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.
Assignee snapshot from the current evidence set
The applicants below are visible in this query result. Because the evidence set is relatively small, read this section as a directional snapshot rather than a full competitive ranking.
Agri Victoria Services Pty Ltd
Holding 6 patent families, Agri Victoria Services Pty Ltd is a new entrant to this corpus with all recent filings concentrated in image and video recognition (G06V) and material analysis and testing (G01N). This dual focus on optical sensing and spectral analysis reflects a platform approach to in-field crop measurement. As a new entrant trending upward, the trajectory suggests an active, ongoing filing program rather than a legacy portfolio.
families: 6KWS Saat SE & Co. KGaA
Also holding 6 patent families, KWS Saat SE & Co. KGaA — a major European seed and plant breeding company — emphasizes image recognition (G06V) alongside soil working (A01B) and enzyme and DNA testing (C12Q). This broader technical spread connects phenotyping sensing to field agronomy and genomics workflows, distinguishing KWS from pure sensing specialists. Momentum data does not show a prior-period baseline for this applicant in the corpus.
families: 6Frequently asked questions
The current corpus contains 20 patent families in scope. Given the field’s Growth lifecycle stage and the publication lag affecting the most recent 18–24 months, the true current total is likely modestly higher than this figure suggests.
Agri Victoria Services Pty Ltd and KWS Saat SE & Co. KGaA jointly lead with 6 patent families each. Crocus Labs GmbH holds 3 patent families, and C-Crop Ltd holds 2. The remaining ranked applicants each hold 1 patent family.
Image and video recognition (G06V) and material analysis and testing (G01N) are the two leading technical classes. Bioinformatics (G16B), horticulture and forestry (A01G), and soil working (A01B) represent significant secondary concentrations.
The evidence places the field in a Growth stage. Multi-year filing activity is well above the prior comparable period, though annual volume has eased from its 2022 peak. The most recent years are understated by publication lag and should not be interpreted as a real decline.
The United States leads with 7 filings, followed by Europe via the EPO with 5, and Australia with 3. WIPO PCT filings account for 2, with India, Poland, and Turkey each recording 1 filing.
Radar, sonar and positioning (G01S) and enzyme or DNA-based measurement (C12Q) each show only 2 patent families — the lowest counts among the identified adjacent branches. Image data processing (G06T) and data recognition (G06K) are also sparsely covered relative to the visible imaging classes. These represent observable sparsity; technical and commercial opportunity should be assessed on a case-by-case basis.
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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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