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Run your analysis now →https://www.patsnap.com/resources/blog/rd-blog/cryogenic-and-multilayer-insulation-patent-landscape/ · Patsnap · data cut-off 2026-07-31 · downloaded from the live page
Patent Landscape · Thermal Insulation MaterialsCryogenic and Multilayer Insulation Patents: Who Holds the Ground and Where It's Open
- 27.8% of all 180 records sit with just five assignees, but the ranked list runs 100 companies deep — concentration at the top, a long tail beneath it.
- Filings peaked in 2018 at 12 and the 2021-to-2024 span shows a -100% swing; treat 2025-2026 as still filling in, not as a real decline.
- F17C pressure vessels lead at 27.2% of records, but B32B layered products (21.1%) and H01B insulators (7.8%) show where claim density thins out.
180
Published Records
28%
Top-5 Share of All Records
-100%
Filing Growth 2021→2024
US
Leading Jurisdiction
Filing growth compares 2021 (9 records) with 2024 (0) — a three-year span. 2024 is the most recent year we treat as complete: publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, so 2025 onwards are still filling in and any growth rate that ends there would understate the field. Top-5 share is the combined record count of the five largest assignees divided by all 180 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
Published byPatsnap Research··7 min readSourced from Patsnap Eureka
Overview
What this landscape covers
This review covers 180 published records filed or published between 2015 and mid-2026 that combine multilayer insulation, cryogenic insulation or vacuum-jacketed pipe terminology with specific technical elements — radiation shield layers, layer density, outgassing rate, boil-off rate, spacer material or vacuum retention. That combination narrows the field to documents making concrete engineering claims rather than general thermal-management filings, which is why the total is modest next to broader insulation searches.
The scope spans cryogenic storage vessels, vacuum-jacketed pipe systems, spacecraft and industrial multilayer insulation blankets, and the spacer and shield materials that sit inside them. Receiving-office data shows the United States as the largest single office, with Europe, the WIPO PCT route, Japan and Germany all carrying meaningful volume — evidence that this is filed as an internationally contested space, not a domestic niche.
Filing activity and technology composition, 2015-2026
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Assignee ranking and totals. Derived from a Patsnap search on Cryogenic and Multilayer Insulation covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
The Data
Filing trend and technology composition
Two views of the same 180 records: how filing activity has moved year on year, and which IPC subclasses carry the claims.
Filing trend, 2017-2026
Filings rose from 2 in 2017 to a peak of 12 in 2018, then eased. The 2021-to-2024 span shows a -100% change on the figures in scope; because publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, 2025 and 2026 are undercounted and should not be read as an active slowdown.
IPC subclass composition
F17C (pressure vessels & gas storage) leads at 27.2% of the 180 records, followed by F16L (pipes & pipe fittings) at 23.3% and B32B (layered products & laminates) at 21.1%. H01F, F25D, H01B, B65B and G01N each cover a smaller share; since records can carry multiple classes, these figures sum to more than 100%.
Shares are the percentage of the 180 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Filing trend and technology composition. Derived from a Patsnap search on Cryogenic and Multilayer Insulation covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.
Go deeper on Cryogenic and Multilayer Insulation with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about cryogenic and multilayer insulation and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
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The most-cited prior art in this space
Representative Filing
Method for insulating a cryogenic container (US6521077B1)
LYDALL, INC.
Describes a method and a packaged multilayer insulation blanket for insulating cryogenic tanks, pipes or other extreme-temperature elements. The blanket alternates heat-reflective foil layers with microfiberglass spacer material, sandwiched between two sealed plastic sheeting layers that define an evacuated inside space around the insulation.Assigned to Lydall, Inc.; published 2003-02-18.
Highest-citation records
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US6485805B1 | Multilayer insulation composite | 112 |
| 2 | US4036617A | Support system for an elongated cryogenic envelope | 97 |
| 3 | US5277959A | Composite flexible blanket insulation | 83 |
| 4 | US5030518A | Multi-layer thermal insulation, especially for spacecraft | 76 |
| 5 | US6521077B1 | Method for insulating a cryogenic container | 71 |
| 6 | US4046407A | Elongated cryogenic envelope | 55 |
| 7 | US6742926B1 | Methods of testing thermal insulation and associated test apparatus | 54 |
| 8 | US20140352329A1 | Temperature-stabilized storage systems with regulated cooling | 51 |
| 9 | US3540615A | Panelized high-performance multilayer insulation | 48 |
| 10 | WO1999036725A1 | Multilayer insulation composite | 47 |
Citation counts favour older filings that have had more time to accumulate references; treat them as a measure of influence within this corpus, not of current commercial relevance.
Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Citation counts and representative records. Derived from a Patsnap search on Cryogenic and Multilayer Insulation covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
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What the numbers mean for a filing decision
Reading the concentration, trend and citation data together points to where claim space is occupied and where it is not.
Concentration
27.8% / 50.6%
top 5 / top 10 share of 180 records
Leadership is real but not locked in
The top five assignees hold 27.8% of all 180 records and the top ten hold 50.6% — meaningful concentration, but with 100 companies appearing in the ranking, over half the field is held by entities outside that top tier. A new entrant is not filing into a two-player market.
Based on the full 100-company assignee ranking
Trend
-100%
2021 → 2024 change
Read the recent years cautiously
Filing peaked in 2018 at 12 and the 2021-to-2024 span shows a -100% swing on these figures. Because publication trails filing by around 18 months, the 2025-2026 counts are still incomplete and should not be treated as evidence the field has gone quiet.
Peak year: 2018 at 12 filings
Technology mix
27.2% F17C
share of 180 records
Storage vessels dominate, insulators trail
F17C pressure-vessel claims and F16L pipe claims together account for the bulk of filing activity. H01B cable/insulator claims and B65B packaging claims sit at 7.8% and 6.1% respectively, which is thin coverage relative to the core vessel and pipe categories.
Classes overlap; shares are of the 180-record total
Citation signal
112 citations
US6485805B1, most-cited record
Foundational blanket-composite claims still anchor the field
The most-cited records describe multilayer insulation composites and support systems for cryogenic envelopes dating back decades. Their citation counts reflect longevity in a searched corpus, not that the underlying claims remain the most commercially active route today.
Top five citation counts range from 71 to 112
Eureka AI Agent
Looking for what nobody has claimed yet?
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to cryogenic and multilayer insulation, with the prior art for and against each one.
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Co-assignee relationships and derived observations. Derived from a Patsnap search on Cryogenic and Multilayer Insulation covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
Players
Who is filing, and where the gaps sit
The assignee ranking runs 100 companies deep, from a leader at 11 records down through a long tail of single- and few-filing entrants. Recent-year momentum across the most active named assignees shows zero filings in the latest year for each — consistent with the publication lag rather than a sign the leaders have exited.
Leader
11 records
top-ranked assignee
A narrow lead, not a monopoly
The top-ranked assignee holds 11 records against a fifth-place figure of 9 and a tenth-place figure of 8 — a gentle gradient rather than a cliff, meaning the field is contestable near the top.
Fifth place: 9 records · Tenth place: 8 records
Co-filing
10 pairs
co-assignee relationships identified
A small cluster files jointly
Ten co-assignee pairs appear in the data, with the strongest pairing appearing across nine shared records and two others at eight — evidence of a research partnership structure rather than isolated inventors.
Strongest pair: 9 shared records
Filing geography
US 55 · EPO 34
leading receiving offices
US and Europe carry the bulk of filings
The United States receives the largest single share of filings, with the European Patent Office and the WIPO PCT route also carrying substantial volume, followed by Japan and Germany — a filing footprint that spans all three major markets.
WIPO PCT: 17 · Japan: 14 · Germany: 10
Recent-year momentum by assignee
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Cabot Corporation | 0 | — |
| AEROGEL CARD D O O | 0 | — |
| THERMOPAC | 0 | — |
| Victoria Link Ltd | 0 | — |
| FEE MICHAEL GRAEME | 0 | — |
| Tokitae LLC | 0 | — |
| WALSH ROWAN MARTIN | 0 | — |
| SLADE ROBERT ANDREW | 0 | — |
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Assignee-level momentum. Derived from a Patsnap search on Cryogenic and Multilayer Insulation covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
What's Next
Where to take this next
This landscape identifies structure — concentration, trend and composition. The next steps depend on whether the goal is freedom-to-operate, a filing strategy, or tracking a specific competitor.
Check freedom-to-operate against the cited core
The highest-cited records describe foundational multilayer blanket and support-system claims. Any new filing on blanket composites or cryogenic envelope support should be checked against these before drafting.
Explore prior art in EurekaTrack the co-filing cluster
A small group of assignees files jointly and repeatedly. Watching this cluster's activity is a faster read on where the research frontier is moving than watching the full 100-company ranking.
Set up assignee tracking in EurekaProbe the under-claimed branches
Outgassing-rate methods and vacuum-retention monitoring show thinner coverage than the core vessel and pipe classes. A claim drafted specifically around test methodology may face less prior art.
Run a white space search in EurekaSource: Patsnap Eureka. Forward-looking reading of the same dataset. Derived from a Patsnap search on Cryogenic and Multilayer Insulation covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
FAQ
Common questions on cryogenic and multilayer insulation patents
The assignee ranking covers 100 companies, with the top-ranked holder at 11 records and the fifth-place holder at 9. The top five assignees combined hold 27.8% of the 180 records in scope, and the top ten hold 50.6% — real concentration at the top, but with a long tail of single- and few-filing entrants behind it. No single company dominates outright, so competitive tracking needs to cover more than just the leader.
Filings peaked in 2018 at 12 in this dataset, and the 2021-to-2024 span shows a -100% change on the recorded figures. However, publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, so the 2025 and 2026 counts are still incomplete and should not be read as a genuine drop in activity. The most reliable read on current momentum is 2024, the most recent year that can be treated as complete.
US6521077B1 describes a method and a packaged multilayer insulation blanket for insulating cryogenic tanks, pipes or similar extreme-temperature elements. The blanket alternates heat-reflective foil with microfiberglass spacer material and is sealed between plastic sheeting layers that define an evacuated space around the insulation. It is a foundational packaging-and-installation method rather than a materials-composition patent, so it constrains how insulation is packaged and installed more than what the insulation itself is made from.
F17C (pressure vessels and gas storage) leads at 27.2% of the 180 records, followed by F16L (pipes and pipe fittings) at 23.3% and B32B (layered products and laminates) at 21.1%. These three classes describe the core vessel, pipe and laminate structures that carry the bulk of claim activity. Because a single record can carry several IPC classes, these shares add up to more than 100% of the record total.
The composition data shows thinner coverage in H01B (cables, conductors and insulators) and B65B (packaging and wrapping), each under 8% of records, compared with the 20-27% range for the core vessel and pipe classes. Sub-areas such as outgassing-rate test methodology, vacuum-retention monitoring and spacer-material density optimisation sit adjacent to the dense core but show fewer dedicated filings. These are reasonable starting points for a freedom-to-operate check before drafting a new claim.
The United States receives the largest share of filings at 55, followed by the European Patent Office at 34 and the WIPO PCT route at 17. Japan and Germany each carry further volume at 14 and 10 respectively. This spread across major markets indicates the technology is filed internationally rather than concentrated in one jurisdiction.
Answers are grounded in the same dataset. Derived from a Patsnap search on Cryogenic and Multilayer Insulation covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
Research Cryogenic and Multilayer Insulation in depth with Eureka
Go past this page: query the whole cryogenic and multilayer insulation corpus yourself, in your own scope.
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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.
Nothing on this page constitutes an exhaustive prior-art, novelty, freedom-to-operate, or validity search, nor does it constitute legal, financial, investment, or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon as such. Any patent, commercial, or strategic decision should be verified independently and reviewed with qualified patent, legal, and domain professionals. Patsnap makes no warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness, or fitness for any particular purpose of the information presented.
Machine translation. Assignee and organisation names originally recorded in Chinese, Japanese or Korean have been rendered into English by an AI translation step so that the tables stay readable. These renderings are best-effort and may not match a company's registered English name; the original name is what the underlying patent record carries, and it is what any Eureka query launched from this page uses.