DED Design for Additive Manufacturing Patent Snapshot
The directed energy deposition (DED) design-for-AM patent space is a small, highly concentrated field dominated by Relativity Space Inc, which holds one-third of all identified patent families. The field is in a growth phase on a multi-year basis, with annual volume having eased from its 2023 peak and the most recent filing years further understated by publication lag.
Relativity Space leads a concentrated, early-stage field
Relativity Space Inc holds 4 patent families, making it the clear front-runner in a corpus of 12 patent families. The next-ranked filer, Northwestern University, holds 2 patent families, and all remaining ranked applicants hold 1 each.
The top five filers account for 82% of the combined output of the ranked applicants visible in this query, an exceptionally high concentration signal for such a small field. The tier gap between rank 1 and rank 2 is meaningful: Relativity Space’s portfolio is twice the size of its nearest rival.
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Relativity Space Inc | 4 | |
| 2 | Northwestern University | 2 | |
| 3 | Nanyang Technological University | 1 | |
| 4 | Hamilton Sundstrand Corporation | 1 | |
| 5 | University of Coimbra | 1 | |
| 6 | Board of Regents, The University of Texas System | 1 | |
| 7 | Battelle Energy Alliance LLC | 1 |
The composition of leaders — a commercial aerospace-AM startup alongside four academic and research institutions — indicates that foundational IP is still being established, with no broad industrial incumbent yet staking a visible position.
The most recent filing years (2024–2025) are likely under-counted due to standard patent publication lag; apparent softness in those years should not be read as a real-activity decline. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Multi-year growth with a 2023 filing peak and a broad AM-process core
Two views together characterise the field: a filing timeline showing when interest accelerated and a technology-class breakdown showing which engineering domains are covered.
Annual filing trend
Activity was negligible before 2018, grew intermittently through 2022, then surged to a four-family peak in 2023. The three-year recent window sits 250% above the prior three-year window, confirming genuine multi-year growth. Figures for 2024 and 2025 are preliminary due to publication lag and should not be read as a slowdown.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
The visible IPC classes are B33Y (additive manufacturing, 11 records) and B22F (powder metallurgy, 10 records), confirming a process-centric focus. B23K (welding, soldering and brazing, 4 records) reflects the energy-deposition mechanism. Lower-density branches — B23P, C22C, F02K, B22C, C21C, F16C, F23R and G05B — reveal that materials, propulsion, structural and control dimensions are each covered by only one or two records.
↗ 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.
Methods of forming a multi-principal element alloyl
A method of forming a multi-principal element alloy may include selecting a targeted composition, the targeted composition defining two or more elements and their respective proportions, determining a theoretical relative feed rate of two or more feedstock materials, determining a series of feedstock relative feed rates based on the theoretical relative… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Systems and methods for global thermal control of … | 28 |
| 2 | Methods and apparatus for cognitive robotic additi… | 7 |
| 3 | Additively manufactured combustion chambers, manif… | 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.
Relativity Space Inc
Relativity Space holds 4 patent families — the largest portfolio in the corpus — concentrated in powder metallurgy (B22F) and additive manufacturing process and product classes (B33Y). Its applicant momentum is recorded as a new entrant, meaning all activity falls within the most recent window, consistent with a company that has pivoted its entire manufacturing strategy to large-scale AM. The focus on B22F powder processes alongside B33Y product and method claims reflects end-to-end rocket-grade component IP.
families: 4Northwestern University
Northwestern University holds 2 patent families, focused on welding and brazing mechanisms (B23K 15 and B23K 26) combined with B33Y additive manufacturing methods — a combination that directly addresses the energy-deposition process at the core of DED. No prior-window baseline is available, so momentum direction is evidence pending beyond the new-entrant classification.
families: 2Frequently asked questions
The current corpus contains 12 patent families. This is a small, specialist field; the limited count reflects both the technical specificity of the query and the recency of DED design-for-AM as a defined engineering discipline.
Relativity Space Inc leads with 4 patent families, followed by Northwestern University with 2. All other ranked applicants — Nanyang Technological University, Hamilton Sundstrand Corp, University of Coimbra, the University of Texas System, and Battelle Energy Alliance LLC — each hold 1 patent family.
Europe (EPO) leads with 5 patent records, followed by the United States and WIPO PCT with 3 records each. India has 1 record. The EPO-first pattern is notable given the US-headquartered profile of the leading applicant.
The lifecycle evidence classifies it as a Growth stage field. The recent three-year filing window is 250% above the prior three-year window. Annual volume has eased from the 2023 peak of 4 families, but the most recent years are further understated by publication lag, so that softness should not be read as a structural decline.
No co-applicant filings are recorded in the current corpus. Every patent family is filed by a single assignee. The absence of co-filing activity may reflect the small corpus size and the early-stage nature of the field.
F02K (jet and reaction propulsion) and C22C (alloys) each appear in only 2 patent records — a 6% share each — despite being technically central to DED applications in aerospace and high-performance components. Foundry moulding (B22C) and steelmaking (C21C) each appear in just 1 record, indicating further sparse adjacent territory.
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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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