Defibrillator & AED Patents: Who Leads, Where the Gaps Are 2026
- 46.0% of all filings sit with just five assignees out of the 1,371 records in scope — concentration that has held even as annual filings decline.
- Filing activity has cooled since 2018 when annual filings peaked at 85; by the midpoint year of 2022 the count had fallen to 51, and recent-year momentum is negative for most of the leading names.
- Electrotherapy dominates the claim space at 97.5% of records, while adjacent branches like healthcare informatics (5.8%) and signalling/alarm systems (1.9%) remain comparatively open.
What the defibrillator and AED patent record shows
The dataset covers 1,371 published records filed between 2015 and mid-2026 across shock waveform design, impedance compensation, rhythm analysis algorithms, electrode pad construction and battery readiness. Filing offices span the United States, the EPO, WIPO/PCT, Austria, Australia and Canada, with the United States carrying the largest single share of receiving-office activity. The technology sits almost entirely under A61N electrotherapy classification, with a meaningful secondary presence in A61B diagnosis and surgery.
Annual filings rose to a peak in 2018 and have trended down since, with the most recent year understated because publication typically lags filing by around 18 months. Assignee concentration is high at the top but the ranking runs 100 names deep, meaning most of the field is held by companies with only a handful of families each.
Filing trend and technology composition
Two views of the same 1,371-record dataset: how filing activity has moved year over year, and how records distribute across IPC subclasses.
Filing trend, 2017-2026
Annual filings ran at 74 in 2017, climbed to a peak of 85 in 2018, and had fallen to 51 by the 2022 midpoint. The 2026 figure of 6 is a partial year and should not be read as a collapse in activity — it reflects the publication lag rather than a sudden stop in filing.
IPC subclass composition
A61N electrotherapy claims cover 97.5% of the 1,371 records, effectively defining the field. A61B diagnosis and surgery follows at 22.9%. Below that, healthcare informatics (G16H, 5.8%), physical therapy (A61H, 5.6%), wireless networking (H04W, 3.7%), digital data processing (G06F, 3.0%), educational aids (G09B, 2.0%) and signalling/alarm systems (G08B, 1.9%) each cover a much smaller share, since a single record can carry several classes.
Shares are the percentage of the 1,371 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on Defibrillators and AEDs with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about defibrillators and aeds and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaMost-cited records in the field
Common Notebook, Laptop Computer, Tablet PC, PDA and Cell Phone With Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Capability
Filed by COMPTOLIFE, LLC, this record describes adapting general-purpose computing devices — notebooks, laptops, tablet PCs and cell phones — to function as automated external defibrillators, including the methods for enabling each device type to deliver the AED function.Published 2011-02-24 as US20110046688A1.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US20040143297A1 | Advanced automatic external defibrillator powered by alternative and optionally multiple electrical power sou… | 1,509 |
| 2 | US5193535A | Method and apparatus for discrimination of ventricular tachycardia from ventricular fibrillation and for trea… | 589 |
| 3 | US5184616A | Apparatus and method for generation of varying waveforms in arrhythmia control system | 519 |
| 4 | US5447519A | Method and apparatus for discrimination of monomorphic and polymorphic arrhythmias and for treatment thereof | 480 |
| 5 | US7065401B2 | Method of applying electrical signals to a patient and automatic wearable external defibrillator | 365 |
| 6 | US6125299A | AED with force sensor | 364 |
| 7 | US5634938A | Defibrillator waveform generator for generating waveform of long duration | 353 |
| 8 | US5951598A | Electrode system | 338 |
| 9 | US6101413A | Circuit detectable pediatric defibrillation electrodes | 302 |
| 10 | US5224475A | Method and apparatus for termination of ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation | 270 |
Citation counts reflect influence within the searched corpus and skew toward older filings; they are not a measure of current commercial importance.
Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
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Reading the concentration, trend and citation data together points to a field with an occupied core and a thinning edge.
The core is claimed, not the whole field
Five assignees hold 631 of the 1,371 records in scope. That density sits almost entirely inside shock waveform and impedance-compensation claims under A61N, where a new entrant should expect dense prior art and narrow room to file broad claims.
Filing has cooled since its 2018 peak
Annual filings ran at 85 in 2018 and had dropped to 51 by 2022. Several of the most active historical filers show negative year-on-year momentum in the most recent year, which is consistent with a maturing core claim space rather than a shrinking market.
Electrotherapy claims define the field
Almost every record in scope touches A61N electrotherapy. Secondary classes — healthcare informatics, physical therapy, wireless networking, signalling/alarm systems — each cover single-digit shares, which is where claim space is comparatively open.
Foundational claims still anchor the citation graph
The most-cited record in scope, an alternative-power AED filing, carries far more citations than the next tier. High citation counts here reflect age and foundational status within the corpus rather than current commercial weight.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to defibrillators and aeds, with the prior art for and against each one.
Who holds the claim space, and where the gate sits
The ranking runs 100 assignees deep, but activity concentrates hard at the top and thins quickly after the leading names.
One assignee holds close to a quarter of the field
The leading assignee's 299 records dwarf the fifth-place figure of 64, showing a steep drop-off rather than a gradual one. That gap matters for freedom-to-operate work: clearing the leader's portfolio does most of the work of clearing the field's densest claims.
The drop-off continues through the top ten
Fifth place holds 64 records and tenth place holds 42, so the top ten together account for 883 records, or 64.4% of the 1,371 records in scope. Below tenth place, the ranking's remaining 90 names each hold materially fewer filings.
Recent-year activity is falling across most tracked names
Several previously active assignees show sharp year-on-year declines in the latest tracked year, with some falling to zero filings. Read this alongside the publication lag: some of the drop is a data-cutoff artefact, not a full stop in R&D.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| BARDY TECH INC | 2 | -88% |
| AVIVE SOLUTIONS INC | 1 | -75% |
| CellAED Life Saver Pty Ltd | 1 | — |
| Koninklijke Philips N.V. | 0 | -100% |
| ZOLL Medical Corporation | 0 | -100% |
| West Affum Holdings DAC | 0 | — |
| Element Science, Inc. | 0 | -100% |
| Physio-Control, Inc. | 0 | — |
Where to take this analysis
The dataset points to specific follow-up work depending on whether the goal is freedom-to-operate, portfolio strategy, or identifying a filing opportunity.
Map the leader's claim boundaries
With one assignee holding 299 of 1,371 records, a claim-by-claim read of that portfolio's independent claims in shock waveform and impedance compensation will show most clearly where the core is actually occupied.
Explore assignee portfolios in EurekaTest the under-claimed branches
Healthcare informatics, signalling/alarm systems and educational aids all sit under 6% of records. Drafting a claim against current art in one of these branches is a faster path to a defensible position than contesting the A61N core.
Run a white space search in EurekaWatch momentum, not just totals
Several top assignees show negative year-on-year filing momentum. Tracking whether that continues past the current publication lag will clarify whether the core claim space is settling or simply under-reported.
Set up momentum tracking in EurekaCommon questions on defibrillator and AED patents
The ranking covers 100 assignees, and it is heavily front-loaded: the leading assignee holds 299 of the 1,371 records in scope, compared with 64 for the fifth-placed assignee and 42 for the tenth. The top five assignees together account for 46.0% of all records, and the top ten account for 64.4%. That means clearing freedom-to-operate risk against a small number of portfolios addresses most of the field's densest claims, though the remaining 90 assignees in the ranking still hold meaningful individual positions in narrower niches.
Annual filings peaked at 85 in 2018 and had declined to 51 by the 2022 midpoint, with the trend continuing downward toward the most recent tracked years. This points to a cooling rather than an accelerating field. Note that publication typically lags filing by around 18 months, so the very latest year in any dataset understates true filing activity and should not be read as a hard stop.
Almost all records, 97.5% of the 1,371 in scope, fall under A61N electrotherapy and radiation therapy classification, covering shock waveform generation and delivery. A61B diagnosis and surgery is the next largest at 22.9%, followed by much smaller shares in healthcare informatics, physical therapy, wireless networking, digital data processing, educational aids and signalling/alarm systems. Because a single patent can carry multiple IPC classes, these shares add up to more than 100%.
The branches furthest from the electrotherapy core carry the smallest record counts: signalling and alarm systems sit at 1.9% of records, educational and demonstration aids at 2.0%, and digital data processing at 3.0%. These lower-density branches, particularly public-access alarm integration, training simulation tools, and wireless connectivity for wearable AEDs, carry less prior art than the core waveform and impedance-compensation claims, making them a more realistic starting point for a new independent claim.
The most-cited record in the dataset, an alternative-power AED filing, carries 1,509 citations, well ahead of the next tier of records citing arrhythmia-discrimination and waveform-generation methods from the early 1990s. These high counts reflect the age and foundational role of the filings within the searched corpus rather than their current commercial relevance, since older records simply have had more time to accumulate citations.
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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.