Electron Beam Melting Patents: Leaders, Trends & White Space 2026
- Filing already peaked. 2017 recorded 23 filings against a dataset of 62 families total; by the 2022 midpoint annual filing had fallen to 6, and the trend has not recovered.
- Powder metallurgy dominates the claim set. B22F (powder metallurgy) appears in 43 of 62 families and B33Y (additive manufacturing) in 34, while inspection-specific classes like G01N (material analysis) sit at just 5.
- No single assignee is pulling ahead now. Every tracked assignee with prior activity — from Arcam to Honeywell to QuesTek — shows zero filings in the latest year, pointing to a fragmented, cooled field rather than a consolidating one.
Filing growth compares 2021 (13 records) with 2024 (2) — 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 62 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
What this landscape covers
This dataset tracks patent families at the intersection of electron beam melting (and related electron beam powder bed fusion processes) with testing and inspection methods — CT inspection, porosity analysis and mechanical property testing applied to parts built by these processes. It spans publications from 2015 through the 2026 cut-off, covering 62 total families across major receiving offices including the United States, the EPO and WIPO.
Because publication typically lags filing by around 18 months, the most recent one to two years in any trend chart will understate real filing activity. That lag does not change the shape of the longer trend already visible here, which shows a clear early peak followed by a decline.
Filing trend and technology composition
Two views of the same 62-family dataset: how filing activity has moved year over year, and which technology classes carry the claim volume.
A front-loaded filing curve
Filings peaked at 23 in 2017 and declined toward the dataset midpoint, where 2022 recorded just 6. That pattern is consistent with an early wave of foundational filings around electron beam melting inspection methods, followed by a market that has not generated a comparable second wave — at least not one visible yet given publication lag on the most recent years.
Powder and additive classes carry the volume
B22F (powder metallurgy, 43 records) and B33Y (additive manufacturing, 34) account for the bulk of filings, with C22C (alloys, 25) close behind. Inspection- and control-specific classes — G06T (image processing, 10), G05B (control systems, 9) and G01N (material analysis, 5) — are present but thin, suggesting inspection methodology itself is less heavily claimed than the materials and processes being inspected.
Shares are the percentage of the 62 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on Electron Beam Melting Testing and Inspection with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about electron beam melting testing and inspection and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaMost-cited records in the corpus
Autonomous mechanical performance characterization of three-dimensional articles on a build plate
A process for autonomous mechanical property testing of specimens on a build plate includes fabricating a plurality of the specimens on a build plate, wherein each of the specimens comprises an upper portion and a lower portion integral to the build plate. Each of the upper portions of the specimens on the build plate are sequentially engaged with an end effector on a terminal end of a multi-linked robotic arm, wherein the end effector is configured to engage the upper portion and apply a uni- or multi-modal load, wherein intermediate the end effector and the multi-linked robotic arm comprises a multi-axis load cell for measuring an applied load.Filed by The Johns Hopkins University, published 2024-03-07 as US20240077395A1.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US20160224017A1 | Systems and methods for modelling additively manufactured bodies | 75 |
| 2 | WO2013128416A2 | Silver-based alloy powder for manufacturing of 3-dimensional metal objects | 50 |
| 3 | US20040042926A1 | High-silicon stainless | 31 |
| 4 | US20190054536A1 | 3D printing of metallic inks and subsequent heat-treatments | 27 |
| 5 | US20160279708A1 | Net-shape or near-net shape powder metal components and methods for producing the same | 23 |
| 6 | EP3072611A2 | Net-shape or near-net shape powder metal components and methods for producing the same | 20 |
| 7 | WO2016123549A1 | Systems and methods for modelling additively manufactured bodies | 19 |
| 8 | EP1352980A1 | High silicon stainless | 18 |
| 9 | US20230264264A1 | Structural simulation of additively manufactured components | 13 |
| 10 | US20170306448A1 | Alpha-beta titanium alloys having aluminum and molybdenum, and products made therefrom | 12 |
Citation counts reflect influence inside this searched corpus and skew toward older filings; treat them as a signal of what shaped the field, not of what matters most today.
Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
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Read together, the filing trend and the IPC composition point to a field where the foundational claim space closed early and inspection methodology remains comparatively open.
The early wave has not repeated
A peak of 23 filings in 2017 followed by a decline to 6 by 2022 suggests the initial round of foundational patents around electron beam melting inspection has largely been filed. New entrants are not filling that gap at the same pace.
Powder metallurgy claims dominate
Two-thirds of the dataset sits in B22F, with B33Y close behind. That density means claims on the powder and build-process side are crowded; freedom to operate is tighter there than in inspection-specific classes.
Material analysis and testing is thin
G01N, the class most directly tied to material analysis and testing methods, carries only 5 records against 43 in powder metallurgy. Testing and inspection is present as an application context far more often than as the subject of the claims themselves.
No assignee shows current momentum
Every assignee with prior filing history in this dataset — spanning powder atomization, aerospace and materials-informatics players — shows zero filings in the most recent tracked year, consistent with the broader decline rather than any single company pulling back.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to electron beam melting testing and inspection, with the prior art for and against each one.
Who has filed, and where the gaps sit
The assignee base spans powder producers, aerospace manufacturers, additive equipment makers and at least one materials-informatics specialist, but recent-year filing activity is flat across the board.
One clear internal collaboration
The strongest co-assignee pair in the dataset links a GE aviation entity with its parent, General Electric — evidence of internal cross-filing between a business unit and its parent rather than external partnership.
US and EPO lead filing venues
The United States (21) and the EPO (19) account for the large majority of filings, with WIPO PCT applications (8) trailing. Canada, the UK and Austria each show single-digit counts, indicating this is primarily a US/Europe-contested space.
A fragmented assignee base
No assignee shows current-year momentum, and the co-assignment data reveals only one meaningful collaborative link. That combination points to a field of independent filers rather than a small number of firms building layered portfolios.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Arcam | 0 | — |
| BAE Systems plc | 0 | — |
| EOS GmbH Electro Optical Systems | 0 | — |
| Xerox Corporation | 0 | — |
| Honeywell International Inc. | 0 | — |
| QuesTek Innovations LLC | 0 | — |
| SHIMIZU YOSHIYUKI | 0 | — |
| GE Avio S.r.l. | 0 | — |
Where to take this next
The filing trend and class composition point to specific next steps for teams deciding where to file or where to watch.
Map freedom to operate in B22F and B33Y
With 43 and 34 records respectively, these classes carry the densest prior art. A claim drafted here needs a tight novelty search against the powder-process and additive-manufacturing filings already in force.
Explore claim density in EurekaTest the G01N gap directly
Only 5 of 62 records sit in material analysis and testing proper. That is a smaller set to design around if the claim is built around the inspection method itself rather than the powder or build process.
Run a white space search in EurekaWatch for a second filing wave
Given the 18-month publication lag, 2025-2026 filings are still arriving. Assignees with prior activity but no recent filings may resume, or new entrants may fill the gap left since the 2017 peak.
Track new filings in EurekaCommon questions
It covers patent families that combine an electron beam melting or electron beam powder bed fusion process with a testing or inspection method applied to the resulting parts — most commonly CT inspection, porosity analysis or mechanical property testing. This dataset uses a combined search across both concepts, so a filing needs both the manufacturing process and the testing method to be included, not just one or the other. That narrows the set to 62 families rather than the much larger body of general additive manufacturing patents.
The 2017 peak of 23 filings likely reflects an early wave of foundational patents as electron beam melting moved from research into industrial qualification, when inspection and testing methods needed to be established alongside the manufacturing process itself. The decline toward 6 filings by 2022 suggests that foundational claim space filled quickly and has not been replaced by a comparable second wave. Readers should also account for publication lag: the most recent one to two years in any such dataset will always look thinner than they eventually turn out to be once further publications land.
The dataset's assignee base includes powder and additive equipment makers, aerospace manufacturers and at least one materials-informatics firm, but no single assignee shows filing activity in the most recent tracked year. The one notable pattern is an internal co-filing link between a GE aviation business unit and its parent, General Electric, rather than a dominant standalone leader. This points to a fragmented field where influence is historical rather than currently concentrated.
The clearest gap sits in inspection methodology itself: material analysis and testing (G01N) accounts for only 5 of 62 records compared with 43 in powder metallurgy, meaning most filings treat testing as a downstream application rather than the subject of the claims. Sub-areas such as in-situ CT porosity thresholding, real-time melt-pool defect classification and closed-loop control tied to inspection data all show low filing density relative to the core process classes. A first claim in one of these areas would need to specifically tie the inspection or control step to the electron beam build process to distinguish it from the broader additive manufacturing art.
Citation counts inside a searched corpus like this one tend to favor older filings simply because they have had more time to accumulate citations, so a high count signals historical influence rather than current commercial importance. The most-cited record in this dataset, for example, dates back to a period well before the 2017 filing peak. Anyone using citation rank to prioritize a freedom-to-operate review should cross-check filing date and current legal status rather than relying on citation count alone.
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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.