FO-RO Hybrid / Osmotic Dilution System Patent Snapshot
The FO-RO hybrid and osmotic dilution system space is a compact, moderately concentrated field anchored by FUJIFILM CORP and Fluvicon GmbH, with the United States as the dominant filing jurisdiction. Annual volume peaked in 2020 and has since eased, placing the field in a post-peak phase where selective adjacencies — particularly draw-solute materials and oilfield water treatment — remain thinly covered.
FUJIFILM and Fluvicon lead a concentrated but compact field
FUJIFILM CORP holds the leading position among ranked applicants, followed closely by Fluvicon GmbH and a tie between Waterwhelm Ltd and ConocoPhillips Co. The top five filers account for 58% of the ranked applicants visible in this query’ combined total, signaling meaningful but not overwhelming concentration.
The field splits into two clear tiers: FUJIFILM and Fluvicon together hold a substantial share of ranked activity, while the remaining applicants are single-digit contributors. This tier gap suggests that the two leaders have built defensible portfolios, yet the overall corpus remains small enough that a focused entrant could establish a credible position.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FUJIFILM Corporation | 16 | |
| 2 | Fluvicon GmbH | 13 | |
| 3 | Waterwhelm Ltd | 8 | |
| 4 | ConocoPhillips Co | 8 | |
| 5 | Vantive Health GmbH | 4 | |
| 6 | Vantive US Healthcare LLC | 4 | |
| 7 | KING ABDULLAH UNIV OF SCI & TECH | 3 | |
| 8 | NRGTek Inc. | 3 | |
| 9 | Suomen Malmijalostus Oy | 2 | |
| 10 | Nanyang Technological University | 2 |
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | UWM Research Foundation Inc. | 2 | |
| 12 | Artesion Inc. | 2 | |
| 13 | Baxter Healthcare SA | 2 | |
| 14 | Yangali-Quintanilla Victor | 2 | |
| 15 | Linares Rodrigo Valladares | 2 | |
| 16 | Baxter International Inc. | 2 | |
| 17 | Oasys Water Inc. | 2 | |
| 18 | RES & BUSINESS FOUND SUNGKYUNKWAN UNIV | 2 | |
| 19 | James Patrick Ismail | 1 | |
| 20 | Dayananda Sagar College of Engineering | 1 |
FUJIFILM’s breadth across membrane separation and water-treatment classes, and Fluvicon’s tighter focus on separation processes with catalysis-adjacent work, indicate that the leaders are approaching the technology from distinct system-design angles — leaving room for differentiated positioning in draw-solute chemistry or application-specific subsystems.
Activity from approximately the last 18–24 months is likely under-represented due to standard patent-publication lag; the apparent absence of filings in 2023–2024 should not be read as a real cessation of activity. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
A 2020 peak, post-peak easing, and a separation-dominated technology mix
The annual filing trend reveals a burst of activity around 2020 that has since subsided, while the technology-class breakdown confirms that membrane separation and water treatment account for the great majority of coverage, with several adjacent classes remaining thinly populated.
Annual filing trend
Filings rose to a pronounced peak in 2020, then declined sharply. The zero-filing years of 2023 and 2024 almost certainly reflect publication lag rather than a true halt; the three records showing in 2025 are early indicators that the field has not gone dormant. Read the post-2022 data as structurally incomplete.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
B01D (Separation processes) and C02F (Water and wastewater treatment) together are visible in the IPC distribution, confirming that core membrane-process engineering is where most patent effort is concentrated. C09K (draw-solute materials), E21B (oilfield/well applications), A61M (medical fluid devices), and several smaller classes each represent a fraction of the total, flagging them as adjacent branches with lighter coverage.
↗ 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.
Reduced graphene oxide forward osmosis membranes, …
One aspect of the invention relates to a forward osmosis (FO) membrane including a selectively permeable active layer formed of a graphene-based material with tunable interlayer spacing; and a support membrane providing mechanical stability. The FO membrane enhances water flux while minimizing reverse solute flux. (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apparatus, System, and Method for Forward Osmosis … | 58 |
| 2 | A membrane and gas recycling system for forward os… | 27 |
| 3 | Processing including a membrane and gas recycling … | 21 |
| 4 | Water walls for life support | 18 |
| 5 | Regenerable draw solute for osmotically driven pro… | 13 |
| 6 | Draw solution for forward osmosis process | 13 |
| 7 | Method for electrochemical separation and regenera… | 12 |
| 8 | Forward osmosis apparatus and forward osmosis proc… | 12 |
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.
FUJIFILM CORP
FUJIFILM CORP holds 16 patent records — the largest share among ranked applicants — concentrated in B01D 61 (membrane separation processes), C02F 1 (water and wastewater treatment), and C02F 103 (water-type-specific treatment). Its portfolio reflects a system-level approach spanning membrane module design and water-treatment process integration. No recent-period surge is indicated by the momentum data, consistent with an established incumbent consolidating an existing position rather than aggressively expanding.
patent records: 16Fluvicon GmbH
Fluvicon GmbH holds 13 patent records, placing it just behind FUJIFILM as the second-ranked applicant. Its primary focus is B01D 61 (separation processes), with secondary coverage in C02F 1 (water treatment) and B01J 49 (ion-exchange and related chemical/physical processes). This catalysis-adjacent emphasis differentiates Fluvicon’s approach from FUJIFILM’s broader system coverage and may reflect a draw-solute regeneration or ion-management angle. Momentum data does not flag Fluvicon as a recent surge entrant, indicating a similarly established posture.
patent records: 13Frequently asked questions
The corpus covers 39 patent families in scope. This is a compact field relative to mature membrane-separation technologies, reflecting the niche but technically distinct nature of FO-RO hybrid and osmotic dilution system architectures.
FUJIFILM CORP leads with 16 patent records, followed by Fluvicon GmbH with 13, and Waterwhelm Ltd and ConocoPhillips Co each with 8. The top five applicants account for 58% of the ranked applicants visible in this query’ combined total.
The field is in a decline stage based on filing activity: annual filings peaked in 2020 and have eased substantially since. The most recent years (2023–2024) show zero records, though this likely reflects publication lag rather than a true cessation of activity, and 2025 shows three early records.
The United States is the leading jurisdiction, followed by Europe (EPO) and WIPO (PCT). Canada and India each have modest coverage. Several major desalination markets, including China and most of the Middle East beyond the UAE, have limited direct national filings in this corpus.
The highest-cited document is titled ‘Apparatus, System, and Method for Forward Osmosis’ with 58 citations. Other heavily cited works address membrane and gas recycling systems for forward osmosis (27 and 21 citations respectively), life-support water-wall systems (18 citations), and regenerable draw solutes and draw solutions (13 citations each).
The most notable under-served adjacent branches are C09K (draw-solute and specialty materials, sparse despite being a core performance bottleneck) and E21B (oilfield produced-water treatment, where ConocoPhillips has a presence but coverage is otherwise thin). A61M (medical fluid devices, relevant to osmotic dialysis) and C01B (inorganic compounds) are also lightly covered relative to the visible separation and water-treatment classes.
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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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