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Run your analysis now →https://www.patsnap.com/resources/blog/rd-blog/gas-imaging-and-leak-detection-cameras-patent-landscape/ · Patsnap · data cut-off 2026-07-31 · downloaded from the live page
Patent Landscape · Environmental MonitoringGas Imaging and Leak Detection Camera Patents: Who Holds the Claim Space
- Concentrated at the top. The five leading assignees account for 78.8% of all 52 records in scope, with the leader alone holding 10 filings.
- Filing kept climbing, not plateauing. From 2021 to 2024 — the last year publication data is considered complete — filings rose 14%, from 7 to 8.
- Image processing now outweighs optics. G06T image data processing appears on 55.8% of the 52 records, ahead of G01N material analysis at 50.0% and G01J radiation measurement at 34.6%.
52
Published Records
79%
Top-5 Share of All Records
+14%
Filing Growth 2021→2024
US
Leading Jurisdiction
Filing growth compares 2021 (7 records) with 2024 (8) — 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 52 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
Published byPatsnap Research··7 min readSourced from Patsnap Eureka
Overview
What this patent set covers
This landscape covers 52 published patent families matching optical gas imaging and methane detection camera claims filed or published between 2015 and mid-2026, with search terms anchored on spectral filter selection, minimum detectable leak rate, background temperature contrast, wind effect compensation, quantification and field-of-view claims. The corpus is small enough that individual assignees move the totals meaningfully, and concentrated enough that where a filing sits in the IPC scheme says more about competitive positioning than raw counts alone.
Filing activity peaked in 2019 at 10 records and has continued at a reduced but non-trivial pace since, with the United States receiving the largest share of filings by a wide margin over Europe, WIPO and other offices. Because publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, the 2025-2026 figures in any trend chart are still filling in and should not be read as a slowdown.
Filing activity and technology composition
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Assignee ranking and totals. Derived from a Patsnap search on Gas Imaging and Leak Detection Cameras 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
The two views below track when filings occurred and what technical ground they claim. Read them together: a rising trend line combined with an image-processing-heavy IPC mix indicates competition is shifting from optical hardware toward the software layer that interprets it.
Filing activity, 2017-2026
Filings rose from 4 in 2017 to a peak of 10 in 2019, and the 2021-2024 span shows continued growth of 14% (7 to 8 records) once the most recent, still-incomplete years are set aside.
IPC subclass composition
G06T (image data processing) leads at 55.8% of the 52 records, followed by G01N (material analysis and testing) at 50.0% and G01J (radiation and light measurement) at 34.6%; because records can carry multiple IPC classes, these shares sum to well over 100%.
Shares are the percentage of the 52 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 Gas Imaging and Leak Detection Cameras covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.
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Most-cited records in this set
Representative Filing
Multi-spectral gas quantification and differentiation method for optical gas imaging camera
KONICA MINOLTA LABORATORY U.S.A., INC.
A gas concentration-length quantification method may include acquiring a multi-spectral image of detected radiance including a plurality of pixels using a multi-spectral optical gas imaging camera, estimating a background radiance for at least one of the pixels, calculating a gas concentration-length based on the detected radiance and the estimated background radiance, and triggering an alert when alert conditions are satisfied. A multi-spectral configuration of the camera includes a reference band outside a target gas absorption window and an active band inside it.Filed by Konica Minolta Laboratory U.S.A., published 2019-10-03.
Highest-cited published records
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US20160238451A1 | Apparatus and method for validating leak survey results | 53 |
| 2 | US20170363541A1 | Quantifying gas in passive optical gas imaging | 35 |
| 3 | US20190302013A1 | Multi-spectral gas quantification and differentiation method for optical gas imaging camera | 25 |
| 4 | US20220244127A1 | Rapidly Deployable UAS System for Autonomous Inspection Operations Using a Combined Payload | 20 |
| 5 | US20210218909A1 | Optical gas imaging systems and method compatible with uncooled thermal imaging cameras | 20 |
| 6 | WO2019226908A1 | Optical gas imaging systems and method compatible with uncooled thermal imaging cameras | 16 |
| 7 | US11748866B2 | Systems and methods of automated detection of gas plumes using optical imaging | 15 |
| 8 | US20230011503A1 | Ground based robot with an OGI camera module and cooling system | 12 |
| 9 | WO2021156864A1 | System and method for tracking and analyzing an air contaminant plume | 12 |
| 10 | US9726543B2 | Apparatus and method for validating leak survey results | 10 |
Citation counts reflect an older-record bias inherent to any searched corpus and should be read as a signal of influence on later filings, not of current commercial importance.
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 Gas Imaging and Leak Detection Cameras 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 indicate
Three patterns stand out once the ranking, trend and IPC composition are read together: filing is concentrated among a small group, growth has not stalled despite a small peak year, and the technical center of gravity is moving from sensor optics toward image and signal processing.
Concentration
78.8%
of 52 records held by top 5 assignees
A small group holds most of the claim space
The five leading assignees together account for 78.8% of all 52 records in scope, with the leader holding 10 filings against a tenth-place entrant with just 1. That gap leaves a long tail of single- or low-filing entrants competing for the remaining fraction.
Based on the 10-company assignee ranking returned for this dataset.
Momentum
+14%
growth, 2021 to 2024
Growth continued through the last complete filing years
Filings rose from 7 in 2021 to 8 in 2024, a 14% increase over that span, following a 2019 peak of 10. Years after 2024 are still filling in under normal publication lag and should not be read as a decline.
Peak year to date: 2019 at 10 records.
Technology mix
55.8%
of records carry G06T image processing claims
Image processing now outranks core optics classes
G06T (image data processing and generation) appears on 55.8% of the 52 records, ahead of G01N material analysis (50.0%) and G01J radiation measurement (34.6%). Robotics and aerial platform classes (B25J, B64C) remain comparatively small at 11.5% and 9.6%.
Class shares sum above 100% because records can carry multiple IPC codes.
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 gas imaging and leak detection cameras, with the prior art for and against each one.
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Co-assignee relationships and derived observations. Derived from a Patsnap search on Gas Imaging and Leak Detection Cameras 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 ranked leaders span imaging hardware makers, oilfield service providers and a UAV-inspection specialist, but the ranking covers only the 10 companies the data endpoint returns for this topic — not a top-50 or top-100 list. Momentum data shows none of the tracked leaders recorded a filing in the latest year, consistent with publication lag rather than a stop in activity.
Leader
10 records
highest filer in this set
One assignee sets the pace
The top-ranked assignee holds 10 of the 52 records in scope, nearly double the fifth-place count of 6, giving it outsized influence over how quantification and imaging claims are structured in this field.
Ranking covers 10 companies total.
Long tail
1 record
held by the tenth-ranked entrant
A wide gap separates leaders from single-filers
The tenth-ranked assignee holds just 1 record, illustrating how quickly filing counts drop off outside the top five. New entrants are more likely to compete through narrow, defensible claims than broad coverage.
Top 10 combined account for 100.0% of all 52 records.
Filing office
32 records
filed at the USPTO
The United States dominates receiving offices
Of the recorded filings, 32 went to the United States, compared with 9 at the EPO and 7 through WIPO's PCT route. Japan, the UAE and Canada each show single-digit counts, indicating limited international filing strategy outside the US-Europe-PCT core.
Receiving office counts do not sum to 52 because some families file in multiple offices.
Recent-year filing momentum by assignee
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Konica Minolta Laboratory U.S.A., Inc. | 0 | — |
| Fluke Corporation | 0 | — |
| SEEKOPS INC | 0 | — |
| CHAMPIONX LLC | 0 | — |
| MFE ENTERPRISES INC | 0 | — |
| FLIR Systems, Inc. | 0 | — |
| GM Global Technology Operations LLC | 0 | — |
| PROVIDENCE PHOTONICS LLC | 0 | — |
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Assignee-level momentum. Derived from a Patsnap search on Gas Imaging and Leak Detection Cameras 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 analysis
The dataset points to specific next steps depending on whether the goal is freedom-to-operate, licensing, or identifying where a new filing could stand on its own.
Check freedom-to-operate against the most-cited filings
The highest-cited records in this set, including the leak-survey validation and multi-spectral quantification filings, define much of the claim language other filers have built around. Any new quantification or validation method should be checked against these first.
Explore citing patentsMap the under-claimed branches to a concrete claim
Wind-effect compensation, multi-camera field-of-view stitching and UAV-mounted quantification payloads show thinner coverage than core image-processing claims. A first claim in these areas has more room to establish a novel position.
Draft a claim scopeTrack the long tail for acquisition or licensing signals
Entrants outside the top five hold a small share of records individually but collectively represent a fifth of the field. Watching which of these single-filers keep publishing indicates where consolidation or licensing activity may emerge next.
Monitor assignee activitySource: Patsnap Eureka. Forward-looking reading of the same dataset. Derived from a Patsnap search on Gas Imaging and Leak Detection Cameras 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 about this landscape
Filing in this field is concentrated: the five leading assignees account for 78.8% of all 52 records in scope, and the single leading assignee holds 10 records on its own. The ranked list covers 10 companies total, spanning imaging hardware manufacturers, oilfield service providers and inspection specialists. Outside the top five, filing counts drop sharply, down to a single record for the tenth-ranked entrant, so the field is best described as a handful of leaders with a long tail rather than a broad, evenly spread competitive set.
Yes, based on the years with complete publication data. Filings rose from 7 in 2021 to 8 in 2024, a 14% increase, and the field's peak year to date remains 2019 at 10 records. Filing counts shown for 2025 and 2026 are understated because publication typically lags filing by roughly 18 months, so those recent years should not be read as evidence of a slowdown.
The dominant IPC subclass is G06T, image data processing and generation, appearing on 55.8% of the 52 records, which signals that competitive claim activity has shifted toward how gas concentration is calculated and displayed rather than purely how it is sensed. G01N (material analysis and testing) and G01J (radiation and light measurement) follow at 50.0% and 34.6% respectively. Robotics and aerial-platform classes such as B25J and B64C are present but comparatively small, at 11.5% and 9.6%, indicating those integration paths are less crowded.
Relative to the dense coverage in image processing and quantification claims, sub-areas such as wind-effect compensation algorithms, multi-camera field-of-view stitching, UAV-mounted quantification payloads and robotic manipulator-mounted sensing show thinner representation in this dataset. That does not mean these areas are unclaimed entirely, but the claim density is lower, which typically means more room for a narrowly drafted, defensible filing. Anyone considering a filing there should still run a full freedom-to-operate check against the most-cited records first.
The United States receives the largest share by a wide margin, with 32 recorded filings, followed by the European Patent Office at 9 and the WIPO PCT route at 7. Japan, the UAE and Canada each show only a small number of filings. This pattern suggests that most applicants are prioritising US protection first and using PCT or EPO filings selectively rather than pursuing broad simultaneous international coverage.
Answers are grounded in the same dataset. Derived from a Patsnap search on Gas Imaging and Leak Detection Cameras 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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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.