Harvesting Robot Crop Sensing Patent Snapshot 2026
Kubota Corp leads a moderately concentrated field in which Chinese academic and industrial filers account for the majority of activity; the top five filers hold 44% of the hundred largest filers’ combined total. The field is in a Growth stage, with annual filing volume trending upward — China is the dominant jurisdiction and AI-based sensing branches remain comparatively under-served.
Kubota leads a China-dominated field with room for sensing specialists
Kubota Corp sits atop the applicant ranking with 7 patent records, followed by Northwest. A&F University with 5 — together they account for the majority of top-tier filing activity. Chinese institutions and companies are visible in the top ten positions, with Zhejiang University, Shandong Normal University, and Shandong Guoxing Smartech each holding 2 patent records.
The top five filers collectively hold 44% of the ranked applicants visible in this query’ combined total, indicating moderate concentration with a visible tier gap between the top two and the remainder of the field, most of whom hold a single patent record each.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kubota Corporation | 7 | |
| 2 | NORTHWEST A & F UNIV | 5 | |
| 3 | Zhejiang University | 2 | |
| 4 | Shandong Normal University | 2 | |
| 5 | Shandong Guoxing Smartech Co., Ltd. | 2 | |
| 6 | Zhengzhou University | 1 | |
| 7 | Jang Jin-man | 1 | |
| 8 | Dr. A. Maria Jackson | 1 | |
| 9 | Intelligent Manufacturing Technology Research Institute of Hefei University of Technology | 1 | |
| 10 | Pengshui County Changsheng Ecological Agriculture Development Co., Ltd. | 1 |
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Mythili S. | 1 | |
| 12 | Weifang Mengqi Trading Co., Ltd. | 1 | |
| 13 | Nanjing Agricultural University | 1 | |
| 14 | R. S. Jasuvant | 1 | |
| 15 | Sunchon National University Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation | 1 | |
| 16 | P. G. Shaju | 1 | |
| 17 | Dr. J. Jency Joseph | 1 | |
| 18 | CENTRE FOR INNOVATION FABRICATION ENGINEERING & RE… | 1 | |
| 19 | Dr. M. Umar | 1 | |
| 20 | Zhu Fengjuan | 1 |
Kubota’s position reflects a dual emphasis on harvesting mechanics and robotic manipulators, suggesting a vertically integrated development approach. Academic filers such as Northwest. A&F University and Zhejiang University signal that foundational sensing and manipulation research is still being conducted outside established industrial players.
The most recent 18–24 months of filing data are likely under-counted due to patent publication lag; apparent activity in 2025–2026 should be treated as a floor, not a ceiling. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Filing activity is rising and concentrated in harvesting mechanics and robotics IPC classes
The annual filing trend shows a field in Growth with a 57% increase in recent activity, while the technology composition chart reveals that harvesting and manipulator classes are visible in, with AI and image-processing branches occupying a smaller share.
Annual filing trend
Filings were sporadic from 2017 through 2022, with no activity recorded in 2020. A visible uptick began in 2023 and continued into 2024, which currently shows the highest annual count. The 2025 and 2026 figures are understated due to publication lag and should not be read as a plateau or decline.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
A01D (Harvesting & mowing) is the visible IPC class, followed by B25J (Manipulators & robots) and G06V (Image/video recognition). AI-model computing (G06N) and data recognition (G06K) classes have noticeably lower representation, pointing to adjacent branches where activity has not yet caught up with the core mechanical and robotic filings.
↗ 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.
Fruit harvesting robot hand
The disposed fruit harvesting robot comprises fruit detecting sensors arranged around an opening of a cylindrical case for taking in fruit. The case also includes at least one additional sensor disposed inside the case. (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fruit harvesting robot hand | 129 |
| 2 | 一种基于机器视觉的智能水果采摘机器人 | 52 |
| 3 | 基于机器视觉的类球形水果采摘机器人及其水果采摘方法 | 19 |
| 4 | 一种梳理式枝条状果实采摘机器人 | 15 |
| 5 | Fruit harvesting robot hand | 15 |
| 6 | 一种基于机器视觉的油茶果采摘机器人 | 10 |
| 7 | 同色系背景下目标果实识别方法及系统 | 9 |
| 8 | Fruit harvesting robot hand | 5 |
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.
Kubota Corp
Kubota Corp holds 7 patent records — the largest portfolio in this corpus — concentrated across A01D harvesting mechanics and B25J robotic manipulator classes (both sub-classes 11 and 15). This dual emphasis indicates an end-to-end integration approach covering both crop-interaction hardware and the robot arm systems that execute it. Momentum data for Kubota is not separately broken out in the recent-entrant tracking, suggesting its position was established in prior filing periods.
patent records: 7Northwest A&F University
Northwest A&F University holds 5 patent records, focused on A01D harvesting and B25J manipulator sub-classes 11 and 19. As a Chinese agricultural university, its filings reflect applied research translating directly into robotic harvesting IP. The institution does not appear in the new-entrant momentum list, indicating its filing activity predates the most recent window tracked.
patent records: 5Frequently asked questions
The current corpus contains 25 patent families in scope. This is a relatively small corpus, which means individual applicants and individual patents carry significant weight in any landscape analysis.
Kubota Corp leads with 7 patent records, concentrated in A01D harvesting mechanics and B25J robotic manipulator sub-classes. Northwest A&F University is second with 5 patent records across similar IPC classes.
China accounts for 22 patent records, making it the primary jurisdiction by a wide margin. India, the United Kingdom, Australia, and South Korea each have modest coverage. The United States and Japan each register only a single patent record.
The field is classified as Growth. Annual filings are still rising — evidenced by a 57% recent growth rate — and 2024 currently shows the highest annual count. The most recent 18–24 months of data are likely understated due to publication lag.
Yes. G06N (Computing based on AI models) holds only 5 patent records, and G06T (Image data processing) holds only 2 — both low relative to their technical relevance in crop-sensing applications. G06K (Data recognition) and A23B (Food preservation) are also sparse. These are observations of relative sparsity rather than confirmed commercial opportunities.
No co-applicant collaboration activity is recorded in the current evidence. All filings to date appear to have been made by individual applicants acting independently, which is consistent with an early-growth field.
Ready to map your own harvesting robot crop sensing Snapshot?
Join 18,000+ innovators using PatSnap Eureka to map any technology landscape: search 2B+ patents and papers, surface key assignees, and generate a report like this in minutes.
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.