MALDI Matrix Patents: Who Leads, Where the Gaps Are 2026
- Concentrated at the top. The five most active filers account for 107 of 289 records in scope (37.0%), and the top ten hold 58.5%.
- Filing activity is picking up, not fading. Filings rose from 4 in 2021 to 5 in 2024, a 25% increase over that span, even though the most recent years still look thin due to publication lag.
- Material-analysis claims dominate the class mix. G01N appears on 68.9% of records and H01J on 36.0%, showing that instrumentation and detection claims sit alongside core matrix chemistry.
Filing growth compares 2021 (4 records) with 2024 (5) — 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 289 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
What this landscape covers
MALDI matrix and target plate preparation sits at the intersection of analytical chemistry and mass spectrometry hardware. Claims in this space cover matrix compound chemistry, spot deposition and homogeneity, target plate reuse, and the extraction chemistry (such as formic acid protocols) that gets a sample ready for laser desorption. The dataset in scope spans 289 published records filed between 2015 and mid-2026, drawn from search terms anchored on matrix crystallization, spot homogeneity, reusable targets, automated spotting and shot variability.
Because families rather than raw filings are the fairer comparison unit, the ranking below is built on distinct patent families, which neutralises assignees who file heavily across jurisdictions or through continuations. Publication lag of roughly 18 months means the last one to two years of filings will keep rising in future data pulls; treat any dip at the very end of the trend line as incomplete rather than a real slowdown.
Filing trends and technology composition
Two views of the same 289 records: how filing activity has moved year over year, and which IPC subclasses the claims actually sit in.
Filing trend
Filings peaked at 11 in 2017 and have since settled into a lower, more even cadence, with a documented rise from 4 in 2021 to 5 in 2024 (+25%). Years after 2024 are still filling in as publications catch up to filing dates.
Technology composition
G01N (material analysis and testing) touches 68.9% of records and H01J (electron and discharge tubes) 36.0%, reflecting the instrumentation-heavy nature of MALDI work. C12Q, B01L and C40B each cover a meaningful minority, pointing to enzymatic assay, lab-apparatus and combinatorial-library claims layered on top of the core matrix and plate chemistry. Because records can carry more than one class, these shares sum to well over 100% of the 289-record total.
Shares are the percentage of the 289 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on MALDI Matrix and Target Plate Preparation with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about maldi matrix and target plate preparation and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaRepresentative and most-cited filings
Indole derivatives as a matrix design framework for MALDI mass spectrometry with broad applications (US20250002496A1)
The present disclosure provides for matrix materials for Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization (MALDI) that include at least one MALDI matrix compound and methods of using the matrix materials, where the MALDI matrix compounds can be a derivative of indole.Filed by The Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama, published 2 January 2025.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | WO2004042072A2 | Quantitative analysis of protein isoforms using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight ma… | 356 |
| 2 | WO1998020166A2 | DNA diagnostics based on mass spectrometry | 265 |
| 3 | US20140323330A1 | Microarray compositions and methods of their use | 251 |
| 4 | US20020042112A1 | DNA diagnostics based on mass spectrometry | 248 |
| 5 | US20080230386A1 | Sample Processing Droplet Actuator, System and Method | 235 |
| 6 | US7198893B1 | DNA diagnostics based on mass spectrometry | 232 |
| 7 | US7763471B2 | Method of electrowetting droplet operations for protein crystallization | 170 |
| 8 | US20030129589A1 | DNA diagnostics based on mass spectrometry | 170 |
| 9 | US7998436B2 | Multiwell droplet actuator, system and method | 160 |
| 10 | US7501251B2 | DNA diagnostics based on mass spectrometry | 156 |
Citation counts accumulate over time, so older filings from the late 1990s and early 2000s lead the table; treat them as markers of foundational influence rather than current commercial relevance.
Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
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Three patterns worth acting on before drafting or licensing in this space.
A narrow leadership group, not a monopoly
The leader holds 33 records and the fifth-place assignee 17, so the gap from first to fifth is real but not overwhelming. A long tail of single- and few-filing entrants fills out the remaining 63% of the field, meaning freedom-to-operate work has to look well past the household names.
Activity is rebuilding after the 2017 peak
Filings peaked at 11 in 2017, cooled, then climbed again from 4 in 2021 to 5 in 2024. That is a modest base but a real upward direction, and it comes before the publication-lag window closes on 2025-2026 data.
Instrumentation claims outnumber pure chemistry
G01N and H01J together cover well over a third of records each, meaning much of the contested claim space is about measurement and detection hardware rather than matrix compound chemistry alone. Newer chemistry-only filings, like indole-derivative matrices, still have room to differentiate on the compound side.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to maldi matrix and target plate preparation, with the prior art for and against each one.
Who is filing, and where they are not
The ranked leaders sit alongside co-filing pairs that suggest university-industry or joint-venture arrangements, and several under-claimed technical branches remain open.
A clear but not dominant leader
The top-ranked assignee holds 33 of 289 records, well ahead of the fifth-place entrant at 17, but still far short of controlling the field outright.
University-industry pairs cluster tightly
Ten co-assignee pairs appear in the data, with the strongest pairing (an industrial steel-and-research pairing) co-filing 13 records together, and a university-industry pair co-filing 9 more, pointing to formal joint research arrangements rather than incidental overlap.
Past leaders have gone quiet recently
Several of the historically active assignees, including the top-ranked filer and multiple university programmes, show zero filings in the latest year on record. Given the 18-month publication lag, this likely understates their actual pipeline rather than signalling exit from the field.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| BD Kiestra BV | 0 | — |
| Sequenom Inc | 0 | — |
| Vanderbilt University | 0 | — |
| Pohang Iron & Steel Co Ltd | 0 | — |
| POSTECH Academy Industry Foundation | 0 | — |
| IONWERKS INC | 0 | — |
| Adeptrix | 0 | — |
| Molecular Dynamics | 0 | — |
Where to take this analysis
The dataset points to specific next steps depending on whether you are drafting, licensing or scouting for gaps.
Check freedom-to-operate against the long tail
With 63% of records held outside the top 5 filers, a clearance search needs to cover far more than the household names in this field.
Run a clearance search in Patsnap EurekaTrack the co-filing pairs for licensing signals
The strongest co-assignee pairs suggest active joint research arrangements that may already have licensing structures in place worth studying before you approach either party.
Explore assignee relationships in Patsnap EurekaWatch the under-claimed branches
Automated spotting calibration and shot-variability correction sit thin against the dense instrumentation claims elsewhere in the dataset, making them worth a closer prior-art pass before drafting.
Map white space in Patsnap EurekaCommon questions on MALDI matrix patents
Across the 289 records in scope, one assignee leads with 33 records, with the fifth-place filer at 17. Together the top five hold 37.0% of all records, and the top ten hold 58.5%, so while there is a clear leadership group, well over a third of the field is spread across a long tail of smaller filers. Any competitive review should look past the top names to that tail, since single- and few-filing entities collectively hold a large share of the space.
Filing activity peaked at 11 records in 2017 and settled lower afterward, but the more recent complete data shows growth: filings rose from 4 in 2021 to 5 in 2024, a 25% increase. Years after 2024 appear lower in the raw data only because publication typically lags actual filing by around 18 months, so those figures are still filling in rather than reflecting a real decline. Read the trend as gradually rebuilding, not fading.
The dataset spans matrix compound chemistry, target plate reuse and coating, spot homogeneity and deposition control, and extraction protocols such as formic acid-based sample preparation. By IPC class, 68.9% of the 289 records touch G01N (material analysis and testing) and 36.0% touch H01J (electron and discharge tubes), showing that instrumentation and detection claims are as prominent as core matrix chemistry. Enzymatic assay methods (C12Q), lab apparatus (B01L) and combinatorial libraries (C40B) each cover a smaller but meaningful share.
US20250002496A1, filed by the University of Alabama's Board of Trustees and published in January 2025, claims indole-derivative compounds as MALDI matrix materials along with methods of using them. It sits in the compound-chemistry side of the field rather than the instrumentation side, so it primarily affects anyone developing new small-molecule matrix chemistries built on indole scaffolds. It does not, on its own, block work on target plate design, spotting automation or extraction protocols, which are claimed separately elsewhere in the dataset.
The technology composition data shows heavy concentration in material analysis (G01N) and detection hardware (H01J), with comparatively thinner coverage in specific operational sub-areas such as automated spotting calibration, shot-to-shot variability correction, and reusable target plate surface coatings. These branches show up in the search terms defining this dataset but are not among the dominant IPC classes, suggesting less-crowded claim space. A prior-art search focused specifically on those sub-areas, rather than the broad matrix or instrumentation categories, is the more efficient way to find genuine gaps.
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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.