Medical Ultrasound Imaging Patents: Leaders & White Space 2026
- Filing has cooled sharply. annual filings ran from 173 in 2017 to a 2019 peak of 363, then declined toward 11 in the most recent partial year — a pattern of plateau, not growth.
- One record dominates citation. US6013032A on two-dimensional transducer array beamforming carries 1,288 citations, nearly three times the next most-cited record, a sign the foundational 3D beamforming claims are settled prior art everyone must design around.
- Momentum has thinned to a handful of filers. the most recently active assignees are logging single-digit filings with year-over-year drops as steep as -93% and -100%, suggesting the core claim space is largely staked out.
Filing growth compares 2021 (164 records) with 2024 (102) — 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 2,830 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
What the ultrasound imaging patent record actually shows
The corpus covers 2,830 patent families filed against a search string anchored on beamforming, harmonic imaging, elastography, penetration depth and CMUT — the technical vocabulary that separates a modern ultrasound system from a legacy one. Filings are concentrated overwhelmingly in A61B (diagnosis and surgery, 2,553 records) and G01S (radar, sonar and positioning, 1,048), confirming this is fundamentally a signal-processing problem wrapped in a medical device. Smaller but non-trivial clusters sit in G06T image processing, B06B mechanical vibration generation and G10K acoustics — the components layered on top of the core transducer and beamforming claims.
Filing activity peaked in 2019 and has fallen since, with the most recent year understated because publication typically lags filing by around 18 months. Receiving-office data shows the United States as the dominant venue (1,328 filings), well ahead of the EPO (553) and PCT route (388), with China, India and Austria trailing. That distribution points to a field whose active commercial and litigation risk still centres on the US market.
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Filing trend and technology composition
Two views of the same dataset: the year-by-year filing curve, and the IPC subclasses that make up the technology mix.
A peak in 2019, then a steady decline
Filings rose to 363 in 2019 before easing back; the 2022 midpoint of 154 sits well below peak, and the partial 2026 count of 11 continues the downward slope rather than reversing it. Read the final one to two years as incomplete rather than as evidence of collapse.
A61B and G01S carry the field
A61B (diagnosis and surgery) and G01S (sonar/positioning) together account for the large majority of records, with G06T, B06B, G10K, G01N, G06F and G16H forming a long tail of supporting subclasses covering image processing, transducer mechanics, acoustics, tissue analysis, software and healthcare informatics.
Shares are the percentage of the 2,830 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on Medical Ultrasound Imaging with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about medical ultrasound imaging and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaThe patents everyone in this field designs around
Hexagonal CMUT array with offset columns and integrated ASIC (US10828671B2)
The patent describes an integrated circuit arrangement for a hexagonal capacitive micromachined ultrasound transducer (CMUT) array in which alternating columns of CMUT cells are offset by half a cell dimension, paired with an application-specific integrated circuit containing transmit-receive cells matched to the array geometry.Filed by MEMS.Works Holding B.V., granted 2020-11-10 — illustrates how CMUT claims have moved from basic cell fabrication toward array geometry and tightly coupled ASIC integration.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US6013032A | Beamforming methods and apparatus for three-dimensional ultrasound imaging using two-dimensional transducer a… | 1,288 |
| 2 | US6733458B1 | Diagnostic medical ultrasound systems and methods using image based freehand needle guidance | 440 |
| 3 | US20020173721A1 | User interface for handheld imaging devices | 429 |
| 4 | US6511427B1 | System and method for assessing body-tissue properties using a medical ultrasound transducer probe with a bod… | 424 |
| 5 | US6264610B1 | Combined ultrasound and near infrared diffused light imaging system | 409 |
| 6 | US6508768B1 | Ultrasonic elasticity imaging | 361 |
| 7 | US5873830A | Ultrasound imaging system and method for improving resolution and operation | 356 |
| 8 | US6475146B1 | Method and system for using personal digital assistants with diagnostic medical ultrasound systems | 351 |
| 9 | US7022075B2 | User interface for handheld imaging devices | 347 |
| 10 | US20030013959A1 | User interface for handheld imaging devices | 340 |
Citation counts inside a searched corpus skew toward older filings simply because they have had more time to accumulate references — treat this as a map of influence, not of current commercial importance.
Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
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Browse MCP servers →What the numbers mean for a filing or licensing decision
Three readings of the same dataset, aimed at where to file, where to license, and where to expect friction.
The core claim space is largely occupied
A decline from 363 annual filings at peak to single digits in the most recent partial year is consistent with a field where the foundational beamforming, harmonic imaging and CMUT fabrication claims have already been staked out. New filings increasingly have to differentiate on integration (ASIC pairing, array geometry) rather than base physics.
Foundational 3D beamforming is the anchor prior art
US6013032A's citation count is nearly three times that of the next-ranked record, US6733458B1. Any freehand or two-dimensional-array beamforming claim in this space will almost certainly be examined against it.
The US is where the competitive and litigation risk lives
US filings outnumber the EPO route by more than two to one and the PCT route by over three to one. Freedom-to-operate work that skips a thorough US search misses the bulk of the corpus.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to medical ultrasound imaging, with the prior art for and against each one.
Who is still filing, and who has gone quiet
Recent-year momentum separates a small set of still-active filers from assignees whose activity has effectively stopped.
Modest, steady activity
Philips Image Guided Therapy logged 4 filings in the latest year with 0% year-over-year change, making it one of the few assignees with any current-year output in this dataset.
A steep drop from a larger prior base
Royal Philips fell to 1 filing in the latest year, a 93% year-over-year decline, indicating the parent entity has shifted most ultrasound filing activity elsewhere in its corporate structure rather than exiting the field outright.
Established names with no recent-year filings
GE, Siemens Medical Solutions USA and BK Medical each show zero filings in the latest year, with Siemens down 100% year-over-year. That does not mean these firms have left ultrasound R&D — it more likely reflects filing timing, publication lag, or a shift toward trade secret protection for incremental features.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Philips Image Guided Therapy Corporation | 4 | 0% |
| Koninklijke Philips N.V. (Royal Philips) | 1 | -93% |
| TERA TECH CORP | 1 | 0% |
| General Electric Company | 0 | — |
| Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc. | 0 | -100% |
| BK Medical | 0 | — |
| GE Precision Healthcare LLC | 0 | -100% |
| FUJIFILM SonoSite, Inc. | 0 | — |
Where to take this analysis
The trend and assignee data point to specific next questions depending on whether you are filing, licensing, or doing freedom-to-operate work.
Map claims against the top-cited prior art
Before drafting new beamforming or array-geometry claims, run a detailed comparison against the corpus's most-cited records to see exactly where the boundary of settled prior art sits.
Explore prior art mapping in EurekaTrack assignee momentum, not just rankings
A static ranking hides that some large legacy filers have gone to zero recent-year output while smaller entities keep filing steadily. Year-over-year momentum is the more decision-relevant view.
Set up assignee monitoring in EurekaTest claim language against under-claimed sub-areas
Sub-areas like adaptive gain control for penetration depth and elastography calibration show thinner claim density than core beamforming — worth a targeted search before committing drafting resources.
Run a white-space search in EurekaCommon questions about medical ultrasound imaging patents
By citation count within this corpus, US6013032A on beamforming methods for three-dimensional ultrasound imaging using a two-dimensional transducer array is the clear anchor, cited 1,288 times — nearly three times the next most-cited record. Other highly cited records cover freehand needle guidance, handheld device interfaces, and combined ultrasound/near-infrared imaging. High citation counts reflect age and influence within the searched corpus more than current commercial activity, since older foundational patents accumulate references simply by being around longer.
Filing activity in this dataset peaked in 2019 at 363 records and has declined since, with the midpoint year of 2022 already down to 154 and the most recent partial year at just 11. Because publication typically lags filing by around 18 months, the final one to two years will look thinner than they eventually turn out to be once more records publish. Taken together, the trend still points toward a plateau or gradual decline rather than renewed growth.
The overwhelming majority of records sit in IPC subclass A61B (diagnosis and surgery, 2,553 records) and G01S (radar, sonar and positioning, 1,048 records), reflecting that ultrasound imaging is fundamentally a signal-processing problem applied to a medical device. Smaller clusters in G06T (image data processing), B06B (mechanical vibration generation) and G10K (acoustics) cover the supporting components layered around core transducer and beamforming technology. Claim density is therefore heaviest around core sensing and signal processing, lighter around informatics and software (G16H, G06F).
Recent-year momentum data shows only a small handful of assignees with any current-year filings, led by Philips Image Guided Therapy with 4 filings and flat year-over-year change. Royal Philips shows just 1 filing in the latest year, down 93% year-over-year, while established names including GE, Siemens Medical Solutions USA and BK Medical show zero filings in the latest year. This pattern suggests filing activity has consolidated to a narrow set of active filers, though some absence may reflect publication lag rather than a genuine exit from the field.
US10828671B2 covers an integrated circuit arrangement for a hexagonal CMUT array with alternating columns offset by half a cell dimension, paired with a matched application-specific integrated circuit for transmit-receive operation. Anyone designing a hexagonal or closely offset-column CMUT array with tightly coupled ASIC circuitry should review this claim scope closely before finalising array geometry. Workable alternatives generally involve different array lattice geometries, decoupled ASIC architectures, or non-hexagonal cell arrangements that fall outside the specific offset-column configuration claimed.
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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.