MEMS Accelerometer Closed-Loop Readout Patent Snapshot
This is a small, highly concentrated niche: the top five filers account for 74% of the hundred largest filers’ combined patent records, with PGS Geophysical AS and Agency for Science, Technology and Research jointly anchoring the field through a documented co-filing relationship. Activity is in a growth phase on a multi-year basis, with annual volume having eased from its 2023 peak, and the United States is the primary filing jurisdiction.
PGS Geophysical and A*STAR dominate a tightly held niche
PGS Geophysical AS and Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR, Singapore) each hold 19 patent records at the top of the ranking, placing them jointly ahead of Honeywell International Inc at 15 patent records — a clear two-tier structure in an otherwise small corpus.
The top five filers collectively hold 74% of the ranked applicants visible in this query’ combined patent records. The gap between tier one (PGS Geophysical / A*STAR) and tier three (Honeywell) is modest in absolute terms, but the drop to tier four — Simmonds Precision Products Inc and Ghent University at 5 patent records each — is sharper, signalling a concentrated leadership cluster with limited mid-tier challengers.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PGS Geophysical AS | 19 | |
| 2 | AGENCY FOR SCI TECH & RES | 19 | |
| 3 | Honeywell International Inc | 15 | |
| 4 | Simmonds Precision Products Inc | 5 | |
| 5 | Ghent University | 5 | |
| 6 | STMicroelectronics International NV | 3 | |
| 7 | Melexis NV | 3 | |
| 8 | Waite James Welton (individual) | 2 | |
| 9 | Melexis Technologies NV | 2 |
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | University of Washington | 2 | |
| 11 | Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. | 2 | |
| 12 | Sony Group Corporation | 2 | |
| 13 | United States Government (as represented by the Secretary) | 1 | |
| 14 | MILLI SENSOR & ACTUATOR SYST | 1 | |
| 15 | NATIONAL TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS OF SAN… | 1 | |
| 16 | mCube Inc | 1 | |
| 17 | The Regents of the University of California | 1 | |
| 18 | HRL Laboratories LLC | 1 |
The joint dominance of PGS Geophysical and. A*STAR, reinforced by a documented co-filing relationship covering 19 records, suggests that the most developed body of prior art in this niche originates from a single collaborative pairing rather than competitive rivalry between independent actors.
Filing counts for 2024 and 2025 are understated due to standard patent publication lag of 18–24 months; apparent softness in those years should not be read as a real decline in activity. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Multi-year growth with a 2023 filing peak and a G01P-dominant technology mix
Annual filing volume and the IPC class distribution together reveal the pace of development and the breadth of technical approaches being pursued in this niche.
Annual filing trend
Filings were sparse from 2017 to 2020 (zero or one per year), then accelerated sharply, reaching a visible peak in 2023 with four records. The three-year recent window sits 167% above the prior three-year window, confirming multi-year growth momentum. Zero values for 2025 and 2026 reflect publication lag and should not be interpreted as an activity halt.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
G01P (Velocity & acceleration measurement) is visible in the IPC mix with 63 patent records, confirming that closed-loop readout work is anchored in core accelerometry. Secondary branches — G01V (Geophysics, 9 records), G01C (Navigation & gyroscopes, 7 records), and B81B (MEMS microstructures, 6 records) — reflect the main application verticals and structural design concerns. Lower-count branches such as G01D, G10K, and H04R are present but sparse.
↗ 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.
System and method for monitoring an accelerometer
Systems and methods are provided for monitoring operation of MEMS accelerometers (<b>100</b>). In these embodiments a control loop (<b>112</b>) having a forward path (<b>114</b>) is coupled a MEMS transducer (<b>110</b>), and a test signal generator (<b>124</b>) and test signal detector (<b>126</b>) is provided. The test signal generator (<b>124</b>) is… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Combined MEMS accelerometer and gyroscope | 45 |
| 2 | Combined MEMS accelerometer and gyroscope | 37 |
| 3 | Micromachined accelerometer | 34 |
| 4 | Micromachined accelerometer with monolithic electr… | 25 |
| 5 | Combined MEMS accelerometer and gyroscope | 20 |
| 6 | Fully differential capacitive architecture for MEM… | 16 |
| 7 | Force feedback electrodes in MEMS accelerometer | 12 |
| 8 | Method for sensing acceleration using a translatio… | 11 |
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.
PGS Geophysical AS
PGS Geophysical AS holds 19 patent records, tied at the top of the ranking with A*STAR and filing jointly with them across 19 co-filed records. Their technology focus spans G01P 15 (velocity and acceleration), G01V 1 (geophysics and gravity surveying), and B81B 7 (MEMS microstructures), positioning them squarely in ocean-floor and subsurface seismic sensing applications. Momentum data is not separately reported for PGS in the recent-versus-prior window.
19 patent recordsHoneywell International Inc
Honeywell International Inc holds 15 patent records, concentrated in G01P 15 (velocity and acceleration) with 13 records, reflecting a focused closed-loop readout approach for precision inertial and industrial applications. Honeywell’s independent filing posture — not appearing in the top co-filing pairs — distinguishes it from the A*STAR–PGS collaboration. Simmonds Precision Products Inc (5 patent records) and Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (2 patent records) are both flagged as new entrants in the most recent filing window, indicating fresh competitive interest from established sensor manufacturers.
15 patent recordsFrequently asked questions
The corpus covers 12 patent families in scope for MEMS accelerometer closed-loop readout.
PGS Geophysical AS and Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) are jointly ranked first with 19 patent records each, followed by Honeywell International Inc with 15 patent records. These three entities form the clear leadership tier.
The field is classified as Growth: the recent three-year filing window is 167% above the prior three-year window. Annual volume peaked in 2023 and has eased since, and the most recent years are further understated by publication lag, so the multi-year trajectory remains upward.
The United States leads with 30 patent records, followed by Europe (EPO) with 11, Austria with 5, and Germany and Singapore each with 4. China and WIPO filings are present but limited at 2 records each.
Yes. Simmonds Precision Products Inc (5 patent records) and Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (2 patent records) are both identified as new entrants in the most recent filing window, indicating fresh commercial interest from established sensor and electronics manufacturers.
The most-cited patents in this space cover combined MEMS accelerometer and gyroscope architectures, micromachined accelerometer designs (including those with monolithic electronics), fully differential capacitive readout circuits, and force-feedback electrode configurations — all of which are foundational to closed-loop operation.
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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.
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