Optical Transport Network Patents: Who Leads, Where Filing Peaked 2026
- Filing has cooled since 2017. the peak year at 64 published families, against a flat-to-declining midpoint of 47 in 2022 and a 2026 count that is still incomplete.
- Every top assignee shows zero filings in the latest year. a pattern consistent with publication lag rather than a real stop, but worth checking before assuming continued investment.
- Claim density concentrates outside pure optics. H04B and H04J carry the bulk of records, while G02F optical modulation and H01S lasers sit far behind at 23 and 41 records respectively.
Filing growth compares 2021 (41 records) with 2024 (38) — 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 1,334 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
What the optical transport network patent record shows
Optical transport network filings sit at the intersection of transmission engineering and multiplexing: the search set combines coherent DSP, wavelength division multiplexing, flexible grid and 400G transmission claims under H04B10/25, H04J14/02 and H04B10. Across the 2015-2026 window this yields 1,334 patent families, concentrated in transmission and multiplex subclasses rather than in the optical-physics layer of lasers and modulators. Publication lag of roughly 18 months means the last one to two filing years understate real activity.
Filing activity peaked in 2017 and has not returned to that level since; the 2022 midpoint of 47 families confirms a flat-to-declining trend rather than a temporary dip. Receiving-office data shows the United States and China as the two largest filing venues, with Europe, WIPO/PCT and South Korea forming a second tier — a spread that points to a technology still filed multi-jurisdictionally rather than one consolidating around a single office.
Filing trend and technology composition
Two views of the same 1,334-family dataset: one tracks filings by year, the other breaks the corpus down by IPC subclass to show which parts of the stack carry the claim density.
Filings peaked in 2017 and have not recovered
From 64 published families in 2017 to a 2022 midpoint of 47, the trend line is flat to declining rather than growing. The 2026 figure of 0 is a data-cutoff artefact, not a signal that filing has stopped — treat the last one to two years as provisional.
Transmission and multiplexing dominate over pure optics
H04B (1,092 records) and H04J (716) carry most of the claim volume, with H04L digital transmission and H04Q switching forming a substantial second layer. The optical-physics side — G02B optical elements, H01S lasers, G02F optical modulation — is comparatively thin, at 54, 41 and 23 records respectively.
Shares are the percentage of the 1,334 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on Optical Transport Network Technology Landscape with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about optical transport network technology landscape and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaThe most-cited records in the corpus
System for providing WDM-based wireless optical transport network and method for transmitting wireless optical signal using the same
Discloses a wavelength-division-multiplexed wireless optical transport network built around a central office terminal that bilaterally transmits wireless optical signals of distinct wavelengths to a ring of remote terminals, each dropping and adding signal at its assigned wavelength while passing the remainder through.Filed by Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute, published 2013-06-27 as US20130163991A1.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US20040033004A1 | Optical signal receiver photonic integrated circuit (RxPIC), an associated optical signal transmitter photoni… | 274 |
| 2 | US20050249509A1 | Coolerless photonic integrated circuits (PICs) for WDM transmission networks and PICs operable with a floatin… | 193 |
| 3 | US20160352419A1 | Constrained interleaving for 5G wireless and optical transport networks | 103 |
| 4 | EP1826926A1 | An implement method of short rate traffic signal transmitted in optical transport network | 101 |
| 5 | US20150117860A1 | Method and device for setting up and operating a modular, highly scalable, very simple, cost-efficient and en… | 99 |
| 6 | US4873681A | Hybrid optical and electronic packet switch | 95 |
| 7 | US20160191194A1 | Network topology optimization with feasible optical paths | 94 |
| 8 | US20130308948A1 | Extending control plane functions to the entwork edge in an optical transport network | 92 |
| 9 | US9071364B1 | Coherent optical transceiver with programmable application modes | 90 |
| 10 | US20030090768A1 | Long haul optical communication system | 80 |
Citation counts are drawn from a searched corpus and favour older filings; read them as a signal of influence on the field, not as evidence that a technique is still current.
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Three patterns stand out once the raw counts are set against each other: where the claim volume sits, how citation influence is distributed, and what the receiving-office spread implies about jurisdiction strategy.
Claim density sits in transmission, not physics
H04B transmission claims outnumber G02F optical-modulation claims by roughly 47 to 1. That gap suggests the crowded prior art is in system- and protocol-level transmission engineering, while the underlying optical-modulation hardware layer carries comparatively light claim density.
Influence concentrates in early photonic-integration filings
The most-cited record in the set, on photonic integrated circuit receivers and transmitters, sits well ahead of the rest of the table. Because citation counts favour older filings in a searched corpus, this reflects foundational influence rather than a claim that is still central to new filings.
Filing is split across three major offices, not one
The United States leads receiving-office counts, with China and the European Patent Office both substantial rather than trailing. WIPO/PCT and South Korea form a distinct second tier, indicating optical transport filers are still pursuing multi-jurisdictional protection rather than concentrating in a single home market.
Latest-year zeros are a lag artefact worth double-checking
Every top assignee, from Huawei to Ericsson, shows zero filings in the most recent year. Given the roughly 18-month publication lag, this is most likely incomplete data rather than a synchronized industry-wide halt — but it is worth revisiting the trend once later filings publish.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to optical transport network technology landscape, with the prior art for and against each one.
Who holds the claim space
Assignee activity in this corpus concentrates among a small group of telecom equipment vendors and one national research institute, with co-assignee pairings showing where inventor teams and corporate assignees are linked most tightly.
A small set of recurring assignee-inventor links
Co-assignee pairings are few in number but repeat with the same names — Huawei appears twice among the strongest pairs, alongside an Infinera-inventor pairing. That pattern points to stable in-house inventor teams rather than shifting external collaboration.
Reported momentum is negative across the board
Every leading assignee tracked for recent-year momentum, including Huawei, ZTE, ETRI, Fujitsu, Ericsson and Infinera, shows zero filings in the latest year. Treat this as a data-cutoff effect rather than a strategic retreat until later publication years fill in.
Filing is genuinely multi-jurisdictional
With meaningful counts across six receiving offices, no single jurisdiction dominates the way it might in a more regionally concentrated technology. Vendors and institutes filing here are protecting positions across US, Chinese and European markets simultaneously.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. | 0 | -100% |
| ZTE Corporation | 0 | — |
| Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) | 0 | — |
| Fujitsu Limited | 0 | — |
| Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson | 0 | — |
| Infinera Corporation | 0 | — |
| Alcatel | 0 | — |
| Ciena Corporation | 0 | — |
Where to take this analysis
The dataset points to specific next steps depending on whether the goal is freedom-to-operate, white-space filing, or tracking a competitor.
Check the latest-year zeros before concluding a slowdown
Every leading assignee shows zero filings in the most recent year, which is consistent with the roughly 18-month publication lag rather than an actual stop. Re-run the trend once another filing cycle has published to confirm whether 2022's flat-to-declining pattern has continued.
Re-run trend analysis in EurekaMap claim boundaries around the top-cited photonic-integration filings
The most-cited records concentrate around early photonic integrated circuit work; a freedom-to-operate review for new transmitter or receiver designs should start with those claim boundaries rather than the newer, less-cited filings.
Explore citation chains in EurekaScope a first filing in the thinner optical-physics subclasses
G02F and H01S carry far fewer records than H04B and H04J, suggesting less-occupied claim space in optical modulation and laser-source integration for teams building at that layer.
Draft a claim scope in EurekaCommon questions about optical transport network patents
The dataset shows a small group of telecom equipment vendors and one national research institute — including Huawei, ZTE, Fujitsu, Ericsson, Infinera and Korea's Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute — as the recurring names in the assignee ranking. Co-assignee pairings, though only ten in number, repeat around the same names, particularly Huawei, suggesting stable in-house inventor teams rather than a shifting field of new entrants. That said, every one of these leading assignees shows zero filings in the most recent year in this data cut, which is more likely a publication-lag artefact than a genuine pullback.
Filing peaked in 2017 at 64 published families and has not returned to that level since; the 2022 midpoint of 47 confirms the trend is flat to declining rather than growing. The apparent drop to zero in 2026 is a data-cutoff effect, since patent publication typically lags filing by around 18 months, so the most recent one to two years in any trend chart will always look thinner than they eventually turn out to be. Overall the multi-year pattern is one of maturity and consolidation rather than expansion.
Transmission engineering and multiplexing dominate: H04B (transmission, general) covers 1,092 of the 1,334 records and H04J (multiplex communication) covers 716, with digital transmission (H04L) and switching (H04Q) forming a substantial second layer. The optical-physics side of the stack — optical elements (G02B), lasers (H01S) and optical modulation (G02F) — carries far fewer records, at 54, 41 and 23 respectively. That gap suggests claim space in system-level transmission and multiplexing is comparatively occupied, while the physical optical-modulation and laser-source layers are less densely claimed.
The IPC composition points to optical modulation control and laser-source integration as comparatively thin relative to the crowded transmission and multiplex core — G02F and H01S together account for a small fraction of the 1,334 records. Flexible-grid channel-spacing schemes and wireless-optical hybrid ring topologies also appear less represented in the highest-cited claim set. Any first filing in these areas should still be checked against the specific claim language of the top-cited records before assuming the space is clear, since citation rank does not equal recency of relevant art.
US20130163991A1, filed by South Korea's Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute and published 2013-06-27, discloses a WDM-based wireless optical transport network using a central office terminal that bilaterally transmits wireless optical signals of distinct wavelengths to a ring of remote terminals, each adding and dropping its own assigned wavelength. It matters as a representative filing in this corpus because it ties together wavelength-division multiplexing, ring-topology transport and wireless-optical hybrid delivery in a single claim set, making it a useful reference point for anyone designing wavelength-assignment or add-drop mechanisms in a similar topology. Reviewing its specific claim scope, rather than just the abstract, is the necessary next step before building on the same architecture.
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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.