Radiographic Weld Inspection Patents: Who Leads, Where Gaps Sit 2026
- 53.8% concentration. The top 5 of 41 ranked assignees combined account for 53.8% of all 93 records in scope, with the leader alone holding 24.
- Filing eased, not collapsed. 2021-to-2024 filings moved from 7 to 6, a -14% change, after a 2023 peak of 10 — later years are still filling in due to publication lag.
- Inspection method art dominates. G01N material testing covers 78.5% of records; casting, forging and heat-treatment classes each sit at just 4.3%, marking clear under-claimed branches.
Filing growth compares 2021 (7 records) with 2024 (6) — 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 93 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
What this landscape covers
This dataset tracks patent families addressing radiographic inspection of welds and castings — methods for detecting defects such as porosity, verifying image quality with calibrated indicators, setting exposure parameters, and replacing film with digital detectors. The search combines core radiographic-inspection terms with claim-level concepts like image quality indicator, porosity detection and acceptance criteria, capturing both the inspection method art and the equipment used to execute it.
Ninety-three records published between 2015 and mid-2026 make up the dataset, filed across offices including the United States, China, Europe, the United Kingdom, WIPO and Canada. The classification mix is dominated by material-testing methods, with smaller pockets of activity in image processing, automated recognition, and casting- or forging-specific applications.
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Filing trends and technology composition
Ninety-three published records make up this dataset, spanning receiving offices from the United States to WIPO's PCT route. The trend and classification data below show where activity has concentrated and where it has stayed thin.
Filing activity: a mid-decade peak, then a plateau still filling in
Filings rose through the late 2010s and peaked at 10 records in 2023. The 2021-to-2024 span shows a -14% move (7 to 6), but 2025 and 2026 figures are understated because publication typically lags filing by around 18 months — treat the most recent two years as incomplete, not as a decline.
Technology composition: inspection method art dominates
G01N (material analysis and testing) covers 78.5% of the 93 records, far ahead of image-processing classes G06T (9.7%) and G06V (7.5%). Casting, forging and heat-treatment-specific classes each sit at 4.3%, marking them as narrow rather than crowded application domains. Because records can carry multiple IPC classes, these shares add up to more than 100% of the record total.
Shares are the percentage of the 93 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on Radiographic Weld and Casting Inspection with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about radiographic weld and casting inspection and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaMost-cited records and a representative recent filing
System and method for crack detection (US11946883B1)
The method determines a predicted contrast-to-noise ratio sensitivity function for a target flaw size, uses it to qualify an inspection image quality indicator for that flaw size, and then performs an inspection process using the qualified indicator against the flaw.Assigned to the United States as represented by the Administrator of NASA; dated 2024-04-02.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US6658089B1 | System and method for image identification and quality indication for radiographic inspection | 44 |
| 2 | US20030058991A1 | Digital radioscopic testing system patent | 44 |
| 3 | US6405596B1 | Ultrasonic austenitic weld seam inspection method and apparatus | 24 |
| 4 | US6497150B1 | Ultrasonic austenitic weld seam inspection method and apparatus | 22 |
| 5 | US20210190705A1 | Radiographic inspection system for pipes and other structures using radioisotopes | 18 |
| 6 | US5210783A | Penetrameter and method of use | 17 |
| 7 | CN105717143A | 一种射线探伤工艺 | 12 |
| 8 | US20090161833A1 | Radiographic Calibration | 12 |
| 9 | WO2002031487A2 | Ultrasonic austenitic weld SEAM inspection method and apparatus | 11 |
| 10 | US5167734A | Process for identification evaluation and removal of microshrinkage | 11 |
Citation counts favour older records simply because they have had more time to accumulate citations inside the searched corpus — treat them as a signal of influence, not of current technical relevance.
Patent titles are shown in the language they were filed in, not translated, so that each record stays verifiable against the original filing — a translated title will not match in Eureka or in any national register. Each row carries its publication number; clicking a row searches Eureka by that number.
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These figures come directly from the 93 records in scope. Read together, they point to where claim space is occupied, where activity is cooling from a recent peak, and which application domains have not yet attracted concentrated filing.
A small group holds most of the core art
The top 5 of 41 ranked assignees combined for 53.8% of all 93 records, and the top 10 reach 69.9%. New entrants filing directly against core image-quality-indicator or exposure-setting claims will be filing into dense prior art held by a handful of established players.
A plateau after the 2023 peak, not a collapse
Filings peaked at 10 records in 2023 before easing to 6 by 2024, a -14% move over that three-year span. Because publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, 2025 and 2026 counts are understated and should not be read as a further downturn.
Material testing claims dominate the classification mix
G01N covers 78.5% of the 93 records, versus 9.7% for image processing (G06T) and 7.5% for recognition methods (G06V). Casting, forging and heat-treatment classes trail at 4.3% each, marking them as thin rather than saturated.
Filing activity spans several major jurisdictions
The United States leads with 23 filings, followed by China at 18, EPO at 10, the UK at 8, WIPO/PCT at 7 and Canada at 5. That spread reflects inspection methods used across aerospace, energy and fabrication supply chains that cross borders routinely.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to radiographic weld and casting inspection, with the prior art for and against each one.
Who is filing, and where the gate sits for new entrants
Forty-one assignees are ranked in this dataset, from a leader with 24 records down to single-filing entrants. The gap between the top and the tail defines where a new filer would compete directly versus where the field is still open.
One assignee holds a clear plurality
The leading assignee accounts for 24 of the 93 records in scope — more than four times the fifth-placed company's 5. That gap suggests a sustained, multi-year filing programme rather than a single burst of applications.
A competitive mid-tier with modest counts
Fifth place holds 5 records and tenth place holds 2, meaning the top 10 combined reach 69.9% of all 93 records. Below that line, the ranking thins quickly into single-filing organisations.
Joint filing is rare across this dataset
Only two co-assignee pairs appear across all 93 records, both linking the same organisation with individual named inventors. Cross-company joint development is not a visible pattern here, unlike fields where alliances drive filing volume.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago Bridge & Iron Co | 0 | — |
| Illinois Tool Works Inc | 0 | — |
| General Electric Co | 0 | — |
| Doosan Enerbility Co Ltd | 0 | — |
| BAE Systems Information and Electronic Systems Integration Inc | 0 | — |
| Rolls-Royce plc | 0 | — |
| Honeywell International Inc | 0 | — |
| British Aerospace plc | 0 | — |
Where to take this analysis next
The figures above establish where claim density sits today. Turning that into a filing or freedom-to-operate decision means going record by record.
Run a claim chart against the leading assignee's portfolio
With 24 of 93 records held by one assignee, a claim-by-claim comparison against a proposed filing is the fastest way to see whether a route is genuinely open or already covered.
Build a claim chart in EurekaCheck the under-claimed branches for a first-filer position
Casting, forging and heat-treatment-specific classes each sit at 4.3% of records, with no dominant leader. A first claim there starts with less prior art to design around.
Explore white space in EurekaTrack the 2025-2026 filings as they publish
Publication lag means the true picture for the most recent two years is still forming. Monitoring new publications as they land keeps the concentration and momentum figures current.
Set up monitoring in EurekaCommon questions on this landscape
The ranked leader holds 24 of the 93 records in this dataset, well ahead of the fifth-placed company at 5 and the tenth-placed company at 2. The top 5 assignees combined account for 53.8% of all 93 records, and the top 10 combined reach 69.9%, so filing activity is concentrated among a small group rather than spread evenly across the 41 ranked companies. That said, a long tail of single- or double-filing entrants still makes up a meaningful share of the total, particularly around casting- and forging-specific applications.
Filings peaked at 10 records in 2023, and the 2021-to-2024 window shows a modest -14% move from 7 to 6 filings. It would be a mistake to read 2025 or 2026 figures as a further decline, because publication typically lags actual filing by roughly 18 months, so the most recent years in any patent trend are always undercounted at the point of publication. The honest read is a plateau after a mid-decade peak, with the true 2025-2026 picture not yet visible.
Casting inspection (B22D), forging inspection (B21J), and heat-treatment or non-ferrous metal condition monitoring (C21D, C22F) each account for only 4.3% of the 93 records, compared with 78.5% for the core material-testing class G01N. These narrower application domains have not attracted the same filing density as general weld radiography and image-quality-indicator methods, and co-assignee collaboration across organisations is rare in this dataset overall, with only two recorded pairs. That combination suggests room for claims that pair a specific casting or forging defect signature with established qualification methods.
US11946883B1, assigned to NASA and dated 2024-04-02, claims a method for crack detection that determines a predicted contrast-to-noise ratio sensitivity function for a target flaw size, uses it to qualify an inspection image quality indicator, and then performs the inspection using that qualified indicator. The claim structure is sequential, so each step depends on the one before it. It is one of the more recent records in this dataset and reflects the procedural, qualification-focused direction that much of the current filing activity takes.
The United States leads with 23 filings in this dataset, followed by China at 18, the European Patent Office at 10, the United Kingdom at 8, WIPO's PCT route at 7, and Canada at 5. This spread indicates the technology is being protected across multiple major jurisdictions rather than concentrated in a single market, which is typical for inspection methods used in aerospace, energy and industrial fabrication supply chains that span borders.
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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.