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Run your analysis now →https://www.patsnap.com/resources/blog/rd-blog/shear-wave-elastography-quantification-patent-landscape/ · Patsnap · data cut-off 2026-07-31 · downloaded from the live page
Medical Imaging Patent LandscapeShear Wave Elastography Quantification Patents
- 75.8% concentration. The top five assignees hold 119 of the 157 records in scope — a field with a narrow set of gatekeepers rather than a broad field of independent filers.
- Filing cooled after a 2019 peak. Filings peaked at 24 in 2019 and fell from 14 in 2021 to 9 in 2024, a -36% swing over that span, though 2025-26 figures are still filling in due to publication lag.
- A61B and G01S dominate the claim space. 94.3% of records carry an A61B diagnosis/surgery class and 45.2% carry a G01S sonar-positioning class, leaving smaller classes like G06N and G16H comparatively open.
157
Published Records
76%
Top-5 Share of All Records
-36%
Filing Growth 2021→2024
US
Leading Jurisdiction
Filing growth compares 2021 (14 records) with 2024 (9) — 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 157 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
Published byPatsnap Research··7 min readSourced from Patsnap Eureka
Field Overview
What the patent record shows about shear wave elastography quantification
Shear wave elastography quantification covers the methods used to turn an ultrasound shear-wave measurement into a clinically usable stiffness value: region-of-interest selection, confidence mapping, depth compensation and the calibration work needed to make one vendor's number comparable to another's. The 157 records in scope span 2015 through the 2026 cut-off, concentrated overwhelmingly in A61B diagnostic and surgical apparatus claims layered with G01S sonar and positioning claims — the two classes a shear-wave system has to touch regardless of vendor.
Filing activity rose through the late 2010s, peaked in 2019, and has since pulled back — a pattern consistent with an early land-grab around core measurement and calibration claims followed by consolidation among the assignees who got there first. The most recent one to two years of the trend are understated because publication typically lags filing by roughly 18 months.
Filing activity and technology composition, 2017-2026
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Assignee ranking and totals. Derived from a Patsnap search on Shear Wave Elastography Quantification covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
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Filing Data
Filing trend and technology composition
The two views below use the same 157-record denominator: one tracks filings by year, the other breaks down the IPC subclasses those filings carry.
A 2019 peak followed by contraction
Filings ran from 6 in 2017 to a peak of 24 in 2019, then declined; the comparable complete-year window shows 14 filings in 2021 falling to 9 in 2024, a -36% change. Treat 2025 and 2026 as incomplete rather than as evidence of a further slowdown.
Diagnostic apparatus and sonar dominate the class mix
A61B (diagnosis & surgery) appears on 94.3% of the 157 records and G01S (radar, sonar & positioning) on 45.2%, together forming the backbone claim territory. Smaller classes — G06T image processing, B06B mechanical vibration generation, G06N AI-based computing, G01N material analysis, G16H healthcare informatics and G01R electric measurement — each sit under 6% of records, marking narrower and less contested claim territory.
Shares are the percentage of the 157 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Filing trend and technology composition. Derived from a Patsnap search on Shear Wave Elastography Quantification covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.
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Most-cited records and a recent representative filing
Representative Recent Filing
US20260102142A1 — Method and system for performing stiffness measurements using ultrasound shear wave elastography
KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS N.V.
A system and method are provided for performing stiffness measurements of an anatomical structure in a patient using ultrasound shear wave elastography. The method includes acquiring multiple elastography frames from ultrasound images of the anatomical structure, where the multiple elastography frames are provided by a cine loop performed by an ultrasound imaging system; automatically identifying a preferred elastography frame of the multiple elastography frames for making stiffness measurements of the anatomical structure; automatically identifying a preferred area of the preferred elastography frame based on confidence; automatically selecting at least one region of interest (ROI) based on...Filed by Koninklijke Philips N.V., published 2026-04-16 — automating frame and ROI selection inside a cine loop workflow.
Highest-cited records in the corpus
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US20160143621A1 | Elastography measurement system and method | 33 |
| 2 | WO2016067072A1 | Imaging methods and apparatuses for performing shear wave elastography imaging | 28 |
| 3 | US20160143622A1 | System and method for mapping ultrasound shear wave elastography measurements | 28 |
| 4 | US20170322308A1 | Imaging methods and apparatuses for performing shear wave elastography imaging | 22 |
| 5 | US20190183461A1 | Ultrasonic diagnostic device | 21 |
| 6 | US20180000455A1 | Shear wave elastrography method and apparatus for imaging an anisotropic medium | 18 |
| 7 | CN111275706A | 一种基于剪切波弹性成像超声组学深度分析方法及系统 | 17 |
| 8 | US20210022715A1 | Method for objective, noninvasive staging of diffuse liver disease from ultrasound shear-wave elastography | 17 |
| 9 | WO2018178379A1 | System and method for ultrasound shear wave elastography using external mechanical vibrations | 16 |
| 10 | US20220104794A1 | Method and ultrasound system for shear wave elasticity imaging | 14 |
Citation counts favour older records simply by virtue of longer exposure; read them as a signal of influence within this searched corpus, not as a ranking of current technical importance.
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.
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Citation counts and representative records. Derived from a Patsnap search on Shear Wave Elastography Quantification covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
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What the concentration and citation data mean for strategy
Three figures from the dataset carry direct implications for where a new filer can realistically compete.
Concentration
75.8%
of 157 records held by top 5
Core claims sit with a small group
The top five assignees combine for 119 of the 157 records in scope, a 75.8% share. Core measurement, calibration and ROI-selection claims are largely occupied; a new entrant is more likely to find room in adjacent processing or workflow claims than in the measurement core itself.
Based on the full 29-company assignee ranking
Filing Momentum
-36%
2021 to 2024 filing change
Activity has pulled back from its 2019 peak
Filings fell from 14 in 2021 to 9 in 2024, a -36% change over that complete-year window, after peaking at 24 in 2019. That reads as consolidation around established claims rather than an active retreat from the space, and 2025-26 counts are still incomplete.
2024 is the most recent complete filing year
Class Composition
45.2%
of records carry G01S sonar claims
Sonar-positioning claims sit alongside diagnostic claims
Nearly every record (94.3%) carries an A61B diagnostic class, and close to half also carry a G01S sonar-positioning class — the two together define the dominant claim pattern. Classes tied to AI-based processing (G06N, 3.2%) and healthcare informatics (G16H, 1.9%) remain comparatively thin.
Class shares sum above 100% because records carry multiple IPC codes
Eureka AI Agent
Looking for what nobody has claimed yet?
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to shear wave elastography quantification, with the prior art for and against each one.
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Co-assignee relationships and derived observations. Derived from a Patsnap search on Shear Wave Elastography Quantification covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
Competitive Landscape
Who holds the core claims, and where the gate sits
A handful of medical imaging majors and one research consortium account for the bulk of activity; below the top ranks the field thins quickly into single-filing entrants.
Leader
65 records
leading assignee's count
One filer dominates by volume
The leading assignee holds 65 of the 157 records in scope, well ahead of fifth place at 7 and tenth place at 4 — a steep drop-off rather than a gradual taper.
Out of 29 ranked assignees
Top 10
92.4%
of 157 records held by top 10
Almost all activity sits in the ranked leaders
The ten most active assignees combine for 145 of 157 records, 92.4% of everything in scope. Filers outside this group hold isolated single- or double-digit counts, making the field a poor target for volume-based entry.
145 of 157 records
Collaboration
8 pairs
co-assignee pairings identified
Academic-industry pairings cluster around a few institutions
Co-filing is limited but concentrated: research-institute pairs and one philips/MIT pairing recur, suggesting a small number of standing research relationships rather than broad industry consortia.
Strongest pairs recur at 2-3 shared filings
Recent-year filing momentum
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Koninklijke Philips N.V. | 0 | -100% |
| SuperSonic Imagine SA | 0 | — |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | 0 | — |
| GE Precision Healthcare LLC | 0 | — |
| Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics Co., Ltd. | 0 | — |
| Samsung Medison Co., Ltd. | 0 | — |
| Esaote S.p.A. | 0 | — |
| North Carolina State University | 0 | — |
Source: Patsnap Eureka. Assignee-level momentum. Derived from a Patsnap search on Shear Wave Elastography Quantification covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
Next Steps
Where to take this analysis
The figures above describe the field as a whole; the next layer of decisions is claim-by-claim and assignee-by-assignee.
Map freedom-to-operate against the leader's portfolio
With one assignee holding 65 of 157 records, a freedom-to-operate review for any new filing in the measurement core should start there before looking at the rest of the ranking.
Explore assignee portfolios in EurekaTrack the under-claimed branches before they fill in
G06N, G16H and G01R sit under 6% of records each; a claim search focused on these adjacent classes can surface open space before filing volume catches up.
Run a white space search in EurekaRe-check the trend once 2025-26 publications land
Because publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, the 2025-26 filing counts shown here will rise; revisit the trend in a future data pull before drawing conclusions about current-year activity.
Set a landscape alert in EurekaSource: Patsnap Eureka. Forward-looking reading of the same dataset. Derived from a Patsnap search on Shear Wave Elastography Quantification covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about shear wave elastography patents
One assignee leads the field with 65 of the 157 records in scope, far ahead of the fifth-ranked assignee at 7 and the tenth at 4. The top five assignees combine for 75.8% of all records, meaning most core measurement, region-of-interest and calibration claims sit with a small number of established medical imaging companies rather than being spread across many independent filers. A freedom-to-operate check in this space should prioritise the leader's portfolio first.
No — filings peaked at 24 in 2019 and have since declined, with the most recent complete-year comparison showing a drop from 14 filings in 2021 to 9 in 2024, a -36% change. That said, 2025 and 2026 figures in any dataset are understated because patent publication typically lags filing by roughly 18 months, so the true 2025-26 filing level will be higher once those applications publish. The honest read is consolidation around existing claims rather than declining interest in the technology.
The dominant class is A61B (diagnosis and surgery equipment), appearing on 94.3% of the 157 records in scope, typically paired with G01S (radar, sonar and positioning), which appears on 45.2% of records. Smaller but present classes include G06T (image data processing), B06B (mechanical vibration generation), G06N (AI-based computing) and G16H (healthcare informatics), each under 6% of records. Because a single record can carry multiple IPC codes, these shares add up to more than 100%, and they should be read against the 157-record total, not against each other.
The thinnest IPC classes relative to the A61B/G01S core are G06N (AI-based confidence and quality scoring), G16H (healthcare informatics integration), G01R (electric/magnetic measurement fusion) and B06B (mechanical vibration transducer design), each covering under 6% of the 157 records in scope. These branches sit adjacent to the heavily claimed measurement core rather than replacing it, which is why they remain comparatively open. A first claim there would need to tie directly into an existing measurement pipeline to have commercial relevance, since the core acquisition and ROI-selection claims are already occupied.
The representative recent filing, US20260102142A1 from Koninklijke Philips N.V. published 2026-04-16, claims a method for automatically selecting the best elastography frame from a cine loop, identifying the highest-confidence area within that frame, and then selecting a region of interest based on that confidence assessment. It automates a step that has historically required operator judgement, which is directly relevant to the interoperator-variability problem this technology field is built around. Anyone building an automated ROI or confidence-scoring workflow should review this filing's specific claim language before proceeding.
Answers are grounded in the same dataset. Derived from a Patsnap search on Shear Wave Elastography Quantification covering 2015–2026, data cut-off 2026-07-31. Counts reflect published records only and shift as new filings publish.Run this in Eureka MCP
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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.