SMR Reactor Control (I&C) Patent Snapshot 2026
The SMR reactor instrumentation and control patent space is highly concentrated, with BWXT mPower and KEPCO Nuclear Fuel together accounting for the dominant share of filings among the leading applicants. Activity stalled between 2019 and 2022 but has rebounded sharply since 2023, signalling renewed commercial momentum—though the most recent filings remain subject to publication lag.
A two-player oligopoly with a sharp rebound since 2023
BWXT mPower leads all filers with 8 patent records, followed closely by KEPCO Nuclear Fuel with 7, making the top two applicants alone responsible for the majority of indexed activity in this space.
The top five filers account for 92% of the combined total across the ranked applicants visible in this query—an extreme concentration level that leaves very little room in the ranking for challengers. Advanced Reactor Concepts LLC and the French Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives each hold 3 patent records, forming a distant second tier.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BWXT mPower Inc | 8 | |
| 2 | KEPCO Nuclear Fuel Co Ltd | 7 | |
| 3 | Advanced Reactor Concepts LLC | 3 | |
| 4 | Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (CEA) | 3 | |
| 5 | Dunedin Energy Systems Ltd | 2 | |
| 6 | Harbin Engineering University | 1 | |
| 7 | Betaber Zilevitch Maoz | 1 |
The entrenched positions of BWXT mPower and KEPCO Nuclear Fuel suggest that any new entrant seeking meaningful portfolio depth will need to target differentiated technical routes—particularly the largely vacant control-systems branch—rather than competing head-on in core reactor design.
Filings from 2024 onward are likely under-counted due to standard patent publication lag of 18–24 months; the apparent 2025 peak and the zero count for 2026 should not be read as definitive activity levels. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Dormant middle decade, strong late-period revival, and a narrow IPC footprint
Two charts capture the temporal and technological shape of this space: annual filing volume reveals a prolonged quiet period followed by a recent surge, while the IPC distribution shows that patents cluster tightly in nuclear-reactor hardware classes with minimal footprint in dedicated control-systems classification.
Annual filing trend
Filings peaked at 4 records in 2017, then fell to zero for four consecutive years (2019–2022). A recovery began in 2023 and accelerated to 4 records in 2024 and 6 in 2025; the 2025 figure and the zero for 2026 should be treated with caution given publication lag. The gap years are consistent with a field that paused while SMR projects sought regulatory clarity before resuming patent activity ahead of anticipated deployments.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
The IPC mix is dominated by G21C (Nuclear reactors) with 25 patent records, followed by G21D (Nuclear power plants) with 8. G05B (Control and regulating systems)—the class most directly associated with dedicated I&C software and hardware—holds only 1 patent record, representing just 3% of the total. This imbalance indicates that I&C innovations are predominantly being captured as reactor-system claims rather than as standalone control-technology patents.
↗ 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.
Control rod apparatus for small modular reactor, a…
A local control unit for a small modular reactor includes: a local control rod set comprising a pair of movable local control rods; and a local control unit drive mechanism coupled to the pair of local control rods. The local control unit drive mechanism is configured to move each of the local control rods in opposite directions simultaneously. (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | SLIMM-Scalable Liquid Metal Cooled Small Modular R… | 24 |
| 2 | Small modular reactor power plant with load follow… | 13 |
| 3 | Small modular reactor power plant with load follow… | 8 |
| 4 | Small modular reactor fuel assembly | 3 |
| 5 | 一种基于深度确定性策略梯度算法和自抗扰控制的小型模块化反应堆容错控制方法 | 1 |
| 6 | Small modular reactor fuel assembly | 1 |
| 7 | Small modular reactor fuel assembly | 1 |
| 8 | Small modular reactor fuel assembly | 1 |
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.
What the structural data means for R&D investment decisions
The corpus of 17 patent families is small but structurally revealing: extreme concentration, a technology composition skewed toward hardware, and a post-dormancy revival all carry specific strategic implications for teams deciding where to invest.
Early-revival stage after a prolonged dormancy
The life-cycle stage is not formally resolved in the evidence, but the filing pattern—peak in 2017, four zero years, then acceleration from 2023 onward—is consistent with an early-revival field rather than a mature or saturating one. New entrants KEPCO Nuclear Fuel, Harbin Engineering University, and Betaber Zilevitch Maoz all entered most recently, reinforcing the impression of renewed competitive entry. Teams entering now face lower prior-art density than in more mature nuclear subsystems.
Early RevivalOligopoly: two players hold the bulk of top-100 share
With the top five filers accounting for 92% of the ranked applicants visible in this query’ combined total, this is one of the most concentrated patent landscapes typical of an emerging niche technology. BWXT mPower and KEPCO Nuclear Fuel together set the terms of the core design space. Challengers Advanced Reactor Concepts LLC and the Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique are present but distant. A new entrant’s most defensible route is differentiation by technical approach—particularly in digital control architectures—rather than volume competition.
High ConcentrationNo co-applicant activity detected in current evidence
The collaboration evidence contains no recorded co-filing partnerships in this corpus. The absence of joint applicants is notable given that SMR projects typically involve consortia of reactor vendors, utilities, and national laboratories. This may reflect that partnership IP is being held at the corporate level, or that collaborative filings are recent and not yet published. Teams considering licensing or joint development should treat this as an open intelligence gap rather than confirmation that no partnerships exist.
Evidence PendingUS-led with European and South Korean secondary presence
The United States leads with 9 patent records, consistent with BWXT mPower’s US base and the active NRC licensing environment. Europe (EPO) accounts for 6 records and Canada for 4, reflecting both KEPCO Nuclear Fuel’s international filing strategy and the importance of the Canadian SMR licensing pipeline. South Korea holds 2 records and China 1, suggesting limited domestic filing by non-Korean Asian players so far—a potential gap for teams seeking freedom to operate in Asian markets.
US-CentricGo beyond the landscape: Eureka’s TRIZ Solution agent breaks down an R&D problem and returns patented concept solutions, each with a technical approach and cited patent & literature evidence.
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
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.
BWXT mPower Inc
The leading filer with 8 patent records, BWXT mPower’s portfolio concentrates on reactor structure (G21C 1), reactivity control (G21C 7), and containment/shielding (G21C 13)—reflecting a broad coverage of the mPower integral PWR design. The most-cited patent in the corpus (24 forward citations) is associated with a scalable liquid-metal-cooled SMR concept, and load-following control methods also feature prominently. No recent-period momentum trend is recorded for BWXT mPower, suggesting its filings are concentrated in the earlier activity window.
families: 8KEPCO Nuclear Fuel Co Ltd
The second-ranked filer with 7 patent records, KEPCO Nuclear Fuel entered as a new entrant in the most recent period, making it the most active late-stage challenger. Its technical focus sits in reactivity control (G21C 7), fuel assembly design (G21C 3), and reactor internals (G21C 1)—a tighter cluster than BWXT mPower’s broader spread. The new-entrant momentum designation indicates all 3 recent records are from the latest filing window, suggesting KEPCO Nuclear Fuel’s portfolio is still being built out.
families: 7Frequently asked questions
The current corpus contains 17 patent families in scope. This is a small but growing corpus; the most recent filings from 2024 and 2025 are likely under-counted due to the standard 18–24 month patent publication lag.
BWXT mPower Inc leads with 8 patent records, followed by KEPCO Nuclear Fuel Co Ltd with 7. Together they represent the visible positions among the top-ranked applicants in this space.
The United States leads with 9 patent records, followed by Europe (EPO) with 6, Canada with 4, France with 2, South Korea with 2, WIPO (PCT) with 2, and China with 1. The US lead reflects both BWXT mPower’s home market and the active NRC licensing environment for SMRs.
The most-cited work in the corpus is a patent related to a scalable liquid-metal-cooled small modular reactor (SLIMM concept), which has accumulated 24 forward citations—substantially more than the next most-cited record at 13 citations, which covers small modular reactor load-following control.
Yes. Three applicants are identified as new entrants based on their filings being concentrated entirely in the most recent period: KEPCO Nuclear Fuel Co Ltd (3 recent patent records), Harbin Engineering University (1 recent record), and Betaber Zilevitch Maoz (1 recent record). Their entry signals broadening competitive interest in this niche.
The G05B (Control and regulating systems) IPC branch holds only 1 patent record—3% of the total—despite being the most directly relevant class for digital I&C platforms, adaptive algorithms, and software-based safety systems. Harbin Engineering University is currently the sole occupant of this branch, leaving it largely open for new entrants with control-systems expertise.
Ready to map your own SMR I&C Patent Snapshot?
Join 18,000+ innovators using PatSnap Eureka to map any technology landscape: search 2B+ patents and papers, surface key assignees, and generate a report like this in minutes.
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.