VCSEL Array / 3D Sensing Module Patent Snapshot
Excelitas Technologies Corp holds the largest share among the top filers in this specialized corpus, and the United States is the dominant filing jurisdiction. Annual filings have plateaued near their 2021 peak, signaling a mature field with concentrated ownership and limited recent entry by new players.
Excelitas leads a tightly held, US-centric corpus
Excelitas Technologies Corp sits at the top of the applicant ranking, followed by the Regents of the University of California, Vixar Inc., and VocalZoom Systems — a mix of specialized photonics companies and research universities that defines the competitive character of this field.
The top five filers account for 75% of the ranked applicants visible in this query’ combined total, indicating a highly concentrated evidence snapshot where a handful of specialized players have established visible positions with limited headroom for undifferentiated new entrants.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Excelitas Technologies Corp | 6 | |
| 2 | Regents of the University of California | 4 | |
| 3 | Vixar Inc. | 3 | |
| 4 | VocalZoom Systems | 3 | |
| 5 | University of Southern California | 2 | |
| 6 | Ahura Corp | 2 | |
| 7 | Excelitas Technologies Corporation | 2 | |
| 8 | Shanghai Jiao Tong University | 1 | |
| 9 | Topolight Inc. | 1 |
Excelitas’s lead — anchored firmly in laser and stimulated-emission technology (H01S) — suggests that vertical-cavity laser expertise is the core moat; challengers must either match that core competency or differentiate through adjacent application domains such as sensing systems or AI-driven processing.
The most recent 18–24 months of filings are subject to publication lag and likely undercount actual activity; readers should treat the 2024–2026 data points as preliminary. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
A 2021 surge has plateaued; H01S lasers dominate the technology mix
Filing activity accelerated sharply into 2021–2022 before leveling off, while the technology composition reveals a core laser-physics cluster with smaller adjacent branches in optical systems, sensing, and semiconductor devices.
Annual filing trend
Filings stepped up from a single annual record in 2017–2020 to six records per year in both 2021 and 2022, then eased. The 2023–2026 bars reflect publication lag and should not be read as a true decline; the field has plateaued near its peak rather than contracted.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
H01S (Lasers and stimulated emission) accounts for the largest share of IPC classifications, confirming that VCSEL device physics is the visible technical focus. G02B (Optical elements), G01B (Length and dimension measurement), G01S (Radar, sonar and positioning), H01L and H10D (Semiconductor devices), and G06N (AI-based computing) each represent smaller but notable adjacent clusters.
↗ 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.
Optically pumped tunable VCSEL employing geometric…
An optically pumped tunable VCSEL swept source module has a VCSEL and a pump, which produces light to pump the VSCEL, wherein the pump is geometrically isolated from the VCSEL. In different embodiments, the pump is geometrically isolated by defocusing light from the pump in front of the VCSEL, behind the VCSEL, and/or by coupling the light from the pump at… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Improved self-mix module utilizing filters | 29 |
| 2 | Transfer process to realize semiconductor devices | 10 |
| 3 | High spectral fidelity laser source with low FM-to… | 9 |
| 4 | 基于注入锁定技术的高速VCSEL阵列集成一体化的方法及系统 | 8 |
| 5 | High spectral fidelity laser source with low FM-to… | 8 |
| 6 | Systems including vertical cavity surface emitting… | 6 |
| 7 | Self-mix module utilizing filters | 3 |
| 8 | Optically pumped tunable VCSEL employing geometric… | 3 |
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.
Excelitas Technologies Corp
Excelitas Technologies Corp leads the ranking with 6 patent records, with technology focus concentrated entirely within H01S laser and stimulated-emission classes (H01S5 and H01S3). Recent applicant entries under the Japanese-language entity name (Excelitas Technologies Corporation) reflect new-entrant momentum, indicating the company is actively broadening its filing footprint. Its visible position in core VCSEL laser physics makes it the primary reference point for freedom-to-operate analysis in this space.
patent records: 6Regents of the University of California
The Regents of the University of California hold 4 patent records, with a technology focus spanning H01S5 laser physics and H01L25/H01L29 semiconductor device subclasses — a broader coverage than Excelitas. This dual focus on laser and semiconductor device integration positions the university as a source of foundational device-architecture IP. No momentum trend data indicates a sustained recent surge, but its 4-record position keeps it as the second-ranked filer in the corpus.
patent records: 4Frequently asked questions
The corpus covers 19 patent families in scope. The applicant ranking is based on patent records within the ranked applicants visible in this query, and IPC classification counts are also at the patent-record level.
Excelitas Technologies Corp leads with 6 patent records, followed by the Regents of the University of California with 4. The top five filers — Excelitas, University of California, Vixar, VocalZoom Systems, and the University of Southern California — account for 75% of the top hundred filers’ combined total.
The field is at a maturity stage. Annual filings peaked in 2021 (6 records) and have since plateaued near that peak level. The multi-year trend window is flat (0% recent growth), indicating the technology has not returned to growth but has not sharply contracted either.
The United States leads with 10 patent records, followed by WIPO (PCT) with 4, Europe (EPO) with 3, Japan with 2, and Canada and China each with 1. Coverage in major Asian manufacturing markets outside Japan is currently limited.
The most-cited work by citation count is the ‘Improved self-mix module utilizing filters’ with 29 citations, followed by a patent on transfer processes for semiconductor devices (10 citations) and two records related to high spectral fidelity laser sources with low FM-to-AM conversion (9 and 8 citations respectively).
The sparsest adjacent branches relative to the visible H01S laser core are G01S (radar, sonar and positioning / LiDAR) and G06N (AI-based computing), each carrying low patent-record counts. G01S is technically well-motivated for LiDAR and time-of-flight 3D sensing applications; G06N is relevant for AI-driven beam control and 3D perception, and is the sparsest branch in the corpus.
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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.