The healthcare industry continues to be a hotbed of innovation, with activity driven by telemedicine, real-time diagnostics, smart hospitals and access to digital therapies, as well as the growing importance of technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), augmented reality (AR), robotics and data management practices. In the last three years alone, there have been over 106,000 patents filed and granted in the healthcare industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare: Medical image processing systems.
However, not all innovations are equal and nor do they follow a constant upward trend. Instead, their evolution takes the form of an S-shaped curve that reflects their typical lifecycle from early emergence to accelerating adoption, before finally stabilising and reaching maturity.
Identifying where a particular innovation is on this journey, especially those that are in the emerging and accelerating stages, is essential for understanding their current level of adoption and the likely future trajectory and impact they will have.
200+ innovations will shape the healthcare industry
According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which plots the S-curve for the healthcare industry using innovation intensity models built on over 443,000 patents, there are 200+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.
Within the emerging innovation stage, drug delivery device security, microscopic image analysis models, and cellular imaging techniques are disruptive technologies that are in the early stages of application and should be tracked closely. Smart balloon catheters, automated immunoassay analysers, and AI-assisted MRI are some of the accelerating innovation areas, where adoption has been steadily increasing. Among maturing innovation areas are smart fitness training system and non-invasive physiological monitoring which are now well established in the industry.
Innovation S-curve for artificial intelligence in the healthcare industry
Medical image processing systems is a key innovation area in artificial intelligence
Medical image processing involves the use and exploration of 3D image data sources of the human body, most obtained from a computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner, to diagnose pathologies, guide invasive procedures, such as surgical planning, or for research purposes. These systems look at the images and help their users to better find abnormalities in the image, thus improving patient care. While this technology is being used currently, it is still in an early stage with new developments happening yearly. To show its full value, it will be important for smaller hospitals and centers to integrate this into their practice so there is minimal dichotomy of care.
GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies. According to GlobalData, there are 110+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established healthcare companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of medical image processing systems.
Key players in medical image processing systems – a disruptive innovation in the healthcare industry
‘Application diversity’ measures the number of different applications identified for each relevant patent and broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.
‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of different countries each relevant patent is registered in and reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.
Patent volumes related to medical image processing systems
Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics
Koninklijke Philips is one of the leading patent filers in the field of medical image processing systems. Some other key patent filers in the field include Canon and Siemens.
In terms of application diversity, Dental Smartmirror leads the pack, followed by Bracco and ARC Devices, respectively. By means of geographic reach, NuVasive held the top position, followed by Abbott Laboratories and Stryker in the second and third spots, respectively.
Medical diagnoses can be expediated with the usage of AI-enabled medical image processing. A high-definition real-time imaging processing is a vital component of medical diagnostics. The ability of AI systems to reproduce the claimed performance accurately and reliably with a certain degree of confidence is a key aspect of their robustness.
To further understand how artificial intelligence is disrupting the healthcare industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Healthcare.
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GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.
GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.
