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, and 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 Wearable Tech in Healthcare: Sleep assistance devices.
According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which uses over 443,000 patents to analyse innovation intensity for the healthcare industry, there are 200+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.
Sleep assistance devices is a key innovation area in wearable tech
Sleep technology devices, help develop a customised wake-up and sleep schedule. These devices monitor environmental indicators and sleep quality to identify problems and suggest automatic solutions. It combines a smart light, music machine, morning alarm, wind-down meditations, and alarm clock. It helps you fall asleep, remain asleep, and wake up rejuvenated.
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 60+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established healthcare companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of sleep assistance devices.
Key players in sleep assistance devices – 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 sleep assistance devices
Source: GlobalData Patent Analytics
Koninklijke Philips is one of the leading patent filers in the field of sensor integrating absorbent pads. Some other key patent filers in the field include Omron, Magic Leap and Aliphcom.
In terms of application diversity, Magic Leap leads the pack, followed by Omron and Bedding World, respectively. By means of geographic reach, Oncomfort held the top position, followed by Keeson Technology and Apple in second and third spots, respectively.
Sleep assistance devices hold a promising future scope. The advancement in the technology has helped in understanding the sleep health and its effect on other disorders. The adoption of these devices over the past few years has shown the increased awareness of people for sleep activities which has attracted major companies to invest in these industries.
To further understand the key themes and technologies disrupting the healthcare industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on 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.
