Electronic Medical Equipment: Statistics and Analysis of Patent Data for Technology Assessment

Abstract

Patent is one of the most important components of intellectual property, which provide a unique detailed source of information on inventive activity of technology. Patent statistics are frequently viewed as an indicator of technology innovation output. In this paper, we perform a quantitative analysis of international literature patents on electronic medical equipment from 2004-2008, focus on patents as indicator to investigate the international technology innovation in the field of electronic medical equipments and identify trends of international technology inventive activities, the selection of key innovative areas, the performance of institutions’ research, and the target markets for the exports of innovative technologies by the leading countries/regions in the field. Through the analysis of patent applications we come to the following conclusions that: The counts of patent applications in electronic medical equipment have indicated an obviously increasing trend that, the electronic medical equipment industry is an industry that has great potential for development and for active innovation. Most electronic medical equipment patents are due to American or Japanese residents. Those two counties show remarkable achievement in R&D and strong technological strength of electronic medical equipment. Diagnostic equipment R & D is still the hot point, most of which are focusing on the innovation of measuring and recording systems and diagnostic radiology. In the same time, radiation therapy equipment is the hot point in treatment equipment R & D. The counts of patent applications by institution show that patenting activity is highly concentrated in several multinational companies from Japan, United States and Germany. The number of family patents filed in United States, Japan and Europe reflect to some extent the excellent market attractiveness of these three nations/economics. An increasing share of inventions protected in the Chinese market, indicated that as an emerging economy, China shows remarkable market potential.