Company patents
SMITH & NEPHEW, INC.
SMITH & NEPHEW, INC's patent strategy, while heavily focused on core areas like Medical Diagnostics & Surgery (70.9% of portfolio) and Implants & Prosthetics (34.9%), shows a surprising and rapid emerging focus on Machine Learning & AI, which grew by an impressive 250.0% in 2025, and Education & Training, which saw a remarkable 550.0% growth in 2025, indicating a strategic pivot towards advanced computational and user-centric solutions beyond traditional medical devices, despite partial data for 2026 showing a general decline across most categories.
Patent Trend by Technology Area
Yearly patent publications since 2023
Product themes
Product-level themes inferred from filings since 2023, with category chips showing where each theme appears. Select a theme to filter the patents below.
690 US filings (since 2023) · 12 categories · 20 themes
Focuses on the mechanical design, articulation, and actuation of hand-held or robotic surgical instruments, including improvements in stapling, cutting, grasping, and tissue manipulation.
Implantable devices used for the fixation, fusion, or replacement of bone structures, particularly in the spine and extremities.
Systems and methods that use imaging technologies, computer vision, and augmented reality to provide real-time guidance, localization, and visualization during surgical procedures or for detailed anatomical assessment.
Design and application of devices that are inserted into the body or implanted to treat diseases, modulate physiological functions, or repair anatomical structures.
Devices and software systems designed to facilitate physical rehabilitation, track human movement, evaluate posture, or assess biomechanical parameters for injury recovery, surgical planning, or performance improvement.
Engineering and material considerations for devices used in minimally invasive procedures, focusing on mechanical properties, deployment mechanisms, and interaction with biological tissues.
Integrated systems and specialized instruments for performing delicate surgical procedures on the eye, often involving the delivery, manipulation, or monitoring of ophthalmic implants.
Materials and structures designed for implantation or tissue regeneration, focusing on properties like biodegradability, mechanical strength, cellular integration, and long-term in-vivo stability.
Systems and devices for delivering gases, aerosols, or pressure support to the respiratory system, often including interfaces like masks and sophisticated control mechanisms for therapeutic effect or airway management.
Methods and systems for improving the quality of video streams, generating intermediate frames, or continuously locating and following objects within a sequence of images, even under occlusion.
Systems that integrate digital technology, sensors, or connectivity to monitor, track, or automate aspects of medication administration, often providing data feedback, personalized recommendations, or secure logging.
Processes for creating or manipulating three-dimensional digital representations of objects or environments, including mesh generation, surface fitting, and depth estimation from multiple views.
Implantable devices designed to manage or redirect bodily fluids, including stents for ducts, and systems for draining or accumulating fluids within internal cavities.
Implantable devices designed to repair, replace, or assist the function of blood vessels or heart structures, including stents, valves, and annuloplasty rings.
Techniques for building three-dimensional metal objects layer-by-layer using metal powders, including powder bed fusion, binder jetting, and directed energy deposition. This theme encompasses process mechanics, equipment design, and operational control for AM systems.
Delivery systems specifically engineered to administer advanced drug formulations (e.g., microparticles, biologics, extended-release systems) to achieve precise targeting, controlled release kinetics, or enhanced therapeutic efficacy within the body.
Utilizing machine learning, particularly deep learning, to analyze medical data such as images, sensor readings, or physiological signals for disease prediction, diagnosis, or treatment assessment.
Methods and apparatus for disinfecting or sterilizing medical devices, waste, or environments, often employing radiation, chemical agents, or thermal processes, and including monitoring systems.
Techniques utilizing deep learning models like Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) or diffusion models to create new images, modify existing ones, or generate synthetic data based on various inputs or conditions.
Computational methods and design principles for generating optimized geometries, internal structures (e.g., lattices, minimal surfaces), or functional features that are specifically enabled or enhanced by the capabilities of additive manufacturing.
Patents
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