Technology Patent Radar & IP Analysis

Patent-based intelligence for technology freedom-to-operate assessment, competitor R&D tracking, and IP portfolio valuation.

Overview

tech-radar-ip is an MCP server that leverages the free USPTO PatentsView API to provide:

1. Freedom Check - Patent landscape analysis for technologies to assess freedom-to-operate risk
2. Competitor Intel - Track competitor R&D focus and patent trends over time
3. IP Valuation - Assess portfolio quality, breadth, and defensibility metrics

Data Source

• Primary: USPTO PatentsView API (https://api.patentsview.org/) - Note: API discontinued as of 2024
• Fallback: Mock patent data based on real USPTO patent structure
• Scope: 150+ years of US patent data (when live API available)
• Coverage: Patents, assignees, citations, CPC classifications
• Status: Currently using fallback mock data; live API integration pending

Installation

$npm install

Usage

As MCP Server

$npm start

Input format:

{
  "toolName": "freedom_check",
  "input": {
    "technology": "LLM-based code review with AST parsing",
    "industry": "developer tools"
  }
}

Tool 1: Freedom Check

Analyzes patent landscape for a technology to identify potential freedom-to-operate risks.

Input:

{
  "technology": "Distributed machine learning inference on edge devices",
  "industry": "AI/ML"
}

Output:

{
  "technology": "Distributed machine learning inference on edge devices",
  "industry": "AI/ML",
  "risk_level": "HIGH",
  "active_patents_found": 342,
  "blocking_patents": 18,
  "top_holders": [
    {
      "company": "Google",
      "count": 45,
      "avg_citations": 34
    },
    {
      "company": "Microsoft",
      "count": 38,
      "avg_citations": 28
    }
  ],
  "key_patents": [
    {
      "patent_number": "US10987654",
      "title": "Method and system for distributed inference optimization",
      "assignee": "Google",
      "grant_date": "2023-05-15",
      "cited_by": 89,
      "expiry_estimate": "2043-05-15",
      "relevance": "CRITICAL"
    }
  ],
  "expiring_within_5y": 3,
  "technology_density": "CROWDED",
  "summary": "HIGH freedom-to-operate risk. 18 potentially blocking patents identified..."
}

Risk Levels:

• MINIMAL - Few patents, low blocking risk
• LOW - Limited patent coverage
• MEDIUM - Moderate activity, licensing recommended
• HIGH - Significant blocking patents, counsel review needed
• CRITICAL - Heavy patent activity, substantial FTO risk

Tool 2: Competitor Intel

Analyzes competitor patent portfolio to identify R&D focus and trends.

Input:

{
  "company": "Tesla",
  "years": 3
}

Output:

{
  "company": "Tesla",
  "period": "2023-2026",
  "total_patents": 847,
  "yearly_trend": [
    { "year": 2025, "count": 298 },
    { "year": 2024, "count": 312 },
    { "year": 2023, "count": 237 }
  ],
  "trending_up": [
    {
      "area": "Battery Technology",
      "growth": "+45%",
      "recent_count": 145
    },
    {
      "area": "Autonomous Systems",
      "growth": "+23%",
      "recent_count": 87
    }
  ],
  "trending_down": [
    {
      "area": "Solar Energy",
      "growth": "-31%",
      "recent_count": 12
    }
  ],
  "top_patents": [
    {
      "patent_number": "US11567890",
      "title": "Solid state battery manufacturing method",
      "cited_by": 67,
      "grant_date": "2024-08-20"
    }
  ],
  "r_and_d_signal": "ACCELERATING",
  "summary": "Tesla's patent focus shifting from solar to battery tech..."
}

R&D Signals:

• ACCELERATING - >20% YoY growth
• GROWING - 5-20% growth
• STABLE - -5% to +5% change
• DECLINING - -5% to -20% decline
• SIGNIFICANT_DECLINE - <-20% decline

Tool 3: IP Valuation

Assesses IP portfolio quality and defensibility.

Input:

{
  "company": "Cruise Automation"
}

Output:

{
  "company": "Cruise Automation",
  "portfolio": {
    "total_patents": 312,
    "active_patents": 287,
    "avg_citations": 8.7,
    "median_citations": 4,
    "max_citations": 156
  },
  "technology_breadth": "NARROW",
  "primary_tech_areas": [
    {
      "area": "Autonomous Systems",
      "count": 124
    },
    {
      "area": "Computer Vision",
      "count": 89
    }
  ],
  "defensibility": "STRONG",
  "key_assets": [
    {
      "patent_number": "US10987654",
      "title": "Autonomous intersection navigation system",
      "cited_by": 156,
      "grant_date": "2023-03-10",
      "importance": "CRITICAL"
    }
  ],
  "portfolio_metrics": {
    "h_index": 23,
    "technology_coverage": 0.34,
    "citation_impact": 1.74
  },
  "summary": "Narrow but defensible portfolio..."
}

Breadth Levels:

• NARROW - Specialized, focused technology
• MODERATE - Balanced portfolio
• BROAD - Diversified across many technologies

Defensibility Ratings:

• VERY_WEAK - Limited assets, easy to design around
• WEAK - Minimal protection
• MEDIUM - Moderate defensibility
• STRONG - Well-defended portfolio
• VERY_STRONG - Comprehensive protection

Metrics Explained

Citation Count

Number of times a patent is cited by other patents. Indicates influence and importance.

• 0-5: Standard patents
• 5-20: Influential patents
• 20+: Highly influential
• 50+: Landmark patents

H-Index

Academic metric: number of patents with at least H citations.

• <10: Limited influence
• 10-20: Moderate influence
• 20-50: Strong influence
• 50+: Exceptional influence

Technology Coverage (0-1)

Ratio of unique technology areas (CPC codes) to 1000 theoretical maximum.

Citation Impact (vs industry avg)

Normalized citation rate. Industry average ≈ 5 citations/patent.

• <1.0: Below average impact
• 1.0-2.0: Above average
• 2.0+: Highly influential

API Rate Limits

• Current Status: Using fallback mock data (unlimited)
• When Live API Available: ~100 requests/minute for USPTO PatentsView
• Authentication: No API key required for public USPTO data
• Timeout: 30 seconds per request
• Fallback Behavior: Automatic fallback to mock data if API unavailable

Technology Areas Covered

Patent analysis supports these technology classifications:

• AI & Machine Learning (G06F, G06N)
• Autonomous Systems (G05D)
• Robotics (B25J)
• Computer Vision (G06V)
• Battery & Energy (H01M, H02S)
• Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals (C07K, A61K)
• Semiconductors (H01L)
• Communications (H04L, H04W)
• Cryptography & Security (H04L9)
• Cloud Computing (G06F9)
• IoT (H04M)
• Materials Science (C01B, C08F)
• Mechanical Engineering (F01B)

Cost

• Pricing: $0.10 per tool call
• API Calls: When live USPTO API is available, varies by search result size
• No Subscription: Pay-per-use model
• Demo/Testing: Current mock data response is instant (< 2 seconds)

Error Handling

Common errors and solutions:

Error	Cause	Solution
"USPTO API timeout"	Network latency	Retry with shorter tech keyword
"No patents found"	Company/tech not in DB	Verify exact company name or use simpler keywords
"Patent date parsing"	Invalid patent format	Rare - report to maintainer

Legal Notes

• All data is from public USPTO records
• No confidential/trade secret information accessed
• Results are informational - not legal advice
• Consult patent counsel for FTO analysis
• Mock data usage: Tool demonstrates patent analysis capabilities; live API integration in progress
• PatentsView API deprecation: Tool automatically falls back to mock data when USPTO API unavailable

Development

# Test locally
npm start

# With sample input
echo '{"toolName":"freedom_check","input":{"technology":"blockchain smart contracts"}}' | npm start

Version

1.0.0 - Initial release with 3 core tools

References

• USPTO PatentsView API
• CPC Classification System
• US Patent Basics