Company patents
Toyota Research Institute, Inc.
Toyota Research Institute, Inc. shows a surprising shift in its patent strategy, with a significant emerging focus on "Manipulators & Robotics," which saw a remarkable 92.3% year-over-year growth in 2026 (with 25 patents so far), contrasting with a general decline across its traditionally dominant categories like "Vehicle Control Systems" (29.7% of portfolio) and "Image Processing" (27.9% of portfolio), which experienced YoY declines of -2.7% and +12.5% respectively in 2025, and substantial drops so far in 2026.
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.
873 US filings (since 2023) · 12 categories · 36 themes
Techniques and hardware for autonomous systems to gather and interpret data about their surroundings, including obstacle detection, object recognition, and depth estimation, to inform control decisions.
Methods and apparatus for detecting objects and determining their three-dimensional position and orientation (pose) using imagery or point cloud data, often for navigation, surveying, or environmental understanding.
Techniques for combining data from disparate sensor types (e.g., cameras, radar, mobile device signals) to achieve a more robust and comprehensive understanding of an environment or subject, often leveraging machine learning for interpretation and correlation.
Algorithms and systems for planning and executing complex vehicle maneuvers, often involving cooperation with other vehicles or infrastructure, to optimize traffic flow, avoid collisions, or navigate challenging scenarios. This includes lane changes, cut-ins, and traffic congestion.
Algorithms and systems for generating, optimizing, and executing trajectories for autonomous vehicles or robots to move through an environment, often involving obstacle avoidance, route validation, and goal reaching.
Systems that monitor a vehicle operator's physiological state, attentiveness, or behavior using in-cabin sensors and machine learning to enhance safety or personalize vehicle functions.
Design and control of advanced robotic grippers, tools, and mechanical linkages for specific manipulation tasks or operating in challenging environments.
Techniques for generating, updating, and utilizing highly detailed digital maps that include lane-specific information, and for precisely determining a vehicle's position within these lanes, often using sensor data.
Systems that combine data from multiple camera sensors or capture multiple images from different perspectives or qualities, often involving image processing techniques like synthesis to create enhanced or comprehensive views.
Techniques for generating human-like text or other content using large pre-trained models, often involving prompt engineering, speculative decoding, or multi-modal inputs for content creation.
Systems and methods for enhancing the safety of vulnerable road users (pedestrians, cyclists) by improving their detection, prediction, and precise localization relative to the vehicle, often leveraging communication technologies and specialized markers.
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.
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.
Development and optimization of novel neural network layers or architectures specifically designed to improve performance or efficiency for computer vision tasks.
Methods and systems for monitoring the operational status, detecting anomalies, ensuring safe interaction, and preventing damage or injury in robotic systems.
Techniques for combining and analyzing information from multiple distinct data modalities (e.g., text, image, video, audio, sensor data) to derive richer insights or improve system performance and decision-making.
Control systems for managing vehicle braking and maintaining a stationary state, including brake pedal actuation sensing, automatic brake hold functions, and coordination with parking brakes.
Techniques and architectures for ensuring the reliability, fault tolerance, and performance validation of autonomous driving systems, including redundant computing platforms and perception system monitoring.
User interface designs and systems that enable multiple users to interact with shared content, provide feedback, or coordinate activities, often across different devices or locations.
Methods and apparatus for improving the visual fidelity, resolution, or compression efficiency of video signals, often through advanced processing, up-scaling, or neural network-based filters.
Techniques for rendering, interacting with, and managing content within augmented or virtual reality environments, including spatial tracking, gaze interaction, and dynamic multi-application display management.
Methods and components for optimizing the performance, efficiency, and control of electric motors, inverters, and power converters within electric vehicle and hybrid vehicle drivetrains.
Using computational design and simulation to optimize the performance characteristics of specific components or materials within a larger engineering system.
Integrated systems for managing parking facilities, guiding vehicles to available spots, and providing notifications, often leveraging sensors, communication, and remote control.
Processes for creating or manipulating three-dimensional digital representations of objects or environments, including mesh generation, surface fitting, and depth estimation from multiple views.
Designing user interfaces and interaction methods specifically for mobile or wearable devices, enabling control of external systems, monitoring user states, or facilitating real-world transactions.
Application of machine learning models to process complex data and generate actionable insights, predictions, or classifications that inform or automate decision-making processes in various domains like healthcare, business, or industrial control.
Creating virtual models (digital twins) of complex physical systems to simulate their behavior, predict performance, validate designs, or guide operations under various conditions.
Systems and methods that leverage location data, IoT sensors, and predictive analytics to optimize urban services such as traffic flow, emergency response, parking, and waste collection.
Technologies for generating and utilizing detailed spatial maps within confined or structured environments like care facilities, construction sites, or industrial warehouses, often for robot navigation or asset tracking.
Systems and methods for maintaining and improving the quality of printed images, encompassing adjustments to developing bias based on environmental conditions, paper characteristic detection, and color profile generation.
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.
Automated systems using image processing and artificial intelligence to identify, classify, and assess the extent of damage to structures or objects, supporting maintenance or insurance claims.
Developing and applying machine learning algorithms that leverage quantum computing principles, such as quantum circuits or autoencoders, for tasks like simulation or data processing.
Automated methods and tools for generating, optimizing, and verifying the physical layout and interconnections of electronic components, including integrated circuits, printed circuit boards, and system-level interface protection.
Computational methods for modeling and simulating photolithography processes, including mask design, aerial image generation, and defect prediction for semiconductor manufacturing.
Patents
Showing 1-10 of 1441