G02B 23/26
Using light guides
Official title: using light guides {(for illumination G02B23/2469)}
G02B23/26 (Using light guides) appears on 682 US grants and 781 published applications in this corpus.
Search patents in G02B- Granted patents
- 682
- Published applications
- 781
- Assignees
- 256
- Inventors
- 1,360
- Latest grant
- 29 Sep 2026
Filings by year
| Year | Granted patents | Published applications |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | 1 | 0 |
| 1977 | 0 | 0 |
| 1978 | 0 | 0 |
| 1979 | 0 | 0 |
| 1980 | 2 | 0 |
| 1981 | 5 | 0 |
| 1982 | 3 | 0 |
| 1983 | 4 | 0 |
| 1984 | 0 | 0 |
| 1985 | 4 | 0 |
| 1986 | 4 | 0 |
| 1987 | 10 | 0 |
| 1988 | 18 | 0 |
| 1989 | 10 | 0 |
| 1990 | 9 | 0 |
| 1991 | 4 | 0 |
| 1992 | 13 | 0 |
| 1993 | 13 | 0 |
| 1994 | 6 | 0 |
| 1995 | 7 | 0 |
| 1996 | 3 | 0 |
| 1997 | 7 | 0 |
| 1998 | 1 | 0 |
| 1999 | 5 | 0 |
| 2000 | 2 | 0 |
| 2001 | 3 | 1 |
| 2002 | 6 | 5 |
| 2003 | 4 | 4 |
| 2004 | 6 | 5 |
| 2005 | 0 | 5 |
| 2006 | 2 | 5 |
| 2007 | 1 | 6 |
| 2008 | 6 | 5 |
| 2009 | 4 | 21 |
| 2010 | 6 | 14 |
| 2011 | 5 | 9 |
| 2012 | 9 | 13 |
| 2013 | 12 | 13 |
| 2014 | 14 | 39 |
| 2015 | 19 | 46 |
| 2016 | 25 | 71 |
| 2017 | 36 | 105 |
| 2018 | 59 | 84 |
| 2019 | 63 | 76 |
| 2020 | 64 | 80 |
| 2021 | 53 | 62 |
| 2022 | 44 | 34 |
| 2023 | 35 | 28 |
| 2024 | 38 | 20 |
| 2025 | 25 | 21 |
| 2026 | 12 | 9 |
By publication year. Applications have been published since 2001. 2026 runs to 8 Oct.
Recent patents
- Illumination sources for multicore fiber endoscopes29 Sep 2026US 12,745,900 B2Zsquare Ltd.
- Insertion apparatus and endoscope8 Sep 2026US 12,727,752 B2Olympus Corporation
- Insertion device, bending portion of insertion device, and traction member for bending portion of insertion device25 Aug 2026US 12,714,294 B2Olympus Medical Systems Corp.
- Utilization of multiple imagers and computational photography in endoscopy28 Apr 2026US 12,611,093 B2Elements Endoscopy, Inc.
- Medical apparatus and method for operating medical apparatus21 Apr 2026US 12,605,055 B2FUJIFILM Corporation
- Disposable endoscope using plastic gradient-index lens27 Aug 2026US 2026/0251896 A1
- Enhanced multicore fiber endoscopes6 Aug 2026US 2026/0224101 A1Zsquare Ltd.
- Light source device, control method, and computer-readable recording medium9 Jul 2026US 2026/0194742 A1Olympus Medical Systems Corp.
- Optic light guide, endoscope, method for producing and using an optic light guide2 Jul 2026US 2026/0182831 A1Intuitive Surgical Operations, Inc.
- Endoscope with illumination window and observation window facing different angles16 Apr 2026US 2026/0102054 A1FUJIFILM Corporation
Most cited
By later US patents
- Industrial endoscope system having a rotary treatment member1,407US 5,155,941 AOlympus Optical Co., Ltd. · 1992
- Inspection instrument fexible shaft having deflection compensation means272US 4,745,908 ACircon Corporation · 1988
- Fiberscopic device for inspection of internal sections of construction, and method for using same269US 4,696,544 AOlympus Corporation · 1987
- Dual-view probe for illumination and imaging, and use thereof252US 10,536,617 B2Arizona Board of Regents on Behalf of the University of Arizona · 2020
- Endoscope carrying a source of therapeutic ultrasound238US 5,697,897 ASiemens Aktiengesellschaft · 1997