A knowledge centric methodology for dental implant technology assessment using ontology based patent analysis and clinical meta-analysis

The medical equipment industry has been one of the fastest growing sectors of the decade with predicted global sales reaching US$ 430 billion in 2017 [22]. During the period from 1995 to 2008, the patent applications in medical technology increased rapidly worldwide (World Intellectual Property Organization, 2012). Patent analysis, although useful in forecasting technology development trends, has posed a challenging analysis task since the volume and diversity of new patent applications has surpassed the ability of regular firms and research teams to process and identify relevant information. Further, medical related technologies rely on clinical trials to validate and gain regulatory approval for patient treatment even though patents, protecting the intellectual property rights of inventors, have been granted. This research focuses on developing a knowledge centric methodology and system to analyze and assess viable medical technology innovations and trends considering both patents and clinical reports. Specifically, the design innovations of dental implant connections are used as a case study. A novel and generic methodology combining ontology based patent analysis and clinical meta-analysis is developed to analyze and identify the most effective patented techniques in the dental implant field. The research establishes and verifies a computer supported analytical approach and system for the strategic prediction of medical technology development trends. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.