Patent Explorer — Find Research Gaps Between Literature and Patents
The most valuable intellectual property window is the gap between what science has discovered and what industry has protected. Patent Explorer finds that window — across 8 patent databases — before your competitors do.
What is Patent Explorer?
Patent Explorer takes your research corpus and cross-references every analytical term against 8 major patent databases. It identifies terms that appear frequently in published research but are absent or sparse in the patent record — the pre-competitive intelligence signal that a technology is ripe for IP development or first-mover advantage.
How it works
Load your research corpus into Gaptrium™ and open Patent Explorer. The tool queries all 8 connected patent databases for each of your analytical terms and builds a side-by-side comparison: research frequency versus patent frequency. Terms with high research frequency and low patent frequency are highlighted as IP opportunity gaps. The entire analysis runs in your browser — no document or query data is stored.
Available on Signal and Core plans. Start free →
Who uses Patent Explorer?
R&D Strategy
Identify which areas of your research portfolio are commercially unprotected. Patent Explorer shows you where competitors are investing in research without yet investing in IP.
Pharmaceutical & Biotech
Find therapeutic mechanisms that appear in the clinical literature but are absent from the patent record. The pre-competitive window in drug development is narrow — Patent Explorer quantifies it.
Technology Transfer Offices
Give university researchers a tool to identify which of their published findings represent IP opportunities before the window closes.
Investment Due Diligence
Before investing in a technology company, cross-reference the published research in their field against the patent record. Asymmetry between the two is a signal of either emerging IP or unprotected risk.
Frequently asked questions
Which patent databases does Patent Explorer connect to?
Patent Explorer connects to 8 patent databases including major global registries. The current database list is shown in the Patent Explorer panel within the platform.
Is Patent Explorer available on Scope?
No. Patent Explorer requires Signal or Core. It is included in the Signal plan for up to 25 users.
Does Patent Explorer store my search queries?
No. Queries are sent to the patent database APIs to retrieve results and are not stored on Gaptrium™ servers.
Can Patent Explorer detect freedom-to-operate risks?
Patent Explorer identifies gaps between research and patent coverage — it is not a freedom-to-operate (FTO) analysis tool. FTO requires legal interpretation by a qualified IP attorney. Patent Explorer surfaces signals that warrant FTO investigation.
How current is the patent data?
Patent database currency depends on the connected registry. Most databases are updated weekly. The data currency for each database is shown in the Patent Explorer interface.