How Smart Air Conditioners Target and Disinfect High-Touch Surfaces
A system that uses infrared sensors to track where people touch furniture and then directs disinfecting air flows specifically to those high-contact spots.
Original patent title: “Disinfecting and virus inactivating device, air-conditioning apparatus including disinfecting and virus inactivating device thereon, and disinfection and virus inactivation method”
A system that uses infrared sensors to track where people touch furniture and then directs disinfecting air flows specifically to those high-contact spots. Granted to Mitsubishi Electric Corp in 2025 with 15 claims.
Key facts
Coverage
What does this patent actually cover?
This device tracks the movement of people in a room using infrared sensors to identify exactly which surfaces they touch. It classifies people into temperature zones, prioritizing disinfection for those in higher temperature zones, which might indicate higher activity or biological signatures. A transmission module, equipped with a motorized grille, then directs a stream of air containing a disinfecting substance directly onto these specific contact points. This ensures that the disinfection process is concentrated on high-traffic areas rather than wasting resources on the entire room.
The gap
What does this patent NOT cover?
- Does not cover general room air purification that does not track specific contact points.
- Does not cover disinfection methods that rely on UV light rather than a transmitted substance.
- Does not cover systems that lack the ability to classify moving bodies by temperature zones.
- Does not cover manual disinfection processes performed by human operators.
These exclusions are unique to PatentBrief — derived from the actual claim language, not patent-office boilerplate.
What made this novel
The system doesn't just clean the air; it uses infrared heat signatures to predict where a person has touched furniture and then uses a steerable air grille to 'trace' those specific paths with disinfectant.
Schematic visualization of the patent's claim structure. Hand-drawn diagrams in progress for each landmark patent.
Where you've seen this
Real-world examples
Smart office HVAC systems
Automated sanitation for public waiting areas
Hospital room surface decontamination systems
Why it matters
The bigger picture
As indoor air quality and surface hygiene have become major priorities in public and commercial spaces, this technology offers an automated, targeted approach to sanitation. By focusing on high-touch surfaces, it aims to reduce the spread of pathogens more efficiently than traditional, broad-spectrum air cleaning systems.
Filed
September 24, 2021
Granted
July 1, 2025
Market context
Who's building on this
Companies in this space
Mitsubishi Electric is the primary developer of this technology. Other major HVAC manufacturers like Daikin or Carrier are active in the broader space of sensor-integrated climate control and air purification.
Market impact
This patent represents a shift toward 'precision sanitation' in building management. It moves the industry away from static, room-wide disinfection toward dynamic, occupancy-aware systems that adapt to real-time human behavior.
Claim 1 — Plain English
What this patent covers
This device tracks the movement of people in a room using infrared sensors to identify exactly which surfaces they touch. It classifies people into temperature zones, prioritizing disinfection for those in higher temperature zones, which might indicate higher activity or biological signatures. A transmission module, equipped with a motorized grille, then directs a stream of air containing a disinfecting substance directly onto these specific contact points. This ensures that the disinfection process is concentrated on high-traffic areas rather than wasting resources on the entire room.
The clever bit
The system doesn't just clean the air; it uses infrared heat signatures to predict where a person has touched furniture and then uses a steerable air grille to 'trace' those specific paths with disinfectant.
What it does not cover
- Does not cover general room air purification that does not track specific contact points.
- Does not cover disinfection methods that rely on UV light rather than a transmitted substance.
- Does not cover systems that lack the ability to classify moving bodies by temperature zones.
- Does not cover manual disinfection processes performed by human operators.
Patent timeline
Application submitted to the patent office
Application published, typically 18 months after filing
Patent officially issued
PatentBrief Score
Impact Score
Early stage
Citation count
0/40
No citations yet
Claim breadth
10/20
Broad claimsclaimsThe numbered statements at the end of a patent that legally define what the inventor owns.Read more →
Recency
20/20
Granted within 5 years
Assignee scale
0/20
Independent or smaller assigneeassigneeThe entity that owns the patent — usually the inventor's employer or a company.Read more →
PatentBrief Impact Score — based on citation count, claim breadth, recency, and assignee scale. Not a legal assessment.
Heuristic Value Estimate
What this patent might be worth
$50K – $158K
Midpoint $99K · 15.3 yr remaining · industry ×2.2
Heuristic only — blends forward/backward citation counts, claim scope, time remaining, litigation history, and CPC-derived industry baseline. Real valuations need a professional appraisal.
The original legal language
Original claims
15 claims as filed with the patent office.
Concepts involved
Citations
Patent lineage
Cite this patent
Ota, K., Shimizu, A., Yuge, S., Nomura, A., & Nakamura, Y. (2025). How Smart Air Conditioners Target and Disinfect High-Touch Surfaces (U.S. Patent No. 12,343,456). U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12343456/raptor-vacuum
Auto-generated from the patent record. Double-check author order and the issue date against the official USPTO document before submitting.
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Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
What does How Smart Air Conditioners Target and Disinfect High-Touch Surfaces cover?
A system that uses infrared sensors to track where people touch furniture and then directs disinfecting air flows specifically to those high-contact spots.
Who owns patent US 12343456?
Mitsubishi Electric Corp owns this patent, granted in 2025.
When does this patent expire?
This patent is expected to expire on July 1, 2045, when the invention enters the public domain.
What problem does this patent solve?
As indoor air quality and surface hygiene have become major priorities in public and commercial spaces, this technology offers an automated, targeted approach to sanitation. By focusing on high-touch surfaces, it aims to reduce the spread of pathogens more efficiently than traditional, broad-spectrum air cleaning systems.
What does this patent NOT cover?
Does not cover general room air purification that does not track specific contact points.
Same assignee
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