Patent statistics have been widely used to assess the competitive position in various technological domains, both at the level of companies and countries. In the literature, there is a gap related to studies that highlight the importance of patents as a strategic instrument in the context of industry 4.0 technologies. In this context, the present article seeks to fill this gap by presenting a conceptual and empirical framework based on a systematic literature review (SLR) to analyze the relationship between patents and industry 4.0. For this purpose, 958 studies published in journals listed in the Web of Science and Scopus databases were selected. Patent analysis refers to examining various features of technological progress and innovation activities that characterize a given industrial or technological domain. This relationship points to the importance of patenting, as the literature review results showed an increase in patenting activity related to Industry 4.0. This study reinforces that patent analysis refers to the examination of various characteristics of technological progress and that innovation activities characterize a particular industrial or technological domain. This article also contributes to the patents and industry 4.0 fields by presenting the state of the art of this relationship and directing future research.