The Couchbase team has been granted its third database patent in nine months, covering how databases can index the complete contents of array fields within JSON documents. Prior to this patent, databases could only create one index for arrays, limiting their ability to index each value individually. This new technology was inspired by a customer's challenge with analyzing millions of IoT device activities using multiple databases. The innovation allows users to index an unlimited number of array keys and query them efficiently without duplicating data, reducing technological complexity and costs. The patent focuses on creating unique index values from array fields in JSON documents, enabling efficient queries and improved data analysis capabilities.