U.S. PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
Information Products Division
Technology Assessment and Forecast (TAF) Branch
Explanation of Data --
Patenting By Geographic Region (State and Country)
Breakout By Technology Class
Utility Patent Grants By Calendar Year of Grant
This report, prepared from the Technology Assessment and Forecast (TAF) database,
profiles utility patents (i.e., patents for inventions) granted during
the indicated time period. Each displayed annual count corresponds to patents granted during
the calendar year time period extending from January 1 to December 31 of that year.
Geographic Origin
Patent origin is determined by the residence of the
first-named inventor listed on the patent grant. A regional report
counts only patents originating from the selected region. Consolidated regional
reports that combine data from several regions into a single
report are also available for the following: (1) patents originating from all regions,
(2) patents of U.S. origin, and (3) patents of foreign origin.
Classes of Technology
The classes displayed in each report are major divisions of technology in the U.S. Patent
Classification System (USPCS). Each class is further divided into smaller divisions of
technology called subclasses. The USPCS currently contains approximately 460 total
classes and 150,000 total subclasses. Technology classes, as displayed in these reports,
are classes of technology as defined by the U.S. Patent Classification System as it
existed on 31 December, 2001.
Copies of each patent are placed (classified) in those subclasses that have been identified
as pertinent to the information disclosed in the patent. One, and only one, of these
subclasses is designated as the PRIMARY classification, and the remainder (if any)
are designated as CROSS-REFERENCE classifications. Counting patents by PRIMARY
classification will ensure that each patent is counted only once. However, if a patent
teaches more than one concept, e.g., table and chair, only one concept, e.g., table, will
be counted . Please note that a patent's PRIMARY classification is also referred to as its
ORIGINAL classification in U.S. Patent and Trademark Office specific terminology.
Each regional report presents a listing of USPCS technology classes receiving 1 or more
utility patents, based on each patent's PRIMARY classification as of 31 December, 2001.
For these reports, some classes have been combined together under a single class
identifier. In such cases, combined classes are noted in the accompanying class titles.
In addition, selected class titles have been modified to clarify technological content.
In each of these regional reports,
technology classes are listed in order of decreasing patent counts.
If the record for a patent is
incomplete and contains no PRIMARY classification, then the patent is counted
in class 001, titled CLASSIFICATION UNDETERMINED. For a more detailed description of
the technologies encompassed by a U.S. Patent Classification System class of technology,
the Manual of U.S. Patent Classification and the U.S. Patent Classification System
Classification Definitions should be consulted.
Analyzing the Data
Use of spreadsheet software may facilitate analysis of the data contained in these
reports. Users should note that many spreadsheet software programs (e.g., Microsoft Excel)
can import these report files directly. Check the spreadsheet software documentation for details.
TAF Contacts
Questions regarding these reports should be directed to:
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Information Products Division - TAF Branch
PK3- Suite 441
Washington, DC 20231
tel: (703) 306-2600
FAX: (703) 306-2737
email oeip@uspto.gov
address of TAF Internet pages : http://www.uspto.gov/web/offices/ac/ido/oeip/taf/tafp.html
ftp download of TAF reports from : ftp.uspto.gov/pub/taf/
Last modified 29 April 2002