CPC Definition - Subclass B22F
This place covers:
Metallic powders per se.
Treatment of metallic powder, e.g. thermal, thermo-mechanical or chemical treatments, making agglomerates.
Manufacture of workpieces or articles from metallic powder characterised by the manner of compacting or sintering or by the special shape of the product.
Manufacture of composite layers, workpieces, or articles, comprising metallic powder, by sintering the powder, with or without compacting.
Manufacture of articles from scrap or waste metal particles.
Making metallic powder or suspensions thereof using physical or chemical processes.
Powder metallurgical apparatus or equipment specifically adapted therefor, e.g. furnaces, retorts or sintering apparatus.
Additive manufacturing of workpieces or articles from metallic powder and apparatus or devices therefor.
Subclass B22F covers the making of metallic powder including a metallic powder with specific physical characteristics. Non-metal particles or inorganic compounds coated with metal as well as metal particles coated with non-metals or inorganic compounds are classified in subclass B22F. Subclass B22F covers powders containing a substantial proportion of non-metallic material. It means that, when the metal is in a significant proportion that cannot be seen as an impurity in the metallurgical process, it must be classified in subclass B22F. When the metal is present only as an impurity, it is classified in other places in the IPC. When the subject matter does not refer to a manufacturing process or to articles characterized by having a special shape but only refers to the use of the metallic powder, it is classified in the other places in the IPC, e.g. dental implants using metallic powder are classified in A61C 8/00.
Group C22B 1/14 covers agglomerating; briquetting, granulating, binding or sintering of ores or scrap for obtaining metals
Groups C22C 1/04, C22C 1/05, C22C 26/00, C22C 29/00, C22C 33/02 and C22C 47/14 cover the making of alloys by powder metallurgy including using mixtures of metallic powder with non-metallic powder, fibres or filaments.
Subclass C22F covers changing the physical structure of non-ferrous metals or alloys by heat treatment or by hot or cold working, including special physical methods, e.g. treatment with neutrons.
Subclass C04B covers preparing or treating powders of inorganic compounds in preparation to the manufacturing of ceramic products, e.g. group C04B 35/622. When the proportion of metallic powder is present not as an impurity in the compounds, it is classified in subclass B22F.
Subclass C08K covers use of inorganic substances including metals as compounding ingredients in compositions based on macromolecular compounds.
Group B01J 2/00 covers chemical or physical processes or devices for granulating materials in general.
Subclass B02C covers crushing, grinding or milling, in general.
Subclass B22F covers the manufacture of workpieces from metallic powder, e.g. by rolling, extrusion or forging. Other aspects of mechanical metal-working without essentially removing material are covered by class B21. In particular, subclasses B21B and B21H cover rolling of metal, subclass B21C covers extrusion of metal and subclasses B21J and B21K cover forging of metal.
Magnets made by pressing, sintering or bonding metals or alloys in the form of particles, e.g. powder, are classified in groups H01F 1/08, H01F 1/22, and in subclass B22F for the process of manufacturing the metallic powder, the powder itself and the process for making the magnet by powder metallurgical techniques.
This place does not cover:
Making non-ferrous alloy compositions by powder metallurgy | |
Making non-ferrous alloys from mixtures of metallic powder with non-metallic powder | |
Alloys containing diamond | |
Alloys based on metal compounds, e.g. cermets | |
Non-ferrous alloys containing metal compounds | |
Making ferrous alloys by powder metallurgy | |
Making alloys containing metallic or non-metallic fibres or filaments by powder metallurgy |
Examples of places where the subject matter of this place is covered when specially adapted, used for a particular purpose, or incorporated in a larger system:
Making ceramics by compacting or sintering | |
Shaped ceramic products characterised by their composition | |
Burning or sintering process for ceramic compositions | |
Production or refining of metals; Pretreatment of raw materials | |
Sintering; Agglomerating of raw materials for obtaining metals | |
Electrolytic production, recovery or refining of metallic powder | |
Magnets or magnetic bodies characterised by the magnetic materials in the form of particles, e.g. powder | |
Magnets made by pressing, sintering or bonding metals or alloys in the form of particles, e.g. powder, together | |
Magnetic cores made from powder | |
Devices using superconductivity or hyperconductivity characterised by the material |
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Dental implants | |
Prostheses implantable into the body | |
Use of metals or alloys for artificial teeth, for filling or for capping teeth | |
Use of metals or alloys for prostheses or for coating prostheses | |
Chemical or physical processes or devices for granulating materials in general | |
Catalysts comprising metals | |
Methods for preparing or activation of catalysts | |
Crushing, grinding or milling in general | |
Disposal of solid waste | |
Melting down metal particles in a mould | |
Soldering or unsoldering; Welding; Cladding or plating by soldering or welding | |
Abrasive tools | |
Cutting tools | |
Presses specially adapted for forming articles from material in particulate or plastic state | |
Layered products characterised by features of a layer formed of particles, e.g. chips, chopped fibres, powder | |
Printing | |
Chemical aspects of powdering or granulating of macromolecular substances | |
Metallic pigments or fillers | |
Compressing powdered coating material, e.g. by milling | |
Earth or rock drilling tools | |
Structural composition and use of special materials in brasses, bushes and linings of sliding contact bearings | |
Conductive material dispersed in non-conductive organic material | |
Elements or alloys used as active materials in battery in electrodes | |
Printed circuits | |
Selection of a metal for the legs of a junction of a thermoelectric device |
Combination Sets (C-Sets):
In this subclass, C-Sets classification is applied to the following groups, listed in the table below, if the document discloses a pertinent combination of technical features that cannot be covered by the allocation of a single symbol. The fourth column of the table indicates the place where the detailed information about the C-Sets construction and the associated syntax rules can be found, in the definition section "Special rules of classification".
C-Sets ID | Base Symbols | Subsequent Symbols | C-Sets Formula; Location of C-Sets Rules |
#B22Fa | B22F 1/00 - B22F 2207/20, C22C 1/00 - C22C 2204/00 (including breakdown indexing codes), other subclasses | (B22F, B22F); a process relating to powder metallurgy; see B22F 2998/00 | |
#B22Fb | B22F 1/00 - B22F 2207/20, C22C 1/00 - C22C 2204/00 (including breakdown indexing codes), other subclasses | (B22F, B22F); a process relating to powder metallurgy characterized by the sequence of the steps; see B22F 2998/10 | |
#B22Fc | B22F 1/00 - B22F 2207/20, C22C 1/00 - C22C 2204/00 (including breakdown indexing codes), other subclasses | (B22F, B22F); a process relating to aspects linked to processes or compositions used in powder metallurgy; see B22F 2999/00 |
The specific C-Sets rule is located at only one place of the base symbol in the section "Special rules of classification" in the definition. If the C-Sets rule is applicable to all groups of a subclass, it is located at the subclass level only. If the same C-Sets rule is applicable to multiple groups or subgroups within the same subclass, the C-Sets rule is placed at the highest group or subgroup of the multiple groups.
In this place, the following terms or expressions are used with the meaning indicated:
Compacting | join or press firmly together. |
Sintering | forming powder into a coherent mass by heating the powder whereby adjacent particles are joined by diffusion or superficial melting. |
Alloy | a composition of plural elements at least one of which is a metal in the oxidation state zero. Also includes material containing any combination of fibres, filaments, whiskers and particles, e.g. carbides, diamond, oxides, borides, nitrides or sulfides, embedded in a metallic matrix. |
Furnace | covers kilns, ovens or retorts |
In patent documents, the following words/expressions are often used as synonyms:
- "apparatus", "equipment" or "device"
- "residue", "waste", "remain", "scrap", "rejects" or "shred"
- "compacting" or "compressing"
This place covers:
Metal particles per se as well as mixtures of metal particles with a lubricant, binding agent or organic material. Particles per se can have a specific size, size distribution, shape or structure. Treatment of metallic powder and coating thereof is also covered.
A special case, which is also covered by this subclass, concerns non-metallic or inorganic particles which have a metallic coating. Equally metal particles coated with non-metals or inorganic compounds are classified in subclass B22F 1/00. B22F 1/00 also covers powders containing a substantial proportion of non-metallic material. When the metal is present in a proportion significantly relevant so that it could not be seen as an impurity in the metallurgic process it must be classified in B22F 1/00.
Main group B82Y 5/00 covers nanobiotechnology or nanomedicine. Furthermore, main group B82Y 5/00 is for obligatory supplementary classification of subject matter containing an aspect of nanobiotechnology or nanomedicine already classified in other classification places.
Main group B82Y 30/00 covers nanotechnology for materials or surface science. Furthermore, main group B82Y 30/00 is for obligatory supplementary classification of subject matter containing an aspect of nanotechnology for materials or surface science already classified in other classification places.
Compositions of metal and ceramic powder, e.g. cermets, are classified in C22C.
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Shot peening | |
Ammunition shot |
In this place, the following terms or expressions are used with the meaning indicated:
"Nanosize" or "nanoscale" | relate to a controlled geometrical size below 100 nanometres (nm) in one or more dimensions. |
This place covers:
Apart from the manufacturing of workpieces or articles from metallic powder, also the manufacturing of parts which are based on metallic fibres only (no matrix material) as well as processes starting from decomposable or reducible metal compounds.
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Although B22F 3/12 specifies processes including both compacting and sintering, this group is mainly used for information concerning the container or model used during the compacting and sintering. For the compacting and sintering step, the more detailed subgroups under B22F 3/02 (compacting) and/or B22F 3/10 (sintering) are applied.
This place covers:
Press apparatuses specially adapted for metal powder pressing.
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Presses in general |
Methods or special apparatuses for the filling of the moulds with powder are classified in B22F 3/003.
This place covers:
Processes in which compacting is accomplished through the use of shock waves or explosive forces, including processes that utilize a time-related detonating effect
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Application of shock-waves for chemical reactions or for modifying structures in general | |
Generating shock-waves in general |
- Flyer impact effect: B22F 3/087
- Compression in the presence of a magnetic field: B22F 3/087 and/or with Indexing Code B22F 2202/05
This place covers:
Compaction aided by vibrations or friction.
This place covers:
All sintering processes involving EM-wave energy: electric current, plasma, laser, microwave, etc and ultra-sonic bonding.
This place does not cover:
Making porous workpieces or articles | |
Manufacture of workpieces or articles by spraying molten metal |
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Stereolithographic techniques for making dental prostheses | |
Laser welding and relative movement between laser beam and workpiece | |
Selective sintering of ceramic or cementitious material | |
Rapid manufacturing and prototyping of 3D objects by additive depositing, agglomerating or laminating of plastics material | |
Selective printing |
This place covers:
(hot) spraying of molten metal wherein the sprayed material forms the product (i.e. not as a coating process).
This place does not cover:
Cold spraying of metal |
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Adding compound dispersions to the spray | |
Thermal spraying fibre reinforced material |
These documents are also classified in C23C 4/123 (spraying molten metal) and C23C 4/185 (separation of coating from substrate) as well as B22D 23/003 (moulding by spraying metal on a surface).
This place covers:
Chemical or thermal after-treatments and mechanical treatments only in as far as material is removed from the surface, such as making recesses or grooves, honing, polishing, milling, grinding, carving etc.
The after-treatment is further specified by means of an Indexing Code.
This place does not cover:
Porous articles or workpieces formed by impregnation remaining porous |
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Apparatus for impregnation | |
Impregnating a ceramic preform with molten metal | |
Non-ferrous alloys obtained by impregnation of a powder metallurgy product | |
Making ferrous alloys by impregnation |
This place covers:
Processes in which a defined geometrical configuration of a final product is specified, and also moulds, turbine components other than blades, engine parts different from piston rings, flat products and articles to be fractured or separated into parts.
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Making turbine blades (by machining)from one piece from several pieces | |
Turbine blades |
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Making screw-threaded elements (e.g. nuts, bolts) | |
Screw bolts |
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Gear wheels by stamping | |
Gear wheels by rolling | |
Gear wheels forged or pressed | |
Coupling members, e.g. clutch systems | |
Making gears or toothed racks | |
Making gear wheels by "other" processes | |
Mechanically actuated clutches | |
Toothed gearings |
This place covers:
Manufacture of composite parts (limited geometry) and layers ("infinite"), including porous layers or parts, comprising metallic powder, by sintering the powder, with or without compacting
This place does not cover:
Coatings applied by use of metal powder (not involving compression and/or sintering) |
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Layered products characterised by the non-homogeneity or physical structure of a layer, comprising fibres or filaments formed of particles foamed or porous material combinations thereof in at least 2 layers | |
Layered products characterised by the relation between layers | |
Layered products, essential comprising metal | |
Methods or apparatus for laminating |
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Tools for cutting or boring with bits of special material or diamond bits | |
Connecting cutting edges by brazing | |
Making cutting tools | |
Tools for grinding, with metallic binder | |
Hand cutting tools | |
Earth or rock drilling bits, with diamond insertswith button type inserts |
This place covers:
Only connecting (i.e not co-forming or in-situ forming) or repairing.
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Repairing methods or devices for turbine blades |
In this place, the following terms or expressions are used with the meaning indicated:
Scrap, waste | swarf, residue, remains, rejects, shred |
This place covers:
Solidification by means of quenching rates above 104 C/s.
This place covers:
Only starting from melts.
This place covers:
Processes employing a gaseous precursor of the powder, plasma, or the evaporation of metal.
This place covers:
Including the recovery of one metal from a mixture/solution containing multiple metals.
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
By hydrogen absorption / desorption | |
Electrolytic production, recovery or refining of metal powders |
Direct reduction of iron ores: C21B 13/00
General processes of reducing to metals: C22B 5/00
Dry reduction processes for obtaining specific non-ferrous metals: C22B
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Controlled atmosphere, or pulverulent material; Adjusting the composition of the atmosphere |
This place does not cover:
Manufacturing of iron from iron carbonyl | |
General method of reducing metals from metal carbonyls |
This place covers:
Technologies involving the use or application of processes or apparatus that produce three dimensionally shaped structures by selectively depositing successive layers of metallic powder one upon another.
Processes of additive manufacturing, i.e. making, repairing or modifying articles of manufacture by the selective application of multiple layers of metallic powder.
Either the complete product may be built up layer-by-layer or powder can be applied on a prefabricated part, wherein the pre-fabrication step is not limited to additive manufacturing. The powder can be applied as a layer, of which only a part is consolidated and used for the product, or locally at the consolidation area.
In addition to metallic powder, mixtures of metallic particles with organic or inorganic material are also covered by this group. For example, metallic particles having an organic or a (non-metallic) inorganic coating and (non-metallic) inorganic particles having a metallic coating.
Group B29C 64/00 covers additive manufacturing of plastics or materials in a plastic state, not otherwise provided for.
This place does not cover:
Apparatus or devices specially adapted for additive manufacturing |
Attention is drawn to the following places, which may be of interest for search:
Preparation of cocoa products | |
Shaping or working of foodstuff | |
Making of dental prostheses | |
Materials for prostheses or for coating prostheses | |
Moulds or cores for foundry moulding | |
Build-up welding by laser | |
Producing shaped articles from ceramic or cementitious material | |
Moulds, cores, mandrels for shaping clay or other ceramic compositions | |
Additive manufacturing of plastics | |
Ancillary operations in connection with laminating processes | |
Forme preparation for the manufacture or reproduction of printing surfaces | |
Typewriters or selective printers for marking on special material | |
Braille printing | |
Processes for producing ornamental structures by superimposing layers | |
Forming processes for shaped ceramic products | |
Culture of cells | |
Photosensitive materials for photographic purposes | |
Photographic processes | |
Photomechanical production of textured or patterned surface | |
Electrographic processes using a charge pattern | |
Electric numerical control systems for the surface or curve machining, making 3D objects | |
3D modelling for computer graphics | |
Models for surveying; Models for geography, e.g. relief models | |
Discharge tubes for applying thin layers on objects | |
Apparatus or processes for manufacturing printed circuits using printing techniques to apply the conductive material |
This place covers:
The deposition of a liquid bonding agent onto a thin layer of metallic particles forming a powder bed to join the metallic particles and build up a green body layer by layer.
The bonding agent may include organic and inorganic materials.
The powder bed may be formed from mixtures of metallic particles with (non-metallic) inorganic particles, for example (non-metallic) inorganic particles having a metallic coating or metallic particles having a (non-metallic) inorganic coating.
This place covers:
The formation layer by layer of a green body by selectively depositing a viscous material comprising activating a binder embedded in a powder bed of metallic particles.
The binder might be activated by a heat source (such as a laser beam, IR-light, etc.) to bond the metallic particles.
The binder may include organic and inorganic materials and may be present in the powder bed as a mixture with the metallic particles or may be present as a coating on the metallic particles.
The powder bed may be formed from mixtures of metallic particles with (non-metallic) inorganic particles, for example (non-metallic) inorganic particles having a metallic coating or metallic particles having a (non-metallic) inorganic coating, with an additional binder embedded in the said powder bed.
This place covers:
The formation layer by layer of a green body by selectively depositing beads of a viscous material composed of a mixture of metal particles embedded in a binder, the mixture having the form of a filament. The binder may include organic and inorganic materials.
For example, the filament material might be extruded by a nozzle in beads.
This place covers:
Operations performed before or during the additive manufacturing specially adapted for managing the additive manufacturing process by one or more additive manufacturing apparatuses.
This group typically comprises acquiring, sending or receiving data that will be used in additive manufacturing, either internal or external to the additive manufacturing apparatus.
Group B29C 64/393 concerns processes for additive manufacturing of plastics.
This place covers:
Control of the powder characteristics before or during the additive manufacture. The powder characteristics are controlled or selected in a particular way.
Process control with respect to powder properties such as mixing processes of powders, drying or protecting from oxidation, before being fed to the powder bed.
The powders and their characteristics per se are classified in group B22F 1/00.
This place covers:
Powder bed aspects, e.g. smoothness of the bed, its density or the presence of defects, e.g. spatters.
The classification in group B22F 10/37 is made if the powder bed is seen as a distinct aspect or entity.
This place covers:
Modular set-up of workstations connected to each other by robots or continuous transport means but clustered.
Combination sets (C-Sets):
C-Sets statement: #B22Fa
- In group B22F 2998/00, supplementary information concerning processes related to powder metallurgy is classified in the form of C-Sets.
- In these C-Sets, the base symbol is B22F 2998/00, whereas the subsequent symbol(s) representing the processes related to powder metallurgy are taken from the groups B22F 1/00 - B22F 2207/20, C22C 1/00 - C22C 2204/00 (including breakdown indexing codes), and other subclasses from other fields.
- C-Sets #B22Fa is always allocated as additional information (ADD).
- #B22Fa is actually rarely used in practice.
C-Sets syntax rules:
- Each C-Sets can contain two or more symbols.
- Duplicate symbols are not allowed in these C-Sets.
- Breakdown codes are allowed as subsequent symbols.
- The order of C-Sets is as follows: B22F 2998/00 is always used as a base symbol, while the order of the subsequent symbols in these C-Sets is not relevant.
- The subsequent symbols are not arranged in alphanumerical order.
C-Sets examples:
- #B22Fa: A method of forming (B22F 2998/00) a product can be by injection moulding, additive manufacturing or extrusion, not being particularly claimed or having a preference, is classified as (B22F 2998/00, B22F 3/225, B22F 3/20, B22F 10/00) (ADD).
Combination sets (C-Sets):
C-Sets statement: #B22Fb
- In group B22F 2998/10, supplementary information concerning processes characterised by process steps is classified in the form of C-Sets.
- In these C-Sets, the base symbol is B22F 2998/10, whereas the subsequent symbol(s) representing the processes or composition related to powder metallurgy are taken from the groups B22F 1/00 - B22F 2207/20, C22C 1/00 - C22C 2204/00 (including breakdown indexing codes), and other subclasses from other fields.
- C-Sets #B22Fb is always allocated as ADD.
C-Sets syntax rules:
- Each C-Sets can contain two or more symbols.
- Duplicate symbols are allowed in these C-Sets but not consecutively.
- Breakdown codes are allowed as subsequent symbols.
- The order of symbols in these C-Sets is relevant. B22F 2999/00 is always used as a base symbol, while subsequent symbols reflect the sequence of steps performed in the process.
- In these C-Sets the symbols are not arranged in alphanumerical order.
C-Sets examples:
- #B22Fb: A process (B22F 2998/10) comprising specifically a mixture of metal powder and resin (B22F 1/10), a mould filled with this powder (B22F 3/004), pressed (B22F 3/02) and sintered with removal of binder (B22F 3/1021) is classified as (B22F 2998/10, B22F 1/10, B22F 3/004, B22F 3/02, B22F 3/1021) (ADD).
- #B22Fb: A process (B22F 2998/10) comprising specifically a workpiece manufactured by selective laser melting (B22F 10/28) followed by hot isostatic pressing (B22F 3/15) is classified as (B22F 2998/10, B22F 10/28, B22F 3/15) (ADD).
Combination sets (C-Sets):
C-Sets statement: #B22Fc
- In group B22F 2999/00, aspects linked to processes or compositions used in powder metallurgy is classified in the form of C-Sets.
- In these C-Sets, the base symbol is B22F 2999/00, whereas the subsequent symbol(s) representing the processes or composition related to powder metallurgy are taken from the groups B22F 1/00 - B22F 2207/20, C22C 1/00-C22C 2204/00 (including breakdown indexing codes), and other subclasses from other fields.
- C-Sets #B22Fc is always allocated as ADD.
C-Sets syntax rules:
- Each C-Sets can contain two or more symbols.
- Duplicate symbols are not allowed in these C-Sets.
- Breakdown codes are allowed as subsequent symbols.
- The order of symbols in these C-Sets is relevant. B22F 2999/00 is always used as base symbol, while subsequent symbols are arranged to represent subject matter(s) with increasing specificity.
- In these C-Sets, the subsequent symbols are not arranged in alphanumerical order.
C-Sets examples:
- #B22Fc: Aspect (B22F 2999/00) concerning vacuum (B22F 2201/20) applied during the step of filling mould with powder (B22F 3/004) and the use of vibration (B22F 2201/01) to equalise the powder distribution in the mould is classified as (B22F 2999/00, B22F 3/004, B22F 2202/01, B22F 2201/20) (ADD).
- #B22Fc: Aspects (B22F 2999/00) concerning sweep gas system (B22F 12/70) and driving means for a motion of said system along a direction within the plane of a layer (B22F 12/224) during additive manufacturing is classified as (B22F 2999/00, B22F 12/70, B22F 12/224) (ADD).