Most Inventive Companies of 2019 Based on Patent Activity

Bill Hankes January 13, 2020

Sqoop has been collecting U.S. patent data for journalists and other information professionals since 2014, and twice before we’ve published annual rankings of the companies that have applied for or have been granted utility patents and also companies that have received design patents.

Before getting to the rankings, it’s worth a reminder about how our methodology is different from, and we think more accurate than, the lists published by others. In short, Sqoop takes the extra step of combining subsidiaries under a common parent. For example, Ford Global Technologies, LLC is included with Ford Motor Company for Ford’s ranking. Without, including subsidiaries, you wouldn’t get an apples-to-apples comparison with other companies, like IBM, that make applications under one unified brand.

Seems like common sense, but if you’re interested in learning more about this methodology, including endorsements of our approach from a Stanford Law professor and the managing partner of ComputerLaw, we have all that detailed in our 2016 blog post.

Trying to get a macro perspective by comparing 2019 to 2016, the last time we published rankings, utility patent grants (B1 and B2) are up 17 percent, while applications were only up 3.7 percent. Most notably, design patents are up 21 percent. Design patents include product and packaging designs, like Nike shoes. Some other observations:

  • As with our earlier rankings, Samsung (including its subsidiaries as discussed above) is number one in all lists.
  • IBM remains second, with LG and Canon consistently in the top 5.
  • While it’s fun to look at who’s number one and who’s number two, it is remarkable in the cases of both Samsung and IBM that they were granted more than 9,000 patents a piece–more than 175 each per week! The next closest is LG with nearly 5,000.
  • Microsoft moves up from 10 to 6, the highest ranking for the Redmond, Wash. giant since we’ve been keeping score.
  • Google/Alphabet remain in the top ten, but what’s more interesting is the hundreds of patents filed by subsidiaries we don’t hear much about, including X Development LLC., and Verily Life Sciences LLC.
  • Ford jumps into the top 10, the only auto maker to do so

The utility applications list is similar, the notable outlier being Huawei, which ranked number 6 for the number of applications filed.

For design patents:

  • Jaguar Land Rover moved from 30th place to number 5, perhaps the most notable jump.

  • Nike more than doubled the number of design patents it received last year compared to 2016, from 275 to 560.

Now the official Sqoop rankings.

Utility Patent Grants (B1, B2)

     
1 Samsung1 9,413
2 International Business Machines Corporation 9,190
3 LG2 4,938
4 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha 3,565
5 Intel3 3,501
6 Microsoft4 3,095
7 Toshiba5 2,763
8 Sony6 2,757
9 Google/Alphabet7 2,665
10 Ford8 2,507
11 Apple Inc. 2,497
12 Amazon Technologies, Inc. 2,421
13 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. 2,421
14 Qualcomm9 2,352
15 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd. 2,259
16 Boe Technology Group Co., Ltd. 2,172
17 Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha 2,061
18 Panasonic10 1,916
19 General Electric Company 1,813
20 Hewlett-Packard11 1,540
21 Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) 1,515
22 Hyundai Motor Company 1,498
23 AT&T12 1,414
24 The Boeing Company 1,381
25 Seiko Epson Corporation 1,345
26 Micron Technology, Inc. 1,273
27 GM Global Technology Operations LLC. 1,271
28 United Technologies Corporation 1,247
29 Mitsubishi Electric Corporation 1,234
30 Robert Bosch GmbH 1,102
31 Honda Motor Co.,Ltd. 1,081
32 Denso Corporation 1,054
33 Cisco Technology, Inc. 1,047
34 Fujitsu Limited 1,011
35 Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. 1,006
36 Facebook, Inc. 996
37 Ricoh Company, Ltd. 981
38 Koninklijke Philips N.V. 940
39 NeC Corporation 930
40 EMC Ip Holding Company LLC 918

Utility Patent Applications (A1)

     
1 Samsung13 8,668
2 International Business Machines Corporation 8,292
3 LG14 4,952
4 Intel15 4,730
5 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha 3,424
6 Huawei Technologies Co.,Ltd. 3,289
7 Sony16 3,036
8 Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha 2,947
9 Qualcomm Incorporated 2,718
10 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. 2,642
11 Microsoft Technology Licensing,LLC 2,640
12 Boe Technology Group Co., Ltd. 2,450
13 Toshiba17 2,444
14 Panasonic18 2,338
15 Ford19 2,319
16 Google/Alphabet20 2,100
17 Apple Inc. 2,078
18 Micron Technology,Inc. 1,656
19 General Electric Company 1,647
20 Honda Motor Co.,Ltd. 1,618
21 Hewlett-Packard21 1,594
22 Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha 1,503
23 Seiko Epson Corporation 1,455
24 Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (publ) 1,452
25 Mitsubishi Electric Corporation 1,450
26 Hyundai Motor Company 1,414
27 Kia Motors Corporation 1,405
28 Denso Corporation 1,368
29 GM Global Technology Operations LLC. 1,229
30 The Boeing Company 1,204
31 Fujitsu Limited 1,164
32 Robert Bosch GmbH 1,062
33 AT&T22 1,057
34 Koninklijke Philips N.V. 1,044
35 NEC Corporation 1,029
36 Fujifilm Corporation 1,026
37 Texas Instruments Incorporated 1,020
38 SK Hynix Inc. 1,016
39 Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. 964
40 The Regents Of The University Of California 916

Design Patents (S1)

     
1 Samsung23 605
2 Nike, Inc. 560
3 LG24 483
4 Apple Inc. 315
5 Jaguar Land Rover Limited 290
6 GM Global Technology Operations LLC 281
7 DELTA FAUCET COMPANY 196
8 Google/Alphabet25 190
9 Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft 184
10 Ford Global Technologies, LLC 154
11 SPIGEN KOREA CO., LTD. 153
12 Honda Motor Co., Ltd. 101
13 Amazon Technologies, Inc. 99
14 Dyson Technology Limited 93
15 Mitsubishi Electric Corporation 91
16 3M Innovative Properties Company 89
17 Kohler Co. 87
18 Koninklijke Philips N.V. 87
19 The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company 84
20 The Procter & Gamble Company 80
21 YETI Coolers, LLC 78
22 TOMY COMPANY, LTD. 78
23 Hyundai Motor Company 75
24 Kia Motors Corporation 74
25 FUJIFILM Corporation 73
26 SMC Corporation 68
27 Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. 67
28 Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha 62
29 Sony26 59
30 Harman International Industries, Incorporated 56
31 Robert Bosch GmbH 56
32 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. 56
33 Whirlpool Corporation 55
34 Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche Aktiengesellschaft 55
35 Facebook, Inc. 54
36 Black & Decker Inc. 54
37 Contemporary Visions, LLC 51
38 Target Brands, Inc. 51
39 FCA US LLC 49
40 Helen of Troy Limited 48

  1. Includes Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.; Samsung Display Co., Ltd.; Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Ltd.; Samsung SDI Co., Ltd.; Samsung Medison Co., Ltd.; SAMSUNG SDS CO., LTD.; Samsung Life Public Welfare Foundation; Samsung Heavy Ind. Co., Ltd. ↩

  2. Includes LG Electronics Inc.; LG Display Co., Ltd.; LG Chem, Ltd.; LG Innotek Co., Ltd.; LG Hausys, Ltd.; LG CNS Co., Ltd.; LG FUEL CELL SYSTEMS INC.; LG Electronics; LG Household & Health Care Ltd.; ↩

  3. Includes Intel Corporation; Intel IP Corporation; Intel Deutschland GmbH. ↩

  4. Includes Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC.; Microsoft Licensing Technology, LLC. ↩

  5. Includes Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba; Toshiba Memory Corporation; Toshiba Tec Kabushiki Kaisha; Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation; Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation; Toshiba-Mitsubishi-Electric Industrial Systems Corporation; Toshiba Infrastructure Systems & Solutions Corporation; Toshiba Materials Co., Ltd.; Toshiba Client Solutions Co., Ltd.; Toshiba Solutions Corporation; Toshiba Lifestyle Products & Services Corporation; Toshiba Digital Solutions Corporation; Toshiba Kikai Kabushiki Kaisha; Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation; Toshiba Lighting & Technology Corporation; Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions Holdings Corporation; Toshiba International Corporation; Toshiba Hokuto Electronics Corporation; Toshiba Industrial Products and Systems Corp.; Toshiba Visual Solutions Corporation. ↩

  6. Includes Sony Corporation; Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.; Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation; Sony Interactive Entertainment America LLC; Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC; Sony Mobile Communications Inc.; Sony Olympus Medical Solutions Inc.; Sony Europe Limited; Sony Corporation of America; Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe Limited; SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT INC.; Sony Depthsensing Solutions SA/NV; SONY MEDIA CLOUD SERVICES LLC. ↩

  7. Includes Google LLC; X Development LLC; Waymo LLC; Verily Life Sciences LLC; Google Technology Holdings LLC; Loon LLC; Wing Aviation LLC; DeepMind Technologies Limited; Makani Technologies LLC; Google Inc. ↩

  8. Includes Ford Global Technologies,LLC; Ford Motor Company. ↩

  9. Includes Qualcomm Incorporated; Qualcomm Technologies, Incorporated. ↩

  10. Includes Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.; Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America; Panasonic Corporation; Panasonic Liquid Crystal Display Co., Ltd.; Panasonic Avionics Corporation; Panasonic Automotive Systems Company of America; PANASONIC ECOLOGY SYSTEMS GUANGDONG CO., LTD.; PANASONIC APPLIANCES REFRIGERATION DEVICES SINGAPORE. ↩

  11. Includes Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Development LP; Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. ↩

  12. Includes AT&T Intellectual Property I, L.P.; AT&T Mobility II LLC; AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P. ↩

  13. Includes Samsung Electronics Co.,Ltd.; Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Ltd.; Samsung Display Co.,Ltd; SAMSUNG SDS CO., LTD.; Samsung SDI Co., Ltd.; Samsung Medison Co., Ltd.; Samsung Life Public Welfare Foundation; Samsung Electronics., Ltd. ↩

  14. Includes LG Electronics Inc.; LG Chem, Ltd.; LG Innotek Co., Ltd.; LG Display Co., Ltd.; LG Household & Health Care Ltd.; LG Hausys, Ltd.; LG Fuel Cell Systems, Inc. ↩

  15. Includes Intel Corporation; Intel IP Corporation. ↩

  16. Includes Sony Corporation; Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation; Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC; Sony Mobile Communications Inc.; Sony Interactive Entertainment America LLC; Sony Olympus Medical Solutions Inc.; Sony Corporation of America; Sony Depthsensing Solutions SA/NV; Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe Limited; Sony Europe Limited; Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. ↩

  17. Includes Toshiba Lifestyle Products & Services Corporation; Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba; Toshiba Tec Kabushiki Kaisha; Toshiba Materials Co., Ltd.; Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation; Toshiba Memory Corporation; Toshiba Electronic Devices & Storage Corporation; Toshiba Infrastructure Systems & Solutions Corporation; Toshiba Mitsubishi-Electric Industrial Systems Corporation; Toshiba Digital Solutions Corporation; Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation; Toshiba Kikai Kabushiki Kaisha; Toshiba Visual Solutions Corporation; Toshiba International Corporation; Toshiba Lighting & Technology Corporation; Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions Holdings Corporation; Toshiba Hokuto Electronics Corporation; Toshiba Industrial Products and Systems Corporation; Toshiba Client Solutions Co., LTD. ↩

  18. Includes Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co.,Ltd; Panasonic Liquid Crystal Display Co., Ltd.; Panasonic Corporation; Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation Of America; Panasonic Avionics Corporation; Panasonic Automotive Systems Company Of America; PANASONIC INDUSTRIAL DEVICES SUNX CO., LTD. ↩

  19. Includes Ford Global Technologies, LLC.; Ford Motor Company. ↩

  20. Includes Verily Life Sciences LLC; X Development LLC; Google LLC.; Waymo LLC.; Google Inc.; DeepMind Technologies Limited; Google Technology Holdings LLC; Wing Aviation LLC; Loon LLC. ↩

  21. Includes Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.; Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP. ↩

  22. Includes AT&T Intellectual Property I.L.P.; AT&T Mobility II LLC.; AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P. ↩

  23. Includes Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.; Samsung Display Co., Ltd. ↩

  24. Includes LG Electronics Inc.; LG Display Co., Ltd.; LG HOUSEHOLD & HEALTH CARE LTD. ↩

  25. Includes Google LLC; Waymo LLC. ↩

  26. Includes SONY CORPORATION; SONY INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT INC. ↩