USPTO 2015–2025 USPTO PatentsView US Corporation

Nlight, Inc.

USPTO PatentsView assignee record - 213 granted patents across 50 technology areas, active 2016–2025. Filing-trend and competitive-moat analysis cross-referenced to USPTO Patent Public Search. Primary class: H01S (DEVICES USING THE PROCESS OF LIGHT AMPLIFICATION BY STIMULATED EMISSION OF RADIATION [LASER] TO AMPLIFY OR GENERATE LIGHT; DEVICES USING STIMULATED EMISSION OF ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION IN WAVE RANGES).

Compiled byPlainPatent Editorial, US Patent Intelligence Editorial Team · May 15, 2026

Explore the portfolio See the ranking

213

Total patents granted

CPC technology areas

19.7

Avg claims per patent

+34%

5-year filing velocity

The verdict

nlight holds 213 US patents across 50 technology areas, rank #1,895 of 50,000 tracked assignees.

#1,895
of 50,000 US assignees by volume: Top 5%
by Innovation Score (58.0/100): 19.7
avg claims per patent: +34%
filing velocity, last 5 yrs

Portfolio overview

Nlight, Inc. has been granted 213 US utility patents between 2016 and 2025, placing Nlight, Inc. at rank #1,895 across all assignees tracked by PlainPatent. This portfolio spans 50 distinct Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) subclasses, averaging 19.7 claims per patent with primary concentration in H01S (DEVICES USING THE PROCESS OF LIGHT AMPLIFICATION BY STIMULATED EMISSION OF RADIATION [LASER] TO AMPLIFY OR GENERATE LIGHT; DEVICES USING STIMULATED EMISSION OF ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION IN WAVE RANGES). As a US Corporation, Nlight, Inc. is one of the broader-portfolio assignees in the PatentsView dataset. By volume, nlight sits between Netskope, Inc. (213 patents, rank #1,891) and Airbus Helicopters Deutschland Gmbh (211 patents, rank #1,899) - the closest US assignees by grant volume. The composite Innovation Score of 58.0/100 blends portfolio volume, filing velocity, technology breadth, and claim depth into a single comparable measure drawn directly from USPTO PatentsView records.

Filing cadence tells the strategic story. Between 2020 and 2025 the company received 122 grants, compared with 91 in the 2015–2019 window, a +34% shift in five-year velocity. Steady filing volume suggests sustained innovation without dramatic pivots. The US Corporation classification further shapes interpretation, since corporate, government, and individual filers pursue patents for materially different reasons.

Claim depth and technology breadth together indicate competitive posture. Nlight, Inc.'s 19.7 average claims per patent sits within the typical range for solid legal coverage without excessive prosecution cost, while a multi-domain presence across 50 subclasses balances depth with breadth. Combined with portfolio volume, these signals let analysts, investors, and licensing professionals benchmark Nlight, Inc. against peers pursuing similar technology classes.

Netskope

213
Pratt Corrugated…

213
Robert Bosch Tool

213
Soliton

213
nlight ◀

213
AGCO International

212
The Board of Rege…

212
UniversitÉ D'aix-…

212
Airbus Helicopter…

211

What this shows Nlight holds 213 patents at rank #1,895, shown against the 8 assignees closest to it in grant volume rather than the industry's largest filers.

Companies ranked near Nlight

By rank, the assignees closest to #1,895 in granted patent volume.

Leaders in H01S (Devices Using THE Process OF Light Amplification BY Stimu…)

Other assignees with the most granted patents in Nlight's primary technology class.

nlight's Innovation Score vs. every tracked assignee

Composite of portfolio volume, filing velocity, technology breadth, and claim depth (0–100)

58 Top 5% higher than 95% of 50,000 US assignees

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US assignees. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source USPTO PatentsView, PlainPatent Innovation Score · 2015–2025

USPTO utility patent grants by year · 2016–2025

Grants by year

Teal-shaded recent years (2020–present) versus the 2016–2019 baseline. Full figures in the table below.

View data table

Nlight, Inc. patent grants by year, 2015–2025
Year	Patents Granted	Share of Period
2016	14	6.6%
2017	21	9.9%
2018	23	10.8%
2019	33	15.5%
2020	55	25.8%
2021	19	8.9%
2022	16	7.5%
2023	13	6.1%
2024	14	6.6%
2025	5	2.3%

Which technologies does Nlight, Inc. patent most?

H01S - DEVICES USING THE PROCESS OF LIGHT AMPLIFICATION BY STIMULATED EMISSION OF RADIATION [LASER] TO AMPLIFY OR GENERATE LIGHT; DEVICES USING STIMULATED EMISSION OF ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION IN WAVE RANGES OTHER THAN OPTICAL 132

G02B - OPTICAL ELEMENTS, SYSTEMS OR APPARATUS 130

B23K - SOLDERING OR UNSOLDERING; WELDING; CLADDING OR PLATING BY SOLDERING OR WELDING; CUTTING BY APPLYING HEAT LOCALLY, e.g. FLAME CUTTING; WORKING BY LASER BEAM 55

G02F - OPTICAL DEVICES OR ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE CONTROL OF LIGHT BY MODIFICATION OF THE OPTICAL PROPERTIES OF THE MEDIA OF THE ELEMENTS INVOLVED THEREIN; NON-LINEAR OPTICS; FREQUENCY-CHANGING OF LIGHT; OPTICAL LOGIC ELEMENTS; OPTICAL ANALOGUE/DIGITAL CONVERTERS 22

B33Y - ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING, i.e. MANUFACTURING OF THREE-DIMENSIONAL [3-D] OBJECTS BY ADDITIVE DEPOSITION, ADDITIVE AGGLOMERATION OR ADDITIVE LAYERING, e.g. BY 3-D PRINTING, STEREOLITHOGRAPHY OR SELECTIVE LASER SINTERING 21

B22F - WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER ; APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER 20

Y02P - CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS 20

B29C - SHAPING OR JOINING OF PLASTICS; SHAPING OF MATERIAL IN A PLASTIC STATE, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; AFTER-TREATMENT OF THE SHAPED PRODUCTS, e.g. REPAIRING 17

H04N - PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION 11

G01S - RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES 10

G06F - ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING 9

C03B - MANUFACTURE, SHAPING, OR SUPPLEMENTARY PROCESSES 8

H01L - SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10 7

Y02E - REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION 7

H05K - PRINTED CIRCUITS; CASINGS OR CONSTRUCTIONAL DETAILS OF ELECTRIC APPARATUS; MANUFACTURE OF ASSEMBLAGES OF ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS 6

Top 15 of 50 technology areas

Patent Moat Analysis

Portfolio Volume Moderate

Tech Breadth Multi-domain

Claim Depth Standard

Velocity Growing

Where it ranks

Overall rank by patents

#1,895

Across all tracked assignees

Innovation Score

58.0 out of 100

View all rankings →

Data Source

USPTO PatentsView, US granted patents 2015–2025

How is Innovation Score calculated?

Frequently Asked Questions

How many patents does Nlight, Inc. hold?

Nlight, Inc. holds 213 US granted patents filed between 2016 and 2025, spanning 50 technology areas.

What is Nlight, Inc.'s Innovation Score?

Nlight, Inc. has an Innovation Score of 58.0 out of 100. This composite metric weighs portfolio volume (40%), filing velocity (20%), technology breadth (25%), and claim depth (15%).

What technology areas does Nlight, Inc. focus on?

Nlight, Inc.'s top technology area is H01S (DEVICES USING THE PROCESS OF LIGHT AMPLIFICATION BY STIMULATED EMISSION OF RADIATION [LASER] TO AMPLIFY OR GENERATE LIGHT; DEVICES USING STIMULATED EMISSION OF ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION IN WAVE RANGES OTHER THAN OPTICAL) with 132 patents. The company has filed patents in 50 CPC subclasses total.

Is Nlight, Inc.'s patent filing rate increasing or decreasing?

Nlight, Inc.'s recent filing velocity is +34% compared to the prior five-year period. The company is maintaining or growing its patent output.

What does claim depth mean for Nlight, Inc.'s patents?

Nlight, Inc.'s patents average 19.7 claims each. This falls within the standard range, providing solid legal coverage.

How is the Nlight, Inc. patent data sourced?

All patent data comes from USPTO PatentsView, a public research dataset maintained by the United States Patent and Trademark Office covering US granted utility patents from 2015 to 2025.

How to use this portfolio

nlight's 213 grants land it in the top 5% by Innovation Score, but volume alone doesn't tell you where the strength sits.

Read that count against the largest US assignees before treating it as dominance - nlight ranks #1,895 of 50,000. Top 50 holders
Most of this portfolio concentrates in H01S - see who else leads that technology area. H01S leaders
Check what the four-part Innovation Score actually rewards before comparing it to another company. How the score works

Patent counts and the Innovation Score measure patenting activity, not commercial success or the legal strength of any patent. Many patents are filed defensively. Verify the status of an individual patent against official USPTO records.

Data sourced from USPTO PatentsView - official U.S. government patent data. See our methodology for computation details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainPatent Editorial

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the USPTO PatentsView database. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Data sources used on this page

USPTO PatentsView - the disambiguated bulk patent-grant, assignee, and CPC data this page's figures are derived from. patentsview.org
Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) - the joint USPTO/EPO classification scheme used to group patents by technology area. cooperativepatentclassification.org
USPTO Patent Public Search - the official interface to verify the status of any individual patent. ppubs.uspto.gov

Compiled byPlainPatent Editorial, US Patent Intelligence Editorial Team · May 15, 2026

Every figure on PlainPatent is rendered directly from USPTO source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on USPTO source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 2026.