Where does North Carolina State University rank among US patent assignees?

According to USPTO PatentsView (2015–2025 granted utility patents), North Carolina State University ranks #784 of 49,997 assignees by granted-patent volume, the same sort as the companies listing and top-holders ranking. See /methodology/#corpus-placement.

How many patents does North Carolina State University hold?

North Carolina State University holds 585 US utility patents granted between 2015 and 2025, spanning 221 technology areas.

What is North Carolina State University's Innovation Score?

North Carolina State University has an Innovation Score of 64.8 out of 100 (top 1% of the corpus). This composite metric weighs portfolio volume (40%), grant velocity (20%), technology breadth (25%), and claim depth (15%).

Is North Carolina State University's patent grant rate increasing or decreasing?

North Carolina State University's recent grant velocity is +26% compared to the prior five-year period (grant years, not application filing dates). The company is maintaining or growing its granted-patent output.

What does claim depth mean for North Carolina State University's patents?

North Carolina State University's patents average 14.7 claims each. This is an aggregate descriptive count from the grant record; it does not establish claim scope, legal strength, enforceability, or design-around risk.

How is the North Carolina State University 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.

USPTO 2015–2025 USPTO PatentsView US Corporation

North Carolina State University

Q: What technology areas does North Carolina State University focus on?

North Carolina State University's top technology area is C12N (Microorganisms OR ENZYMES; Compositions THEREOF; Propagating, Preserving, OR Maintaining MICROORGANISMS; Mutation OR Genetic ENGINEERING; Culture Media) with 99 patents, ranking #89 of 4,144 assignees active in that subclass. Grants appear in 221 CPC subclasses total.

USPTO PatentsView assignee record - 585 granted patents across 221 technology areas, recorded in grant years 2015–2025. Grant-trend analysis is cross-referenced to USPTO Patent Public Search; it does not measure application filings, current R&D, or legal strength. Primary class: C12N (Microorganisms OR ENZYMES; Compositions THEREOF; Propagating, Preserving, OR Maintaining MICROORGANISMS; Mutation OR Genetic ENGINEERING; Culture Media).

Compiled by PlainPatent · May 15, 2026

RSS updates for this company

Explore the portfolio See the ranking

The verdict

According to USPTO PatentsView, North ranks #784 of 49,997 tracked US assignees by granted-patent volume, with 585 patents across 221 technology areas.

#784
of 49,997 US assignees by volume: Top 1%
by Innovation Score (64.8/100): 14.7
avg claims per patent: +26%
grant velocity, last 5 yrs

USPTO PatentsView assignee plate

Corpus R784 · US Corporation #784 · 585 grants

GRANTS-MID · TOP-DECILE · PHOTO-FINISH · CPC-BROAD · INNOV-STRONG · CLAIMS-RICH · TYPE-USCORP · VEL-UP · BOOK-FULL

GRANTS-MID 585 grants
TOP-DECILE #784/49,997
PHOTO-FINISH PPG Industries Ohio
CPC-BROAD C12N · 221 areas
INNOV-STRONG 64.8/100
CLAIMS-RICH 14.7 claims/avg
TYPE-USCORP US Corporation
VEL-UP +26% vel
BOOK-FULL 10/10 fields

Nearest grant-volume peer: PPG Industries Ohio, Inc. (±1 grants)

Instrument codes from this assignee’s USPTO PatentsView grant sheet: volume band, corpus rank, photo-finish peer, lead CPC, Innovation Score, claim depth, assignee type, velocity, and book completeness. Not a USPTO rating of patent strength.

How North’s 64.8 Innovation Score adds up

The same four weighted components behind every Innovation Score on PlainPatent: portfolio volume, grant velocity, technology breadth, and claim depth.

Volume 22.0 pts (34%) Velocity 8.9 pts (14%) Breadth 25.0 pts (39%) Claim depth 8.8 pts (14%)

Qualcomm Incorporated · highest

85
Kunming University… · near

65
Audi · near

65
North Carolina… · this assignee

65
Saint-gobain Glass… · near

65
Siemens Medical… · near

65
3D Lighting… · lowest

7

What this shows North's Innovation Score is 64.8/100 (top 1% of the PatentsView-derived corpus). The chart places that score against the nearest Innovation Score peers plus corpus poles, not a reprint of the volume ranking.

Does more volume mean deeper claims for North?

Each dot is one of North’s 8 nearest volume peers (same corpus rank neighbourhood as the chart above), placed by total granted patents (horizontal) against average claims per patent (vertical). North’s own 14.7 claims/patent is at or below the 14.9 median for these volume peers. Volume here does not track with deeper claims; several lower-volume peers claim more thoroughly per patent.

North vs its 8 nearest volume peers: granted patents vs average claims per patent. Source: USPTO PatentsView.

How North's grant cadence moved

Between 2020–2024, North Carolina State University received 302 grants versus 239 in 2015–2019 (+26% equal-window velocity, above median growth). Across complete PatentsView years, output peaked in 2024 at 76 grants and bottomed in 2015 at 37. Lead class C12N accounts for 16.9% of the portfolio across 221 subclasses. Volume neighbours: Kyoto University (#780) and Howmedica Osteonics Corp. (#788).

North's three-year grant acceleration

From 2019–2021 to 2022–2024, North Carolina State University moved from 152 to 204 grants (1.34x the prior three-year total, a multiple, not a CAGR). Among 3,296 tracked assignees with ≥100 grants and ≥20 prior-period grants, that multiple ranks #592. See the growth leaderboard.

Kyoto University

588
Kokusai Electric

587
Phoenix Contact &…

587
PPG Industries Oh…

586
North Carolina St… ◀

585
Agilent

583
Bayer Cropscience…

583
Children's Medica…

583
Howmedica Osteoni…

583

What this shows North holds 585 patents at rank #784, shown against the 8 assignees closest to it in grant volume rather than the industry's largest filers.

Companies ranked near North

By rank, the assignees closest to #784 in granted patent volume.

Leaders in C12N (Microorganisms OR Enzymes)

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

Assignees with similar portfolio profiles

Two PlainPatent-derived peer sets for North, neither rank-band nor same-CPC leaders (those blocks stay above). In C12N (Microorganisms OR Enzymes), North ranks #89 of 4,144 assignees by patent count in that subclass.

Similar innovation score

Nearest assignees by Innovation Score (65 here).

Audi AG 65 Kunming University of Science and Technology 65 Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc. 65 Saint-gobain Glass France 65

Similar claim depth

Nearest assignees by average claims per patent (14.7 here).

Inteva Products, LLC 14.7 avg Nano and Advanced Materials Institute Limited 14.7 avg Bayer MaterialScience AG 14.7 avg Kaistar Lighting(Xiamen) Co., Ltd. 14.7 avg

North's Innovation Score vs. every tracked assignee

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

65 Top 1% higher than 99% of 49,997 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 · 2015–2025

Grants by year

Teal-shaded recent years (2020–present) versus the 2015–2019 baseline. Full figures in the table below.

View data table

North Carolina State University patent grants by year, 2015–2025
Year	Patents Granted	Share of Period
2015	37	6.3%
2016	54	9.2%
2017	53	9.1%
2018	41	7.0%
2019	54	9.2%
2020	52	8.9%
2021	46	7.9%
2022	65	11.1%
2023	63	10.8%
2024	76	13.0%
2025partial year	44	7.5%

Which technologies does North Carolina State University patent most?

C12N - Microorganisms OR ENZYMES; Compositions THEREOF; Propagating, Preserving, OR Maintaining MICROORGANISMS; Mutation OR Genetic ENGINEERING; Culture Media 99

A61K - Preparations FOR Medical, Dental OR Toiletry Purposes 79

A61P - Specific Therapeutic Activity OF Chemical Compounds OR Medicinal Preparations 66

C07K - Peptides 44

C12Q - Measuring OR Testing Processes Involving Enzymes, Nucleic Acids OR Microorganisms ; Compositions OR Test Papers THEREFOR; Processes OF Preparing Such COMPOSITIONS; Condition-responsive Control IN Microbiological OR Enzymological Processes 40

G01N - Investigating OR Analysing Materials BY Determining Their Chemical OR Physical Properties 38

A01H - NEW Plants OR ; NON-TRANSGENIC; Processes FOR Obtaining THEM; Plant Reproduction BY Tissue Culture Techniques 35

A01N - Preservation OF Bodies OF Humans OR Animals OR Plants OR Parts Thereof ; Biocides, e.g. AS Disinfectants, AS Pesticides OR AS Herbicides ; Pest Repellants OR ATTRACTANTS; Plant Growth Regulators 34

A61B - DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; Identification 30

C07D - Heterocyclic Compounds 28

G06F - Electric Digital Data Processing 23

A24B - Manufacture OR Preparation OF Tobacco FOR Smoking OR CHEWING; TOBACCO; Snuff 22

A61M - Devices FOR Introducing Media Into, OR Onto, THE Body ; Devices FOR Transducing Body Media OR FOR Taking Media From THE Body ; Devices FOR Producing OR Ending Sleep OR Stupor 22

Y02A - Technologies FOR Adaptation TO Climate Change 21

A61L - Methods OR Apparatus FOR Sterilising Materials OR Objects IN GENERAL; Disinfection, Sterilisation OR Deodorisation OF AIR; Chemical Aspects OF Bandages, Dressings, Absorbent Pads OR Surgical ARTICLES; Materials FOR Bandages, Dressings, Absorbent Pads OR Surgical Articles 19

Top 15 of 221 technology areas

More on this record

Data Source

USPTO PatentsView, US granted patents 2015–2025

View all rankings → How is Innovation Score calculated?

What to do with this data

North Carolina State University's patent record in context - here's where to go next.

North Carolina State University's lead technology class is C12N (Microorganisms OR ENZYMES; Compositions THEREOF; Propagating, Preserving, OR Maintaining MICROORGANISMS; Mutation OR Genetic ENGINEERING; Culture Media), 16.9% of its portfolio - see every assignee active in that class. Explore C12N
Ranked #784 of 49,997 tracked assignees by patent volume - see the full leaderboard. See the ranking
Compare North Carolina State University against Kyoto University, an assignee filing at a similar volume. Compare portfolios
Innovation Score of 64.8/100 blends volume, velocity, technology breadth, and claim depth. How it's calculated

Figures reflect USPTO PatentsView grant data through May 2026; pending applications not yet granted are not counted.

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

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 by PlainPatent , US Patent Intelligence Editorial Process · 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.