USPTO 2015–2025 USPTO PatentsView US Corporation

Novellus Systems, Inc.

USPTO PatentsView assignee record - 206 granted patents across 34 technology areas, active 2015–2025. Filing-trend and competitive-moat analysis cross-referenced to USPTO Patent Public Search. Primary class: H01L (SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10).

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

Explore the portfolio See the ranking

206

Total patents granted

CPC technology areas

19.2

Avg claims per patent

-82%

5-year filing velocity

The verdict

Novellus holds 206 US patents across 34 technology areas, rank #1,955 of 50,000 tracked assignees.

#1,955
of 50,000 US assignees by volume: Top 9%
by Innovation Score (53.3/100): 19.2
avg claims per patent: -82%
filing velocity, last 5 yrs

Portfolio overview

Novellus Systems, Inc. has been granted 206 US utility patents between 2015 and 2025, placing Novellus Systems, Inc. at rank #1,955 across all assignees tracked by PlainPatent. This portfolio spans 34 distinct Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) subclasses, averaging 19.2 claims per patent with primary concentration in H01L (SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10). As a US Corporation, Novellus Systems, Inc. is one of the more focused assignees in the PatentsView dataset. By volume, Novellus sits between KDDI Corporation (206 patents, rank #1,951) and ASML Holding N.v. (205 patents, rank #1,959) - the closest US assignees by grant volume. The composite Innovation Score of 53.3/100 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 31 grants, compared with 175 in the 2015–2019 window, a -82% shift in five-year velocity. A cooling filing rate may reflect portfolio consolidation, shifting priorities, or reduced R&D throughput. 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. Novellus Systems, Inc.'s 19.2 average claims per patent sits within the typical range for solid legal coverage without excessive prosecution cost, while a multi-domain presence across 34 subclasses balances depth with breadth. Combined with portfolio volume, these signals let analysts, investors, and licensing professionals benchmark Novellus Systems, Inc. against peers pursuing similar technology classes.

KDDI

206
Lululemon Athleti…

206
Nissan Chemical

206
Noble Systems

206
Renishaw

206
Weber-stephen Pro…

206
Yanmar Power Tech…

206
Novellus Systems ◀

206
ASML Holding

205

What this shows Novellus holds 206 patents at rank #1,955, shown against the 8 assignees closest to it in grant volume rather than the industry's largest filers.

Companies ranked near Novellus

By rank, the assignees closest to #1,955 in granted patent volume.

Leaders in H01L (Semiconductor Devices NOT Covered BY Class H10)

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

Novellus's Innovation Score vs. every tracked assignee

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

53 Top 9% higher than 91% 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 · 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

Novellus Systems, Inc. patent grants by year, 2015–2025
Year	Patents Granted	Share of Period
2015	51	24.8%
2016	49	23.8%
2017	34	16.5%
2018	21	10.2%
2019	20	9.7%
2020	8	3.9%
2021	6	2.9%
2022	4	1.9%
2023	8	3.9%
2024	2	1.0%
2025	3	1.5%

Which technologies does Novellus Systems, Inc. patent most?

H01L - SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10 149

C23C - COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL 98

C25D - PROCESSES FOR THE ELECTROLYTIC OR ELECTROPHORETIC PRODUCTION OF COATINGS; ELECTROFORMING; APPARATUS THEREFOR 69

H01J - ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS 36

Y10T - TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION 16

H10D - INORGANIC ELECTRIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES 13

H10B - ELECTRONIC MEMORY DEVICES 11

B08B - CLEANING IN GENERAL; PREVENTION OF FOULING IN GENERAL 9

Y10S - TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS 8

G03F - PHOTOMECHANICAL PRODUCTION OF TEXTURED OR PATTERNED SURFACES, e.g. FOR PRINTING, FOR PROCESSING OF SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; MATERIALS THEREFOR; ORIGINALS THEREFOR; APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED THEREFOR; 7

G01N - INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIR CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES 5

C25C - PROCESSES FOR THE ELECTROLYTIC PRODUCTION, RECOVERY OR REFINING OF METALS; APPARATUS THEREFOR 4

C23F - NON-MECHANICAL REMOVAL OF METALLIC MATERIAL FROM SURFACE ; INHIBITING CORROSION OF METALLIC MATERIAL OR INCRUSTATION IN GENERAL; MULTI-STEP PROCESSES FOR SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL INVOLVING AT LEAST ONE PROCESS PROVIDED FOR IN CLASS C23 AND AT LEAST ONE PROCESS COVERED BY SUBCLASS C21D 4

C25F - PROCESSES FOR THE ELECTROLYTIC REMOVAL OF MATERIALS FROM OBJECTS; APPARATUS THEREFOR 4

B05B - SPRAYING APPARATUS; ATOMISING APPARATUS; NOZZLES 4

Top 15 of 34 technology areas

Patent Moat Analysis

Portfolio Volume Moderate

Tech Breadth Multi-domain

Claim Depth Standard

Velocity Declining

Where it ranks

Overall rank by patents

#1,955

Across all tracked assignees

Innovation Score

53.3 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 Novellus Systems, Inc. hold?

Novellus Systems, Inc. holds 206 US granted patents filed between 2015 and 2025, spanning 34 technology areas.

What is Novellus Systems, Inc.'s Innovation Score?

Novellus Systems, Inc. has an Innovation Score of 53.3 out of 100. This composite metric weighs portfolio volume (40%), filing velocity (20%), technology breadth (25%), and claim depth (15%).

What technology areas does Novellus Systems, Inc. focus on?

Novellus Systems, Inc.'s top technology area is H01L (SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10) with 149 patents. The company has filed patents in 34 CPC subclasses total.

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

Novellus Systems, Inc.'s recent filing velocity is -82% compared to the prior five-year period. Filing activity has slowed relative to earlier years.

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

Novellus Systems, Inc.'s patents average 19.2 claims each. This falls within the standard range, providing solid legal coverage.

How is the Novellus Systems, 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

Novellus's 206 grants land it in the top 9% 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 - Novellus ranks #1,955 of 50,000. Top 50 holders
Most of this portfolio concentrates in H01L - see who else leads that technology area. H01L 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.