CPC technology class · A23

A23N - Machines OR Apparatus FOR Treating Harvested Fruit

Machines or apparatus for treating harvested fruit, vegetables or flower bulbs in bulk, not otherwise provided for; peeling vegetables or fruit in bulk; apparatus for preparing animal feeding- stuffs. 606 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year filing trajectory.

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

606
US patents granted: A23
Parent CPC class: 20
Active assignees: +44%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

Machines OR Apparatus FOR Treating Harvested Fruit ranks #520 of 670 CPC technology areas - 606 US patents granted since 2015, with filing up 44% over five years.

#520
of 670 CPC technology areas: 606
US patents granted, 2015–2025: Wenger Manufacturing
leading assignee (18): +44%
filing velocity, last 5 yrs

Top assignee: Wenger Manufacturing Inc. (18 patents)

CPC subclass A23N - MACHINES OR APPARATUS FOR TREATING HARVESTED FRUIT, VEGETABLES OR FLOWER BULBS IN BULK, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; PEELING VEGETABLES OR FRUIT IN BULK; APPARATUS FOR PREPARING ANIMAL FEEDING- STUFFS - covers 606 US utility patents granted between 2015 and 2025 according to USPTO PatentsView records, within the broader CPC class A23 (FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES). See our CPC classification guide for how the system works.

The competitive landscape in A23N is shaped by 20 distinct companies actively filing in this space. Wenger Manufacturing Inc. leads with 18 patents, followed by Lyco Manufacturing, Inc. at 13 grants and Smartwash Solutions, Llc at 13.

Filing activity in A23N is up 44% over the past five years versus 2015-2019, a sharp acceleration suggesting an emerging or fast-moving technology area. All counts come directly from USPTO PatentsView and reflect US granted utility patents only.

Is A23N innovation accelerating?

US utility-patent grants per year in A23N, 2015–2025 - recent five years are up 44% versus 2015–2019.

Wenger Manufacturing

18
Lyco Manufacturing

13
Smartwash Solutions

13
Bellwether Coffee

11
Calico Cottage

11
Breville Pty

10
John Bean

9
Goodnature Products

8
Jose Borrell

8
Unitec S P A

7
Nationwide 5

7
Brown International

7

What this shows Wenger Manufacturing is the most active filer in A23N, holding 18 of the 606 patents in this class. Concentration at the top signals how contestable this technology area is for new entrants.

View data table

Top patent holders in CPC subclass A23N
Rank	Company	Patents in A23N
#1	Wenger Manufacturing Inc.	18
#2	Lyco Manufacturing, Inc.	13
#3	Smartwash Solutions, Llc	13
#4	Bellwether Coffee Co.	11
#5	Calico Cottage, Inc.	11
#6	Breville Pty Limited	10
#7	John Bean Technologies Corporation	9
#8	Goodnature Products, Inc.	8
#9	Jose Borrell S.a.	8
#10	Unitec S.p.a.	7
#11	Nationwide 5, Llc	7
#12	Brown International Corporation, Llc	7
#13	Vorwerk & Co. Interholding Gmbh	6
#14	NUC Electronics Co., Ltd.	6
#15	Apeel Technology, Inc.	6
#16	Insectergy Llc	6
#17	Zumex Group, S.a.	6
#18	Aussie WINE Group Holdings PTY Ltd.	5
#19	Enwave Corporation	4
#20	DOLE Fresh Vegetables, Inc.	4

About This Class

CPC subclass A23N belongs to class A23.

606 patents were granted in this class between 2015 and 2025.

20 companies actively patent in this space.

Classification System

Cooperative Patent Classification (CPC) is a hierarchical patent classification system used by the USPTO and EPO.

← All Technology Classes Technology Rankings →

Footprint here vs. claim strategy

Each dot is a leading A23N assignee, placed by how many patents it holds in this class (horizontal) against its company-wide average claims per patent (vertical) - a read on whether the class is led by broad-but-shallow filers or focused deep-claim players.

Top 14 A23N assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in A23N. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CPC class A23N?

CPC subclass A23N covers MACHINES OR APPARATUS FOR TREATING HARVESTED FRUIT, VEGETABLES OR FLOWER BULBS IN BULK, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; PEELING VEGETABLES OR FRUIT IN BULK; APPARATUS FOR PREPARING ANIMAL FEEDING- STUFFS. It belongs to CPC class A23 (FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; TREATMENT THEREOF, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES), with 606 US utility patents granted since 2015.

How many patents have been filed in A23N?

606 US utility patents were granted in CPC subclass A23N between 2015 and 2025, based on USPTO PatentsView data.

Which company holds the most patents in A23N?

Wenger Manufacturing Inc. leads A23N with 18 patents, making it the most active assignee in this technology area.

How is patent data for A23N collected?

Patent data comes from USPTO PatentsView, a public research dataset maintained by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. It covers all US granted utility patents and assigns CPC codes based on the technology described in each patent.

What is the difference between CPC class and subclass?

A CPC class (e.g., A23) is a broad technology category. Subclasses like A23N provide finer granularity within that category. PlainPatent organizes data at the subclass level (4-character codes) for the most useful view of technology domains.

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

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

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.