PlainPatent

CPC technology class · B26

B26B - Hand-held Cutting Tools

Hand-held cutting tools not otherwise provided for. 2,460 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year filing trajectory.

2,460
US patents granted
B26
Parent CPC class
20
Active assignees
+49%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

Hand-held Cutting Tools ranks #347 of 670 CPC technology areas - 2,460 US patents granted since 2015, with filing up 49% over five years.

#347
of 670 CPC technology areas
2,460
US patents granted, 2015–2025
The Gillette
leading assignee (266)
+49%
filing velocity, last 5 yrs
Top assignee: The Gillette Company Llc (266 patents)

CPC subclass B26B - HAND-HELD CUTTING TOOLS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - covers 2,460 US utility patents granted between 2015 and 2025 according to USPTO PatentsView records, within the broader CPC class B26 (HAND CUTTING TOOLS; CUTTING; SEVERING). See our CPC classification guide for how the system works.

The competitive landscape in B26B is shaped by 20 distinct companies actively filing in this space. The Gillette Company Llc leads with 266 patents, followed by Koniniklijke Philips N.v. at 244 grants and Bic-violex Sa at 118.

Filing activity in B26B is up 49% 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 B26B innovation accelerating?

US utility-patent grants per year in B26B, 2015–2025 - recent five years are up 49% versus 2015–2019.

100150200250300 20152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 149

Who leads B26B?

The 12 most active assignees in HAND-HELD CUTTING TOOLS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - wider bars mean more grants

patents

What this shows The Gillette is the most active filer in B26B, holding 266 of the 2,460 patents in this class. Concentration at the top signals how contestable this technology area is for new entrants.

Source USPTO PatentsView, granted utility patents As of 2015–2025 grant years
View data table
Top patent holders in CPC subclass B26B
Rank Company Patents in B26B
#1 The Gillette Company Llc 266
#2 Koniniklijke Philips N.v. 244
#3 Bic-violex Sa 118
#4 The Braun Corporation 82
#5 Dorco Co., Ltd. 70
#6 BIC Violex Single Member S.a. 62
#7 May Patents Ltd. 43
#8 Bettcher Industries, Inc. 38
#9 Shavelogic, Inc. 35
#10 Andis Company 27
#11 GB II Corporation 26
#12 WAHL Clipper Corporation 25
#13 Hangzhou Great Star Industrial Co., Ltd. 21
#14 Fiskars Brands, Inc. 21
#15 Slice, Inc. 21
#16 Pacific Handy Cutter, Inc. 21
#17 Stanley Black & Decker, Inc. 20
#18 Microtech Knives, Inc. 20
#19 Martor KG 20
#20 Hangzhou Great STAR Tools Co., Ltd. 19

About This Class

CPC subclass B26B belongs to class B26.

2,460 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 B26B 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 B26B assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in B26B. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Top 14 B26B assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in B26B. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes). Scatter plot of 14 data points (bubble-sized by third dimension). 01020304050 0100200300 Patents in B26B Avg claims / patent (company-wide) The GilletteKoniniklijke PhilipsBic-violexThe BraunDorcoBic Violex Single Mem…May PatentsBettcher IndustriesShavelogicAndisGb IiWahl ClipperHangzhou Great Star I…Fiskars Brands
Top 14 B26B assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in B26B. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CPC class B26B?
CPC subclass B26B covers HAND-HELD CUTTING TOOLS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR. It belongs to CPC class B26 (HAND CUTTING TOOLS; CUTTING; SEVERING), with 2,460 US utility patents granted since 2015.
How many patents have been filed in B26B?
2,460 US utility patents were granted in CPC subclass B26B between 2015 and 2025, based on USPTO PatentsView data.
Which company holds the most patents in B26B?
The Gillette Company Llc leads B26B with 266 patents, making it the most active assignee in this technology area.
How is patent data for B26B 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., B26) is a broad technology category. Subclasses like B26B 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.