PlainPatent

CPC technology class · B81

B81C - Processes OR Apparatus Specially Adapted FOR THE Manufact…

Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment of microstructural devices or systems. 5,547 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year filing trajectory.

5,547
US patents granted
B81
Parent CPC class
20
Active assignees
-26%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

Processes OR Apparatus Specially Adapted FOR THE Manufact… ranks #241 of 670 CPC technology areas - 5,547 US patents granted since 2015, with filing down 26% over five years.

#241
of 670 CPC technology areas
5,547
US patents granted, 2015–2025
Taiwan Semiconductor…
leading assignee (467)
-26%
filing velocity, last 5 yrs
Top assignee: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd. (467 patents)

CPC subclass B81C - PROCESSES OR APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF MICROSTRUCTURAL DEVICES OR SYSTEMS - covers 5,547 US utility patents granted between 2015 and 2025 according to USPTO PatentsView records, within the broader CPC class B81 (MICROSTRUCTURAL TECHNOLOGY). See our CPC classification guide for how the system works.

The competitive landscape in B81C is shaped by 20 distinct companies actively filing in this space. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd. leads with 467 patents, followed by Infineon Technologies Ag at 214 grants and Invensense, Inc. at 151.

Filing activity in B81C is down 26% over the past five years versus 2015-2019, a notable slowdown that may signal a maturing field. All counts come directly from USPTO PatentsView and reflect US granted utility patents only.

Is B81C innovation accelerating?

US utility-patent grants per year in B81C, 2015–2025 - recent five years are down 26% versus 2015–2019.

100200300400500600700 20152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 220

Who leads B81C?

The 12 most active assignees in PROCESSES OR APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF MICROSTRUCTURAL DEVICES OR SYSTEMS - wider bars mean more grants

patents

What this shows Taiwan Semiconductor… is the most active filer in B81C, holding 467 of the 5,547 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 B81C
Rank Company Patents in B81C
#1 Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd. 467
#2 Infineon Technologies Ag 214
#3 Invensense, Inc. 151
#4 Stmicroelectronics Sa 139
#5 Knowles Electronics, Llc 51
#6 Semiconductor Manufacturing International (shanghai) Corporation 50
#7 Freeescale Semiconductor, Inc. 45
#8 Cirrus Logic, Inc. 39
#9 Butterfly Network, Inc. 36
#10 United Microelectronics Corp. 35
#11 Sitime Corporation 34
#12 Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Inc. 32
#13 Mcube, Inc. 31
#14 Infineon Technologies Dresden Gmbh & Co. KG 28
#15 BFLY Operations, Inc. 22
#16 Epcos Ag 21
#17 X-celeprint Limited 21
#18 Semiconductor Manufacturing International (beijing) Corporation 17
#19 Nivarox-far S.a. 17
#20 Goertek Inc. 16

About This Class

CPC subclass B81C belongs to class B81.

5,547 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 B81C 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 B81C assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in B81C. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Top 14 B81C assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in B81C. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes). Scatter plot of 14 data points (bubble-sized by third dimension). 10152025 0100200300400500 Patents in B81C Avg claims / patent (company-wide) Taiwan Semiconductor…InfineonInvensenseStmicroelectronicsKnowlesSemiconductor Manufac…Freeescale Semiconduc…Cirrus LogicButterfly NetworkUnited Microelectroni…SitimeAdvanced Semiconducto…mcubeInfineon Dresden & Kg
Top 14 B81C assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in B81C. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CPC class B81C?
CPC subclass B81C covers PROCESSES OR APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF MICROSTRUCTURAL DEVICES OR SYSTEMS. It belongs to CPC class B81 (MICROSTRUCTURAL TECHNOLOGY), with 5,547 US utility patents granted since 2015.
How many patents have been filed in B81C?
5,547 US utility patents were granted in CPC subclass B81C between 2015 and 2025, based on USPTO PatentsView data.
Which company holds the most patents in B81C?
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd. leads B81C with 467 patents, making it the most active assignee in this technology area.
How is patent data for B81C 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., B81) is a broad technology category. Subclasses like B81C 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.