CPC technology class · C06
C06B - Explosives Or Thermic Compositions
Explosives or thermic compositions ; manufacture thereof; use of single substances as explosives. 579 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year grant trajectory.
- 579
- US patents granted
- #1/3
- in C06
- 63.8%
- C06 class share
- -27%
- 5-yr velocity
The verdict
According to USPTO PatentsView, Explosives Or Thermic Compositions ranks #523 of 670 CPC technology areas - 579 US patents granted since 2015, with recorded grant volume down 27% over five years.
- #523
- of 670 CPC technology areas
- 579
- US patents granted, 2015–2025
- The United States of…
- leading assignee (50)
- -27%
- grant velocity, last 5 yrs
How C06B's grant cadence moved
Between 2020–2024, C06B recorded 225 grants versus 308 in 2015–2019 (-27% equal-window velocity). Across complete years, output peaked in 2019 at 70 grants and bottomed in 2024 at 33 (+112% peak-over-trough). Lead assignee The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army holds 8.6% of the class ; the top three share 13.0%.
Leaderboard read
C06B concentration, lead at 8.6%
The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army leads this historical grant record at 8.6% of C06B - us corporation assignees hold 54% of class grants (136 of 252). Figures describe granted US utility patents in this CPC subclass, not current investment or legal strength.
- Leader's share
- 8.6%
- Top three share
- 13.0%
- Lead over #2
- 36
50 of 579 grants
of the class's recorded grants
more grants than Orbital ATK, Inc.
Where C06B sits inside C06
Among 3 subclasses in C06 (EXPLOSIVES; Matches), C06B ranks #1 and holds 63.8% of the parent class's 908 recorded grants. Sibling chips below are the other subclasses in the same parent class, not the nationwide volume/lead-share peers further down.
Rising assignees active in C06B
Company-wide grant multiples (2022–2024 vs 2019–2021) among assignees with ≥5 patents in this subclass. Growth is company-wide; class patent counts are subclass-specific.
- #1 BiSN Tec Ltd. 1.75x 8 → 14 company-wide · 8 in C06B
- #2 Dyno Nobel Asia Pacific Pty Limited 1.67x 3 → 5 company-wide · 6 in C06B
- #3 Agency FOR Defense Development 1.65x 49 → 81 company-wide · 6 in C06B
- #4 Terves, LLC 1.41x 17 → 24 company-wide · 6 in C06B
- #5 Orica International Pte Ltd 1.40x 5 → 7 company-wide · 7 in C06B
C06B grants by year, peak 2019 (70)
US utility-patent grants per year in C06B, 2015–2025 - recent five years are down 27% versus 2015–2019.
Who leads C06B?
The 12 most active assignees in Explosives OR Thermic Compositions ; Manufacture THEREOF; USE OF Single Substances AS Explosives - wider bars mean more grants
- The United States of…
The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army
50 patents
- Orbital Atk 14
Orbital ATK, Inc.
14 patents
- Dyno Nobel 11
Dyno Nobel Inc.
11 patents
- Aerojet Rocketdyne 10
Aerojet Rocketdyne, Inc.
10 patents
- Los Alamos National… 9
LOS Alamos National Security, LLC
9 patents
- Northrop Grumman… 9
Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems, Inc.
9 patents
- Bisn Tec 8
BiSN Tec Ltd.
8 patents
- Autoliv Asp 7
Autoliv ASP, Inc.
7 patents
- Orica International… 7
Orica International Pte Ltd
7 patents
- Spectre Materials… 7
Spectre Materials Sciences, Inc.
7 patents
- Agency For Defense… 6
Agency FOR Defense Development
6 patents
- Terves 6
Terves, LLC
6 patents
What this shows The United States of… is the most active filer in C06B, holding 50 of the 579 patents in this class. Concentration at the top signals how contestable this technology area is for new entrants.
View data table
| Rank | Company | Patents in C06B |
|---|---|---|
| #1 | The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army | 50 |
| #2 | Orbital ATK, Inc. | 14 |
| #3 | Dyno Nobel Inc. | 11 |
| #4 | Aerojet Rocketdyne, Inc. | 10 |
| #5 | LOS Alamos National Security, LLC | 9 |
| #6 | Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems, Inc. | 9 |
| #7 | BiSN Tec Ltd. | 8 |
| #8 | Autoliv ASP, Inc. | 7 |
| #9 | Orica International Pte Ltd | 7 |
| #10 | Spectre Materials Sciences, Inc. | 7 |
| #11 | Agency FOR Defense Development | 6 |
| #12 | Terves, LLC | 6 |
| #13 | Dyno Nobel Asia Pacific Pty Limited | 6 |
| #14 | Digital Solid State Propulsion LLC | 6 |
| #15 | Otto Torpedo Company | 5 |
| #16 | Joyson Safety Systems Acquisition LLC | 4 |
| #17 | Saint Louis University | 4 |
| #18 | Ensign-Bickford Aerospace & Defense Company | 4 |
| #19 | Armtec Defense Products Co. | 4 |
| #20 | TK Holdings, LLC | 3 |
Footprint here vs. claim strategy
Each dot is a leading C06B 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.
Classes near C06B's 579-grant footprint
Nationwide nearest neighbors for C06B (#523 of 670 by volume ; lead share 8.6%) - not the C06 parent-class siblings above.
Questions about C06B
Which company holds the most patents in C06B?
Which C06B assignees grew fastest recently?
How does C06B compare inside parent class C06?
What to do with this data
C06B in context - here's where to go next.
- The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army leads C06B with 50 grants in this class. See full portfolio
- C06B ranks #523 of 670 by grant volume among all tracked CPC technology areas. See the ranking
- Inside parent class C06, the largest sibling subclass is C06C with 165 grants. Explore C06C
Figures reflect USPTO PatentsView grant data through 2026-05-15; pending applications not yet granted are not counted.
Methodology - C06B figures are USPTO PatentsView granted-utility totals for this subclass (579 grants in the tracked window).
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.