CPC technology class · C08

C08K - Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances…

Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances as compounding ingredients. 28,505 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

28,505
US patents granted: C08
Parent CPC class: 20
Active assignees: +21%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances… ranks #71 of 670 CPC technology areas - 28,505 US patents granted since 2015, with filing up 21% over five years.

#71
of 670 CPC technology areas: 28,505
US patents granted, 2015–2025: Lg Chem
leading assignee (865): +21%
filing velocity, last 5 yrs

Top assignee: LG CHEM, Ltd. (865 patents)

CPC subclass C08K - Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances as compounding ingredients - covers 28,505 US utility patents granted between 2015 and 2025 according to USPTO PatentsView records, within the broader CPC class C08 (ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON). See our CPC classification guide for how the system works.

The competitive landscape in C08K is shaped by 20 distinct companies actively filing in this space. LG CHEM, Ltd. leads with 865 patents, followed by DOW Global Technologies Llc at 513 grants and 3M Innovative Properties Company at 485.

Filing activity in C08K is up 21% 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 C08K innovation accelerating?

US utility-patent grants per year in C08K, 2015–2025 - recent five years are up 21% versus 2015–2019.

Lg Chem

865
Dow Global

513
3m Innovative Propert…

485
Basf Se

395
Shin-etsu Chemical

352
Bridgestone

318
Sabic Global B V

308
Sumitomo Rubber Indus…

270
Fujifilm

265
Compagnie Generale De…

225
Zeon

217
Toray Industries

187

What this shows Lg Chem is the most active filer in C08K, holding 865 of the 28,505 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 C08K
Rank	Company	Patents in C08K
#1	LG CHEM, Ltd.	865
#2	DOW Global Technologies Llc	513
#3	3M Innovative Properties Company	485
#4	BASF SE	395
#5	Shin-etsu Chemical Co., Ltd.	352
#6	Bridgestone Corporation	318
#7	Sabic Global Technologies B.v.	308
#8	Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd.	270
#9	Fujifilm Corporation	265
#10	Compagnie Generale DES Etablissements Michelin	225
#11	ZEON Corporation	217
#12	Toray Industries, Inc.	187
#13	The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd.	187
#14	Borealis Ag	183
#15	Rohm And Haas Company	181
#16	Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company, Inc.	177
#17	Xerox Corporation	174
#18	Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation	172
#19	Henkel Ag & Co. Kgaa	164
#20	Sumitomo Chemical Company, Limited	163

About This Class

CPC subclass C08K belongs to class C08.

28,505 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 C08K 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 C08K assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in C08K. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CPC class C08K?

CPC subclass C08K covers Use of inorganic or non-macromolecular organic substances as compounding ingredients. It belongs to CPC class C08 (ORGANIC MACROMOLECULAR COMPOUNDS; THEIR PREPARATION OR CHEMICAL WORKING-UP; COMPOSITIONS BASED THEREON), with 28,505 US utility patents granted since 2015.

How many patents have been filed in C08K?

28,505 US utility patents were granted in CPC subclass C08K between 2015 and 2025, based on USPTO PatentsView data.

Which company holds the most patents in C08K?

LG CHEM, Ltd. leads C08K with 865 patents, making it the most active assignee in this technology area.

How is patent data for C08K 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., C08) is a broad technology category. Subclasses like C08K 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.