PlainPatent

CPC technology class · C09

C09C - Treatment OF Inorganic Materials

Treatment of inorganic materials, other than fibrous fillers, to enhance their pigmenting or filling properties  ; preparation of carbon black  ; ; preparation of inorganic materials which are no single chemical compounds and which are mainly used as pigments or fillers. 2,483 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year filing trajectory.

2,483
US patents granted
C09
Parent CPC class
20
Active assignees
-11%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

Treatment OF Inorganic Materials ranks #345 of 670 CPC technology areas - 2,483 US patents granted since 2015, with filing down 11% over five years.

#345
of 670 CPC technology areas
2,483
US patents granted, 2015–2025
Omya International
leading assignee (169)
-11%
filing velocity, last 5 yrs
Top assignee: OMYA International Ag (169 patents)

CPC subclass C09C - TREATMENT OF INORGANIC MATERIALS, OTHER THAN FIBROUS FILLERS, TO ENHANCE THEIR PIGMENTING OR FILLING PROPERTIES  ; PREPARATION OF CARBON BLACK  ; ; PREPARATION OF INORGANIC MATERIALS WHICH ARE NO SINGLE CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS AND WHICH ARE MAINLY USED AS PIGMENTS OR FILLERS - covers 2,483 US utility patents granted between 2015 and 2025 according to USPTO PatentsView records, within the broader CPC class C09 (DYES; PAINTS; POLISHES; NATURAL RESINS; ADHESIVES; COMPOSITIONS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; APPLICATIONS OF MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR). See our CPC classification guide for how the system works.

The competitive landscape in C09C is shaped by 20 distinct companies actively filing in this space. OMYA International Ag leads with 169 patents, followed by Viavi Solutions Inc. at 53 grants and Cabot Corporation at 48.

Filing activity in C09C is down 11% over the past five years versus 2015-2019, a relatively steady filing pace. All counts come directly from USPTO PatentsView and reflect US granted utility patents only.

Is C09C innovation accelerating?

US utility-patent grants per year in C09C, 2015–2025 - recent five years are down 11% versus 2015–2019.

100150200250300 20152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 126

Who leads C09C?

The 12 most active assignees in TREATMENT OF INORGANIC MATERIALS, OTHER THAN FIBROUS FILLERS, TO ENHANCE THEIR PIGMENTING OR FILLING PROPERTIES  ; PREPARATION OF CARBON BLACK  ; ; PREPARATION OF INORGANIC MATERIALS WHICH ARE NO SINGLE CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS AND WHICH ARE MAINLY USED AS PIGMENTS OR FILLERS - wider bars mean more grants

patents

What this shows Omya International is the most active filer in C09C, holding 169 of the 2,483 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 C09C
Rank Company Patents in C09C
#1 OMYA International Ag 169
#2 Viavi Solutions Inc. 53
#3 Cabot Corporation 48
#4 Eckart Gmbh 45
#5 Sakai Chemical Industry Co., Ltd. 24
#6 Monolith Materials, Inc. 24
#7 Rohm And Haas Company 17
#8 JGC Catalysts And Chemicals Ltd. 17
#9 Nippon Sheet Glass Company, Limited 16
#10 Lanxess Deutschland Gmbh 16
#11 M. Technique Co., Ltd. 15
#12 Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co., Ltd. 14
#13 TOYO Aluminium Kabushiki Kaisha 12
#14 Landa Labs (2012) Ltd. 12
#15 THE Chemours Company TT, Llc 12
#16 Coatex 11
#17 CQV Co., Ltd. 11
#18 Tokuyama Corporation 10
#19 Imertech SAS 10
#20 Imerys USA, Inc. 10

About This Class

CPC subclass C09C belongs to class C09.

2,483 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 C09C 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 C09C assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in C09C. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Top 14 C09C assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in C09C. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes). Scatter plot of 14 data points (bubble-sized by third dimension). 51015202530 050100150200 Patents in C09C Avg claims / patent (company-wide) Omya InternationalViavi SolutionsCabotEckartSakai Chemical Indust…Monolith MaterialsRohm and HaasJgc Catalysts and Che…Nippon Sheet GlassLanxess DeutschlandM TechniqueSumitomo Osaka CementToyo AluminiumLanda Labs (2012)
Top 14 C09C assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in C09C. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CPC class C09C?
CPC subclass C09C covers TREATMENT OF INORGANIC MATERIALS, OTHER THAN FIBROUS FILLERS, TO ENHANCE THEIR PIGMENTING OR FILLING PROPERTIES  ; PREPARATION OF CARBON BLACK  ; ; PREPARATION OF INORGANIC MATERIALS WHICH ARE NO SINGLE CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS AND WHICH ARE MAINLY USED AS PIGMENTS OR FILLERS. It belongs to CPC class C09 (DYES; PAINTS; POLISHES; NATURAL RESINS; ADHESIVES; COMPOSITIONS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; APPLICATIONS OF MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR), with 2,483 US utility patents granted since 2015.
How many patents have been filed in C09C?
2,483 US utility patents were granted in CPC subclass C09C between 2015 and 2025, based on USPTO PatentsView data.
Which company holds the most patents in C09C?
OMYA International Ag leads C09C with 169 patents, making it the most active assignee in this technology area.
How is patent data for C09C 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., C09) is a broad technology category. Subclasses like C09C 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.