CPC technology class · F21

F21K - Non-electric Light Sources Using Luminescence

Non-electric light sources using luminescence; light sources using electrochemiluminescence; light sources using charges of combustible material; light sources using semiconductor devices as light-generating elements; light sources not otherwise provided for. 7,021 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year grant trajectory.

Compiled by PlainPatent · May 15, 2026

7,021
US patents granted: #4/6
in F21: 9.7%
F21 class share: -39%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

According to USPTO PatentsView, Non-electric Light Sources Using Luminescence ranks #206 of 670 CPC technology areas - 7,021 US patents granted since 2015, with recorded grant volume down 39% over five years.

#206
of 670 CPC technology areas: 7,021
US patents granted, 2015–2025: Signify Holding B V
leading assignee (276): -39%
grant velocity, last 5 yrs

How F21K's grant cadence moved

Between 2020–2024, F21K recorded 2,499 grants versus 4,093 in 2015–2019 (-39% equal-window velocity). Across complete years, output peaked in 2019 at 869 grants and bottomed in 2024 at 361 (+141% peak-over-trough). Lead assignee Signify Holding B.V. holds 3.9% of the class ; the top three share 11.2%.

Leaderboard read

F21K concentration, lead at 3.9%

Signify Holding B.V. leads this historical grant record at 3.9% of F21K - foreign corporation assignees hold 59% of class grants (2,903 of 4,892). Figures describe granted US utility patents in this CPC subclass, not current investment or legal strength.

Leader's share: 3.9%
Top three share: 11.2%
Lead over #2: 16

Where F21K sits inside F21

Among 6 subclasses in F21 (Lighting), F21K ranks #4 and holds 9.7% of the parent class's 72,153 recorded grants. Sibling chips below are the other subclasses in the same parent class, not the nationwide volume/lead-share peers further down.

F21V 23,679 F21Y 17,865 F21S 15,705 F21W 6,556 F21L 1,327

Rising assignees active in F21K

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 Korrus, Inc. 71x 0 → 71 company-wide · 22 in F21K
#2 Dongguan Huihuan Lighting Co., Ltd 35x 0 → 35 company-wide · 16 in F21K
#3 Hangzhou Hangke Optoelectronics Co., Ltd. 10x 1 → 10 company-wide · 7 in F21K
#4 Jiangmen City Shengda Lighting Co., Ltd. 6.00x 0 → 6 company-wide · 5 in F21K
#5 Suzhou Lekin Semiconductor Co., Ltd. 5.46x 13 → 71 company-wide · 5 in F21K

F21K grants by year, peak 2019 (869)

US utility-patent grants per year in F21K, 2015–2025 - recent five years are down 39% versus 2015–2019.

Signify Holding B V

276
Lg Innotek

260
Cree

248
Jiaxing Super…

210
Philips Lighting…

161
Nichia

144
Osram

140
Ledvance

138
Xiamen Eco Lighting

114
Lumileds

106
Epistar

96
Quarkstar

65

What this shows Signify Holding B V is the most active filer in F21K, holding 276 of the 7,021 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 F21K
Rank	Company	Patents in F21K
#1	Signify Holding B.V.	276
#2	LG Innotek Co., Ltd.	260
#3	Cree, Inc.	248
#4	Jiaxing Super Lighting Electric Appliance Co., Ltd	210
#5	Philips Lighting Holding B.V.	161
#6	Nichia Corporation	144
#7	Osram GmbH	140
#8	Ledvance GMBH	138
#9	Xiamen ECO Lighting Co. Ltd.	114
#10	Lumileds LLC	106
#11	Epistar Corporation	96
#12	Quarkstar LLC	65
#13	GE Lighting Solutions LLC	64
#14	Feit Electric Company, Inc.	60
#15	Seoul Semiconductor Co., Ltd.	51
#16	Bridgelux, Inc.	47
#17	iLumisys, Inc.	46
#18	Ideal Industries Lighting LLC	45
#19	Ecosense Lighting Inc.	44
#20	Cooper Technologies Company	42

Footprint here vs. claim strategy

Each dot is a leading F21K 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 F21K assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in F21K. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Classes near F21K's 7,021-grant footprint

Nationwide nearest neighbors for F21K (#206 of 670 by volume ; lead share 3.9%) - not the F21 parent-class siblings above.

Nearest by grant volume

A61H 6,990 B60J 6,966 F15B 7,094 C01G 6,857

Nearest by lead-assignee share

B60P 3.9% B61D 3.9% A63C 3.9% B66C 3.9%

Questions about F21K

Which company holds the most patents in F21K?

Signify Holding B.V. leads F21K with 276 patents (3.9% of the subclass). By PatentsView assignee type, foreign corporations account for 59% of class grants.

Which F21K assignees grew fastest recently?

Among assignees with ≥5 grants in F21K, Korrus, Inc. shows the highest company-wide grant multiple (71x: 0 grants in 2019–2021 → 71 in 2022–2024) while holding 22 patents in this subclass. Growth is company-wide, not class-only.

How does F21K compare inside parent class F21?

Inside F21 (Lighting), F21K ranks #4 of 6 subclasses by grant volume and holds 9.7% of the parent class total. The largest sibling is F21V (23,679 grants).

What to do with this data

F21K in context - here's where to go next.

Signify Holding B.V. leads F21K with 276 grants in this class. See full portfolio
F21K ranks #206 of 670 by grant volume among all tracked CPC technology areas. See the ranking
Inside parent class F21, the largest sibling subclass is F21V with 23,679 grants. Explore F21V

Figures reflect USPTO PatentsView grant data through 2026-05-15; pending applications not yet granted are not counted.

Methodology - F21K figures are USPTO PatentsView granted-utility totals for this subclass (7,021 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.