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CPC technology class · G02

G02F - Optical Devices Or Arrangements For The Control Of Light…

Optical devices or arrangements for the control of light by modification of the optical properties of the media of the elements involved therein; non-linear optics; frequency-changing of light; optical logic elements; optical analogue/digital converters. 52,876 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year grant trajectory.

52,876
US patents granted
#2/3
in G02
30.3%
G02 class share
-5%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

According to USPTO PatentsView, Optical Devices Or Arrangements For The Control Of Light… ranks #31 of 670 CPC technology areas - 52,876 US patents granted since 2015, with recorded grant volume down 5% over five years.

#31
of 670 CPC technology areas
52,876
US patents granted, 2015–2025
Samsung
leading assignee (5,656)
-5%
grant velocity, last 5 yrs

How G02F's grant cadence moved

Between 2020–2024, G02F recorded 21,805 grants versus 22,874 in 2015–2019 (-5% equal-window velocity). Across complete years, output peaked in 2019 at 5,662 grants and bottomed in 2015 at 3,776 (+50% peak-over-trough). Lead assignee Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. holds 10.7% of the class ; the top three share 25.9%.

Leaderboard read

G02F concentration, lead at 10.7%

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. leads this historical grant record at 10.7% of G02F - foreign corporation assignees hold 88% of class grants (38,424 of 43,758). Figures describe granted US utility patents in this CPC subclass, not current investment or legal strength.

Leader's share
10.7%

5,656 of 52,876 grants

Top three share
25.9%

of the class's recorded grants

Lead over #2
726

more grants than BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd.

Where G02F sits inside G02

Among 3 subclasses in G02 (Optics), G02F ranks #2 and holds 30.3% of the parent class's 174,596 recorded grants. Sibling chips below are the other subclasses in the same parent class, not the nationwide volume/lead-share peers further down.

G02B 115,576 G02C 6,144

Rising assignees active in G02F

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. #1 Meta Platforms Technologies, LLC 1285x 0 → 1,285 company-wide · 141 in G02F
  2. #2 Sharp Display Technology Corporation 144x 0 → 144 company-wide · 142 in G02F
  3. #3 Wuhan Tianma Microelectronics Co., Ltd. Shanghai Branch 142x 0 → 142 company-wide · 9 in G02F
  4. #4 Panasonic Automotive Systems Co., Ltd. 89x 0 → 89 company-wide · 8 in G02F
  5. #5 AUO Corporation 61x 0 → 61 company-wide · 19 in G02F

G02F grants by year, peak 2019 (5,662)

US utility-patent grants per year in G02F, 2015–2025 - recent five years are down 5% versus 2015–2019.

2,0003,0004,0005,0006,000 20152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 2,581

Who leads G02F?

The 12 most active assignees in Optical Devices OR Arrangements FOR THE Control OF Light BY Modification OF THE Optical Properties OF THE Media OF THE Elements Involved THEREIN; Non-linear OPTICS; Frequency-changing OF LIGHT; Optical Logic ELEMENTS; Optical ANALOGUE/DIGITAL Converters - wider bars mean more grants

patents

What this shows Samsung is the most active filer in G02F, holding 5,656 of the 52,876 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 G02F
Rank Company Patents in G02F
#1 Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. 5,656
#2 BOE Technology Group Co., Ltd. 4,930
#3 Japan Display Inc. 3,130
#4 LG Display Co., Ltd. 1,653
#5 Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha 1,589
#6 Tencent Technology (SHENZHEN) Company Limited 1,457
#7 Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd. 1,397
#8 Beijing BOE Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. 848
#9 Innolux Corporation 840
#10 Wuhan China Star Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. 787
#11 Beijing BOE Display Technology Co., Ltd. 701
#12 HKC Corporation Limited 543
#13 Au Optronics Corporation 542
#14 Fujifilm Corporation 533
#15 Seiko Epson Corporation 496
#16 LG Chem, Ltd. 491
#17 E Ink Holdings Inc. 477
#18 Hefei Xinsheng Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. 419
#19 Panasonic Liquid Crystal Display Co., Ltd. 418
#20 Chongqing BOE Optoelectronics Technology Co., Ltd. 400

Footprint here vs. claim strategy

Each dot is a leading G02F 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 G02F assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in G02F. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes). Scatter plot of 14 data points (bubble-sized by third dimension). 81012141618 0200040006000 Patents in G02F Avg claims / patent (company-wide) SamsungBoe Technology GroupJapan DisplayLg DisplaySharpTencent Technology…Semiconductor Energy…Beijing Boe Optoelectr…InnoluxWuhan China Star…Beijing Boe Display…HkcAu OptronicsFujifilm
Top 14 G02F assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in G02F. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Classes near G02F's 52,876-grant footprint

Nationwide nearest neighbors for G02F (#31 of 670 by volume ; lead share 10.7%) - not the G02 parent-class siblings above.

Nearest by grant volume

G01S 52,756 B29C 53,431 G01R 53,716 G11C 53,783

Nearest by lead-assignee share

B64G 10.6% B26B 10.8% G04F 10.6% G03F 10.6%

Questions about G02F

Which company holds the most patents in G02F?
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. leads G02F with 5,656 patents (10.7% of the subclass). By PatentsView assignee type, foreign corporations account for 88% of class grants.
Which G02F assignees grew fastest recently?
Among assignees with ≥5 grants in G02F, Meta Platforms Technologies, LLC shows the highest company-wide grant multiple (1285x: 0 grants in 2019–2021 → 1,285 in 2022–2024) while holding 141 patents in this subclass. Growth is company-wide, not class-only.
How does G02F compare inside parent class G02?
Inside G02 (Optics), G02F ranks #2 of 3 subclasses by grant volume and holds 30.3% of the parent class total. The largest sibling is G02B (115,576 grants).

What to do with this data

G02F in context - here's where to go next.

  • Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. leads G02F with 5,656 grants in this class. See full portfolio
  • G02F ranks #31 of 670 by grant volume among all tracked CPC technology areas. See the ranking
  • Inside parent class G02, the largest sibling subclass is G02B with 115,576 grants. Explore G02B

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

Methodology - G02F figures are USPTO PatentsView granted-utility totals for this subclass (52,876 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.