PlainPatent

CPC technology class · G03

G03B - Apparatus Or Arrangements For Taking Photographs Or For P…

Apparatus or arrangements for taking photographs or for projecting or viewing them; apparatus or arrangements employing analogous techniques using waves other than optical waves; accessories therefor. 21,728 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year grant trajectory.

21,728
US patents granted
#2/6
in G03
29.7%
G03 class share
+11%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

According to USPTO PatentsView, Apparatus Or Arrangements For Taking Photographs Or For P… ranks #92 of 670 CPC technology areas - 21,728 US patents granted since 2015, with recorded grant volume up 11% over five years.

#92
of 670 CPC technology areas
21,728
US patents granted, 2015–2025
Canon
leading assignee (1,705)
+11%
grant velocity, last 5 yrs

How G03B's grant cadence moved

Between 2020–2024, G03B recorded 10,416 grants versus 9,412 in 2015–2019 (+11% equal-window velocity). Across complete years, output peaked in 2020 at 2,337 grants and bottomed in 2016 at 1,792 (+30% peak-over-trough). Lead assignee Canon Kabushiki Kaisha holds 7.8% of the class ; the top three share 17.4%.

Leaderboard read

G03B concentration, lead at 7.8%

Canon Kabushiki Kaisha leads this historical grant record at 7.8% of G03B - foreign corporation assignees hold 85% of class grants (12,960 of 15,242). Figures describe granted US utility patents in this CPC subclass, not current investment or legal strength.

Leader's share
7.8%

1,705 of 21,728 grants

Top three share
17.4%

of the class's recorded grants

Lead over #2
602

more grants than Seiko Epson Corporation

Where G03B sits inside G03

Among 6 subclasses in G03 (PHOTOGRAPHY; CINEMATOGRAPHY; Analogous Techniques Using Waves Other Than Optical WAVES; ELECTROGRAPHY; Holography), G03B ranks #2 and holds 29.7% of the parent class's 73,096 recorded grants. Sibling chips below are the other subclasses in the same parent class, not the nationwide volume/lead-share peers further down.

G03G 26,691 G03F 21,670 G03H 2,738 G03C 231 G03D 38

Rising assignees active in G03B

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 Toppan Inc. 56x 0 → 56 company-wide · 7 in G03B
  2. #2 Lanto Electronic Limited 35x 1 → 35 company-wide · 20 in G03B
  3. #3 Changzhou AAC Raytech Optronics Co., Ltd. 19x 0 → 19 company-wide · 13 in G03B
  4. #4 Chengdu Xgimi Technology Co., Ltd. 16x 0 → 16 company-wide · 8 in G03B
  5. #5 Vivo Mobile Communication Co., Ltd. 14x 70 → 969 company-wide · 25 in G03B

G03B grants by year, peak 2020 (2,337)

US utility-patent grants per year in G03B, 2015–2025 - recent five years are up 11% versus 2015–2019.

1,0001,5002,0002,500 20152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 1,394

Who leads G03B?

The 12 most active assignees in Apparatus OR Arrangements FOR Taking Photographs OR FOR Projecting OR Viewing THEM; Apparatus OR Arrangements Employing Analogous Techniques Using Waves Other Than Optical WAVES; Accessories Therefor - wider bars mean more grants

patents

What this shows Canon is the most active filer in G03B, holding 1,705 of the 21,728 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 G03B
Rank Company Patents in G03B
#1 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha 1,705
#2 Seiko Epson Corporation 1,103
#3 Sony Group Corporation 981
#4 Fujifilm Corporation 874
#5 LG Innotek Co., Ltd. 734
#6 Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. 657
#7 Coretronic Corporation 511
#8 TDK Taiwan Corp. 375
#9 Ricoh Company, Ltd. 329
#10 Nikon Corporation 303
#11 Olympus Corporation 284
#12 GoPro, Inc. 251
#13 Casio Computer Co., Ltd. 185
#14 SZ DJI Technology Co., Ltd. 165
#15 Appotronics Corporation Limited 155
#16 Maxell, Ltd. 133
#17 Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corporation 126
#18 Corephotonics Ltd. 126
#19 Delta Electronics, Inc. 120
#20 NEC Display Solutions, Ltd. 103

Footprint here vs. claim strategy

Each dot is a leading G03B 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 G03B assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in G03B. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes). Scatter plot of 14 data points (bubble-sized by third dimension). 10152025 0500100015002000 Patents in G03B Avg claims / patent (company-wide) CanonSeiko EpsonSony GroupFujifilmLg InnotekPanasonic Intellectual…CoretronicTdk TaiwanRicohNikonOlympusGoproCasio ComputerSz Dji Technology
Top 14 G03B assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in G03B. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Classes near G03B's 21,728-grant footprint

Nationwide nearest neighbors for G03B (#92 of 670 by volume ; lead share 7.8%) - not the G03 parent-class siblings above.

Nearest by grant volume

H01F 21,711 G03F 21,670 B25J 21,590 G11B 21,500

Nearest by lead-assignee share

E03B 7.9% H04S 7.9% F25B 7.8% B60L 7.8%

Questions about G03B

Which company holds the most patents in G03B?
Canon Kabushiki Kaisha leads G03B with 1,705 patents (7.8% of the subclass). By PatentsView assignee type, foreign corporations account for 85% of class grants.
Which G03B assignees grew fastest recently?
Among assignees with ≥5 grants in G03B, Toppan Inc. shows the highest company-wide grant multiple (56x: 0 grants in 2019–2021 → 56 in 2022–2024) while holding 7 patents in this subclass. Growth is company-wide, not class-only.
How does G03B compare inside parent class G03?
Inside G03 (PHOTOGRAPHY; CINEMATOGRAPHY; Analogous Techniques Using Waves Other Than Optical WAVES; ELECTROGRAPHY; Holography), G03B ranks #2 of 6 subclasses by grant volume and holds 29.7% of the parent class total. The largest sibling is G03G (26,691 grants).

What to do with this data

G03B in context - here's where to go next.

  • Canon Kabushiki Kaisha leads G03B with 1,705 grants in this class. See full portfolio
  • G03B ranks #92 of 670 by grant volume among all tracked CPC technology areas. See the ranking
  • Inside parent class G03, the largest sibling subclass is G03G with 26,691 grants. Explore G03G

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

Methodology - G03B figures are USPTO PatentsView granted-utility totals for this subclass (21,728 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.