PlainPatent

CPC technology class · G04

G04R - Radio-controlled Time-pieces

Radio-controlled time-pieces. 623 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year filing trajectory.

623
US patents granted
G04
Parent CPC class
20
Active assignees
-4%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

Radio-controlled Time-pieces ranks #516 of 670 CPC technology areas - 623 US patents granted since 2015, with filing down 4% over five years.

#516
of 670 CPC technology areas
623
US patents granted, 2015–2025
Seiko Epson
leading assignee (156)
-4%
filing velocity, last 5 yrs
Top assignee: Seiko Epson Corporation (156 patents)

CPC subclass G04R - RADIO-CONTROLLED TIME-PIECES - covers 623 US utility patents granted between 2015 and 2025 according to USPTO PatentsView records, within the broader CPC class G04 (HOROLOGY). See our CPC classification guide for how the system works.

The competitive landscape in G04R is shaped by 20 distinct companies actively filing in this space. Seiko Epson Corporation leads with 156 patents, followed by Citizen Watch Co., Ltd. at 12 grants and ETA Sa Manufacture Horlogère Suisse at 12.

Filing activity in G04R is down 4% 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 G04R innovation accelerating?

US utility-patent grants per year in G04R, 2015–2025 - recent five years are down 4% versus 2015–2019.

203040506070 20152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 31

Who leads G04R?

The 12 most active assignees in RADIO-CONTROLLED TIME-PIECES - wider bars mean more grants

patents

What this shows Seiko Epson is the most active filer in G04R, holding 156 of the 623 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 G04R
Rank Company Patents in G04R
#1 Casio Computer Co., Ltd. 106
#2 Citizen Watch Co., Ltd. 12
#3 ETA Sa Manufacture Horlogère Suisse 12
#4 SII Crystal Technology Inc. 10
#5 Garmin Switzerland Gmbh 7
#6 Citizen Holdings Co., Ltd. 6
#7 Timex Group USA, Inc. 4
#8 Princo Corp. 4
#9 Suunto Oy 3
#10 U-blox Ag 2
#11 Enlighted, Inc. 2
#12 Seiko Clock Inc. 2
#13 Solid, Inc. 1
#14 Anhui Huami Information Technology Co., Ltd. 1
#15 Black Sesame Technologies Inc. 1
#16 Skylo Technologies, Inc. 1
#17 Airspan Networks Inc. 1
#18 Iposi, Inc. 1
#19 Shenzhen Amazwear Technology Co., Ltd. 1
#20 Galtronics USA, Inc. 1

About This Class

CPC subclass G04R belongs to class G04.

623 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 G04R 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 G04R assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in G04R. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Top 14 G04R assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in G04R. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes). Scatter plot of 14 data points (bubble-sized by third dimension). 0510152025 -50050100150 Patents in G04R Avg claims / patent (company-wide) Casio ComputerCitizen WatchEta Manufacture Horlo…Sii Crystal TechnologyGarmin SwitzerlandCitizen HoldingsTimex Group UsaPrincoSuunto Oyu-bloxEnlightedSeiko ClockSolidAnhui Huami Informati…
Top 14 G04R assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in G04R. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CPC class G04R?
CPC subclass G04R covers RADIO-CONTROLLED TIME-PIECES. It belongs to CPC class G04 (HOROLOGY), with 623 US utility patents granted since 2015.
How many patents have been filed in G04R?
623 US utility patents were granted in CPC subclass G04R between 2015 and 2025, based on USPTO PatentsView data.
Which company holds the most patents in G04R?
Seiko Epson Corporation leads G04R with 156 patents, making it the most active assignee in this technology area.
How is patent data for G04R 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., G04) is a broad technology category. Subclasses like G04R 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.