CPC technology class · H01

H01T - Spark Gaps

Spark gaps; overvoltage arresters using spark gaps; sparking plugs; corona devices; generating ions to be introduced into non-enclosed gases. 1,823 US utility patents granted 2015–2025, with the leading assignees and year-by-year grant trajectory.

Compiled by PlainPatent · May 15, 2026

1,823
US patents granted: #13/14
in H01: 0.4%
H01 class share: -32%
5-yr velocity

The verdict

According to USPTO PatentsView, Spark Gaps ranks #376 of 670 CPC technology areas - 1,823 US patents granted since 2015, with recorded grant volume down 32% over five years.

#376
of 670 CPC technology areas: 1,823
US patents granted, 2015–2025: Ngk Spark Plug
leading assignee (304): -32%
grant velocity, last 5 yrs

How H01T's grant cadence moved

Between 2020–2024, H01T recorded 678 grants versus 1,002 in 2015–2019 (-32% equal-window velocity). Across complete years, output peaked in 2017 at 222 grants and bottomed in 2022 at 110 (+102% peak-over-trough). Lead assignee NGK Spark Plug Co., Ltd. holds 16.7% of the class ; the top three share 24.1%.

Leaderboard read

H01T concentration, lead at 16.7%

NGK Spark Plug Co., Ltd. leads this historical grant record at 16.7% of H01T - foreign corporation assignees hold 81% of class grants (713 of 882). Figures describe granted US utility patents in this CPC subclass, not current investment or legal strength.

Leader's share: 16.7%
Top three share: 24.1%
Lead over #2: 196

Where H01T sits inside H01

Among 14 subclasses in H01 (Electric Elements), H01T ranks #13 and holds 0.4% of the parent class's 406,481 recorded grants. Sibling chips below are the other subclasses in the same parent class, not the nationwide volume/lead-share peers further down.

H01L 165,178 H01M 63,620 H01R 35,523 H01Q 29,793 H01J 24,482 H01F 21,711 H01H 14,753 H01B 14,745

Rising assignees active in H01T

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 Niterra Co., Ltd. 38x 0 → 38 company-wide · 21 in H01T
#2 Dehn SE 26x 0 → 26 company-wide · 13 in H01T
#3 Shine Technologies, LLC 16x 0 → 16 company-wide · 5 in H01T
#4 EcoPower Spark, LLC 5.00x 0 → 5 company-wide · 6 in H01T
#5 TDK Electronics AG 2.22x 58 → 129 company-wide · 12 in H01T

H01T grants by year, peak 2017 (222)

US utility-patent grants per year in H01T, 2015–2025 - recent five years are down 32% versus 2015–2019.

Ngk Spark Plug

304
Federal-mogul Ignition

108
Borgwarner Ludwigsburg

27
Global Plasma…

26
Phoenix Contact & Kg

23
Niterra

21
Epcos

20
Dehn + SÖHne + Kg

16
Tenneco

15
Imagineering

14
Dehn Se

13
Fram Group Ip

13

What this shows Ngk Spark Plug is the most active filer in H01T, holding 304 of the 1,823 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 H01T
Rank	Company	Patents in H01T
#1	NGK Spark Plug Co., Ltd.	304
#2	Federal-mogul Ignition GMBH	108
#3	BorgWarner Ludwigsburg GmbH	27
#4	Global Plasma Solutions, Inc.	26
#5	Phoenix Contact GMBH & Co. KG	23
#6	Niterra Co., Ltd.	21
#7	Epcos AG	20
#8	Dehn + SÖHNE GMBH + Co. KG	16
#9	Tenneco GmbH	15
#10	Imagineering, Inc.	14
#11	Dehn SE	13
#12	Fram Group IP, LLC	13
#13	TDK Electronics AG	12
#14	IONaer International Arizona, LLC	11
#15	Plasma Air International, Inc.	10
#16	Federal-Mogul LLC	9
#17	Phoenix, LLC	9
#18	West Virginia University	8
#19	SMC Corporation	7
#20	Rosenberger Hochfrequenztechnik GmbH & Co. KG	7

Footprint here vs. claim strategy

Each dot is a leading H01T 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 H01T assignees by class footprint. Bubble size = patents in H01T. Source: USPTO PatentsView (claim depth is company-wide across all classes).

Classes near H01T's 1,823-grant footprint

Nationwide nearest neighbors for H01T (#376 of 670 by volume ; lead share 16.7%) - not the H01 parent-class siblings above.

Nearest by grant volume

A23P 1,818 F16G 1,830 E02B 1,837 B21J 1,805

Nearest by lead-assignee share

D05B 16.6% C03C 16.8% F25C 16.4% A24B 16.3%

Questions about H01T

Which company holds the most patents in H01T?

NGK Spark Plug Co., Ltd. leads H01T with 304 patents (16.7% of the subclass). By PatentsView assignee type, foreign corporations account for 81% of class grants.

Which H01T assignees grew fastest recently?

Among assignees with ≥5 grants in H01T, Niterra Co., Ltd. shows the highest company-wide grant multiple (38x: 0 grants in 2019–2021 → 38 in 2022–2024) while holding 21 patents in this subclass. Growth is company-wide, not class-only.

How does H01T compare inside parent class H01?

Inside H01 (Electric Elements), H01T ranks #13 of 14 subclasses by grant volume and holds 0.4% of the parent class total. The largest sibling is H01L (165,178 grants).

What to do with this data

H01T in context - here's where to go next.

NGK Spark Plug Co., Ltd. leads H01T with 304 grants in this class. See full portfolio
H01T ranks #376 of 670 by grant volume among all tracked CPC technology areas. See the ranking
Inside parent class H01, the largest sibling subclass is H01L with 165,178 grants. Explore H01L

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

Methodology - H01T figures are USPTO PatentsView granted-utility totals for this subclass (1,823 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.