Machines for cleaning, blanching, drying or roasting fruits or vegetables, e.g. coffee, cocoa, nuts (methods for treating, e.g. roasting, coffee or cocoa, A23F, A23G; cleaning, e.g. washing, or drying grain B02B1/00; separating solids from solids for cleaning B07B; cleaning in general B08B; heating devices per se, see the relevant classes, e.g. F24; drying machines in general F26B)

Filing statistics

CPC A23N 12/00 belongs to the parent subclass A23N, which recorded 30,721 patent applications worldwide between 2013 and 2023. Annual filings grew from 830 in 2013 to 2,253 in 2023 (+171%), peaking at 5,233 applications in 2018. The most active applicants in class A23 are NESTLE (5,075 applications), NESTEC (3,916 applications) and DSM IP ASSETS (DUTCH STATE MINES IP ASSETS) (2,558 applications).

Source: EPO PATSTAT, worldwide filings