ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY

Description

B33 covers processes and machines for manufacturing objects by successive addition of material layers, including 3D printing, rapid prototyping, and related technologies. This class encompasses various additive manufacturing methods such as stereolithography, selective laser sintering, fused deposition modeling, and inkjet-based printing systems, along with the apparatus, materials handling, and post-processing techniques employed in these processes. It addresses both the equipment design and operational methods for building three-dimensional structures from digital models, as well as specialized materials and processing parameters specific to additive manufacturing applications.

Filing statistics

IPC B33 recorded 144,289 patent applications worldwide between 2013 and 2023, summed across its 1 subclasses. Annual filings grew from 545 in 2013 to 15,453 in 2023 (+2735%), peaking at 19,180 applications in 2020. The most active applicants in class B33 are HEWLETT-PACKARD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY (3,558 applications), GE (GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY) (1,721 applications) and SEIKO EPSON CORPORATION (810 applications).

Source: EPO PATSTAT, worldwide filings