E01B PERMANENT WAY; PERMANENT-WAY TOOLS; MACHINES FOR MAKING RAILWAYS OF ALL KINDS
Introduced: September 1968
Classification Context
- Section:
- FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
- Class:
- CONSTRUCTION OF ROADS, RAILWAYS, OR BRIDGES
- Subclass:
- PERMANENT WAY; PERMANENT-WAY TOOLS; MACHINES FOR MAKING RAILWAYS OF ALL KINDS
Description
E01B covers the design, construction, and maintenance of railway track structures (permanent way), including rails, sleepers, ballast, and fastening systems. It encompasses tools, machines, and equipment used for laying, assembling, aligning, and servicing railway tracks across all railway types and gauges. This classification includes machines for track grinding, welding, tamping, and ballast placement, as well as specialized apparatus for track inspection and repair. Related bridge and road construction work is classified separately under E01C and E01D respectively.
Filing statistics
IPC subclass E01B recorded 41,210 patent applications worldwide between 2013 and 2023. Annual filings grew from 2,291 in 2013 to 3,847 in 2023 (+68%), peaking at 5,247 applications in 2020. The most active applicants in class E01 are CHINA RAILWAY SIYUAN SURVEY AND DESIGN GROUP COMPANY (2,096 applications), CHANG AN UNIVERSITY (1,878 applications) and ROAD & BRIDGE INTERNATIONAL COMPANY (1,796 applications).
Source: EPO PATSTAT, worldwide filings
Related Keywords
21 direct subcodes
Child Classifications
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- E01B 1/00 Ballastway; Other means for supporting the sleepers or the track; Drainage of the ballastway
- E01B 11/00 Rail joints
- E01B 13/00 Arrangements preventing shifting of the track
- E01B 15/00 Guards for preventing a person's foot being trapped in grooved rails
- E01B 17/00 Cattle guards connected to the permanent way
- E01B 19/00 Protection of permanent way against development of dust or against the effect of wind, sun, frost, or corrosion; Means to reduce development of noise
- E01B 2/00 General structure of permanent way
- E01B 21/00 Track superstructure specially adapted for tramways in paved streets
- E01B 23/00 Easily dismountable or movable tracks, e.g. temporary railways; Details specially adapted therefor
- E01B 25/00 Tracks for special kinds of railways
- E01B 26/00 Tracks or track components not covered by any one of main groups
- E01B 27/00 Placing, renewing, working, cleaning, or taking-up the ballast, with or without concurrent work on the track; Devices therefor; Packing sleepers
- E01B 29/00 Laying, rebuilding, or taking-up tracks; Tools or machines therefor
- E01B 3/00 Transverse or longitudinal sleepers; Other means resting directly on the ballastway for supporting rails
- E01B 31/00 Working rails, sleepers, baseplates, or the like, in or on the line; Machines, tools, or auxiliary devices specially designed therefor
- E01B 33/00 Machines or devices for shifting tracks, with or without lifting, e.g. for aligning track, for shifting excavator track
- E01B 35/00 Applications of measuring apparatus or devices for track-building purposes
- E01B 37/00 Making, maintaining, renewing, or taking-up the ballastway or the track, not provided for in a single one of groups
- E01B 5/00 Rails; Guard rails; Distance-keeping means for them
- E01B 7/00 Switches; Crossings
Top Applicants
Top 10 applicants by patent filingsfor class E01, 2013–2023, worldwide · Source: EPO PATSTAT
- CHINA RAILWAY SIYUAN SURVEY AND DESIGN GROUP COMPANY 2,096
- CHANG AN UNIVERSITY 1,878
- ROAD & BRIDGE INTERNATIONAL COMPANY 1,796
- CREEC (CHINA RAILWAY ERYUAN ENGINEERING GROUP) 1,493
- CHINA RAILWAY MAJOR BRIDGE ENGINEERING GROUP COMPANY 1,327
- CCCC FIRST HIGHWAY ENGINEERING GROUP COMPANY 1,133
- CCCC SECOND HARBOUR ENGINEERING COMPANY 1,029
- PLASSER & THEURER EXPORT VON BAHNBAUMASCHINEN AT 935
- TONGJI UNIVERSITY 899
- CATERPILLAR PAVING PRODUCTS US 868