G06E OPTICAL COMPUTING DEVICES
Introduced: January 1990
Classification Context
- Section:
- PHYSICS
- Class:
- COMPUTING OR CALCULATING; COUNTING
- Subclass:
- OPTICAL COMPUTING DEVICES
Description
G06E covers computing and calculating devices that use optical phenomena as the primary operational mechanism, including photonic processors and light-based logic systems. These technologies employ photons, light beams, or optical signals to perform computational functions such as arithmetic operations, data processing, and logical operations that are traditionally handled by electronic computers. Typical inventions include optical gates, photonic circuits, holographic processors, and systems using interference or diffraction for information manipulation. This subclass excludes purely electronic computing devices (G06F) and optical display or measurement instruments lacking computational function.
Filing statistics
IPC subclass G06E recorded 1,661 patent applications worldwide between 2013 and 2023. Annual filings grew from 129 in 2013 to 209 in 2023 (+62%), peaking at 323 applications in 2021. The most active applicants in class G06 are SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS COMPANY (66,669 applications), IBM (INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION) (62,313 applications) and MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING (41,918 applications).
Source: EPO PATSTAT, worldwide filings
In class comparison
G06E ranks 9th of 12 subclasses with filings in G06, with 1,661 applications between 2013 and 2023, 0.0% of the class. Annual filings grew 62% from 2013 to 2023, below the class as a whole (+191%).
| Rank | Subclass | Title | Applications | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | G06F, Electric Digital Data Processing | Electric Digital Data Processing | 2,990,091 | 46.1% |
| 2 | G06Q, Information and Communication Technology [ICT] Specially Adapted for Administrative, Commercial, Financial, Managerial or Supervisory Purposes; Systems or Methods Specially Adapted for Administrative, Commercial, Financial, Managerial or Supervisory Purposes, Not Otherwise Provided for | Information and Communication Technology [ICT] Specially Adapted for Administrative, Commercial, Financial, Managerial or Supervisory Purposes; Systems or Methods Specially Adapted for Administrative, Commercial, Financial, Managerial or Supervisory Purposes, Not Otherwise Provided for | 1,187,966 | 18.3% |
| 3 | G06T, Image Data Processing or Generation, in General | Image Data Processing or Generation, in General | 689,851 | 10.6% |
| 4 | G06N, Computing Arrangements Based on Specific Computational Models | Computing Arrangements Based on Specific Computational Models | 613,242 | 9.5% |
| 5 | G06K, Graphical Data Reading; Presentation of Data; Record Carriers; Handling Record Carriers | Graphical Data Reading; Presentation of Data; Record Carriers; Handling Record Carriers | 601,580 | 9.3% |
| 6 | G06V, Image or Video Recognition or Understanding | Image or Video Recognition or Understanding | 380,096 | 5.9% |
| 7 | G06M, Counting Mechanisms; Counting of Objects Not Otherwise Provided for | Counting Mechanisms; Counting of Objects Not Otherwise Provided for | 11,112 | 0.2% |
| 8 | G06G, Analogue Computers | Analogue Computers | 5,173 | 0.1% |
| 9 | G06E | Optical Computing Devices | 1,661 | 0.0% |
| 10 | G06C, Digital Computers in Which All the Computation Is Effected Mechanically | Digital Computers in Which All the Computation Is Effected Mechanically | 1,283 | 0.0% |
Source: EPO PATSTAT, worldwide filings
Additional Content
Digital storage using optical elements
Related Keywords
2 direct subcodes
Child Classifications
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Top Applicants
Top 10 applicants by patent filingsfor class G06, 2013–2023, worldwide · Source: EPO PATSTAT
- SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS COMPANY KR 66,669
- IBM (INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORPORATION) US 62,313
- MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING US 41,918
- GOOGLE US 32,969
- SGCC(STATE GRID CORPORATION OF CHINA) 30,822
- INTEL CORPORATION US 30,010
- TENCENT TECHNOLOGY (SHENZHEN) COMPANY 28,235
- HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES COMPANY CN 26,079
- APPLE US 21,891
- HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES COMPANY 20,505