Technology Topic
Agricultural Machinery Patent Classification
Farm machinery spreads over the first three subclasses of the entire classification: A01B for soil working, A01C for planting and fertilising, A01D for harvesting.
Precision-agriculture patents typically combine these with G05D for autonomous steering or G06V for crop recognition, which is where the agtech growth concentrates.
The classification codes that matter
SOIL WORKING IN AGRICULTURE OR FORESTRY; PARTS, DETAILS, OR ACCESSORIES OF AGRICULTURAL…
Soil working: ploughs, tillage implements and their smart-farming refinements.
2018 → 2023: 10,800 → 10,837 filings (+0 %)
PLANTING; SOWING; FERTILISING
Planting, sowing and fertilising: seeders, planters and variable-rate application.
2018 → 2023: 19,647 → 19,652 filings (+0 %)
HARVESTING; MOWING
Harvesting: combines, mowers and the automation of the harvest.
2018 → 2023: 14,497 → 11,228 filings (-23 %)
Who files here: top applicants
- 1 CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 6,725
- 2 JOHN DEERE (US) 6,555
- 3 MONSANTO TECHNOLOGY (US) 6,280
- 4 DOW AGROSCIENCES (US) 5,260
- 5 BASF (BADISCHE ANILIN & SODA FABRIK) (DE) 5,106
IPC filings 2013–2023, aggregated across the codes above. Source: EPO PATSTAT.
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