Database Specific
Database Specific Abstract AbstractThis dataset comprises statistics on patents by main technology and International Patent Classification (IPC). EPO, USPTO, PCT and Triadic Patent Families are in fact presented according to classes of the International Patent Classification (IPC class up to 4 characters) and for selected technology domains such as ICT, nanotechnology, biotechnology as well as environment-related technologies. Data are presented from 1976 onwards.
Source Source Contact person/organisation Contact person/organisation Direct source Direct sourceBibliographic citation:
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development: Patent Statistics (October 2017 Edition). UK Data Service. https://doi.org/10.5257/oecd/pat/2017-10
Source metadata Source metadata Source Periodicity Source PeriodicityYearly
Data source(s) used Data source(s) usedThe OECD's Directorate for Science, Technology and Industry has developed patent data and indicators that are suitable for statistical analysis and that can help addressing S and T policy issues.
To date, the OECD Patent Database fully covers:
- Patent applications to the European Patent Office (EPO) (from 1978 onwards);
- Patents granted by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) (from 1976 onwards);
- Patents filed under the Patent Co-operation Treaty (PCT), at international phase, that designate the EPO (from 1978 onwards);
- Patents that belong to Triadic Patent Families (OECD definition): i.e. sub-set of patents all filed together at the EPO, at the Japanese Patent Office (JPO) and granted by the USPTO, protecting the same set of inventions.
EPO and PCT patent counts are based on data received from the EPO (EPO Bibliographic database, patent published until May 2014). Series on Triadic patent families are mainly derived from EPO's Worldwide Statistical Patent Database (PATSTAT, Spring 2014).
Indicators based on patent families improve the international comparability and the quality of patent's indicators (overcoming the drawbacks of traditional patent-based indicators, such as the "home advantage").
Data Characteristics Data Characteristics Date last updated Date last updatedOctober 2017
Reference period Reference periodPatent data are presented according to various dates (all based on calendar years). OECD patent indicators are aimed to provide a measure of the S and T output, therefore, there are usually published according to the priority date, which is the closest to the date of invention. However, there is a time lag between the priority date and the availability of patent information. To improve the timeliness of the OECD patent indicators, the latest years are estimated at an aggregated level: "nowcasting" of total EPO, total PCT and total Triadic Patent Families are provided up to priority year 2012 in the patents by technology fields dataset (Total_est). No estimates are provided for the number of USPTO patents.
In addition to the priority date, patent counts are also presented according to the date of application of the patents as well as the date of grant.
Unit of measure used Unit of measure usedNumber
Variables collected Variables collectedThree sets of indicators are provided:
Patent counts by technology (including total patents, estimated total patents for latest years):
EPO, USPTO, PCT and Triadic Patent Families are presented according to classes of the International Patent Classification (IPC class up to 4 characters) and for selected technology domains such as ICT, nanotechnology, biotechnology as well as environment-related technologies.
Patent counts by regions (EPO and PCT):
EPO and PCT filings are presented according to the region of the inventors/applicants' residence (Territorial Level 3), including total patents and selected technology domains (ICT, Biotechnology, Nanotechnology and environment related technologies).
Indicators of international co-operation (EPO, USPTO and PCT):
- Cross-border ownership of patents reflects international flows of knowledge from the inventor country to the applicant countries and international flows of funds for research (multinational companies).
- Co-inventions represent the international collaboration in the inventive process.
Population & Scope Population & Scope Geographic coverage Geographic coverageOECD member countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States
Non-OECD countries: Algeria, Andorra, Argentina, Armenia, Belarus, Bermuda, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cayman Islands, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Djibouti, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Georgia, Guatemala, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Islamic Republic of, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Malaysia, Malta, Republic of Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Zimbabwe
Concepts & Classifications Concepts & Classifications Key statistical concept Key statistical conceptPatents are a key measure of innovation output, as patent indicators reflect the inventive performance of countries, regions, technologies, firms, etc. They are also used to track the level of diffusion of knowledge across technology areas, countries, sectors, firms, etc., and the level of internationalisation of innovative activities. Patent indicators can serve to measure the output of R and D, its productivity, structure and the development of a specific technology/industry. The relationship between patents as an intermediate output resulting from R and D inputs has been investigated extensively. Patents are often interpreted as an output indicator; however, they could also be viewed as an input indicator, as patents are used as a source of information by subsequent inventors.
Like any other indicator, patent indicators have many advantages and disadvantages. The advantages of patent indicators are :
- patents have a close link to invention;
- patents cover a broad range of technologies on which there are sometimes few other sources of data;
- the contents of patent documents are a rich source of information (on the applicant, inventor, technology category, claims, etc.);
and
- patent data are readily available from patent offices.
However, patents are subject to certain drawbacks:
- the value distribution of patents is skewed as many patents have no industrial application (and hence are of little value to society) whereas a few are of substantial value;
- many inventions are not patented because they are not patentable or inventors may protect the inventions using other methods, such as secrecy, lead time, etc.;
- the propensity to patent differs across countries and industries;
- differences in patent regulations make it difficult to compare counts across countries;
and
-changes in patent law over the years make it difficult to analyse trends over time.
For further details on the methodology applied to patent indicators, please consult the following documentation :
Other Aspects Other Aspects Other comments Other commentsCopyright:
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Recommended uses and limitations Recommended uses and limitationsThis dataset comprises statistics on patents by main technology and International Patent Classification (IPC). EPO, USPTO, PCT and Triadic Patent Families are in fact presented according to classes of the International Patent Classification (IPC class up to 4 characters) and for selected technology domains such as ICT, nanotechnology, biotechnology as well as environment-related technologies. Data are presented from 1976 onwards.
The OECD's Directorate for Science, Technology and Industry has developed patent data and indicators that are suitable for statistical analysis and that can help addressing S and T policy issues.
To date, the OECD Patent Database fully covers:
- Patent applications to the European Patent Office (EPO) (from 1978 onwards);
- Patents granted by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) (from 1976 onwards);
- Patents filed under the Patent Co-operation Treaty (PCT), at international phase, that designate the EPO (from 1978 onwards);
- Patents that belong to Triadic Patent Families (OECD definition): i.e. sub-set of patents all filed together at the EPO, at the Japanese Patent Office (JPO) and granted by the USPTO, protecting the same set of inventions.
EPO and PCT patent counts are based on data received from the EPO (EPO Bibliographic database, patent published until May 2014). Series on Triadic patent families are mainly derived from EPO's Worldwide Statistical Patent Database (PATSTAT, Spring 2014).
Indicators based on patent families improve the international comparability and the quality of patent's indicators (overcoming the drawbacks of traditional patent-based indicators, such as the "home advantage").
Bibliographic citation:
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development: Patent Statistics (October 2017 Edition). UK Data Service. https://doi.org/10.5257/oecd/pat/2017-10
Yearly
Number
Three sets of indicators are provided:
Patent counts by technology (including total patents, estimated total patents for latest years):
EPO, USPTO, PCT and Triadic Patent Families are presented according to classes of the International Patent Classification (IPC class up to 4 characters) and for selected technology domains such as ICT, nanotechnology, biotechnology as well as environment-related technologies.
Patent counts by regions (EPO and PCT):
EPO and PCT filings are presented according to the region of the inventors/applicants' residence (Territorial Level 3), including total patents and selected technology domains (ICT, Biotechnology, Nanotechnology and environment related technologies).
Indicators of international co-operation (EPO, USPTO and PCT):
- Cross-border ownership of patents reflects international flows of knowledge from the inventor country to the applicant countries and international flows of funds for research (multinational companies).
- Co-inventions represent the international collaboration in the inventive process.
Patent data are presented according to various dates (all based on calendar years). OECD patent indicators are aimed to provide a measure of the S and T output, therefore, there are usually published according to the priority date, which is the closest to the date of invention. However, there is a time lag between the priority date and the availability of patent information. To improve the timeliness of the OECD patent indicators, the latest years are estimated at an aggregated level: "nowcasting" of total EPO, total PCT and total Triadic Patent Families are provided up to priority year 2012 in the patents by technology fields dataset (Total_est). No estimates are provided for the number of USPTO patents.
In addition to the priority date, patent counts are also presented according to the date of application of the patents as well as the date of grant.
October 2017
OECD member countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States
Non-OECD countries: Algeria, Andorra, Argentina, Armenia, Belarus, Bermuda, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cayman Islands, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Djibouti, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Georgia, Guatemala, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Islamic Republic of, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Malaysia, Malta, Republic of Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Zimbabwe
Patents are a key measure of innovation output, as patent indicators reflect the inventive performance of countries, regions, technologies, firms, etc. They are also used to track the level of diffusion of knowledge across technology areas, countries, sectors, firms, etc., and the level of internationalisation of innovative activities. Patent indicators can serve to measure the output of R and D, its productivity, structure and the development of a specific technology/industry. The relationship between patents as an intermediate output resulting from R and D inputs has been investigated extensively. Patents are often interpreted as an output indicator; however, they could also be viewed as an input indicator, as patents are used as a source of information by subsequent inventors.
Like any other indicator, patent indicators have many advantages and disadvantages. The advantages of patent indicators are :
- patents have a close link to invention;
- patents cover a broad range of technologies on which there are sometimes few other sources of data;
- the contents of patent documents are a rich source of information (on the applicant, inventor, technology category, claims, etc.);
and
- patent data are readily available from patent offices.
However, patents are subject to certain drawbacks:
- the value distribution of patents is skewed as many patents have no industrial application (and hence are of little value to society) whereas a few are of substantial value;
- many inventions are not patented because they are not patentable or inventors may protect the inventions using other methods, such as secrecy, lead time, etc.;
- the propensity to patent differs across countries and industries;
- differences in patent regulations make it difficult to compare counts across countries;
and
-changes in patent law over the years make it difficult to analyse trends over time.
For further details on the methodology applied to patent indicators, please consult the following documentation :
Copyright:
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development