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List of prolific inventors

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Keithrwalker (talk | contribs) at 00:44, 7 February 2024 (→Prolific Inventors: Updated patent data; there are some atypical USPTO updates such as Shou-Shan Fan and Ahmadreza Rofougaran losing patents, and some inventors lost families despite gaining patents. It's been a long time since I've seen unusual data. In the past they were usually corrected in the next update.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Revision as of 00:44, 7 February 2024 by Keithrwalker (talk | contribs) (→Prolific Inventors: Updated patent data; there are some atypical USPTO updates such as Shou-Shan Fan and Ahmadreza Rofougaran losing patents, and some inventors lost families despite gaining patents. It's been a long time since I've seen unusual data. In the past they were usually corrected in the next update.)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)

The 100 known most prolific inventors based on worldwide utility patents are shown in the following table. While in many cases this is the number of utility patents granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office, it may include utility patents granted by other countries, as noted by the source references for an inventor.

Prolific Inventors

Inventor Pats Fams Fam % Pat Yrs Yrs Pat /Yr Inv /Pat Pat Residence Majority Assignment
Shunpei Yamazaki 6270 2788 44.5% 1972—2024 51.8 121 3.6  Japan Semiconductor Energy Laboratory
Kia Silverbrook 4747 1311 27.6% 1994—2014 20 237 1.6  Australia Silverbrook Research
Tao Luo 2905 2433 83.8% 2006—2024 17.7 164 5.6  USA Qualcomm
Kangguo Cheng 2716 1483 54.6% 2004—2024 19.2 141 3.9  USA IBM
Frederick E. Shelton IV 2171 1052 48.5% 2005—2024 18.6 117 4.5  USA Ethicon
Lowell L. Wood, Jr. 1991 1323 66.4% 1971—2024 52.2 38 8.8  USA Intellectual Ventures
Peter Gaal 1958 1509 77.1% 2002—2024 21.5 91 5.9  USA Qualcomm
Junyi Li 1935 1637 84.6% 2002—2024 21.2 91 5.2  USA Qualcomm
Roderick A. Hyde 1888 1252 66.3% 2001—2023 22.5 84 8.7  USA Intellectual Ventures
Wanshi Chen 1870 1453 77.7% 2009—2024 14.7 127 5.7  USA Qualcomm
Chen-Hua Yu 1655 918 55.5% 1996—2024 27.7 60 4.9  Taiwan TSMC
Hanbyul Seo 1549 1135 73.3% 2012—2024 11.8 131 3.8  South Korea LG
Jun Koyama 1476 618 41.9% 1991—2023 32.4 46 3.1  Japan Semiconductor Energy Laboratory
Gurtej Singh Sandhu 1417 585 41.3% 1991—2024 32.5 44 2.5  USA Micron
Xiaoxia Zhang 1399 1229 87.8% 2009—2024 15 93 5.5  USA Qualcomm
Esmael H. Dinan 1341 594 44.3% 2006—2024 17.6 76 3.6  USA Ofinno
Paul Lapstun 1304 246 18.9% 2000—2023 23 57 2.5  Australia Silverbrook Research
Shou-Shan Fan 1295 1083 83.6% 2006—2024 17.8 73 4.2  China Hon Hai
Clarence T. Tegreene 1245 902 72.4% 2000—2024 23.1 54 10.1  USA Intellectual Ventures
Alexander Reznicek 1224 728 59.5% 2006—2024 17.8 69 3.9  USA IBM
Sarbajit K. Rakshit 1201 987 82.2% 2013—2024 11 109 3.4  India IBM
Jing Sun 1170 1003 85.7% 2012—2024 11.1 105 5.9  USA Qualcomm
Satoshi Seo 1120 532 47.5% 2002—2024 21.1 53 4.1  Japan Semiconductor Energy Laboratory
Leonard Forbes 1109 411 37.1% 1975—2019 43.3 26 2.6  USA Micron
Edward K. Y. Jung 1109 794 71.6% 1996—2023 27.4 40 8.0  USA Intellectual Ventures
Kijun Kim 1104 780 70.7% 2013—2024 10.1 109 4.6  South Korea LG
Thomas Edison 1084 NA NA 1869—1933 63.9 17 1.0  USA Thomas Edison
Rick Allen Hamilton II 1061 713 67.2% 1999—2024 24.8 43 4.2  USA IBM
Suckchel Yang 1059 681 64.3% 2013—2024 10.6 100 4.7  South Korea LG
Joonkui Ahn 1046 679 64.9% 2013—2024 10.6 99 4.7  South Korea LG
Marta Karczewicz 1011 836 82.7% 2000—2024 23.1 44 4.0  USA Qualcomm
Donald E. Weder 1000 395 39.5% 1978—2015 37.1 27 1.1  USA Weder Family Trust
George Albert Lyon 993 NA NA 1901—1965 64.5 15 1.0  Canada Lyon George Albert
Michael J. Sullivan 992 534 53.8% 1989—2024 34.5 29 3.8  USA Acushnet Holdings
Jordin T. Kare 986 640 64.9% 1992—2023 30.7 32 9.1  USA Intellectual Ventures
Shan Liu 981 682 69.5% 2013—2024 10.4 94 3.4  USA Tencent
Jason K. Resch 980 498 50.8% 2009—2024 14.4 68 4.2  USA IBM
Jay S. Walker 977 421 43.1% 1998—2023 25.1 39 5.2  USA Walker Digital
Ruilong Xie 975 724 74.3% 2013—2024 11 89 4.2  USA IBM
Juan Montojo 962 779 81.0% 2004—2024 19.9 48 6.9  USA Qualcomm
Yunjung Yi 958 685 71.5% 2015—2024 8.2 117 3.3  South Korea LG
John F. O'Connor 949 NA NA 1901—1935 33.9 28 NA  USA William H. Miner
Ahmadreza Rofougaran 938 456 48.6% 2002—2023 21.5 44 6.4  USA Broadcom
Melvin De Groote 925 NA NA 1924—1966 41.8 22 NA  USA Petrolite
Jason L. Harris 918 568 61.9% 2011—2024 13 71 6.0  USA Ethicon
Tingfang Ji 916 682 74.5% 2006—2024 17.5 52 6.9  USA Qualcomm
David R. Hall 905 750 82.9% 1985—2024 38.5 24 3.8  USA Hall Labs
Nathan Myhrvold 904 612 67.7% 1994—2023 29.1 31 11.1  USA Intellectual Ventures
William H. Eby 898 894 99.6% 1994—2024 29.7 30 1.2  USA Monsanto
Francis H. Richards 894 NA NA 1899—1930 30.8 29 NA  USA Francis H. Richards
Takahiro Nishi 894 334 37.4% 2001—2024 22.4 40 6.3  Japan Panasonic
Mark Malamud 885 690 78.0% 1997—2023 25.9 34 7.5  USA Intellectual Ventures
Robert W. Lord 865 681 78.7% 2003—2023 19.4 45 7.6  USA Intellectual Ventures
Hajime Kimura 855 279 32.6% 2002—2024 21.2 40 2.6  Japan Semiconductor Energy Laboratory
Royce A. Levien 854 666 78.0% 1997—2023 25.9 33 6.8  USA Intellectual Ventures
Muriel Y. Ishikawa 838 560 66.8% 2002—2023 21.2 40 11.1  USA Intellectual Ventures
Hongyuan Zhang 835 463 55.4% 2009—2024 14.7 57 3.9  USA Marvell
Michael K. Gschwind 834 442 53.0% 2001—2023 22 38 2.6  USA IBM
Clifford A. Pickover 829 546 65.9% 1992—2024 31.8 26 3.9  USA IBM
Lee D. Whetsel 826 128 15.5% 1991—2024 32.8 25 1.1  USA Texas Instruments
Seungmin Lee 822 601 73.1% 2014—2024 9.3 88 3.5  South Korea LG
Chih-Chao Yang 819 506 61.8% 2003—2024 20.1 41 3.4  USA IBM
Devendra K. Sadana 802 452 56.4% 1983—2024 40.9 20 4.3  USA IBM
Salman Akram 782 290 37.1% 1995—2024 28.6 27 2.9  USA Micron
SungDuck Chun 779 472 60.6% 2007—2024 16.1 48 3.8  South Korea LG
Warren M. Farnworth 774 289 37.3% 1990—2020 24.4 32 2.8  USA Micron
Bruce B. Doris 763 433 56.7% 1995—2023 28.7 27 4.2  USA IBM
Jeyhan Karaoguz 756 371 49.1% 1996—2020 23.8 32 4.6  USA Broadcom
Carleton Ellis 753 NA NA 1902—1946 43.1 17 NA  USA Ellis Foster Co
Ali Khakifirooz 749 405 54.1% 2011—2023 12 62 4.2  USA IBM
John M. Santosuosso 737 466 63.2% 2001—2023 21.4 34 3.9  USA IBM
Hsien-Wei Chen 737 372 50.5% 2005—2024 18.9 39 3.5  Taiwan TSMC
Hideo Ando 733 123 16.8% 1983—2020 36.7 20 3.1  Japan Toshiba
George Spector 723 723 100% 1974—1998 24.6 29 2.1  USA George Spector
Xue Dong 723 711 98.3% 2010—2024 13.1 55 7.4  China BOE
Youngdae Lee 720 565 78.5% 2014—2024 9.8 73 3.1  South Korea LG
Austin L. Gurney 718 182 25.3% 1999—2022 21.6 33 2.9  USA Genentech
Justin T. Mason 714 710 99.4% 2008—2024 15.2 47 1.0  USA MS Technologies
Stuart C. Salter 704 659 93.6% 2009—2024 14.1 50 4.8  USA Ford
Gregory J. Boss 701 479 68.3% 2008—2024 15.9 44 4.2  USA IBM
Shougo Sato 701 277 39.5% 1992—2024 31.3 22 1.8  Japan Brother
Tetsujiro Kondo 700 528 75.4% 1987—2021 34 21 3.8  Japan Sony
Lisa Seacat DeLuca 700 507 72.4% 2009—2023 14.8 47 2.7  USA IBM
Jean-Philippe M. Vasseur 699 565 80.8% 2006—2024 17.8 39 2.6  France Cisco Systems
Elihu Thomson 696 NA NA 1899—1935 35.9 19 NA  USA GE
Irwin Gerszberg 680 312 45.9% 1994—2023 29.2 23 6.8  USA AT&T
Frederick A. Ware 680 222 32.6% 1981—2024 42.2 16 2.8  USA Rambus
Eric C. Leuthardt 674 457 67.8% 2006—2023 16.7 40 9.1  USA Intellectual Ventures
Chung-Shi Liu 663 374 56.4% 2000—2024 24 28 6.1  Taiwan TSMC
Satoshi Nagata 662 630 95.2% 2011—2024 12.3 54 4.0  Japan NTT
Paul S. Henry 656 301 45.9% 1978—2023 44.9 15 6.3  USA AT&T
William I. Wood 653 259 39.7% 1981—2013 32.2 20 5.2  USA Genentech
Simon R. Walmsley 651 171 26.3% 1995—2012 17.2 38 3.2  Australia Silverbrook Research
Jae Hoon Chung 650 381 58.6% 2010—2023 13 50 4.5  South Korea LG
Yan Zhou 637 571 89.6% 2012—2024 11.4 56 4.4  USA Qualcomm
Edward J. Nowak 635 410 64.6% 1979—2021 41.1 15 3.0  USA IBM
Hui-Ling Lou 635 344 54.2% 1997—2024 26.4 24 3.9  USA Marvell
Xiaochuan Chen 635 623 98.1% 2014—2024 9.5 67 7.0  China BOE
Woosuk Ko 631 238 37.7% 2015—2024 8.7 73 3.4  South Korea LG
Audrey D. Goddard 630 154 24.4% 1997—2023 26.2 24 5.3  USA Genentech

This table is usually updated every Tuesday, and is current as of February 6, 2024.

The columns are defined as follows:

  • Inventor: The name of the inventor.
  • Pats: The number of utility patents that have been issued. Only utility patents (or the international equivalent) are listed, as a utility patent is a patent for an invention. Not all patents are for inventions. Other patent types include: design patents for the ornamental design of an object; plant patents for plant varieties; and reissue patents, where a correction is made to an already granted patent. This list does not include patent applications (patents pending) as there is no guarantee that a patent application actually describes a novel invention until the patent is granted.
  • Fams: The number of patent families, which in USPTO data includes an original or continuation-in-part patent by itself or with one or more continuation or divisional patents based on the original or continuation-in-part patent. This is different than global patent families that represent a patent filed in more than one jurisdiction. "NA" signifies the inventor was active prior to digital records.
  • Fam %: The percentage of original and continuation-in-part patents that are in the inventor's patent portfolio . "NA" signifies the inventor was active prior to digital records.
  • Pat Yrs: The first and last year in which an inventor received a patent issuance.
  • Yrs: The number of years from first issuance to most recent issuance, rounded to first decimal based on dates.
  • Pats /Yr: The average number of patents received per year .
  • Inv / Pat: The average number of inventors listed on the inventor's most recent 50 patents as of September 7, 2021 or on the date the inventor was added to the table if later. "NA" signifies the inventor was active prior to digital records.
  • Pat Residence: The country of inventor's residence listed in their most recent patent issuance.
  • Majority Assignment: The entity that has the most patents assigned from an inventor's portfolio. This is current and not original assignment. It is usually, but not always an indication of which company the inventor worked at for the majority of their patent activity.

Significance of inventions

This table is a sortable list of the most prolific inventors as measured by utility patents granted. It does not include other types of invention, such as inventions that were never applied for nor granted, for which there is no known source. Nor does the table attempt to measure the significance of an inventor and their inventions. The significance of inventions is often not apparent until many decades after the invention has been made. For recent inventors, it is not yet possible to determine their place in history.

Various published lists

Rankings of prolific inventors have been published at various times. However, until the patent records were digitized, these lists were very tedious to prepare, as many thousands of patent records had to be checked manually. Even after digitization, it is still not a simple process. While the USPTO keeps statistics for annual rankings of inventions assigned to companies, it no longer publishes rankings of individual inventors. The last such list was published by the USPTO in 1998. Also, patents predating 1976 have not yet been digitized in the USPTO records. This means that patents before 1976 will not be included in a USPTO search by inventor name, and the number of patents granted before 1976 must be added to current searches.

A more extensive list of prolific inventors with additional information and ability to filter on country, gender, time period, patent type, and Nobel laureate title can be found at idiyas.com/top/inventors. There are some discrepancies with this article due to different inventor queries that attempt to account for data issues such as typos and multiple inventors with the same name.

See also

References

  1. "USPTO publication: Prolific Inventors Receiving Utility Patents 1988–1997" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2017-05-02. Retrieved 2011-07-12.

References of Inventors' Patents

  1. Shunpei Yamazaki
  2. Kia Silverbrook
  3. Tao Luo
  4. Kangguo Cheng
  5. Frederick E. Shelton IV
  6. Lowell L. Wood, Jr.
  7. Peter Gaal
  8. Junyi Li
  9. Roderick A. Hyde
  10. Wanshi Chen
  11. Chen-Hua Yu
  12. Hanbyul Seo
  13. Jun Koyama
  14. Gurtej Singh Sandhu
  15. Xiaoxia Zhang
  16. Esmael H. Dinan
  17. Paul Lapstun
  18. Shou-Shan Fan
  19. Clarence T. Tegreene
  20. Alexander Reznicek
  21. Sarbajit K. Rakshit
  22. Jing Sun
  23. Satoshi Seo
  24. Leonard Forbes
  25. Edward K. Y. Jung
  26. Kijun Kim
  27. Thomas Edison
  28. Rick Allen Hamilton II
  29. Suckchel Yang
  30. Joonkui Ahn
  31. Marta Karczewicz
  32. Donald E. Weder
  33. George Albert Lyon
  34. Michael J. Sullivan
  35. Jordin T. Kare
  36. Shan Liu
  37. Jason K. Resch
  38. Jay S. Walker
  39. Ruilong Xie
  40. Juan Montojo
  41. Yunjung Yi
  42. John F. O'Connor
  43. Ahmadreza Rofougaran
  44. Melvin De Groote
  45. Jason L. Harris
  46. Tingfang Ji
  47. David R. Hall
  48. Nathan Myhrvold
  49. William H. Eby
  50. Francis H. Richards
  51. Takahiro Nishi
  52. Mark Malamud
  53. Robert W. Lord
  54. Hajime Kimura
  55. Royce A. Levien
  56. Muriel Y. Ishikawa
  57. Hongyuan Zhang
  58. Michael K. Gschwind
  59. Clifford A. Pickover
  60. Lee D. Whetsel
  61. Seungmin Lee
  62. Chih-Chao Yang
  63. Devendra K. Sadana
  64. Salman Akram
  65. SungDuck Chun
  66. Warren M. Farnworth
  67. Bruce B. Doris
  68. Jeyhan Karaoguz
  69. Carleton Ellis
  70. Ali Khakifirooz
  71. John M. Santosuosso
  72. Hsien-Wei Chen
  73. Hideo Ando
  74. George Spector
  75. Xue Dong
  76. Youngdae Lee
  77. Austin L. Gurney
  78. Justin T. Mason
  79. Stuart C. Salter
  80. Gregory J. Boss
  81. Shougo Sato
  82. Tetsujiro Kondo
  83. Lisa Seacat DeLuca
  84. Jean-Philippe M. Vasseur
  85. Elihu Thomson
  86. Irwin Gerszberg
  87. Frederick A. Ware
  88. Eric C. Leuthardt
  89. Chung-Shi Liu
  90. Satoshi Nagata
  91. Paul S. Henry
  92. William I. Wood
  93. Simon R. Walmsley
  94. Jae Hoon Chung
  95. Yan Zhou
  96. Edward J. Nowak
  97. Hui-Ling Lou
  98. Xiaochuan Chen
  99. Woosuk Ko
  100. Audrey D. Goddard
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