Belgium broke a record in 2022 with 2,604 patent applications, a 5% increase from the previous year, and surpassed the average number of patent applications in other European countries. Chemical company Solvay was the most active Belgian applicant at the European Patent Office, with 244 applications. The Flanders-based companies or organizations contributed the most applications, accounting for 66.4%, with Wallonia and Brussels contributing 19.3% and 14.3%, respectively. Patent applications in the field of special machinery increased sharply by 52.4%, becoming the leading research field in Belgium, while pharmaceutical companies (-1.7%), biotechnology (+12.6%), and medical technology (-8.3%) saw a decrease. The top five countries with the most patent applications at the European Patent Office were the United States, Germany, Japan, China, and France.
Record Number of Belgian Patent Applications
Belgium has set a new record with its highest number of patent applications in 2022. According to the EPO Patent Index, Belgian universities, companies, and research institutions submitted 2,604 patent applications to the European Patent Office (EPO). Despite global skepticism, this is a 5% increase compared to the previous year.
Belgium experienced a sharper-than-average increase in patent applications. Among the 39 member states of the European Patent Office, the average increase in patent applications was 0.1%, and in the 27 European countries, there was an average decrease of 0.5%. Belgium ranks ninth among European countries.
Belgian patent applications in the “special machinery” field, which covers machining technology across various industries and 3D printing, saw a significant increase of 52.4%, making it the leading research field in Belgium. In contrast, pharmaceutical companies (-1.7%), biotechnology (+12.6%), and medical technology (-8.3%) saw a decrease in patent applications.
Chemical company Solvay, with 244 patent applications, was the most active Belgian applicant at the European Patent Office in 2022, followed by imec Leuven Research Center (155 applications), KU Leuven (121), Umicore (102), and Ghent University (67).
Of the 2,604 Belgian applications, 66.4% came from Flanders-based companies or organizations, with Wallonia accounting for 19.3% and Brussels 14.3%. Flemish Brabant surpassed Antwerp as the number one Belgian province.
Globally, the United States, Germany, Japan, China, and France were the top five countries with the most patent applications at the European Patent Office in 2022. China’s patent applications increased by 15.1% last year and have more than doubled over the past five years.
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