Analysis of Paulownia-related Patents

Paulownia is a collective name for plants of the genus Paulownia in the family Scrophulariaceae. It is a deciduous tree that is evergreen in tropical climates. It prefers light, is relatively shade-tolerant, and prefers warm climates. It is not very cold-tolerant and is well adapted to heavy, infertile soils. It grows very rapidly in its juvenile stages, making it a fast-growing species. Paulownia species are native to China but were introduced to Vietnam, Japan, and other parts of Asia long ago. They are now distributed worldwide and have both medicinal and economic value.

This paper analyzes and studies the global paulownia-related patents, aiming to grasp its technological development trends, main competitors, patent layout status, and important patent technical points from a global perspective, and provide some references for my country's paulownia-related research.

1. Data Source

The data retrieval and analysis tool used was the PatSnap patent analysis system, with searches conducted on June 14, 2018. The PatSnap patent analysis system collects patents from 103 countries and organizations worldwide, currently containing over 120 million patent documents. The search query for this study was: title=(Paulownia OR paulownia). The search results showed 1,120 paulownia-related patent applications worldwide, of which 232 were granted.

2. Application trend analysis

3. Regional analysis

4. Technology classification analysis

According to the International Patent Classification (IPC) of global paulownia-related patents, the most common technology area is medicinal or cosmetic preparations (A61K), accounting for 30.89% of all paulownia patents. This is particularly true for preparations containing substances derived from algae, mosses, fungi, plants, or their derivatives (A61K36). This is followed by specific therapeutic activity of compounds or pharmaceutical preparations (A61P), animal feed (A23K), specific uses of cosmetics or similar cosmetic preparations (A61Q), fertilizer mixtures (C05G), cultivation techniques (A01G), biocides (A01N), and wood processing or specialty wood product manufacturing (B27M). Over the past five years, the number of paulownia-related patents in these two technology areas has shown an upward trend, while the number of patents in other technology areas has remained relatively stable.

5. Analysis of the main applicant

An analysis of applicants for Paulownia-related patents shows that Johnson & Johnson Consumer Products of the United States leads all other applicants with 73 patents, accounting for 6.52% of the total. The company emphasizes a global patent portfolio. In second place is the Paulownia Research and Development Center of the State Forestry Administration of China, with 23 patents, all filed in China. In third place is Kim Byung-yeon of South Korea, with 20 patents, all filed in China. In fourth place is Zhenjiang Tianhe Biotechnology Co., Ltd. of China, with 16 patents, all filed in China. Other applicants hold very few Paulownia-related patents, each holding less than 15. Johnson & Johnson Consumer Products prioritizes the US, China, and Australia, followed by Canada, South Korea, Europe, and Brazil. The company places great emphasis on a global patent portfolio. (Fu Helong)

Source: Forestry Branch of China Engineering Science and Technology Knowledge Center, Intellectual Property Research Center of the State Forestry Administration