TSMC top invention patent applicant in Q1

Taipei, May 3 (CNA) Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) was the top invention patent applicant in Taiwan in the first quarter, maintaining its lead for the sixth consecutive year, according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA).

As for foreign applicants, U.S. semiconductor equipment supplier Applied Materials Inc. ranked first during the January-March period for the third year in a row, the MOEA said.

TSMC, the world's largest contract chipmaker, filed 305 invention patent applications in the first quarter, reflecting its ongoing efforts to upgrade its technologies and stay ahead of global competitors, according to data from the MOEA's Intellectual Property Office.

TSMC is developing its advanced 2-nanometer process, with mass production in Taiwan set to begin in the second half of this year, following the launch of its 3nm technology in 2022.

Under Taiwanese law, patents fall into three categories - invention, utility model and design - with invention patents regarded as the most significant for protecting new technological innovations.

Following TSMC, memory chip supplier Nanya Technology Corp. secured second place with 127 invention patents filed in the first quarter, ahead of power management solution provider Delta Electronics Inc. (82), flat panel maker Innolux Corp. (80) and AUO Corp. (76), another flat panel supplier, the office said.

The office said Delta Electronics' patent applications in the first quarter reached the highest level in the company's history.

The top 10 local invention patent applicants in Taiwan also included communication network IC designer Realtek Semiconductor Corp. (72), iPhone assembler and AI server maker Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. (69), smartphone IC designer MediaTek Inc. (59), AI server supplier Inventec Inc. (54) and PC maker Acer Inc. (47).

Applied Materials led all foreign applicants with 263 invention patent filings in the first quarter, followed by Japan's Tokyo Electron Ltd. (236), South Korea's Coupang Corp. (221) and Samsung Electronics Co. (198) and Japan's Nitto Denko Corp. (154).

Japan's memory chip supplier Kioxia Corp. ranked sixth with 153 invention patent filings, followed by U.S. smartphone IC designer Qualcomm Inc. (144), Japan's Fujifilm Corp. (91), U.S. chip equipment maker Lam Research Corp. (89) and Japan-based Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co. (72).

The office said Applied Materials, Tokyo Electron, Kioxia, Lam Research and Panasonic Intellectual Property Management posted their highest-ever quarterly invention patent filings.

The office received 17,063 patent applications in the first quarter, up 1 percent from a year earlier. These included 12,202 invention patents, 3,232 utility model patents and 1,629 design patents. Local applicants accounted for 47 percent of the total, while foreign applicants made up the remaining 53 percent.