• Patent applications at the EPO related to additive manufacturing (AM) are rising rapidly, achieving average annual growth of 36% in recent years
• Europe is a global leader with European inventors and businesses accounting for almost half of AM patent applications filed with the EPO in the last decade
• Impact of AM spans many industries, with the health sector generating most patent applications.

Munich, 13 July 2020 – European patent applications for additive manufacturing (AM), also known as 3D printing, increased at an average annual rate of 36% from 2015 to 2018, a new study from the European Patent Office (EPO) shows. This is more than ten times greater than the average yearly growth of all applications at the Office combined in the same period (3.5%). The report, entitled “Patents and additive manufacturing – Trends in 3D printing technologies”, further demonstrates that Europe is a global leader in AM, with European inventors and businesses accounting for almost half of AM patent applications filed with the EPO in the period from 2010 to 2018.

“The surge in additive manufacturing is part of the broader, rapid rise of digital technologies overall, confirming that the digital transformation of the economy is fully reflected in patent applications reaching the EPO,” said EPO President António Campinos. “Europe has become a global hub for innovation in fast-growing digital fields, including additive manufacturing technologies. This strength is clearly reflected in the list of top AM applicants, with European inventors and businesses submitting almost half of the patent applications in the past decade.”

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Source: European Patent Office, Press release of 13.7.2020