Independent inventors make significant contributions to innovation with their developments. Examples of products created by independent inventors include expansion anchors, screw-in studs, and the airbag. Last year, more than 2,500 patent applications were filed by independent developers, according to the German Patent and Trademark Office (DPMA).
The overwhelming majority of independent inventors, almost 93 percent, are men. Almost four out of ten patent applications are in the field of mechanical engineering. The DPMA defines independent inventors as individuals who Patent applications in your own name and independently of any company or research institution.
“Free inventors have repeatedly set groundbreaking standards”
Compared to 2020, the number of patent applications from independent inventors fell by a good 9 percent last year. However, the numbers in 2020 – apparently due to the pandemic – bucked the long-term trend. This is likely due primarily to the noticeable increase in applications for face masks and protective clothing at that time. The number of applications from independent inventors in 2021 is now continuing the pre-coronavirus trend, which saw a steady decline.
"Expansion anchors, screw-in stud shoes, airbags – independent inventors have repeatedly set groundbreaking standards in German economic history with their patent applications. They are and remain an important part of our innovation landscape,"
says DPMA President Cornelia Rudloff-Schäffer.
Following Bavaria with 630 applications in the federal state ranking are North Rhine-Westphalia with 455 applications and Baden-Württemberg with 422 patent applications. If the application figures are converted to 100,000 inhabitants, Bavaria also leads with 4.8 applications, ahead of Baden-Württemberg with 3.8, and Rhineland-Palatinate and Hamburg with 3.5 patent applications per 100,000 inhabitants each.
