General Science, Mathematics, and TechnologyIntroduction |
How many patents have been issued by the U.S. Patent Office? |
Over seven million patents have been granted by the U.S. Patent Office since its inception in 1790. In recent years, the number of patents issued on a yearly basis has risen dramatically. The following chart shows the numbers of patents of all types (utility, design, plant, and reissue) issued for selected years:
| Year | Total Number of Patents Granted |
| 1970 | 67,964 |
| 1975 | 76,810 |
| 1980 | 66,170 |
| 1985 | 77,245 |
| 1990 | 99,077 |
| 1995 | 113,834 |
| 2000 | 175,979 |
| 2005 | 157,718 |
| 2008 | 185,224 |