Binder Jetting Feedstock Patent Landscape 2026
The binder jetting feedstock patent space is highly concentrated, with Evonik Operations alone holding the leading position and the top five filers commanding a dominant share among the largest filers. The field is still expanding on a multi-year basis, though annual volume has eased from its 2017 peak and recent years remain understated by publication lag.
Evonik leads a tightly held, specialist field
Evonik Operations GmbH holds the top position in this landscape, followed by Desktop Metal Inc and General Electric Co. The top five applicants — Evonik, Desktop Metal, General Electric, Sandvik Intellectual Property AB, and Hoeganaes Corp — account for sixty-nine percent of the combined output of the hundred largest filers, signalling a high degree of concentration in a relatively small corpus.
A clear tier gap separates the leader from the rest: Evonik’s count is more than thirty percent larger than Desktop Metal’s, and the field drops sharply after the top three. Applicants ranked four through twenty each hold single-digit or low double-digit counts, confirming that intellectual property control is concentrated among a handful of specialists and major industrials.
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Evonik Operations GmbH | 37 | |
| 2 | Desktop Metal Inc | 28 | |
| 3 | General Electric Co | 15 | |
| 4 | Sandvik Intellectual Property AB | 10 | |
| 5 | Hoeganaes Corp | 9 | |
| 6 | Topgolf Callaway Brands Corp | 9 | |
| 7 | Rohm GmbH | 5 | |
| 8 | Qdot Tech Ltd | 4 | |
| 9 | Suleyman Demirel University | 3 | |
| 10 | Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties Inc | 3 |
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft | 2 | |
| 12 | Linde AG | 2 | |
| 13 | Lawrence Livermore National Security LLC | 2 | |
| 14 | SIEMENS ENERGY GLOBAL GMBH & CO KG | 1 | |
| 15 | University of Tennessee Research Foundation | 1 | |
| 16 | University of Liverpool | 1 | |
| 17 | South China University of Technology | 1 | |
| 18 | Arc Impact Acquisition Corp | 1 | |
| 19 | Ondokuz Mayis University | 1 | |
| 20 | Kolibri Metals GmbH | 1 |
This concentration implies that any new entrant faces a non-trivial freedom-to-operate challenge, particularly in powder metallurgy and 3D-printing material formulation sub-classes where the leaders are most active. Licensing or collaboration with a top-tier holder may be a more efficient entry path than building a blocking portfolio from scratch.
The most recent eighteen to twenty-four months of filing data are under-counted due to publication lag; apparent softness in 2024–2025 should not be interpreted as a slowdown in underlying activity. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
Multi-year growth persists beneath a 2017 peak and publication-lag softness
Two views together — annual filing volume and the IPC class mix — reveal both the pace of the field and where technical effort is concentrated. The trend line shows a spike in 2017 followed by a trough and a second wave from 2022, while the technology composition chart maps the dominant and adjacent branches.
Annual filing trend
A large cohort of filings appeared in 2017, followed by sharply lower activity through 2021, then a clear recovery wave in 2022–2023. The three-year recent window sits well above the prior three-year window, consistent with a Growth-stage field on a multi-year basis. Years 2024–2025 show low recorded counts that reflect publication lag rather than a genuine decline; 2026 data are not yet available.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
Additive manufacturing (B33Y) and powder metallurgy (B22F) together account for the overwhelming majority of records, confirming that feedstock work is anchored in metal-powder and 3D-printing process IP. Shaping of plastics (B29C) is the third branch, reflecting binder and polymer carrier development. Smaller branches — coatings and inks (C09D), clay and cement shaping (B28B), polymer compositions (C08L), and alloys (C22C) — each hold a modest share, pointing to the adjacencies where coverage is thinner.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
Systems and methods for compositionally and struct…
Systems and methods are disclosed for creating a ceramic-metal composite part through a layer-by-layer additive manufacturing process. In one implementation the method involves depositing a layer of powder particles on a build table, and then depositing molten metal binding droplets onto the powder particles at one or more select locations of the powder… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | System for fabricating an interface layer to separ… | 87 |
| 2 | Reversible binders for use in binder jetting addit… | 63 |
| 3 | A method of making cermet or cemented carbide powder | 61 |
| 4 | Thermoplastic binders for use in binder jetting ad… | 38 |
| 5 | Method for fabricating an interface layer to separ… | 38 |
| 6 | Method of making cermet or cemented carbide powder | 36 |
| 7 | Automated depowdering of 3D printed objects | 23 |
| 8 | Use of core-shell(-shell) particles in the binder … | 23 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
What the patent structure means for R&D investment decisions
The combination of high concentration, a Growth-stage lifecycle, an active collaboration signal between the top two chemical specialists, and US-centric geography shapes the strategic options available to both incumbents and new entrants.
Growth stage — multi-year expansion with annual volume eased from 2017 peak
The lifecycle assessment classifies binder jetting feedstock as a Growth-stage field. Recent three-year filing volume is substantially above the prior three-year window, confirming continued multi-year expansion. Annual output has eased from its 2017 peak, and the most recent data points are further understated by publication lag, so the apparent flattening should not be read as saturation.
Lifecycle: GrowthSixty-nine percent top-5 share among the hundred largest filers
The top five applicants hold sixty-nine percent of the combined families among the hundred largest filers, a level that indicates oligopolistic IP control. The gap between the leader and the second-ranked applicant is substantial. For an R&D team considering entry, freedom-to-operate analysis around B33Y70 (additive manufacturing materials) and B22F1 (powder metallurgy) is essential before committing development resources.
Concentration: HighEvonik and Rohm GmbH are the only documented co-filers
The collaboration data show a single active co-filing relationship: Evonik Operations GmbH and Rohm GmbH have jointly filed on two patent families. Both organisations are chemical specialists, and their overlap in B33Y70 (additive manufacturing materials) and B29C64 (shaping of plastics) suggests the partnership targets binder polymer formulation. No other multi-party co-filing relationships are recorded in this corpus, indicating that the broader ecosystem remains largely fragmented beyond this pairing.
Collaboration: LimitedUnited States is the primary filing jurisdiction; PCT coverage is meaningful
The United States is the lead jurisdiction by a wide margin. WIPO PCT filings represent the second-largest channel, indicating that leading applicants seek broad international coverage from a US base. European Patent Office coverage is the third route. China has only a small presence, which is notable given global additive manufacturing manufacturing activity there — either applicants are not prioritising Chinese protection or local filings are under-represented in this dataset.
Geography: US-ledGo beyond the landscape: Eureka’s TRIZ Solution agent breaks down an R&D problem and returns patented concept solutions, each with a technical approach and cited patent & literature evidence.
| Applicant | Collaborator | Co-filings |
|---|---|---|
| Evonik Operations GmbH | Rohm GmbH | 2 |
Co-filing pairs, ranked by the number of jointly-filed patent families.
Evonik anchors materials chemistry; Desktop Metal leads process-integrated feedstock
The two largest patent family holders approach binder jetting feedstock from different angles: Evonik from specialty polymer and coating materials, Desktop Metal from integrated additive manufacturing process and powder engineering. Both are new entrants in the recent momentum window, meaning their recent filings represent first-time activity in this specific corpus.
Evonik Operations GmbH
Evonik Operations GmbH leads with 37 patent families, the largest holding in this landscape. Its technology emphasis sits squarely in B33Y70 (additive manufacturing materials) and B29C64 (shaping of plastics), consistent with a specialty-chemicals strategy focused on binder polymer and carrier formulation. Momentum data classify Evonik as a new entrant in the recent filing window, with 14 recent families, indicating a deliberate and continuing build-out of its binder jetting materials portfolio. Its collaboration with Rohm GmbH reinforces its position in polymer-based binder chemistry.
families: 37Desktop Metal Inc
Desktop Metal Inc holds 28 patent families and is classified as a new entrant in the recent momentum window, with 14 recent families — matching Evonik’s recent filing pace and suggesting active portfolio expansion. Its focus is split across B33Y10 (additive manufacturing processes), B22F1, and B33Y30 (additive manufacturing equipment and materials), reflecting its system-level approach to binder jetting where feedstock design is co-developed with process and hardware IP. This tight integration may create bundled freedom-to-operate risks for competitors seeking to supply feedstock independently.
families: 28| Applicant | Recent (3 yrs) | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| Desktop Metal Inc | 14 | ▲ new entrant |
| General Electric Co | 2 | ▲ new entrant |
| Digital Metal AB | 11 | ▲ new entrant |
| Sandvik Intellectual Property AB | 2 | ▲ new entrant |
| Topgolf Callaway Brands Corp | 8 | ▲ new entrant |
| Hoeganaes Corp | 7 | ▲ new entrant |
| Qdot Tech Ltd | 4 | ▲ new entrant |
| Suleyman Demirel University | 3 | ▲ new entrant |
Under-served branches adjacent to the dominant IPC classes
Several IPC branches appear in this corpus with low record counts relative to the dominant B33Y and B22F classes. These observations point to areas where binder jetting feedstock IP is sparse; they are not validated commercial opportunities but merit technical scrutiny for organisations with relevant capabilities.
C09D · Coatings, paints & inks
With only 21 records and a four-percent share, coatings and inks chemistry is an adjacent branch that is notably thin relative to the core additive manufacturing and powder metallurgy classes. Binder jetting relies on printable liquid binders whose chemistry overlaps substantially with inkjet ink and functional coating formulation. An organisation with ink or coating IP assets could explore whether existing formulations transfer to binder jetting binder systems, with entry framed around novel binder rheology or surface-interaction chemistry that the current sparse filings do not appear to cover.
Search this in Eureka →C22C · Alloys
Alloy composition patents number only 18 records at a four-percent share, despite alloy-specific powder design being central to part performance in metal binder jetting. The sparse coverage in C22C relative to the dense B22F coverage suggests that most applicants are claiming powder processing methods rather than the alloy compositions optimised for binder jetting sintering cycles. Organisations with alloy design capabilities — particularly for high-temperature or hard-metal systems — may find limited blocking IP in this sub-branch and a plausible technical entry path around sintering-compatible alloy formulation.
Search this in Eureka →How leaders differ by technology route
Route coverage across the main technology branches in the current evidence set.
| Player | B33Y 10 · Additive manufacturing (3D printing) | B33Y 70 · Additive manufacturing (3D printing) | B22F 10 · Powder metallurgy | B29C 64 · Shaping of plastics | B22F 1 · Powder metallurgy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Desktop Metal Inc | Strong · 20 | Moderate · 7 | Strong · 13 | Strong · 12 | Strong · 15 |
| Evonik Operations GmbH | Strong · 14 | Strong · 24 | Moderate · 8 | Strong · 19 | Absent |
| General Electric Co | Moderate · 6 | Strong · 13 | Moderate · 4 | Strong · 10 | Strong · 12 |
| Rohm GmbH | Moderate · 8 | Strong · 20 | Absent | Strong · 13 | Absent |
| Hoeganaes Corp | Strong · 5 | Strong · 7 | Strong · 7 | Absent | Strong · 7 |
| Topgolf Callaway Brands Corp | Strong · 9 | Absent | Strong · 9 | Absent | Absent |
| Sandvik Intellectual Property AB | Strong · 6 | Emerging · 2 | Absent | Absent | Strong · 10 |
Frequently asked questions
The evidence set contains 149 patent families in scope. This is the total corpus used for all rankings and trend analysis in this report.
Evonik Operations GmbH holds the most patent families at 37, followed by Desktop Metal Inc with 28 and General Electric Co with 15.
The field is classified as Growth stage. Recent three-year filing volume sits well above the prior three-year window. Annual volume has eased from its 2017 peak, and the most recent years are further understated by publication lag, so the field is still expanding on a multi-year basis.
The United States is the primary jurisdiction, followed by WIPO PCT filings and the European Patent Office. Israel is the fourth-largest jurisdiction by record count. China has a small presence, which may reflect applicant strategy or dataset scope.
The most-cited work covers systems and methods for fabricating interface layers to separate support from part (87 and 38 citations respectively), reversible and thermoplastic binders for binder jetting (63 and 38 citations), methods of making cermet or cemented carbide powder (61 and 36 citations), and use of core-shell particles in binder jetting (23 citations).
One co-filing relationship is recorded: Evonik Operations GmbH and Rohm GmbH have jointly filed on two patent families, both focused on additive manufacturing materials and plastics shaping. No other multi-party collaborations appear in the evidence set.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from PatSnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
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