High-Barrier Film Advanced Materials Patent Landscape 2026
- Filing has cooled since its 2020 peak. 103 families that year against a 2022 midpoint of 98 and a drop to single digits by 2026 — decline, not just publication lag.
- Layered-product claims dominate the IPC mix. B32B appears in 2,245 of 2,350 records, meaning almost every filing routes through laminate structure claims rather than raw material chemistry.
- Momentum has stalled across the named leaders at once. Toppan, Dai Nippon Printing and Cryovac all show sharp or total YoY drops in the latest filing year — a sector-wide pause, not one company retreating.
Filing growth compares 2021 (88 records) with 2024 (87) — a three-year span. 2024 is the most recent year we treat as complete: publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, so 2025 onwards are still filling in and any growth rate that ends there would understate the field. Top-5 share is the combined record count of the five largest assignees divided by all 2,350 records in scope (CR5), not by the ranked leaders only.
What's being claimed, and where
High-barrier film patenting sits at the intersection of laminate engineering and polymer chemistry. The search set spans EVOH-based resin systems, nanocomposite barrier coatings, and SiOx vapour-deposited layers, filed against IPC classes for layered products, polymer processing and additive chemistry. Most records claim a layer stack or coating process rather than a novel monomer, which is why B32B (layered products) touches almost the entire dataset while additive-specific classes like C08K stay comparatively thin.
That structural skew matters for freedom-to-operate work: a new entrant is more likely to collide with a laminate-architecture claim than with a chemistry claim, and the receiving-office spread (Japan and Europe ahead of the US and China) shows where that collision risk is concentrated.
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Trend and technology composition
Two views of the same 2,350-family dataset: how filing volume moved year over year, and which IPC subclasses carry the claim weight.
Filings rose to a 2020 peak, then declined
From 93 families in 2017, filings climbed to a peak of 103 in 2020, held near that level through the 2022 midpoint of 98, and have fallen toward single digits by 2026. Because publication lags filing by roughly 18 months, the final year or two will always look thinner than it eventually turns out to be — but the descent from the 2020–2022 plateau predates that lag and is a real cooling, not an artefact of it.
Layered-product claims carry the field
B32B (layered products & laminates) appears in 2,245 of 2,350 records — effectively the whole dataset — followed by B65D (containers & packaging) at 858 and C08J (polymer processing) at 559. Additive- and coating-specific classes (C08K, C23C) sit well below 200, indicating that claim density is concentrated in structure and process rather than in the underlying barrier chemistry itself.
Shares are the percentage of the 2,350 records in scope. A patent can carry several IPC classes, so the shares add up to more than 100%.
Go deeper on High-Barrier Film Advanced Materials with Eureka
This page is one run against one query. Ask Eureka your own question about high-barrier film advanced materials and every answer comes back with the patent numbers behind it.
Try EurekaThe most-cited anchors in this space
US20110171461A1 — High barrier film
A high barrier film and method of forming a high barrier film. The film includes a biopolymer and metallization layers. A primer layer is applied to one of the metallization layer and the biopolymer layer and a nanocomposite barrier coating is disposed between the primer layer and the metallization layer. The film includes a second biopolymer layer and an adhesive layer, the adhesive layer disposed between the second biopolymer layer and the metallization layer, where the second biopolymer layer is adhered to at least one of the biopolymer layer, the metallization layer, the primer layer and the nanocomposite layer.Filed by Toppan Packaging Americas Holdings, Inc., 2011-07-14.
| # | Publication no. | Patent title | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | US20120003500A1 | Process for producing multilayered gas-barrier film | 542 |
| 2 | US6045900A | Breathable filled film laminate | 350 |
| 3 | US4254169A | Multi-layer barrier film | 320 |
| 4 | JP1998237180A | Resin composition and gas barrier film made therefrom | 202 |
| 5 | JP2001098047A | Gas barrier polyurethane resin and gas barrier film containing the same | 200 |
| 6 | US5346735A | Peelable barrier film for vacuum skin packages and the like | 188 |
| 7 | US20060046006A1 | Multilayer polymeric barrier film, flexible packaging made therewith, and methods | 169 |
| 8 | US20070264520A1 | Articles having a polymer grafted cyclodextrin | 168 |
| 9 | JP1996142252A | Barrier film and manufacture therefor | 131 |
| 10 | US4239826A | Multi-layer barrier film | 124 |
Citation counts favour older filings simply by virtue of having had longer to accumulate citations inside this corpus; treat them as a map of influence, not a ranking of current relevance.
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Browse MCP servers →What the numbers mean for a filing decision
Three read-throughs from the trend, IPC and citation data that matter more than the raw counts on their own.
The plateau broke before the lag could explain it
Filings held near 98–103 from 2020 through the 2022 midpoint, then declined well before the 18-month publication lag would account for it. That points to a genuine slowdown in new barrier-film filing activity, not simply thin recent data.
Structure claims, not chemistry claims, own this space
Nearly every record in the dataset falls under B32B (layered products & laminates). Additive chemistry (C08K, 171) and coating deposition (C23C, 165) are comparatively open, suggesting the crowded ground is the film architecture, not the barrier material itself.
Japan leads filing volume, ahead of the US and China
Japan (537) and Europe (393) both outpace the US (336) and China (311) in receiving-office counts, with WIPO PCT filings (219) and Canada (102) trailing. Freedom-to-operate checks weighted only toward the US or China miss where the densest claim coverage actually sits.
Eureka can read the same corpus for gaps instead of for coverage: under-claimed branches adjacent to high-barrier film advanced materials, with the prior art for and against each one.
| Assignee | Co-assignee | Shared families |
|---|---|---|
| Cryovac, Inc. | W.R. Grace & Co. | 4 |
| Toppan Holdings Inc. | TOPPAN INC | 4 |
| Mitsubishi Plastics, Inc. | YOSHIDA SHIGENOBU | 4 |
| Mitsubishi Plastics, Inc. | OKAWARA CHIHARU | 4 |
| Mitsubishi Plastics, Inc. | HACHISUKA TOORU | 4 |
| Berry Global, Inc. | LIGHT WILLIAM R | 4 |
| Berry Global, Inc. | HOUTCHENS ROBERT A | 4 |
| Berry Global, Inc. | GAWRYL MARIA S | 4 |
Only 10 co-assignee pairs appear across the dataset, with the strongest pairs (Cryovac + WR Grace, Toppan Holdings + Toppan Inc., Mitsubishi Plastics + Yoshida Shigenobu) capped at 4 shared filings each — this is a field of solo filers, not joint ventures.
Who holds the ground, and who is pulling back
Recent-year momentum shows a field-wide pause among the named leaders rather than one company ceding share to another.
Toppan Holdings is still filing, but slowing sharply
Toppan Holdings recorded 2 filings in the latest year, down 71% year over year — the only tracked leader still filing at all in that window, which makes it worth watching for whatever comes next.
Dai Nippon Printing shows zero latest-year filings
Dai Nippon Printing dropped to 0 filings in the latest year, a full stop after previously active filing. Whether that is a strategic pause or a shift to unpublished continuation filings is not visible in this dataset.
Cryovac's filing activity has also gone to zero
Cryovac, one half of the dataset's strongest co-assignee pair (with WR Grace, 4 shared filings), also shows 0 filings in the latest year — suggesting the joint-filing relationship itself may have paused rather than shifted to solo filing.
| Assignee | Recent year | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Toppan Holdings Inc. | 2 | -71% |
| Dai Nippon Printing Co., Ltd. | 0 | -100% |
| Cryovac, Inc. | 0 | -100% |
| Tetra Laval Group and Finance S.A. (Switzerland) | 0 | — |
| W.R. Grace & Co. | 0 | — |
| Kureha Corporation | 0 | — |
| Mitsubishi Plastics, Inc. | 0 | — |
| Toyobo Co., Ltd. | 0 | -100% |
Where to take this analysis
The trend and IPC data point to specific next moves depending on whether the goal is freedom-to-operate or new filing strategy.
Run a claim-level FTO check on B32B laminate structures
Given that 2,245 of 2,350 records touch B32B, a freedom-to-operate review needs to work at the claim-element level within layered-product structures, not just at the IPC-subclass level.
Explore in Eureka →Model the design-around space for US20120003500A1's citation cluster
The highest-cited record in this corpus anchors a dense citation cluster; mapping what it and its citing families actually claim narrows down which structural variations remain open.
Explore in Eureka →Track whether the 2020–2022 plateau resumes or continues declining
With filings down to single digits by 2026, the next 12–18 months of publications (once the lag clears) will show whether this is a temporary pause or a structural retreat from the space.
Explore in Eureka →Common questions on high-barrier film patents
The dominant class is B32B, covering layered products and laminates, which appears in 2,245 of the 2,350 records in this dataset. B65D (containers & packaging, 858), C08J (polymer processing, 559) and C08L (polymer compositions, 345) follow. Narrower classes like C08K (additives, 171) and C23C (coating deposition, 165) are comparatively thin, which is useful to know if you're trying to find open claim space rather than crowded ground.
No — filings peaked at 103 in 2020, held near a midpoint of 98 in 2022, and had fallen to single digits by 2026. Some of that recent drop is the normal 18-month publication lag, but the decline started from the 2020–2022 plateau, before the lag would fully explain it. That pattern reads as a genuine slowdown in new filing activity rather than a data artefact.
The named leaders in recent-year momentum data — Toppan Holdings, Dai Nippon Printing and Cryovac among them — were the most consistently active filers historically, but all show sharp or complete drops in the latest filing year. Co-filing is rare across the dataset: only 10 co-assignee pairs exist, with the strongest (Cryovac with WR Grace, Toppan Holdings with Toppan Inc.) capped at 4 shared filings. This is a field of largely independent filers rather than joint development.
Japan leads with 537 filings, ahead of Europe (EPO) at 393, the United States at 336 and China at 311. WIPO PCT filings account for 219 and Canada 102. Anyone doing freedom-to-operate work focused only on the US or China should check Japanese and European filings too, since those offices carry more volume in this specific technology area.
US20110171461A1 (High barrier film, filed by Toppan Packaging Americas Holdings) claims a specific combination: a biopolymer layer, a metallization layer, a primer layer, and a nanocomposite barrier coating positioned between the primer and metallization layers, plus a second biopolymer layer joined via an adhesive layer. It blocks that exact layer-stack sequence and the specific placement of the nanocomposite coating relative to the primer and metallization layers. It does not block barrier films using different layer orderings, different coating chemistries, or single-biopolymer-layer constructions — those remain candidate design-around routes, subject to a full claim-by-claim review.
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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.
Nothing on this page constitutes an exhaustive prior-art, novelty, freedom-to-operate, or validity search, nor does it constitute legal, financial, investment, or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon as such. Any patent, commercial, or strategic decision should be verified independently and reviewed with qualified patent, legal, and domain professionals. Patsnap makes no warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness, or fitness for any particular purpose of the information presented.
Machine translation. Assignee and organisation names originally recorded in Chinese, Japanese or Korean have been rendered into English by an AI translation step so that the tables stay readable. These renderings are best-effort and may not match a company’s registered English name; the original name is what the underlying patent record carries, and it is what any Eureka query launched from this page uses.