3M Company (MMM)
NYSE: MMM · Surgical & Medical Instruments & Apparatus · St Paul, MN · filing with the SEC since 1993
Grade5.6
◀ Past 6.3● Present 5.9▶ Future 4.4
Patents
US patents through Dec 31, 2025 · PatentsView, from the USPTO’s Open Data Portal · read Oct 27, 202622,219 patents granted to the 14 names below, as the owner printed on each patent when it was granted. A later sale, a lapse or an expiry is not read, so this is what was granted to 3M Company’s names, not what it holds today.
Patents granted
22,219
20,093 utility, 2,032 design, 93 reissue, 1 defensive publication, 1976 to Dec 31, 2025
Granted in 2025
411
Against 436 in 2024 and 397 in 2023
Applications published
14,191
346 of them in 2025
Names they are printed under
14
its holding company, a former name, a subsidiary, its own name
By yearGrantedApplications published
Each pair is one calendar year. Applications are published about eighteen months after filing, so the newest years read low.
What they are aboutgrants since 2021
Optics298
Macromolecular chemistry, polymers232
Surface technology, coating204
Medical technology154
Basic materials chemistry125
Other consumer goods120
Electrical machinery, apparatus, energy103
Machine tools85
Other special machines83
Measurement81
Computer technology75
Chemical engineering64
The main technology area of each patent, in the World Intellectual Property Organization’s 35 fields.
Under which name14 counted
3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY its holding company
US, as the owner printed on each patent; a holding company under the name 3M CO. 67 more under the same name are not counted (printed in PH, printed in MN, printed in PA)
7,143 published
Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company a former name
US, as the owner printed on each patent. 8 more under the same name are not counted (printed in PH, printed in MN)
17 published
3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY its holding company
named as the applicant on its applications, in US; a holding company under the name 3M CO. 12 more under the same name are not counted (printed in MN)
6,918 published
Scott Technologies, Inc. a subsidiary
US, as the owner printed on each patent
29 published
Scott Technologies, Inc. a subsidiary
named as the applicant on its applications, in US
74 published
3M Company its own name
US, as the owner printed on each patent. 2 more under the same name are not counted (printed in CA, printed in PH)
2 published
3M Deutschland GmbH a subsidiary
DE, as the owner printed on each patent
0 published
3M Svenska Aktiebolag a subsidiary
SE, as the owner printed on each patent
1 published
Meguiar's Inc. a subsidiary
US, as the owner printed on each patent
2 published
3MInnovative Properties Company its holding company
US, as the owner printed on each patent; a holding company under the name 3M CO
1 published
3M Svenska AB a subsidiary
SE, as the owner printed on each patent
2 published
Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing Company, a Delaware corporation a former name
US, as the owner printed on each patent
1 published
3M Intellectual Property Company its holding company
US, as the owner printed on each patent; a holding company under the name 3M CO
0 published
Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, a Minnesota corporation a former name
US, as the owner printed on each patent
1 published
Names not counted (4)
3M Innovative Properties Company, a Delaware corporation
No country is printed for it. 0 granted and 3 published under it are not counted.
3M CO
Most of its patents print DK; this name counts in US. 1 granted and 0 published under it are not counted.
Capital Safety Group Canada ULC
No country is printed for it. 0 granted and 1 published under it are not counted.
D B Industries, LLC
Only generic words.
Newest grantseach row opens the USPTO’s own copy
| Granted | Patent | Title | Field | Owner as printed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 30, 2025 | D1,107,876 | Filter frame | 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY | |
| Dec 30, 2025 | D1,107,437 | Slit sheet | 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY | |
| Dec 30, 2025 | 12,510,779 | Optical construction including lens film and multilayer mask | Optics | 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY |
| Dec 30, 2025 | 12,510,699 | Optical construction | Optics | 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY |
| Dec 30, 2025 | 12,510,478 | Fluorescence enhancement films for luminescent imaging | Measurement | 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY |
| Dec 30, 2025 | 12,510,466 | Measurement system including reflector | Measurement | 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY |
| Dec 30, 2025 | 12,509,569 | Curable fluoropolymer compositions comprising metal fluoride particles and articles therefrom | Macromolecular chemistry, polymers | 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY |
| Dec 30, 2025 | 12,508,611 | Connector system for hand-held spray guns | Chemical engineering | 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY |
| Dec 23, 2025 | D1,106,690 | Expanded sheet | 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY | |
| Dec 23, 2025 | 12,504,567 | Structured film and optical article including structured film | Optics | 3M INNOVATIVE PROPERTIES COMPANY |
Newest applications publishedan application is a clue, never a plan
What it applied for, 2024 to 2025: Optics 144 · Macromolecular chemistry, polymers 129 · Medical technology 94 · Surface technology, coating 64 · Basic materials chemistry 61 · Electrical machinery, apparatus, energy 56.
A patent is counted where the owner printed on it when it was granted carries the company’s own name, a former name, the name of a subsidiary its annual report lists, or its own name with a patent-holding phrase (Technology Licensing, Intellectual Property and the like), once the legal form, case and punctuation are set aside, and prints a country that name counts in. PatentsView’s data are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. Source: PatentsView's granted patents and pre-grant publications, disambiguated, from the USPTO's Open Data Portal, through Dec 31, 2025, read Oct 27, 2026.