This list is compiled exclusively from USPTO utility patent data. Data leveraged is from January 4, 2005, to November 29, 2022, so we will be missing counts prior to January 4, 2005. The inventor’s location is based on the person’s last known address. The person may have innovated at various locations, but all of the person’s collective patents are being consolidated to his/her/their last available place of residence. The minimum entry to the global 1000 list is 187 utility patents. For some of the inventors, we were able to find sparse information. Please report any factual errors to [email protected].

51. Alaska | Lee Morgan Smith

City: Anchorage, AK
Number of Utility Patents: 20
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Alaskan Energy Resources, Inc.

Lee Smith’s inventions cover bi-directional reamers, swell packers, reaming technology and technologies related to centralizers and motor sleeves, and computer application software programs that analyze and predict rock strength and drilling performance. He received his Bachelors of Science in Geology from University of Utah (1982) and a Master of Business Administration from Oklahoma City University (1991).

50. Louisiana | Terry P. Robichaux

City: Houma, LA
Number of Utility Patents: 60
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Mako Rentals

Terry is a leading inventor for Mako Rentals, a privately owned company, established in 2000, providing the oil and gas industry with safe solutions for deep-water drilling and completions operations.

49. Montana | Lee E. Cannon

City: Bozeman, MT
Number of Utility Patents: 81
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: IGT

Lee Cannon invents innovative gaming systems and Multi-player games.

48. Hawaii | Wendell C. Johnson

City: Keneohe, HI
Number of Utility Patents: 85
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Automotive Technologies International

Wendell Johnson is the most prolific inventor in the state of Hawaii.

47. West Virginia | James F. Corum

City: Morgantown, WV
Number of Utility Patents: 103
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: CPG Technologies, LLC

James Corum is the most prolific inventor in the state of West Virginia.

46. Wyoming | Steve Shattil

City: Cheyenne, WY
Number of Utility Patents: 115
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Genghiscomm Holdings, LLC

Steve Shattil is an inventor with broad engineering experience in wireless communications, telecom, software development, digital signal processing, and music. He received his B.S. in Physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (1985), M.S in Physics from Colorado School of Mines (1987) and another M.S. in Electrical Engineering from University of Colorado Boulder (1996).

45. South Dakota | Peter Guzman

City: Sioux Falls, SD
Number of Utility Patents: 123
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Monsanto

Peter Guzman is the most prolific inventor in the state of South Dakota.

44. Maine | Christopher W. Strock

City: Kennebunk, ME
Number of Utility Patents: 127
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: United Technologies Corporation, Raytheon Technologies Corporation

Chris Strock is the most prolific inventor in the state of Maine.

43. District of Columbia | Zia Chishti

City: Washington DC
Number of Utility Patents: 132
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Afiniti

Zia Chishti is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Afiniti, a leading applied artificial intelligence company that pairs enterprise customers with agents based on behavior. He received his BA in Economics and Computer Science from Columbia University (1992) and a MBA from Stanford University Graduate School of Business (1997).

42. Rhode Island | Paul Smith

City: Smithfield, RI
Number of Utility Patents: 137
Global Rank: > 1000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Boston Scientific Scimed, Inc.

Paul is a R&D Fellow at Boston Scientific. He received his Bachelor’s degree from Rhode Island College.

41. Delaware | Mark S. Payne

City: Wilmington, DE
Number of Utility Patents: 145
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: E.I. Du Pont De Nemours and Company

Mark Payne is the most prolific inventor in the state of Delaware.

40. Mississippi | Hans J. Hansen

City: Picayune, MS
Number of Utility Patents: 145
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Immunomedics, Inc.

Hans Hansen is the most prolific inventor in the state of Mississippi.

39. North Dakota | Noel W. Anderson

City: Fargo, ND
Number of Utility Patents: 151
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Deere & Company

Noel Anderson is a prolific inventor in Computer engineering, Computer science, Artificial intelligence and robotics, Off-road machinery, Machine health, Sensors, Agronomy, Soil science and Biomimetics. He received his Ph.D. in Computer Engineering from Iowa State University (1988).

38. Kentucky | Hank J. Hundemer

City: Bellevue, KY
Number of Utility Patents: 158
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Tribune Broadcasting Company LLC

Hank Hundemer is the most prolific inventor in the state of Kentucky. He did his B.S and M.S in Electrical Engineering from the University of Louisville.

37. Arkansas | Nicholaus A. Jones

City: Fayetteville, AR
Number of Utility Patents: 169
Global Rank: > 1,000
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Walmart

Nick Jones is the most prolific inventor in the state of Arkansas. 

36. Nebraska | Duane A. Potrzeba

City: Hastings, NE
Number of Utility Patents: 195
Global Rank: 930
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Monsanto

Duane Potrzeba has since retired from full time commercial corn breeding for Bayer Crop Science. He received his agronomy/animal science degree from University of Nebraska-Lincoln (1975).

35. Tennessee | William F. McKay

City: Memphis, TN
Number of Utility Patents: 204
Global Rank: 859
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Warsaw Orthopedic

William McKay is the most prolific inventor in the state of Tennessee. 

34. Alabama | Larry W Fullerton

City: New Hope, AL
Number of Utility Patents: 235
Global Rank: 632
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Correlated Magnetics Research, LLC, Cedar Ridge Research LLC

Larry Fullerton is the Chief Scientist at Correlated Magnetics Research. He received his BSEE in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from University of Arkansas (1974).

33. New Mexico | James R. Kraemer

City: Santa Fe, NM
Number of Utility Patents: 237
Global Rank: 608
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: International Business Machines

James Kraemer has been issued patents in Artificial Intelligence, Database and Data Structures, Finance, Business Practices and Management. He received his Ph.D. in Management Information Systems from University of Oklahoma – Price College of Business (1982). He also has an MBA in Finance from University of Michigan – Stephen M. Ross School of Business (1974).

32. South Carolina | Remigijus Gaska

City: Columbia, SC
Number of Utility Patents: 247
Global Rank: 563
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Sensor Electronic Technology Inc

Remigijus Gaska is a Lithuanian American physicist and businessman. He was born in 1958. He graduated from Vilnius university in 1981 and received his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Wayne State University.  

31. Oklahoma | Max P. McDaniel

City: Bartlesville, OK
Number of Utility Patents: 259
Global Rank: 488
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Chevron Phillips Chemical Company

Max McDaniel is a senior fellow scientist at Chevron Phillips Chemical Company where he has advanced catalyst technologies for the polymerization and trimerization of ethylene, to produce high performance polyethylene and 1-hexene. He was inducted into the Plastics Hall of Fame in 2018. 

30. Georgia | Jonathan Blake Brannon

City: Smyrna, GA
Number of Utility Patents: 261
Global Rank: 483
Source of Intellectual Property: One Trust

Blake is Chief Product & Strategy Officer at One Trust. 

29. Indiana | Kevin T. Stone

City: Winona Lake, IN
Number of Utility Patents: 275
Global Rank: 441
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Biomet Sports Medicine, LLC

Kevin Stone is a VP at Biomet.

28. Pennsylvania | Ajith Kuttannair Kumar

City: Erie, PA
Number of Utility Patents: 297
Global Rank: 368
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: General Electric Company

Ajith Kumar is one of GE’s most decorated inventors. His innovations run the gamut of the company’s locomotive division. He has earned two masters’ from Gannon university and one from Stanford University.

27. New Hampshire | Dean Kamen

City: Bedford, NH
Number of Utility Patents: 338
Global Rank: 288
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: DEKA Products

Dean Kamen (born 1951) is best known for his Segway and iBOT inventions.

26. Kansas | Roger P. Jackson

City: Prairie Village, KS
Number of Utility Patents: 355
Global Rank: 253
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Various

Dr. Roger Jackson is an orthopedic spine surgeon. He invented the “Jackson table (1992)”, that assists surgeons position their patients undergoing spinal procedures. He has invented bone screws among his many other inventions.

25. Wisconsin | Richard G. Stelpflug

City: Cottage Grove, WI
Number of Utility Patents: 360
Global Rank: 243
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Monsanto

Richard Stelpflug is a corn breeder with Monsanto.

24. Colorado | Michael D. Ellis

City: Boulder, CO
Number of Utility Patents: 363
Global Rank: 237
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: ROVI Guides, United Video Properties

Michael Ellis has been building new products for over 25 years. These have ranged from robotics to medical products to interactive television and consumer electronics. Mike received his BS in Engineering and Computer Science from Caltech (1980).

23. North Carolina | Russell Speight VanBlon

City: Raleigh, NC
Number of Utility Patents: 418
Global Rank: 174
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Lenovo

Russell Speight VanBlon is an engineer and inventor. He received his computer engineering degree from North Carolina State University (2001). He was honored with a Master Inventor badge by his company. 

22. Florida | Joseph Kuczynski

City: North Port, FL
Number of Utility Patents: 496
Global Rank: 119
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: International Business Machines

Joe Kuczynski has been focused on innovations related to servers and storage.

21. Nevada | Anthony J. Baerlocher

City: Las Vegas, NV
Number of Utility Patents: 502
Global Rank: 113
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: IGT

Anthony Baerlocher is a prolific inventor in the gaming industry. He received his BS in Mathematics (1991) and MBA (2014) from the University of Notre Dame.

20. Vermont | Edward J. Nowak

City: Essex Junction, VT
Number of Utility Patents: 530
Global Rank: 96
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: International Business Machines

Ed Nowak is a Physicist-Engineer. He got his SB in Physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1973) and a Ph.D. in Physics from University of Maryland (1978).

19. Arizona | Lokesh M. Gupta

City: Tucson, AZ
Number of Utility Patents: 560
Global Rank: 86
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: International Business Machines

Lokesh Gupta is a prolific engineer and inventor with IBM.

18. Texas | Lee D. Whetsel

City: Parker, TX
Number of Utility Patents: 663
Global Rank: 55
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Texas Instruments

Lee Whetsel is a distinguished member Technical Staff at TI.

17. Missouri | Eric Leuthardt

City: St. Louis, MO
Number of Utility Patents: 671
Global Rank: 54
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: The Invention Science Fund, Elwha LLC

Eric Leuthardt is a physician-innovator tapping the advances in brain-computer interfaces.  He is working on innovative neurotechnology products that will soon profoundly change the way we live, work and play. He received his M.D. from University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (1999) and Bachelor of Science in Biology and Theology from Saint Louis University (1995). 

16. Maryland | Lisa Seacut DeLuca

City: Baltimore, MD
Number of Utility Patents: 673
Global Rank: 52
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: International Business Machines

Lisa Seacat DeLuca leads engineering and product management for web3 identity and login at Unstoppable Domains innovating the future of the decentralized web. She is the 2nd Most Prolific Female Inventor in the world. Lisa holds a Masters of Science in Technology Commercialization from the University of Texas McCombs School of Business, and a Bachelors of Science in Computer Science from Carnegie Mellon University with minors in Business Administration and Multimedia Productions.

15. Michigan | Gregory J. Boss

City: Saginaw, MI
Number of Utility Patents: 675
Global Rank: 51
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: International Business Machines

Greg Boss is a distinguished engineer and Master Inventor in the health and services industry with deep expertise in mobile, cloud, IoT, blockchain, and artificial intelligence. He received his Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (1995) from Brigham Young University.

14. Minnesota | John M. Santosuosso

City: Rochester, MN
Number of Utility Patents: 677
Global Rank: 50
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: International Business Machines

Besides IBM, John M. Santosuosso has also received patents from Nuance Communications and Trend Micro.

13. Oregon | Leonard Forbes

City: Corvallis, OR
Number of Utility Patents: 710
Global Rank: 43
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Micron Technologies

Len Forbes focuses on inventions relating to semiconductor memories, CCD’s, thin film processes and materials, and VLSI technologies. He earned his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Physics from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (1970) and a B.S in Engineering Physics from University of Alberta.

12. Iowa | William H. Eby

City: Panora, IA
Number of Utility Patents: 711
Global Rank: 41
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Stine Seed Farm, Monsanto

Bill Eby is a successful soybean breeder. Bill never got a degree and claimed in an interview that he learnt from the school of hard knocks.

11. Connecticut | Jay S. Walker

City: Ridgefield, CT
Number of Utility Patents: 718
Global Rank: 40
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Walker Digital LLC, IGT

Jay Walker (born 1955) is most famous for founding Priceline.com. He holds a B.S. degree in Industrial Relations from Cornell University.

10. Utah | David R. Hall

City: Provo, UT
Number of Utility Patents: 820
Global Rank: 30
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Hall Labs LLC, Schlumberger Technology Corporation

David is a serial entrepreneur and inventor. He is a polymath innovating across many fields. He received his BS and master’s in mechanical engineering from Brigham Young University (1972), MBA from Rider College (1976), honorary doctorate from Weber State University (2016).

9. Massachusetts | Royce A. Levien

City: Lexington, MA
Number of Utility Patents: 850
Global Rank: 27
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: The Invention Science Fund LLC, Elwha LLC

Roy Levien received an M.A. in Biology from Yale University, an A.B. in Applied Mathematics from Harvard College.  He is the recipient of Microsoft Chairman’s Award from Bill Gates in 1990 for his work on applications architecture and the foundations of ActiveX.

8. Idaho | Gurtej S. Sandhu

City: Boise, ID
Number of Utility Patents: 902
Global Rank: 19
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Micron Technology

Dr. Sandhu received a degree in electrical engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi (1985), and a Ph.D. in physics at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill (1990). He holds over 1,300 U.S. patents and is recognized as one of the top inventors in the world. Dr. Sandhu is a Fellow of IEEE. In 2018, he received the IEEE Andrew S. Grove Award for outstanding contributions to silicon CMOS process technology that enables DRAM and NAND memory chip scaling.

7. Illinois | Jason K. Resch

City: Chicago, IL
Number of Utility Patents: 917
Global Rank: 18
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: International Business Machines, Pure Storage, Cleversafe

Jason Resch’s expertise is in large scale distributed systems, cryptography, information security, information dispersal, erasure codes and coding theory. He is an IBM Master Inventor (2016). He received his BS Computer Science in Information Security from Illinois Institute of Technology (2006). He is an autodidact programmer and launched a company while he was in high school.

6. Virginia | Rick A. Hamilton, II

City: Charlottesville, VA
Number of Utility Patents: 1,026
Global Rank: 15
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: International Business Machines

Rick Hamilton is an IBM Master Inventor who worked in IBM’s Watson IoT division delivering intelligence and machine learning to the Internet of Things. He is one of only 15 inventors (in the IDiyas.com database) to have crossed 1,000 issued utility patents. He received his BS in Electrical Engineering from University of Tennessee, Knoxville, M.S in Engineering Management from Southern Methodist University and another MS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin.

5. New Jersey | Junyi Li

City: Chester, NJ
Number of Utility Patents: 1,269
Global Rank: 10
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Qualcomm

Junyi Li received his BS and MS from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Purdue University and an MBA in Finance and Entrepreneurial Management from the Wharton School. He is one of only 15 inventors (in the IDiyas.com database) to have crossed 1,000 issued utility patents. He is an IEEE fellow.

4. California | Tao Luo

City: San Diego, CA
Number of Utility Patents: 1,696
Global Rank: 7
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Qualcomm

Tao Luo is an engineering professional in the wireless industry skilled in 4G/5G system design and standardization. He is one of only 15 inventors (in the IDiyas.com database) to have crossed 1,000 issued utility patents. He received his BE from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, M.Sc in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Queen’s university and PhD in EECS from University of Toronto.

3. Ohio | Frederick E. Shelton, IV

City: Hillsboro, OH
Number of Utility Patents: 1,804
Global Rank: 6
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: Ethicon LLC, Cilag GmbH International, Ethicon Endo-Surgery

Fred Shelton is the most prolific inventor at Johnson & Johnson and its family of companies. He is an R&D Engineering Fellow at Ethicon. He is one of only 15 inventors (in the IDiyas.com database) to have crossed 1,000 issued utility patents.

2. Washington | Lowell Lincoln Wood, Jr.

City: Bellevue, WA
Number of Utility Patents: 1,977
Global Rank: 4
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: The Invention Science Fund (Intellectual Ventures)

Lowell Wood (born 1941) is an astrophysicist and is affiliated with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the Hoover Institution. He is one of only 15 inventors (in the IDiyas.com database) to have crossed 1,000 issued utility patents. Woods earned his PhD in Geophysics from the University of California, Los Angeles (1965).

1. New York | Kangguo Cheng

City: Albany, NY
Number of Utility Patents: 2,616
Global Rank: 3
Majority Source of Intellectual Property: International Business Machines

Kangguo Cheng is a Master Inventor and one of only 15 inventors (in the IDiyas.com database) to have crossed 1,000 issued utility patents. He is a subject matter expert in semiconductor process integration, device physics and materials science. He is a Fellow of IEEE. He received his PhD in Materials Science and Engineering from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

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