Jointly published by AkadØmiai Kiad, Budapest Scientometrics, and Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht Vol. 61, No. 3 (2004) 361381 Received July 16, 2004 Address for correspondence: SUJIT BHATTACHARYA National Institute of Science, Technology and Development Studies Pusa Gate, K.S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi, 110012 India E-mail: sujit@nistads.res.in 01389130/2004/US $ 20.00 Copyright ' 2004 AkadØmiai Kiad, Budapest All rights reserved Mapping inventive activity and technological change through patent analysis: A case study of India and China SUJIT BHATTACHARYA National Institute of Science, Technology and Development Studies, Pusa Gate, New Delhi (India) The characteristics of Indian and Chinese patenting activity in the US patent system are examined by delineating two categories of patents; nationally assigned, and invented not nationally assigned patents (not-nationally assigned patents in short). Further within the above two categories, patents are distinguished and analysed in terms of patent types: utility, design, and plant patents. Indian patents are mainly of utility type whereas Chinas activity falls in both utility and design. In the nationally assigned patents, the different types of institutions involved and linkages are much higher for China. However, not-nationally assigned patents of both the countries are dominated by industry and inter-institutional collaborations are sparse. Patents addressing technology sectors (analysis based on utility patents) do not exhibit major differences between the two categories in Chinese patents and address with varying degree all technology sectors. Unlike China, Indias nationally assigned patents are concentrated in chemical and drugs & medical whereas their not-nationally assigned patents are similar to that of China in addressing technology sectors. In design patents, Chinese nationally assigned patents mainly cover ornamental design of lighting equipments whereas their not-nationally assigned patents are mainly in design equipment for production, distribution or transformation of energy. Further, few firms are active in design patents in both the categories. Indias design activity is insignificant in both the categories. The paper concludes by examining the results in the policy context. Introduction Patent document provides rich source of details for looking at various aspects of inventive/innovative activity of firms, industries, and countries (GRILICHES, 1990; OECD, 1994). The various attributes that comprise a patent document have been exploited in number of studies with different research questions under examination. Researchers have also questioned going too far in applying patent statistics due to inherent limitations and variations in different industries/firms regarding patenting activity (see for instance WAKELIN, 1997). These studies at-least brings forth the point that researchers must keep the limitations in consideration while drawing conclusions