2. Global analysis of your patent database

The analysis of your patent database involves a detailed examination of :

• the evolution of the field by year; if the number of patents is increasing, this indicates strong interest in the field;

• the dispersion of players (in this case, applicants); if the dispersion is strong, with no major players (companies having filed a large number of patents), we can assume that there is room for development in the field. Otherwise, the "entry ticket" will be high;

• ratios of national patents (generally not extended) versus number of worldwide or European patents (PCT and WO, or European patents (EP)) ;

• list of priority countries (country of first patent filed) ;

• a list of the main applicant countries: this shows whether...