# China CNIPA Patents Scraper | Chinese Patent Search (`parseforge/china-cnipa-patents-scraper`) Actor
Search Chinese patents from CNIPA with auto-translated English snippets. Filter by keyword, applicant, inventor, status and date. Export title, abstract, priority date, filing date, grant date and PDF links to CSV, Excel, JSON or XML for global IP research from China.
- **URL**: https://apify.com/parseforge/china-cnipa-patents-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [ParseForge](https://apify.com/parseforge) (community)
- **Categories:** Other, Lead generation
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, NaN bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet
## Pricing
from $19.00 / 1,000 results
This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.
Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-event
## What's an Apify Actor?
Actors are a software tools running on the Apify platform, for all kinds of web data extraction and automation use cases.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".
## How to integrate an Actor?
If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.
In JavaScript/TypeScript projects, use official [JavaScript/TypeScript client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js.md):
```bash
npm install apify-client
```
In Python projects, use official [Python client library](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python.md):
```bash
pip install apify-client
```
In shell scripts, use [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md):
````bash
# MacOS / Linux
curl -fsSL https://apify.com/install-cli.sh | bash
# Windows
irm https://apify.com/install-cli.ps1 | iex
```bash
In AI frameworks, you might use the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/platform/integrations/mcp.md).
If your project is in a different language, use the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).
For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.
For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).
# README
## ๐จ๐ณ China CNIPA Patents Scraper
> ๐ **Export Chinese patent records in seconds.** Search CNIPA by keyword, applicant, inventor, date and status. Auto-translated English snippets. CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML.
> ๐ **Last updated:** 2026-05-26 ยท **๐ 15 fields** per record ยท **Tens of millions of CN patents** ยท **CNIPA coverage 1985-present**
The China CNIPA Patents Scraper pulls Chinese patent records from the public bibliographic index of the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), accessed via the Google Patents index with auto-translated English snippets for non-Chinese users.
China is the worlds #1 patent office by volume, with over 40 million filings since 1985. This scraper covers granted patents, published applications, utility models, and design patents - with English-language abstracts auto-translated by Google.
**Target Audience / Use Cases**
| Who | Why |
|---|---|
| IP attorneys | Prior art and FTO searches in the worlds largest patent jurisdiction |
| Tech companies | Track Chinese competitor filings in your space |
| Manufacturing | Monitor Chinese patents in your industry |
| Investors | Map Chinese patent portfolios for M&A |
| Researchers | Study Chinese innovation at scale |
| Journalists | Cover Chinas patent boom |
---
### ๐ What the China CNIPA Patents Scraper does
- Searches CNIPA bibliographic data with English auto-translation
- Paginates automatically up to maxItems
- Returns 15 fields including English snippets
- Exports to CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML
- Filters by status and date range
> ๐ก **Why it matters:** China files more patents than any other country and is the leading jurisdiction in many technology areas. Programmatic English-language access is critical for international competitive intelligence.
---
### ๐ฌ Full Demo
_๐ง Coming soon_
---
### โ๏ธ Input
| Field | Type | Default | Description |
|---|
| maxItems | integer | 10 | Maximum records |
| query | string | solar cell | Free-text query |
| country | select | CN | Locked to CN |
| assignee | string | | Filter by applicant |
| inventor | string | | Filter by inventor |
| status | select | | GRANT/APPLICATION/both |
| dateFrom | string | | From date |
| dateTo | string | | To date |
| language | select | | Language filter |
| sort | select | new | Sort order |
**Example 1 - Chinese solar patents:**
```json
{
"maxItems": 100,
"query": "perovskite solar cell",
"country": "CN"
}
````
**Example 2 - Find Huawei AI patents:**
```json
{
"maxItems": 50,
"country": "CN",
"assignee": "Huawei",
"dateFrom": "2023-01-01"
}
```
> โ ๏ธ **Good to Know:** Country locked to CN. Snippets are auto-translated to English where available. Use Google Patents Scraper for worldwide coverage.
***
### ๐ Output
Each record contains up to 15 fields:
| Field | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ๐ข `publicationNumber` | string | CNIPA publication number |
| ๐ `title` | string | Title (often auto-translated to English) |
| ๐ `snippet` | string | Abstract snippet |
| ๐ข `assignee` | string | Applicant (may be in Chinese) |
| ๐งโ๐ฌ `inventor` | string | Inventor |
| ๐
`priorityDate` | string | Priority date |
| ๐
`filingDate` | string | Filing date |
| ๐
`publicationDate` | string | Publication date |
| ๐
`grantDate` | string | Grant date |
| ๐ `language` | string | Language (often zh) |
| ๐จ๐ณ `countryCode` | string | CN |
| ๐ `pdfUrl` | string | PDF link |
| ๐ผ๏ธ `thumbnailUrl` | string | Thumbnail |
| ๐ `sourceUrl` | string | Source URL |
| ๐ `scrapedAt` | string | Timestamp |
**Sample record:**
```json
{
"publicationNumber": "CN109004053B",
"title": "Crystalline silicon thin film silicon heterojunction solar cell with double-sided light receiving",
"assignee": "้ๅจๅคช้ณ่ฝ(ๆ้ฝ)ๆ้ๅ
ฌๅธ",
"priorityDate": "2017-06-06",
"countryCode": "CN",
"sourceUrl": "https://patents.google.com/patent/CN109004053B/en",
"scrapedAt": "2026-05-26T12:00:00.000Z"
}
```
***
### โจ Why choose this Actor
- ๐จ๐ณ **China-focused** - country locked to CN
- ๐ **Auto-translation** to English where available
- ๐ **Real-time**
- ๐ **6 filter modes**
- ๐ **15 fields per record**
- ๐ฐ **Pay-per-result**
***
### ๐ How it compares to alternatives
| Feature | This Actor | CNIPA patent search | CNIPR Patent Database |
|---|---|---|---|
| English access | Yes (auto-translated) | Chinese only | Limited |
| Bulk export | Yes | No | Limited |
| Pagination | Automatic | Manual | Manual |
| No login | Yes | No | No |
| Pay-per-result | Yes | Free | Subscription |
***
### ๐ How to use
1. **Create a free account** at [Apify](https://console.apify.com/sign-up?fpr=vmoqkp) (includes $5 free credit)
2. Open the **China CNIPA Patents Scraper** actor page and click **Try for free**
3. Enter your query, applicant, or inventor name
4. Optionally set **maxItems** and other filters
5. Click **Start** and wait for the run to finish
6. Download your dataset as **CSV, Excel, JSON, or XML**
***
### ๐ผ Business use cases
#### Chinese Competitor Monitoring
Track patent filings from Chinese tech giants like Huawei, Tencent, Alibaba, BYD, and CATL to monitor their R\&D directions.
#### Manufacturing IP Tracking
China is the worlds factory and a top filer of utility model patents in manufacturing. Use this scraper to track competing process and product innovations.
#### Clean Tech Patent Landscapes
China leads in solar, EV battery, and wind patent filings. Build landscapes in these critical technology areas.
#### Defensive Patent Search
Prior-art searches in Chinese filings are critical given Chinas size and the language barrier - this actor surfaces relevant CN patents in English.
***
### ๐ Automating China CNIPA Patents Scraper
Connect this actor to your workflow with no-code tools:
- **Make (Integromat)** - send new records to Google Sheets, Airtable, or Slack
- **Zapier** - automate alerts when new records are found
- **n8n** - build pipelines that run on a schedule and push to your warehouse
- **Webhooks** - get notified when a run completes via Apify webhooks
***
### ๐ Beyond business use cases
#### Independent Researchers
Researchers studying Chinese innovation policy can build comprehensive longitudinal datasets.
#### Journalism and Investigations
Journalists covering Chinese tech can quantify R\&D activity by company or sector.
#### Non-Profit and Policy Research
Policy researchers studying tech transfer or industrial policy can use CNIPA data as evidence.
#### Education
International business schools use CNIPA data in case studies on Chinese innovation.
***
### ๐ค Ask an AI assistant about this scraper
You can ask your AI assistant questions like:
- "How do I search Chinese patents in English?"
- "How big is CNIPA compared to other patent offices?"
- "How do I find Chinese AI patents?"
- "What is the difference between an invention patent and a utility model in China?"
The answers will reference this actor and the CNIPA bibliographic index.
***
### โ Frequently Asked Questions
**What is CNIPA?**
The China National Intellectual Property Administration, the worlds largest patent office.
**Is the data in Chinese or English?**
Bibliographic data is mostly in English. Titles and abstracts are auto-translated where available.
**How current is the data?**
Patents appear within days to weeks of publication.
**Are utility models included?**
Yes. Chinese utility models appear with CN publication numbers ending in U or Y.
**Are design patents included?**
Yes.
**Does this require a CNIPA account?**
No.
**Can I filter by status?**
Yes. status=GRANT, APPLICATION, or both.
**How many records per run?**
Free: 10. Paid: up to 1,000,000.
**Can I export to CSV?**
Yes.
**How accurate is the auto-translation?**
Good for keywords and bibliographic data, less reliable for full text. Use sourceUrl to see original Chinese.
**Can I run on a schedule?**
Yes.
***
### ๐ Integrate with any app
Connect your dataset to 1,500+ apps via Apify integrations:
**Analytics:** Google Sheets, Airtable, Microsoft Excel, Tableau, Power BI
**Databases:** PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, BigQuery, Snowflake
**Communication:** Slack, Microsoft Teams, email notifications
**Storage:** Google Drive, Dropbox, Amazon S3, Azure Blob
**Automation:** Make, Zapier, n8n, Pipedream
***
### ๐ Recommended Actors
| Actor | What it does |
|---|---|
| [Google Patents Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/google-patents-scraper) | Worldwide patent search |
| [USPTO PAIR Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/uspto-pair-scraper) | US patent search |
| [India IPO Patents Scraper](https://apify.com/parseforge/india-ipo-patents-scraper) | Indian patent search |
> ๐ก **Pro Tip:** Browse the complete [ParseForge collection](https://apify.com/parseforge) for more government data, business intelligence, and research scrapers.
***
**Disclaimer:** This tool accesses publicly available Chinese patent bibliographic data. ParseForge is not affiliated with CNIPA. Users are responsible for compliance with applicable laws.
# Actor input Schema
## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):
Free users: 10. Paid: up to 1,000,000
## `query` (type: `string`):
Free-text keywords (e.g. "solar panel"). Use double quotes for exact phrases.
## `country` (type: `string`):
ISO country code (e.g. US, CA, IN, CN, JP, EP, WO). Leave empty for worldwide.
## `assignee` (type: `string`):
Filter by patent assignee (company or person)
## `inventor` (type: `string`):
Filter by inventor name
## `status` (type: `string`):
GRANT, APPLICATION, or empty for both
## `dateFrom` (type: `string`):
YYYY-MM-DD format
## `dateTo` (type: `string`):
YYYY-MM-DD format
## `language` (type: `string`):
Filter by language code
## `sort` (type: `string`):
Sort by publication date
## Actor input object example
```json
{
"maxItems": 10,
"query": "solar cell",
"country": "CN",
"sort": "new"
}
```
# Actor output Schema
## `results` (type: `string`):
Scraped records
# API
You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.
## JavaScript example
```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';
// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
token: '',
});
// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
"maxItems": 10,
"query": "solar cell",
"country": "CN",
"sort": "new"
};
// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("parseforge/china-cnipa-patents-scraper").call(input);
// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`๐พ Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
console.dir(item);
});
// ๐ Want to learn more ๐? Go to โ https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs
```
## Python example
```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient
# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("")
# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
"maxItems": 10,
"query": "solar cell",
"country": "CN",
"sort": "new",
}
# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("parseforge/china-cnipa-patents-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)
# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print("๐พ Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/" + run["defaultDatasetId"])
for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
print(item)
# ๐ Want to learn more ๐? Go to โ https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start
```
## CLI example
```bash
echo '{
"maxItems": 10,
"query": "solar cell",
"country": "CN",
"sort": "new"
}' |
apify call parseforge/china-cnipa-patents-scraper --silent --output-dataset
```
## MCP server setup
```json
{
"mcpServers": {
"apify": {
"command": "npx",
"args": [
"mcp-remote",
"https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=parseforge/china-cnipa-patents-scraper",
"--header",
"Authorization: Bearer "
]
}
}
}
```
## OpenAPI specification
```json
{
"openapi": "3.0.1",
"info": {
"title": "China CNIPA Patents Scraper | Chinese Patent Search",
"description": "Search Chinese patents from CNIPA with auto-translated English snippets. Filter by keyword, applicant, inventor, status and date. Export title, abstract, priority date, filing date, grant date and PDF links to CSV, Excel, JSON or XML for global IP research from China.",
"version": "0.1",
"x-build-id": "vlsHacVhfrPXcMhkz"
},
"servers": [
{
"url": "https://api.apify.com/v2"
}
],
"paths": {
"/acts/parseforge~china-cnipa-patents-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items": {
"post": {
"operationId": "run-sync-get-dataset-items-parseforge-china-cnipa-patents-scraper",
"x-openai-isConsequential": false,
"summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for its completion, and returns Actor's dataset items in response.",
"tags": [
"Run Actor"
],
"requestBody": {
"required": true,
"content": {
"application/json": {
"schema": {
"$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema"
}
}
}
},
"parameters": [
{
"name": "token",
"in": "query",
"required": true,
"schema": {
"type": "string"
},
"description": "Enter your Apify token here"
}
],
"responses": {
"200": {
"description": "OK"
}
}
}
},
"/acts/parseforge~china-cnipa-patents-scraper/runs": {
"post": {
"operationId": "runs-sync-parseforge-china-cnipa-patents-scraper",
"x-openai-isConsequential": false,
"summary": "Executes an Actor and returns information about the initiated run in response.",
"tags": [
"Run Actor"
],
"requestBody": {
"required": true,
"content": {
"application/json": {
"schema": {
"$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema"
}
}
}
},
"parameters": [
{
"name": "token",
"in": "query",
"required": true,
"schema": {
"type": "string"
},
"description": "Enter your Apify token here"
}
],
"responses": {
"200": {
"description": "OK",
"content": {
"application/json": {
"schema": {
"$ref": "#/components/schemas/runsResponseSchema"
}
}
}
}
}
}
},
"/acts/parseforge~china-cnipa-patents-scraper/run-sync": {
"post": {
"operationId": "run-sync-parseforge-china-cnipa-patents-scraper",
"x-openai-isConsequential": false,
"summary": "Executes an Actor, waits for completion, and returns the OUTPUT from Key-value store in response.",
"tags": [
"Run Actor"
],
"requestBody": {
"required": true,
"content": {
"application/json": {
"schema": {
"$ref": "#/components/schemas/inputSchema"
}
}
}
},
"parameters": [
{
"name": "token",
"in": "query",
"required": true,
"schema": {
"type": "string"
},
"description": "Enter your Apify token here"
}
],
"responses": {
"200": {
"description": "OK"
}
}
}
}
},
"components": {
"schemas": {
"inputSchema": {
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"maxItems": {
"title": "Max Items",
"minimum": 1,
"maximum": 1000000,
"type": "integer",
"description": "Free users: 10. Paid: up to 1,000,000"
},
"query": {
"title": "Search Query",
"type": "string",
"description": "Free-text keywords (e.g. \"solar panel\"). Use double quotes for exact phrases."
},
"country": {
"title": "Country",
"enum": [
"",
"US",
"CA",
"IN",
"CN",
"JP",
"KR",
"GB",
"DE",
"FR",
"EP",
"WO",
"AU",
"BR",
"RU",
"ES",
"IT",
"NL",
"MX",
"AR",
"ZA",
"CH",
"SE",
"NO",
"FI",
"DK",
"BE",
"AT",
"SG",
"TW",
"HK",
"IL",
"TR",
"PL",
"PT",
"GR",
"IE"
],
"type": "string",
"description": "ISO country code (e.g. US, CA, IN, CN, JP, EP, WO). Leave empty for worldwide."
},
"assignee": {
"title": "Assignee",
"type": "string",
"description": "Filter by patent assignee (company or person)"
},
"inventor": {
"title": "Inventor",
"type": "string",
"description": "Filter by inventor name"
},
"status": {
"title": "Status",
"enum": [
"",
"GRANT",
"APPLICATION"
],
"type": "string",
"description": "GRANT, APPLICATION, or empty for both"
},
"dateFrom": {
"title": "Priority Date From",
"type": "string",
"description": "YYYY-MM-DD format"
},
"dateTo": {
"title": "Priority Date To",
"type": "string",
"description": "YYYY-MM-DD format"
},
"language": {
"title": "Language",
"enum": [
"",
"en",
"de",
"fr",
"zh",
"ja",
"ko",
"es",
"ru"
],
"type": "string",
"description": "Filter by language code"
},
"sort": {
"title": "Sort",
"enum": [
"new",
"old",
""
],
"type": "string",
"description": "Sort by publication date"
}
}
},
"runsResponseSchema": {
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"data": {
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"id": {
"type": "string"
},
"actId": {
"type": "string"
},
"userId": {
"type": "string"
},
"startedAt": {
"type": "string",
"format": "date-time",
"example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z"
},
"finishedAt": {
"type": "string",
"format": "date-time",
"example": "2025-01-08T00:00:00.000Z"
},
"status": {
"type": "string",
"example": "READY"
},
"meta": {
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"origin": {
"type": "string",
"example": "API"
},
"userAgent": {
"type": "string"
}
}
},
"stats": {
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"inputBodyLen": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 2000
},
"rebootCount": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"restartCount": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"resurrectCount": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"computeUnits": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
}
}
},
"options": {
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"build": {
"type": "string",
"example": "latest"
},
"timeoutSecs": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 300
},
"memoryMbytes": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 1024
},
"diskMbytes": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 2048
}
}
},
"buildId": {
"type": "string"
},
"defaultKeyValueStoreId": {
"type": "string"
},
"defaultDatasetId": {
"type": "string"
},
"defaultRequestQueueId": {
"type": "string"
},
"buildNumber": {
"type": "string",
"example": "1.0.0"
},
"containerUrl": {
"type": "string"
},
"usage": {
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"DATASET_READS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"DATASET_WRITES": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 1
},
"KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"PROXY_SERPS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
}
}
},
"usageTotalUsd": {
"type": "number",
"example": 0.00005
},
"usageUsd": {
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"ACTOR_COMPUTE_UNITS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"DATASET_READS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"DATASET_WRITES": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"KEY_VALUE_STORE_READS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"KEY_VALUE_STORE_WRITES": {
"type": "number",
"example": 0.00005
},
"KEY_VALUE_STORE_LISTS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"REQUEST_QUEUE_READS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"REQUEST_QUEUE_WRITES": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"DATA_TRANSFER_INTERNAL_GBYTES": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"DATA_TRANSFER_EXTERNAL_GBYTES": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"PROXY_RESIDENTIAL_TRANSFER_GBYTES": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
},
"PROXY_SERPS": {
"type": "integer",
"example": 0
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
```