Your question is interesting but not one with a simple answer - I am not an
attorney but have worked on several projects where a patent surfaced after
the product shipped - it was messy and NOT CHEAP to resolve. This is NOT
legal advice but comments based on my experience.

If you are aware of a patent (you cannot claim you did not know due to your
statement below) then if you were sued and lost you would have to pay triple
damages plus court costs. Most infringement suits cost $500K to $750K to
conclude (they take place in Federal court not a local state or county
court) and even if you "win" you still pay the court costs.

Your best bet is to employ the services of a GOOD intellectual property
attorney to review the patents and advise you of pitfalls you may encounter,
design arounds, or improvements that you could patent yourself.

Good Luck,
Billy B



"Thierry B." wrote in message
om...
Hello,

I am interesting in the production of a dovetail jig at a very good
price.
There is a lot of maker of dovetail jig: Sears Craftsman, Porter
Cable, Keller, Stots, etc... And there is also several patents
regrading dovetail jigs.
I can't imagine that some manufacturers pay someone just to have the
right to produce a dovetail jig. Despite Their models are quite
similar.

What do you know about that?
Is it possible to sell a Carftsman/Porte Cable look alike?

Any help needed.
Thank you very much.

Thierry