this post was submitted on 26 May 2025
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Don't overengineer the prototype. Make it simple and efficient as a jumping off platform to lead to further developments down the road. Any open printer project doesn't have to start with the technology the proprietary models have. They just have to be proof-of-concept that it's doable. Once that's proven, further developments can be made down the line. Dot matrix is easy to create and cheap to produce compared to the overengineered systems proprietary models use nowadays and it would work as a stepping stone toward that further development.
That makes sense. If you’re going that route though you should be fairly safe patent wise I would think? Most of the dot matrix patents, if not all, have to be expired by now?
I'm not a lawyer, but I would expect so.
You would still need to explore patents. Just because patents exist, doesn't mean they are in use. I would not be surprised to find out that a company like HP would hunt down and buy any patents that could interfere with its profits just to prevent others from using them.
Why would you need to worry about patents on something that is free and open source
Patent infringement is about use, not price
It’s total bullshit that stifles innovation but such is life in the USA. At least the period isn’t completely obscene like copyright