fdm patents expiring/expired

Seems like a couple of the fundamental FDM patents have/are expiring:

[www.google.com]

Still quite a few remaining but the most direct and problematic are already expired or are expiring this year.

Apparently - depending on where you live - you don't have to worry about patents as long as the patent is used for personal and non-profit.

Besides, most patents aren't taken out world wide, usually just the bigger countries, so again quite often you have nothing to worry about if you live in a smaller country.

Being that these patents are hardware they would effect all US, Canadian, Mexican and EU countries and whether it is for personal use or non-profit motive is usually irrelevant. As to whether distributing "kits" would infringe is a matter best left to specifics of the case and a judge.

@goinreverse
Sorry I was concerned with the personal usage scenario, you are right that for distribution of kits, things are probably a bit different.

Although you should be aware that there really isn't such a thing as a EU patent, you can be granted patent issuing rights by EPO, but those rights needs to be confirmed by each individual participating country.

The patent fees still apply, although the translation fees do not, on a per country basis, which means that in the EU patents are commonly only issued in the major countries and a patent isn't issued in the smaller countries due to the economics of scale.

So chances are that if you distribute kits within a small European country the patent restrictions doesn't apply.

Note: IANAL, the above are rules related to me, while working on a specific patent case.