Talk:Lawn mower/Archives/2018

"Without patent" when they had a patent?
From the "Invention" section:


 * The first lawn mower was invented by Edwin Budding[…]. Budding's mower […] was granted a British patent on August 31, 1830.


 * […]


 * […] In an agreement between John Ferrabee and Edwin Budding dated May 18, 1830, Ferrabee […] obtained letters of patent and acquired rights to manufacture, sell and license other manufacturers in the production of lawn mowers. Without patent, Budding and Ferrabee were shrewd enough to allow other companies to build copies of their mower under license[…].

Why does it say "without patent" when they had a patent? What does it mean? – PointyOintment (talk · contribs) 05:46, 5 January 2018 (UTC)