Late last month, the US International Trade Commission has ruled in favor of SawStop in their complaint against Bosch. As you might recall, SawStop sued Bosch, alleging that the Bosch Reaxx table saw infringed upon their patents.
Here is the PDF of the ruling, issued January 27th, 2017. Investigation number is 337-TA-959.
That PDF also includes a brief history of court hearings and determinations throughout the case.
Here is the summary:
Notice is hereby given that the U.S. International Trade Commission has issued a limited exclusion order against certain products of Robert Bosch Tool Corporation and Robert Bosch GmbH, and a cease and desist order against Robert Bosch Tool Corporation. The investigation is terminated.
There is a 60-day presidential review period, during which time the President’s International Trade Representative has 60 days to either ratify or reverse the ITC court’s decision.
It is my understanding that the saw will be continue to be sold until the final determination is made. Right now, it’s still available for sale at certain tool dealers, and the replacement firing cartridges are still in stock at Amazon.
It is my understanding that, if the President’s trade rep does not reverse the decision, Bosch will no longer be able to import and sell the Reaxx saw in the USA.
They would be disallowed from importing, selling, marketing, advertising, or distributing table saws incorporating active injury mitigation technology and components thereof that infringe upon the patents.
Does this mean the Reaxx cartridges will be affected by the cease and desist as well?
Checking an ITC FAQ (PDF)
Upon issuance, Commission remedial orders are sent to the President who may then, within 60 days, disapprove them for policy reasons. Such disapprovals are rare. During this period, called the “Presidential review period,” infringing articles may enter the United States provided the importer posts a bond with U.S. Customs and Border Protection in an amount determined by the Commission. Similarly, activities prohibited by a Commission cease and desist order may continue during the Presidential review period provided the respondent posts a bond with the Commission. If the President does not disapprove the Commission’s remedial orders within the 60 day review period, at the conclusion of that period, infringing imports may no longer be imported and the complainant may seek to have previously posted bonds forfeited to it.
In other words, if you want a Bosch Reaxx table saw, you should buy it within the next few weeks, and make sure to stock up on replacement activation cartridges in case they are included in the cease and desist order.