In 1884 David Donaldson was granted a patent on a saw swaging and filing machine. Donaldson was subsequently sued by William Lyon, who showed that Donaldson had knowingly infringed Lyon's swaging machine patent. Even though Lyon's patent was applied for and granted after Donaldson's patent, Lyon was the originator of the idea, and Donaldson ultimately had to pay treble damages. See the Lyon entry for the details.
From the court evidence we know that Donaldson manufactured and sold 13 swaging and filing machines, which he sold for $60 to $85, making a profit of about $10 on each.
Information Sources
- See the Lyon and Donaldson patents plus the lawsuit.