Baldwin vs EMD Prime Movers

[wjstix]

I guess short answer to the original question would be EMD didn't copy Baldwin because (besides issues of patent rights) Baldwin's product was inferior to theirs. By 1970 if you saw a Baldwin diesel locomotive, it either had been retrofit with an EMD engine, or it was in a scrap line.

[SSW9389]

Look no farther than what the large class one railroads were purchasing from Baldwin. The Southern Pacific bought its last AS616s in May 1952. Its last Baldwins were S12s purchased in September 1953. And Southern Pacific was a loyal Baldwin customer until Baldwin couldn't or wouldn't meet Southern Pacific's specification for new diesels. The SP 1953 order for C-C road diesels went to Alco for RSD-5s and EMD for SD7s.

[VGN Jess]

Would it violate patent rights to have used those same cylinder dimensions of 12.75" x 15.75" and operated at 625 RPM? I didn't realize that cylinder sizes or operational RPM could be patented.

[BaltACD]

VGN Jess

Would it violate patent rights to have used those same cylinder dimensions of 12.75" x 15.75" and operated at 625 RPM? I didn't realize that cylinder sizes or operational RPM could be patented.

Bore & Stroke dimensions are not patented, nor is operational RPM.  Other technical manifestations of the machine can be patented - such as, but not limited to, cylinder top design, combustion chamber shape, the specifics of the fuel injection system - and on and on and on.