Well, First of all I'm sorry for the late answer.Have you tried to enforce your rights? If so, what happened? If not, why not?
ok, Let's follow the story as it was, but without dates as i am not having my patent documents with my right now.
After taking the first patent from the Greek patent office (which follows the procedure of testing the design upon a global databank) i extended my rights towards the EU and USA.
-EU patent office handed me after repeating the global research the same patent rights (category A).
USA patent office replyed that my design was the same as a motorbike suspension system patented by Honda!
I replied with my EU and GR (greek) patent papers + an explanatory text that my application has nothing to do with... motorbikes!
-The USA patent office replied (then) that i am copying an other bicycle design (Yety's suspension system Lawill)
-I re-replied with a new report but i got a third (and final) rejection.....
All this cost me about 1.000.00 Grd (almos 3.000 Euros!)
Now,
i know that there's a conflict between EU & US patent offices and I do know that the guy who designed the I-Drive system was working without knowing my existence (same story as Alex Morgans & the Phaser gearbox system), but hey!
Now i see Gt, Shwinn & Mongoose ripping me + some simmilaritys on other designs as Maverik's floating BB
What can i say..... than i just don;t have the cash to fight back (and i would prefer to invest this upon a second generation bike!)
John