The European Patent Office database now has US patents, but often it
is only the drawings.  But the search engine seems better than Google
Patent.  I often search the EU site to identify a patent number, and
then I go to Google Patent to download the US patents.

Reiterating what Todd said, the patents most often do not give the
kind of info that I think Kim Bunker is looking for.  The purpose of
a patent is to lay claim to an innovation.  But who knows, there might
be some usable info.

Brian Shaw