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From The Inventor Blog
by Mark Reyland » Sun Aug 22, 2010 11:46 am
- Mark Reyland
- Green Belt
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2009 6:31 am
Tampa Bay Inventors ROCK!
The Tampa Bay Inventors Club is one of the premiere inventor clubs in the entire country. They work really hard at building a place that inventors can come and share experiences, knowledge, and contacts on the wild and wacky road of inventing!
If you are in the Tampa Bay area on the 4th of September, make sure you check out the Inventor Fair – sponsored by the Tampa Bay Inventors Club.
The Tampa Bay Inventors Council is pleased to invite all our fellow inventors to join us for our Third Annual Inventors Fair on Saturday, September 4th at the St. Petersburg Pier! We have expanded upon our last fair in that several booths will be spread throughout the facility to insure that anyone entering the Pier will know that we are there. We will invite the public to visit all of the booths and vote on the innovations that appeal to them for a people's choice award.
September 4th is on Labor Day weekend to insure the opportunity for good foot traffic. The Corvette group will also be holding a show that weekend to bring even more folk out and we have contacted the local ABC affiliate who also plan to attend. Of course any breaking news could divert them but they have expressed the desire to be there.
If you have an innovation that you want to share or demonstrate (safely please!), please contact us at admin@tbic.us and let us know. Each inventor will have a 6 foot table and two chairs with which to show your stuff.
So dust off those prototypes and get some exposure for your innovations! Join us on September 4th for a exciting and fun event!
Wayne Rasanen
President, Tampa Bay Inventors Council
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
The Tampa Bay Inventors Club is one of the premiere inventor clubs in the entire country. They work really hard at building a place that inventors can come and share experiences, knowledge, and contacts on the wild and wacky road of inventing!
If you are in the Tampa Bay area on the 4th of September, make sure you check out the Inventor Fair – sponsored by the Tampa Bay Inventors Club.
The Tampa Bay Inventors Council is pleased to invite all our fellow inventors to join us for our Third Annual Inventors Fair on Saturday, September 4th at the St. Petersburg Pier! We have expanded upon our last fair in that several booths will be spread throughout the facility to insure that anyone entering the Pier will know that we are there. We will invite the public to visit all of the booths and vote on the innovations that appeal to them for a people's choice award.
September 4th is on Labor Day weekend to insure the opportunity for good foot traffic. The Corvette group will also be holding a show that weekend to bring even more folk out and we have contacted the local ABC affiliate who also plan to attend. Of course any breaking news could divert them but they have expressed the desire to be there.
If you have an innovation that you want to share or demonstrate (safely please!), please contact us at admin@tbic.us and let us know. Each inventor will have a 6 foot table and two chairs with which to show your stuff.
So dust off those prototypes and get some exposure for your innovations! Join us on September 4th for a exciting and fun event!
Wayne Rasanen
President, Tampa Bay Inventors Council
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Re: From The Inventor Blog
by Mark Reyland » Mon Aug 23, 2010 9:25 am
- Mark Reyland
- Green Belt
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2009 6:31 am
You are such a Wacko!
You are such a wacko! - Edison, Marconi, and Fuller – they all heard it at some point or another. After all, they were inventors, and when you’re an inventor you can expect some strange looks.
You see, in our society we have a tendency to wrap things in little packages. If you are a Fireman you have a blue uniform with a big hat, you drive a big red truck, and you are kind to children and elderly people. While if you’re a rocket scientist we all know your clothes don’t match, you drive a sensible car, and you were a major geek in high school. (sorry Juan)
These are the society driven images we have in our minds of professions we see every day – but what about inventors? Well, we have one of those images too.
It all started with Einstein’s hair - that shaggy mop of white locks that started the public’s view of smart, but eccentric people. That was followed by that darn “Doc Brown” from the movie Back To The Future. Again….what’s up with the hair?
The reality is most inventors look like…. well, you and I.
We are normal everyday people who simply think a little differently than most. We may be smart, we may be driven, but most of all we’re just creative. Somewhere deep inside is a need to create, a need to help and a nagging little question about why we can’t turn off our minds….but a Wacko? no way….Ok, maybe just a little.
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
You are such a wacko! - Edison, Marconi, and Fuller – they all heard it at some point or another. After all, they were inventors, and when you’re an inventor you can expect some strange looks.
You see, in our society we have a tendency to wrap things in little packages. If you are a Fireman you have a blue uniform with a big hat, you drive a big red truck, and you are kind to children and elderly people. While if you’re a rocket scientist we all know your clothes don’t match, you drive a sensible car, and you were a major geek in high school. (sorry Juan)
These are the society driven images we have in our minds of professions we see every day – but what about inventors? Well, we have one of those images too.
It all started with Einstein’s hair - that shaggy mop of white locks that started the public’s view of smart, but eccentric people. That was followed by that darn “Doc Brown” from the movie Back To The Future. Again….what’s up with the hair?
The reality is most inventors look like…. well, you and I.
We are normal everyday people who simply think a little differently than most. We may be smart, we may be driven, but most of all we’re just creative. Somewhere deep inside is a need to create, a need to help and a nagging little question about why we can’t turn off our minds….but a Wacko? no way….Ok, maybe just a little.
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Re: From The Inventor Blog
by Mark Reyland » Tue Aug 24, 2010 6:20 am
- Mark Reyland
- Green Belt
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2009 6:31 am
HEY! That's Mine
In the inventor community we hear these words all the time “That’s my idea”.
You see an idea on a store shelf and you know you had it long before that manufacturer….but did you?
Let’s face it; there are only a few million basic functions in existence and far more needs for those basic functions. It’s likely that innovations at some point or another will overlap those core functions in the design of unique products. I don’t think that means you stole anything; I think it means you were inspired by a function and offered a useful adaptation.
Here are two examples of products that are very similar in function. Was one inspired by the other?, or did they even know about each other? Is it stealing an idea when you use the core of the innovation and simply change it a little?
This question has plagued the industry for many years. We all have an opinion about it. My guess is the legal opinion is rooted in the bar set in copyright law. “Likelihood of confusion” Both products have a basic function, both are used in the same basic way, but could they be confused with one another? I doubt it.
https://www.buycantastic.com/
https://www.smartspin.com/
What do you think?
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
In the inventor community we hear these words all the time “That’s my idea”.
You see an idea on a store shelf and you know you had it long before that manufacturer….but did you?
Let’s face it; there are only a few million basic functions in existence and far more needs for those basic functions. It’s likely that innovations at some point or another will overlap those core functions in the design of unique products. I don’t think that means you stole anything; I think it means you were inspired by a function and offered a useful adaptation.
Here are two examples of products that are very similar in function. Was one inspired by the other?, or did they even know about each other? Is it stealing an idea when you use the core of the innovation and simply change it a little?
This question has plagued the industry for many years. We all have an opinion about it. My guess is the legal opinion is rooted in the bar set in copyright law. “Likelihood of confusion” Both products have a basic function, both are used in the same basic way, but could they be confused with one another? I doubt it.
https://www.buycantastic.com/
https://www.smartspin.com/
What do you think?
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Re: From The Inventor Blog
by Mark Reyland » Wed Aug 25, 2010 5:41 am
- Mark Reyland
- Green Belt
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2009 6:31 am
Hey - Listen to this!
Thousands of people tune into Launch Radio each week to hear Ron Reardon and Bill McHenry interview entrepreneurs and inventors about topics important to launching their business or inventing endeavor. From Patents to Business Plans and Insurance, the topics are always packed with great information from well respected professionals in the field.
This week it was a show about how business people and inventors live on different planets. It’s a metaphor many of you have heard me use to describe the relationship between the two sides. On this show we talk about everything from Planets to Cruise Ships in explaining the complex relationship between the inventor mindset and the business principals that take a product to market.
Well, just give a listen and you’ll see what I mean.
http://thelaunchhour.businessradiox.com/355
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Thousands of people tune into Launch Radio each week to hear Ron Reardon and Bill McHenry interview entrepreneurs and inventors about topics important to launching their business or inventing endeavor. From Patents to Business Plans and Insurance, the topics are always packed with great information from well respected professionals in the field.
This week it was a show about how business people and inventors live on different planets. It’s a metaphor many of you have heard me use to describe the relationship between the two sides. On this show we talk about everything from Planets to Cruise Ships in explaining the complex relationship between the inventor mindset and the business principals that take a product to market.
Well, just give a listen and you’ll see what I mean.
http://thelaunchhour.businessradiox.com/355
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Re: From The Inventor Blog
by Scrupulous » Wed Aug 25, 2010 1:42 pm
-
Scrupulous - Black Belt
- Posts: 2414
- Joined: Sun Jan 21, 2007 7:32 pm
- Location: United States
Mark Reyland wrote:You are such a Wacko!
You are such a wacko! - Edison, Marconi, and Fuller – they all heard it at some point or another. After all, they were inventors, and when you’re an inventor you can expect some strange looks.
You see, in our society we have a tendency to wrap things in little packages. If you are a Fireman you have a blue uniform with a big hat, you drive a big red truck, and you are kind to children and elderly people. While if you’re a rocket scientist we all know your clothes don’t match, you drive a sensible car, and you were a major geek in high school. (sorry Juan)
These are the society driven images we have in our minds of professions we see every day – but what about inventors? Well, we have one of those images too.
It all started with Einstein’s hair - that shaggy mop of white locks that started the public’s view of smart, but eccentric people. That was followed by that darn “Doc Brown” from the movie Back To The Future. Again….what’s up with the hair?
The reality is most inventors look like…. well, you and I.
We are normal everyday people who simply think a little differently than most. We may be smart, we may be driven, but most of all we’re just creative. Somewhere deep inside is a need to create, a need to help and a nagging little question about why we can’t turn off our minds….but a Wacko? no way….Ok, maybe just a little.
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Well put, Mark.
Re: From The Inventor Blog
by Mark Reyland » Thu Aug 26, 2010 5:09 am
- Mark Reyland
- Green Belt
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2009 6:31 am
Thanks! Scrupelous
Re: From The Inventor Blog
by Mark Reyland » Thu Aug 26, 2010 5:14 am
- Mark Reyland
- Green Belt
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2009 6:31 am
HELP….I’ve been robbed!
ASOTV is the hottest sector in retail at the moment – But Why?
Well the answer is actually pretty simple. In traditional retail your product is placed in categories like House wares, Lawn & Garden, Office supplies. Those categories are then grouped into a retailer defining that retailer by the categories they sell – like an office supply store, or a jewelry store, or a linen store …. So if I had a blanket to sell and I approached an office supply store the buyer would make sure I understood that they don’t sell blankets and they are certainly not going to sell mine.
Or will they?
In ASOTV, the traditional rules for categories are thrown out the window. It’s no longer a blanket, it’s an “ASOTV Product” and it doesn’t fit in the little retail category box buyers have traditionally used. This has allowed the ASOTV products to span retailers with no regard to the other merchandise they carry. The result is not only blankets in office stores (like Snuggie) but the largest single retail products category on the planet.
That’s the good news – the bad news is this huge market has spawned a large number of people claiming to be ASOTV companies. They may have at one point provided individual services to the market, but now they approach inventors trying to convince them they are one stop ASOTV companies ready to license their products, when in fact they are a production company looking to charge the inventor for production services and then pass them off checkbook in hand, to other one trick companies. Before you know it you have spent tens of thousands of dollars on a product that is going nowhere and that company is long gone.
The reality of the ASOTV industry is that there are only about 10 major companies in the industry, and of those 10, 75% of the market is controlled by about 4 companies. I have worked with them all, and I can tell you none of them ask an inventor for a dime. They simply offer a license deal to the inventor and then use their money to develop and market the product.
Bottom Line – if an “ASOTV” or “DR” company is asking you for money, they are selling you just one of many services needed to take the product to market. You may not see them at the time, but there is a long line of their friends standing behind them waiting for their turn.
Real ASOTV companies don’t ask inventors for money….it’s just that simple.
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
ASOTV is the hottest sector in retail at the moment – But Why?
Well the answer is actually pretty simple. In traditional retail your product is placed in categories like House wares, Lawn & Garden, Office supplies. Those categories are then grouped into a retailer defining that retailer by the categories they sell – like an office supply store, or a jewelry store, or a linen store …. So if I had a blanket to sell and I approached an office supply store the buyer would make sure I understood that they don’t sell blankets and they are certainly not going to sell mine.
Or will they?
In ASOTV, the traditional rules for categories are thrown out the window. It’s no longer a blanket, it’s an “ASOTV Product” and it doesn’t fit in the little retail category box buyers have traditionally used. This has allowed the ASOTV products to span retailers with no regard to the other merchandise they carry. The result is not only blankets in office stores (like Snuggie) but the largest single retail products category on the planet.
That’s the good news – the bad news is this huge market has spawned a large number of people claiming to be ASOTV companies. They may have at one point provided individual services to the market, but now they approach inventors trying to convince them they are one stop ASOTV companies ready to license their products, when in fact they are a production company looking to charge the inventor for production services and then pass them off checkbook in hand, to other one trick companies. Before you know it you have spent tens of thousands of dollars on a product that is going nowhere and that company is long gone.
The reality of the ASOTV industry is that there are only about 10 major companies in the industry, and of those 10, 75% of the market is controlled by about 4 companies. I have worked with them all, and I can tell you none of them ask an inventor for a dime. They simply offer a license deal to the inventor and then use their money to develop and market the product.
Bottom Line – if an “ASOTV” or “DR” company is asking you for money, they are selling you just one of many services needed to take the product to market. You may not see them at the time, but there is a long line of their friends standing behind them waiting for their turn.
Real ASOTV companies don’t ask inventors for money….it’s just that simple.
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Re: From The Inventor Blog
by Mark Reyland » Fri Aug 27, 2010 9:15 am
- Mark Reyland
- Green Belt
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2009 6:31 am
Did my license expire?
Licenses come in many forms – Drivers Licenses, Plumbing licenses, even Fishing licenses. But in Inventing the license everyone wants to know about is the Product License - and in inventing when you want to know about product licenses you ask Roger Brown.
Roger and I are good friends, and knowing how he loves to help inventors understand the ins and outs of the licensing process, I asked Roger if he could take what he does and break it down into some basic steps. Roger thought that was a great idea. Starting MONDAY, here on the Inventor Blog, Roger will talk about the product licensing process in 5 basic steps posted Monday through Friday of next week.
Each step will build on the one before it, and although he can't cover everything in just 5 bog postings, by the end you should have a good overall feel for the process.
Roger Brown is an Entrepreneur, Product Developer, Inventor Consultant, and nationally published Humor Writer. Roger is best known for getting 7 products in the toy, tool, nuclear, kitchen and eyewear industries licensed and on store shelves spending less than $100 on each.
He currently has two kitchen products licensed and ready for release in 2011. Roger's book "Guerrilla Inventing" will be released in 2010. You can see his products and more at http://www.rogerbrown.net
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Licenses come in many forms – Drivers Licenses, Plumbing licenses, even Fishing licenses. But in Inventing the license everyone wants to know about is the Product License - and in inventing when you want to know about product licenses you ask Roger Brown.
Roger and I are good friends, and knowing how he loves to help inventors understand the ins and outs of the licensing process, I asked Roger if he could take what he does and break it down into some basic steps. Roger thought that was a great idea. Starting MONDAY, here on the Inventor Blog, Roger will talk about the product licensing process in 5 basic steps posted Monday through Friday of next week.
Each step will build on the one before it, and although he can't cover everything in just 5 bog postings, by the end you should have a good overall feel for the process.
Roger Brown is an Entrepreneur, Product Developer, Inventor Consultant, and nationally published Humor Writer. Roger is best known for getting 7 products in the toy, tool, nuclear, kitchen and eyewear industries licensed and on store shelves spending less than $100 on each.
He currently has two kitchen products licensed and ready for release in 2011. Roger's book "Guerrilla Inventing" will be released in 2010. You can see his products and more at http://www.rogerbrown.net
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Re: From The Inventor Blog
by Mark Reyland » Mon Aug 30, 2010 5:46 am
- Mark Reyland
- Green Belt
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2009 6:31 am
5 Steps to licensing a product - STEP 1
Getting The Idea!
Ideas appear to inventors in many different ways. You can be walking through a store see a product and have an idea right of the top of your head. Watching TV, reading magazines, driving, or just listening to people complain about problems they have doing a task/chore or the excessive time it took to accomplish a task are all great ways to spark an idea.
One method I use to help me come up with ideas is I pick a new topic every day and use that topic as my focal point for the day. Today’s topic is "spatulas". As I go through the day I try and think of any improvements you could make to a spatula to make it a better product. Tomorrow I might pick trash bags as the focus. This exercise is great for generating ideas and training your mind to be thinking on a topic even when you aren’t really concentrating on it. I make sure I carry a notepad and pen with me always so I can write down the ideas as I have them. Granted all the ideas I write down may not be winners, but it is helping you expand your ability to think on a topic.
Seeing an improvement for an existing product or better /user friendly method to solve the problem helps generate ideas especially if you are the one using the product. An example of this is my sunglass visor clip. The product that was out on the market broke easily, would not hold every size of sunglasses, and required two hands to operate. I had purchased two of those products and had each one break within a couple of months of use. They just would not work on all sunglasses and broke easily.
My solution was a product that held any size sunglasses, did not require a locking mechanism, so there weren’t extra parts that broke easily and only required one hand to operate. The best part is I solved all the issues of the first product and was able to sell it at the same price as their inferior product. The consumer gets a better product and does not spend any additional money. It is a win/win situation for everyone.
Remember, it's okay to have an idea that improves another product. Often some of the best licesning deals are made on improvements, not just brand new products.
You can hear more of Roger's tips on licensing your retail product on the new Looking-2-Licesne CD produced by Roger Brown and Jim Debetta - It's a great source of information from two seasoned professionals. http://www.looking2license.com
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Getting The Idea!
Ideas appear to inventors in many different ways. You can be walking through a store see a product and have an idea right of the top of your head. Watching TV, reading magazines, driving, or just listening to people complain about problems they have doing a task/chore or the excessive time it took to accomplish a task are all great ways to spark an idea.
One method I use to help me come up with ideas is I pick a new topic every day and use that topic as my focal point for the day. Today’s topic is "spatulas". As I go through the day I try and think of any improvements you could make to a spatula to make it a better product. Tomorrow I might pick trash bags as the focus. This exercise is great for generating ideas and training your mind to be thinking on a topic even when you aren’t really concentrating on it. I make sure I carry a notepad and pen with me always so I can write down the ideas as I have them. Granted all the ideas I write down may not be winners, but it is helping you expand your ability to think on a topic.
Seeing an improvement for an existing product or better /user friendly method to solve the problem helps generate ideas especially if you are the one using the product. An example of this is my sunglass visor clip. The product that was out on the market broke easily, would not hold every size of sunglasses, and required two hands to operate. I had purchased two of those products and had each one break within a couple of months of use. They just would not work on all sunglasses and broke easily.
My solution was a product that held any size sunglasses, did not require a locking mechanism, so there weren’t extra parts that broke easily and only required one hand to operate. The best part is I solved all the issues of the first product and was able to sell it at the same price as their inferior product. The consumer gets a better product and does not spend any additional money. It is a win/win situation for everyone.
Remember, it's okay to have an idea that improves another product. Often some of the best licesning deals are made on improvements, not just brand new products.
You can hear more of Roger's tips on licensing your retail product on the new Looking-2-Licesne CD produced by Roger Brown and Jim Debetta - It's a great source of information from two seasoned professionals. http://www.looking2license.com
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Re: From The Inventor Blog
by Mark Reyland » Tue Aug 31, 2010 5:43 am
- Mark Reyland
- Green Belt
- Posts: 150
- Joined: Sun Mar 29, 2009 6:31 am
5 Steps to licensing a product - Sept 2
Doing your research up front
Research is boring to most people, but you need to understand its importance. You want to know if your idea is unique and marketable before you start spending money. If you do your research properly you can kill a project in its infancy if there are issues, and move on to the next project. You don’t have to spend hundreds to thousands of dollars paying someone else to do the looking for you.
Look in stores that carry the same type of product you think your idea would fit. For example, go to Lowe’s, Home Depot, your local hardware store, etc if you have a tool idea. You can always look online. You can also search using the “Images” feature on most browsers. This will pull up visuals of anything in your search window.
I do this before looking on the patent office website because it gives you a broad view of what is out there and if something better is already on the market. It also gives you a feel for what type of word search you want to do once you get to the patent office website. Most Inventors don’t like the tedious part of researching, but once you start doing it you will find you get quicker at it. You will find your own shortcuts to get faster results. Research is your money saver. It keeps you from moving forward on a project that is destined to fail.
You can hear more of Roger's tips on licensing your retail product on the new Looking-2-Licesne CD produced by Roger Brown and Jim Debetta - It's a great source of information from two seasoned professionals. http://www.looking2license.com
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com
Doing your research up front
Research is boring to most people, but you need to understand its importance. You want to know if your idea is unique and marketable before you start spending money. If you do your research properly you can kill a project in its infancy if there are issues, and move on to the next project. You don’t have to spend hundreds to thousands of dollars paying someone else to do the looking for you.
Look in stores that carry the same type of product you think your idea would fit. For example, go to Lowe’s, Home Depot, your local hardware store, etc if you have a tool idea. You can always look online. You can also search using the “Images” feature on most browsers. This will pull up visuals of anything in your search window.
I do this before looking on the patent office website because it gives you a broad view of what is out there and if something better is already on the market. It also gives you a feel for what type of word search you want to do once you get to the patent office website. Most Inventors don’t like the tedious part of researching, but once you start doing it you will find you get quicker at it. You will find your own shortcuts to get faster results. Research is your money saver. It keeps you from moving forward on a project that is destined to fail.
You can hear more of Roger's tips on licensing your retail product on the new Looking-2-Licesne CD produced by Roger Brown and Jim Debetta - It's a great source of information from two seasoned professionals. http://www.looking2license.com
From The Inventor Blog http://inventoropinion.blogspot.com