For novice inventors, the inspiration itself may come easily but they may find they need help getting their invention started. Fortunately there are a great many resources available for exactly this situation.
In any area where dreams and vanity are concerned, there are always people looking to try and exploit these illusions. Therefore it makes sense to investigate free invention help first, visiting specialist websites and forums, making friends or acquaintances where possible, exchanging information and ideas, and gleaning tips from experienced inventors. It must, of course, be borne in mind that it is possible for an invention idea to be stolen, so full details should be carefully guarded.
If an invention is to become a commercial proposition and warrant protection from competition and intellectual theft further down the line, the first consideration should be whether it is patentable. This normally means that it needs to fulfill the following 3 criteria and be:
- ‘novel’ – i.e. not made public anywhere at any time before the date that the patent is applied for
- ‘unobvious’ i.e. inventive and involving ingenuity
- capable of being useful
Discussion with family and friends can go a long way to establishing the second and third criteria, but the first is a more complex issue and entails searching to check that the same or a very similar invention has not been patented before.
At this stage it can be useful to seek the help of a patent attorney. Names of local ones can be found online or in Yellow Pages and, even if they are not engaged to conduct searches, their assistance is invaluable if not essential for completing the patent application paperwork.
The US Patent Office, to which the application must be submitted, provides a certain amount of free invention help via their website and a toll-free number to phone for information and guidance, but their time is obviously limited and they cannot give individual help in the same way as an attorney hired for the purpose.
A patent attorney’s role is quite well defined, but for inventor help that is broader in scope there are an increasing number of invention assistance organizations. Typically, an organization will offer to hold the inventor’s hand right through the process: assisting with the patent application, helping to find a company to manufacture the product, and even marketing the invention at the end. Some companies are well established and have a good reputation, but others are interested only in earning the maximum possible from those who use their services and have little or no interest in the outcome.
If an inventor decides to promote an idea on their own, they may wish to get themselves entered on invention listing websites which purport to bring them before the attention of companies seeking an invention to develop. Some of these sites charge one-off fees, while others have annual or even monthly charges – all without any guarantee that the idea will ever be sold.
There are, however, a few listings websites that post inventions for free. Naturally, they are also trying to sell their own products and services, but there is no catch and since they are taken seriously, they are well worth considering.
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