Has Anyone Ever Invented a new Tool?
I was wanting to pick the minds of our readers and see how many people have actually thought up an idea for a new tool? Also, if you have actually done something with the idea, such as getting a patent. If you have a patent, have you ever licensed the idea to a manufacturer for royalties? Alternatively, have you produced the item yourself and sold it though stores or via online methods? I am trying to make connections with people that have succeeded with their new ideas. I think that there are a lot of builders out there that come across these ideas while they are working. Often this is referred to as “a flash of brilliance”. Sometimes the person does not know what to do with their idea. I have a patented tool that has been several years in the end-to-end process. I was lucky to have avoided the inventor scams that you see out there on late night television. I read books and talked to attorneys that know their business. I would like to share my experiences with others so that they do not have to reinvent the wheel – no pun intended! Do any of you have success stories? Dreams? Thanks!
Replies
I think Edison said it all when he stated that genius was "10% inspiration and 90% perspiration."
We all have ideas, and most of us actually try them out. In my experience, the ideas tend to break down as: 40% are a step backwards, 50% are essentially no improvement, and only 10% show any real improvement over what came before.
Even those few successes often need several revisions before being in a truly useable form. Another 'down side' is that many are far too specialized for appeal to a wider market.
For example, I once had to disassemble, and reassemble, certain machines multiple times each day. To do this I needed three tools: a socket, an allen wrench, and a screwdriver. So, I welded the three together into a single tool. Presto - an 'invention!' This time, the idea was a resounding success. Let's look at that tool from a 'patent' perspective.
The first is that it was but an assembly of existing tools. As such, it may have qualified only for a design patent - replace the flat blade with a phillips bit, and the patent would not offer you any protection. Or, the patent folks may not have considered it 'unique' enough for any patent at all - this is hardly the first time someone has made a 'multi-tool.'
The next hurdle would be marketing the thing. Just how many folks need that particular combination of tools? The best I could hope for would be that the machinery maker himself would inadvertantly supply a similar tool with the machines - opening the door for an infringement suit. That's a moneymaker for lawyers, not tool makers.
Your final hurdle is time. We have seen many tools achieve wide-spread use only after the patent has expired. The laser level is but one example of this. It's simply amazing how the price drops the moment the patent expires.
Here's mine: View Image
"Ask not what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive... then go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive."
Howard Thurman
http://rjw-progressive.blogspot.com/
Sorry, the devil made me do it! <G>
I'm actually really interested in any practical discussion here: I have an idea for a safety device - not a tool, but a gizmo to improve safety in kitchens, and don't know how to pursue it.
"Ask not what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive... then go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive."
Howard Thurman
http://rjw-progressive.blogspot.com/
Over the years there's been ideas that popped up and then a couple years later you see them advertised somewhere.
It's been theorized ideas hit a multitude of individuals at around the same time so then it's a mad rush to get the ducks in a row if someone is interested in pursuing a patent.
What I enjoy seeing are the simple obvious with a greater impact on the population at large.
Instead of a RotoZip, a furniture glide disk that fits under furniture legs, or the arrival of WhiteOut for the old typewriters back before puters spread across the planet.
Or the 'stay connected' aluminum can tab. How many remember the old pull tops that turned into chains draped across rearview mirrors or a cheap fishing lure?
You ought to talk to Dino of the EZ Guide cutting system. He's been there on the front lines and can probably fill you in with a million details.
I wish I could have been the inventor of the Swanson Speed Square. This seems to be one of the most successful in the last 20-30yrs .
How about the guy who did the residential smoke detector. Code mandated sales .
They can't get your Goat if you don't tell them where it is hidden.
Right up there with the "wonder bar". My first was an Enders, then a few Stanleys, now I have another Enders and the Super (longer) Bar.
And 4 or 5 of the mini-clones.Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations
"If Brains was lard, you couldn't grease much of a pan"Jed Clampitt
View Image
There's the Collins foot and Collins Clamps too.The Levelution level system was by an individual carpenter.And one of the most infamous members of Breaktime invented a stair balluster cutting and layout system, or so I've heard...snorkums
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
heh
I knew that would be coming sometime.
You ought to talk to Dino of the EZ Guide cutting system. He's been there on the front lines and can probably fill you in with a million details.
Rez, Few things that I learned from Dino.
Never show them your best stuff.
Let them do the marketing for you and be ready.
Ready for the court, production and marketing of your better stuff the same time.
Don't apply for a patent until you're ready to produce and sell.
The patent office is like a supermarket for free ideas.
They ( the big companies) can do it once or twice but they can't keep stealing your ideas forever. If you don't have more and better stuff always in the pipeline...
...DON"T DO IT.
danid.
" a furniture glide disk that fits under furniture legs"
Too late its been done . Kinda a soft rubber on the furniture side and the other side is really hard slick plastic . I can walk my pool table around the room. Literally. I got mine from a guy that does peoples carpets.
Yes, I keep a few for such emergencies. snorK*
I was using those and whiteout as examples of simple inventions that affected a large number of people instead of a tool etc. that affects a much smaller number.
I am always looking out on the internet and searching for terms such as "new tool inventions" and "tape measure innovations" etc. I did find a company called Generation Tools that manufactures a unique tape measure as is indicated by the following link: http://www.generationtools.com/squareone.html . They have a tape measure called the SquareOne which I find interesting. I would be interested in what the forum members think. It seems to represent a typical example of what we are finding out there as "innovative" today. The concept is to take something like a tape measure and add all sorts of things that already exist, none of which are unique. There is a contractor grade for the SquareOne and I wonder what the viability is. I mean, there is a level built into this tape, but the overall requirement for a level to be accurate is a long span. That is not the case. Then, there is the pencil holder. If I have a tool belt on, the pencil will be in my belt where I can get easy access to it. Not stuck inside my tape measure. Then, look at the shape of the tape measure. It defies the traditional square shape, so it will not fit in the tool bely holder. Lastly, I'm fairly confident that it is made in China and sells for $10. What do you think the long term durability of this tool is? Does anyone feel that it has any usefulness? I am wondering if the people that designed this for the professional contractor know hat contractors really need?!
Thanks, I needed a good chuckle.
What do I think? I ran their website through the "truth in advertising" part of babelfish and got this translation:
For the Dumpster
View Image
Does Everything You Want But Does None of it Well
A Great Parting Gift for Employees that you Fire!
Sure to be Seen Soon on HGTV!
I know a guy who invented and patented a few things. One he trusted to someone else to manufacture and distribute. Short story, they "improved" it minimally and cut him entirely out of the loop.
The next time he subbed out the manufacture through a couple companies, nobody had the whole product, assembled in another place, did the distribution himself and made a nice buck from it.
Edison didn't really invent much himself, he had "people" for that. His genius was in distribution and inventing the "intellectual property agreement".
That is my fear about what is happening in the U.S with manufacturing and the idea of Airbus making military aircraft.
I have the Perfect Burger Press for $24.95+S&H.
It just hasn't caught on yet...
A guy I work with want to pursue this as well
He has an idea for a child's toy
Two weeks ago he went to an attorney and paid $700 to move forward
At this time the attorney is doing research and will make a recommendation as to whether the idea is patentable
Sometimes when a construction professional invents a new tool it can be difficult to explain the the ordinary person. That is what can make it hard to "sell" to a manufacturer because they do not understand how a builder really does his job on a day to day basis. Some inventions are easy to explain and see value in. Take the person that invented the light bulb for the inside of a refridgerator. he basically thought it would be nice to go to the fridge at midnight and actually see what was in there. He put a switch on the door and added a lightbulb and the rest is history. It does not matter if you are 5 years old or 35 years old or 105 years old. You would be able to see the benefit of having and automatic light. But what if you had an idea for a tool that no one actually had experience with the processes? Think about squaring for a minute. How many people off the street that are not construction people know how to square anything? So try to explain how it is that you measure and strike arcs to find the intersection of two lines. They look at you like you are crazy. Another example would be a heart surgeon inventing some new type of rib spreader and wanting to sell it to a manufacturer of medical tools. They probably would not know how it works or even know the anatomy of the rib cage anyway. My point is that some inventions can walk in the door of a company and everybody "gets it". Others are doomed because the marketing people or CEO's or whomever do not have a clue what the benfit is because they do not even understand the "current process".
I have an idea that I am sure would be carried by HD + but have not gotten others to join me - need someone who could put the concept on paper - few hours of work and someone to front the cost of going the patent route --- might do all three steps as soon as I catch up
The best starting point that I can give anyone that is interested in inventing is to educate yourself. One of the best books available out there is by David Pressman. It is called "Patent it Yourself". After reading the book you would actually be in a position to patent an idea on your own but the real purpose of the book is to educate the reader on everything to do with patents. It starts with the reader doing his or her own patent search by using the United States Patent and Trademark Office website, http://www.uspto.gov . On that site you can do a patent search which is free. Just enter the basic information about what your idea pertains to. The search will return all of the patents that are similar. It will be up to you to glance through than and see if the idea has already been patented. If not then you may be on your way. You can get "Patent it Yourself" on Borders or Barnes and Noble and countless others. I cannot think of a better starting point!
There's an invention called the "space bar". It'll make your posts more user friendly. Carry on and good luck.
The inventing is the easy part, selling it is the hard stuff. I once belonged to an inventors club with about 80 members. There guys had patents up the wazoo but very few had any success selling them.
I know of a guy who frequented this board who invented some stair tools. He seemed to have gone mad.
In 68 my Uncle invented the first drop in toilet cleaner.
Kept the toilet sparkling clean with every flush and lasted for months.
Lemon scented, it never really caught on,
it turned the water yellow.
I've got at least half a dozen in my head and a few more in my file cabinet. Three are already designed and on paper. I thought I had an agreement to get the products patented/produced but the party seems to have died off. Both of the other principals are busy....real busy.
I've also watched about three, four, maybe five ideas that I had make it into the mainstream market. Liquid butter, upside down bottles. Wide bottles that stand upside down with the printed labels readable upside down...that sort of thing.
I drew up a painter's roller cover for painting ceilings back in the 80's. I still see them in the home depots so they must be selling (to homeowners). At that time, I also drew up a roller handle that would hold paint and inject it through the roller. I bought one twenty years later at the home center.
I'm a lazy person by nature and when I'm working, I mentally strive to make every second of my existence easier. This thought process causes me to mentally invent many tools and processes as I work. Of course, many of the new ideas are not useful but that doesn't stop me from mentally exploring the idea. I jot them down now on paper and evaluate them later. I have a great idea scratched on my yellow legal pad right now. It needs tweaking but has definite potential. The idea popped into my head on the way home from work one day when I was doing something I don't normally do.
For screen hole repair: 75126.18
Decorative adhesive peel 'n stick screen patches.
Thinking housewives buying flower and heart shaped screen patchesguys buying diamond, clubs and spade designs
"...75126.18" you invented the deleted BT post?BruceT
Edited 5/23/2009 1:42 pm by brucet9
That be me.
be trying to be a gentleman.
I have invented a perfectly transparent insulating gel that you can inject between the glass in new or failed thermopane windows. Even better, if you apply a small electrical current to the gel it becomes obscure, making curtains and all other window coverings obsolete.
I can't find the time to market it because I have to constantly switch houses to avoid the team of Eastern European hitmen sent by the venetian blind manufacturers association.
It's called Aerogel and it already does exist.
It's called electrochromatics, and it already exists too.
Sorry! ;-)
Now you have to die too.
Darn!
Talk about bad luck!
I'm a partner in several shared patents for "tools".
The ideas I came up with were to improved the technology of tools that are used to lift heavy objects up in the air. Way, way, way up in the air. So far up that there is no more air.
A different "patent process" though, for I came up with the improvements while working in industry, so they did all the work. I was pretty naive at the time and didn't understand the importance of my ideas, but I was protected by standards within the community. Still, I was taken advantage to a certain extent as to the percentage I received on some of the patents.
And as I hope you discover, royalties are pretty darn bueno.
Seems some inventions never go anywhere even tho they get publicized.
Recalling a video I'd seen years back involving odd wheels on a wheelchair that permitted the chair to walk up stairways.
Price would have a big impact on any product like that. I have a friend who just ordered a new chair. The price tag was 35k. I suppose if you added the "walk up stairs" features it might triple the price tag...maybe more. The guy doesn't have any stairs in his house and rarely leaves his house so he wouldn't even consider that feature at those kind of prices.
Recalling a video I'd seen years back involving odd wheels on a wheelchair that permitted the chair to walk up stairways./i think that was invented by the guy who went on to do the segway.
I rode a segway once. Kindacool but they need to better the battery technology if ever to become commonplace.
Once you have the patent, the challenge is what to do with it. A few stories illustrate the pitfalls:
Inventor "A" worked for Sears in High School, trusted the firm, and was royally screwed in return. Sears grossly misrepresented their interest in the patent, and tried to buy it for a song. Many years, and multiple court rulings later, and some sanity prevailed.
Inventor "B" simply demonstrated his product to Sears (are we seeing a pattern here?), with a 'non-disclosure' agreement in place. Sears turned him down, then ran to another supplier to have a copy made. Again, it took years for the courts to sort this one out.
Inventor "C" had a nice, if modest, business making his product. A major manufacturer in the industry showed up one day, covered the table with cash, and said bluntly: I will make your product. This is the money I have. Either agree to my terms, take the cash - or I'll spend it in court and steal it from you." The inventor agreed.
Inventor "D" had a pretty neat thing, that he made himself, with some success. He had an overly proud image of his place in the world, and declined several offers for the rights. The industry moved on, and by the time the patent expired, so did the usefullness of the idea. He missed his opportunity.
Inventor "E" also had a great idea. So good that a huge foreign firm simply stole the idea, and mired the idea in court. The large firm secured the big government contracts, manipulated the government into restricting the product to government only, and bankrupted the inventor.
Inventor "F" had an idea, built a prototype, got his patent - and went looking for a vendor. He has since had success marketing the product through two reputable firms: everyone wins.
Inventor "G's" invention wasn't so much anything useful, as much as what he did with the patents. He'd get a broadly worded patent, then sit back and do nothing. As quite often happens, someone would soon -independently- actually come out with an actual product that somehow related to his patent. He would then manipulate the legal system to essentially extort 'royalties' from the manufacturer. Dubbed 'submarine patents' (they pop up when you least expect them), there has since been legislation intended to curb this abuse.
Inventor "H" had a great way to compete with Manufacturer "X." The manufacturer had successfully manipulated the patent process to dominate his market; our inventor used an entirely different approach to develop a competing product. Our manufacturer then manipulated the code-writing process to close down the upstart. That firm made a lot more from the suits than they would ever have seen from the product.
Inventor "I" found a way to break a utility's monopoly. While his product never really made it into wide use, and the firm is now but a footnote, the ultimate result was a shattering of the monopoly and several major changes in our daily lives.
Finally, Inventor "J" is an example of where everything went 'right.' With an idea as simple as it comes - largely just a matter of packaging - and a market that was not recognized for its' potential, the inventor had a quater-century run, amassins a truly 'rock star' sized fortune a nickel at a time. Even after the patent expired, the business continued to prosper by making a good product and responding to customer's whims. Only a complet change in the way we do things made the product obsolete.
Each of those tales have their lessons to teach.
If you are serious about something, send an email to
http://www.wixey.com
He can discuss details with you, and possibly provide production assistance.
After digging miles of unnecessarily wide plumbing drain trenches in my youth, I took my favorite Ames #2 spade and cut a couple inches off each side. (burned up 3 or 4 Sawzall blades in the process) I started seeing narrow trenching spades used by installers of lawn sprinklers a couple of years later. I don't really think anybody used my idea--it's just one those things that become obvious. In fact, such shovels may have been around long before I "invented" mine; it's just that my idea was original on my part.
I'm not sad about not getting any recognition or money out of the idea, just sad to think that that's the most original thing I've done, and that it took me 20 years of digging to come up with it. ~)
lol
I always have to laugh when I hear someone say "I wish that I would have been the one that invented the Pet Rock". If you are old enough to know what the Pet Rock was, it was a novelty in the 70's. What people have to understand is that there are ideas that actually fill a user need and solve problems. These ideas can be sold at a profit and the demand is there because the user has a cost/benefit that is positive. With the Pet Rock, no one off the street actually invent that. Heck, had they went into a toy manufacturers offices and said that had this idea for a pet rock, they would have been laughed out of the building. What we have here is a clever marketing strategy that was developed "in house". The basically came up with the idea, packaged the whole thing neating, and distributed it to retailers at the right price point. This is an example of the manufacturer saying "We will build this and sell it but we will not buy it from you". They have that not-invented-here attitude. That is why it can be very difficult to meet a manufacturer with a totally slam dunk idea, but they turn the other way!
The pet rock was one of the darker episodes in the history of North American culture. It was a completely parasitic way to separate kids from their money by preying on peer pressure to buy heavily marketed new toys. It also cynically marketed a product to children that was the antithesis of all the things they had come to expect from things that came in nice boxes: that you could play with them.
That the inventor had troubler getting it to market was a good thing and it is too bad that someone finally agreed. At the time I wondered if it wasn't thought up by Marxists to illustrate the contradictions in Late Capitalism. Its success can only be seen as a cautionary tale.
http://www.daniclamp.com
Call Dani, he's done everything you've listed.
Kowboy
The "DaniClamp", is one of those things that amaze me. There have been guys cutting clamps out of pvc pipe, since it was first produced. It was showing up in the user hints in the various handyman magazines in the seventies. Now there is a "DaniClamp". No where on the site does it say it is patented. But he is doing a good job of marketing.
Jigs:
Let me assure you, Dani Homrich of Rochester Hills, Michigan, has the patent on cutting PVC pipe into clamps.
Kowboy
He very well may. But since it was published in several magazines in the 1970's, it would be very hard to prove it was an original idea, not already in the public domain. And, thus impossible to defend.
I guess he has a good lawsuit against the lawyers that charged him 40 large for those patents then. If it was such common knowledge in the seventies, they should have found them easily.
Kowboy
They did a patent search, and it probably wasn't ever patented. So, it wouldn't show up in their search, and since there wasn't a prior application for patent, it would be "patentable", in the eyes of the Patent Office. Things move fast, and the Patent Office, might or might not know about things that are in the public domain. There was a patent case regarding orange colored garbage bags, with jack o lantern patterns printed on them, that you fill with leaves as Halloween decorations. A patent had been granted on them, and the patent holder tried to defend their rights in court. The party accused of infringing on the patent showed up with a magazine that predated the patent application by several years, showing painted bags. The judge ruled the patent was unenforceable.There are lots of things that while new ideas, to the individual, have actually been around for a while, and no one has applied for patents on them. I read an interview with Sam Maloof once, where he complained about a design element of his, that others in the California art furniture movement had used so much it became known as a distinguishing element of the "California" style. I found it kind of humorous, because there is a piece of furniture in my Mom's house, that has been passed down in the family, that has the same detail that Sam "developed". That piece of furniture, was made by one of my Father's uncles who died in World War One, which definitely predates Sam's development of it. A lot of ideas are out there, and come in and out of the public consciousness.Edited 5/23/2009 10:37 pm ET by Jigs-n-fixtures
Edited 5/23/2009 10:46 pm ET by Jigs-n-fixtures
Yes, recalling an incident back in the '80s where a fella I knew had started developing multi-ribboned bookmarkers on an aluminum stem that could be inserted in the binding of hardbacks and a stick'em marker for paperbacks.
I remember seeing his minifactory setup with all these spools of ribbon draping everywhere. Heard it was pretty successful for a while.
I was almost talked into going door to door as a salesperson drumming up sales to schools and organizations as the ribbons could be inked with logos and slogans.
One local fella showed up claiming he'd had the idea years before but guess he never came up with the proof iffin it would even make a difference with a product like that.
Had an idea for a modified paint roller handle. This would allow TWO roller sleeves to function on one handle. A few years later, I actually saw these in a paint store, blew my mind. Never saw them anywhere else after that, just never caught on I guess.
Just recently came up with an interesting idea for another modification of a tool. But this idea would take a lot of money to even build a prototype to even see if it would work. I'm guessing somewhere in the six digit range. Sooooo, so much for that idea. But I did just do a quick search on that site and didn't see a patent for it. So next time I have a spare 200K lying around maybe I'll get it going!
But would it catch on? Would it become something that people will use enough to pay for itself? Would definitely take an onslaught of "info-mercials" to inform the public.
In my vision, this tool would end up at rental centers and would be the type of tool that nobody would really buy, but mostly rent on an "as need" basis. Even if everything worked out, I bet it would still take 10 years or so to catch on. And since it's just a modification of another tool, there probably wouldn't be any humongous profits anyway, just bragging rights....
There is a movie I saw recently (true story), about the guy who invented the intermitent windshield wiper. He ended up having a big infringement battle with Ford and Chrysler. I'm pretty sure it was called "A flash of genius".
Pretty interesting story, worth renting the video.
I saw that movie, A Flash of Genius. A guy, perhaps in the early 70's, invents the intermittant windsheild wiper. Before that , there was only high and slow speeds. But anyway, he shows it to Ford and they say they are not interested. Then, about a year later, he is at the Detroit Auto Show and there is the new lineup of Ford vehicles, complete wit the intermittant wiper system! They basically stole the guy;s idea. This is based on a true story, by the way. Well, the guy is motivated as all hell and quite pissed off too. He gets a lawyer and basically spends every dime he has and his house on top of it. In the end, the publicity is so bad for Ford that the will pay the guy anything just to get him to shut up. Good movie!
The thing that I am worried about these days is China. Everything is being outsourced there. The problem is, they do not recognize US Patent Law, either. They should, but they don't. They really just don't give a #### about anything. Heck, they would sell a baby pacifier with lead paint on it if they thought they could make a nickle. Sad.
Try looking at miterclamp.com. The inventor has been a contributor to FHB, I think the guys name is Jim (?) Chestnut.
Jim Chestnut's product is an excellent tool. Even better than the long-time production standard Hartford Clamp.
There was an antique tool in Canadian Home Workshop a few years ago that was a hundred year old clamp like the Hartford clamp.
I bought four of JIm Chestnuts clamps and think they are fantastic. Even though it cost me 300bucks canadian to get them.
Have a good day
Cliffy
Cool Tools on DIY Network is having a contest for tool inventions.
10 grand prize
http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/shows_dctl/
It is funny that you should mention the contest on DIY. Sunday evening we were watching TV and that show came on. I've seen it before but it had been many months. Pretty soon a commercial comes on that shows the invention tool contest. My first thought was that I need to go the their website the next day. I did go to their site and it said the expiration date was that very day - Monday! I thought that I would never get home into to get my video uploaded so it was going to be a lost cause. For some reason I got on DIY again on Tuesday to see what was happening. They still had the link up and said they had extended the date out near the end of June. Now I am pumped and I for sure will add my video this weekend. Not sure what will happen but there are some pretty sad ideas getting posted out there!
Seriously -
Years ago I thought it would be a great idea to have coffee grounds (not instant) packaged up like a single serving tea bag. Drop it in your cup, add hot water and a few minutes later - BAM! - fresh jobsite coffee!
Still haven't seen the single serving size, but Maxwell House (General Foods?) put out a coffee pot size pack a year or so after my flash of brilliance.
Now look - if someone takes this idea and runs with it, can I please get at least a lifetime supply of coffee bags out of it?
It's out there. I know Folgers for one has the "teabag" type coffee. Google "Folgers Coffee Singles".
If it makes you feel better ..... no where near as good as a brewed pot!
Shawn
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Checker Contracting - SE Michigan
A job the other day confronted me with one of my tool 'inventions,' a missed opportunity.
I was mixing concrete in a pan when I reached for my mixing hoe. I had made this from a cheap ordinary hoe, first using a belt sander to round the lip tp match the pan, then cutting a pair of holes in the blade.
Nothing really all that extraordinary ..... and I was mighty pleased when a few years later Fine Homebuilding did a write-up of a commercially made tool that was essentially identical.
Whast can I say? Great minds do think alike!
Yea Ive invented a few tools. Probably a lot of people here have and arent saying .
Edited 6/20/2009 12:43 am by Mooney