Check this out! Best of the Best Unusual Inventions

This is just a couple sites that have some pretty interesting inventions that cover a variety of uses and purposes.

http://totallyabsurd.com/absurd.htm

http://www.patentlysilly.com/archives.php

New Invention Brainstorm

-DREAM RECORDER

We’ve all experienced a countless number of dreams that were incredibly vivid and entertaining. We want to tell our friends later what our dream was about but we vaguely remember what happened. What if there was some kind of machine that recorded your dreams and allowed you to play them back whenever you wanted? All those times where you were married to your celebrity crush or lived in a world where everything was made of candy could be played back time and time again. Never would you have to struggle to explain to your friends how you went to a pool party at the white house or rode down a volcano with a surf board. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had an amazing dream and when I began telling it to a friend, I would realize wow this was a lot cooler in my head. It is a mystery what happens in our minds when we are asleep. Who knows why we dream the things we do. I believe if this technology was created, it would change the entertainment industry forever. Imagine a YouTube like site made just for people’s uploaded dreams. You could search for nightmares, celebrity’s dreams, certain themes; the possibilities go on and on. It would also benefit the psychological field. Researchers believe if they could understand brain activity, they could discover the make up of our dreams and what they mean on a scientific level. With all the advances we’ve made in the studies involved with the brain, dreams continue to remain somewhat of a mystery. If this device was created in our life time I would be ecstatic. Some scientists say it would be impossible to record the actual imagery that you see in your mind and others say one day we will be able to. In a study by Dr. Moran Cerf, he admits that there is a very long way to go before this simple observation can be translated into a device to record dreams – a “dream catcher.” But he thinks it is a major possibility. However, there are opposing sides that say although this potential of visualizing a dream might be of academic interest, it would not really help in the interpretation of dreams or be of use in therapy. Dr. Roderick Oner is one of the leading clinical psychologists in relation to dreams. “For that you need the entire complex dream narrative, and we are very far away from honing in on this piece.” Dr Cerf believes this technology, once discovered has the potential to interpret the imagination. “For example, instead of just having to write an email, you could just think it. Or another futuristic application would be to think a flow of information and have it written in front of your eyes” (www.bbc.co.uk). I think it would be a dream come true and look forward to the day a breakthrough comes along.

Check out this video to see what steps researchers in Japan are taking.

-HOT BEVERAGE SLEEVE

We’ve all seen the Coors Light commercials where your drink turns blue when it’s “as cold as the Rockies.” What if they developed technology that was the opposite of this? We’ve all nervously sipped our tea or coffee only to scorch our tongue in dismay. There are few less degrading feelings than this one. Especially, when you consume coffee in the morning, you know it’s going to be a bad day if you ruin your tongue before the day even starts. However, I’ve thought of an innovation that would put an end to this problem. If there was a temperature activated coffee sleeve, you could finally approach your hot beverage with full confidence. If Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks developed this product, I know it would be a success. The sleeve on the cup would have five different levels that would be color activated. The top would be severely hot, wouldn’t recommend drinking it. The next bar would be still pretty hot but not lava. The middle bar would be the middle temperature. Not too hot, not too cold. The bar below, that would be still be a little warm but not ideal. And the last one would be room temperature and below. Big name coffee shops are always looking for that next idea to give them an edge over their competitor; this could be it. Looking at how the Coors Light can works, maybe scientists in the near future can reverse the properties to make it adjust to heat. The ability of something to change color with temperature is known as thermochromism, and the Coors Light bottles are printed with a thermochromic ink called a leuco dye.  A leuco dye is a coloring agent which can acquire two different forms: a colorless form and a colored form.  At warm temperatures, the thermochromic ink is colorless, and at cold temperatures, the thermochromic ink is blue.  Put your beer in the fridge, when the ink cools below the color changing temperature, “the Rockies turn blue,” and your beer is ready to drink (www.chemistry-blog.com).

-MOSQUITO REPELLANT PILLS

Mosquitoes are the most irritating creatures ever put on this planet. Living in the woods in Maine, summer nights can become unbearable because of these little bugs. In my opinion, the greatest form of torture would be to sit there and have a mosquito buzz in your ear for ten minutes. I would not wish this upon my worst enemy. Yes you can spray bug juice but then you make your clothes smell awful and half the time it feels like it doesn’t even work. You have to reapply and bundle up in clothes and swat bugs away left and right. It is an agonizing process that no one wants to go through. What if there was a simple pill you could take that would repel mosquitoes for up to 7 hours? This kind of dream seems like it could only exist in heaven but bug repellent technology has been on the rise. In Brazil, there is now a radio station on the FM dial that repels mosquitoes by broadcasting a high-frequency 15kHz tone under its music. This innovation went on to win the Grand Prix in the radio category at the Cannes Lions in June – one of the most prestigious awards in advertising. The tone is inaudible to most adults so it does not distract from the music (www.bbc.co.uk). Although it is debatable whether this radio frequency actually works, the prospect of it is intriguing. The pill would spread throughout your whole body and be twice as effective as bug spray, without the stench and hassle. This idea could not be too far off from being invented. Imagine coming home from a camping trip without a single red lump on your body. This would be the ultimate fantasy. I’m not exactly sure how this technology would work but the prospect of it causes quite a bit of “buzz.”

History Channel’s 101 Inventions That Changed the World Review

In this documentary on inventions, a panel of Popular Mechanic’s editors and other professionals make a list of the 101 greatest inventions of all time. With such a wide range of life altering inventions out there, I knew it would be challenging to compile such a compact list. Overall, I’d say they did a decent job doing justice to all the monumental innovations, and I couldn’t see any glaring mistakes. There was no invention where I got furiously mad that it made the list, and I couldn’t think of many others that I would’ve included. They were obviously experts and compiled a solid list with solid reasoning for every pick. The hardest part I would think was ranking them in order. Who’s to say concrete changed the world more than an airplane? That’s the only gray area on the list. It all depends on the perspective you look at it from. For my review I decided to narrow the list down to my top 25 inventions on the list and talk about why I felt they deserve to be in an elite category.

25. Prosthetic Limbs – Having an uncle who has a prosthetic limb, I chose this one just because I’ve seen how incredible it is first hand. Never have disabled people ever had a better chance to be treated with equality. Looking at the last summer Olympics, there was an incredible story of a runner who made the cut with two prosthetic legs. These innovations have given joy to countless people.

24. The Credit Card – It seems near impossible to imagine shopping without a credit card. It is such a convenient item that we take for granted. It is a lot more safe and easy to carry around a piece of plastic than bundles of cash. It’s something we use pretty much every day and don’t think twice about it.

23. Robots – The fact that we have machines that can do nearly anything we program it to do is mind blowing. Especially in businesses that require an assembly line operation like an automobile company. They can perform tasks over and over again and you don’t have to pay them $7.50 an hour. They’re efficient, won’t get tired and work whenever you tell them to: The ideal employee.

22. Lighthouse – This invention made nautical travel much easier and safer for boat captains. On foggy dark nights, when you can’t see five feet in front of you, the rotating beam must have been a welcoming sight. It let you know how close to land you were and what direction to head in. The power of the lights can be seen from miles away.

21. Microwave – When it first came out, it was a $4,000 investment and owned by very few people. Now it is a staple of nearly every household kitchen. Its leftover’s best friend and without it, we wouldn't have microwave popcorn.

20. Radar – This technology has helped us win wars, its helped us safely reach our destination when on a flight, and its helped cops catch countless teenage drivers for speeding.

19. Hammer – The hammer has been used in every single construction project. Where ever there is a nail and wood there is a hammer. It is a simple invention that has been around for thousands of years and isn’t dying out anytime soon.

18. Digital Camera – Kodak was the first company that really embraced this invention. Today, there are cameras that cost $10,000 and others $20. People love to share their photos online and in photo albums. With the digital camera, this process became easier than ever before.

17. X-Ray – This invention changed the way doctors could help a patient. Now they can see your bone injuries directly and can properly diagnose you accurately. It’s difficult to imagine how doctors managed to help treat patients with broken bones before X-Ray was invented, luckily, we don’t have to.

16. Plastic – Plastic is the most widely used material in the world. Wherever you are sitting right now, you can probably look around and spot at least three things made out of plastic. This is one material that we could not live without.

15. Cell Phone – One could argue this is the most developed invention of the 21^st century. The fact that it is a phone is an afterthought. It is a computer we carry in our pockets. If there was one thing many young people say they couldn’t live without, this would be at the top of the list.

14. Eye Glasses – Before eye glasses, people with bad vision were just out of luck and had to go through life constantly struggling. When old people’s eye sight began to fade, people just considered that part of life. With the invention of glasses people could see just like everybody else. It led to the invention of contacts which has also reshaped the optometry field.

13. Airplane – The airplane is the most effective form of global travel and always will be. Before, if you wanted to make it across the world, you would have to take a ship, and that would take weeks. Now you can hop on a flight and be wherever you want to go in a matter of hours. Looking at the invention of the airplane, it is shocking at how fast this hunk of metal travels. You just have to look in the cockpit to know how high tech this machine is.

12. Refrigeration – Although it’s not usually thought of as an invention, refrigeration was not always around, and its development allowed food to be stored and preserved for much longer periods of time. It allowed companies to ship foods wherever they wanted, without them having to worry about it spoiling.

11. Microscope – The microscope led to the exploration of cells and is the root of all scientific research at a subatomic level. We owe nearly all our discoveries in chemistry and biology to this significant invention.

10. Concrete – This material is used in countless ways. It is literally the base of nearly all building construction. The fact that it is made from just two simple compounds makes it all the more impressive.

9. Vaccine/Penicillin – This is undoubtedly the most vital breakthrough in the medical field. If you look at all the atrocities diseases caused prior to its discovery, these statistics are horrific. From the plague to war injuries to the common cold, vaccines and penicillin helped to eliminate preventable deaths. They have saved millions and millions of lives.

8. Automobile – Cars were the first form of personal mechanical transportation. The industrial revolution allowed this invention to take off and it hasn’t looked back since. As of 2010, 95% of American households own a car (zipcar.com). This is one invention that is constantly being improved. It’s like comparing apples to oranges when looking at a 2013 Lexus and a 1925 Model T Ford.

7. Internet – Our generation is so spoiled with the amount of information we have access to with just a click away. It has changed every aspect of modern life. People shop online, they do research online, and they find entertainment online. It seems like anything you could possibly need is online now.

6. Paper – Paper is one of the oldest inventions in history. It is perhaps the most widely used material in history. A world without paper could not exist. It is such an integral part of our lives, and we take for granted how essential it is.

5. Fire – We can thank the caveman for this fantastic invention. Fire allowed us to see in the dark, cook our food, and huddle around for warmth. Fire lit the way for the future.

4. Computer – The computer is the most significant invention of the 21^st century.  It has become our personal database that can do and hold anything we want it to. Computers have changed the way we think and changed the way we innovate.

3. Steam Engine – Trains and machinery relied on this innovational piece of technology. The steam engine was to the 1800s as the computer was to the 2000s. It was the first of many revolutions in the transportation industry.

2. Light bulb – Thomas Edison tried over and over again to get this piece of technology to work. After years of work, he finally created the first form of electrically produced light. We would live in a world of darkness if it wasn’t for this inventor. Las Vegas would look pretty boring if it weren’t for this discovery either.

1. Wheel – The wheel gets my top spot as the greatest invention of all time. It is a simple concept, but cannot be overlooked at how genius it is. It is by far the greatest use of a circle ever invented.

TECH TALK

“There are people that say the internet is as important to humanity as the invention of writing.”

How big of a role does technology play in our lives? About a big a role as Michael Jordan was for the Bulls. If you ask any high school or college student, what is one thing they could not live without, I bet over 90% would say their cell phone, computer, or television. It is impossible to go through a day without using some kind of technology. Trying to imagine a world without the plethora of electronic devices we have today is very difficult. It is amazing the influence the media has on us in regards to new innovations. Looking at the Ipad, many people were confused at why we would need this kind of gadget. Now, every company is making their own form of this tablet. People love to follow trends and consumers are addicted to keeping up 

with “everyone else.”

Technology is value neutral. You’ll have those people who will say it’s amazing, and others say it’s our greatest downfall. The value that is attached to any given piece of technology depends on who is using it, evaluating it, and what they do with it. It can do good things or cause harm, depending on what point of view you take. For example, a mother may think her son spends too much time on a screen, but the son could think it’s the coolest thing ever. An inventor brings something into the world and it starts off as something basic. Other inventors than come in, survey the idea, and figure out how to make it even better. With the number of innovations being made today, it seems like technology changes faster than the weather.

Technology can be split in two forms; replacement and enhanced. Enhanced technology is something that builds on an existing invention. It’s when you make something bigger, better, faster or stronger. Comparing smart phones and laptops to what they were when they first came out, it is eye opening how far we’ve come in such a short period of time.  Replacement technology is when one technology completely overtakes another. LPs were replaced by CDs and CDs were replaced by mp3s. The typewriter was kicked out by the computer. Newspapers are slowly fading out as everything goes online. Ideas are constantly being upgraded and this is a process that never stops.

The effects of technology are hard to predict. In many cases, inventors don’t know the ceiling of their innovation. Or they could design something for one purpose, and it could hit an audience they hadn’t considered. When the telephone first came out, the majority of people thought it was just a novelty item and that it wouldn’t catch on. An editor said “the art of the conversation consists of having a listener. It seems absurd to be addressing a piece of iron” (Scientific American). Narrow mindedness in the technology fields is never a good attitude to have.

The development of technology is comparable to a space shuttle launching. When a shuttle is first launched, it seems like it’s hardly moving because its gathering thrust; then it picks up more speed as it gathers momentum, and eventually it just takes off. Once something is invented, it gathers momentum through a variety of innovations to the original idea, and then takes off to places we’ve never seen.  One of the most popular American invention phrases is “what will they think of next?” With technology improvement happening at such a rapid pace, it is difficult to imagine what the next game changer will be.

The person I conducted my interview with is Ryan Heidorn. He is the technology systems manager at Endicott College. He’s responsible for the technology systems that power the classroom computers, laptops, printer, anything on the techy side. He maintains servers and handles all the software licensing. He’s been at Endicott a little over four years. He started out as just a tech assistant, eventually getting promoted to the position he has today. Ryan received his masters in IT here at Endicott, so it was a pretty easy transition for him. In this interview, I got his take on the role technology has played in his life and where he sees it heading in the future.

Q. To start off, what was technology like when you were a kid? Do you remember anything where you were really excited when you came out?

A. Well I was born in 1984 so I kind of remember a time before computers but not really. I remember getting into computers. I kind of date it around Windows 3.1, where you had the floppy discs and you could put games on it. I was immediately drawn to that sort of thing.

Q. So what were some of the big names growing up? Was there any one company, or form of technology or entertainment that you said wow this is really cool?

A. Yeah totally. I remember the personal computer really exploding in like the mid 90s and Gateway was a big company in that market. The CD-ROM came out and that was huge just cause you could fit so much information on it and that suddenly changed a lot of things, software applications were becoming much much bigger. Eventually, as that growth continued to rise, you’d get like, if your going to buy a game or something like that, you’d get a package that maybe had like six CD’s on it, you’d install everything from that. The personal computer was about two grand for a mid-range system, so prices have really come down while the power and processing has increased.

Q. You mentioned CD’s, do you remember the transition from everything being on CDs to everything going to mp3s and digital?

A. Yeah definitely. I’m a big music buff too so I remember the Napster days and I was on a site called audio galaxy I think it was, the mp3 totally made the question of copyright and intellectual property. That really started to become a gray area around the time mp3 coding was created. That’s something I haven’t really fully resolved for myself, as far as the ethics around that and everything.

Q. How’d you become interested in working with technology? Did you have any major influences or anyone that kind of showed you the way?

A. Yeah my Grandfather actually worked for IBM, in the time before the personal computer, but as he was retiring, I remember he had some really cool computers like the all in one boxy robot looking things that nowadays we would look at look it’s an antique. But that was the latest and greatest computer. I remember they were the first people I knew that had a full internet connection. I’d say I was interested when I first saw that you could play games on a computer, ya know as a kid, pretty typical. But then my interest really took off when I discovered the internet and the power of connection. So that’s how it opened up. I remember logging on to AOL back in day and going into the kid’s chat room and that sort of thing.

Q. So how would you say the internet and technology has changed in terms of global communication and cyber culture?

A. Yeah I read a lot of technology and philosophical type people that say the internet is as important to humanity as the invention of writing. That’s such a grand claim that it’s hard to know, I’m immediately skeptical about that, but then when I think about the ways in which it’s really shrunk the world. It doesn’t matter for a lot of things these days in business communications where on the planet you’re physically located because communication can be in real time no matter where you are. Most international businesses these days complete tasks in a digital fashion and so location isn’t as important. And really just connected all these small groups of people that can suddenly come together. Early on in the web, it was bulletin boards and now we got all these social media sites. It’s really a transformative kind of thing, especially now that we carry the web with us on smart phones. We’re always plugged in to this form of connectedness. Since everyone has it, you gotta have it too and this has made us become self-reliant on all this stuff that’s at our fingertips. I guess time will tell, if it’s as important as the invention of writing but it’s definitely a significant step.

Q. What would you say are some of the biggest problems that our coming up with today’s revolution of technology?

A. For me, its privacy. I guess I’m sort of a skeptical, paranoid person anyways but like if you look at a product like Google Glass, it’s this new thing that can see wherever you go online. And even if you take a step back and look at the smart phone, I mean here’s a device that you carry with you, that’s capable at all times of knowing where you are, who you’re talking with, content your accessing, stuff like that. This really puts a lot of power in the hands of telecommunication companies, software developers and I mean even the government. Just recently there was an ex FBI agent who went on the record saying that the government records and archives all voice communications. And you can see similar stuff like the NSA captures all the internet traffic in real time so in a way that’s never before been possible, these awesome technologies also enable a negative side like constant surveillance. There’s really no way to live in a society now and not have the potential of being tracked at all times.

Q. You mentioned cell phones that can track, where would you say cell phones, computers, mp3 device technology is headed. I know we haven’t reached the peak of technological advances, but it’s hard to imagine us getting more advanced than what we already have.

A. Totally. I’ve read some people that say the best indicator of where science is going is to read science fiction. Like if you read science fiction back to the twenties and forties, they kind of predict a world in which we’re living now, in some ways. Like the ease of connecting to anyone across the planet. That technology is definitely here. So if you extrapolate that and draw a line out, I mean I don’t know where we’re headed like some people will say eventually we’ll start putting devices within ourselves and becoming part human and part machine. I think if you look at technology through the different disciplines, like nanotechnology, bio technology, robotics, artificial intelligence, all those things converge to say if technology allows humans to become superhuman in a way, I think we would take that leap. And we’ll start to enhance ourselves or genetically select for superior qualities or maybe some kind of mechanical implant in the body. It’s crazy stuff I know, but its technologically feasible. I think the question as a culture or ethically, are we going to go there, I don’t know. I feel like we’re not ready for that but it might happen none the less.

Q. Would you say that’s one hundred years away, five hundred years away, 50 years away?

A. I think within your and my lifetime we’ll start to see some of these things but I think it will be at least a hundred years before that sort of thing is stretched out but like I said I think we’ll see tangible steps of things headed that way.

Q. Who would you say is the technologically most advanced country right now and has that changed over time?

A. I don’t really know. My sense is that kind of all western civilizations have progressed at a similar rate like as far as the adaption of the internet and the adaption of smart phones. We also think that countries like Japan and some of the Scandinavian countries as being really technologically advanced but I know here even in America, a lot of business operations as far as warehousing and supply chain stuff. All that stuff is so automated with robots that are fulfilling orders placed online and that sort of thing which is pretty cool. Speed and efficiency in America have really… For a while we kind of left our manufacturing dominance in the world and I kinda see that coming back through the use of technology. In terms of communication I get the sense that America is maybe a little bit behind. I know other countries like South Korea have far superior infrastructure for communication. Like the fiber networks they have are a hundred times faster than what common here. I think you could draw similar parallels with cell phone technologies in other countries but I don’t really know.

Q. A lot of people say it’s the golden age of inventing because of all the technology we have nowadays, would you agree with this or do you think there’s no real way of telling?

A. In terms of like? Having the most opportunity?

Q. Yes.

A. I would say there is definitely truth to that. The first thing that came to mind is the issue of net neutrality. The internet is sort of anarchic right now in the sense of like if you have an internet connection you get the same access as anyone else who has an internet connection. I think that level playing field is huge. I used to be in a band and we would be able to find gigs and plan a tour and reach an audience in ways that bands thirty years ago, really had no access to. Things can go viral and you can reach an intense number of people in a very easy and cheap, free way almost. I think that makes the environment right for innovation. But going back to net neutrality too, there’s kind of a movement with cable companies and congress to almost establish a new internet and basically, so we have this existing cable infrastructure and its slow compared to other countries but there’s kind of a movement among corporations too, as they build out infrastructure for faster internet access for new kinds of services that we don’t have right now. These companies would act as gatekeepers, where you’d have to pay them for your services. If something like that were to happen, it would stifle creativity in the sense that not everyone could have the same access to innovate. But I think there is truth to say there’s some golden age, primarily for the ability to reach a large number of people easily.

Q. Just one more thing to wrap it up. Do you have any advice or tips for someone just getting started out in the IT world or how they would get their feet wet?

A. In terms of getting into the business right now, one thing the internet has enabled is a lot of outsourcing. So for instance, if you wanted to be a developer if you wanted to write code or something like that, you have to be like really freaking good to get a job that’s worth anything because when a company can just as easily pay their outsource needs to a company over in India and they work at five dollars an hour or something like that. They would really have no incentive to hire you. So I think if you’re looking to get into technology there are a number of fields that are booming right now. One of them is healthcare. Another thing I’d say is that any time you can add a human element to technology, that you’re not a “code monkey,” but you’re a human person that might be like in the management of IT or something that requires a human being on site to do something. Those are the type of jobs you want to look out for. Another thing I’d say, just in general, something I like to tell people with all new technologies coming out so rapidly, you have so much choice with new services, we’re kind of pressured to make choices when we don’t understand the implications. So I usually advise people, whenever possible be a late adapter to technology, not to resist technology but to rather than go all out and jump into something, sit back, look at it, other people will dive in. I think that’s good advice for an environment where things change so quickly.

(Ryan doesn't like his actual picture floating around on the web, so he uses this self portrait painting and allowed me to use it)

How to Turn Your Innovation into a Patent

The large majority of independent inventors are now acquiring a patent on their own. Lawyers are often extremely expensive and make a profit regardless of if your product takes off or not. If your invention ends up failing, you threw all that money out the window for nothing. The skills needed to work the patent system are not “legal” skills and anyone can figure it out with a little guidance and instruction. The process may not be as easy as following the recipe for baking chocolate chip cookies. However, if carefully approached one step at a time, the task is less daunting. This is a brief look at the basic steps you should follow before obtaining a patent application.

1. Keep a detailed record of your invention

Keep track of EVERY phase of the invention process. Describe and illustrate every facet, every scenario, and every adjustment made on the invention. Make sure you include how the idea popped into your head, as this is important for building on. You may also want to create and test a prototype. Record all of these efforts. Sign and date each entry. The patent application is likely to go smoother if all data is in order. Make sure you receive feedback from colleagues and friends. The more recommendations and opinions given to you will help shape your ideas and acknowledge other viewpoints.

2. Make sure your invention will qualify for patent protection

You cannot simply patent an idea. The inventor has to demonstrate how the invention functions and your invention must be original. It must be significantly different in some vital way from all previous patents. No two patents can be alike so make sure that you check to make sure no one before you has already come up with the idea. It also cannot be for sale or be known by the general public before you apply for a patent.

3. Evaluate the commercial interest of your invention

Applying for a patent is a major financial decision. Even without a patent attorney, it costs a significant amount of money to file and acquire a patent from the USPTO. Before you put all your effort and money into filing a patent, you should complete thorough research to assure it will have market appeal. Look at previous inventions and consumer trends to help decide whether it's worth the business venture or not.

4. Complete a detailed patent search

To insure your invention is unique, you need to search all the earlier developments linked to your invention. This involves searching patents from the U.S. database and sometimes foreign countries, as well as other scientific journals, to find related inventions. This will probably be the most time consuming part of the process. This is where most professional workers come into play. However, no one knows your inventions as well as you do so you’re the best person for the job. Nowadays, most of the information is online, but more research can be done at a Patent and Trademark Depository Library. When you search, you will probably find other inventions that are comparable to yours. You should mention this in your application. You need to prove how your invention improves upon or is different from earlier patents.

5. File an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office

When you file with the USPTO, you can either file a regular patent application or a provisional patent application. A provisional patent application is not an actual application for the patent itself. Filing one of these out simply allows you to claim patent pending status for the invention. It involves less work and costs less than a regular patent application. It basically says you claim rights to this idea. All that is required to file a PPA is a fee, a thorough description of the invention, explaining its purpose and how to make it, and a basic illustration. Then, you must file an RPA within a year of filing the PPA. If you don't, you can no longer claim the PPA filing date or you have to pay a fee to renew it. Filing an RPA starts the examination process at the USPTO and that's what’s required for getting the actual patent.  This is where they complete a background check of all previous inventions and make sure your idea is different from everything else they have in the database. If they deem it a worthy new innovation, then congratulations, your product is on its way to being patented.

For more information visit http://www.uspto.gov

The Golden Age of Inventing is Nonexistent

Cell phones nowadays can do pretty much anything besides microwave popcorn. Surely we are living in a time where inventors are having more success than ever, right? Wrong. In this article written by Adam Davidson, he sees both sides of the argument. He lets the reader decide which side he or she wants to believe. The question he presents is, “Do we live in a time where inventors have the most opportunity to be successful?” On every second Monday of each month, inventors from far and wide come to present their ideas and receive feedback at the Inventors Association of Manhattan. The independent inventor has never had easier access to gaining information and investigating market trends. With virtually everything online, just a click away, we often take for granted how convenient this is. However, one obstacle that prevents most innovators from making big money is established corporations sweeping in and stealing their ideas. They cheat the system and add slight adjustments to make it legal. Because they have already made a name for themselves in the business world, they are more often trusted. Their actions seem corrupt, but they have earned their high ranking in the business community for a reason. They’re going to take what they want no matter what the outcome is for the inventor. In my opinion, I don’t believe there is or has been any golden age of inventing.

Everything is situational. When the caveman invented the wheel, this innovation was considered groundbreaking and changed the way of life significantly. Fast forward hundreds of years to when we invented the cell phone, this device has altered modern communication as we know it. It all depends on the perspective of the public at the time. If history tells us anything, it’s that we continue to progress with technology and fifty years from now we’ll have new and improved material to further advance our expectations. There can never be a defined golden age of inventing. It is a field that at no time is stagnant. One new idea could set fire to a whole new market we never knew existed. It is this exciting revelation that keeps the field fresh and full of promise.

Another point that is worth noting is the significance of the inventions. Independent inventors are talented at thinking outside the box and displaying their creativity. However, many of the products they create are not exactly life changing. Take the Snuggie for example. I think our society would've gotten along just fine if this sleeved blanket never came to existence. One could make the argument that it’s the golden age of quirkiness but in terms of vital, life altering inventions, those are a lot more difficult to find.

One thing that has always remained true in inventors is their confident, undeterred spirit. The man who patented the pet rock comes to mind. I’m sure he received laughs from family and friends and criticism at how silly the idea was. He knew in his gut he had a winner and he ended up making millions. This perseverance is undeniable among inventors. And it’s not just today’s innovators who are like this. Thomas Edison, Benjamin Franklin, Leonardo Da Vinci, all these famous inventors in history shared this passion and willpower. It’s not relative to any specific “golden age.” All inventors carry the same mind set no matter what period they live in.

Selling your product to a retailer is the most difficult thing for an independent inventor. Walmart, Kroger and Target control about a fifth of all United States in store sales (newsweek.com). If you can’t get your product on one of these shelves or on television, it is going to be a struggle making money. The entrepreneurial landscape is not dominated by small inventors; it’s dominated by capitalistic corporations. Patents are very expensive to get nowadays. Inventors are weary about putting their idea out there because if it falls through, they could be out quite a bit of money. The average cost for a patent is about $10,000 (www.richardspatentlaw.com). The cost of patents is greater than the revenue they generate in most cases. “About 97 percent of patents generate less revenue than the patent costs" (Sacramento Business Journal). This amount can be overwhelming for independent inventors who are on the fence about their product.

People take for granted how technology makes life so much easier. However, without the early innovation of inventors before us, this progress wouldn't have been accomplished. I believe the main principle of inventing is building off what we previously had. This allows us to continually evolve and develop. This process never stops and is the reason why we will never experience one particular golden age.

Searching for the Next Snuggie: Is This Really the Golden Age for Inventors?

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/22/magazine/is-this-really-the-golden-age-for-inventors.html?_r=0

How to Make Your Good Ideas Become a Reality...

Great ideas can be big or small. Parents don’t always listen to what you have to say but hopefully this list will help you deal with this problem. Say you want to make a bird feeder, or want to design something in your room, or just thought of something cool. Don’t be intimidated by your parent’s responses. Your say means just as much as there’s. Follow these steps and they will take you a lot more seriously.

1. Write down your idea. Think it through and write down everything good about it. What it will do, what it will cause, why you want to do it. Anything you can think of that could work in your favor. Drawing out a picture could help too. Making a pros and cons list is what a lot of adults do. So if you really want to impress your parents or teacher, make one of those. A pros and cons list is where you make a list of positive things and negative things. If the positive side has more things on it, you know you've got a good idea.

2. Picture it in your head. If you can visualize something and it looks good, you should feel more confident about it.

3. Talk about the idea to your friends, if they agree and like it, then that’s great. If they disagree about something, get their opinion and take that into consideration. The more opinions you get the better.

4. Tell the idea to your parents or teacher. Explain to them what you came up with, why you would like to do it, and present your list of pros and cons. If they say yes that sounds like a plan then congratulations! You've done what you set out to do and that’s a great feeling. Remember parental supervision is always necessary. Have fun and good luck.

photo from: http://pghtutor.com/images/summer_sprint.jpg