Hi all,

I am wondering does anybody have any experience commercialising DIY
inventions.

My background is Mechanical Engineering and Product design. I have an
idea which I have checked out the Patent for it (Haven't filed yet, not
ready to start that 12 month thing), Designed it, prototyped it etc.
And it works.

It is really geared at the hobbyist sector and people that work alot in
workshops.

I would be very interested to talk to anyone that has commercialised or
nearly commercialised a previous invention.

I do not know much about the DIY / Hobbyist market sector. I have
carried out a lot of secondary research mainly through acquiring
industry reports and it seems a good time to enter this market.

Thanks

Steve

yomoto wrote:
Hi all,

I am wondering does anybody have any experience commercialising DIY
inventions.

My background is Mechanical Engineering and Product design. I have an
idea which I have checked out the Patent for it (Haven't filed yet, not
ready to start that 12 month thing), Designed it, prototyped it etc.
And it works.

It is really geared at the hobbyist sector and people that work alot in
workshops.

I would be very interested to talk to anyone that has commercialised or
nearly commercialised a previous invention.

I do not know much about the DIY / Hobbyist market sector. I have
carried out a lot of secondary research mainly through acquiring
industry reports and it seems a good time to enter this market.

Thanks

Steve

posted to relevant group

Steve,

if you have an idea that you have designed, prototyped and proved it
worked, why would you not be ready to patent it? also, you dont have
to file a provisional patent, its not a necessary step. If you're all
ready to go you might as well patent it because if you start
commercializing and selling it without any intent for research
purposes, then you'll only have 12 months to patent anyways.

Evan

wrote in message
oups.com...
yomoto wrote:
Hi all,

I am wondering does anybody have any experience commercialising DIY
inventions.

My background is Mechanical Engineering and Product design. I have an
idea which I have checked out the Patent for it (Haven't filed yet, not
ready to start that 12 month thing), Designed it, prototyped it etc.
And it works.

It is really geared at the hobbyist sector and people that work alot in
workshops.

I would be very interested to talk to anyone that has commercialised or
nearly commercialised a previous invention.

I do not know much about the DIY / Hobbyist market sector. I have
carried out a lot of secondary research mainly through acquiring
industry reports and it seems a good time to enter this market.

Steve, get out there and do some actual market research.
See notes below as to why something might not commercialise.

With a small budget, we have patented 2 products (in Australia) in the past couple of
years, selling well here, and they are finally being picked up now by overseas
distributors.

Very important to get in early investigating how you will get this out there in front
of people.
Existing agents / distributors, on your own, internet sales, etc etc. Also as many
inventors choose, maybe licensing is an option.
Check out who might be interested in taking on your idea under their own product
line, and sell through existing channels.

Good luck with it.

Thanks

Steve

posted to relevant group


"reykjavik" wrote in message
oups.com...
Steve,

if you have an idea that you have designed, prototyped and proved it
worked, why would you not be ready to patent it? also, you dont have

The item might not be desirable / needed.
Pricing point might be too high.
(Costs too high, too many lines of distibution / middle men, greed)
Manufactuing might be impracticle in all but small numbers.

ie, no end market research has been done as yet.

Also, Patenting is expensive, there might be barriers in that area for the inventor
to overcome.
Multiple countries = even higher costs.
Plus more market research needed wherever if it's going outside the inventors
country.

to file a provisional patent, its not a necessary step. If you're all
ready to go you might as well patent it because if you start
commercializing and selling it without any intent for research
purposes, then you'll only have 12 months to patent anyways.

Evan

reykjavik wrote:
Steve,

if you have an idea that you have designed, prototyped and proved it
worked, why would you not be ready to patent it?


Because he is smarter than that, Filing for a patent before you know for
absolutely positive that you can make money from the invention, is a
total waste of money, and an act of someone who is setting themselves up
to fail. 98% of all patents make the inventors nothing, all of these
patents were filed before the inventor knew he even had anything worth
patenting. Most of these people can't afford to patent another
invention, so after the first one fails,, they are out of the inventing
business

also, you dont have
to file a provisional patent, its not a necessary step. If you're all
ready to go you might as well patent it because if you start
commercializing and selling it without any intent for research
purposes, then you'll only have 12 months to patent anyways.

In that 12 months you can find out if your invention is worth a patent,,
few people have 10 or more thousand dollars to throw to the wind, and
even if they do, they can't keep doing it, so they are out of inventing
quick.

Filing for a patent prematurely is one of the biggest mistakes new
inventors make, and one few recover from.


--
Rodney Long,
Inventor of the Long Shot "WIGGLE" rig, SpecTastic Thread
Boomerang Fishing Pro. ,Stand Out Hooks ,Stand Out Lures,
Mojo's Rock Hopper & Rig Saver weights, Decoy Activator
and the EZKnot http://www.ezknot.com

Thanks figjam62 and Rodney Long,

I think you have hit the nail right on the head. I don't want to start
commercialising before I have done some primary market research. I am
based in Ireland and am currently carrying out cost analysis on
manufacturing, and trying to get some user feedback under
non-disclosure agreements. Am also looking at the whole Branding
picture to try secure a brand that will work for the product.

Thankyou for your input.

Steve

Note that the United States is unusual in allowing a one-year grace
period to file a patent application after public disclosure or sale of
the invention. In most countries once the invention is publicly
disclosed or sold, it is too late to successfully apply for a patent.

Rich

Hi Steve,

I've looked at a few patents in the course of my research. Some
patents (in my mind) were a complete waste of money. In other cases,
I don't know why the product isn't commercialized, but my best guess is
that the "market" didn't want it or it was not cost effective to mass
produce, etc.

Bottom line - I'd do as much research as possible and try to spend as
little $$$ as possible in order to reach a GO / NO GO decision.
There's books and also knowledgeable folks that may be able to offer
guidance (you may pay a little, but it sure beats wasting thousands!)

Beware of the many, many scammers out there, and don't get involved
with anything you see on TV as far as "help for inventors".

Hope this helps. Good luck --Ed

wrote in message
ups.com...
Note that the United States is unusual in allowing a one-year grace
period to file a patent application after public disclosure or sale of
the invention. In most countries once the invention is publicly
disclosed or sold, it is too late to successfully apply for a patent.

Rich


Same here in Australia, but if you commercialise, and someone else starts making your
product before you file, you can't enforce a patent against them.

Some sort of grace period. Never have liked the idea, but I suppose it covers you if
you talk to a few people before recognising the need to patent if desired.