Learn About Inventing
How-To Information, Opinions and Perspective for Inventors Regarding Patents, Prototypes, Confidentiality Agreements, Licensing, Manufacturing and More.
- Inventing 101 - First steps for succeeding with your invention (or at least saving a ton of money whether you succeed or not).
- Inventing 102 - How to license or sell your invention. The story of how WorkTools licensed PowerShot Staple Gun to Black & Decker
- How to Get a Patent on Anything
- 6 Things Every Inventor Should Know About Patents
- Why a "Bogus" Provisional Patent Might Be a Smart Move
- How to Value a Bet - Inventing is a Form of Betting
- Four Ways to Fail as an Inventor
- A Patent is as Strong as its Claims - Informative article on the heart of a patent by Registered Patent Agent Scott Keeley.
- Invention Licensing Agreement - Example agreement
- How to Succeed with Your Invention - One minute article by Invention City founder Mike Marks.
- Thoughts on Patent Defense - Does it need to cost $1,000,000?
- The Worst Invention Introduction Letter Ever Written - What NOT to write. Example of a good letter is also provided.
- Confidentiality Agreement Review - Invention City Article. Learn about the most basic tool of invention protection. Examples provided.
- How Long Does It Take to Turn an Invention into a Product?
- Apple Computer Invention Submission Policy. This is the WORST policy we've ever seen.
- How to Find an Honest Invention Company?
- Money & Inventing - How much is your invention worth? This article provides a framework for understanding the value of your invention. Don't sell yourself short or blow a deal because of unrealistic expectations.
- The Disclosure Dilemma - The Catch-22 of Inventing. You need to talk about the invention to move it forward. How do you do that without giving away the store? There is no easy answer.
- Thoughts on TV Marketing - Invention City founder Mike Marks shares his thoughts on Direct Response TV marketing.
- Protecting Your Invention - Summary information on basic issues and methods for protecting an invention.
- Intro to 3-D printing aka Rapid Prototyping.
- Manufacturing Your Idea - Things to know as you move from prototype to production.
- ABC's American Inventor
- Rotational Molding - Information on rotational molding.
- Did Edison knock off the light bulb? Read this article from Einsteinsfrig.com and judge for yourself.
- Publicity - How Much Time Does it Take? - Todd Brabender President of Spread The News Public Relations, Inc. shares his thoughts.
- Inventing: First Steps
Books for Inventors on Inventing
- Inventing 101: First Steps - Invention City President Mike Marks provides a definitive guide to the first steps you should take after that eureka moment. Learn how to know that your idea is worth time and effort; save thousands of dollars; protect your invention on a tight budget; make a prototype and much more. The book is 75 pages and is available free online.
- Inventing 102: Introduction to Licensing - Licensing is the easiest path to commercialization and profit: you get paid while someone else takes your invention, turns it into a product and manages the day to day grind of making and selling it. But that doesn't mean it's easy... The book is free online.
- Patent It Yourself, 13th Edition - David Pressman's classic belongs on every inventor's bookshelf. This book is the bible for anyone even remotely thinking about patenting an invention without an attorney. This book can save you thousands of dollars even if you have already hired a patent attorney. Patent It Yourself will help you make intelligent decisions regardless of whether or not you actually do it yourself. Patent It Yourself is like the wise uncle who cares about you and knows EVERYTHING (and there's a lot to know). The cost of the book is $31.49. Its well worth it.
- And Suddenly the Inventor Appeared: TRIZ, the Theory of Inventive Problem Solving - Stalin wanted the USSR to lead the world and believed that one of the keys was to outinvent the west. He assigned bucketfuls of Soviet scientists to research thousands upon thousands of patents to discover the secrets of successful inventing. These "secrets" are now being disseminated in the west in a number of ways. The best way to get a flavor of what the Russians discovered is to read this book. For example, how would you go about lighting the dark side of the moon? The thought process used to arrive at the solution to this and other problems is the focus of the book. Useful for both professionals and neophytes. $40.
- Ogilvy on Advertising - An oldie but a goody. David Ogilvy created one of the world’s great ad agencies and learned a great deal in the process. He shares his priceless knowledge in this book. Ogilvy believes that the purpose of advertising is to communicate information. He would reject much of the illegible graphics and indecipherable hoopla in today’s advertising. This book can be used as a simple "How To" book for effective product brochures and web sites and for a deeper understanding on communication processes in general. Be forewarned that Ogilvy has a Mt. Everest sized ego which is annoying if not tuned out. The message is important. $16.10
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