AbsolutelyNew Blog

Patent Models

Getting a patent has never been easy, but here's one way it used to be even more challenging...

Shortly after the birth of the United States, the Patent Act of 1790 required inventors applying for a U.S. patent to submit a model of the their invention to help inspectors understand the design. Over 200,000 models were submitted during the following 90 years. But after two fires and a shortage of storage space, the model requirement was abolished in 1880.

Fortunately, a few thousand of those models have been preserved over the years, in a private collection, and about 30 of them will be featured in the Smithsonian next month. They include a paper-bag-making machine (shown below), a horse-shoe-making machine, and--you guessed it--a better mousetrap. If you visit the exhibit, please tell us what you think of it.

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Innovation at the Vancouver Olympics

The Winter Olympic Games will commence on Friday in Vancouver.  Companies have been innovating like crazy since the last Olympics to enhance the performance of Olympic athletes.  From a newly designed high-speed bobsled to downhill ski equipment, innovation will be on everyone’s mind at the games.  In addition to improvements in athletic equipment, the Vancouver Olympics will showcase a lot of environmental innovation.  Here are a few things to watch out for:

 

Eco-friendly venues:  The organizers of the Vancouver Olympics have had sustainability on their minds since the planning first began.  Many of the Olympic venues include state of the art eco-friendly designs that conserve energy and protect the environment.  The Convention Centre boasts a living green roof, on-site water treatment, and a fish habitat built into the foundation, while the Olympic Centre captures rainwater and siphons it into the building to flush toilets and urinals.

 

Carbon-neutral partners: Twenty-five partners of the Olympic Games have joined forces to help make the Games carbon-neutral.  Corporate sponsors, governments and broadcasters have all volunteered to offset some of their own carbon emissions related to the Games by investing in a portfolio of clean energy technology projects.  Coca-Cola will also be going completely green for the games, aiming to have a net-zero carbon footprint and net-zero waste at the Games.

 

Olympic medals made from electronic scraps:  The medals that the Olympic champions will proudly wear around their necks will be made of precious metals reclaimed from old electronics.  Gold, silver, and bronze have been extracted from electronics that would otherwise end up in landfills to make the coveted medals.  It would take more than 17 tons of gold ore to net the same amount of gold reclaimed from the circuit boards of a single junk PC.

New in robotics

 

Our loyal readers have come to know that we love robots. No, that’s an understatement—we really LOVE robots. But what kind? This is an emerging question as scientists invent different types (and looks) of robots to handle different roles… and learn all the more the nuances of how people respond to robots.

So, which of the two above suits you? Or is the robot below?

 

Perhaps a little more detail will help. The new issue of Proto has a cool feature story on the latest in robots. Highlights of note:

• We’re apparently not the only folks who already go gaga for robots. A Georgia Tech study of Roomba (the breakthrough robotic vacuum) owners in 2007 found many named and decorated their devices.

• New advances and new algorithms are now enabling the development of robots that are “socially assistive” or “socially interactive” in their ability to change their behavior based on what they sense in the people around them.

• Children take quickly to robots, whereas adults are often a little slower to embrace them. (Clearly, we weren’t in that study!). People often get comfortable with a robot faster if it mirrors their personality – ie: an extroverted person responds well to a fast-talking robot.

• There’s now a lot of research on how robots should look… and the new conventional wisdom is that a robot should look somewhat but not entirely human. One Japanese scientist even coined the term “uncanny valley” to describe it – because once a robot bears an uncanny resemblance to a human, the rapport with it drops from a peak to a valley.

Cool stuff! And since we’re only scratching the surface here, you might enjoy reading more of the details in Proto. Here’s a link!

Notes from the Consumer Electronics Shows

We’re back from the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. And let’s just say it was awesome – so many cool new technologies we can’t wait to get into our homes, our offices, and everywhere else.

PC World did a nice job highlighting some of top products, so rather than reinvent the wheel, here’s a link to check out what they wrote.
 
More broadly than any specific product, we were struck by the vast number of products and technology platforms that are built from the ground up for easy interaction and use the way we really live, without constraining “hardware.” Imagine using any surface as your keyboard, and using your finger as a mouse, a laser pointer, even a welder. It all makes yesteryear’s breakthrough devices like the Nintendo Wii controller seem downright primitive by comparison.

A couple other major trends, based on our observations and discussions with key players:

1. Managed content – like the ability to control precisely what programs even make it to your TV – is only in its infancy. Look for this to grow exponentially in the months ahead.

2. GPS technology is navigating its way into everything. And its stands to revolutionize everything from traffic patterns to fashion to global security.

To go a lot deeper, you can click here to check out CNET’s expansive coverage of all things CES.

As if duct tape couldn’t get any better

Here’s a confession: we’re addicted to duct tape.  We absolutely LOVE it.  It’s great for fixing things at home, temporary car repairs, and sealing just about every rip we’ve seemed to sustain on camping trips.  And of course we’ve also seen our share of duct tape put to use – very well, we should say – on early invention prototypes.

Our one beef with duct tape has been that not everyone appreciates the silver-gray aesthetic of it.  But this is now a non-issue, as the smart folks at 3M have introduced transparent duct tape.  It’s as strong as the stuff we love... but it’s totally clear.  Cool.  Check it out here.

Are you as excited as we are?  Or will you continue to wear (or use) the silver-gray stuff as a badge of honor?

BTW, we’re also thrilled that 3M’s Vice President for Development and Mergers & Acquisitions, Mark Copman, has just joined our Advisory Board.  We’re looking forward strategic advice that will surely be as clear (and sticky) as his company’s new duct tape.

Buying stock in You, Inc.

Looking to finance your invention success at a time when banks aren’t the most open lenders?

We’re hearing talk that banks may soon start opening their vaults again.  We’re also reading that the government’s Small Business Administration (SBA) under President-elect Obama may offer new financing opportunities to America’s inventors, entrepreneurs and other small business owners.

And BusinessWeek recently reported a creative alternative way to finance your invention right now: applying your 401k funds towards your invention without a tax penalty.  That’s right – if you believe in your invention, you can put your 401k funds to work making your invention a reality. How:

- Create a corporation – let’s call it You, Inc.
- Create a 401k plan at You, Inc.
- Roll your existing 401k funds into the You, Inc. 401k plan
- Invest You, Inc. 401k funds to buy You, Inc. shares (stock) 

Sounds complicated at first. But it's actually pretty simple -- you're just moving 401k dollars from one place to another and investing them differently... without taking a distribution that would spark immediate tax consequences.  Several firms offer to do all the set-up for a modest fee.

Click here to read the full BusinessWeek article on this approach and how entrepreneurs have successfully used it.

What do you think?  We would never advise someone to tap into his or her nest egg for any invention.  But we also think it could be a very smart decision to tap into part of a nest egg for an invention that you know will be HUGE one day.

Ready. Aim. Then Fire!

The year’s drawing to a close and the holidays are upon us.  In the world of innovation, this means lots of lists of the best inventions of the year (gotta love the new one from Popular Mechanics), which then make their way onto our own holiday lists.

What’s on your list, for yourself and the tinkerers in your life?

One invention we’re talking about... but not itching to buy: The Palm Pistol, a newly invented, single-shot 9mm handgun designed for defensive use by persons crippled with arthritis, muscular dystrophy and other conditions that leave them unable to operate a standard handgun.

Irrespective of where you stand on the issue of gun control – we’re not touching that – one could make the argument that this product is both inventive and purposeful.  But the story here gets far more interesting, and offers lessons for inventors in all product categories:

1. There are real questions about whether The Palm Pistol’s intended users will actually be able to operate it effectively.  Specifically, we’re reading that a three-digit combination lock must be disengaged and two mechanical safeties must be depressed... by someone who lacks the strength and dexterity to operate a standard handgun... in order to fire The Palm Pistol’s single shot.  Sounds like a case of Ready, Fire, Aim!  The lesson: think about who you’re targeting (couldn’t resist) as your core user and then make sure you design for this user population.  It also can’t hurt to test, test and test more to make absolutely certain you’ve optimized the design for these users.

2. The inventor sought an FDA medical device classification, which could pave the way for his handgun to be prescribed by doctors and reimbursed by Medicare.  Really!  An FDA employee even helped with the registration.  Of course, there’s a HUGE difference between registering and getting approval, so it probably wasn’t a good idea for the inventor to hastily reach out and tell the media he was on track to sell the first prescription handgun – word travelled fast, leading to all sorts of stories of wheel chair vigilantes and grandparents packing heat... and the FDA yesterday shot down (again, couldn’t resist) the medical device registration.  Do we now call this a Plaxico?  The lessons: don’t underestimate the power of a creative angle that generates awareness and differentiates your invention.  But also be sure to take a step back to consider if that creative angle might be considered beyond the pale and/or do you more long-term harm than good.

BTW, for more info on The Palm Pistol, including its official take on the FDA debacle and how it may appeal its case, click here to open Constitution Arms’ website.

The Anchor Gets Re-invented

Picture a ship anchor.  You know exactly what it looks like.  Or so you thought... as a group of ingenious scientists at MIT have completely re-invented the anchor to be far smaller, lighter and more effective than those clunky metal ones we have long known.

This newly invented anchor is called the RoboClam.  Pictured above right, it's inspired by and functions a lot like the razor clam (aka: Atlantic jackknife), pictured above left:

• It vibrates in a manner that turns the relatively solid sea bed to a quicksand-like, digging-friendly consistency.
• It then pushes down into the sea bed and expands its “shells” to lock in place.
• It then repeats this again and again... digging itself down to 15 inches with 80 pounds of force.

So cool.  And not just because it has Robo in the name!  The invention's apparently already strong enough to anchor a small sub, and there’s talk that, with tweaks and improvements, this thing could be strong enough to anchor even the largest of ships and off-shore oil platforms, and perhaps be modified for applications including drilling on dry land.

You’ve gotta love it when Mother Nature inspires great invention.  Once again we tip our hats to her... and to the folks who tinkered based on her inspiration.

For additional info, click here for MIT’s official take on the RoboClam.  Thanks also to MIT’s Donna Coveney for the photo.

Reinvented 007 Needs New Inventions

Comcast is offering 21 James Bond movies “On Demand” in high definition.  Over the long Thanksgiving weekend, I must have seen the Comcast commercial for it about 50 times.

In watching the commercial’s montage of cool inventions that 007 has put to use over the years – inventions like the wristwatch that’s so much more than a wristwatch – what really struck me is how dull James Bonds’ new inventions are by comparison.

Did you see Quantum of Solace?  Cool car.  Cool computer.  But nothing I couldn’t kit out on my own given a little extra cash, the right tools and parts, and the help of my mechanically savvy best friend MJ.

What’s going on here?  Is Q, or MI-6, slacking off?  Or do you think, as some others are saying, that technologies are now so advanced that movies no longer need to make them up (which sounds a lot like saying everything good has already been invented)?  Or is this a matter of Hollywood finding that audiences want their Bond with less contrived gadgets and more real violence?

Whatever the case may be, I’m feeling like the reinvented Daniel Craig 007 is falling a tad short of Bond proportions... and needs a few new inventions to spark my interest.

BTW, on this topic, a really fun article on James Bond inventions, published in 1966, is circulating on the web. Click here to give it a read.