Invention and Patent Strengthening
Inventors are facing significant challenges bringing their inventions to market. Lots of times they cannot exploit their intellectual property because the timing of patenting or making public their invention is not the right one. Such challenges include:
- You have a great invention but you cannot recover the costs associated with patents and research
- You had a revolutionary idea and just patented a new product, but your competition comes up with something that does the same thing better or cheaper and takes you out of market
- You invent something great, but it doesn’t sell
- The technology you created is more advanced than what most customers expect
Innovation and patent timing
While there is a lot of information about how to invent and how to patent, the best timing for filing a patent application is still a debated topic. From the “inventor” (the technical expert) perspective, things often seem simple: I invented, I’ll get a patent, I’ll sell the new product and I’ll get rich.
For the business decision maker though, things may not be that clear. Lots of times, the costs for research, patenting, NPI, manufacturing and promoting/selling the result of a “great” invention may be higher than the expected revenue. Innovation should not be limited at product level, but should incorporate (preferably from the beginning) all aspects of the business. If there is a significant difference between the time you patent and the time you can efficiently manufacture and commercialize the new product, your competition might be able to come up with a different product that will cover the needs of your target market.
Your invention is good as long as it provides a certain function needed on the market. No matter how great your invention seems now, someone will invent in future something better that will cover the same function. Because the evolution of a product is quite predictable, it is not very difficult for a large corporation to study the evolutionary potential of your invention and come up with a new product that is doing the same thing as yours, but is doing it better and cheaper.
The legal aspect is very important for building a strong patent application and for setting the foundation of your future success. To help with this, it is important to also strengthen you invention. A thorough analysis will help improving your invention and making it a better business opportunity. It can be done answering some critical questions like:
- What is the main use of my invention? Can I find any other functions (possible uses) for it?
- Could these functions be achieved in a different way? How easy would it be for someone to invent a product or reuse an existing product to achieve the same result?
- What could replace these functions? Could we get rid of them? Could someone come up easily with a product (or process) that makes my invention obsolete?
- Is my invention introducing any harmful aspect? Can I eliminate them and strengthen my invention this way?
- How high is the expectation of my customers? If I’m creating something way above their expectations, I’m introducing an opportunity for disruptive changes in the market and someone else will make a cheaper version of my product that is “good enough” for current market. If I’m way below their expectations, my competitors will easily do something better.
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Who are my competitors? Should I try to compete with them or collaborate with them?
Innovation Spring can help you
- Perform an evolutionary potential analysis for your invention, helping you identify the future “versions” of your product before your competition does. You may choose to patent these future versions now to make it more difficult for other to compete
- Perform a functional analysis of your product, identifying new possible uses. This may lead to new inventions, customized for the specifics of different market segments
- Review the market, identify new opportunities and create disruptive changes
- Innovate at all levels in your business, so the operational, sales and management structures are in place and ready to support the introduction of your new product
For more information, contact us at info@innovationspring.com or 1-416-894-8578.
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