Browse Category: Helpful Articles for Inventors

6 Inventions to Recover from Daylight Saving Time (National Napping Day)

Are you dreading this upcoming daylight saving time? Even if you plan ahead and to go to bed early, you may still feel ridiculously tired the next day. Time and time again, studies show this practice to be dumb and consistently dangerous to people’s health in a variety of ways. This national event is so notoriously terrible, it sparked a second national event, National Napping Day. In 1999 William Anthony, a Ph.D professor from Boston University, created National Napping Day to aid in the loss of sleep on a national scale. Currently, the states of Arizona and Hawaii have succeeded in fighting against this standard, as well as several countries such as China and Japan. Conversely, Florida is fighting to permanently keep daylight saving time, the Senate voting 33-2 in rally of the idea.

We can’t do anything now, but we can help with the drag of it all. We’re pretty passionate about inventions here, and even more passionate about sleeping. Here 6 inventions to help you through the drag of daylight saving time  enjoy National Nap Day to its fullest potential.

1) The Barisieur

Waking up today is going to be a bit harder than normal, so why not wake up like a king or queen? We’re suggesting the best case scenario, waking up to the sweet smell of coffee…..literally. The Barisieur is an alarm clock and coffee brewer. Imagine the soft sounds of bubbling water greeting you in the morning, your stirring intensified by that perfect coffee smell permeating your bedroom. Not only is this the dream we’ve all been waiting for, but it’s design is quite possibly more sleek and sophisticated than the actual idea of waking up to the smell of coffee. MMmmmmmm.

2) Bath Buzz Caffeinated Soap

Now that you’re awake, it’s time get ready for your day. How can you fit in another caffeine boost to your morning routine? The shower of course, where Bath Buzz offers a solution in their caffeinated soap. There’s a whopping 2400mg of caffeine infused in their peppermint scented soap. That equals up to at least 24 cups of coffee! In addition to the energizing benefits of caffeine, you may be surprised to know caffeine is really good for your skin. Caffeine is a prominent ingredient in countless anti-aging skin care products and helps to improve blood circulation. This unassuming bar of soap is guaranteed to help jump start your day.

3) Shelterin Inflatable Car Air Mattress 

You’ve made it past the first half of your work day and it’s lunch time, you’re doing good! Many studies show that short 10-20 minute naps are super effective when dealing with afternoon-slump fatigue. You heard science, now’s your chance to find a cozy spot! I suggest using the Shelterin Inflatable back seat car mattress to aid in your nap-quest. Don’t worry about finding an air-pump, this air mattress comes with a car electric air pump. It shouldn’t take more than a minute to inflate this mattress that’s compatible with 95% of car models. After all, it may be easier to fit in a quick nap from the back of your car if your work doesn’t like your sleeping at your desk (I can’t imagine why).  

4) Ostrich Pillow

Maybe you can’t get to your car, or you’re lucky enough to have If you have a super cool work space. If that’s your case, then I highly suggest using the Ostrich Pillow. Don’t let its looks deceive you, this pillow can conquer any surface for the perfect power nap. If you frequent planes, it’s the perfect travel accessory that you didn’t even know you needed. There’s also an opening in the front for nose and mouth breathing, which is really relevant for those of us that value sleep without that “hot air” feeling.

5) Portable Coffee Cup Holder

Congrats, you’ve made it halfway through the day! You’re doing great. It’s time to stack up on another cup of coffee. After that power nap, it’s going to take everything you have left to motor through the rest of your day. You can’t risk keeping your eye off the ball for even a second. And by ball, I really mean that precious, precious cup of joe. That’s where the Office Table Desk Clip comes in handy. Now you really can keep your eye on the prize. Besides, you can’t risk spilling your drink all over your papers, computer, or keyboard! As an added bonus, this nifty tool double to hold your phone, cosmetics, or even a flower pot.

6) Coffee Joulies

Alright you’ve made it to the final stretch and your work day is almost over! I don’t know about you, but I’m always burning my tongue on a fresh cup of joe. Coffee Joulies conquers against this classic tongue battle by using advanced phase change material technology to store and release energy. To translate this to English, the beans absorbs and conserves the heat from the initial pour, making sure the cup doesn’t exceed burning temperatures. As your cup cools down, the stainless steel stones will then release the previously stored heat to maintain the “perfect” temperature for your coffee. Food Network can be quoted saying “The beans really work” and that’s honestly more than enough for me.

Pat yourself on the back!

Congratulations! Looks like you’ve made it through your work day. Now that you’ve enjoyed National Napping Day to its fullest potential, it’s time to stop and think about everything we’ve learned today, and no I don’t mean confirming daylight saving time is absolutely dreadful. I mean, look at all these helpful products that may have helped you through your day! It’s never too late to start looking at good inventions and assessing their usability. What may come off as a laughable product may really come in handy on days when you need them most, like National Napping Day. If you’re feeling inspired and wanting to create your own invention, feel free to contact us at 888-373-3876. If this article inspired you to take the next step in your own inventing journey, make sure to comment and let us know. As a reward, I might even get an official nap time at my desk (OH BOY)!

Krissy Pizzo is the social media expert and writer for Source Direct, an Invention Company based in Palm Harbor, Fl. If you have any additional invention tips or comments, feel free to email her at kpizzo@thesourcedirect.net. If you absolutely dread using email, you can comment below! 

Success Stories: The Weave Scratcher

STOP THE PAT! From hairpiece to sew-ins, The Weave Scratcher offers a simple solution to the most common predicament: itching. Source Direct helped create this product in 2011 and we are excited to announce it is taking off. ESSENCE magazine featured The Weave Scratcher as their top tool for “soothing an itchy sew-in weave”. We have been picked as “Amazon’s Choice” for weave scratching products online. Sometimes a good product requires time, attention, and patience while carefully building a following.

The Weave Scratcher was created to help ease discomfort without disrupting your style. To better understand The Weave Scratcher, it helps to understand why people experience itching in the first place.  

During the braiding and weaving process the hair is pulled very tightly. When hair is pulled too tightly, the scalp becomes irritated and can develop an inflammation of the hair follicles. This inflammation reaction can account for that furious itching sensation. Even when done properly,  an excess or lack of moisture to the scalp can turn quickly turn the scale. Seborrheic Dermatitis, commonly known as dandruff, is the other common perpetrator for this problem. An overgrowth of yeast on the scalp triggers an inflammation of the roots. This causes an array effects including a buildup of dry layers, flaking, and itching.

Anything from getting the hair wet to sweating without carefully drying the scalp can cause these itching sensations, and what a list! There’s too much to worry about with maintaining and caring for weave, so Source Direct spent a lot of time developing the right tool to properly assist.

Its firm but flexible design is meant to fit in between any hair weft or braided base with ease. The soothing bobby pin ends massage your head comfortably and carefully. It’s light and compact size allows clients to use the Weave Scratcher when at home or out and about. This tool can fit perfectly in your wallet, purse, clutch, or pocket. Our design is embodied to best suit the needs of our clients and their scalp. This handy tool is perfect for anyone who wears wigs, braids, or extensions.

We look forward to announcing the exciting collaborations we are currently working on, as well as more news to come. For anyone interested in joining the Source Direct Inventors Club, call 888-373-3876. 

Krissy Pizzo is the social media expert and writer for Source Direct, an Invention Company based in Palm Harbor, Fl. If you have any additional invention tips or comments, feel free to email her at kpizzo@thesourcedirect.net. If you absolutely dread using email, you can comment below! 

Patent Drafting: The most valuable patent focuses on structural uniqueness of an invention

From a conceptual standpoint is would seem logical to assume that writing text to describe an invention ought to be easy for the inventor of the invention. While that probably makes sense in theory, in reality, it just doesn’t play out that way. It can be enormously difficult for inventors to describe their own inventions. This is true not because the inventor doesn’t know what they’ve invented, or even because the inventor is not in the best position to explain the invention. Indeed, the inventor of a new and useful invention is absolutely in the best position to describe the invention. The problem lies with the reality that most inventors simply don’t understand what needs to be described in order to satisfy the U.S. patentability requirements.

For example, most inventors can write volumes about why they came up with the invention, but why the invention was made isn’t particularly relevant to patentability.

Similarly, inventors are very good at describing how their inventions can be used and why their invention is superior from a usability standpoint to anything available in the marketplace or previously known. The trouble is describing how an invention can be used, while a prerequisite, will not distinguish a tangible invention from the prior art.

Before moving forward let’s recall that in order to satisfy the enablement requirement in a patent application it is necessary for the drafter of the patent application, whether a patent attorney, patent agent or the inventor themselves, to describe in great detail how the invention can be both made and used so that someone of relevant skill in the particular art or science will be able to understand how the invention is both made and used. This being the law, it is obviously necessary to explain how the invention will be used in order to fulfill the patentability requirements. Unfortunately, when inventors represent themselves they nearly universally focus overwhelming on the use and at the expense of actually describing the structure.

It is necessary for an invention directed to a tangible invention —referred to in patent law interchangeably as either the machine, device or apparatus — to be distinguished from the prior art in terms of structure rather than in terms of function. This is true because an invention description that only focuses on the manner in which the machine or apparatus is intended to be used does not differentiate from the prior art if the prior art teaches all the structural limitations of described tangible invention.

For example, let’s say you invented an ordinary garden shovel. You attempt to distinguish your garden shovel from previously existing garden shovels by saying that your garden shovel is used not to dig, but instead as a stickball bat. By focusing on the different use you are saying nothing about the structure whatsoever. While you can obtain a patent on a new method for using a known product, even copious amounts of information about how to use your garden shovel will not translate into allowing you to claim your shovel.

If you focus your description only on use then at best you can obtain a patent on a new method for using a known product. The problem with those types of claims, however, is that in the hands of an individual new and non-obvious claims to a new method of a known product became difficult, if not impossible, to enforce. The thought process goes like this: Whom will you sue for infringement of your new method patent? In almost all cases, the infringer will be the user, not the manufacturer, distributor or seller of the shovel. But if you define your invention from a structural standpoint instead of a use only standpoint the infringer would not only be the user, but also the manufacturer, distributor, and seller. Being able to control the tangible invention and not just the method of use is what you want to do because it allows you to stop infringement at the source.

Of course, method patents are not useless, and in fact can be quite valuable in the right hands. For example, if you were to invent a cheaper, faster, more efficient way to create a known product then you could sell that known product for less than what others could who are not using your method. These types of commercial methods can become quite valuable and must be distinguished from the typical method of use that an inventor describes.

Still further, in my experience, the method of using an invention that is typically described by an inventor is one that frequently cannot be patented because the method often lack novelty or would be obvious. Returning to our example with the shovel, is it truly new and nonobvious to use a shovel as a stickball bat. Sure, it might not be ideal or even convenient, but substituting one known device for another similar device to accomplish the same task is considered obvious, at least after the Supreme Court’s 2007 decision in KSR v. Teleflex.

The moral of the story is this: When describing an invention you absolutely need to describe how the invention will be used, but to obtain the most valuable patent you need to describe the structural uniqueness of your invention.

So where do you go from here? One of the most effective (and economical) ways to disclose structure is to include multiple high quality patent drawings. For more information on patent drawings please see:

By Gene Quinn  via http://www.ipwatchdog.com/2017/12/09/patent-drafting-valuable-patent-structural-uniqueness-invention/id=90955/

Colorado girl, troubled by Flint water crisis more than 1,000 miles away, invents lead detector

Image may contain: 1 person, smilingOutside Denver, a talented 12-year-old is getting national attention. It’s not for her music, it’s for Gitanjali Rao’s contribution to science.

“If my mom asked me what do you want for Christmas, I’d be like, lead,” Gitanjali said.

That’s right, lead, which Gitanjali needed for an invention.

“Imaging living day in and day out drinking contaminated water with dangerous substances like lead. Introducing tethys, the easy to use, fast, accurate, a portable and inexpensive device to detect lead in water,” Gitanjali said in her presentation for the Young Scientist Challenge. She won the national competition for her invention.

It was inspired by a real-world problem. “I’ve been following the Flint water crisis for about two years,” Gitanjali said.

In Flint, Michigan, nearly 100,000 residents drank lead-contaminated water for more than a year.

“Lead is mostly harmful to younger children, about my age — giving them growth defects and potentially damaging their brain,” Gitanjali said.

Gitanjali said that despite living in thousands of miles away from Flint, “that’s not something I want to go through, what the Flint residents went through .. our water quality’s just as important as doctor’s appointments or dentist’s appointments.”

If you’ve never tested your water, Gitanjali said “that’s a big problem!”

No automatic alt text available.With Gitanjali’s device, instead of taking days to send water samples to a lab, her device detects lead in seconds using carbon molecules — and a mobile app.

She’s one of many who love science at school, but one of the few who turned an idea into an invention, said teacher Simi Basu.

“I am so confident that she will be able to take it to the market if we keep providing her help,” Basu said. She said what makes Gitanjali different is that she is a “risk taker — she’s not afraid to fail.”

She said her next project is to create a “happiness meter which measures the amount of serotonin in your body or the amount of gamma rays and I still have to figure out how this works.”

When she does, the science world will be waiting.

Image may contain: one or more people and indoor

12-year-old Colorado girl, troubled by Flint water crisis more than 1,000 miles away, invents lead detector

Outside Denver, a talented 12-year-old is getting national attention. It’s not for her music, it’s for Gitanjali Rao’s contribution to science.
 
“If my mom asked me what do you want for Christmas, I’d be like, lead,” Gitanjali said.
 
That’s right, lead, which Gitanjali needed for an invention.
 
“Imaging living day in and day out drinking contaminated water with dangerous substances like lead. Introducing tethys, the easy to use, fast, accurate, portable and inexpensive device to detect lead in water,” Gitanjali said in her presentation for the Young Scientist Challenge. She won the national competition for her invention.
 
It was inspired by a real-world problem. “I’ve been following the Flint water crisis for about two years,” Gitanjali said.
 
In Flint, Michigan, nearly 100,000 residents drank lead-contaminated water for more than a year.
 
“Lead is mostly harmful to younger children, about my age — giving them growth defects and potentially damaging their brain,” Gitanjali said.
 
Gitanjali said that despite living in thousands of miles away from Flint, “that’s not something I want to go through, what the Flint residents went through .. our water quality’s just as important as doctor’s appointments or dentist’s appointments.”
 
If you’ve never tested your water, Gitanjali said “that’s a big problem!”
 
With Gitanjali’s device, instead of taking days to send water samples to a lab, her device detects lead in seconds using carbon molecules — and a mobile app.
 
She’s one of many who loves science at school, but one of the few who turned an idea into an invention, said teacher Simi Basu.
 
“I am so confident that she will be able to take it to the market if we keep providing her help,” Basu said. She said what makes Gitanjali different is that she is a “risk taker — she’s not afraid to fail.”
 
She said her next project is to create a “happiness meter which measures the amount of serotonin in your body or the number of gamma rays and I still have to figure out how this works.”
 
When she does, the science world will be waiting.
Via https://www.cbsnews.com/news/gitanjali-rao-12-year-old-girl-troubled-by-flint-water-crisis-invents-lead-detector/

Why Innovation Isn’t (Only) About The Product

Innovation isn’t (only) about the product, its also about the business model!

Innovation can be a function of any company or any industry but it’s the disruptors that are innovating on so many fronts which is having such ineradicable impact. They are the ones bucking the old way of doing things for a more modern innovation mindset. If you were to stop somebody on the street and say, “what is innovation what’s innovative?” They may say the iPhone is innovative. Seventy-five percent of the answers you will get will be about a product. Jim says, “Products only develop or deliver 10 percent of the value in an innovation ecosystem. Ninety percent of the value is by innovating around the business model, customer experience, and process.”

A great example of this is Dollar Shave Club. For decades, the shaving category was entirely focused on product innovation, launching new and improved ‘blades’ at an ever-increasing premium price. However, we can’t forget some early product marketing and business model innovation done by Gillette —to essentially give away the handheld razor in order to sell more high margin razor blades. When Dollar Shave Club was launched in 2011, it knew that competing for head-on with Gillette or Schick (razors) in product innovation or for shelve space of retailers wasn’t a smart move. So instead, Dollar Shave Club decided to compete in contrast to the very business model that had historically been Gillette’s strength.Image result for dollar shave club

They didn’t create a revolutionary new razor (product innovation) or try to compete on price. Instead, they disrupted an entire industry with its business model innovation. Yes, they used a funny video (that has since been seen more than 25 million times) on social media to spread the word about great their product is. The anti-marketing-marketing approach of Dollar Shave Club focused on humor, simplicity, and value, instead of the traditional slow-motion shave and hand-on-face messaging of Gillette. And if you were really paying attention during the entire 1:33 second YouTube video, you would have noticed they started with “for a $1 per month we send high-quality razors right to your door” which got culminated with Dollar Shave Club’s $1 billion sale to Unilever.

All that sounds great – a one in a billion (literally) opportunity and you might be right. But there are ways which can you make a difference within your own company when you see an opportunity to create a new business model but face existing systems, structures, and C-Suite power?

First, embrace your idea or concept. Think through how the normal way of doing business is getting in the way of doing business as normal.

Second, create an innovation lab that (1) can’t be thwarted by high-level execs and (2) is left alone to innovate not only products but business models as well.

The next time you’re ready to tackle disruption, don’t make the mistake of just focusing on innovating around your product. Think about tipping the business model to drive an even greater change.

This is an episode you won’t want to miss. For more insights from Jim, listen to our conversation and subscribe to the What’s Next! podcast on Apple Podcasts.

Jim Harris, a principal of strategic advantage with 20 years’ experience as a professional speaker and consultant. Jim speaks internationally at more than 40 conferences a year on topics including innovation and creativity. Jim is also a columnist at The Huffington Post and author of the international best-selling book, Blindsided: How to Spot the Next Breakthrough That Will Change Your Business Forever.

 via https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/why-innovation-isnt-only-about-the-product_us_5a53e492e4b0f9b24bf319e4

Rigby man’s toy invention being considered for national award

 

 

A Rigby man’s toy invention is being considered for a Toy of the Year award.

Jeff Larson grew up playing watermelon ball, a water game similar to football or rugby, at the Ammon swimming pool with his friends. When he went to college, he would play the game at the pool in his apartment complex.

“The games got really intense. We went through a lot of watermelons,” Larson told EastIdahoNews.com.

The reason they played with the fruit is because watermelons would sink to the bottom and slowly float to the surface, making for easy handling in the water.

The watermelons would often break and make a big mess.

That’s when Larson started thinking of a way to play with a ball that looked, felt and floated like a watermelon, yet was durable enough to withstand intense use.

“After college, I kept getting the feeling I needed to do something about this idea,” Larson said.

He put his mechanical engineering degree to work on designing a ball that lets players dribble, kick, bounce, pass and intercept under water. In 2009, Larson began working with a manufacturer.

“I got started selling this on Amazon, and it just took off. Then I decided to license it out to a bigger toy company to reach more people,” says Larson.

Today, the watermelon ball is

 

 

 

distributed by PlaSmart Inc. , and is a finalist for a Toy of the Year award.

“Each and every one of the TOTY finalists have brought joy, laughter, and learning to children around the world. From classic board games to innovative tech toys, these playthings represent the ‘best of the best’ in the world of toys and games,” said Steve Pasierb, The Toy Association’s president & CEO in a news release.

From now until January 5, people can vote for their favorite picks in each of the 17 categories. Industry professionals will determine the finalists that will move on to the Gala award ceremony held in New York City Feb. 16.

Larson is encouraging you to click here and vote for the watermelon ball.

“This is my first product, and to be a finalist for the first product I’ve come up with is pretty cool,” says Larson. “This is equivalent to being an Oscar nominee in the toy industry. That’s how big it is.”

 

 

 

 

via https://www.eastidahonews.com/2017/12/rigby-mans-toy-invention-considered-national-award/