Invention Help

Author: admin

  • Invention Timeline

    Invention Timeline

    invention timelineAn invention timeline can be described as the path that takes a new process or product from conception to realization. An invention could be based on improving earlier ideas or could be something completely new and unthought of.

    We, as humans, would never be where we are today with so many objects and processes to make our lives easier had it not been for people inventing things.

    By understanding the timeline of an invention, we may realize a greater appreciation for the work and effort that goes into making the every day things we take for granted.

    Inventions such as the wheel, the telephone and the airplane have revolutionized the way we travel and communicate. There are two schools of thought when it comes to the process of invention.

    One school of thought believes that an excess of resources actually leads to new inventions, while the other school of thought believes that the popular phrase ‘necessity is the mother of invention’ holds true.

    Across the expanse of the human timeline, inventions have changed the course of human events – for better or for worse.

    Ideas may also not always lead to an invention due to impracticalities. Sometimes an idea may prove to be useless at a certain time but may actually be useful at a later date.

    The invention of the parachute, for example, occurred long before the invention of flight. Some ideas may also take a long time to develop due to the progress of technology that is necessary to realize the invention.

    Once a person has invented a product, there is a process that he or she must go through in order to commercialize it. In order to protect the invention from being copied, the inventor must patent it.

    The timeline of the modern-day invention process begins with the patent application. The first step of the patent process is getting a date attached to the idea or innovation as soon as possible after the idea is conceived. The inventor should write down the concept of their invention and take it to a Notary Public.

    The Notary Public will require that you sign and date the document and he/she will witness it. This is done so that there is no conflict if someone later claims the same idea.

    Before a patent can be applied for, a patent search will have to be done to ensure that no other patents exist on the idea or product you wish to patent.

    In the United States, an experienced and professional patent searcher will have to carry out this search at the US Patent and Trademark Office. In addition, a patent examiner is often consulted on the specific areas to be search for the invention.

    Most people apply for provisional patents. This is most cost effective as it gives the inventor a one-year period in which to test the marketability of the product or idea and to see if there is any manufacturer interest in it.

    Because new products are always improved and refined, the provisional patent also allows for additions to an invention to be added to the patent without having to file additional applications.

    If a manufacturer is interested in a product or idea that is provisionally patented, he/she will generally cover the cost of the full patent in order to protect his/her investment.

    It is a long process from the conceptualization of an idea to having an end product manufactured.Very few inventors get the funding needed to refine and develop their ideas. Inventor clubs and associations do, however, exist and can sometimes offer economic resources and services such as mentoring and economic skill development to assist an inventor is realizing his/her dream.

     

  • Invention Ideas For Kids

    Children need to been inspired to become something great and wonderful in their lifetime. This is possible with any child from any background. One way to aspire for success is to become an inventor but how to go about it can be very tricky.

    As adults and parents, coming up with invention ideas for kids may stimulate their thinking skills and in turn bright ideas are born.

    Invention ideas for kids can come at anytime of life and absolutely anywhere. Thinking of ideas for inventions can come whilst driving in a car; they can come about from an activity at school or even from feeding the dog.

    As parents, you may feel that it is important to want your children to succeed, however, it must be remembered that it should be at the pace they choose and that they should never be forced into doing anything that they do not enjoy.

    When a person is happy and you really want to do something exciting you have a better chance of succeeding at that activity than would be if you were forced to do it.

    Children have vivid imaginations and come up with new ideas every day, the problem is that as adults we tend to see the idea and its craziness and look past the possibilities. Encouraging your children to come up with inventions means encouraging them to embark on a process of critical thinking.

    Independence will raise children’s self-esteem and confidence levels. Invention ideas for kids start with brainstorming, this can be fun and getting the whole family involved provides for some quality time too.

    Invention ideas for kids does not have to be an apparatus, it can be a new method of figuring things out. Children could ask questions such as the following, ‘what do I have that can maybe be improved?’, ‘how can I eat ice-cream without it melting so quickly?’, etc….. No idea is a stupid idea an each one is possible within a realistic border, that is, the components for making the apparatus exist or the actual item to be reinvented is real.

    An invention is successful not only when other persons know about it but when it has made a difference to the original problem. To invent one should look at the problems with the things you use today and find ways of improving them. Children are magnificent creators of tomorrow, new invention ideas will allow your children to start to think critically on a daily basis, to want to create something nobody else has ever thought of.

    Did you know there’s a whole site dedicated this topic? Go to kids invention ideas for more information.

  • Invention Of The Radio

    The invention of the radio was one of the greatest inventions of the 20th century

    However, the radio invention was, and still is, surrounded in controversy.

    At least three inventors lay claim to the invention of the radio. They are Nikola Tesla, Guglielmo Marconi and Alexander Popov. Many people credit the Italian Marconi with the radio invention, but academics and writers (and the US Supreme Court in 1943) are beginning to give the credit to Tesla, a Serbian scientist and inventor (who immigrated to America).

    In the early 1890s, Tesla invented a device known as a Tesla coil, which trasmitted high frequency and high voltage current through the air.

    Tesla realised that the same concept could apply to radio signal resonations and began experimenting with a radio apparatus. If he had marketed his inventions more effectively (and in some ways more secretively), he would have gained more credit. Problem was that Tesla was a terrible businessman, and allowed others to gain credit for his inventions (including Thomas Edison and Marconi).

    In 1895, Marconi, probably having read Tesla’s articles and learned about his technology, modified Tesla’s findings somewhat to produce a crude radio trasmitter and receiver. That year he sent and received a radio signal in Italy. For publicity purposes, he also sent a trasmission across the English Channel.

    Further advances were made to the invention of the radio. In 1906 the American Reginald Fessenden transmitted both music and speech through the airwaves.

    However, it wasn’t until the sinking of the Titanic that radio transmission really took off. Ships at sea realized the need for communication with land. It was the 1920s when improvements to the invention of the radio finally lead to the introduction of radio stations. In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania the first genuine radio station was set up. Within years, hundreds of others sprang up around the US and Europe.

    Also be sure to check out Marconi’s invention for another take on the invention of the radio.

  • Chinese Inventions

    Chinese inventions span thousands of years, and the Chinese have introduced many important inventions and innovations in the world.

    To fully appreciate the significance of Chinese inventions, it is helpful to consider how ancient some of them are, and how they laid the basis for future innovations and improvements in science.

    Ancient Chinese Inventions

    There is something knows as the four great innovations of Ancient China:

    Papermaking

    Papermaking in Ancient China was invented around 100 CE, where the first sheet of paper was constructed with a combination of fibres, mulberries, and hemp. That paved the way for the future of papermaking.

    Gunpowder

    In roughly the 9th century CE, the Chinese began using mixtures of substances like petrochemicals for warefare. This is the earliest known use of gunpowder, even though they were using some of the substances to make gunpowder for medicinal and other purposes.

    The Compass

    The compass is one of the oldest Chinese inventions, having been invented roughly around 250 BCE. Interestingly enough, it was not invented for navigational purposes, but in order to harmonize the built enivronment for Fung Shei purposes. The earliest compasses were made with a mineral known as lodestone, which has magnetic properties.

    Printing

    Of course, the invention of papermaking aided that of printing. The Chinese started off with woodblock printing, where letters are carved out of wood, and then ink is applied and printed onto paper. Later, the Chinese also invented movable type printing, which is more suited to Western alphabets, and can be used to easily change letters and words around.

    Fun Chinese Inventions

    There are many other ‘smaller’ inventions, but incredibly useful to mankind, that the Chinese have invented or discovered. Here are some of the more interesting ones:

    The Noodle

    What would some people do without eating noodles?

    Rowing Oars

    Which have helped navigation over the oceans, and still today play an important role in water-based sports and events

    Salt

    The Chinese didn’t ‘invent’ salt, but they discovered ways of harnessing and using it for commercial purposes, which laid the basis as salt as a currency in other parts of the world

    The Banknote

    Still used today, the banknotes dates back to Ancient Chinese printmaking, and banknotes were used by merchants and tradesmen as trading receipts hundreds of years ago

    Chopsticks

    But that one’s obvious

    Domonies

    Still played today by tens of thousands of people around the world, first invented in China.

    Fireworks

    Spectacles in the sky, developed by the Chinese around 900 CE.

    Kites

    Traditionally used by inhabitants of a besieged Chinese town as a rescue signal

    Toothbrush

    Developed out of a need for cleanliness, the toothbrush has certainly taken the world by storm!

    There are many more Chinese inventions, but these should give you a taste and insight into the enormous contribution the Chinese have made to the world and world culture.

     

     

  • Who Invented The Toilet

    Some people often mistakenly think that it was certain Thomas Crapper who invented the toilet about 300 years ago. That is an urban myth.

    There was a Thomas Crapper, a plumber who apparently had several patents, but he did not ‘invent’ what we know today as the toilet.

    In fact the toilet was invented over two thousand years ago, and remnants of ancient toilets have been found in India, China and even Egypt. These toilets did use water, and were built on clay bricks linked to a drainage system, but did not have the famous ‘flush’ mechanism that we know and use today.

    Interestingly enough, what we know as toilet paper, was a Chinese invention and came quite a while before the toilet!

    When people want to find out who invented the toilet, they are normally thinking about the modern ‘flush’ toilet. The flush toilet was a dramatic step forward in modern sanitation (sanitation is only a fairly modern concept) and was invented in 1596 by a certain John Harrington. But that was only a step towards the modern toilet that we know today.

    Several other inventors and designers paved the way for the system that we use today. I won’t bore you with names and dates, but to know who invented the toilet means appreciating that several people stood on each other’s shoulders (thankfully not literally) to take us where we are today in terms of efficiency, hygiene, sanitation, and civil engineering.

    These days we find all different types of toilet inventions, from those that produce nice smells after flushing, to those that produce white noise or light music so that people don’t need to worry about that kind of thing!

    In the last century there has been an absolute explosion of patents and inventions that have improved our bathroom activities, and in the new century we can look forward to many more.