BizMorph

Seeing in the Dark

Night Vision

Customer Story:Sculptek Corporation

Imagine yourself driving down an expressway late at night. There are no lights and the traffic is whizzing by at high speed. Suddenly you feel your car pull hard to the right. A thumping sound comes from the right front wheel. You have a flat. You have to change the tire and you are wearing a black raincoat.

When you change that tire there is a good chance you might be struck by an oncoming motorist. David Orange of Sculptek has a solution to that problem. His AeroLight self-illuminating reflective belt can be seen at great distances in the reflected light of oncoming traffic, but uniquely, the belt also glows brightly in orange, yellow or turquoise due to the incorporation of a battery-powered electroluminescent lamp.

       
The AeroLight belt is attracting attention from people who have to be out at night on the roads in all kinds of weather, including police, fire police, emergency responders and road construction workers. David reports that nearly $2.5B is lost annually due to highway construction worker accidents.

SculpTek’s self-illuminating technology has created excitement  in the emergency responder community from players such as:  The Transportation Research Board, OLETC, Emergency Response Technology, FEMA, The Office of Domestic Preparedness, The Congressional Fire Institute, The Maryland Fire Research Institute, The Delaware Fire Police, The Firemen's Association State of New York, and others.

 

David is coordinating activities with various emergency response groups to rally support for a Congressional Appropriation to perform a Demonstration Project to validate self-illuminating technologies as the next evolution of Personal Protective Equipment. Sculptek is also  seeking support from each New York StateSenator and Representatives Slaughter, Kuhl and Walsh.

Sculptek donated  AeroLight belts to the Rochester Fire Department on behalf of the two firefighters who stopped to render their assistance along I-490 on February 9th. One of them was struck by a motorist and was injured, though not seriously. 

AeroLight products are available in several different formats including belts of varying sizes, a “one size fits all” bandolero, and dog collars. There is even a helmet mounted version for protective headgear. Look for them on the Sculptek web site www.sculptek.net With AeroLight's long battery life you’ll still be visible even if you take a long long time to change that tire.

Why Get a Patent?

Why Get a Patent?

Note:  This article is only my opinion and should not be relied upon for legal decisions.  For legal issues, consult a reliable patent attorney or agent

I have collected 33 patents in my many years in R&D. All were paid for by my Fortune 500 company. When I left to go into private practice I was surprised to find how many inventors in small companies appeared to know very little about patents. Patents were viewed at best as mysterious and at worst as a troublesome, expensive, legal annoyance.

My later research tended to confirm my first impressions when I discovered that in my home town, which has the highest number of per capita patents in the country, 90% of those patents were assigned to large companies.

Patents protect your rights. They are the only proof that you have that you own a particular product or service and can prevent others from making it without paying you a royalty. If you don’t patent your invention, not only can your competitor make it but what is far worse, they may patent it themselves and prevent you from making it . If you want to sell your invention or borrow against it, you must have a patent.  If you think that  Patents are too expensive you might want to click on this link.

Patent Myths

There are a great number of myths surrounding patents. Some are based on things that were once true, some based on an incomplete understanding of the facts and some are just plain wrong.

 

Myth 1 -Most Patents are Worthless

I recently came across an article that reported that a very large percentage of patents are never converted into products (I think the number was something like 97%). I have no reason to doubt that statistic, but quoting it as an argument against patenting is missing the point. Many perhaps most of the patents paid for by the large corporations are part of a defensive patent strategy.

These companies have learned that patent “Thickets”, that is groups of similar patents arrayed around a key technology are much harder to defeat in a court battle.

 

In a court case am familiar with the patent counsel of the defendant asserted accurately confidently a 95% probability of defeating each of the plaintiff’s 10 patents. The plaintiff, however, had the last laugh, because as those of you familiar with statistics will know, the probability of defeating 10 patents each of which have a 95% probability of defeat is .95 to the 10^th power or only 60%. In the actual court case 3 of the 10 patents were upheld, which is pretty close to this calculation. The defendant in this case lost $1Billion. This case is a very powerful incentive for the creation of thickets. The cited statistics  on patent value are not surprising when one  realizes how many  patents are only   pickets in the fence guarding a technology.

Myth 2- Patents must be for Nobel Quality Research

This is a frequent misconception of beginners who believe that whatever they have invented doesn’t stand up against the work of great inventors of the past. It also comes from the outdated attitudes of some patent attorneys and those seasoned inventors who had to argue the value of their inventions before them.

 

I can well remember patent attorneys who told me that I had to convince them that I had invented something before they would consider writing my application. Before 1982 it was much more difficult to get a patent. In that year some important cases changed the landscape forever. The discussion of those cases is beyond the scope of this article. I may post references at some point in the future. Anyone who thinks that a patent requires prize winning work should take a look at the patent granted to a child on Swinging Side to Side (US6,368,267) something I think we may all have done in our youth.

Myth 3: Patents are only for Technology

This used to be true. Until recently you could only get a patent on an item of manufacture, a design, and a new type of matter (chemical) or a manufacturing process. At one time you couldn’t patent software or living things. However, all those items are now patentable as are business processes. The most famous is the 1 click ordering method patented by E-Bay. So if you are a retailer with a novel business process, think about patenting it before someone else does.

Myth 4: Why bother, foreign competitors will ignore my patent

There is some truth to this assertion. In certain countries patents are widely ignored. However, goods manufactured in those countries and exported to the United States or Europe are subject to the patent laws. If a foreign competitor rips off your idea and tries to market it here you can have his goods stopped at the border. Protecting your intellectual property within those countries is another matter.

Launching a New Business

How do you know if your new business is ready to launch? 

How do you know when  you are ready to launch your business? You will know if you can answer three questions with VERIFYABLE assumptions. Verifyable means not wishful thinking and not listening to the first answers you get to the questions and assuming they are right because you hope they are.

The Three Questions–

Are aligned with the three circles (Technology, Marketing and Business)  that we use at my company (www.businessmetamorphosis.com)  to determine the state of maturity of a business concept are:
 

1. Will it Work? -  The Technology question
2. Will it Sell?   The Marketing question
3. Will it Make Money?  – The Business/Financial question

Answering the Three Questions

1.  The first question is answered with at least a working prototype- preferably a engineering model coupled with  a defensible manufacturing plan.
2. The second question is best answered with a successful marketing trial
3. The third question with a business plan containing those VERIFYABLE assumptions. 

There are some classic examples to cite where these questions appear to have been answered but they are not— 

Chinese Toothbrushes

First  is the “Chinese Toothbrush” business model which goes something like this:
There are 1.2Billion Chinese. If I can sell only 10% of them a toothbrush for $1.00 that is $120 Million in revenue- A tidy sum—Surly a VC will loan money to a business based  on this model (you will actually be  laughed out of the  office)- 

Why? This model contains many hidden , unverified assumptions. In fact the only thing verifiable is the number of Chinese. Included in the unverified assumptions are:

• The  Chinese use toothbrushes
• No one in China makes toothbrushes (or I can lure the Chinese away from them)
• I can make, market and distribute toothbrushes to the Chinese at a cost will allow me to make a profit at the $1.00 selling price.
• I can convince the Chinese to switch to my toothbrushes (at an advertising cost that doesn’t break me)  etc.

Fast Ferrys

 In my own hometown we now have a sad example of a business plan gone awry because of unverified assumptions. The” Fast Ferry” that was supposed to connect  Rochester and Torontoand usher in a new era of Economic connection failed question three. 

The Ferry passed question one . It worked (after it hit a dock and its engines were fixed), It passed question Two.  It sold ( after the ticket taking and marketing were substantially improved). It didn’t however make money. Despite its heavy rider ship. 

Among the unverified assumptions: The Ferry will be allowed to carry trucks (blocked by Homeland Security). There will be no Fee for pilot age ( The fee was thousands of dollars/day), The Canadian and US customs will not charge a fee ( a substantial fee was charged). Incidentally, these assumptions were checked but not verified. 

Summary

So---. Answer all 3 questions with VERIFIED assumptions and you will be much better off than if you trust to fate.