How to keep an idea 'protected'

[geek84]

Good Morning folks
I have come up with an idea which may help individuals who have some kind of disability to use general house hold DIY tools (screw driver, hammer, nails, chisels, drills etc) more easily.
However, I would need to do a lot of research and expand my knowledge on those particular tool(s) before trying to come up with a prototype.
How do I find out if that idea is already on the market? Would I just 'google' it?

How do I know it will be in demand?


Thanks in advance for your responses

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

You would google for such devices, explore patents if there are any, work out the cost of production of your item(s), plus the selling price and how many you are likely to sell. If the idea is worth copying, you may also need to patent it, which is an expensive process. Even if you do, a good idea is likely to be copied.

You check likely demand, by making prototypes and having them assessed by likely users.

 

[geek84]

Thank you

 

[SirGalahad]

Don't get hung up on the patent. Does it solve a demonstrable problem and what is the size of the market. Do you have product market fit?

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Don't get hung up on the patent. Does it solve a demonstrable problem and what is the size of the market. Do you have product market fit?

I agree - good ideas are soon copied, whether there is a patent in place or not. Better, cheaper, quicker to just lodge details of a working design with the bank, sealed and time stamped, then you can fairly safely go to manufacturers with the prototype to see if they might be interested in backing the idea.

 

[blup]

It is not enough for an idea to be protected it has to have some unique feature, in practice it is very expensive to secure a patent. There are many organisations that register patents on products and multiple variations of them simply to secure rights should someone else actually bring the product to market.

On the flip side if you create something that isn't patentable and you bring it to market, that may be enough to give you a market lead.

Good luck.

Blup

 

[Old Salt]

If you tell us what your idea is we may be able to help

 

[transam]

That bloke who invented the clock work radio did not make a great deal of money out of it

afaik he invented loads of things

such as a device to solve the problem of how does some one with one arm / hand cut his finger nails

doubt there was any great demand for the device he came up with

 

[^woody^]

Tell me what your idea is and I'll be able to tell you how to protect it .... and I'll need the last three of card CVV number too, and DOB just in case. Thanks

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

If you tell us what your idea is we may be able to help

Don't tell him, Pike..

 

[johnny2007]

Whatever you do to protect your idea, if it takes off the chinese will copy it and sell it for a quarter of your price.
And there would be nothing you can do about it.

 

[flameport]

Patents are worthless, unless you are a massive global corporation with £millions to spend on high priced lawyers to defend them in every country where infringements occur.

Don't waste any money on them.

 

[Mottie]

The thing I like about geeks posts are that he posts on numerous sites asking the same question, sometimes as geek 84, sometimes as manjinder. I particularly like the replies he gets on digital spy to some of his previous trolling posts: https://forums.digitalspy.com/discussion/2408326/developing-a-side-hustle-into-a-second-income

Googling manjinders post (above) leads you back to geek 84 asking the same question on pistonheads: https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=92&t=1931513

What really amazes me is that some people actually take him seriously. Some of the replies though, really show the troll up. I mean, come on, a private maths tutor that has suddenly found an interest in numbers and is looking for a way to earn a second income through that?

Good for a laugh though.

 

[HERTS P&D]

I would like to know if he is DBS checked working with children!

Andy

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

I would like to know if he is DBS checked working with children!

Andy

It would need to be the Enhanced DBS check to work with kids, both of us have been put through that. She works at a local Primary.