Kid wants to PROTOTYPE and PATENT an invention idea - help (!)

Parents Forum
1

Like most kids, mine gets lots of ideas. After some discussion and analysis, most fall into the “cool thoughts” category.

However, the kid has been thinking, and has come up with the basis for an invention (medical field) that could be simple, or scaled to be more complex and useful. What has been described to me is worth pursuing further.

Unfortunately, I am not the one to guide/mentor on this. Everything needs to happen, from researching what is already available product-wise, to the many steps of development. Drawing sketches, building prototypes, understanding regulations that devices must answer to… Not my field at all.

This fits into my kid’s continued academic/career interests (how the idea presented itself in the first place).

How can a student be helped in this matter?

The student is currently doing academics at home due to pandemic restrictions. Unfortunately, the public school resources when class is on campus are Dickensian. Also, no teacher would be able to assist or support this project.

Please help organize steps, suggestions, resources here so that there is a path forward.

Thanks!

2

I would consider consulting with a patent attorney. I think they could walk you through what steps you should be taking while protecting your idea.

3

My D and a small team invented and built a prototype in their engineering class that the high school wanted to try to help them patent. They partnered with a local university but in the end, it was too costly to pursue. Great experience for her though.

I did know a student who partnered with a local hospital and they co-patented her invention.

4

To explore the viability of a patent one has to conduct a patent search first, which typically costs $400 minimum by a professional or a sharp learning curve DIY. If the idea is novel your kid can either file a provisional or a utility patent. It usually takes several appeals and years of effort and tens of thousands of dollars to get a real patent whose commercial value is iffy at best. Over 95% of patents never make any money. So most people if they really believe in their idea would simply try to commercialize it before getting a patent. There is no better feedback than marketplace.

There are many examples online and Youtube on patent search. You can also build a prototype by 3D printing etc, and if the idea is exciting you kid may be able to find investors or partnerships. In the end its about commercializing the innovation and the kid has to take on tons of initiatives by pitching the ideas to potential business partners and investors, selling the prototype to customers and making profits from the venture.

Having a patent is easy—you just need to spend time and money, and make some very narrow claims about your invention. Finding commercial success with a patent is far more difficult and should be the real goal.

5

Would consulting someone with relevant interests in the engineering department of a university help? Or perhaps someone at an appropriate commercial company?

6

This brainstorming is great - gets the ball rolling. I appreciate the suggestions, personal stories, and information about how things work in the practical world. I hope that other posters can share their insights!

7

https://predictabledesigns.com/patent-or-prototype-which-should-come-first/

8

If he is maker/entrepreneurial, check out colleges that would support that. For example, Case Western Reserve University has the "think [box] " maker space…

“This world-class public-access innovation center is your key to accessing a complete ecosystem for venture creation including everything from design and ideation resources to prototyping and fabrication equipment, as well as the legal and business expertise needed to launch your startup in our incubator.”

Case also supports entrepreneurship on how to launch a product. https://case.edu/entrepreneurship/

9

Thinkbox link: https://engineering.case.edu/sears-thinkbox

10

Whatever you do, don’t disclose any details of the invention. This is called prior art and could completely kill the chances of a patent. Especially don’t post anything online. Make sure anyone who he discloses the invention to has a confidentiality agreement in place.

Getting a patent issued is a lengthy process. But it would be good experience for him. Speak to a patent attorney for more details. Also consider inventors clubs or university based entrepreneurship centers. They often have lawyers who can advise.

11

I agree with finding a patent attorney. I also agree that you must not tell us anything about the invention.

Patent attorney’s do patent searches quite often. This is a normal thing. When experts in a field file a patent this is often not done because they know most of the prior art. However, it probably would be a good idea when a high school student files a patent.

If you tell us what state you are in, it is possible that someone here might know some patent attorney’s in that state.

12

Thanks for the fantastic information @taverngirl , @momofsenior1, @jzducol, @compmom, @bopper, @sgopal2, @DadTwoGirls. (I miss when cc had even more traffic from experienced parents - up to about a year ago by my reckoning.)

The posting title is a bit inaccurate - my kid has an idea to innovate on a medical device. I am the one considering the patent (as in, “protect your idea; it may be worth something”). Having worked in information and creative fields, intellectual property is something frequently mismanaged by creatives - to an idea generator’s detriment.

So the kid is more about turning ideas around in their head - not figuring out how to get paid and cash out on a half-assed idea that’s environmentally unfriendly and quickly destined for landfill.

What stream to develop the idea in is the question. (And a few avenues can be pursued at once.)

-Science fair (done at home, school is not having one this year - sigh)
-Independent project (leading to patent possibility)
-Work with a hospital (")
-Work with a university mentor (")

I do prefer the independent project, but don’t know how to guide my kid. I will check out @bopper’s links.

By the way, we are in California. The kid is at least 2 1/2 years away from college.

This project is a good one especially because the public school attended is flexible; in exchange for an independent study schedule, there are almost no secondary-school resources to help the kid. Hence this takes the place of what would happen at one of the well-regarded public STEM high schools dotting the country.

13

PM’ed you.

14

I work as a volunteer for STEM based science fair. Most of them will have mentoring programs. Ask your nearest ISEF affiliated science fair if they have any mentors that would be willing to help.

Once you disclose the invention in a public setting like a science fair, getting a patent will be difficult. Make sure you speak to a patent attorney before doing so. You can also do the provisional patent route - this can be filed before any public presentation, and then the nonprovisional application can be filed up to a year later.

Depending on the nature of the invention, he/she could also consider approaching some university professors.

15

Thanks, @sgopal2. These are the kinds of things to think about while researching (apparently discreetly) and figuring out the best path forward.

I really wish the kid went to a school with strong STEM support. IMHO, it’s really starting to stunt long-term academic/area of interest projects/research.

There must be some mentor programs out there; if not, it seems like informal mentorship is the way to start.

This project would probably fit under mechanical engineering/robotics (again, not something offered at school). So it’s a professional area that I have no familiarity with.

16

If this is an enhancement of an existing device, would it be appropriate to approach companies that currently manufacture them? I imagine an intermediary would be needed, perhaps a faculty member.

Can you child take some classes at a university in the engineering/robotics field? Do any regional schools or a community college have a robotics club?

17

Interesting question. The whole point of having the kid work on their own version of things is to avoid any potential weirdness that could come from such an arrangement. Companies already have their own paid employees.

An internship may be an idea down the road (currently age-ineligible) and the pandemic is making most of these remote.

As far as classes go, the kid has enough for the year, homework-wise. So this really needs to stay project-based. If there was a course in how to build a project, that would be productive.

18

I am unsure of the goals here. Winning prizes or gaining recognition for college admissions? Making money? If it is a genuinely innovative idea I don’t understand the problem of approaching a medical device company, regardless of paid employees, after vetting by an intermediary. Would your child be seeking payment?

19

Would it be feasible for your son to be a prototype ? If so, do so in order to test the design & usefulness.

20

Apologies if my information is not clear. In post #11 I try to explain how my kid has an idea and the next step is to figure out the best path to pursue it.

She has awhile before she’s 16, so there are different ways to approach this. But I do feel strongly about figuring out the best way to keep things simple and relevant to school-based learning, while still protecting what might be a new take on a classic challenge. That can become, later, a winning business idea.

I think that working/testing out the idea first is the best path. It’s important for the student to stay encouraged by understanding the design process. If she contacts a company at this point, she faces the small risk of losing her idea or big risk of being told that the idea’s been done. Both scenarios would be discouraging.

On the other hand, if a company is receptive to her idea, that is extremely encouraging. Still, more work (sketches, prototypes, registering her ideas at a minimum) would need to be done before discussing it with other parties.

Most STEM high schools have labs and equipment to model things in 2D and 3D. Her school doesn’t really, and no teachers to support the work either. Also, school is currently virtual.

This incredibly helpful discussion has led me to favor doing independent work first (researching current innovations in the field; sketching ideas; doing 2D and 3D modeling on the computer - don’t know what programs one would use to build a prototype, or where to access said software programs; and ultimately, building
prototypes).

Paths noted here:

-attend an engineering class in some type of school
-participate in a science fair that has a mentoring program (however, it was noted that disclosing an innovation in a public setting makes getting a patent difficult; so consult a patent attorney first, and at least get a provisional patent)
-work with a university professor in the engineering department
-attend a college with venture creation incubator (such as Case)

-partner up with a hospital
-source investors, or some type of business partnership
-commercialize the idea before getting a patent due to the advantages of marketplace feedback

The question: where can a student find assistance to go through all the steps of such a project if they are starting on their own? Are there respective authorities on the matter that are known in the field of industrial design/manufacturing entrepreneurship?

Since the student is stuck at home there is time for research/reading. Perhaps there are books, journal articles and web sites that can get her started (aside from what has already been helpfully suggested above).