Novice Inventor seeks advice

[princephoenix]

Hi there, maybe one of you guys can help me out. Has anyone ever wanted to build something similar to a device that already existed, but none of them specifically did what you wanted your own to do? Did you ever consider buying the competition to take it part and see what the components and where they were manufactured? I have a device in mind I would like to build and I was thinking along those lines since I have zero engineering experience. My worst case scenario is to go to one of those companies that will mock up, prototype and even market your device for you but I'm trying to see how far I can go on my own first since I know those companies probably charge a hefty fee.

Thanks for reading this!

 

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[ChrisJTurner]

I think the first thing you should do is, buy the product first to take it apart.
Pay careful attention to the packaging for barcode/part numbers of the product (might be a generic brand with a different label) and then also check the item itself. This could lead you to the location to where they are made.

If you are looking to design something from scratch, you will need to have help in that field and depending on the tech and materials your product uses, will determine who you can use for the original design.

In terms of getting someone to market the product for you, you will need deep pockets and may as well write a blank cheque.

Your lack of engineering experience can/will be problematic in my opinion.
If you have no experience in design, manufacturing processes, marketing of product and product development; you can either gain the acquired skills or drop the idea.

 

[David Young]

Reverse engineering it is most definitively what companies do, or at least try to do, to some extent. Indeed, the a key point of the patent system is to prevent copies being made even when the underlying technology is evident. If cash is limited it might be with looking online for the product manual as some give quite detailed information about the inner workings of the product and the spare parts list (if relevant) can be guide to the component parts.