Have an idea but have no idea no ability to perform it myself...

[Chrono4001]

Hi guys, so i've come up with an idea for a machine that sounds really good and my parents are excited and supportive of it, but here's the issue...

I have no engineering or software engineering abilities whatsoever (in fact I would not count on my programming abilities to save my life.) but I have this concept that surprisingly no one has actually come up with yet, so I am wondering what do I do?

Do I draw up and write the concept/idea down and file a patent for it? But then how can I actually make a prototype or even get an investor interested in it? :huh2:

 

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[Rickson9]

Find a customer that would be excited to pay for it.

If you can't sell it, there's no point sinking your good money into it.

Good luck!

 

[mrhahn]

I would find a close friend you can trust experienced in engineering/sw engineering to partner with. You can share your idea and find out the feasibility of it before spending further time or resources.

I probably wouldn't file a patent until you had a prototype to actually sell to a customer. You have to disclose everything for a patent, giving your possible competition time to look at the patent, change one thing, and release a similar product faster than you.

 

[Chrono4001]

The machine is actually quite feasible and I believe quite easy to make, I am actually dumbfounded no one has actually thought of it before.

It already exists in one form, my idea would simply make it almost fully automated and even more convenient for the people who use them.

What if I file a patent and right away go after someone who is far more capable then me to make the actual hardware and software? Also here is another issue even if I had the knowledge to make a prototype, I would still need someone to invest in me to make a prototype since the machine itself would easily cost 5 figures to make. (and thats to make it, I would need workers and a assembly line to make one)

 

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[Inphinity]

If it would be so costly to make, have you looked closely at what the market would pay for one, and how large the potential market would be?

 

[Likwid24]

Would it cost 5 figures just to make one machine? Or is that to get an assembly line going? If I were you I would forget about workers and an assembly line. Get a prototype made first and if it works the way you want it to then you can look into getting a patent. Once you have a patent (which can also be very expensive depending on how complicated it is and if you get a good patent attorney they can design the patent in a way that it will protect you from potential copycats) then you can look into outsourcing to a manufacturer. It will be much cheaper for you to have a manufacturer do it because they have all the equipment and workers in place already. I would also have anyone that you bring it to sign a Non Disclosure Agreement so you idea is not stolen. Also think about licensing your product instead of producing it yourself. I would do as much research as possible first. Check out a book called " The Inventors Bible" by Robert Louis Docie, Sr. It has a ton of good info to help lead you on the right path. Good Luck!

 

[surfernc]

Outsource your work.

I wouldn't worry about patenting it right away - this is going to be expensive (but I am no expert so you really need to research this yourself). I would look at outsourcing websites such as elance.com or odesk.com - see if there are people/companies who could design/build the machine for you. A lot of these people are overseas and can do the work for far less money than someone local.

 

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[andrewsemi]

Go on the Shark Tank.

 

[ZCP]

I run an engineering consulting company and see this quite often.......most want to pursue the idea before they know if anyone wants to buy it.

You need customers and a market. Comb through your connections and your parents connections and find someone in the industry that this machine would be used in. Take them to lunch (or dinner) and go over the basics of what you have. Ask about feasibility and their advice on what steps to take next. Ask them if they know anyone that would be interested in investing or being a partner. Most importantly, ask them for ideas on who some particular customers would be and how you contact them. Then do.

Once that is done, come back here (if needed) for the next round of advice.

 

[Chrono4001]

Plenty of people already use it in its current form, you drive past them everyday and people use them everyday, big named corporations make billlions off of using them so my target customers would be them.

Anyways from what i've gathered looks like i'm going to licensing this invention of mines. But you do not need to make a functional prototype yourself right?

 

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