13+ Years. A Problem and an elusive Patent.

Long post warning. For those caught up in their busy work schedules, you will have to give it a miss.

We all face challenges. Each is tackled differently. Sometimes simultaneously. Sometimes with all the attention one can give it.

If I can buy a solution, I do not waste time. But at times the solution is never easy. That does not mean the issue/challenge/problem is to be ignored or wished away. It exists. A fact cannot be wished away.

?The solution could vary – from ‘a perfect fit’ to ‘the best solution under the circumstances’ to ‘a somewhat fit’. And when a solution is not available or if the best that is available does not quite satisfy you, then one is compelled to think differently.

?From a time dimension, some solutions may take little time to implement while others could extend over very long periods of time.

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Challenge :

There was a particular challenge I faced. I never bury a problem. I may not give it all the attention immediately (unless of course it is an emergency or the situation warrants it). Like all problems, I do not wish it away. I am always looking to address it. Another trait is that I do not ever want to reinvent the wheel – that is such a waste of time, money and so much more.

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This particular challenge I faced was about 13-15 yrs ago. I looked for solutions. At the many possible that were available in the market. A huge variety is available that could have addressed the challenge ‘somewhat’. For many or maybe most, the ‘somewhat’ and the plethora of variants would have been not just fine but great. Unfortunately not for me. It did not tick all the boxes for me.

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What that meant was I continued to live with the problem. I did not think of the challenge every day or every moment – but for more than 13 yrs I have spent considerable time looking for solutions. Visiting Retail outlets across the world during my travels, Retail outlets across the country, street vendors, those who can customize your needs and you only need to tell them, the huge world wide web on the net and the millions of things that are available from across the world – well none of that had the solution I was looking for.

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Then I reached a point where I did not want to live with the challenge anymore. I had to find a solution. I had to move it from the subconsciousness. Had to move it away from it following me like my shadow did for far too many years to something more tangible – one that I could hold, touch and use.

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Like I have done before in such situations, I took out a paper and pencil and actually started to draw what it might look like. Even the drawing was hard because the solution had to be a workable one in reality. Every single part had to fulfil a purpose. Importantly, that every useful part did not create another problem or obstruct the functionality of another part - whether movable or immovable. Naturally, the number of iterations was huge. Times I almost gave up and thought why not settle for what is already around. But then. But then. Took my breaks. Days without giving it a look or even a thought so as to start afresh and with no previous baggage.

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Then one day, finally reached a point where it could be Workable and Usable. How that would turn into Desirable would mean that a prototype had to be created – slowly. Very slowly. To understand in reality what challenges could pop up and how they needed to be overcome. I was clear that it must not be rushed. Maybe even pause a bit even when everything was going smooth and as per plan.

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Finally, the product prototype was created. I needed 2 of them in my home. It was a need. A crying need. I was sure even if the prototype turned out right, I would make the 2nd one only after some months of actual usage of the 1st product prototype. So that even the ‘ideal’ one could be ironed out.

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A couple of minor but important learnings came out from the usage of the 1st prototype. Those changes were made to the 1st prototype and then the 2nd one was created.

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I believed in the product - its Usefulness, Need and Desirability. Since I had not seen that product anywhere, I connected with a Law firm that claimed to be an expert on Patents to see if it was Patentable – even though that was never the intent when I first started out to address my problem. After required documentation, etc they got to work. This was a couple of years ago.

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After their experts spent time and effort in Research efforts, they got back saying it could not be Patented in its current form. That I needed to make some changes. I was more than happy with the product and convinced of a readily available market for it in its current form itself.

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Well, I understand how complex each law is, forget laws itself. I can understand why they may have said so. But since I was convinced that such a product did not exist anywhere, I asked them a question “Based on your Research, does this product exist anywhere else ? Have you seen such a product anywhere else ?” Their answer of “No” was satisfying.

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Meanwhile, various permutations & combinations keep going through my head. I contact Skills Council of India amongst other things. In one of my evening walks, a chat with another friend who is associated with Start Up India, this topic came up too. Amongst various points we exchanged on this topic, to one of his questions my response was “It is like a Ball pen. It needed to be invented. Before it was invented, there were already other writing products. Yet the Ball point pen was not hugely different from the then existing writing solutions but then it overcame many of the short comings of the existing products of the time. Thereafter, for decades it became a need. Something one could not do without. Its utility continues even now. However (and this is very important …extremely so), it is easily copyable. Until the Ball pen was invented, the then issues were lived with (carrying the ink pot, spillage, what kind of material it could only be written on, etc) – but once invented, anyone could easily create factories of various sizes for manufacturing it”.

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Even though when the 2nd one needed to be created at home after a few months of the 1st prototype, it could not be created from sheer memory as there were several nuances to keep in mind. The prototype had to be measured and restudied to get working on the 2nd one. With the luxury of play, pause, rewind, repeat, I have no doubt that the product created can and will be copied. Made available in just over a weekend. Thanks to the Net, in other countries too. I am OK with all that too. I am not trying to fight that battle. Remember, I did make the Ball pen analogy.

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The very few that I have shown it to have been more than impressed and have asked me to sell one to them – including those living in different cities from me. One of them felt cheated on seeing the product at my home – because another product which she had bought recently for her new home and was considered the best possible solution for her need, was found to be full of shortcomings, after she on her own, began comparing it with my product. While I believe it is ideal for anyone who stays in an apartment in a big city, I have had someone tell me it is not so but goes beyond. He stays in a ‘Villa/Kothi’ and explained why he too had a need for such a product in his home.

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Amongst the many thoughts, one was that I should sell the idea/product specs to a well known International brand who are in the line of business that my product is about. When I wrote to them, I was asked to connect with their Global office. From there I got an email response in a foreign language. I have not proceeded from that as yet.

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At this moment though, I am just trying to figure out my next step – do I put the product out on Social Media and have anyone and everyone just take it from there? As you can see, I have not yet mentioned the product at all – but for someone who has read this far, what are your thoughts ?

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