The Inventor's Mind

We are pleased to welcome a new member to the Trident team! With the build up of work here at Trident lately, we decided that we needed some more members to assist in our design process, especially in the area of 3D modeling.

Christos came to us from Aerosport Modeling and Design, where he worked as a prototyper (making physical models with his hands.)  He received his education in Industrial Design from the Columbus College of Art and Design.

Currently, Christos is working as a product designer here at Trident, specializing in CAD Modeling with an emphasis on finishing up parts to go into production. Christos says that he “heard about Trident Design about three years ago while still in school and then an opportunity presented itself and he decided to pursue the business later on.” Well we are sure glad that he did! What he especially likes about Trident Design is, “the process that they follow to make products and come up with ideas.”

What is special about Christos is that he genuinely enjoys his current role of CAD Modeling, preferring it over physical prototyping. He says that it is like “putting a pile of legos in front of me. It feels like I’m playing, instead of working. It’s very fun to me.”

We are glad to make Christos a part of our team and enjoy having the opportunity to be able to grow as a company.  We look forward to even more talented, enthusiastic employees in our future!

The Trident team had a blast last night at Brother’s Drake Meadery. Motive was there to showcase three different creative cultures ranging from invention to improv and photography.

Trident Design’s, Chris Hawker, was up first to motivate and open the eyes of today’s “creative class” to the wonders and possibilities of bringing products to market. His interview and presentation was one to remember, special thanks to some unfamiliar terminology that may have perplexed some of the listeners. But if you think about it, nothing that he was saying was out of the ordinary, in fact, it summarized the “art of invention” the best way that it could. Here is a look at the top 5 unforgettable and useful points that Chris Hawker covered in his brief presentation of the invention process.

 1. Center Brained.

Inventing, unlike most things, is neither a left or right-brained activity. It is center brained. It meshes art and creativity with technical know-how to produce some of the best products that exist today.

2. Purple Cow Syndrome.

Clever, innovative products should look the part. If you invent something that is so new and innovative, then why not make it look, well, like a purple cow and not another spotted one that calls itself innovative. Products have to get your attention if their unique design calls for it.

3. Love at first licensing.

When licensing a product to a company, they usually know if they love it or hate it based on the first couple minutes of seeing it. That is why you have to make your product look as though they have to have it. It has to be cool and most importantly, look real. Giving a product the illusion of reality makes it seem that much more tangible and exciting.

4. Napkin Math.

This is an approximate 10-minute, does this make sense, style math that every inventor should figure out before diving head first into his invention. Is this idea going to make me money or not? He will explore the ins and outs of his business plan without all of the crazy spreadsheets and complicated numbers. His equations could potentially be simple enough to fit on a napkin.

5. Confirmation Bias.

“The often unconscious act of referencing only those perspectives that fuel our pre-existing views, while at the same time ignoring or dismissing opinions — no matter how valid — that threaten our world view.”

This applies directly to market searches and is what causes the majority of inventors to blatantly dismiss the fact that their product may already exist. This is why it is better to hire a third party to do the research for you to make sure that your idea is indeed a unique one.

We hope that these terms did justice in explaining some of the parts of the invention process and could be taken away with some of the listeners at last night’s event. They are useful for any inventor or person participating in the creative process and we hope that they will become useful for you too!

In the first two installments of this prototyping series we examined the different types of prototypes and the different methods for making them. Over the next few articles we will spend some time talking about how to actually use prototypes as an inventor, both in the development and the commercialization processes. For starters, lets look at common proof-of-concept prototypes that are typically used during the early development process of your new product.

To read the rest of the article on proof-of-concept prototypes or view our previous articles on prototyping, visit InventorSpot.com.

The crowd of designers, innovators and inventors was booming this year at the IDSA Central District Conference in Cleveland.  The theme this year was “design your ecosystem” and the speakers were prepared to show us how this was done.

Some of our favorite speakers of the event included David Allendorph, Design Consultant, with his presentation, “Where Creativity and Innovation Really Take Place”. He explored the concept of designing your own creative, physical ecosystem from a personal perspective. He talked about the challenges, the insights and the ultimate outcome of this journey.

We also enjoyed Curt Bailey, President of Sundberg-Ferar Inc., and his presentation titled, “Is My Washing Machine Selling Me Detergent?” Curt discussed how larger screens on products drive changes to traditional form factors. Because of the changing dynamic between user and product, we now need more than just industrial designers and engineers to be involved in product development. “Now we need advertising professionals, app developers, filmmakers and event marketers.”

Finally, our favorite speaker of the event was none other than Matt Seibert, a product designer and inventor here at Trident Design!  Matt was a part of the Student Merit Awards and was given the honor to share his design projects from Ohio State and his internship at Trident Design this past year. He was impressed by the IDSA conference and said that they “did a great job putting together an awesome group of professionals and students that shared incredible insight into where design and technology is going. All the impressive speaker presentations really topped it off!”

Matt got to show off his project the REGi iPad register, which integrates the Square credit card reader, providing an easy and cost-effective option for small businesses and their customers’ credit card payments. “The REGi was the first project I was assigned with my warm welcome to Trident Design as an intern back in June 2012. Since it was an internal project within the design firm, the months leading up to the development were very helpful to allow plenty of freedom for visual exploration and choosing the proper aesthetics and functions for the design. Trident really has allowed me to grow not only as a designer with the great team I get to work with, but also as an entrepreneur.” – Matt Seibert

We are extremely proud of Matt and his accomplishments at the IDSA Conference and here at Trident Design as well! We look forward to the future and growth of every one of our designers and are very proud of our own “design ecosystem” that we have built together.  After all, we are only as strong as our team members. Here is to another year full of accomplishments at Trident!

Different prototyping methods are typically defined by the actual purpose they each serve. In part 2 of this series, I will be explaining some of the different methods used in the creation of prototypes. Each prototyping method has its own set of ideal applications, strengths and weaknesses. Some methods are better for speed while others are intended for absolute precision or overall strength. It all comes down to what your particular project requires.

Read the rest of our Expert Tips For Invention Prototypes article for a more in-depth look into prototyping at InventorSpot.com- The site for inventors.

“Kickstarter is full of ambitious, innovative, and imaginative ideas. Many of the projects you see on Kickstarter are in earlier stages of development and are looking for a community to bring them to life. The fact that Kickstarter allows creators to take risks and attempt to create something new is a feature, not a bug.”

Read the rest of the this article on hivelocitymedia.com where Chris Hawker examines whether or not Kickstarter is the right tool for inventors to raise money.

If you have an invention idea that you hope to bring to market, eventually it will need to be prototyped as an essential part of the product development process. A prototype is a model of the invention idea (or part of it) that allows the inventor to validate and “prove” their concept. The prototype will allow the inventor to test and refine its functionality, appearance and production methods.

Read the rest of our Expert Tips on Prototyping article to dig deeper into the terminology of prototyping at InventorSpot.com- a great resource for inventors.

We are pleased to introduce Hilliard High School Junior, Ella Wilson, to our Trident Design Team as an intern.

Ella found Trident Design through a career mentorship at her school in which students take extensive online career tests to determine what profession is best suited for them. Luckily for us, Ella already knew what career she wanted to explore – product design, and the test results validated her decision!  Ella had a working knowledge of the CAD program Inventor and enjoyed using it in high school.  She was also intrigued by a few products in particular, such as the Powersquid, Pitzo and the ChefScoop, and wanted to learn a little more about the process behind the invention.

 This is where we came into play.

 Thanks to the help of her advisor, Ella decided that Trident Design would be the best fit for her because, “after viewing the website, it seemed like a fun place to work!”

After being with us for a few weeks, she was put at ease with the casual environment and friendly staff and (hopefully) learned a little more about the process of taking an idea and making it into a product!

We are always watching the world for opportunity, amazing design and unique perspectives. Have you all heard the story about the Xlerator?

NPR just released an interesting story about the dryer and how it came to be.

What’s your next big thing?

Trident Design founder and Columbus-based product inventor, Chris Hawker, just returned from Las Vegas and the Consumer Electronic Show with a head full of ideas and an iPad mini full of observations. During a recent conversation with Chris regarding the innovation whirlwind that is CES – here are some takeaways that might better prepare Columbus entrepreneurs for the road ahead.

For starters, this year’s CES marks a giant leap in the world of crowd-funded hardware projects. According to Hawker, “CES was littered with the little guys that raised money through crowd-funding platforms like Kickstarter (www.Kickstarter.com). These smaller crowd-funded projects have filled the void left by giants like Apple and Microsoft that no longer attend this technology showcase.”

Just behind the bright glow of crowd-funding success stories, Hawker pointed out that 3D printing is next in line as the ultimate disruptor in an industry once dominated by extremely expensive technology. Hawker pointed out that “new 3D printers from the likes of MakerBot (www.MakerBot.com) and Solidoodle (www.solidoodle.com) are finally ready for their close-up, with consumer-friendly printers available for around $2,000.”

If you’re thinking about launching a new iPhone case this year, Hawker cautions that you might want to think again as the phone case bubble is ripe for a burst. “At CES, there were hundreds of vendors showcasing their latest wares with pricing ranging from $10 to $100,” said Hawker. Also poised for a burst this year is the ever so crowded, high-end headphone market. What was once dominated by Beats by Dre has seen a mad rush in from other artists ranging from 50 Cent to Ludacris. “We’re holding out for some stylish designs by Weird Al Yankovic,” added Hawker with a grin.

If CES is the barometer, new health tracking devices like the Fitbit (www.fitbit.com) are poised for a big year as we all make new year’s resolutions to eat less and walk more. Hawker adds, “there’s something highly effective about a text from your watch that says – Jill has taken 2,000 more steps than you today – let’s get going. Nobody likes to lose – especially when information like this can now be posted to Facebook in real-time for all to see.

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About Trident Design (www.trident-design.com)

Trident Design, LLC works with independent inventors and innovative manufacturers to help them create game-changing products. Trident has successfully propelled over 50 products to market with an established team of designers, engineers, patent professionals and business development specialists. Today, Trident is a full-service invention incubator in the spirit of Edison’s Lab, offering product design, engineering, prototyping, branding, licensing, and consulting.