Encounters of the Accidental Judge

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There’s a tale that, years back an individual up high within the U.S. Patent Office resigned. The main reason mentioned was that “everything worth inventing have been invented.” That it was and not the situation as evidenced by my recent experience.

I had been asked to go to the Chicago “Casting Call” for “Everyday Edisions, (TM)” a Television show that airs on PBS stations. The format is comparable to the most popular “Antiques Roadshow” except it showcases inventors as well as their inventions. After I showed up in the WTTW studio in the marketed beginning duration of the big event there is a type of inventors extending round the building as 3 or 4 occasions the expected quantity of inventors demonstrated up – the queue had began developing soon after night time! I met Louis Foreman, the pressure behind the show and volunteered propose by any means possible because, clearly, these were at a loss for the amount of hopeful inventors.

I had been put on certainly one of four “screening panels,” made up of a patent attorney, product, engineering, and marketing experts. We took in to inventors give their two-minute presentation some had introduced working models, prototypes, and sketches, others had only a verbal explanation. A fast patent search was conducted which eliminated the majority of the inventions from further consideration.

From 1600 inventions viewed (until about 10pm), about 70 were delivered to another panel for more evaluation. After much deeper patent searches and much more evaluations for marketability and functionality, only a handful (2 to 5) will really reach the television show.

Despite the fact that I needed to leave prior to the panel was finished due to a prior commitment it had been a most fascinating experience and that i wanted I possibly could have remained longer. A few of the inventions I saw were brilliant, others were interesting, a couple of were silly however they all highlighted that optimism, the entrepreneurial dream, and inventive spirit is alive and well. From my observation as lengthy as people can handle thinking, there are several, the people, who’ll consider creating new ways of solving old problems.

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