The Not-So-Young Inventor’s Fair
By Alice Tanghe, ConnectorSupplier.com

When my daughter was in elementary school, she was a winner in the school district’s Young Inventor’s Fair—twice. It was always fun to see the creativity and enthusiasm of these young engineering minds. Kelly’s first attempt to create something began with the question, “Well, Mom, what should I invent?” I told Kelly to think of something that really bugged her, and then to start thinking of ways she could get rid of the problem. Her first challenge was to solve the problem of wet mittens. Playing in the snow at recess meant soggy mittens and cold hands on the way home from school. Voila! The Hand Apparel Dryer, or HAD, was born. It was a ceiling-like fan that was attached to the top of her locker. The mittens were attached by clothespins, and the battery-operated fan twirled and removed the moisture. OK, it didn’t work perfectly, but it was creative, and I was proud of her efforts. Today Kelly is working on a doctorate in nutritional research.

If all goes well, creative kids turn into creative adults. I met another proud parent, Myron Trenne, on one of my flights to the recent Electronica show. He had worked at Yazaki for many years and was one of the keynote speakers at the show. I asked him if he had any suggestions or story ideas for ConnectorSupplier.com. He suggested I talk with his son, Rod Trenne—a creative mind and inventor.

A series of emails transpired, and I learned how one “not-so-young” inventor develops a product.

Rod Trenne: What an interesting chain of events. I was just thinking the other day about how I need to start getting the word out about a recent USB design I’ve done.

I've attached some info and an image of it. As you can see, it’s a USB connector with a reversible circuit. You can put the connector in either way and the result is the same. I came up with it because I was frustrated that every time I try and plug in a USB device, nine out of 10 times, it’s the wrong way first.

The hard part with any good idea is to get it to the buyers. It’s not so much getting the actual patent, which makes me wonder how many good ideas are patented, but are still just sitting around. I was going to take the USB design to a patent auction event, but I think product introduction is key to its success, and I’m not sure yet if that's the right way to go. I thought about finding the suppliers and buyers myself, but I just don't have the time with my work. It's totally a “chicken and the egg” scenario.

ConnectorSupplier.com: Getting the idea to someone who can build and market the product seems to be the biggest challenge. Have you been able to accomplish that with another product?

Rod Trenne: No, it’s not easy at all. I am new to the patent game, but approaching a company to manufacture and/or market the product, or even trying to find the right person willing to help, is nearly impossible. Remember the old saying about being at the right place at the right time?

In a way I'm lucky, because I always have ideas coming, but most of them are too complicated or take too much development. Some of the best ideas to patent are very simple and require very little development. The USB product occurred when I modified an existing USB circuit and found that the connector worked either way it was plugged in, and it had no effect on its performance. I was excited about it and then put it into CAD to clean up the design, then I called my IP (intellectual property) lawyer to get the patent going. Now that I have that done, I'm looking forward to hooking up with the right people who want to have a leg up on the USB market. How I see it, this is going to be the hard part, but if enough people see it, the right connection might happen. (Contact Rod at www.trennetechnologies.com.)

ConnectorSupplier.com: What is the process when you talk with the IP lawyer? What kind of information do you have to give him/her? Do they do the research to check on similar products?

Rod Trenne: My IP lawyer receives a description and some images that help convey the idea. Once he has the idea for the product, he does a “search,” and then writes a patent and submits it to the U.S. patent office.

ConnectorSupplier.com: In this global market, does a patent really protect you from someone stealing your design?

Rod Trenne: No, I have very little faith in the patent game. I think it's an antiquated government system that has almost no real meaning. Even with a patent, you still go to court to protect your product, even when it's blatantly being infringed upon. It's discouraging to think about. I'm currently being infringed on with another idea, and it's been almost 10 years, with no end in sight.

ConnectorSupplier.com: How are you compensated for your design? Is the money in the design, or in the selling of the product?

Ron Trenne: If I luck out and happen to find the right group who honors patents, and wants to properly develop a business plan together, then the idea can be licensed and produced.

ConnectorSupplier.com: What kind of education and mindset go into becoming an inventor?

Rod Trenne: I think a good inventor has a combination of vocational trades and software development skills, along with a creative mind that is never satisfied with how things are.

ConnectorSupplier.com: How good of a job do you think our industry/society does of encouraging people to become inventors?

Rod Trenne: I’m sorry to say, very bad. If you think of all the money that is being invested these days, it all came from the minds and backs of people who invented and made things.

Contact Rod if you have some ideas for getting his product to market. His contact information is located at www.trennetechologoies.com. As Rod says, “I think the product can be used in everyday thumb drives for easier use and also in assembly jobs where time is very important. I guess it will make every USB users’ lives just a little bit easier.”

Contact atanghe@connectorsupplier.com if you’d like to share your invention experiences. Our engineering readers would like to hear from you.