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End of my Rope!!!
BetterMousetrap
subscriber Posts: 1
It`s a law as un-bending as Gravity: Anything worth doing takes effort. But
must it always seem so impossible even when all the elements for success
are staring you in the face?
I have an invention for motorcycles. It will save lives. It uses existing
parts. It is in-expensive to mass produce. It`s ingenious, even
Revolutionary, yet one wonders why it wasn`t on the motorcycle from the
beginning. It`s so simple- so logical, though no one can guess what it is
even when they`re looking at it. Then the Novelty of it opens their eyes
and they see something they wish they thought of first. Dead-End.
Five years & $40k later I`m still looking for the right people to help me
take this Global, but we all know how hard it is to find Good People. I
have Applied for Patent Protection in the U.S. & it`s Terratories, but
Foreign Patent Protection is mandatory before I can sit with the likes of
Honda, Yamaha, BMW, etc. and Negotiate a Licensing Agreement. I
currently have Four working Prototypes, as well as a number of designs
on paper, that I have managed to keep secret all this time, though it cost
me everything I have.
HELP!!! I need Honest, Loyal, Dedicated people to help me do this right.
It`s a slam-dunk if we just finish what I started. My goal is simple: Put this
Device on every motorcycle made at the factory and support it with an
aftermarket network that permits the retrofit of every previous model
made. Sound too good to be true? This device also makes the operation
of a motorcycle easier to perform- so not only will more people decide
they want to own one, about ten times the number of women who
currently ride will easily pick up the art of riding= essentially doubling the
current sales of motorcycles worldwide: A win/win for everyone!
So, what have I overlooked? The market is there, the sales of
motorcycles are forcast to continue increasing at least until 2012 (barring
unforseen events), and the market research confirms the Data collected:
This is "IT", the next Big Thing. Wanna Ride?BetterMousetrap2006-11-6 18:36:29
must it always seem so impossible even when all the elements for success
are staring you in the face?
I have an invention for motorcycles. It will save lives. It uses existing
parts. It is in-expensive to mass produce. It`s ingenious, even
Revolutionary, yet one wonders why it wasn`t on the motorcycle from the
beginning. It`s so simple- so logical, though no one can guess what it is
even when they`re looking at it. Then the Novelty of it opens their eyes
and they see something they wish they thought of first. Dead-End.
Five years & $40k later I`m still looking for the right people to help me
take this Global, but we all know how hard it is to find Good People. I
have Applied for Patent Protection in the U.S. & it`s Terratories, but
Foreign Patent Protection is mandatory before I can sit with the likes of
Honda, Yamaha, BMW, etc. and Negotiate a Licensing Agreement. I
currently have Four working Prototypes, as well as a number of designs
on paper, that I have managed to keep secret all this time, though it cost
me everything I have.
HELP!!! I need Honest, Loyal, Dedicated people to help me do this right.
It`s a slam-dunk if we just finish what I started. My goal is simple: Put this
Device on every motorcycle made at the factory and support it with an
aftermarket network that permits the retrofit of every previous model
made. Sound too good to be true? This device also makes the operation
of a motorcycle easier to perform- so not only will more people decide
they want to own one, about ten times the number of women who
currently ride will easily pick up the art of riding= essentially doubling the
current sales of motorcycles worldwide: A win/win for everyone!
So, what have I overlooked? The market is there, the sales of
motorcycles are forcast to continue increasing at least until 2012 (barring
unforseen events), and the market research confirms the Data collected:
This is "IT", the next Big Thing. Wanna Ride?BetterMousetrap2006-11-6 18:36:29
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Comments
heard of CEOs who drive bikes. Plenty of people with money share that
avocation. I`m sure some would be interested in investing. Call Jay
Leno.
Do you need internation protection to sit with the likes of Harley, Victory, Buell?
If you can give me Jay Leno`s phone number I would gladly call him.
As far as American bike makers go- if I make this device public before
securing International Protection it jeopardizes my rights to do so in the
future, as well as gives the foreign markets a head start in knock-offs. I
have studied extensively in patent law & this is a very real risk.
As far as CEO`s are concerned, I`ve left messages with Orange County
Choppers with no response, I`ve called to speak with owners of
motorcycle dealers to no avail. I spoke to the editors of three major
motorcycle magazines only to be told they can`t help me.
When something sounds this good people assume you`re either making it
up or nuts. The hard part is done- I just need the full protection that the
laws provide & the means to enforce it should infringement arrise.
Considering the profits we`re looking at, the amount of Investment
Capital is really small change.
Rob O.
messages with Orange County Choppers with no response, I`ve called to
speak with owners of motorcycle dealers to no avail. I spoke to the
editors of three major motorcycle magazines only to be told they can`t
help me.Rob, I don`t think you`re aiming high enough. I was
thinking more along the lines of Steve Forbes. A motorcycling CEO with
more than a few shekels to rub together.
You know where Jay Leno works. How badly do you want to meet him?
It sounds like the StartupNation elevator pitch contest is still open
for entries. The top prize besides consulting with the Sloan Brothers
is an introduction to angel investors. I assume they`ll make an effort
to find potential angels that are a match for your business financially as well
as personal interests.
Steve2006-11-7 12:38:43
You haven`t mentioned (or I missed it) what is required to secure the international protection. Have you contacted the World Trade Organization or the World Bank? I would think either of these organizations can provide some type of assistance or point you in the right direction.
You seem very passionate about this idea and the only supportive advice I can give you is to NOT GIVE UP! I`d be happy to help you if I can.
Danie
I`ve been given figures of $15k to $30k for filing Offensive Rights abroad,
& of course that only gives me the Right to litigate. As soon as Patent
Rights are secured I would immediately set up meetings in Japan with
Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Kawasaki; KTM in Austria, working my way West
from East through Europe, until back on U.S. soil to hit every American
Bike Builder there is. I figured I`d leave the best for last, mainly because
Americans seem to be the hardest to convince they need something, and
by then my pitch should be well rehearsed.
My ultimate goal is a license agreement with every manufacturer of
motorcycles, and any aftermarket companies interested in supplying the
used motorcycle market. Any bike could easily be retrofitted with this
device making it compatible with all bikes both new & old.
This could be the best thing to happen to motorcycles since the wheel!
Rob O.
Maybe I`m still missing something, and it sounds like you`ve done most of the research already. What is stopping you from securing Foreign Patent Protection? Is it money? Is it access? Is it both?
Either way, here`s another suggestion, the US Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR). Here`s a link to the legislation that outlines the program. http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c107:S.1323.is</A>:
You may already know about this. If not, it`s worth a shot. I think you`ll have an easier time securing larger investors once you have the foreign patent protection that shows how serious you are.
Danie
I have a Provisional Patent Application filed as of 7/06 due to the
number of different design variables that cover the different makes &
models of motorcycle. The strategy being that I would file a Regular
Patent Application for a particular design every eleven months while
simultaneously filing another provisional for the next design. This would
keep the competition guessing while getting the maximum time period
for my offensive rights.
Rob O.
THE FOLLOWING ARE EXERPS FROM POSTS THAT GOT ME MOTIVATED TO
PARTICIPATE IN THE S.U.N. (Start-up Nation) COMMUNITY IN THE FIRST
PLACE. UNDER THE ADVISEMENT OF RICH SLOAN WE FEEL THAT OTHERS
MAY BENEFIT FROM THE EXCHANGE OF POSTS & EMAILS THAT HAVE
TAKEN PLACE THESE LAST FEW DAYS, SO I`M POSTING THEM HERE. FEEL
FREE TO REQUEST CLARIFICATION SHOULD ANY OF IT SEEM CONFUSING-
IT TOOK A LOT OF CUT+PASTE TO ASSEMBLE.
THE FIRST PART IS FROM A THREAD RICH STARTED ASKING IF NIKOLA
TESLA AS PORTRAYED IN THE MOVIE "THE PRESTIGE" WAS IN FACT A REAL
PERSON, AND CRAIG L. HAD THIS TO SAY:
"Without Tesla we wouldn`t have the technological society of today. He
invented the generator for A/C (alternating current), and was at the center
of the most basic decision about how to electrify America. Edison
proposed wiring the country for D/C (direct current), but couldn`t send
high power across the distances that A/C could accomplish.
Nikola Tesla began his US career working for Edison, then quit over a
difference of process. Tesla had a mind such that when he had an idea,
he literally saw that idea in such detail, he didn`t need to make more than
a single prototype. And it worked, right there.
Edison invented the "research group" concept. He hired many inventors
and scientists and engineers, then basically put them next to a pile of
"stuff." They played with things in trial-and-error ways until someone
came up with something almost by accident, and it worked. Then Edison
patented it and sold it. Prior, Edison did the same with his attempts to
find a filament for the incandescent bulb. He too tried anything,
eventually ending up with carbon. Tesla thought that was a ridiculous way
to run an inventing business.
Up until around 1930, the US Census had a labor category for "Inventor."
Around `39-`40, Edison`s research center idea had so taken over that
most "inventors" couldn`t afford to work alone, and joined corporations.
And so the professional "inventor" fell away. Today`s entrepreneurs are
the re-defined inventors that have always been there, and it won`t be long
before we once again see a category something like "microbusiness
owner."
Tesla contracted with Col. Westinghouse, who backed his idea for an
alternating current generator, then helped finance the first major power
plant at Niagra Falls. Tesla wanted to donate the knowledge, but
Westinghouse demanded Tesla take a royalty of about $1 (late 1800s
dollars) per megawatt. If Tesla hadn`t relinquished those royalties, he`d
have died with a net worth in the hundreds of millions (today, billions),
rather than dying nearly penniless.
Westinghouse came up against J.P. Morgan and Edison (General Electric)
and was about to go bankrupt. Tesla came to his rescue, handing him
over those royalties. At the time, Tesla was busy inventing wireless radio,
television, and a way to beam power directly across the atmosphere.
Westinghouse remained in business.
Eventually, Tesla spent all his time working on beamed power,
capitalized with VC from JP Morgan, and didn`t pay much attention when
an intern of his, Marconi, took his ideas and developed what we now
know as radio. It wasn`t until about 10-20 years ago (I think), that Tesla
was finally given recognition as the inventor, and the patents to Marconi
overturned.
Beyond his work with A/C, sparkplugs, radio, television, remote control,
and a rudimentary beamed-power weapon, Tesla was fascinated with
lightning and electricity in general. He held that the Earth, rotating within
the center of a magnetic field, was essentially a huge electrical generator.
To that end, he demonstrated to Morgan, a way to draw power from the
air, using a small antennae.
My own opinion is that when JP Morgan realized people could power
anything for free, he nixed the idea, calling in a large investment loan,
and mostly bankrupting Tesla.
Legend has it that the catastrophic Siberian explosion in 1908 was a
beamed-power experiment Tesla conducted from his lab in Colorado, in
conjunction with the US Military. (A more fitting hypothesis is that it was a
direct hit by a meteor.) But a true story is that Tesla also worked with
resonation and vibrational harmonics.
He had a small pendulum type device, like a small box, and attached it
to a girder in his lab in NYC. He set it working, then forgot about it. Not
long afterwards, people felt the initial symptoms of an earthquake, with
windows shaking, the ground vibrating, and cracks appearing in the
neighborhood. Tracking it down, the authorities found the device in
Tesla`s lab and told him to quit doing that...he could poke someone`s eye
out!
Tesla is the unheralded genius of the American technological revolution
that took place between 1875-1930. It`s only a shame so few people have
heard of him, although he`s well-known outside the traditional circles of
typical high-school educational systems." -orig. post 10/28 by CraigL.
THIS GOT ME THINKING ABOUT MY OWN HISTORY & WHAT CHALLENGES
IT HAS WROUGHT ME, SO AFTER POSTING MY PITCH TO THE COMMUNITY,
I SENT THIS TO RICH SLOAN:
Hi Rich,
I want to thank you & your brother for starting such a great resource for
those of us who feel we`ve exhausted our options. The story CraigL. told
you about Nikola Tesla was so refreshing, I had forgotten all that he went
through & I now find myself able to relate to his frustrations more than I
thought possible 20 years ago. I often see solutions to problems that
seem common sense to me and work first time out of the box, yet I find
great difficulty selling those ideas to those "less enlightened".
My Question: Is it too late for me to compete for the elevator pitch? One
of the members responding to my Forum Thread suggested I participate
in the contest but I`m having no luck finding the rules for getting
involved.
My pitch is pretty concise if I can find the right person to "throw it" at.
The long version is under "COMMERCIALIZING YOUR INVENTION" Apptly
titled: "End of My Rope".
As always I`m open to any advice you might have, thanks for your time.
RICH PROMPTLY REPLIED WITH THIS TO SAY:
Rob,
I have a feeling this contest is booked BUT we will do another one in the
near future and that`s a perfect opportunity for you. I will make sure that
Alison, our radio producer, contacts you.
Thanks so much for the feedback, by the way. Have you seen the movie
"The Prestige" yet? David Bowie plays the part of Tesla.
Rich
HAVING BEEN RE-ENERGIZED BY THIS RESPONSE TO MY LETTER, I
ANSWERED WITH THIS SLICE OF LIFE STORY:
Rich-
I have yet to see The Prestige but I have seen a few good documentries
on his life & how Edison stole some key ideas he had. It`s amazing how
much power there is in money, never mind the atmosphere. A friend of
mine in high school had a Tesla Coil that his father had from the fifties.
He let me borrow it for my science project & it was the talk of the class. It
would make a 2-3 inch long bolt of electricity that looked like something
from a Frankenstein movie- very cool!
I read about you guys in a Costco magazine a few weeks ago and was
glad to know I`m not alone in wanting to fix what`s not working in the
world today. If my invention becomes the success it should be, then my
mission will be to eliminate economic strife in this country by creating
jobs in every facet of industry, raising the standard of living by paying
people what their worth and manufacturing the highest quality products
at competitive prices- if people were paid more they`d spend more- if
we`re the ones making the goods, the money they spend is on the
products we (the people) make. Magic formula- one hand washing the
other.
Too utopian? I think it beats what`s going on these days, don`t you?
Rob O.
BetterMousetrap2006-11-11 11:51:51
I heard from "Pete", and he is willing to help with any advice he can- But...
The search for Capital infusion continues. One encouraging note: Over 40
years in the motorcycle business & he never saw or heard of my device on
a bike. This is one more person who has given me the reassurance that I
am pursuing a viable product, and to everyone else I`ve heard from this
week- Thanks for your words of encouragement.
For those of you out there looking for a solid investment- Here it is!
What`s stopping you?
Remember- it`s not the Steak you`re selling, It`s the Sizzle!!!BetterMousetrap2006-11-12 21:33:50