IANE

INVENTORS' ASSOCIATION OF NEW ENGLAND

"EMPOWERING INVENTORS!"

ARCHIVE OF PREVIOUS SPEAKERS & TOPICS
 
Here is a sampling archive of previous speakers that you may have missed.  It pays to join IANE and attend our monthly meetings so you won't miss out on some good information to help you invent better products. Members only receive the IANE Newsletter with additional information.
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April 14, 2008: SPEAKER/TOPIC: Donald JobPresident Emeritus of IANE, Product Development Consultant, author, lecturer and scientist.  Founder of Enbede Co. and IPRS, Inc.;"Lessons from 30 Years of Inventing".  Dr. Job talked about the process of getting products to market, pitfalls and strategies for success.

March 10, 2008: SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Arthur Venditti of Seneca Design.  Product sourcing in China and his lifetime livelihood of invention, development, and licensing, including helping other inventors: concept evaluation, preliminary design, product development and sourcing manufacturers. Contact Arthur  at  vendar@verizon.net   

February 11, 2008: SPEAKER/TOPIC: Rufus Seder, founder of Eye Think, Inc, who has developed and patented fascinating optically animated artwork, in forms ranging from greeting cards to murals in museums and public buildings. 

January 14, 2008 meeting snowed out; rescheduled for May 12, 2008.

December 10, 2007:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  William Schawbel, entrepreneur, founder and CEO of Schawbel Corp. in Bedford, MA; www.schawbelcorporation.comBill provided advice to inventors based on his extensive experience in devising new products and bringing them to market. Many of the products Bill has developed and marketed are based on their ThermaCELL butane cartridges.  These include hair curlers, soldering irons, baby bottle warmers, and most recently, mosquito repellent.  New products are in the works.

November 12, 2007:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Scott Keeley of Obvia, a firm that positions itself as a full service resource for inventors and small companies.  Obvia develops working prototypes and virtual prototypes, arranges for appropriate patent protection, and brokers the product to prospective licensees.  www.obvia.biz

 
October 8, 2007:  SPEAKER/TOPIC: Bob Hausslein, President of IANE . The meeting addressed member questions and comments.  Bob discussed about what he has learned from the 300 presentations at the Inventors Clinic over the past eight years and the surprising insights he has gained from choosing among several invention developers.
 
September 10, 2007:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Warren Tuttle of Bear Mountain Marketing; housewares specialist.   Warren, and his business partner Ed Ryan, have well over 50 years of combined housewares industry experience in retail buying, sales, product development, fulfillment, distribution, and marketing.  Warren has led the introduction of such products as Smart Spin, container storage system; MISTO, The Gourmet Olive Oil Sprayer;  StirChef, The Hands-Free Saucepan Stirrer; and “Toss and Turn”, raised edge fry pan.  Finding  unique, kitchen related products, patents and inventors, and then introducing these unique products to market, is the key to their unique business model.
 
July 9, 2007:  SPEAKER/TOPIC: The featured speaker for the July 9 meeting was IANE member John Westcott on using Brainstorming methods to improve inventiveness.  John has taught this subject to corporate groups.  Recall he addressed the group in July 2005 on the subject of 3D mechanical design.
 
June 11, 2007:  SPEAKER/TOPIC: The featured speaker was our IANE Recording Secretary, Nancy Kerrigan.  Most of us know Nancy as the inventor/developer of such pet products as the Harness Play Pack, the Harness Raincoat, and the Sleep-N-Store Pet Bed.  At the June meeting she described and demonstrated her new product venture - a dog feeding bowl that is being developed by Evergreen IP in Colorado.  Recall that Gus Bigos from Evergreen has spoken to us on two occasions. MAGGIE her dog was the hit of the meeting.  www.petsatplay.com
 
 May 14, 2007:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Herb Loeffler spoke to us in  2005 about Easy Down, the device he developed to escape from tall buildings.  At the May meeting, he described his method of design that considers as many alternatives as possible in order to achieve a superior product. After managing his own design firm (Loeffler-MacConkey) which had a dozen employees, he now works independently.  Herb has degrees in both mechanical engineering and industrial design and is an IANE member.

April 9, 2007:  SPEAKER/TOPIC: Wayne Strattman, founder and president of Strattman Design (www.strattman.com).  He shared his experiences in bringing 11 inventions successfully to market in the toy/fascination item industry.  As Wayne states it, " I think I can give people an idea of how business is really done in this industry.  It’s a lot different than most people think it is.  There are more back room meetings amongst known players than there are formal meetings about licenses and patents.  Its important to learn to identify who the “players” are and to do some diligence before venturing forward".

 
March 12, 2007:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Dave Hoch, a full time inventor/entrepreneur, who has started and sold several companies he has built around his products.  The topic is  Hokey Spokes, illuminating light blades that display designs and messages on bicycle wheels at night.  See the video at http://www.hokeyspokes.comDave also talked about a new "low-tech" product of his - Growing Grids, a home gardening aid. He discussed the whole process from concept to patenting, manufacturing in the US and in Asia, marketing using trade shows and the internet, and distribution.
 
 February 12, 2007: SPEAKER/TOPIC: Peter Nieves, patent attorney and faculty member of the Franklin Pierce Law Center.  His presentation covered US patent practice and patent protection, intricacies of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, differences between US and Foreign statutory bars, and things to consider prior to attempting to obtain US or foreign patent protection.   His bio is at http://www.sheehan.com/attorneys.asp?id=1076.

January 8, 2007:  SPEAKER/TOPIC: James Richardson of Richardson and Associates, Inc., an experienced inventor and consultant operating out of southern Maine.   For the past 25 years he has developed products for entrepreneurial clients and is now also licensing products of his own.  His website (www.richardson-assoc.com) shows a good sampling of his work.  He has given talks to inventor organizations over the years and is now a regular speaker at the University of Maine patent program for inventors.

 
December 11, 2006:  SPEAKER/TOPIC: Chris and Sonia Hillios, inventors and developers of SeaDine Snorkel Snax, underwater fish food seadine.com.  They described their ups and downs getting their business launched and also used the audience to comment on a proposed medical product unrelated to Seadine.  

November 13, 2006:  SPEAKER/TOPIC: Dave Kaufman, President of Hemetrics Development Corporation who discussed his hydration meter  HEMETRICS   on behalf of independent inventor Dave Hoch, who has started and sold several companies he has built around his products and could not attend.  He planned to talk about Hokey Spokes, illuminating light blades that display designs and messages on bicycle wheels at night.  See the video at hokeyspokes.com. 

October 16, 2006:  SPEAKER/TOPIC: Darleen Flaig,  founder of Product Solutions International productsolutionsintl.comDarleen advises on product development and global sourcing.  She has spoken at numerous IANE meetings.  Her topic this time will be "Lessons Learned" from her perspective. She introduced Cory Costintino of Tekstyl Inc. who has fought in the marketplace to launch his patented computer case and the lessons he learned about his custom computer case business. 

 
September 11, 2006:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Mark  Gies,  COO of Inventors Workshop inventorsworkshop.net, a subsidiary  of Big Idea Group.  Inventors Workshop specializes in promotional  products.  Unlike Big Idea Group, which licenses inventions, Inventors  Workshop sets up the manufacture and distribution itself.  Mark explained their business model, and products they are commercializing,  and described inventor relationships.
 
July 10, 2006:  SPEAKERS/TOPIC: Dave Cormier and Karyl Lynch product scouts of Pelham West Associates, product scouts having a long time connection with the IANE.  They described the kinds of products they are looking for and examples of ones they have brought to market.  www.pelhamwest.com
 
JUNE 12, 2006:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  George Tlucko, IANE member, discussed the invention, development, and commercialization of his high performance ice skates. See www.okolosports.com
 
MAY 15, 2006:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Gus Bigos of Evergreen IP  www.evergreenip.com  spoke on Commercializing Your Invention,  including trends in open innovation at consumer product companies, key attributes of successful new products, pros and cons of various routes to commercialization, including (but not only) a discussion of the approach at Evergreen IP.  Note that some inventions of IANE member Nancy Kerrigan are being developed by Evergreen IP.
 
 April 10, 2006:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  John Adams successful inventor on translating ideas into commercial reality; application of inventive skills to manufacturing and marketing.  John was Secretary of the IANE in the late 70's.  He showed two products he developed which are at www.proportionalreading.com and at www.indoorwindowgardening.com.
 
March 13, 2006:  SPEAKER/TOPIC: Mike Marks invention developer of Invention City www.inventioncity.com.   Mike discussed the ups and downs of developing and licensing the PaperPro and PowerShot staplers, which have generated over $250 million in sales.  This  is similar to the talk  he gave at the 2005 Yankee Invention Expo, which  was very favorably received.  Examples of products he has helped inventors develop are at http://worktools.com;  http://endeavorproducts.com; http://paperpro.com and  http://sandjamr.com.
 
February 13, 2006:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Arthur Venditti – Independent Product Development Consultant with over 35 years experience in developing consumer products and toys, spoke about and answered questions relating to his experiences in all aspects of the product development process.  As an Industrial Designer, he has invented, patented, licensed, named, and commercialized a wide variety of consumer products. Although Arthur has spent most of his career in the Toy industry, much of what he has experienced can apply to most mass market product areas. He has spent the last 10 years sourcing and developing products to be made in China and will share his insights for those who have thought about doing the same.  "How To Get My Product Made in China".   E MAIL
 
January 9, 2006:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Courtney Heath of  Z Corporation provided an introduction to 3D printing and rapid prototyping, showing samples ranging from the simple to the complex - including moving parts.  www.zcorp.com
 
December 12, 2005:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Michael Antino of Merchant Media, the "concept to consumer" product development company that brought Smart Spin, rotary storage device for plastic containers and lids, to commercial success.  Merchant Media has similarly brought to market  many other top selling direct response TV products such as Pasta Pro, Gator Grip, and Singer Smart Scissors. www.merchantmedia.com

November 14, 2005:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Joseph R. Birkner, M.E.,  Registered Patent Agent, Inventor, IANE  Member (Webmaster).  "How To Turn Your Idea Into An Invention and Patent It" CLICK HERE TO READ THE NOVEMBER 14, 2005 IANE Presentation Discover the inventing process steps ranging from Idea to Invention to Patent to Marketplace "I-I-P-M" (TM).  Coming up with the idea, what, how to invent, inventions, patents, marketing your invention and more.   www.gis.net/~starco/jrb

October 17, 2005:  SPEAKER/TOPIC: Angelo Tortola, IANE member and President of  Venture Technologies in North Billerica, inventor and developer of  the Game Light (over six million sold), the Electronic Swing Groover golf training device featured in Brookstone and Sharper Image, plus medical and military equipment. TOPIC: "The Business of Inventing" www.venturetechnologies.com

September 12, 2005:  SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Jeffery Conley, President of Eureka Medical in Burlington, a resource for independent inventors with  ideas for medical devices and healthcare products, offering no-cost services to refine and present product ideas to  the best-matched medical supply companies  www.eurekamed.com

July 11, 2005:  SPEAKER/TOPIC: John Westcott, Iane member and president of 3D Mechanical Design, 3D Solid Modeling is a handy dandy tool for inventors. John can be reached at 508-529-6558 or e mail: john@3dmechdesign.com.

 
June 13, 2005: SPEAKER/TOPIC: Michael Collins, founder and president of the Big Idea Group, product scouts in frequently contact with our members.   www.bigideagroup.net .
 
May 9, 2005: SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Joe Schappler, owner and president of Helix Design, a product design and development firm in Manchester NH, spoke on the product development process.   www.helixdesign.net

April 11, 2005: SPEAKER/TOPIC:  Ronna Cohen, principal and founder of the 20-20 Group   ww.the20-20group.com  spoke on  Success Takes More than Having a Great Product.  Common mistakes that entrepreneurs make in bringing their product to market, strategies to avoid, pitfalls and missteps that can cost you time, money and perhaps your business were presented.

March 14, 2005: SPEAKER/TOPIC: Herb Loeffler, veteran product designer and post 9/11 inventor of EasyDown, a rappelling device to escape from tall buildings.  His group formed EasyDown Corporation to commercialize the product.   www.easydown.com  also article in Boston Business Journal at www.bizjournals.com/boston/stories/2004/10/25/story3.html.

February 14, 2005: SPEAKER/TOPIC: Amy Smith of MIT, a 2004 recipient of the prestigious MacArthur Award, which includes a $500,000 grant.  Amy has dedicated herself to solving daily problems in the developing world, including simple means to produce clean drinking water, grind grain, and make cheap charcoal.  She also wants to change what it means to be an inventor. In a world obsessed with gizmos costing hundreds of dollars, Ms. Smith wants instead to focus minds and imaginations on simple solutions for big problems.  For more, Google Search: amy smith mit

 
January 10, 2005: SPEAKER/TOPIC: David Allen, founder of Cogent Products, Inc.  COGENT PRODUCTS and inventor/developer/marketer of Helper's Handle Push Bar (for children's bicycles), Oar Secure, and FRS-1 Forearm Rifle Support.  Ken Bibby, who makes his living from inventing to order, and Bob Hausslein  added a few examples from their own experience to stimulate discussion.

December 13, 2004: SPEAKER/TOPIC: Pat Rega and Seymour Sallett from the Boston office of SCORE, the Service Corps of Retired Executives talked about the steps involved in forming a new business and the face-to-face counseling that SCORE provides.  Such advice and contacts are also vital to inventors who choose to license their product rather than go into business themselves. The SCORE website is  SCORE  or  SCOREBOSTON   or call (in Boston, MA 10 Causeway Street) for help: (617)565-5591..

 
November 15, 2004: SPEAKER/TOPIC: Elizabeth D. Chicknavorian, who  spoke on the effective use of trademarks as an aid in the commercialization of inventions.  Ms. Chicknavorian's sole practitioner law practice in Dover, New Hampshire focuses on providing legal services for startup, small and mid-sized businesses pertaining to business formations, contracts, trademarks and copyrights.
 
October 18, 2004: SPEAKERS/TOPICS: Brent Short and Donald Job.  Brent is founder of Flex-Safe, Inc. http://www.flex-safe.com which markets perimeter control technology such as collapsible barriers that he invented and developed.  The title of his talk is "Pedestrian Management for the 21st Century".  Don Job, longtime IANE supporter and invention consultant, has acted as an advisor to Brent during the development of his invention and business launch.  His companion talk is entitled "Elements of Success".

September 13, 2004:  SPEAKERS: David Cormier and Karyl Lynch of Pelham West Associates, who as product scouts bring products to market under licensing arrangements and as consultants help determine the best commercialization opportunities for products.   www.pelhamwest.com   TOPIC: "Strategies for Making Your Product Attractive to Potential Licensees".

July 12, 2004:  Speaker:   Bob Krentzman of Chain Reaction Logistics; Topic: "Product Solutions from Concept to Consumer - integrating the functions of development, marketing, sales, distribution, warehousing, and fulfillment."Chain Reaction Logistics is a successful organization dedicated to customer service by linking retail product development, marketing, sales, fulfillment, warehousing, and distribution.  www.chainreactionlogistics.com
 
June 14, 2004:  Speaker:   Dr. Richard Pavelle, President of Invent Resources, Inc.; Topic: " Setting up an Invention Creating Business". Invent Resources, Inc. is a business of creating inventions for clients, based on the premise that companies need and desire to outsource innovation. Dr. Richard Pavelle, will describe their method of doing business and offer suggestions to those who may wish to consider setting up such a business.   WEINVENT

May 10, 2004:  Speaker:   Rick Malagodi of Opus Venture Group, LLD., a new company started with
George d'Arbeloff (of the Big Idea Group).  TOPIC:  "Products for Television Media (QVC, HSN,
etc.)." Web site: http://www.opusventuregroup.com .

APRIL 12, 2004:  Speaker:  D. S. Kim, Ph. D.  TOPIC:  "Opportunities for the Independent Inventor in Automotive Power Systems". Hybrid gas/electric engines and fuel cells are not necessarily the wave of the future. Longtime inventor/entrepreneur D. S. Kim, Ph. D. has developed power technology both as an auto industry insider and outsider.  He  shared his views and demonstrated some underappreciated alternatives.

 
March 8, 2004:  Speaker(s): Bob Hausslein, President of IANE speaking from the perspective of an inventor,  and David Rardin, President of Synthetic Intellect Corp.from the perspective of a patent professional.: TOPIC: "Minimize Time and Money Spent on Intellectual Property Protection".  
 
FEBRUARY 9, 2004:  Speaker: Susan LaPlante-Dube, President Precision Marketing Group:
TOPIC: "Build It & They Will Come - How to Sell the Value of Your Invention".  PRECISION MARKETING GROUP
 
JANUARY 12, 2004:  Craig Carlson spoke on Successful Invention Development and Commercialization.  He holds several US Patents in the areas of inertial measurement and telecommunications, particularly relating to automobile accessories.

DECEMBER 8, 2003:  Maureen Lincoln spoke on Designing Plastic Parts for Your Invention.  Maureen Lincoln is a product design consultant and founder of Applied Engineering Solutions.
 
NOVEMBER 10, 2003.  Jim Levine of FitnessLab, a fitness equipment product development and licensing company, was a guest speaker. He presented a body-based product.

 
OCTOBER 20, 2003. Alaric Naiman, Phd. a consultant specializing in technical and organizational innovation. His presentation, Targeted Innovation:  Effective Development Of Your Ideas, focused on a selection of "mind tools" for innovation, plus a discussion of key factors that can hinder or help you. Alaric is now principal of Transition States (www.transitionstates.com), a networked consultancy providing product and process innovation and management training. 
 
SEPTEMBER 8, 2003.  The "BIG IDEA GROUP (BIG) " conducts IDEA HUNTS for companies seeking new inventions to be put into the marketplace.  Michael Collins, CEO spoke about how BIG operates and what kinds of products are needed.   Michael Collins is the founder and CEO of Big Idea Group (BIG), an invention development agency. Big Idea uses a variety of methods to bring together independent inventors and idea-buying companies. Among its techniques, BIG conducts nationwide Roadshows, where inventors confidentially present ideas to a panel of industry experts, and Idea Hunts, where client companies solicit BIG’s inventor network for ideas relating to market opportunities. Since its inception in 2000, Big Idea has developed or licensed over 30 ideas, working with such companies as Target, Toys “R” Us, Avon, Hasbro, QVC, Basic Fun, Skil-Bosch, Binney & Smith, Dremel and Staples, among others.  Mike received his undergraduate degree from Darmouth and an MBA from Harvard Business School. After graduating, he worked as a venture capitalist for four years, then headed an educational startup at Pleasant Company, maker of American Girl Dolls. That experience inspired him to create his own children’s product company, Kid Galaxy. There he invented a number of award-winning specialty brands, including the action figure line Bendos and the Stardust Classics fantasy dolls. At Big Idea, Mike continues to work with inventors and companies to bring a variety of innovative concepts to market. Among the company’s projects in development are a plush concept, a file storage system and a tableware invention. BIG is headquarted in Manchester, New Hampshire.   BIG IDEA GROUP
 
July 14, 2003  SPEAKERS: Joanne Hayes Rines, Publisher/Editor of Inventor's Digest Magazine and Robert Rines, Patent Attorney and member of the National Inventors Hall of Fame. Their talk was entitled "There Really are Secrets to Success as an Inventor ?" 
 
APRIL 14, 2003    SPEAKERS:  Dave Cormier and Karyl Lynch of Pelham West Associates www.pelhamwest.com,  match manufacturers and distributors with independent inventors.  Acting as product scouts, they help their client companies grow by finding new products developed by independent inventors.  They are seeking new inventions ready for licensing in selective product areas that they represent.  They state that there is never a charge to inventors for submission to them and they spoke on invention from an investor's standpoint, with emphasis on  licensing.

 

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Disclaimer: This web site is provided for information purposes and is not legal advice.  Anyone seeking legal advice should contact a lawyer,  patent agent or patent attorney.  Jurisdiction is in Massachusetts, USA.
Copyright 2002-2005 Inventors' Association of New England P.O. Box 335 Lexington, MA 02420-0004