The Total Inventors Manual (Popular Science): Transform Your Idea into a Top-Selling Product - Hardcover

Ragan, Sean Michael

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1681881586 ISBN 13: 9781681881584

Publisher: Weldon Owen, 2017

Synopsis

Contrary to popular wisdom, you don’t have to be an ace electrician, a coding prodigy, or a mechanical master to come up with a game-changing invention! You just need curiosity, a strong desire to fix a problem that you see in the world, and the determination to see your ideas become reality—and this book, which will teach you everything you need to go from zero to inventor. 

Everyone wants to be the next Bill Gates or Steve Jobs, but there’s never been a clear road map to becoming a wildly successful innovator—until now. In The Total Inventor’s Manual, you’ll learn to . . .

MAKE ONE  Get that great idea out of your brain and into the real world with a crash course in ideation, prototyping, and testing. Includes clever, can-do lessons in CAD, 3D-printing, laser-cutting, electronics, robotics, coding, and more.

SELL ONE  Whether you’re riding the Kickstarter wave or hitting the venture capital beat, get your idea funded—and protect it with a proper patent. Then learn to refine your prototype’s look and feel to give it a boost in the market.

MAKE MANY  Bring your invention to the masses with tips on manufacturing processes and best practices, plus solid advice for beginners on running a supply chain.

SELL MANY  You’ve built it—time to make them come. Discover how to effectively position your product in the marketplace, deal with consumer feedback, and run—or sell—your newly successful company.

With profiles by Rachel Nuwer on the winning inventors who brought you the . . .
SPACE SUIT GLOVE · HEART STENT · SUPER SOAKER · ROOMBA · DIGITAL CAMERA · MAKERBOT 3D PRINTER · UV WATER PURIFICATION · HOME PREGNANCY TEST · AND MORE

About this title

From the Author

Sean Michael Ragan is co-founder and editorial director of Foundry.net, a prominent blogger, and a former editor of MAKE: magazine. His freelance work has appeared in several books as well as Popular Science, ReadyMade, Chemical & Engineering News, and The Wall Street Journal.

Popular Science is the world’s largest science and technology magazine, with 6.1 million print readers and 10 million monthly page views on PopSci.com. The publication explores the intersection of science and everyday life, providing science and tech news along with tons of fascinating DIY projects for beginning tinkerers and pro builders alike. Founded in 1872, Popular Science is one of the oldest continuously published magazines in the United States, and is published in five languages and nine countries.

 

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

 007 START CLOSE TO HOME

While inventing something world-changing is a worthy goal, you shouldn’t overlook the more humble problems that are likely lurking right under your nose. Think of all the pesky everyday nuisances that might be reduced or eliminated with a clever new tool, trick, or gizmo, thereby saving yourself and others like you time, money, energy, or stress. Or go after the super-specific problems that enthusiasts only discover when they’re deep in the nitty-gritty details of their work. Here are some questions to ask.

WHAT IRRITATES YOU? Or your friends, colleagues, or family members? (Besides each other, of course.) Pay attention to the struggles around you, and you may just spot a trend. How else do you think the salad spinner came into this world?

WHAT TOOL FRUSTRATES YOU? If there’s a device that gives you grief (a seat belt, garden shears, or a smartphone case—anything), how could it work better?

WHERE DO YOU WASTE TIME? We all do it. Is there a device that could help you out of a specific time trap? 

WHAT SPACES NEED IMPROVEMENT? We spend our lives in environments made by fallible human beings. What would you do differently if you were redesigning your bathroom, kitchen, workplace, computer, or car? 

HOW COULD YOUR FUN BE MORE FUN? Don’t forget your hobbies. Could your roller skates have more ankle support, or the buttons on your video game controller stick less? Believe it or not, these problems matter to a lot of people. So be a hero and fix one.
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063 CRAFT YOUR USER STORIES  

A user story is exactly what it sounds like: a short narrative written from the perspective of an imagined user that describes how that person works with your invention to achieve a goal. If your product were, say, a camera-equipped flying drone that can automatically follow you around and film your actions, one user story might go something like this: 

“As a professional surfer, I want to film myself riding waves so I can go back later, analyze my technique, and improve. I should be able to carry the camera on my board while I’m paddling out, toss it up in the air before I catch a wave, and then be able to easily replay what I just did once I get to shore.” 

Writing a user story—or several, in the likely case that your product will serve many needs—helps you articulate your hypotheses about how customers might experience your invention. Resist the urge to put off writing these narratives until after testing: Inventors are usually surprised by what inexperienced users do when they first encounter the prototype, and comparing the testing data with prewritten user stories is a great way to understand where your blind spots are. 

As for what’s lurking in those blind spots, be open to pleasant surprises. You may hear uses for your product that you’d never dreamed of—perhaps a wedding photographer who programs the drone to follow the bride around the dance floor, or a farmer who uses it to locate his herd on an expansive ranch. The more uses testers come up with, the greater your potential for market share.
 

Edition details

• Publisher: Weldon Owen
• Publication date: 2017
• ISBN 10: 1681881586
• ISBN 13: 9781681881584
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 248