Invention Submission Program
Develop New Inventions to Sell or License

A good invention submission partner is one way an inventor can maximize the likelihood of success. Presenting an invention to potential licensees requires the invention to be developed beyond the idea stage. A working prototype is critical. The value of the prototype is enhanced if the design is also engineered for manufacturing and accompanied by research on prior art. The partner who submits the invention should also have a good understanding of the marketplace.

Invention City is pleased to present Davison Inventegration®, a process for developing submission ready inventions. Davison is well equipped to help inventors turn an undeveloped idea into an invention that can be presented to potential licensees. Click below to submit your invention and learn more:

Selling or licensing an invention is tricky and getting a good non-disclosure agreement is important. The best and often the only way to get a worthwhile non-disclosure agreement (NDA) is to have advance credibility with the potential licensee. This is something that a good invention submission partner offers to a new inventor.

The issues described above are some of the reasons an inventor would want and benefit from an established well-respected partner who can both develop an invention and then submit the invention on behalf of the inventor.

Licensing is the easiest path to commercialization and profit: you get paid while someone else takes your invention, turns it into a product and manages the day to day grind of making and selling it.

When you give a company the right to make and sell your invention in return for payment, you are granting a license - you are the “licensor” the company is the “licensee”.    The payment can be an ongoing percentage of sales, a “royalty”, or it can be a one-time payment, a “buyout”.

The downsides to licensing are lack of control and a smaller share of profits. The upsides are less work, less investment and less risk. If you want to maximize the potential return from your invention AND you are willing to work extraordinarily hard AND you have the ability to build and manage a business… then licensing might not be the right solution for you. For everyone else it’s a path worth serious consideration.

Many inventors harbor the fantasy that someone will pay for an undeveloped idea. While fantasies sometimes come true (someone does win the lottery), you should keep your feet planted firmly in reality. Fortune 500 corporations will only license patented (or patent pending) inventions. Smaller companies are more flexible but also have a strong preference for ideas that are developed and possess some form of intellectual property protection.

The steps to licensing an invention are as follows:

1.      Identify & research target companies.
2.      Approach prime targets
3.      Confidentiality agreement
4.      Prepare for negotiation
5.      Initial presentation
6.      Negotiate
7.      Marriage
8.      Divorce and Remarriage

Read more in Inventing 102: Introduction to Licensing