Online Resources for Innovators

By Neil Armand
Posted Tuesday, July 6, 2004

Small businesses, independent innovators, authors, and artists often find it difficult to locate useful sources of information and services pertaining to intellectual property industry. A number of online forums, including Patentcafe.com, NewIdeaTrade.com, and Inventioncity.com now provide innovators a wide range of free tools and resources.

At (http://www.newideatrade.com/inventions.htm) innovators can find detailed information on how to obtain a patent and a list of patent/copyright offices and intellectual property associations around the world. They can also review a sample non-disclosure agreement that can be used when someone with an unpatented idea or invention wants to show it to another party, and wants that party to not disclose any of the information. The forum also lists several free tools and resources that help innovators promote their websites.

At (http://www.patentcafe.com), innovators can find information on invention evaluation, patent licensing, product development, patent search, and patent software. It also publishes useful articles on various aspects of the intellectual property industry. Innovators can also register their websites on its directory.

InventionCity (http://www.inventioncity.com) offers a host of tools and information including innovation market research, manufacturing, financing, and marketing resources. It also allows innovators to post their intellectual property on its database. In addition, it offers a list of helpful books and articles ranging from mastering the dynamics of innovation to anatomy of a business plan.

About the Author
Neil Armand
Intellectual property Professional
Global Commerce & Communication
Telephone: 320-250-0950
Fax: 320-230-1096
Email: gcomm@astound.net
URL: (http://www.gcchq.com)