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Most people have heard of a Hoover, but almost as many have now heard of a Dyson, too, as the brand has become synonymous with innovation in vacuum cleaning, and in other household products, too.
Dyson's success - the company now has more than a third of the UK market for vacuum cleaners - has not been without conflict. And one key plank of its progress has been ensuring that the innovations in its products - in combination, the company's intellectual property - were carefully protected.
The story goes that James Dyson's inspiration for his cyclonic vacuum cleaner technology was the air extractor at a coating plant. And the initial frustration that had led him to seek inspiration, was the way that his regular vacuum cleaner became less efficient as its dust bag filled up.
Dyson had the good sense to consult an experienced intellectual property (or IP) lawyer who advised him to ensure his new technology was patented. And, thanks to that important step, he was in the ideal position to be able to defend himself against a much larger rival, when they developed a product that looked remarkably similar to his cyclone vacuum. That rival was Hoover, who Dyson took to court in 2000 to sue them for patent infringement. It is understood the successful claim meant around $5 million in damages - but more importantly, it stopped Hoover and others from copying the Dyson design and ensured his leading design had no clear rivals in the marketplace.
Hiring a specialist IP lawyer as Dyson did will make sure you are informed about the best way to protect your intellectual property, whether through use of a patent, or another route such as registering a trademark or a copyright. Early advice and action is vital; had Dyson waited until his first model was selling well, he could have laid himself open to having his proprietary design copied, without any legal protection or comeback against those benefiting from the sales of a product with a similar design.
In the case of a patent, the rules of patentability are laid down in law, and certain discoveries are exempted from the process. These exemptions include items already existing in nature, scientific theories, and some diagnostic methods. And to qualify, a new product must be capable of actual manufacture; and it must be something that is clearly new.
So intellectual property advice from a properly qualified specialist IP Lawyer will be vital in ensuring that a patent is both the correct route to take, and that the documents are correctly filed to provide the highest degree of commercial protection. Taking the right IP advice could mean your invention turns you into the next James Dyson!
