Patent Attorney and Founder
Hi everyone, I’m J.D. Houvener, your host of the Bold Today’s Show. Whether you’re an inventor, entrepreneur, or business owner, you’re in the right place to get your daily dose of inspiration to make the world a better place. I’m still here in the maker space, and behind me, you can see this nice, huge oven. This is where we cook carbon fiber material, as we discussed on Monday. The material is heated at temperatures of up to 500 degrees Fahrenheit to achieve significant compression for specific substances that need to be attached to the substrate. Pretty cool stuff.
Now, let’s talk about design patents. We’re still discussing rainy weather, and this is the last day of it. To answer your question from yesterday, if it wasn’t clear about the umbrella, its original inventor was the Samuel Fox Company. Samuel Fox invented the umbrella as we know it. The steel tube with a hollow core was first invented in 1842 and was inspired by the quill of a bird and the bird feather, as it is hollow. He started creating those umbrellas in 1842, and you can find them online at foxumbrella.com.
Today, let’s talk about an interesting innovation, one of the last ways to protect yourself from getting wet, especially in the face. When you’re walking to the bus or coming home from work, what’s the major way to avoid getting rain in your face if you’re not using an umbrella? Well, it’s a hat. There are many design patents around hats, so let’s feature one for you today.
Now, you might be thinking, “A hat for my dog?” Yes, it’s an animal hat, purely ornamental. Take a close look at the image. It shows a top baseball-style hat in black lines, with dashed lines where it attaches underneath the animal’s chin. They didn’t want to claim that attachment mechanism, leaving it up for grabs and more vague in this design patent. It’s one of the ways that an inventor and their advocate can get a broader claim by leaving things in dashed lines.
If you’re out there with a creative idea, whether it’s for hats, umbrellas, windshield wipers, tire treads, or anything that helps us stay safe and dry, bring it out. We’d love to hear about it. Check us out on our website at boldIP.com and schedule a free 30-minute consultation. We’d love to hear from you. Have a great weekend, everybody. I’m J.D. Houvener of Bold Patents. Go big, go bold.