Many inventors apply for awards, but in order to win, they often need working prototypes for judges to examine, and that can be an expensive gamble.
Local manufacturing company
Proto Labs aims to change that scenario by offering an award that allows inventors to make those prototypes, with Proto Labs footing all or some of the bill.
Launched in April, The Cool Idea! Award is designed to give product designers, entrepreneurs, and inventors an opportunity to see their visions transformed into working models. The firm is providing an aggregate sum of up to $100,000 worth of prototyping and short-run production services to award recipients, so they can take their product idea from a 3D CAD model to a first-run production stage.
"We wanted to recognize people who have truly cool ideas, but who need help bringing them to market," says Bill Dietrick, Proto Labs' vice president of marketing. "Other award programs only kick in when a product is in the market and commercially viable. We wanted to help people who are further back in the process."
Proto Labs will choose several winners throughout the year. The first award recipient, TruFlavorWare, will use the manufacturer's services to prototype a set a flatware designed for people undergoing chemotherapy. The flatware eliminates the bitter metallic aftertaste caused by traditional forks and spoons.
Entries have been coming in at a rapid pace, and Dietrick notes that they're overwhelmed with applicants. Because of the wealth of great ideas, the company created a new category called "honorable mention" and awards those winners a reduced manufacturing cost if they decide to use Proto Labs.
Although the program is currently available only to innovators in the United States, the company is considering opening up the awards next year to inventors worldwide.
"It's really been wildly successful so far," Dietrick says. "It's great to see all the amazing ideas that inventors have, everything from robotics to household products."
Source: Bill Dietrick, Proto Labs
Writer: Elizabeth Millard