Bill's brilliant but unpatentable ideas, number three.
Situation: I'm aging and my eyesight is beginning to fail, especially in poor lighting conditions. (Damn all those energy saving bulbs, save my eyes instead!)
Solution: my Local Maplins had a special offer on magnifiers with built in LEDs. I bought one enthusiastically on Wednesday.
Problem: I managed to open the packet but couldn't read the instructions even under torchlight. Nor could I figure out how to fit the three included batteries as I couldn't see whether the slots were marked plus or minus without a magnifier.... "Catch 22" comes to mind.
Solution 2: I went back to the store and asked for help. They didn't even demand to see the receipt, and I was quite relieved when it took the assistant five minutes to fix. It would have been so embarrassing if they'd done it in 30 seconds.
Downside 1: I'm pretty sure you can't patent good Customer Service.
Solution 3: MY idea, which is mine unless you pay me for it handsomely. When selling gadgets to the visually impaired, make sure the instructions are readable BEFORE they try and assemble it.
Downside 2: I guess you can't patent "large print" either.
Irony aside: when I finally got to use it, the magnifier showed that its own instructions didn't actually state how to assemble it. I wish I could patent common sense, it seems to be far rarer than its name suggests.
Solution: my Local Maplins had a special offer on magnifiers with built in LEDs. I bought one enthusiastically on Wednesday.
Problem: I managed to open the packet but couldn't read the instructions even under torchlight. Nor could I figure out how to fit the three included batteries as I couldn't see whether the slots were marked plus or minus without a magnifier.... "Catch 22" comes to mind.
Solution 2: I went back to the store and asked for help. They didn't even demand to see the receipt, and I was quite relieved when it took the assistant five minutes to fix. It would have been so embarrassing if they'd done it in 30 seconds.
Downside 1: I'm pretty sure you can't patent good Customer Service.
Solution 3: MY idea, which is mine unless you pay me for it handsomely. When selling gadgets to the visually impaired, make sure the instructions are readable BEFORE they try and assemble it.
Downside 2: I guess you can't patent "large print" either.
Irony aside: when I finally got to use it, the magnifier showed that its own instructions didn't actually state how to assemble it. I wish I could patent common sense, it seems to be far rarer than its name suggests.