X18. Invention technique

1. Definition of invention

According to the Patent Law, an invention is defined as a high-level thing in which the use of the laws of nature is reproduced as the creation of a technical idea. It means that it is limited to making new things using the laws of nature.

Invention and discovery are two different concepts. But in general, in many cases, discoveries lead to inventions. 

2. General Invention Techniques

In general, it is common for inventions to obtain ideas from existing products. And then the idea transforms the existing products to invent new things. The main invention techniques are as follows: Addition, Subtraction, Reuse, Shape change, Material replacement, Imitation, Reverse, Resizing, and Convenience technique

3. Necessity of prior art search

Not all inventions lead to patents. The absence of a product on the market related to an idea does not 100% lead to the absence of a patent. Therefore, it is necessary to check whether there is no prior art related to the idea. At the same time, just because a similar idea has already been patented doesn't mean you have to give up. This is because inventions can be reinforced by supplementing ideas to differentiate them from prior art. Lastly, it is necessary to avoid vague patent application and acquisition because it requires a lot of cost and effort to acquire, and maintain, a patent.

4. TRIZ invention technique

It refers to a structural approach to achieve innovation in invention technique. There are three basic elements of TRIZ:

1) Ideal Final Result: It refers to the sum of the useful functions of the system divided by the sum of the useless functions

2) Contradiction: Contradiction is considered the most important concept in TRIZ. It consists of physical contradiction and functional contradiction.

3) Systemic approach: It is a theory that systems do not exist independently, and each system is composed of a supersystem and a subsystem that organically interact with each other.

5. Disassembly and recombination of components

1) Disassembly of components: From the point of view of creative engineering, an invention can be defined as changing the basic components of a product or method and thereby creating a new product or method. At this time, each component can be divided into a material component, a structural component, and a functional component according to the subject of invention.

2) Addition of components (A + B + C -> A + B + C + D)

3) Deletion of a component (A + B + C + D -> A + B + C)

4) Substitution of components (A + B + C + D -> A + B + C + E)