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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 21, 1998)
Page 6 The INDEPENDENT, January 21,1998 — Com m unity HMM s>W:S . X ff' ^ •x. ■* ' ________ _____ / 'i «xí-.'í f w:; —— M M M » M M Have you ever used a mouse trap?Surely, with over two thousand different patents and many homemade versions out there, you have. Maybe you even designed one and are one of those many patent holders. If you go to any store, though, I don’t think you’ll find more than three types of this trap on the shelf for sale. Wherever you are at this moment, stop reading this arti cle, glance around and take note of the manufactured goods around you. No matter where you are, something de signed or invented by someone to make your life easier or more comfortable will be near. Whatever you look at proba bly has a patent on it, or one pending. Someone might have even made a lot of money for their idea, and some might even have spent a lot of money on an idea that hasn’t come to market yet. Today we are close to the six-million mark in numbers given to patents. But are there six million different products out there to use? Take the mouse trap, for instance. Prob ably two dozen of the 2,000 types are actually being manu factured. Why? Most are prob ably only slightly different from another and, I would bet, most are either not efficient or “plain don’t work”! A product doesn’t have to work efficiently to gain a patent. In 1790 the first patent was issued (I believe to Ben Franklin) and a hundred years later the chief patent superin- tendant, Charles Duell, wanted to close the U.S. Patent Office because, “everything that can be invented has been.” His tenure came late in a century of discovery. There must have been a slowing-down of tech nology to warrant such a state ment from him. In the 1930s many minds became inspired and people came up with thou sands of ideas and inventions that would better their fellow man. Backbreaking agriculture was the main occupation in the world at that time and many patents were issued that dealt with the growing and harvest ing of food. Manufacturing was very important and develop ment in manufacturing tech niques brought about great in ventions for raising and supply ing food products. The steam engine was a major develop ment. Factories, locomotives and equipment powered by this great steam energy greatly changed the landscape of our nation and the world. When crude oil was discov ered, petroleum products and their varied uses-along with the many inventions that used them-became increasingly im portant. Electricity was harnessed and put to use, creating many more inventions to make life more comfortable. With developments in the 20th century, life became easi er and more minds went to work doing more developing. Many fortunes were made and profits could be great with earnings from an idea that “made it”. But, of the nearly six million patents, how many ac tually went to work for us, and how many are obsolete now? How many of you have in vented something—only to dis cover that it already had a patent issued 80 or 90 years ago? It is truly amazing, the number of things that are “new ly” invented that were patented many years ago. It is like re-in- venting the wheel. Many ideas that were tried years ago might make it in today’s market but are deemed old-fashioned, so the consumer goes without that little gadget that would really be useful. And how many so-called “useful” gadgets are sitting on shelves in our homes? And how many good ideas and inventions are sitting on shelves in someone’s shop, studio or mind, waiting to come forth? In Oregon, many inventions and patents have been issued over the years. It has been said that with all of our rain and wet weather, great minds stay in doors and think things up! Ore- gon today is ranked eighth of our 50 states on the list of patents issued. Most of these patents are credited to the electronics industries and a certain shoe company. Many individuals though, right here in our town, have credit for patents issued to their inventions. One fellow de signed some logging equip ment 30 years ago and had a manufacturer build prototypes of a backsaving device —only to have a more modem tech nology make his invention ob solete. Just like in the electron ics business, when something is developed and, by the time it is manufactured and marketed, it is basically obsolete. So there is always room for more ideas! Quite a handful of inventors, engineers and tinkerers out there have had patents issued to them. Many of these inven tions are used daily, some by men in the woods, others by housewives in their homes. Most of us don’t know where they came from or how they are used or have changed our lives. Some are simple devices and some are very technical. No matter what it is, though, from something as simple as the zipper on your clothing or the parts in your computer, someone, somewhere, thought it up! EXTRACT —/AWAY "When You Want It Done RIGHT the First Time’ MSA Theory Jazz The Columbia County Area Agency on Aging Advisory Council is seeking volunteers to fill Council vacancies. Re sponsibilities include advising the Columbia County Board of Commissioners on needed ser vices for Seniors, advocating on behalf of Senior Citizens. The Advisory Council meets at the courthouse on the first Monday of each month, 10:30 a.m.-12:00 noon. All interested persons, regardless of age, are urged to apply. For an application, call Dar lene Smith at 397-3511. 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