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••Resource Catalog for Inventors  Business Services     Technology Support & Equipment    Helpful Links

NEW: Business Opportunity Template

Download the PowerPoint Template Now

Can you crisply describe your core business, your competition, your marketing and sales strategies, your financial projection, and your risk mitigation strategy?  This template will walk you through these areas and several more, without laborous reading. 

Whether you are just starting to forge your high-tech business idea, or need some help to formalize certain parts of your business strategy, the Business Opportunity Template should be of help to you.  The information you provide to answer the questions in this template serve as a starting point for any discussion with your business development team: advisors, financers, lawyers, accountants and other business partners. 

If you would like to schedule a meeting to have an in-person walk through of this template or any of the topics it covers, please contact us.  We can also help you to develop a complete portfolio of business development resources including: a formal business structure, preparing an "elevator pitch", writing a business summary, and writing a detailed business plan.

Resource Catalog for Inventors

http://www.freepatentsonline.com - a free patent searching website with some additional features

New:  The USPTO has created a new Web site to help small businesses consider the
benefits of strong IP protection - both in the United States and overseas - and decide whether it is right for them. This site includes important information on whether and when to file for intellectual property protection, what type of protection to file for, where to file, and how to go about it.   The web site, www.stopfakes.gov/smallbusiness   has been created to provide important information on whether and when to file for intellectual property protection, what type of protection to file for, where to file and how to go about it.

US Patent and Trademark Office

http://www.uspto.gov/index.html

Home page of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, an Agency of the United States Department of Commerce

http://www.uspto.gov/ebc

The Patent Electronic Business Center is the place for performing electronic business transactions with the USPTO. At this site you will find a growing set of tools that will allow you to submit information and applications, retrieve data and check the status of pending actions

http://www.nal.usda.gov/ttic/invent.htm

Provides information on Inventors Inventor Resources, Business Assistance, R&D Funding, Business Incubators, Venture Capital

Inventors' resources include

• Inventor Organizations and Associations
• Intellectual Property Publications
• Independent Inventor Resources from the USPTO
• Patent information from the Technology Transfer FAQ
• Keeping a Laboratory Notebook from BTG

Magazines 

http://www.entrepreneur.com/

Entrepreneur Magazine has numerous articles for small business leaders. It also sells step-by-step books through smallbizbooks.com 

http://www.iptoday.com/

Intellectual Property Todayú is a publication focused on issues in intellectual property (patent, trademark and copyright ) law. Editorial content is geared to the professionals, attorneys, patent agents and executives within those companies who provide products and services to this industry. Features emphasize developments in leading edge technology (i.e. multimedia, genetic engineering, computer software, biotechnology, etc) and how they effect the aforementioned disciplines of law.

Online Patent Guides

http://www.idearights.com/index.asp

Free patent information from James E. White that other people will pay ãfrom $24.95 (plus shipping) all the way up to $495ä

http://www.newyork.bbb.org/library/publications/subrep73.html

Better Business Bureau ö Concise guide on the subject ãObtaining a Patent and
Invention Developmentä

http://www.dreamstomarket.com/guides.asp

Innovator and Business Guides on topics include:

• Innovators
• FAQ's About Inventing
• First Steps With Your New Idea
• Innovator's Summary Guide
• New Innovator Guide
• Experienced Innovator Guide
• Businesses
• Patent Strategies For Business Success
• New to Business Guide
• Experienced Business Guide

Patent Search Information 

http://www.detroit.lib.mi.us/glptc/patent_searching.htm

Patent search information from Librarians at the Great Lakes Patent and Trademark Center

http://www.lib.utexas.edu/engin/patent-tutorial/index.htm

Patent search online tutorial

Patent Books

http://www.frompatenttoprofit.com/Essentials%20of%20Patents.htm

Essentials of Patents is an insightful guide for business professionals who seek to have a better understanding of patents for strategic intelligence purposes. The book provides readers with the basics behind the nature of patents, the importance of patents when it comes to measuring corporate wealth, and a straightforward approach to establishing a Patent Quality Management (PQM) system

http://www.smallbizbooks.com/cgi-bin/SmallBizBooks/00055.html?id=Zuk9xHEe

Bringing Your Product to Market

This easy-to-follow guide takes you through all the steps you need to know to make your product a reality. It's all here, from evaluating and protecting your idea to developing a prototype for market testing to finding the best way to promote and market your product for maximum sales. Appendix A includes a comprehensive consideration of Patent Strategies.

http://www.nolo.com/lawstore/products/product.cfm/ObjectID/139AEDE9-69A0-4810-A7A87D2AD5422664

Patent It Yourself by David Pressman

http://www.inventorshq.com/thebook.htm

Inventor's Pocket Guide by Randy Moyse

http://www.inventionbook.com/

Investor's Guide to Patents by Bob Stonecypher

Patent Attorney Listings 

http://lawyers.martindale.com/xp/Martindale/home.xml

International Patent Information

www.wipo.int

Information about the PCT application process from the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO)

http://www.pcug.org.au/~arhen/

Links to patent offices worldwide

http://www.smallbusiness.co.uk/directory/legal-services/intellectual-property.html

Intellectual property and patent information for the United Kingdom

http://www.ipaustralia.gov.au/patents/search_index.shtml

Australia

http://www.adeco.com/pdf/patentsystem.pdf

Patents: Protecting Your Inventions , a booklet by Ade & Company, that includes Canadian patent information

http://www.vuw.ac.nz/library/resources/patents.shtml

New Zealand

www.ipos.gov.sg

Singapore

Additional Information

http://www.ptdla.org/resources/ippubs.html

Patent and Trademark Depository Library Association ö Online Trademark and Patent Resources includes comprehensive information on subjects including an ãInventor's Handbookä news, legal documents and newsletters. 

http://www.dreamstomarket.com/guides15.asp

National, State and International Inventors Clubs listing which includes Michigan

Business Services

The SmartZone can offer assistance with a wide variety of business services and counseling, networking forums and educational programs.  The following is a list of such services:

Business Plan Development

• Plan Review
• Financial Projections Modeling
• Market Research Assistance
• Financing Options Assessment
• Management Team, Scientific Advisors, Business Advisors, Board Members
• Competitive Analysis
• Background, Templates, Instructions, Models
• Shadow Boards, Executive Mentors

Human Resources

• Hiring Staff, Personnel Development
• Setting Up Payroll
• Insurance: D&O, Corporate Liability, Product Liability, Health & Dental, Worker's Comp.
• Understanding State , Federal Regulations
• Student Interns & Co-Ops

Finance

• General Ledger, Purchase Orders, Check Writing
• Tax Assistance
• Agreements & Term Sheets

Raising Capital

• Equity Financing
• Debt Financing
• Government Grants
• Strategic Corporate Partners
• Presentations, Practicing Pitches
• Investment Forums

Project Management

• Technical Assistance
• Quality Assurance
• Testing
• Protocols, SOP's
• ISO Approval, CE Mark, FDA Approval

Marketing

• Web siteö Hosting, Creating, Maintaining
• Market Research
• Foreign Sales/Exporting
• Internet Sales
• Trade shows
• Development of Logo, Marketing Materials
• PR through low-cost news wire service

Legal

• Incorporation
• Corporate, Contract Advise
• Regulatory
• Patents & Trademarks

Contact the SmartZone for additional information about these services and how the SmartZone might help you start a high-tech company or grow an existing one.

Technology Support and Equipment

Michigan Technological University is actively growing its research base and has world-class faculty and staff, many of whom welcome collaborations and partnerships with entrepreneurs and technology companies.  Additionally, the university has test equipment and facilities that can be made available to SmartZone companies to assist them in growing their businesses.  Whether one is looking for expertise in biosensors or material science, or the latest models of scanning electron microscopes or spectrographic analysis equipment, the SmartZone can put you in touch with people at the university who can help.  This section of the MTEC web site will eventually link to the different university departments and lists of available equipment once they are all on-line.  In the meanwhile, if you have needs for technical support or specialized testing apparatus, please contact the SmartZone and we will help you.

Helpful Links

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