Great Inventions, Part I

Great Inventions, Part I

Have you ever thought about inventing. Have you ever thought about coming up with an awesome invention. We asked some of the greatest inventors to share a little bit about their products and life.

As you can see, being an inventor can be successful. Here are some of their thoughts.

Based in St. Louis, Missouri, Veggie Cage, LLC is the developer and manufacturer of innovative plant supports for the garden and horticulture markets. Established in 2003, the company was created with the express purpose of designing products to make it easier for people to participate in the one of the world´s most rewarding activities--gardening! Led by its founders, Michel Paille and Robert Sanazaro, the Veggie Cage Company has enjoyed great success with its innovative plant supports, for both the home garden enthusiast and professional grower.

Its namesake product, the Veggie Cage, was originally invented by the company´s founders for use in the Paille family´s extensive vegetable garden. There had to be a way, they reasoned, to eliminate the time-consuming and tedious task of tying and retying tomato plants to a stake, without having to resort to using those awkward and unattractive metal cages. In devising the Veggie Cage, they found that the simple green spiral was not only an ideal support for even very robust tomato plants but could be used with a number of other plants and flowers as well. Additionally, the fact that Veggie Cages become nearly invisible in the foliage of mature plants has proven to be a plus.

According to co-founder Rob Sanazaro, this is a feature that has become increasingly important to consumers. "The trend in vegetable gardening," he says, "has evolved from being simply functional to being both functional and aesthetically pleasing. In fact, home gardeners today enjoy mixing vegetables and flowers, even roses, in the same bed. So, whatever plant support is used must not only do the job but look good doing it!"

In 2008, the Veggie Cage Company began development of a new plant support particularly focused toward supporting tomatoes, for both home and commercial applications. This latest product, called the Tomato Ring, was recently launched for the 2009 season. Like the Veggie Cage, the Tomato Ring excels in ease of use as well as extremely minimal space requirement for off-season storage.

While Veggie Cage, LLC has grown and expanded, it has retained its family-business emphasis on friendly and responsive customer service. We continue to offer only products that are made in the U.S.A. And, of course, one thing will never change: the company´s goal of enhancing the enjoyment of growing vegetables and flowers by simply making it easier.

Michel Paille www.veggiecage.com

Ian White, inventor of the monoMASTER, owner or Grasshopper Outdoor Products, Ltd

The monoMASTER is a "green" tool designed to help the environment. It is a tool used by fishermen to help them manage all the waste monofilament (fishing line) they generate while fishing. Recreational anglers in the US generate enough waste line to go around the Earth 45 times, and when dropped in the environment lasts over 600 years!

The monoMASTER has received official endorsements from national organizations such as the Federation of Fly Fishers (FFF) and also a celebrity endorsement from Richard Friedenberg (A River Runs Through It). The monoMASTER was recently featured in Field & Stream's 2008 "Best of the Best" issue and won a silver award from Fish Alaska Magazine. It is being sold in tackle stores globally and our customers include Orvis and Cabela's, the two largest fishing retailers in the world.

Ian White www.monomaster.com

The Fab Fob Company is the manufacturer of the Fobbie®, Gift Wrapping in a Cinch! This new way to gift wrap was invented by it's President, Liz Mrofka. The Fobbie® is a 3.5" square or round card that has a greeting or graphic and 8 parallel slots. You thread two pieces of ribbon in opposite directions around your gift and through the slots, cinch it down, trim the ends and you're done.

The Fobbie® comes in Holiday, All Occasion, Picture Frame and Do-It-Yourself versions. They are made from recycled materials and soy or safe inks. They are durable, reusable and recyclable. The Fobbie® is easy to use, gives a professionally wrapped look and is perfect for mailing‹no smashed bows!

Liz Mrofka Www.fobbie.com

Rehkemper Invention & Design (RID) has provided Industrial Design product design, development, engineering, and prototyping services to hundreds of customers, including McDonald´s (Happy Meals), Bally (pinball machines), and Topps (novelties).

Steve and Jeff Rehkemper are prolific inventors who have 81 issued patents to date, both domestic and international, with 19 related to flying toys and 13 related to oral care products. One notable patented invention is for a micro sized air engine. Rehkemper inventions have resulted in over $1 billion in combined sales for its clients including Mattel, Fisher-Price, Hasbro, Spin Master, Techno Source, and many others.

RID has a very strong reputation in electronic and mechanical engineering and has applied those resources toward features used in many highly recognizable brands marketed by its clients such as Barbie, Sesame Street (Elmo), Dora the Explorer, Rubik´s, and Disney.

RID inventions have also resulted in the creation of new brands such as Pixter (the first electronic touch screen activity toy) as well as Giga Pets, Flick Trix, and Tuggles. Most notably, RID is responsible for reinventing the flying toy category with items like air powered airplanes and the very first remote controlled toy helicopter under the now famous Air Hogs brand.

Rehkemper Invention & Design is dedicated to creating and developing highly innovative and affordable consumer products and is committed to achieving a leadership role in each product category it enters by providing the most creative vision coupled with the most diligent product development to deliver significant benefits in each of its products.

Steve Rehkemper www.rehkemper.com

Since 1958, the Minnesota Inventors Congress (MIC) has hosted an invention show in Redwood Falls, Minnesota. This event provides inventors an opportunity to test market their product/s. During the event inventors, from across the country, attend Inventing Success™ Workshops. These workshops teach the product development process.

Through our year round Inventors Resource Center, knowledgeable staff help inventors learn the most importance investment they can make is to know how successful inventors develop marketable products. By directing inventors to reliable resources we help them understand that by being intimately involved in the process they will be able to make the best decisions for them. We also provide information that is available from the United States Patent and Trademark Office and the Federal Trade Commission about invention promotion firms. The MIC is a Non-Profit 501(c)(3) Organization.

Minnesota Inventors Congress www.minnesotainventorscongress.org