LIFESTYLE
10 CELEBS THAT HOLD A PATENT
Some of your favorite celebrities aren’t just famous in their field; some of them were also inventors. They didn’t just look good on the red carpet, but they were also good with their hands.
A patent is a license the government awards a person that gives them the sole right to stop others from making, using, or selling their invention.
Now how do you get a Patent?
The inventor applies for a patent to protect his invention and ensure that even if it is marketed, he will benefit solely. The inventor starts with a patent registration where he applies for a patent and clearly outlines what his patent would cover to avoid a patent break lawsuit.
A patent break lawsuit comes up after the offending party has not responded favorably to the patent enforcement.
Here are ten celebrities who know all about holding a patent to a great discovery.
1. Michael Jackson
The smooth criminal singer and inventor of the gravity-defying dance step was also an inventor. For Michael Jackson to accomplish the gravity-defying dance, he and two other people designed a special shoe.
In 1992, Michael and his friends submitted a patent application to the US Patent and Trademark Office. They were granted their patent for in October 1993 for “Method and Means of Creating Anti-Gravity illusion” with a patent number of 5,255,452.
2. Steve McQueen
Steve “King of Cool” McQueen is one other celebrity that has a patent. Steve wasn’t just the award-winning actor that graced our screens; he was an avid racer who enjoyed racing cars, horses, and motorcycles. Whenever Steve was off-screen, he was sure to be found on a motorcycle or in the driver’s seat of a car doing what he loved.
It wasn’t a surprise when he invented and patented a type of bucket seat that was more suited to racing.
3. Paul Winchell
Paul Winchell was a talented ventriloquist in his time. However, making dummies come to life wasn’t all he was talented at. Paul designed, built, and patented the mechanical heart – such a great discovery that would save lives. Together with Henry Heimlich, who would later patent his invention, they tested the contraption out and had it patented.
4. Eddie Van Halen
Eddie Van Halen didn’t just play phenomenally with all 10 of his fingers; he was also smart. Eddie was frustrated over the fact that he couldn’t have support for his guitar while he played with all 10 of his fingers. To make things easier for him, he designed, built, and patented a support bar that lets him go at all the strings.
5. Neil Young
A rock star at night, an avid train collector at night indeed! Neil Young was so passionate about trains and helping his son enjoy them as much as he did that, he designed a wireless controller. His son Ben had cerebral palsy, so the wireless controller made playing with the trains with ease.
6. Jaime Lee Curtis
Motherhood can leave you frustrated, especially when you forget to pack baby wipes. Jaime Lee Curtis must have felt this frustration one time too many. She designed and built a little waterproof pocket on one side of her baby’s diaper, which let her put wipes inside it. She patented her discovery but as useful as it was, it was not used because Jaimie insisted on diaper companies using biodegradable materials.
7. James Cameron
James Cameron was passionate about his work as a movie photographer, and it was that passion that led him to his invention. Set to shoot a scene underwater, James felt that he wouldn’t get the best clips and so he and his brother designed a contraption to help them overcome their problems.
They filed for patenting and used the same technology to get good clips during the filming of Titanic.
8. Herbert Zeppo Marx
Although Herbert did well in the movies he acted, he was much better at thinking and invention. He invented a device called the pulse rate monitor. The pulse rate monitor reads the pulse of the person wearing it and prompts the person that stops any harmful activity they are carrying out.
9. Francis Ford Coppola
All of us have that one annoying itch we can’t reach. Amid the irritating discomfort, we look around and realize that we need to reach that scratch. Even when you get someone to scratch the itch, they don’t always get it right.
Francis had had one too many failed attempts and so out of necessity designed the Garment for identifying the location of the body of the garment wearer.
10. Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando didn’t just regale us with drums because he enjoyed hearing the sound; he was passionate about drums. Marlon designed the drumhead tensioning device which changed the design of drums.
In essence, these celebs own these inventions, and anyone who breaks them should be prepared for a patent break lawsuit and patent endorsement papers.