Recap of the 25th Annual INPEX® Invention Show

INPEX 2010, America's Largest Invention Trade Show, was held June 16-18 at the Monroeville Convention Center, just outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. INPEX 2010 had the highest level of corporate participation in its history, with more than 1,000 business attendees and a record number of product searches. In all, this year's show featured 1,500 inventions from 30 countries.

Read more articles from the July 2010 issue of InventHelp's newsletter for inventors

This was the 25th anniversary year for INPEX, which has been held by InventHelp starting in the 1980’s. InventHelp President Bob Susa said the event plays a role in publicizing inventions to corporate representatives. "We’re in business to introduce new inventions to companies in hope of a good-faith review," Susa said. "The show is successful because it brings together enough inventions to make it worthwhile for companies to come and browse amongst many different ideas."

Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari & Chuck E. Cheese, was this year’s keynote speaker. Mr. Bushnell presented to a standing-room-only crowd as he kicked off INPEX 2010 with the traditional ribbon cutting ceremony. The three-day event created a lively environment for both inventors and attendees alike. The Tonight Show was even on hand to film for a new segment, with comedian Jim Norton interviewing inventors with the results airing in early July.

InventHelp's INPEX 2010INPEX featured a collection of seminars, speakers, networking events and other resources for exhibitors, with the goal of educating them in the invention industry. "Everyone that has a viable idea should exhibit at INPEX to learn the nuts and bolts of the process of what it takes," said INPEX exhibitor Tony Aceti.

A favorite among exhibitors was the INPEX Inventors University™, which featured presentations from industry experts such as Berny Dohrmann, Chairman of CEO Space, Jon Goldman, President of LumpyMail.com and Jan Mink, President of Key Marketing LLC, among many others. The university provided a venue to learn about entrepreneurship and business development, funding opportunities, tips on exhibiting at invention shows and other inventor-related topics. "We educate the inventors before they go out on the show floor, so they’re ready when and if an opportunity arrives," Susa said.

Numerous companies conducted private product reviews at INPEX 2010, including The Robert Bosch Tool Corporation, Tupperwhare, Ronco, Radio Flyer, Church & Dwight, Step2/Infantino, Omron Healthcare, Clorox, Electronic Retailing Association (ERA) and SkyMall. Inventors received feedback on their inventions and discussed possible interest in moving forward with their ideas.

On Friday evening, June 18th, the annual INPEX International Awards Dinner was held at the Monroeville Convention Center. An International Jury judged the inventions throughout the week and awarded jury, merit and special awards to inventors. The top three prizes went to:

  • Grand Prix 2nd Runner Up ($2,000): Jim Feng (USA) for iKool
  • Grand Prix 1st Runner Up ($3,000): Vilko Ziljak, Klaudo Pap, Jana Vujic Ziljak and Ivana Ziljak (Croatia) for Infraredesign
  • Grand Prix ($7,500): Don Blalock (USA) for Aeonian Brick Homes

Exhausted yet energized, many inventors went home with new contacts, ideas and even a few friends. David Barlowe, inventor of Majic Sprayer, had this to say about his experience at INPEX 2010: "Everything was perfect! I couldn’t imagine things going as well as they did. On a scale of 1 to 10 I would have to give this year’s show a 100!"

InventHelp and INPEX would like to thank:

  • Sponsors: Skyline Displays of Pittsburgh, Radio Flyer, CEO Space, and the Convention and Visitors Bureau of Greater Monroeville
  • The companies who attended INPEX to conduct product reviews and searches
  • Our incredible, inventor-friendly show staff
  • The exhibitors and attendees who made the 25th anniversary show an unforgettable experience. See you next year at INPEX 2011

For more information about INPEX, please call 1-800-54-INPEX or visit InventHelp's INPEX website.

ATIV SoftwareSpecial thanks goes out to ATIV Software, who did a wonderful job creating the INPEX 2010 iPhone app! ATIV Software provides the mobile platform EventPilot, a customizable mobile conference guide for event and meeting planners. EventPilot is available for the iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Android, BlackBerry, and web-enabled mobile devices.



Back to July 2010 Newsletter

 

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