A spring from a ship lab
A spring that walks down stairs
More than 250 million sold
In 1943 Richard James, an engineer, was working with springs on a device to steady equipment on Navy ships. One fell off a shelf and kept walking. Springs were already everywhere. He patented a spring with the right size and steel to walk down stairs on its own.
The everyday problem
Springs already held machines together. This one was sized so that, once started, gravity walked it from step to step. The toy was the spring itself.
The simple change
- He tested steels until the coil would walk instead of just bouncing.
- The patent was granted to Richard T. James on January 28, 1947.
- He and his wife sold it as a toy, the Slinky.
What happened
When the Slinky entered the National Toy Hall of Fame in 2000, more than 250 million had been sold.
What you can take from this
A part already used in machines can become a product if the size and material make it do something people want to watch.
A public story, told here as an example. It is not a client of this practice, and I had no part in it. Results like this are rare. Most patents never earn money, and nothing here is a promise that your idea will be patented or will make money.