What to do with your inventions

A dilemma with which all technical people are faced, at one time or another during their careers, is what to do with an idea or invention they have developed. Should they write about it? Obtain a patent? Sell it to a company? Or let it sit on the shelf? If you are a budding inventor, there are a few pointers you should know, even before you decide what to do with your idea. In any type of research, it is important for you to keep a bound diary — an explicit, well-documented record — describing every step from idea conception to final development. Your diary should also be witnessed at different points. This documentation will be valuable later.